Practise this cue card out loudPrepare for 1 minute, speak for up to 2 minutes, then compare with the Band 8 sample and try the Part 3 questions.
Film cards (“a film you watched more than once”, “your favourite film”, “a film that made you think”) are easy to prepare, but candidates often spend two minutes retelling the plot. Give a short summary, then focus on why you return to it. Here is a plan, a Band 8 sample answer about Spirited Away and the Part 3 questions about films.
How to plan your answer in one minute#
You get one minute and a pencil. Don’t write sentences: note one or two key words per point, plus a detail or two that will make your story vivid. For example:
- what the film is about: Spirited Away, Hayao Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli, animated
- when you first watched it: girl, Chihiro, trapped in a spirit world, works in a bathhouse to save her parents
- why you watched it again: first at 12 with my dad; again as a student; now notice new details
- explain why you like it: beautiful hand-drawn animation, about growing up and courage, different at each age
Practise, then compare: Band 8 sample answers
Record your own answer first, listen back, then compare. Don’t memorise these: examiners spot memorised answers. Borrow the structure and the highlighted vocabulary instead.
Part 2 sample answer (cue card)
Cue card
Describe a film you have watched more than once.
You should say:
- what the film is about
- when you first watched it
- why you watched it again
- and explain why you like it.
Sample answerShowHide
The film I’ve watched more times than any other is *Spirited Away*, an animated film by the Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki and his company, Studio Ghibli.
It tells the story of a ten-year-old girl called Chihiro who is moving to a new town with her parents. On the way, they wander into what seems to be an abandoned theme park, which turns out to be a world of spirits. Her parents are turned into pigs, and to save them, Chihiro has to work in a huge bathhouse for spirits, where she gradually becomes braver and more independent.
I first watched it when I was about twelve. My dad had heard it was a masterpiece, even though it was a cartoon, so we watched it together one rainy weekend. Honestly, parts of it frightened me at that age, but I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
I’ve watched it again three or four times since then, partly because it’s comforting and partly because I notice something new every time. When I was a child, I saw it as an adventure. Watching it again as a student, I realised it’s really about growing up: about leaving your comfort zone, working hard and not forgetting who you are.
What I like most is the animation. It was mostly drawn by hand, and every scene is full of tiny details, like steam rising from the bath or the way light falls on water. It also has a wonderful soundtrack. And unlike many films, it doesn’t divide characters neatly into good and bad, which makes it feel more realistic, strangely enough. It’s one of those rare films that seems to grow up with you.
Useful language:tells the story ofturns out to bea masterpieceleaving your comfort zonedrawn by handa wonderful soundtrackgrow up with you
Part 3 sample answers
Why do people like watching films?
Sample answerShowHide
Films offer an escape from everyday life and a way to experience places, times and emotions we would never otherwise encounter. They’re also social, something to share with friends or family and talk about afterwards. And a good film can make people think about issues in a new way.
Useful language:an escape from everyday lifemake people think
Is it better to watch films at the cinema or at home?
Sample answerShowHide
Each has advantages. The cinema offers a big screen, powerful sound and fewer distractions, which suits action films and special-effects blockbusters. Watching at home is cheaper, more comfortable and flexible, since you can pause whenever you like. I’d say the cinema is for special films and home is for everyday viewing.
Useful language:blockbustersflexible
Do you think animated films are only for children?
Sample answerShowHide
Not at all. Many animated films deal with complex themes like loss, identity or the environment, and they’re made with adults in mind as well. Animation is just a technique, like live action, and it can tell any kind of story. Some of the most moving films I’ve seen are animated.
Useful language:complex themesmade with adults in mind
How has streaming changed the film industry?
Sample answerShowHide
Streaming has made a huge range of films available instantly and cheaply, including foreign and independent films that were once hard to find. However, it has hurt cinemas, and some people worry that algorithms push viewers towards similar content. Films are also increasingly made to be watched on small screens.
Useful language:available instantlyalgorithms
Want your own answer scored? With Worddemy Pro, the AI examiner asks you real Part 1–3 questions and gives a band score for fluency, vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation.
Why this answer would score well#
- A short, accurate plot summary (three sentences), leaving most of the time for personal response.
- Explains the “more than once” point with a smart contrast: an adventure as a child, a story about growing up as a student.
- Film vocabulary: animated, masterpiece, soundtrack, drawn by hand, tells the story of.
- A memorable conclusion: one of those rare films that seems to grow up with you.
Other ideas you could talk about#
You don’t have to use a true story, and you can adapt one you know well. Other good choices:
- A comedy you watch when you need cheering up
- A film based on a book you love
- A film from your country
- A documentary that changed your opinion
Mistakes to avoid#
- Retelling the whole story scene by scene. Keep the summary to three sentences.
- Revealing nothing personal. Say who you watched it with and how it made you feel.
- Saying “movie” and “film” interchangeably is fine, but avoid “a film of action”. Say an action film.
Want more? Practise a random card with the 2-minute timer in the cue card generator, or see every Speaking topic with sample answers.