WRITING FILM REVIEWS

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

BOMBAY + HOLLYWOOD = BOLLYWOOD

THE KING OF BOLLYWOOD

SHARUK KHAN

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Title

Veer-Zaara

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Runtime 2:35

Country
India

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Release date 2004

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The director

Yash Chopra

The producer Aditya Chopra

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Screenwriter

Aditya Chopra

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Art Director Sharmishta Roy

Director of Photography
Anil Mehta

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Music Director

Madan Mohan

Lyricist

Javed Akhtar

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The cast
Shahrukh Khan as Veer Pratap Singh

Preity Zinta as Zaara Hayaat Khan

Rani Mukherjee as Saamiya Siddiqui

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The cast
Kiron Kher as Mariam Hayaat Khan

Boman Irani as Jahangir Hayaat Khan

Divya Dutta as Shabbo

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The cast
Special appearances by Manoj Bajpai as Raza Sharazi

Amitabh Bachchan as Choudhary Sumer Singh

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Genre drama

romance musical

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The tagline A love legend

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The synopsis

The story of the love between Veer Pratap Singh, an Indian, and Zaara Hayaat Khan, a Pakistani...a love so great it knows no boundaries... Internet Movie Database

IMDB Veer-Zaara (2004)

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What is a bollywood movie like?

How would you describe a Bollywood film?

What would people say about Bollywood films?

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

The opening paragraph

In the opening paragraph you should give a brief synopsis (summary) of the film. If you like, you can also state your opinions, but without getting into too much detail.

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

The opening paragraph

To appreciate the Bollywood tear-jerker "VeerZaara,'' you have to accept the possibility that a morose prisoner who has not said a word in 22 years would, upon meeting a beautiful young lawyer who calls him by his name rather than his number, not just break his silence but also immediately pour forth more than three hours worth of his story. . N.Y. Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/13/movies/13zaar.html

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Film styles (genre)

This is a/an (adjective) film/movie This is a (noun)
action animation family horror comedy sci-fi drama fantasy musical romance thriller western

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Plot
The plot is about

a man chasing a killer the hero and heroine love a haunted house government corruption

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Giving your opinion

After the synopsis, go into detail about what you thought of the film.

Try to go into detail about the ideas contained within the film.
What did you like about the film? Why? What are its strengths? Use descriptive words. Think about the story, setting, effects used, music used, etc.

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Giving your opinion contd

What didnt you like about the film? Why? What are its weaknesses?

It is necessary to break the film down into its separate parts. This means that you should spend time stating which parts of the film you think are successful and which are not.

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Giving your opinion contd

After that, the gods test the young lovers, things get ridiculously melodramatic, and people behave so nobly that moviegoers may want to scream.
For once, that thundering soap-opera music (which makes a Douglas Sirk movie score seem subtle) is welcome; it drowns out any embarrassing audience sniffles.
Extracts from Lovers Sing in the Rain (and Elsewhere) by ANITA GATES, N.Y. Times, Published: November 13, 2004. Lovers Sing in the Rain (and Elsewhere)

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Giving your opinion contd

Seasoned Bollywood fans will be in heaven, so to speak. Other American moviegoers, who find the Indian film industry's tastes a little over the top, may not be able to get past cinematic devices that seem shamefully obvious, but over-the-top is part of the fun.

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Giving your opinion contd

Yet the cultural assumptions of Veer and Zaara add a welcome element of freshness for American audiences. When Zaara's mother reminds her daughter that women always love fully, with heart and soul, she casually adds, "Men don't have the strength to love like that.''.

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General Descriptive Phrases

The film/movie had good/bad
acting camera work too much violence (a) soundtrack visual effects directing

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Scenes
It had a good/bad
Opening scene, ending, action scene, romantic scene

It was set on/in It took place on/in

A boat, a mountain, in Italy, in space, on another planet, in 2001

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Characterization
Write about the characters. Did you like them? Did the actors play them well? What was it about their portrayal that you liked or didnt like?

Other impressions of the characters: Will movie-goers be able to relate to the characters? Why or why not?

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

Character
The character he played was a/the
lead role supporting character a cameo role small part

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Character
The character he played was a/the
hero heroine villain sidekick

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Character
The character he played was a/the
a killer a heart throb evil the funniest a thug

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Final comments
These last, general comments summarize your opinion of the film. should

The end of your article should give a conclusion that states strongly and clearly what your view is.

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

Final comments

contd

You can say something inspiring to get the reader to go out and see the film or something negative that would make them not want to go!
Yet the cultural assumptions of Veer and Zaara add a welcome element of freshness for American audiences. When Zaara's mother reminds her daughter that women always love fully, with heart and soul, she casually adds, "Men don't have the strength to love like that.''

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Final comments

contd

You might want to give it a star rating, or a "thumbs up, "thumbs down rating. Ebert Rating: ****

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The language of reviews

DESCRIBING AN ACTORS PERFORMANCE

Macmillan online dictionary

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The language of reviews

DESCRIBING AN ACTORS PERFORMANCE
a performance can be

good
brilliant outstanding winning
"The Hours" film review

amazing
stellar touching captivating

convincing solid acclaimed terrific

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The language of reviews

DESCRIBING AN ACTORS PERFORMANCE

The performance stands out.

gives the best performance of her career, surpassing what she accomplished in

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

The language of reviews

DESCRIBING AN ACTORS PERFORMANCE
a performance can be

bad
ham acting unconvincing terrible
"The Hours" film review

poor
weak stagy camera-conscious

overwrought dull

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

Words and phrases

Here are just a few aspects you can comment about in your review:
mood atmosphere detail scenery moments plot momentum

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

Words and phrases

Here are just a few common words and phrases used in film reviews:
spectacular visual effects excessive violence breathtaking evocative irresistible perfect wonderful hilarious poor unsuccessful

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Words and phrases

this movie has been compared to ____ because of its attention to detail spectacular scenery irresistible acting clich performances perfect soundtrack glorious moments intriguing plot wonderful actors hilarious scenes momentum

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Words and phrases

unexpected plot twists unbelievable phenomenal disappointing confusing fake imitation

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Words and phrases

POSITIVE unexpected plot twists unbelievable phenomenal NEGATIVE unbelievable disappointing confusing fake imitation

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Words and phrases

unoriginal typical thrilling moving portrayal I was impressed by credible clich a mixture of classic captivating

WRITING A FILM REVIEW

Words and phrases

POSITIVE thrilling moving portrayal I was impressed by credible a mixture of classic captivating

NEGATIVE unoriginal typical clich a mixture of classic

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LETS SUMMARIZE THE STRUCTURE

The heading The opening paragraph Film styles (genre) Plot (synopsis) Giving your opinion Scenes Characterization Final comments

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An in-class assignment

Lets view the film.