Writing a good film review

Okay so you have to write a film review...but what are you going to say??
You will obviously want to say what you thought of the film as a viewer but you can't just put 'I thought the film was rubbish'! You wouldn't see this in Empire or Sight and Sound and so as film students and budding film critics, you need to qualify what you say. What does that mean? It means you must back up your ideas.

So if you thought is was good, say why. If not, say why.

So what else should you comment on?? Here're some ideas:
1. The main stars and their performances - were they good? believable?
2. What was the film 'mood'? - dark? funny? light?
3. What was the colour and lighting like?
4. Did you find the narrative (storyline) easy to follow? Were there flashbacks and other unusual ways the story was told?
5. Did the tension mount throughout the film? Did you feel the tension or were you let down by poor effects or acting?
6. How was music used - did it help...were there any parts of the sound you especially remember?
7. What genre was the film? How did you know - for example was it very predictable and typical of its type or did it have some interesting twists?
8. Would you recommend it to others? If so, who specifically would you recommend it to? - You could give ages and possibly something like 'If you liked Die Hard 3 then you'll love this film'.

I hope this helps you for now.

Mrs T