As you are watching a movie, it is important to rewind in order to thoroughly examine scenes and dialogues. Take notes on the main points of the movie. Focus on the acting of the characters. Do they help to enhance the enjoyment of the movie and drive the plot? Did the writers spend enough time on character development? Keep in mind that the lack of depth of a particular character is not always a flaw and does not mean they serve no purpose. In fact, there are cases in which a vaguely defined character has the only task – to throw a few punches or act as a punch line. As long as it helps to drive the movie, it is necessary.
Once you have watched the movie and identified all of the points that you want to critique, you should develop a thesis that you intend to defend using evidence from the movie itself. In this way, a movie critique is very much a type of academic essay, as it has an introduction paragraph, thesis statement, body paragraphs with topic sentences, and a conclusion discussing the broader implications of your critique.
Unlike a movie review, writing a movie critique paper is not intended to persuade the audience to see (or not see) a film that has recently been released. Indeed, the focus of a movie critique can be a film that was released decades ago. Aside from focusing on the plot elements, you should discuss whether the movie has survived the test of time.
For instance, are there issues that still remain relevant today? With hindsight, could you argue contemporary responses to the movie were misguided? Or is the film actually not as good as it was claimed to be? Whatever the approach you choose, you should remain consistent. For example, if you intend to argue the movie serves as a groundbreaking example of art-house cinema, everything you analyze – the filmmaker, actors, or plot – should be examined within this context.
