College Movie (Documentary) Review

Writing a Movie Review for a College Class

Many students feel puzzled when they are faced with a movie review for a college or university class. However, this is one of the greatest tasks, as it brings the joy of watching a movie, which makes this task much easier than reading a long book or having a lab work.

 Why Should We Write Them Anyway?

With the blistering development of cinema and easy Internet access to various movie libraries, many teachers and professor started to include movie reviews into the studying course. While this may seem weird to some students, it’s actually an amazing idea, as students can develop analytical thinking and have a different type of learning available.

In order to help you prepare a perfect movie review for any film or documentary, we have created a simple list of things, which you need to cover in your review to get a good grade.

Movie Review Structure

While writing a good movie review or a college class, you have to remember this is not only the matter of personal preferences. Students are usually asked to critically evaluate a film, or compare a movie to a book. Take a notebook to watch a movie and make notes along the way. Before you start, sketch out a plan for your future paper and remember to include the following movie review elements.

• Title. It is important to state what movie you are writing about. Does the title match the movie? How can you interpret it? Can you say that it is intriguing? Does it match the genre? A great movie title should be with intriguing and captive, so that the audience could remember it. For example Requiem for a Dream or The Perks of Being A Wallflower.
• Plot. Summarize what happens in the movie (documentary). Don’t be afraid to cover everything, as you are not writing a review for an IMDB, but for your college class. Imagine your professor has not seen it. How did events unfold?
• Filmmaker. Do a little research and add some information about the person who directed this piece. Are they famous, and if yes, what for? Do they have a specific background in the subject matter?
• Cast. Do you like the casting choices? Are they good? Do they fit this movie or documentary? Are these actors famous for any other roles? Can they relate to the hero in any way (relevant experience, life choices, etc.)?
• Screening & special effects. Is there any computer graphics in the movie? Are there any great shots that you can clearly remember and describe? If so, you definitely should include their description.

• Significance. How does this particular movie or documentary contribute to your course? If you are taking a history class, make sure you pay attention to over-acting or historical mistakes of any kind. Are you taking Literature and need to describe a screen adaptation? Make sure you cover the differences in the descriptions of scenery and in the way the characters look.
• Personal impression. Add a few words about your feelings concerning this movie. Did you like it? What was great or terrible about it?

Summary

After you have finished writing you movie review, let it lie on your desk for a little while. If you have some time and you liked the movie, you can watch it one more time to make sure you didn’t miss anything. Then pay attention to editing and proofreading, and when you are sure it’s perfect, you can send it, print it out or publish it (depending on the task you have).