C306: Writing Media Criticism

The resources included in this research guide will help you conduct film and media research. It will assist you in searching for and finding film reviews and other sources of information about the film you have selected for your paper. It will also help you locate articles to learn more about the time period in which the film you are analyzing takes place.

For your paper you will need to do historical research to learn more about the time period.

Step 1.

Before you begin your historical research about news events that occurred when the film was released, it is important to have some basic information about the film and a solid understanding of the film's themes so you can narrow your historical research to events that may have influenced the film.  

General Film Information/Plot Summaries

 Use the resources below to find general information on the film you have selected you selected for your paper.

The Internet Movie Database - The most comprehensive film database on the Internet. It provides plot summaries and general film information and also includes plot keywords.

Film Reviews

Film reviews are an excellent source for finding additional information on films. They often provide information on the film's key themes.

Film Reviews in Popular Magazines

 

Lexis Nexis Academic

Good source for finding film reviews from popular magazines and newspapers such as the New York Times.

To find Film Reviews:

• Select Power Search from the General Search Screen in the top left hand corner of the screen (the default is easy search and is highlighted in red)
• In the "Add Index Terms" box, select "Subject" (below the search box and right above Select Source)
• A pop up windown will open. On the pop up window, click the "+" sign next to  "Reports, Reviews & Sections".
• Select "Movie Reviews" and click the red button "OK-Add to Search" at the bottom of the pop up window.

In the Select Source box select "Major World Publications" or enter the name of a specific news source i.e. New York Times.

• Add the title of the film to the main search box.

   **Hint** If the title of the film is a common word you may need to include the director's name in the search.

                    Ex. Chinatown and Polanski

Factiva

Another good source for finding film reviews. Contains content similiar to Lexis Nexis.

 

To find Film Reviews:

• Select Search in the top left hand corner of the screen 
• Select Search Builder
• Select Subject and click on the "+" next to Content Types
• Scroll down to "Review" and click on the purple arrow to add reviews to the search box
• Add the title of the film to the main search box.

   **Hint** If the title of the film is a common word you may need to include the director's name in the search.

                    Ex. Chinatown and Polanski

Movie Review Query Engine - Provides reviews for over 200,000 films.

American Film Institute Catalog - Provides general film information including plot summaries and includes index of film reviews.

Film Index International - Similar to American Film Institute Catalog but also contains information from the British Film Institute.

 

Film Reviews in Academic Journals