He became practically fluent in a matter of days-weeks
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — The Terminal
CharlesVariations — 12 years ago(February 07, 2014 10:48 PM)
Sure Viktor would have picked up some English but there is no way he would have been able to speak English as well as he was able to do.
I lived in Russia for almost 4 months there was no way in hell I became anywhere close to fluent, but I knew how to ask directions and have light conversations, ask things like "how to say this.." "where is this.." "What is this called?" etc. I could order food, use the subway. Let's just say I knew it well enough to get around wherever and whenever I wanted. I picked some of it up from picture books such as children's books and watching cheburashka because they spoke simple Russian.
What struck me was that he was able to carry on conversations and understand extremely complex conversations. There's no way I would have been able to carry on a fluid conversation the way he does, even after 4 months when I stayed. My program director said it took living in Russia for 5 years to pick it up and speak fluently. As beautiful as Russia is, or at least St. Petersburg, living there for 5 years is not something I could do. I still love it and will go back, but will never live. It's a whole diff. reality to live there rather than to study there or vacation there.
With all this being said, It's just not believable at all that he picked up english as well as he did. -
mikediastavrone96 — 11 years ago(April 16, 2014 10:16 AM)
He was in there for a year and was only ever away from fluent English speakers when he was sleeping. And even by the end, he wasn't able to communicate fluently, but he was able to understand others (in my experience learning Chinese and Spanish, it's easier to understand someone else fluently speaking it than it is to speak it fluently yourself).
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Fleurus — 10 years ago(April 16, 2015 05:13 AM)
Necessity makes you pick up a language pretty quick.
At four and a half, I was sent on a three weeks holiday in Spain to a family I didn't know, under the care of a 25 year old girl.
The house was in the middle of nowhere near a small village.
After two weeks I was able to understand Spanish but I couldn't speak although the family would urge me to do so.
Then, one day, the girl promised to buy me a book I was desperate to have if I spoke Spanish and, the day after, I did.
I still remember the way it felt. It came out of nowhere and it surprised me.
So I can understand a guy, in a situation like this one, would be able to speak a little English, after a few months. Not forgetting he is Slavic and Slavic people are notorious for being good at languages. -
CharlesVariations — 10 years ago(April 17, 2015 10:03 PM)
That was because you were 4 years old and they pick that stuff up easier at that age. It'd be the same thing if you were learning an instrument at 4 compared to this man learning an instrument in the movie. You would play it better.
Only people with money say that money doesn't matter. -
Premmie — 3 years ago(November 13, 2022 12:20 PM)
Sure Viktor would have picked up some English but there is no way he would have been able to speak English as well as he was able to do.
I lived in Russia for almost 4 months there was no way in hell I became anywhere close to fluent, but I knew how to ask directions and have light conversations, ask things like "how to say this.." "where is this.." "What is this called?" etc. I could order food, use the subway. Let's just say I knew it well enough to get around wherever and whenever I wanted. I picked some of it up from picture books such as children's books and watching cheburashka because they spoke simple Russian.
Buna, if you watch it the movie Splash u will see Maddinson is learn to speak just one day, hana