PURPOSE: In preparation for writing an academic paper, students will do library research on their teacher-approved topic.

• Research film assignment
• Finding the release date
• Finding film reviews and film criticism
• Finding books about movies, directors, actors, or filmmaking
• Finding movie review websites

1: Finding the release date

Release date is the year a film's made public. When searching for movie reviews of recently released movies, you might need to look in one or more years of an index. For example, for a movie released in September 1998 will have movie reviews appearing for both 1992 and 1993.

To find the date of a particular film, consult:

• The International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers
  REF PN1997.8.I7 1997
• Halliwell's Film Guide
  REF PN1998.433 2000
• Film Encyclopedia
  REF PN1993.45.K34 2001

2: Finding film reviews and film criticism

Film reviews usually appear shortly before or a few weeks after the release of a film. They briefly describe the plot, comment on the script and cinematography and rate the performances of the actors.  Reviews usually appear in general magazines and newspapers and are aimed, primarily, at helping you decide if you want to see the film. 

Film criticism attempts a more detailed, scholarly examination of a film as a whole, or a specific aspect of the film (plot, writing, cinematography, etc.). Most critiques appear in specialized film journals and in other scholarly journals in the humanities. Criticisms may appear any time after a film is released. Although it may include an evaluation, its purpose is to investigate, interpret, or develop a particular topic. Many film journals contain both reviews and criticisms. 

• New York Times Film Reviews. Ref. PN 1995.N48 1913-.
  Photographic reprints of reviews are presented as they appear in the newspaper
• Magills Cinema Annual (Ref PN 1993.3 M34) Contains reviews or plot summaries of films.Includes full-text reviews of selected films and other information such as credits, box office gross, memorable lines, and MPAA rating. Each entry concludes with a bibliography that lists reviews published in other sources.
• Magill's Survey of Cinema: English Language Films, First Series [REF PN1995. M3 v.1-4] This source provides essays analyzing films from 1927-1980.
• Magill's Survey of Cinema: English Language Films, Second Series  [REF PN1995.M3 1981 v.1-6]
  Covers 751 additional films from 1928-1981 not covered in the first series.
• Magill's Survey of Cinema: Foreign Language Films  [REF PN1993.45 .M34 1985 v.1-8] Provides reviews of 700 foreign language films.

3: Finding books about movies, directors, actors, or filmmaking