Advanced Film:  Film Review Assignment

Block:                                    due date:

         Just as musicians study music by listening to other musicians, so should the serious filmmaker watch as many films as they can.  The objective of this assignment is to begin training your eye to be critical when watching films.  Being able to both watch a film and analyze it (while still enjoying it) is an art in itself.  This makes it necessary to watch the movie that you are reviewing at least twice.  The first time you watch it you can keep a note pad and jot down some basic information.  While watching your selected film for the first time, you should mainly relax and enjoy the movie without thinking too hard about it.  You can do this on the next and subsequent viewings. In order to really complete this assignment well, I suggest you watch the film at least twice.  The first time, to let the experience “wash” over you--take in the big picture, take written notes here and there, take mental notes.  On the second (or third) viewing, pay more attention to details, take more detailed notes, pause, rewind, playback, analyze.  Many of the more “important” or excellent films on DVD include a commentary track that you can turn on and listen to while watching the movie for the second time.  The commentaries are spoken either by the director, principle actors, film critics, or a combination of the above.  While watching the film and listening to the commentary you’ll often find them very interesting in their discussion of film craft, acting, or directing.  When the commentary track is available, you are bound to get some useful information that you can include in your paper.

       Selecting a film to review:  At the end of this assignment is a collage made up of many film posters.  There is also a spreadsheet of many films to choose from.  At present this spreadsheet contains 164 film titles; these are all films that I have seen and consider good opportunities for you to analyze.  There are also film posters in the classroom and in the hallway near our classroom.  You can ask me about any of these films, as I have seen most of them at least twice and consider them good films to watch for the serious film student (and you are all serious film students!)  You may select one of these films to review OR you may review a film of your choice.  HOWEVER, if you select a film that I haven’t suggested, you need to check with me to see if I will approve of your choice.  This is mainly because I will want to have seen the film or make arrangements to see it so that I can be informed about the overall plot structure of your review.  I also want you to check with me about whatever film you select, so that I can help you decide if it is an appropriate choice for you.  What I am looking for here is an example of a film that is remarkable in its style, technique, and/or historical significance.  I want to challenge you to watch a film that you might not otherwise see.  I am far less interested in entertainment for it’s own sake (although many of these films are entertaining).  So films like “Talladega Nights” or “Harold and Kumar Go to Whitecastle” don’t make it with me.  Many of the films I suggest come from the suggestions of famous filmmakers who reference other people’s films when talking about their own.  That’s why the 1941 film Citizen Kane is often cited as “the best movie ever made” in that it created several new techniques that have become conventions in the industry today.  Pulp Fiction is an example of a film that breaks the rules and establishes new conventions, in director Quentin Tarantino’s use of non-linear time.  Also, it is often the case that students bring new films to my attention that I have not seen.  This can be either new releases in theaters or old classics on DVD.

   When selecting your film to review, it does not matter if you have seen the film several times.  The more you watch a film that you like, the better, because you often notice more things on each viewing.

         It is important to note that some of the films are “R” rated, either due to language, violence, nudity, or sexual themes.  Please be sure that you understand that certain films have disturbing sequences or imagery.  This is another reason why I want you to check with me about your choice.  While a film such as “Requiem for a Dream” is a masterpiece, it also contains images in sequences that are deeply disturbing—especially the unrated version!  While some of you may be able to handle that, it is not the type of film I would ever show to a class.  It’s just too much. Please be sure that it’s okay with your parents if you rent an “R” rated film, and be aware that young siblings should not see some of these movies.

          I do not want a detailed summary of the story, rather, the points you make when answering the questions below should allude to parts of the story with the assumption that the reader has seen the film.  Answer the following questions as best you can.  Write in complete, detailed sentences.  When giving your opinion, back that up with your reasoning, or use examples from the film you are reviewing.  Speak with your peers and/or with me if you do not understand everything I am asking of you.

As detailed below, you can check out films and get information at the Internet movie database or at Netflix.  These sites also include trailers for you to watch to get an idea of the movies that you are considering for review.

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State the name of the film, who directed it, the principal actors, and who edited it.  This information can be found by going to either of these websites:  www.imdb.com

or www.netflix.com.

The first website is The International Film database, it is free and it has a search engine for basic film facts.  The second site is the address for Netflix, which is also a place where you can rent DVD’s from a database of over 30,000 film titles.  This site also lets you view trailers and reviews by its subscribers.  You can also view movie trailers there to see if you would like to watch a particular film.

Characters:  Who are the main characters?  Who is the hero?  The reflection?  The Nemesis?  Is there a romantic interest, and if so, who is that person?  Do you think they are important to the story or not?  Why?

Acting:  Are the characters believable?  Do they do a good job in conveying the story?

Why or why not?

Story?  Does the story work?  Does the plot seem believable? Does the film seem contrived?  Is there something new and unique about this film, or is it banal?  Why?

Genre:  What Genre would you characterize this film as?  If you are reviewing a film that is listed on the spreadsheet, you will see that I’ve attempted to categorize the films by genre.  I say, “attempted” because a film may not always fit neatly into one type of genre.  What one person sees as a comedy another may see as a drama.  Do you agree or disagree with my selection of genre?  You will also see that I include many foreign films from Spain, Italy, Japan, Germany, and Iran etc.  These films include English subtitles, which some find too distracting to read while trying not to miss the action on the screen.  The trade-off is that there is a wealth of excellent films not in the English language and you should try to open yourself up to watching them.  Here is a list of most genres of film:

Action/Adventure	Musical	Avant-Garde	Suspense
Sci-Fi/Fantasy	Experimental	Documentary	Horror
Drama/Tragedy/Romance	Neo-Realist	Biographical	Western
Comedy	Film Noir	Mystery	Animation

 Give a reason or reasons why you would characterize the film in the genre that you think best fits it.

Direction:  Do you think the director did a good job of drawing out the storytelling ability of the actors?  Why or why not?  What do you think the director’s vision was?

Dialogue:  Do you think the dialogue was interesting, funny, believable, or was it stilted, contrived, boring?  Give an example.

Narrative: What happens in the story?  How do the sequences within each scene advance the story?  How do the scenes advance the story? Is there an “arc” that the film follows within each scene and/or as the film advances through exposition, buildup of action, climax, and resolution? What is the climax?  How well do you think the ending works?  Could you think of a better ending?

Overall use of film elements:  Did the director rely more heavily on one or more elements of film in telling the story?  Which elements and how?

To answer this question, select three of the film language terms (listed below) and answer the questions.  If the film you are reviewing does not make any outstanding use of any of these listed techniques, then pick three anyway and state your opinion as to why you think the film did not work.  Make specific references to points in the movie that you are speaking about.  In answering the questions give your reasons of why or why not!

Editing:  Did the editor move you through time and space or did the movie drag?  Was time followed in a linear form, or was time followed in a non-sequential way?  Was there anything about the editing that was innovative, or was it too confusing?  Was the film too long, too short, or just right?  Does the sequencing make sense?  Is there anything remarkable about the visual rhythm of the editing?  Were the transitions effective?  Was cutting effective?  Were jumps in time or space acceptable, or not?  Give examples from the film in supporting your argument about whether or not the editing helps advance the story along an arc that builds to the climax.

Cinematography/camera angle:  Were the shots well framed? Were there many different shots, or was the photography basic, banal?  Did shots serve a purpose, make a point about a character or situation?  Did they give the viewer a good sense of place and time? Were the shots and sequences notable or basic?  Does it matter?    Did the director and editor rely on long takes with little cutting or lots of cutting?  Would the film have been better or worse with lots of fancy angles and cutting?  Or is the story more important to not be distracted by lots of fancy angles and cutting?  In other words, in your opinion, what type of editing best serves the advancement of the story?  Give descriptive examples.

Audio:  Were there examples of multilayered audio--sound effects, music, and ambient sound?  How were these elements used and to what effect?  Was the construction of the soundtrack an effective use of audio?  Was music used as a driving theme in the film, to make a point and underscore/emphasize a particular spot in the story, or was it more as filler, background?  Give examples.

Camera Movement:  Was camera movement used for any purpose or effect?  Was this evident to the point of being distracting, or was it effectively used?  Give examples.

Social/Historical context:  Is there anything significant about this film in terms of history, art, or society?  Does the film try to convince the audience of some point?  Is the film made more to entertain or to capture an essence of something?  Give reasons for why or why not.

         You can insert film stills from the movie to help make your point.  Film stills can be found at the imdb site or through google images.

         Finishing up:  Be sure to write a concluding paragraph!  You’ve worked this hard to get this far, put the finishing touches on your work!

Include a brief bibliography—cite the film you’ve reviewed and any Internet sources that you used for your research or images.  If citing web sources make note of the date that you accessed them.

How will I be graded?  See the grading rubric at the end of this page!

click here to see the Sarapas ever growing list of recommended film titles!   

Or paste this link into your browser:

http://www.lsrhs.net/departments/FATA/media_arts/adv_film/assignments/film_titles.pdf

	3 MASTERY	2 COMPETENT	1 Sub-Standard
Effective effort	Your essay includes the name of the film, director, principle actors, and film editor. Your essay answers ALL of the questions posed in the first section: characters, acting, story, genre, direction, dialogue, and narrative. Your essay includes three of the nine elements of film and answers posed with each element. Your essay includes a bibliography and citing of sources. 3 x 16 =48	Your essay is missing one of these four items: name of film, principle actors, or film editor. You did not answer all of the questions posed I the first section, or did not write in complete sentences. Your essay did not include three of the nine elements of film and/or did not answer the questions posed for each element with much detail. Your Bibliography or citing of sources is not complete. 2 x 19 = 38	You didn’t follow directions and use the provided scaffolding for this assignment. Your review is merely a rehash of the story and little or no analysis. You did not address any of the elements of film. You did not check with the teacher on which film to review and made an inappropriate or poor choice. No Bibliography or citing of sources. 2 x 14 = 28
Creative Effort	Your essay is correct with spelling and grammar.  Your essay is easy to read and understand.  You used one or more illustrations gotten from the internet. 3 x 16 =48	Poor grammar and/or spelling. Somewhat disorganized, hard to read. No illustrations. 2 x 19 = 38	Poor grammar, spelling, incomplete sentences. Very disorganized, hard to read. If there are illustrations, they are not used to make any coherent points. 2 x 14 = 28
Extra credit possibilities:	More than one illustration laid out well and captioned or referenced to in your narrative. More than three elements of film analyzed. Deeper analysis than the average review. (One that goes into the book) (Up to five points)