Tips for Writing a Review

[Gatsby]

This might be an act of hypocrisy because clearly I'm not the best reviewer in town and I sometimes don't fallow the advice I wrote, but I thought that just a few tips and basic advice could be forgiven lol.

These are just a few basic ones, if there is something that I missed then tell me by posting and I'll add it to the thread along with your credit. That's why I consider this a project more than a simple guide, and I hope a lot participate and get a lot of people to write their own reviews. :D


Current Tips:


1. Watch the film and revise your review multiple times

The former isn't something that is required to do, but if you want to write a good quality review then my suggestion is to do it. The latter however is definitely needed. Even a few words mixed up can block your point from getting through and makes your review look sloppy and careless.

2. Use pictures

A single image may be more powerful than a thousand words. It can capture what the viewer will expect when they read your review and watch the film for themselves. It can also be a break from a wall a text that reviews are, especially when they contain lots of information.

3. Have your own style

If you want your reviews to stand out and receive recognition as a reviewer its good to have a special and flamboyant style of your very own. Don't try to copy from other famous reviewers even if originality can be hard. Whether you're gonna go for humor, insightful thoughts, or having a totally different point on films they're all better than ordinary Joe.

4. Don't be afraid to express your thoughts

This is why some people can't achieve tip 3. They're afraid about what other people think and in the end just write plain and boring reviews. Why be afraid? As long as its not something like cursing and swearing at a director like Martin Scorcese its your review, and because its yours you have the right to write anything (well most of them) you want. Haters gonna hate, aligators gonna aligate, and potatoes will potate.

5. The most important thing is to get your point across

Some people try to put sophisticated college words into their reviews to sound intellectual and all that without even knowing what the hell their blabbering about. Even famous reviewers use basic words such as 'hate' and 'like'. A lot of people only see reviews to just check out whether a certain film is bad or good, simple as that. They don't give a damn about what kind of words you used. Be loud and clear.

Captain Spaulding

1. Don't focus too much on plot synopsis. Most people who are interested enough to search for a review usually know what the film is about. Also people tend to get too detailed.

Kaplan

1. Learn and use proper grammar if you want to be taken seriously.
2. Try to be informal.

Christine

1. Spell correctly.

Yoda

1. Entertain the user. They want to read about the actors and stuff but most importantly they want to here about you.

Rodent

1. Have a routine in your reviews. Decided what you will do in each paragraph so that there is consistency.

2. Avoid spoilers, thought if its extremely necessary to have one use a spoiler tag or warn the user beforehand.

MovieMeditation

1. Write in a constructively way. Make sure where a focus ends and begins.

Citizen Rules

1. Brevity....don't write a novella length review.
2. Leave the potty mouth at home.

Godoggo

1. Write in your own vernacular.
2. Try to be honest in when writing reviews instead if trying to impress others

Tim R-T-C

1. Respect the film, regardless of genre or budget.
2. Know a film's cinematic parentage. Before reviewing a film of a certain genre watch some films similar to the one you are reviewing so you can properly discuss it.
3. Know the historical/background/source material.
4. Know the background of the film. That way you can provide lots of information.

[Gatsby]

Edited tips 1 and 3.

[Mr Minio]

Cool tips, but using sophisticated words can be a good exercise for non-native speakers. It should improve their language and all...

[Gatsby]

Cool tips, but using sophisticated words can be a good exercise for non-native speakers. It should improve their language and all...

I'm not against those words, I'm against people using them without any sense of knowing what their going with them.

[Captain Spaulding]

All good tips, Gatsby. :up:

If a film inspires me to write a review, I try to jot down my immediate thoughts after watching it, reminding myself of certain scenes and moments and whatnot that I can later use as a reference point to trigger my memory in case a few days pass before I get a chance to write the review. For Peeping Tom, I actually re-watched the film a couple of days later and wrote down my thoughts as it went along, which is probably why it's the best, most thorough review I've written so far.

I think some reviewers waste too much time on plot synopsis. I generally skip those portions of a review, since I usually already know what a film is about, even if I haven't seen it. Plus some reviewers make those sections too detailed, giving away too much of the plot for those who haven't watched it. I generally avoid plot summaries altogether in my reviews.

I also write all of my reviews completely naked from the waist down, but I doubt that has any bearing on the quality of the reviews. :D

[Kaplan]

Use proper grammar if you want to be taken seriously.

Do some research and give some background on the film, its backstory, other projects the director and actors have been involved in and how it might relate to the film you're discussing, and how the film compares to similar films in its genre.

Learn and use proper grammar.

If you're blocked, just write it as you would if you were writing the review as part of an email to your buddy overseas. Informal works, unless someone is actually paying you to write the review for a wider audience. In which case...

Learn and use proper grammar.

Just sayin'. Myself, I try to go for the informal style, because otherwise I'll spend an hour writing a two-hundred word review, and I just don't have time for that.

[Kaplan]

P.S. I know, I haven't exactly written any "reviews" on this site, but I have in the past elsewhere, and I struggle over every word, only to hate everything I've written when I reread it a week later. Therefore, I give a few thoughts and leave it at that.

[Gatsby]

All good tips, Gatsby. :up:

If a film inspires me to write a review, I try to jot down my immediate thoughts after watching it, reminding myself of certain scenes and moments and whatnot that I can later use as a reference point to trigger my memory in case a few days pass before I get a chance to write the review. For Peeping Tom, I actually re-watched the film a couple of days later and wrote down my thoughts as it went along, which is probably why it's the best, most thorough review I've written so far.

I think some reviewers waste too much time on plot synopsis. I generally skip those portions of a review, since I usually already know what a film is about, even if I haven't seen it. Plus some reviewers make those sections too detailed, giving away too much of the plot for those who haven't watched it. I generally avoid plot summaries altogether in my reviews.

I also write all of my reviews completely naked from the waist down, but I doubt that has any bearing on the quality of the reviews. :D

Use proper grammar if you want to be taken seriously.

Do some research and give some background on the film, its backstory, other projects the director and actors have been involved in and how it might relate to the film you're discussing, and how the film compares to similar films in its genre.

Learn and use proper grammar.

If you're blocked, just write it as you would if you were writing the review as part of an email to your buddy overseas. Informal works, unless someone is actually paying you to write the review for a wider audience. In which case...

Learn and use proper grammar.

Just sayin'. Myself, I try to go for the informal style, because otherwise I'll spend an hour writing a two-hundred word review, and I just don't have time for that.

Added both to the main thread. Thanks for your advice. :up:

[Captain Spaulding]

Added both to the main thread. Thanks for your advice. :up:

You forgot the part about no pants!

[Gatsby]

You forgot the part about no pants!

I was considering possible female reviewers...

[christine]

Probably part of the proper grammar Kaplan added, but spell words properly!
A magazine was delivered to us yesterday with this as the headline - "Local Residents Take The Reigns" (as local people start to run a new community centre) . This is a local mag run by your trendy supposedly educated people. I don't want to come across as a spelling nazi but it's so easy to check spelling these days!

[MovieMeditation]

Write your review in a well constructed manner. Make sure you show the reader where a new focus begins and where another ends, don't be all over the place it will confuse the reader.

If you aren't good at making smooth transfers to a new focus, then just make a few more paragraphs, as long as it is clear and easy to read.

And just to agree with some of what has already been said, don't be afraid to be subjective, nobody want to read just a review, they wanna read your review. Spice it up, create your own style, don't be afraid to critize the film, as long as you back up why and do it with thought, and not just slam words out there. :)

[hello101]

Copy and paste Roger Ebert's reviews.

[Yoda]

One of the nice, horrifying things about running this site so long is that I can go back and see the kind of dreck I wrote when I was 16. And doing that taught me one thing that I think helped me improve immensely:

Your first job is to entertain the reader.

This sounds stupidly obvious, but a lot of reviews (my own included, initially) feel the need to cover all bases, IE: gotta say something about the writing, gotta say something about the acting, gotta say something about...and so on. But all you really "gotta say" is something interesting. The interesting or the funny or the compelling should always take precedence over the rote checklist of Things You Comment on in a Movie Review, or the checklist of Things I Thought.

Reviews that merely inform can be quite useful, but they're not enjoyable. They won't make people want to read you, specifically.

The other suggestions so far are great, and there are a half-dozen other things I want to say, too. But this is the thing I would pick if I had to pick only one thing.

[matt72582]

I'm writing a book, reviewing my favorite fims, this might take a while, but I find my problem is wanting to put too much stuff in. It would be longer than a novelization. Deciding what scenes or things to leave out is too difficult for me.

[The Rodent]

Rodent Tips:


Keep to a routine.


I have a particular layout for mine, I know JayDee does as well. It stops you from rambling too much about random crap.


As an example, mine for instance is (roughly):
Paragraph 1: Synopsis (keep it short, no spoilers)
Paragraph 2: Personal Feelings (keep it short so as not to ramble)
Paragraph 3: Good Stuff about the storytelling, Exposition, Scripting, Screenplay, General Writing etc
Paragraph 4: Bad stuff about the Storytelling, Exposition, Scripting, Screenplay, General Writing etc
Paragraph 5: Actors, Acting, Casting Choices
Paragraph 6: Technical stuff like Effects (CGI Practical etc), Choreography, Photography, Camera, Lighting etc
Paragraph 7: My signature "All In All" Round-up and my rating




I almost never sway from my layout and routine.
Sure from review to review the paragraphs change size, I write more about The Bad or The Good in one review than another for example, but the paragraph routine I use stays consistent.
It means two things...
1) People know what to expect when before they come into my thread to read the new review I've written
2) It makes it easier for myself to not forget stuff I want to say




No Spoilers


Spoilers ruin things. A review is a review, and shouldn't be you posting up the full script and screenplay.
I only occasionally put spoilers about the plot or whatever, and if I do, I make sure I say so beforehand at the top of the review, or use the spoiler tags.




Trivia And Humour Goes A Long Way


Little snippets of Trivia are always interesting. JayDee does it, I do it... Trivia = Fun.
Humour is always good. Yoda pointed this out to entertain the reader. Throw in something about something bad you spotted, or if something tickled you make a little joke about it and give a :up: or a :D or something... it'll enthuse your audience to watch, or avoid, the film in question.

[TheUsualSuspect]

Interesting you single out some reviewers, I'd like to see your thoughts on more people's personal reviews.

[MovieMeditation]

Interesting you single out some reviewers, I'd like to see your thoughts on more people's personal reviews.
I thought that was what he wasn't doing at first too. ;) It's not just to get things clear.

It's their suggestions that they wrote in this thread, which has later been added to the first post. I agree it could be more precise, like "Captain Spaulding's suggestions:" or something, so more people won't get confused. :D

[Citizen Rules]

MovieMediation beat me to the post:)....I agree with him.

BTW great thread idea. It's interesting to read the tips for reviews. I've been doing lot of them and what I want to know is: what do others what to see in a review?

[Gatsby]

Edited up to here. :)

[Citizen Rules]

Citizen Rules

1. Brevity....don't write a novella length review.
2. Leave the potty mouth at home.

[TheUsualSuspect]

I thought that was what he wasn't doing at first too. ;) It's not just to get things clear.

It's their suggestions that they wrote in this thread, which has later been added to the first post. I agree it could be more precise, like "Captain Spaulding's suggestions:" or something, so more people won't get confused. :D

Ahhh, makes more sense now.

[MovieGal]

Do you know why I dont write reviews for my films? dont get me wrong.. I am a writer... I write short stories and poetry but I dont write about movies because I dont want to spoil it for anyone who hasnt seen it yet.

[Chardee MacDennis]

The three P's. Practise, Paragraph and Plagiarise.

[Gatsby]

Do you know why I dont write reviews for my films? dont get me wrong.. I am a writer... I write short stories and poetry but I dont write about movies because I dont want to spoil it for anyone who hasnt seen it yet.

Its not hard to avoid spoilers. Just honestly and carefully write what you thought about the plot, characters, technical aspects etc. and that's a decent review born. You said you are a writer of short stories and poems, I think that would make your reviews special and have a spark to it. Imagine a review that rhymes. :D

[Godoggo]

I was considering possible female reviewers...

Females can take their pants off too. :p

I don't write reviews so I'll just say what I like and don't like in a review. I do not like a lengthy plot synopsis. Especially because I generally only read them after I've seen the movie so I know what happened. I want personal opinions and personality. A dry boring review that never commits to any real viewpoint probably will only get skimmed, if that.

Write in your own vernacular. I like to read reviews that seem like the person is talking to me rather than those that read like someone's homework.

Most of all write honestly instead of writing to impress. It really does come across and it's much more interesting to read something that feels authentic.

[Gatsby]

Cmon Godo you know what I meant by that... :p

Added your tips to the main thread! :)

[Godoggo]

I did. I have to tease sometimes. :D

[christine]

Talking about writing in your own vernacular, the reviews I always enjoy reading even though they're through different cultural eyes to mine, and I'm probably never going to see even a small percentage of the films reviewed - and that's Ashdoc's reviews. He writes as if he's sitting next to you all enthusiastic after coming out of the cinema. Very endearing :)

[The Rodent]

Females can take their pants off too.



That's going on my caption. Maybe even in the 2015 MoFies.

[The Rodent]

Can you edit my second one?


Avoid Spoilers... and if you have to use them, be sure to warn the reader beforehand or use spoiler tags.

[Gatsby]

Can you edit my second one?


Avoid Spoilers... and if you have to use them, be sure to warn the reader beforehand or use spoiler tags.

Edit successful. Now quit bugging me! :D

[earlsmoviepicks]

I keep em short, use photos, and try to avoid revealing too much plot, no spoilers for sure. More of a tease with a point or two that I thought was a cool essence about the movie.

[ashdoc]

Talking about writing in your own vernacular, the reviews I always enjoy reading even though they're through different cultural eyes to mine, and I'm probably never going to see even a small percentage of the films reviewed - and that's Ashdoc's reviews. He writes as if he's sitting next to you all enthusiastic after coming out of the cinema. Very endearing :)

I don't want to start a mutual admiration society here , but your thoughts will go a long way in encouraging me to write in the same vein in which I do :cool:

[Tim R-T-C]

I've written some 500+ film reviews over the last 9 years and I've always followed a few rules:

1) Respect the film, not matter what genre or budget. I've seen plenty of reviews on mainstream websites and media that want to dismiss a film completely because it is a low budget production or a horror film for instance. The reviewer obviously set out with no intention of actually giving the film a fair run, or they just skip over and give it a brief comment as though it doesn't really matter. I treat every film the same, from Kubrick to SyFy Channel Originals.

2) Know a film's cinematic parentage. I watch a lot of Spaghetti Westerns and before I watched the iconic Leone films, I saw a few of the later genre entries that had some great scenes I thought were really clever, later watching 'Fistful of Dollars' and 'Few Dollars More' I realised that these were nothing more than copies of aspects from the Leone film. I have seen plenty of other critics' reviews of films that praise aspects as innovative that have been done plenty of times before but obviously in films they haven't seen. You shouldn't try and review a film in isolation, when I start reviewing films in a particular genre or category I will usually watch a large bundle of them together to pick up the style and theme properly before I can discuss it.

3) Know the historical background/source material. When it comes to historical films or productions adapted from books/TV shows etc. I am actually quite liberal. If a film wants to depart massively from the real history or from a book, it can do, so long as it makes for a good film (which, by the way, I have yet to see actually work). Still to write a good review it is useful to know just how close or distant a film is as it is important to a lot of viewers. If you get a chance to read the book first then this is perfect, but most novels are well summarised on the internet and even a quick scan can give you a lot of information that allows you to discuss this.

4) Know the background to the film itself. This is not always relevant, but there are a lot of films out there that had major changes during production - a change in director, least cast member leaving the shoot, re-editing by the studio in post-production that can make a massive outcome to what is seen on screen. Obviously the purpose of a review is to discuss the film as seen and no end of information about background strife can make a terrible film enjoyable to watch, but it can help you understand some things that seem very odd and again makes for some interesting discussion points in the review.

[Citizen Rules]

My simply Review Rule is: Use photos of pretty girls when possible;)

[JayDee]

1. Brevity....don't write a novella length review.


:skeptical: Hmmm....is that aimed at me? :p

Anyway as the reigning Best Reviewer on here (it's official! :D) you'd think I may have a number of tips to offer but I'm really not sure I do. Perhaps the people who are fans of my work can convey what's so good about them (not that I'm just looking to have my ego stroked or anything ;))

[Citizen Rules]

:skeptical: Hmmm....is that aimed at me? :p
Ha!......... ( but seriously, no it wasn't.) I believe I actually nominated you as best reviewer, (sadly no one nominated me:cool:, I guess I need more chickie pics.)

There really is a LOT of great reviewers here. Nobody, on this site is really long winded. But some reviews on the internet are like reading a college thesis!

[Cole416]

Gonna bump this, some great tips here!

[Nope1172]

I still need 25 posts to use pictures... 4 more to go!

[MovieMeditation]

#Bump4Gats and his awesome thread!

[CiCi]

This has some very useful stuff! Thank you, Gatsby, I'll certainly take a lot of it on board!