How to Write a Movie Review With Our Template Based Example
Did you know that a lot of people around the world read reviews before watching a movie? Yes, it’s true. A Statista survey was taken out last September in the United States which shows that 12 percent of moviegoers watch reviews before watching a movie while about 2 percent do it rarely.
However, a good movie review is not just about to rate the movie but provides explicit information from different angles. Reviewers must understand how to write a movie review to write an effective one.
What Is A Movie Review?
A movie review is when someone gives their thoughts on a film, pointing out what’s good and what’s not so good, and how it all comes together.
They look at things like the story, the acting, how it’s directed, how it looks on camera, the dialogue, the themes, and if it’s entertaining. These reviews can help you decide if a movie is worth watching.
Why Students Have To Write A Movie Review?
Learning how to write a movie review is not just for film reviewers or movie critics. Many Students might have to write film reviews for several reasons, such as:
Academic Assignments
Writing a movie review can be part of student coursework. However, many top teaching universities indulge students in such writing to develop critical thinking, analytical, and writing skills among them. It helps them apply theoretical knowledge learned in classes to practical evaluation.
Extracurricular Activities
Writing reviews might be part of journalism, media studies, or film club activities, allowing students to express their opinions, share insights, and discuss films.
Developing Analytical Skills
Analyzing a movie requires students to dissect various aspects of filmmaking, enhancing their ability to assess and critique artistic works critically. Having such skills could help them write an analytical essay well when needed.
How To Write A Movie Review: Helpful Tips
Whether you are a student, movie critic or movie lover, you have to follow some steps to write a movie review in a clear and persuasive way. Whether you are a beginner or an expert writer, these tips will help you write a compelling review that shines out from others.
Choose A Movie To review
If you are going to review a movie, the first thing you need to do is pick a movie. It is recommended to choose a movie as per your interest. This could be a crime-based sci-fi, a psychopath movie, or even an adventure movie.
Watch The Film Mindfully
To learn how to write a good movie review, you have to watch the movie with focus. Remember to pay close attention while watching and note down the essential elements like plot development, acting performance, cinematography, and other aspects.
Write Down Special Notes
Note down the key elements, moments, observations, and impressions on a notebook, so you can’t forget them. Later on, these notes will help you to start writing a film review.
Provide Context
Now it’s time to officially know how to start a movie review. Begin with writing an introduction for your film review. However, keep in mind that the introduction of movie analysis is different from other types of writing.
It will include the title of the movie, the director’s name, genre, and release date. After that a concise summary of the movies without revealing major spoilers.
Analyzing The Elements Of The Film
Now it’s time to analyze the key elements from the movie. Evaluate the director’s vision, screenplay, dialogues, and camera work. Furthermore, do your best to analyze the performances of the actors and assess whether the movie is well-edited or not.
To make a deeper connection, talk about the themes, messages conveyed, and overall impression about what works well and what doesn’t. By integrating these elements, you can better understand how to write a movie review.
Express Your Opinion
Well, opinion is the key to a successful movie analysis. A reader will more likely watch the movies when your personal opinion is in the review. Remember to express your thoughts and opinions clearly and persuasively.
By any chance, if you don’t have an idea about opinion writing, get help from opinion writing examples and add your opinion effectively in the movie analysis.
Watch Movie At Least 2 Times
Richard Linklater, a famous American movie director quoted that “It’s hard to see a film one time and really “get it,” and write fully and intelligently about it. That’s a review. That’s not film criticism.”
According to his statement it is clear that to understand how to write a movie review, you need to watch it at atleast 2 times to analyze every angle.
Movie Review Template
You must have noticed that writing a film review is far more different from other kinds of writing like essay writing, paper writing, or research writing. No need to puzzle, as we are here to help you out with a compelling, concise, and easy-to-attempt template for a movie review.
All outlines are clearly mentioned in the above movie review template. You just need to pick a movie and fill the template with relevant information.
Movie Review Examples
Providing examples is the best technique to clear your doubts related to how to write a movie review. In the below section, we have compiled two short and easy examples based on the above-given template to make your concept clearer. Let’s start with the example 1:
Movie Summary Example 1
Title of the Movie: Inception
Director: Christopher Nolan
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elliot Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy
Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller
Release Date: July 16, 2010
Plot Summary
“Inception” follows Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a skilled thief who steals secrets from within the subconscious during the dream state. He is offered a chance to have his criminal history erased in exchange for planting an idea into a target’s subconscious. This “inception” mission takes Cobb and his team through a series of complex dream worlds.
Analysis Of The Main Key Point
Direction: The direction of Christopher Nolan in this movie is just mind-blowing and masterful. The way he combines complex storytelling with groundbreaking visual effects is just exceptional. His ability to add multiple layers of dreams into a coherent narrative is respectable.
Script: There is a strong sense of character development and a gripping plot in the screenplay, which is intelligent and thought-provoking. Furthermore, the dialogues were very sharp and effective and contributed to the depth of the story.
Acting: Every cast of the movie delivers a strong performance. Leonardo DiCaprio brings emotional depth to Cobb’s troubled character. Besides this, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy also stand out with their charismatic roles.
Cinematography: The cinematography by Wally Pfister is visually stunning, especially the dream sequences that defy the laws of physics. As a result of the smooth integration of visual effects, the film takes on a surreal quality.
Music and Sound: The sounds by Hans Zimmer enhance the suspense and complement the film’s tone perfectly.
Editing: The editing is tight and well-paced by professional editors to keep the viewer engaged through the film’s complex structure. The transitions between different dream levels are smooth and effective.
Themes and Messages
“Inception” studies the themes of reality, dreams, and the subconscious. It questions the nature of reality and the power of the mind, which leaves the audience entertaining.
Overall Impression
“Inception” is a brilliant and innovative film that combines a convincing narrative with mind-blowing visuals and strong performances. It challenges the audience intellectually and, at the same time, provides an exciting cinematic experience. Highly recommended for fans of sci-fi and psychological thrillers.
Rating
8.8 out of 10 or (⭐⭐⭐⭐✰)
Example of Movie Review Summary 2
Title of the Movie: Lady Bird
Director: Greta Gerwig
Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Timothée Chalamet, Lucas Hedges
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Release Date: November 3, 2017
Plot Summary
Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) is a senior in high school in Sacramento, California. The film shows her rough relationship with her mother (Laurie Metcalf), her desire to attend college on the East Coast, and her journey of self-discovery.
Analysis Of The Main Key Point
Direction: Greta Gerwig’s direction is sensitive and fine which catches the spirit of youth with authenticity and warmth. Her personal touch is noticeable throughout the film.
Script: The screenplay is very sharp and heartfelt throughout the film. Furthermore, the dialogue feels natural and genuine. The characters are well-rounded and relatable, making their experiences interlink with the audience.
Acting: Saoirse Ronan’s acting in the movie is as great as Lady Bird. She shows feelings of being both sensitive and brave. Laurie Metcalf plays the role of her mom who is both complicated and loving. Timothée Chalamet and Lucas Hedges play smaller roles but act well.
Cinematography: Sam Levy’s cinematography beautifully captures the suburban scenery of Sacramento. He uses close-up shots that focus on the characters, which helps to tell the story effectively.
Music and Sound: The soundtrack includes songs that match the right time-period. Also, an original score by Jon Brion matches the film’s nostalgic and emotional feel.
Editing: The editing by Nick Houy is completely smooth and in narrative flow. Undoubtedly, he effectively balanced the film’s comedic and dramatic elements.
Themes and Messages
“Lady Bird” movie clearly shows the themes of identity, family, and the transition from youth to adulthood. It highlights the complexities of mother-daughter relationships and the search for self-acceptance.
Overall Impression
No doubt, “Lady Bird ” is a touching and beautiful movie for the upcoming ages. Greta Gerwig’s authentic storytelling tactics perfectly combined with outstanding performances. And for that reason, this movie left a heartfelt and relatable experience for the audience. Overall, It’s a must-watch for anyone who appreciates genuine and emotionally rich narratives.
Rating
7.4 out of 10 (⭐⭐⭐✰✰)
Common Mistakes To Avoid In Movie Review Writing
Writing an effective movie review demands a complete attention to detail and an exact approach. Here are common mistakes to avoid:
- A common mistake that most review writers make while reviewing is that they exploit the main spoiler in plot summary.
- Another mistake is writing a review without a clear organization or structure.
- Only focusing on personal preferences and neglecting a fair assessment.
- Ignoring elements like direction, cinematography, sound, and editing.
- The most major common is not considering who the review is for.
- A shift between formal and informal tones or inconsistent writing styles can make the reviewing experience bad.
- Make grammatical errors and typos to distract the reader from your review. To tackle this mistake, you can utilize free grammar and punctuation checker tools to make your review go smoothly.
When you avoid these mistakes, you will likely have an idea about how to write a good movie review in a more insightful, engaging, and professional way.
The Author’s Top Recommended Movies To Review
Now that you have learned every aspect of how to start a movie review, it’s time to write your first one. Below are some top movies that the author has recently watched and wants students, critics and movie lovers to write reviews about them. You can choose one according to your interests.
- Joker (2019): A psychopath, thriller and crime based movie
- under paris (2024): Horror, action mystery
- Unfrosted (2024): Comedy/ Drama
- After everything (2023): A romance/ thriller movie
- The Nest 2020: A thriller/ drama movie
- The Guilty (2021): Triller and chrome
- Uncharted (2022): Action + Adventure Movie
- Return to sender (2015): A psychological thriller and action movie
- Spaceman (2024): Sci-fi + adventurous
- The Green Mile (1999): Crime/Fantasy Movie
Before going to wind up, we recommend you to watch these movies and write a compelling movie review on your own. In case anything remains unresolved, feel free to contact our creative writing helper and let them help you in writing a movie review.
Final Thoughts
Overall to understand how to write a movie review all you need is a template for a movie review, some helpful tips and some movie review examples.
Surprisingly, we cover all of these factors to help you write an effective review. Just follow the tips, and you’ll be able to turn your ideas and observations into reviews that people can’t put down.
