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How many times have you been tempted to dismiss a movie with comments like, “Oh I hated that film” or “I could’ve probably written a better screenplay”? Whenever you watch something in theaters or even from the comfort of your couch and PJs, it’s natural to have initial reactions to the movie. We are opinionated beings. We tell our friends when movies are entertaining, horrendous or heartbreaking.
But since we’re constantly talking the talk of being a movie critic, perhaps it’s actually time to walk the walk. Get ready to put down the popcorn and pick up the notepad the next time you get settled in front of your TV.
Although the world of film analysis can be intimidating, it can be broken down.
Before even learning the principles film theory, aspiring critics should get acquainted with the critiquing world. Film criticism started becoming mainstream around the 1930s, when movies became a popular form of entertainment. As a result of this, the media began critiquing movies more frequently, providing reviews and information about Hollywood and its new releases.
For years after this, “critique was an art form and an opportunity for the critic [to place] beautiful turns of phrase and insightful comments in the context of a review,” New York Film Academy writes. And since there was typically only one reviewer per local newspaper, that individual’s opinions were highly respected and valued.
But once film criticism came to television, Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert’s show “At the Movies” transformed film reviews. Not only did these inspirational legends bring criticism into homes across the country, their reviews also focused on answering whether or not movies were enjoyable or worth watching.
And until his passing in 2013, Roger Ebert, as New York Film Academy says, “remained the biggest name in movie criticism of the modern age.” For his frank, witty and occasionally sarcastic opinions, the late Ebert is remembered as a legend in the film criticism world today.
Although you can’t be Roger Ebert himself, you can certainly learn from his style. The following steps will help you get started.
If you cried when Marley the dog died in the 2008 coming-of-age “Marley and Me,” then you are already well aware that film has the ability to leave powerful impressions on its audiences. However, becoming an “active viewer” takes more than just understanding the plot and being able to recount how sad, happy or boring it is. Active viewers must participate and engage with the images, sounds and movements within a movie. They must also understand how these collection of elements help communicate the characters’ actions and the storyline.
Duke University explains, “Framing, camera movement (reframing), editing, optical effects, lens choice, sound and a number of other technical elements [often] go unnoticed by viewers.” But, through careful attention of what is on the screen and how it got there, you will be able to note the visual strategies a film uses to create a certain effect or provoke a specific emotion.
Whenever you’re trying to understand something, it’s easier when you dissect it into parts. When you understand the individual components, you will be able to make your own conclusions about how those elements work together as a whole.
IMAGE
The movie “Tangerine” was shot on a cellphone. If the film had been shot on a traditional camera, the meaning and message would change. Also, consider how the composition of a movie can frame a character’s image and personality. To help explain this, Roger Ebert says in his “How to Read a Movie” essay, “A person located somewhat to the right of center will seem ideally placed. A person to the right of that position will seem more positive; to the left, more negative. A centered person will seem objectified, like a mug shot.”
SOUND
Although film is often seen as a visual experience, a film’s score can greatly affect how audiences interpret movies. Have you ever noticed how suspenseful scenes feature equally terrifying sounds? Another example would be the scenes when you’re meant to feel sad. In those moments, somber music plays in the background. The movie “Alien,” for example, interacts interestingly with its soundtrack because it uses musical motifs to represent the humans (traditional music) and the alien (dissonant and atonal music). Additionally, keep in mind that the presence or absence of sound can also be telling signs of important moments.
MOVEMENT
Duke University points out that film isn’t too different from analyzing photography, but you must remember that a movie is a series of photographs shown in succession, thus creating the illusion of movement. In order to understand the role this element plays in a film’s visual language, ask yourself basic questions like, “Is the movie paced quickly or slowly?” and “Are the characters in sync or is one moving around in the frame while others are stationary?” After you do this, think about how these movements affect you and your interpretation of the scene. Think about the elements that make a scene feel calm, frantic, exciting or depressing.
For more information about the basic film elements of image, sound and movement, read Duke University’s essay on “Visual Rhetoric/Visual Literacy: Writing About Film.”
Similar to the way football coaches use a stop-action projector to study game recordings, movie critics can study films by constantly stopping the movie and discussing the scenes with other people. In his essay, Roger Ebert says Howard Higman, the founder of Conference on World Affairs, calls the practice of stopping a film and discussing it, “Cinema Interruptus.”
Although it sounds like a grueling task, Ebert writes “it can be exciting and almost hypnotic.” When you discuss a film with other people, you will be able to bounce your ideas off each other. In this case, there are no “teachers” and “students.” Rather, you are all in it together. This can be especially helpful if there are languages, cultural practices or religious beliefs you may not readily understand or be aware of. When Ebert studied films like this himself, he says that he “discovered there [are] a rich abundance of things to say” about just one film.
Also, it is helpful for you to regularly seek out people whose views on art, life and culture are different from yours. This will develop your way of thinking to keep you open-minded, ultimately preventing you from being redundant or too biased in your reviews.
Another practice Robert Ebert suggests is to read instructional literature on movie reviewing. According to him, the most useful book he read was “Understanding Movies” by Louis D. Giannetti, which is now in its 13th edition. This book introduces readers to the concept that visual compositions have “intrinsic weighting.” In order to explain this, Ebert writes, “I believe [Giannetti] means that certain areas of the available visual space have tendencies to stir emotional or aesthetic reactions. These are not ‘laws.’ To ‘violate’ them can be as meaningful as to ‘follow’ them.”
Although Ebert admits that he has never heard of a director who consciously applied these practices, he suspects that “filmmakers compose shots from images that well up emotionally, instinctively or strategically, just as a good pianist never things about the notes. It may be that intrinsic weighting is sort of hardwired.”
Aside from technical books about movie reviewing, Matt Zoller Seitz, TV critic for New York Magazine and Editor-in-Chief of the Roger Ebert website, says in his article, “Advice to Young Critics,” that it is also helpful to conduct background research about history and psychology. Because so much of art is drawn from history and a human’s minds, motivations and emotions, it is helpful to be familiar with this information. By doing this, you will also be more equipped to put yourself in the director or cinematographer’s point of views. Without this practice, your work may be dismissed as shallow or biased.
It goes without saying that movie critics are also typically skilled writers. But what many people may not know is that being a skilled critic doesn’t always mean writing with a linear, predictable model. According to Seitz, writers often get trapped with the mentality of having a topic sentence, specific sections and a clear conclusion. This, however, often leads to writer’s block, not productivity.
“Nobody wants to read a piece that’s structured that way. Even if they did, the form would be more a hindrance than a help to the writing process,” says Seitz. “[This is] because it makes the writer settle on a thesis before he or she has had a chance to wade around in the ideas and inspect them. So to hell with the outline.”
Don’t worry about structuring the review before you even get started. Just start writing.
Do you think you got what it takes to analyze a film? How about you invite over your favorite women, turn on Netflix and brace yourselves for some intellectual entertainment!
