Each person could find what he or she needs
in a movie: humor, adrenaline, drama, love,
a journey back through time, or an alternative
reality.
So, writing a movie review seems to be one
of the most interesting assignments for most students.
However, enjoying a good film in the evening
and watching it solely for the purpose of
writing a review are not quite the same.
Hey everyone, I’m Mark with EssayPro.com,
and our expert writers came up with a video
aimed to teach you how to avoid common mistakes
and how to write an excellent movie review.
Without further ado, let’s start by answering
the basic question: What is a Movie Review?
Generally, a movie review is a genre of art
criticism and journalism.
It is a complex overview, usually made by
a professional critic, on films that have
just been released, to help decide what film
to watch.
Professional reviews differ from those made
by amateurs; they are more structured, sharper,
more detailed, but at the same time 
more compact in wording.
In a professional movie review you will always
find awareness of the film’s director(s),
their previous works and previous filmmaker’s
pictures, as well as a deep understanding
of different film genres and classics for each of them, and filming techniques and modern trends.
Though, you can find a lot of reviews that
are made by ordinary movie fans — and sometimes
they can end up being more informative and
useful than a professional one.
The key to writing an outstanding movie review
is understanding its purpose.
So, keep your goals in mind while writing:
Share some information about
 characters, relations and events,
but don’t tell the whole story.
Reading the review shouldn’t 
replace watching the film.
Yet, you are free to mention the most important
moments or turning points that make the film
worth watching.
Analyze the film in general and in certain
aspects, such as the acting, the work of the
director, theme, music, and special effects.
Make a conclusion if the main idea of the
film was duly implemented.
Try to be objective and detailed in your evaluations.
Share your opinion.
Describe your feelings during, and after watching
the movie and specify what you liked, and
what you didn’t like.
Provide your general impression about the
film based on examples, descriptions, and
comparisons to enable readers to make their
own decisions.
Give a recommendation.
Try not to be categorical, but let your readers
know what they can expect from the film, and
who might find it interesting.
Say if it matches an official film description
and declared genre, why it might be worth
watching, and what its weaknesses are.
Entertain the reader.
Reading movie reviews is actually kind of
fun in itself.
We’ve, as a society, gotten used to using
this option before choosing a film to watch.
Try to make an easy-to-read review, and write
in an interesting manner.
Now, let's move to Step-by-Step Guide on How
to Write a Movie Review.
1. Choose a Film.
If you have a choice, think carefully about
what film you would like to analyse.
Surely most of us would choose one of our
favourites.
Though, it’s not obligatory to write a review
on tone of the films you like, you may write
about one you don’t like, and explain why.
Such an approach could be different and refreshing,
and could bring you extra credit.
2. Watch the Movie.
Even if you’ve seen it a hundred times,
watch it again in order to discover new details,
and to understand the characters and their
motives better.
We recommend watching a film at least two,
or better yet three times.
While watching it for the first time, we usually
concentrate on the main heroes, their storyline
and emotions.
The second time around usually helps you to
notice the details of minor characters and
their stories, such as music, timelines, costumes,
decorations and locations.
All these things contribute to how you perceive
the movie and your critique.
3. Make Notes.
Keep a paper and pen near you to write down
things you notice in the film, or to note
your ideas while watching, or 
right after it.
Write your notes immediately once an idea
comes to mind.
4. Research the Movie.
Filming is a long and complicated process
that involves many people, which usually makes
the shooting process an interesting story
in itself.
Find out as much as possible about it.
Is it an original scenario, or a re-telling or
a remake?
Is the plot based on a book?
What was the available budget?
How has the cast changed in the process?
Pick up two or three of the most impressive
facts about production and share them in your work.
5. Analyze the Movie.
Think about everything you saw in the movie
and determine your impressions of the film.
Does the picture involve any social context?
What was the original idea for the film and
how successful were the producers at implement
them?
Pay attention to how it was filmed and and
what techniques were used.
For example, in Psycho, produced and directed
by Alfred Hitchcock, we can definitely notice
an unusual zoom effect called vertigo.
Think of which actor impressed you
 the most and why.
Compare this role with his or her previous
works.
Discuss the movie you’ve chosen with your
friends or family to get fresh ideas to support
your opinion, or for another point of view.
6. Draft a Review Outline.
A plan is always a good idea, and could lead
to half of your success.
Before writing the actual movie review, make
an outline of your work to structure all your
thoughts and arguments.
Read further to get an example of a movie
review outline.
7. Come up with a Catchy Title
“My review for Titanic” sounds boring.
Think of intriguing or impressive title, like
“Why taking a cruise is not always a good idea”.
Make your readers want to read further.
8. Write Your Review.
Now after you’ve done your research and
prepared your work, it’s time to compose
everything together and write a review.
Put all your thoughts and arguments together
and stick to the outline you wrote before.
Make a general overview of the film so that
readers are able to understand what problems
might arise from it, but don’t spoil the outcome, as they might not have seen the movie yet.
Write main points that you liked, and ones
that you didn’t.
Reinforce your thoughts with evidence and
examples.
Comment on the originality of the movie and
compare it with other films of the same genre,
films with the same topic, or films directed
by the same person.
9. Edit Your Final Draft.
Once you’ve written your review, 
take a rest.
A little pause before a final reading and
editing will help you to look at it with a
fresh outlook.
Read your work several times.
Check for spelling errors, grammatical mistakes,
the sequence of presentation, compliance with
the outline and professor’s demands, and
the format and style.
Structuring is extremely useful in any type
of paper and a movie review is not an exception.
A written outline will help you organise your
thoughts properly, not to forget anything
and to actually end up writing it faster.
Here is an example outline you may use:
Introduction.
In this part you need to provide some general
information about the picture: title, release date,
main actors, filmmakers, film company
and filming budget.
Summary of the story.
This is a short exposition of movie plot,
characters and their interaction.
Analysis of the movie, that includes:
Analysis of the plot elements: starting point,
rising action, and climax.
Analysis of creative elements: dialogues,
characters, use of colors, camera techniques,
mood, tone, symbols, costumes or anything
that contributes or takes away from the overall plot.
Analysis of the topic and its implementation:
viewers’ understanding of the topic, relevance
of the topic, and comparison with 
other resembling works.
Opinion.
Your point of view supported with examples
and facts from the story.
Conclusion.
Announce whether the filmmaker was successful
in his/her purpose.
Explain how the motion picture was helpful
in providing a deeper understanding of the
course topic.
Some relevant examples can be found on our
Blog’s Article dedicated to this topic.
Check them out for more in-depth understanding
of the overall process.
Now the promised bunch of some common mistakes
among students that we recommend you avoid.
1. Retelling the film plot in detail.
As we mentioned above, the idea of a movie
review is not to put the film on paper—
nobody likes spoilers.
Share the general plot to make your reader
curious about seeing the film in order to
get their personal opinion.
2. Giving a too general opinion of the film.
Remember that things are rarely unequivocal.
Even if you don’t like the content and quality
of the film, don’t forget to mention if
the music was actually pretty good, or if
one of the actors managed to portray a believable
character.
3. Lack of evidence.
Presenting your opinion without any explanation
why you think that way won’t be considered
reliable.
The unfounded statement isn’t a good resource
for a decision, even if we are talking about
a choice of which movie to watch.
4. Lack of film research.
Don’t force your readers to conduct their
own research, or to look for another review
to find out the background information of
a movie.
5. Absence of structure.
If your work is not structured properly, it
will be really difficult to follow your thoughts
and to understand your points.
Reviews should be helpful to readers, and
good structure helps to get your message across
correctly.
6. No conclusions and recommendations.
As we mentioned above, providing recommendations
regarding the film is one of the main purposes
of writing a movie review.
Do not deprive readers from your findings
and thoughts.
By advising a good movie to watch, you may
make someone’s evening.
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