Talking About Films and TV Shows in German

When discussing German films and television, you’ll often use specific verbs to talk about how you watch or access content. For example, streamen and abrufen are used to describe streaming or retrieving episodes online. A single episode is die Episode, while a whole series is die Serie. For non-serialized programs, you might say die Show. When a TV station broadcasts a show, the verb is senden. During a program, commercials are called die Werbung, and viewers are referred to as der Zuschauer.

Examples:

• Ich habe gestern eine neue Serie gestreamt.
• Der Zuschauer kann die Episode jederzeit abrufen.
• Die Show wird um 20 Uhr gesendet.

Describing Plot, Characters, and Settings

Describing the elements of a film or TV show is a key skill. The main story is die Handlung, and the premise is die Prämisse. The mood or atmosphere is die Stimmung, and the set where the action takes place is das Set. If something is overly dramatic or silly, you might say it is übertrieben or absurd.

Main characters include der Protagonist (the protagonist), der Held (the hero), and der Antagonist (the antagonist or villain). All the people in the story are referred to as der Charakter (the character) or die Charaktere (the characters). If a character appears for the first time, it’s called das Debüt.

When you talk about how a film or scene makes you feel, you use das Gefühl (the feeling), and if something is funny, you say komisch. If something is emotional, say it can bewegen (move/touch). Special plot developments are die Wendung (the twist) or, at the end, das Finale.

Examples:

• Die Handlung war sehr dramatisch.
• Der Protagonist und der Antagonist waren sehr überzeugend.
• Das Set hat die Stimmung gut eingefangen.

Evaluating Films and TV Shows

When evaluating a film or show, you can bewerten (rate) or write die Rezension (the review) or die Filmkritik (the film critique). To say something is good, use gut, and if it’s bad, schlecht. If you really like a film, use empfehlen (to recommend).

Examples:

• Ich habe den Film gesehen und er war gut.
• Ich kann diese Serie empfehlen.
• Die Rezension war schlecht, aber der Film war spannend.

German television and cinema have a long tradition, with diverse genres and styles, from dramatic (dramatisch) productions to comedies (komisch). The audience’s (der Zuschauer) response can vary greatly, and critics (die Filmkritik) play a significant role in shaping public opinion.