Writing A Good Review

Believe it or not, I occasionally receive emails from people asking me for tips about how to write reviews -- for their own blogs, a homework assignment, or suchlike. Now, I'm only an "expert" in terms of having written a lot of reviews over the years (over a thousand on this blog alone), and I've been paid for my work elsewhere. The fact DMD hasn't fallen flat on its arse (when 90% of the content is film and television reviews), suggests I'm doing something right.

So, more as a way to direct future e-mailers to this post (how cunning), here are my tips and guidance on how to write a decent review.

1. First, it's essential to know your audience. If you were ever fortunate enough to write for a film mag (Empire, Total Film), its readers are going to be quite knowledgeable, compared to readers of Heat and Woman's Realm. Sight & Sound readers will also expect more depth than the readers of Empire, too. There's no point making esoteric observations about an actor, writer or director that will go over the head of your intended audience. They'll just get confused, and possibly view you as pretentious bore. Generally, web reviews can focus on a particular demographic (as reviews will be hosted by a site or blog with a particular type of visitor), but magazine reviews often have to be written broader, to be enjoyed by more "regular" people who may only be browsing in a dentist's waiting room.

2. It's always a good idea to have an approximate length for your review in mind. If you're writing for an agency, they will usually give you a word-count to aim for -- and that's actually a really big help. But, even if you're writing reviews for your own amusement on the web, it's best to try and keep it focused. My own reviews tend to be between 600 and 1000 words long, but some of my better reviews have been written in 500 words, as I've had to ensure every word counts. This makes for a lean, mean, snappy review. Also, long sentences tend to work better in printed magazines, so try and keep it short for the 'net.

3. Structure -- this is vital, or you'll quickly irritate your readers by venturing off-topic every few paragraphs, with only a tenuous link to the main review! Failing to keep the whole thing focused and moving is one of the biggest sins. A general structure (not written in stone, but helpful) is:

3a. Brief introduction -- essentially, a quick way to get readers primed to read on, or "hooked". You can lay out general info (writers, directors, actors, premise) and perhaps tease at your overall opinion early, or "shock" people by revealing exactly what you think before the meat of the review. Don't do this just for the sake of it, though. If you genuinely think the latest critically-acclaimed movie is a stinker -- you'll definitely get people reading if you give it a 1-star review, and say so early -- but readers will be wary of your next review if you fail to deliver a persuasive, coherent argument. You don't want to get a reputation as a shock-merchant. If you're always rubbishing movies that sweep Oscars and people go and see in droves, you might look like a contrary fool. Of course, if that's your genuine opinion -- go for it. But have a decent argument to support a controversial view.

3b. Description of contents -- here, you have to quickly give readers a flavour of what you're reviewing (the gist of the plot, basic premise, main characters, their relationships, etc.) Try and make it entertaining, as this section will generally be regurgitating info the reader may already know, or don't want spoiling too much.

3c. Assessment of value -- the most important part, really. The guts of the review, where you give your opinion on its most important elements (actors, directing, costumes, sets, special effects, music, script) and whatever else struck you as notable, or interesting to mention. A bit of trivia can help spice things up, but use it sparingly.

3d. Comparisons -- not always essential, but it can help to compare things to similar things your readers have probably seen. For all your vocabulary skills and descriptive persuasiveness, if you say X is better or worse than Y, that's easy for people to grasp. Especially if they already know your opinion on Y matches their own. This is more essential if what you're reviewing is a sequel or the latest part of a long-running franchise (Bond films, etc.) People like to know how it fits into a saga; in terms of filmmaking quality, artistry and box-office success/failure.

3e. Conclusion -- a brief summary of the review that could almost be read on its own as an overview. It gives the reader a taste of what you thought. Be careful not to just regurgitate everything you've written again (but in shorter sentences.) How boring for the people who didn't skip to the last paragraph! It can be tricky to judge what to say and when to shut up, so best to quickly sum-up and get outta there -- pronto!

There are no hard-and-fast rules, however. Here at DMD, I quite often shake things up, or speak more from the gut. That's because it's my personal blog, so I can do what I like, to ensure boredom doesn't set in! And that is a concern when you're doing 20+ reviews just for ONE television series every year, and perhaps 15 series over 12 months! But, generally speaking, the core structure becomes second-nature and you tend to write towards that, whether you like it or not. You're just more aware of what you're doing when writing for other people, or a readership that aren't your own.