Film Reviews

Key Question: Can I write a professional film review?

First things first. All film reviews are, by definition, subjective. That is to say, there is no right or wrong answer: a review is an opinion, even though some people's opinions are more valued than others: Roger Ebert and Mark Kermode are two highly regarded critics, and both are famously opinionated.

Your task: To write a professional film review for a film of your choice. 

I will publish the best 3-4 on this blog for next week.

A conventional structure to a film review is as follows. You can follow this, or vary from the formula. (Note, Language B students: the English Paper 2 exam has had a film review as a quesion in 3 of the last 6 years, so this might be extra useful...)

1. Credits
Offer the imdb basics, without being too dull. You can assume your audience are film goers, but might need reminders about who's who. You don't need to explain who Tom Hanks or Angelina Jolie are, but you might need to remind readers that Paul Giamatti is the guy from Sideways.

2. Synopsis of the plot
- Harder than it seems. A good synopsis is extremely difficult, and a good challenge of your written skills.
- Spoilers: if you are going to give away key plot moments, you must offer a spoiler alert. A good review, like a good trailer, will offer an indication of the plots, themes and tone of the film without spoiling the film (which doesn't just man giving away the ending).
3. Characters, Genre and Theme
- This might well be included within the synopsis, but you should expand on the role of the main characters: what is their 'journey', if you like. In films like Transformers, which have absolutely no narrative whatsoever, this can be very difficult as your characters just go from one place to another for no reason whatsoever, other than the fact that they are being paid.

4. Your opinions, comparisons and conclusions
- Finally, offer your opinion and set the film in the wider context through comparison. Ideally, finish on a witty final line.
If you loved Black Swan, then you'll probably enjoy... Or, If you liked Black Swan, you should hire Aronovsky's Requiem For A Dream (2001).

OK. Get reviewing.