Examples of Magazine Film Reviews

GLAMOUR magazine

On the left is a scanned in example of the film section in Glamour magazine showing under the heading 'Gamreels' to the left of the page are three short, quick film reviews and images including star ratings on each of the films. This is the only section of the whole magazine mentioning and talking about films showing that the audience of this magazine are not very interested in the art of films and going into detail on reviews of films. Also, all three of the films reviewed here are very feminine also showing the gender the magazine is targeted at as women would rather read about films on love then action, si-fi films that would be more targeted at men. The strapline underneath 'Glamreels' says 'Obsession, lust, betrayal... these movies have it covered' This shows what type of films the readers are more attracted and interested in which are very feminine themes of a film. The short reviews next to the small images of clips of the films only inform the reader on the synopsis of the film and not a critics analysis of the films making it not an opinionated review allowing the reader to make their own mind on what they think of the story-line and if they are interested in seeing it without someone highlighting the positive and negative parts of the films. The only way the readers can identify if Glamour think its a good film is by the star ratings the magazine has given the films as the more stars given, the better they think the film is. The only review that gives an opinion on this page is the second one of 'The Devils Double' where is states 'Terrifying and gripping' This would encourage the reader to go and watch this film as its presented in a positive and exciting way.

SIGHT & SOUND magazine

This magazine is known as 'The International Film Magazine' and goes into great depth and detail on all the films they review as they look at films more as a piece of art than a type of leasure or pleasure that they watch on a night out for fun. To the left is an image of the front cover of the magazine and also a scan of an inside article that goes into great detail and analysis of 'Across the Universe' directed by Julie Taymor. The first impressions of the magazine 'Sight & Sound' shows that its not an easy quick read magazine and that it would go into a great amount of detail in all of its articles as there it looks very academic and arty with the large image of an old mans face as the centre and a cartoon background which do not interlink and are such a big contrast. Also, the films reviewed inside aren't great big hollywood blockbusters e.g. Sex and The City are are more intellectual and academic looking at the art of the film and not so much who stars in it or the storyline. You wouldn't find a magazine of this nature and style in any normal newsagents or supermarket as it wouldn't attract the mass market and more a smaller audience that would go out of their way to order it or look for it. This type of audience would see film as an art and are interested in the historical background and how the film was put together and why.

The article on the right which is from 'Sight & Sound' is about a film called 'Across The Universe' and is a motion picture of the year 2007 showing it was a very respected and good film that was very successful and done well allowing it to win this award. This review goes into great detail from the music to the actors in different scenes and parts of the film. The first paragraph solely talks only about what songs are related to the movie 'with its boldly anachronistic mash-up of songs pinched from here, there and everywhere' This shows that music plays a very important role in the art of this film. There is also language and words that are extremely academic and intellectual eg 'the sub-genres premature ne plus ultra'. Throughout the article is refers to other films eg Moulin Rouge and Mamma Mia! showing that the film is being compared to them and that it needs to live upto or beyond the standard of those films. The article goes into such great detail that it lists all of the credits and cast of the production showing how they are significant and all of them people is what made the film. The synopsis is also not included in the main article as there is a break-out box describing the synopsis of the film to the reader; this shows the amount of detail and comparisons the main article has. There is also a screenshot of the film included at the bottom of the article showing the feel and type of film it is how it is different and more dramatic then most hollywood feature length films. To conclude, this article is very academic and intellectual going into a significant amount of detail on the film directed to those that look at films as an art and not something to do or watch when bored.

TOTAL FILM magazine

The article on the left is on a film called Brothers starring unknown and not very famous actors. Its a very short, simple review of the film that is not very negative whilst also not being positive about the film. It is a very mellow and neutral review allowing the audience to make their own opinion on the film once they've watched it. There is a screen shot of the film above the review which is the main image in the article showing two men which the readers will assume are the 'Brothers'. The critic Neil Smith has only rated the film as three stars showing that its not a film that stands out and that there is also room for improvement in the film. The article provides information e.g. when the film is out ('out 22 January') and some of the main credits of the film e.g. director, screenplay etc. On the left hand side of the article is a break-out box which suggests other films the reader should read if they like and are interested in this film they are reviewing. Also, there is a box with a graph at the bottom left hand side of the article showing the Predicted Interest Curve of the film and other films showing how interesting and thrilling the film is to watch. The article also includes a small sentence summary of the film for those who are just flicking through the magazine and read it briefly to see if its interesting enough and catches their eye enough for them to go and watch the film or read the rest of the article to find out more on what its about. At the bottom of the page states 'totalfilm.com for more of the world's best movie reviews' This shows that this magazine doesn't only review and cover english and american films but films all over the world from different and diverse cultures and backgrounds making them more interesting and different to watch then the typical hollywood feature film. It also provides information for the reader if they want to watch this film or find listings on when and where its on then they know where to look to find out.