25 Nov
Learning Italian & watching tv series on Netflix
We have never heard so much about Netflix – perhaps – as this year. 2020 has put us to the test, but luckily there are always a lot of things to do and new opportunities to seize even when we are forced to change our habits, at least for a while. Many people, since March, forced within the four walls of the home, have begun to give rise to creativity as best they could. Thus, while some have worked hard to prepare cakes and bake bread at will with a lot of yeast hunting in supermarkets (ah, Italy, a land of bakers!), others have allowed themselves to finally read that book that stood out on the bedside table from months and… yes, others still haven’t been able to break away from Netflix for a moment. On social media there are even challenge games of all kinds and a competition for those who had not seen that film or that series before the others. And so, this platform, along with many others, has managed to ride a very high wave, making itself known to most even by providing some of its distributions for free use.
5 tv series to learn italian
But let’s take a step back. Why, apart from Netflix, is it important to watch original language movies?This is a bit strange said by us, since we know, the Italian cinema system uses dubbing a lot and also has a great history of voice actors. Yes, we confess, most Italians (but not all, eh!) Love to see translated films and it is always difficult to find original language films at the cinema. A custom that may appear bizarre. Many of our students, in fact, often tell us that in their country of origin dubbing is very strange. And then, we confirm, even absolute beginners know a few words of our language thanks to the intelligent habit of watching films in Italian.
If you are also nodding you who are reading, here, keep it up! Why? Understanding a language is the first step in learning to speak it.
Subtitles
If you are a complete beginner, you can follow the film in its original language with subtitles translated into your language. This will be the first step to familiarize yourself with Italian, it doesn’t matter if you don’t understand anything now. You will understand! It’s also useful to watch the same movie or episode several times…someone like it, right?
If you already know Italian, it’s always OK to put subtitles, but in Italian this time! It does not matter if a few words escape you anyway, it is always important to be able to understand the general context and in this case the images are fundamental. Modern teaching, in fact, wants it to be the entirety of the discourse to be understood, single terms do not matter, those also escape natives. It is an amazing ability of the brain to put the pieces together and make sense of everything, did you know? We have already talked about it in other articles.
In short, if you fail to grasp the key words necessary to dissect the film, you can always press the rewind button and go back a little. Repetita iuvant! And what’s the problem?
That said, here’s our selection of 5 NETFLIX Italian series that you definitely shouldn’t miss (but don’t forget the VPN if you don’t live in Italy)!
Suburra
3 seasons, 24 episodes and countless grams (?) of adrenaline. This series is set in Ostia, a district of Rome, a treasure trove of beauties but also often a victim of crime. The plot bounces between the stories of politicians, criminals and even ordinary people, against the backdrop of some criminal deals aimed at winning contracts for the construction of a marina. Aureliano and Spadino, full-blown criminals, will know how to win you over, we are sure. Don’t do it yourself at home (whatever it is)! (semicit.).
Luna nera
Brand new series of 2020, there is only one season for the moment. In short, you still have time to recover it. If you are the dark type, you like dark atmospheres and witchcraft, welcome, you are in the right place.
Baby
3 seasons (2018, 2019, 2020) and 18 episodes. Based on a skilfully fictionalized true story, this series shows us, like many others, a Rome far removed from Fellini’s Dolce Vita. It is inspired by the baby call scandal of 2013, a black moment in the Italian news that saw some minors in the Parioli district of Rome, inhabited by respectable society, approach the world of prostitution. One of the most famous quotes in the series, in fact, is: “feelings are only illusions, but money is real”. Look at it with passion and deny it.
Skam Italia
We are also here in adolescence, we are also here in Rome. Four seasons of love, discovery, revealed identity and teen dramas, all told through chat and social media posts. Based on a Norwegian format, this teen drama sees surprisingly good actors on the scene and is certainly one of the series that is talked about so much in Italy. To advise you we rely on Michela Murgia, one of the most appreciated local voices ever, who said: “Skam should be seen and possibly even reviewed, because it is beautiful. The amount of themes it contains – sentimental education, sex, gender dynamics, homosexuality, multiculturalism – and the way they are treated is delicate and credible, devoid of rhetoric. Everything is well done, from the dialogues to the amazing direction, from the acting to the soundtrack ”.
Curon
Another emerging series of the last year of this first twenty years of the twenty-first century, Curon, adapting well to an at least strange period of current events, to put it mildly, is a respectable dark series. Set in Curon Venosta in South Tyrol, a land with a slightly Italian and a little German soul, this series deals with the theme of the double and will be broadcast in 190 countries. The landscape is very interesting and boasts the main attraction of the village, a bell tower submerged by the waters. Netflix presents it like this: “After 17 years, a woman returns to her country of origin with her children. When he disappears, the boys will have to face disturbing secrets of the place and their family. ”
Let us know which one is your favorite. And remember: “Communication starts not from the mouth that speaks but from the ear that listens.”
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