Search - Basic German & Russian on Dvd on DVD

This One Rates a Minus Ten

Joan Altieri | West Babylon, New York United States | 05/19/2007

(1 out of 5 stars)

"This is a colossal waste of money. There is no possible way a sane human being can sit through this crashing bore of a DVD without falling asleep. Nothing happens; none of the material is presented in context; the ersatz lessons make no pedagogical sense.
First, there's a voice rapid-firing the alphabet. Too bad for you if you can't follow it--especially the Russian. Then the voice moves on to present and past conjugations of "to have" and "to be." Again, tough luck if you aren't linguistically buff enough to keep up. There are no pictures. There are no conversations, no grammar explanations, no graphics, and no way to extend the lists of words and expressions into real-life situations. One hears nothing but that voice and sees nothing except that white-on-black print.
Why put this blah-blah-blah on an expensive DVD? To get your money, that's why. Don't say you haven't been warned. If only the ratings allowed minus stars, this would come in at an easy minus ten.
"

Pricey, but a winning track record!

Brendan M. Howard | Kansas, USA | 10/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"There's a reason the language lessons for this series -- which includes German & Russian, Spanish & Portuguese, French & Italian, Japanese & Chinese, and Arabic, Hebrew & Yiddish -- look a little dated: They ARE. But that doesn't take away from their proven effectiveness in the classroom for an age range from older children to adults. The titles are a bit pricey, but they really will work to provide those new to a language with enough basics to get along as a tourist or a polite businessman or businesswoman. Those with a portable DVD player or laptop can brush up on their lessons before and during their trips."