Shadowing Practice: Anne Hathaway Rewatches The Princess Diaries, The Devil Wears Prada & More | Vanity Fair - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Sorry, I just have to pause.
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Sorry, I just have to pause.
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Just so you understand, all of you have seen this movie way more recently than I have.
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It's been, if not over a decade,
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maybe two decades since I've seen this movie.
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So this is like, this is amazing.
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Hello, I'm Anne Hathaway, and today I will be rewatching scenes from throughout my career.
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You're late.
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I know.
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I'm really sorry about it.
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And where is Paolo?
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Send in Paolo.
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Regina mia.
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Buongiorno.
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We're so pleased you could make yourself available to be here.
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I'm sorry.
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I just have to pause there and say,
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how radiant is Julie Andrews?
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I was 17 years old when we made this.
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And so I hadn't met as many people yet in my life.
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And so I knew Gary Marshall was really special.
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And I knew Julie Andrews was really special.
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but now sitting here watching this from this point of view,
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they are two of the most magical people I have ever met.
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This was the film that changed my life.
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Like, it's so weird to watch it.
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I haven't seen this movie in maybe 20 years,
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and I'm a little bit speechless with this one.
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This is, it's actually, it's very emotional to see it.
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Like a wolf.
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He's all right.
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So he really had to break the brush in this.
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They pre-broke the brush and it was supposed to break kind of easily,
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but it didn't quite happen.
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So that's me and Larry kind of improv-ing,
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trying to get it to go.
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And I don't remember if the owl was real or if I was just buying him some time.
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But the brush was being stubborn that day.
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Take this and this and give you a princess.
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I don't know what to say.
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It's like it's almost too big to...
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It just...it felt so big at the time and it wound up being
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so big and it's kind of just gotten bigger as my life has progressed.
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So this is total fusion of life and work
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and all the things and I'm just so proud to be in this movie.
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I'm really glad that I'm that girl right there.
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This is foul.
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Don't let her see it.
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Go!
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Emily is so brilliant in this movie.
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I mean, period, but like also she's just like...
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...consuming.
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Sorry, I just have to pause.
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Just so you understand, all of you have seen this movie way more recently than I have.
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It's been, if not over a decade,
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maybe two decades since I've seen this movie.
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So this is like, this is amazing.
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Yeah, I came to New York to be a journalist
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and sent letters out everywhere and finally got a call from Elias Clark
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and met with Sherry up at Human Resources and basically it's this or Otto universe.
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So you don't read Runway.
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I was there the first time Meryl walked into that set
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and I saw the way she respected the work of our production designer,
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but also like crafted it into something that felt more the way she saw the character and I just,
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I was such a sponge around her.
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I just wanted to absorb everything the way she did it.
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Look at that wig.
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Oh my God, Roy J.
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Helland, who is the next,
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like next level at his craft.
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And you have no style or sense of fashion.
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Wow.
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And just look at my wonderful costume.
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I mean, I know the costumes wind up becoming more glamorous,
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but I have to say that is post-grad frump gorgeousness right there.
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I remember thinking the corduroy,
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the corduroy of the jacket felt like the right choice.
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And I knew that that color sweater,
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that the kind of bruised lilac,
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wasn't the most flattering on me.
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So yeah, sorry, I'm taking up too much time.
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Oh my gosh, reminiscing is fun.
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That wasn't a question.
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I was editor-in-chief of the Daily Northwestern.
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She's being very good right now.
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I also won a national competition for college journalists with my series on the janitor's union,
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which exposed the exploitation of...
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When you were shooting this film,
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did you have any sense for how huge it would become?
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Yeah, I did.
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I did.
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Not as huge as it's become,
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but I just had a magnetic quality to me that I had to be a part of it.
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Not this, though.
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that it's just sort of woven into the culture now and it's become such a touchstone for so many people.
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I didn't realize it was gonna have such a lasting impression,
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so I didn't realize it was gonna be, leave such a legacy.
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Sorry, sorry.
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I remember every second.
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I remember every second of all of this,
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but I remember every second of this.
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It is Mr. Wayne, isn't it?
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I'm so thrilled I'm in this movie.
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You wouldn't beat up a woman any more than I would beat up a cripple.
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Oh, that's such a good edit.
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Sometimes exceptions have to be made.
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Oh my, I worked so hard on this backflip.
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Good night, Mr. Wayne.
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Christopher Nolan came to me at the beginning of production.
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He said, I'd like you to train very hard for this.
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It has nothing to do with anything except that I would like you to do as many of your stunts as possible.
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As much as of the fighting anything that isn't like a ridiculously special skillset,
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like riding the Batpod, I want to be you.
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And I want you to be able to do it every single take,
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which, and sometimes we film these sequences for three days.
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And I said, sign me up, no problem.
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And so I went straight to the gym.
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And up to this point,
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this was the hardest I'd ever trained for a role physically.
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Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman was everything to me growing up.
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So when I found out that there was a chance for someone of my generation to play this,
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to play Selina Kyle.
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I was just like, I don't,
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I, I'm with Christopher Nolan in this franchise that was so unlike anything that had ever been.
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I wanted to do her justice.
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And it's kind of cool to see it right after those
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first two roles where I was playing such kind of younger women who were a little insecure and unsure of themselves,
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they're stuttering a little bit more.
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And to see the scene begin that,
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and then that oops happens.
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Oops.
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Nobody told me it was uncrackable.
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I'm kind of amazed that this happened and that that's me.
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That's really cool.
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Exciting.
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I just feel really bad for her.
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So my mother played this part and we were talking about it,
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just the song and the interpretation.
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And I told her that I sort of imagined,
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you know when you're watching a match go out and you just hope it stays alight,
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but it shrinks and you just want it to hold on, but it doesn't.
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That's what this song is for me.
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It's the extinguishing of a flame,
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which is just so sad.
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So when I see that,
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I'm watching someone's life like drain out of them.
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So it's just, it's hard to watch.
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The thing that was so magical about singing live is that you're in some ways the conductor
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the performer at the same time.
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Like right at the end you can see I kind of held some emotion come up
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and I took a few extra breaths.
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If you're on stage or in maybe a larger number or
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if you're doing it to a track you have to decide all of those things in advance
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and so a spontaneous thing occurring like that it might not make it into the movie.
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And so being able to do it live allowed us a certain amount of emotional freedom.
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It also demanded quite a lot of technical I found the process fascinating.
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You know, it was hard,
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but that's the kind of hard that you pray for.
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I had a dream my life would be.
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So different from this how I'm living.
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Russell Crowe was such an important part of the process
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because he would have us over on Friday nights and we would sing in front of each other. And
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And that was such a huge part of breaking down nervousness
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and fear and us getting used to just being this film family,
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this cast, this ensemble, where singing was just as normal as talking.
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I don't know that they've done a live sung musical since.
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It had never been attempted before.
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So I don't know.
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We went through something really beautiful.
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This is a surprise.
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I did some online sleuthing for a salon of Silver Lake
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and well I have this fairly large empty flat in London that desperately needs some artwork.
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So I was thinking maybe you could...
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Okay.
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I'm wearing vintage Chanel in this and
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that purple on the top became such an essential thread to my character
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because she is a gallery owner and
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so she really responds like in an almost psychedelic way to color and that color like led me through finding her.
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So much of this movie is about a woman's bloom at a stage in her life where she's,
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I mean, women are often told that we're going too dull,
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but actually she opens and learns more.
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And so the color palette in this movie was so important.
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And anyway, I'm just really enjoying seeing it.
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So these pieces were thrown by a fantastic pottery work with called Susan Habel.
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She threw them at the wall?
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No, she, that's what they call it when they do the work on the wheel.
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It's called throwing.
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Right.
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Right.
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This was the audition scene.
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We met with amazing, amazing actors for this role.
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And Nick kind of had the part from the second he just walked in,
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he was just it.
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He was everything we needed.
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We needed such a specific talent for this.
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Like the movie needed it.
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He needed to be able to sing, act, dance.
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He needed to be charming.
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You needed to, I mean,
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we're just so lucky that Nick Gallat's scene is here.
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I'm proud.
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I'm not someone who spends a lot of time looking back or reflecting.
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I work really hard to be present and to look at what's coming.
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So this has actually been a joy.
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And I'm really proud to have the filmography that makes me so happy and brings me so much pride.
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That's lovely.
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Thanks for watching.
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Context & Background
In this enlightening video, acclaimed actress Anne Hathaway revisits memorable scenes from her iconic films, such as The Princess Diaries and The Devil Wears Prada. Through Hawathway's personal reflections, we gain insight into her experiences on set, the significance of her roles, and the emotional weight these films carry for her. As Hathaway re-examines her past work, viewers can relate to the powerful blend of nostalgia and growth, making this video a valuable resource for those looking to enhance their English speaking practice.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- “I'm really sorry about it.” - A polite way to apologize.
- “How radiant is [name]?” - Complimenting someone.
- “This is like, amazing.” - Expressing excitement or admiration.
- “I don’t know what to say.” - A common expression when feeling overwhelmed.
- “It just felt so big at the time.” - Reflecting on significant experiences.
Step-by-step Shadowing Guide
If you're looking to improve your speaking skills, using the shadowing technique while watching this video is an excellent approach. Follow these steps to maximize your learning:
- Choose a segment: Start by picking a short scene from the video that resonates with you. Given Hathaway's emotional reflections, scenes discussing her experiences can be a good start.
- Listen carefully: Play the selected segment and pay close attention to Hathaway's pronunciation, intonation, and emotion. Take note of any expressions or phrases that stand out.
- Repeat after her: Use a shadowing app or a simple pause-and-play method to repeat her lines immediately after she speaks. Focus on mimicking the rhythm and emotion in her voice.
- Practice active listening: Listen to the same section multiple times to familiarize yourself with the language and nuances. This is a key phase in your IELTS speaking practice.
- Record and compare: Record yourself while shadowing and listen to the playback. Compare your pronunciation and emotion with Hathaway's delivery to identify areas for improvement.
Using this method will help you not only learn English with YouTube but also appreciate the artistry of acting and dialogue delivery. Embrace the journey, and watch your confidence in English communication grow!
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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