Learn Hardcore Danish: Jeg ser filmen, som er både sjov og spændende. - I watch the movie that is both funny and exciting.

at se = to see / to watch
- Jeg ser filmen. = I am watching / I watch the movie.
at se på = to look at (slightly more “directed” or conscious looking)
- Jeg ser på filmen. = I am looking at the movie (more like “looking at it”, the physical object or the screen).
at kigge (på) = to look (at) / to glance (at)
- Jeg kigger på filmen. = I am looking at the movie.

In the sentence “Jeg ser filmen, som er både sjov og spændende.”, ser is best because you are watching the movie (following the story), not just looking at the physical thing. It’s the normal verb used for watching films, TV, videos, etc.

Why is it “filmen” and not “en film”?

en film = a movie (indefinite, not specified)
- Jeg ser en film. = I’m watching a movie (we don’t know which).
filmen = the movie (definite, a specific one)
- Jeg ser filmen. = I’m watching the movie (a particular movie that both speaker and listener can identify).

Using filmen implies the movie is already known from the context (maybe you mentioned it earlier, or it’s obvious which movie you are talking about, e.g. the one on TV right now).

What does “som” do here, and what is the whole “som er både sjov og spændende” part?

Som is a relative pronoun here. It works like English “which/that”.

filmen, som er både sjov og spændende
= the movie, which is both funny and exciting

The part “som er både sjov og spændende” is a relative clause that gives extra information about filmen. It tells us more about the movie (what it is like).

Why is there a comma before “som”?

That comma marks the start of a non‑restrictive relative clause:

Jeg ser filmen, som er både sjov og spændende.
≈ I’m watching the movie, which is both funny and exciting.

Here, the clause “som er både sjov og spændende” adds extra/commenting information about the movie, not information needed to identify which movie.

In modern Danish punctuation, you will often see a comma before “som” in this kind of clause, especially in teaching materials. (In some styles, the comma can be omitted, but putting it there is very common and always safe in learner Danish.)

Can you use “der” instead of “som” here?

In theoretical grammar, some styles say you mainly use som (not der) in non‑restrictive relative clauses like this one.

You will hear sentences like:

Jeg ser filmen, der er både sjov og spændende.

in real spoken Danish, but for learners a safe rule of thumb is:

After a comma, in these “which is …” clauses, prefer som.
Use der mostly in restrictive clauses, especially where it functions as the subject:
- Den film, der er både sjov og spændende, vandt en pris.
  = The film that is both funny and exciting won a prize.

So in your exact sentence, som is the most standard and textbook‑friendly choice.

Why is it “sjov” and not “sjove” in “er både sjov og spændende”, even though “filmen” is definite?

This is about adjective agreement.

In Danish, adjectives can appear in (simplified):

Attributive position: directly before the noun
- en sjov film (a funny movie)
- den sjove film (the funny movie)
  Here the adjective shows definiteness: sjov → sjove.
Predicative position: after a linking verb like er (is)
- Filmen er sjov. (The movie is funny.)
- Filmene er sjove. (The movies are funny.)

In predicative position (after er), the adjective does not mark definiteness, only number:

Singular common or neuter: Filmen er sjov. / Huset er sjovt.
Plural: Filmene er sjove. / Husene er sjove.

So “sjov” is correct here because “er sjov” is a predicative construction, and the noun is singular.

Why is “spændende” the same form and not changing like sjov/sjove?

Spændende is a so‑called -ende adjective, formed from a verb (from at spænde / at spænde (interessere) → “excite”).

Adjectives in -ende are invariable in the singular: they don’t change for gender, number, or definiteness in the same way:

en spændende film (a exciting movie)
den spændende film (the exciting movie)
filmen er spændende (the movie is exciting)
filmene er spændende (the movies are exciting)

So “spændende” stays the same in “er både sjov og spændende”, regardless of definiteness or singular/plural.

What does “både … og …” mean and how is it used?

både … og … is a correlative pair meaning “both … and …”:

både sjov og spændende
= both funny and exciting

It links two parallel elements of the same type:

både sjov og spændende (two adjectives)
både børn og voksne (two nouns)
både at læse og at skrive (two infinitive verbs)

You generally put både directly before the first item and og (“and”) before the second:

Filmen er både lang og kedelig.
Hun kan både læse og skrive dansk.

What tense is “ser” in, and does it mean “see” or “am watching”?

Ser is the present tense of at se.

Danish present tense often covers both:

English simple present: I watch / I see
English present continuous: I am watching / I am seeing

So “Jeg ser filmen” can be translated by context as:

I am watching the movie (right now)
I watch the movie (regularly, less likely here, but grammatically possible)

In this particular sentence, with a specific movie and descriptive comments about it, the natural English is “I am watching the movie, which is both funny and exciting.”

Is “jeg ser filmen” more like “I see the movie” or “I watch the movie”?

In everyday Danish:

Jeg ser filmen usually means “I’m watching the movie” (sitting and watching it, engaging with it).
If you wanted to emphasise just perceiving it visually for a moment, you might say something like:
- Jeg kan se filmen. = I can see the movie. (e.g., it’s visible from here)

So for TV, movies, and so on, “se” is typically translated as “watch” in English.

Could the sentence also be “Filmen, som er både sjov og spændende, ser jeg.”? If so, what’s the difference?

Yes, grammatically that word order is possible:

Filmen, som er både sjov og spændende, ser jeg.

This is an example of fronting the object (Filmen) to the beginning of the sentence for emphasis or a more literary/formal style. It changes the focus slightly:

Jeg ser filmen, som er både sjov og spændende.
Neutral: focus is on I am watching the movie.
Filmen, som er både sjov og spændende, ser jeg.
More marked: focus is on the movie (this particular movie is what I’m watching).

For everyday speech, the original order (subject–verb–object) is much more common and natural.

How do you pronounce “sjov” and “spændende” approximately, using English sounds?

Approximate English‑based guidance (not perfect phonetics):

sjov
- sj sounds a bit like a soft “sh” but further back in the mouth.
- o here is a kind of short “oh/aw” sound.
- The final v is often weak, almost like a brief “w” or glottal stop.
- Roughly: “shyow” (said quickly as one syllable).
spændende
- spæ: like “speh” (short e as in bed).
- nde: more like “nen-eh”, but the consonants may be soft/slurred in casual speech.
- Altogether: roughly “SPEN-eh-neh”, with the stress on the first syllable: SPEN‑eh‑neh.

For accurate pronunciation, listening to native audio is essential, but these approximations can help you recognise the words.