I’m taking a cinema studies class this semester that requires a couple research papers. So the due date for the first one is creeping up on me, and I realize I have no idea how to research the film and director I chose. What are some good journals and/or websites that give good analyses and histories of specific films and directors? Thanks a lot!
Of course the Bible of film databases is the Internet Movie Database. Review sites for current films include Rotten Tomatoes and Screen It. (The latter site is unusual because conservative Christians use it to make sure that Ashton and Demi won’t be nekkid in the movie while heathens like me use it make sure that they won’t waste their money if Ashton and Demi aren’t nekkid [which once it’s released can be handled by the Celebrity Nudity Database ).
Most film critics have websites, but the most popular is probably Roger Ebert due to his superior writing ability. Zines devoted to movies include Cinemazine and those mentioned here .
Your library almost certainly subscribes to two or more of the following: JSTOR, Academic Search Premier, ElSevier Premiere and Proquest. ALL of these databases contain scholarly full-text articles from film journals. (Just remember your Boolean- AND, OR, NOT and it’s as easy as using Google or Yahoo.) Your library probably also subscribes to Lexis-Nexis, a newspaper database that is completely full-text and would have film reviews for almost any movie imaginable dating back to the early 1980s. Before that time you should have microfilm of the NYT (fairly standard in academic libraries of any size) to which there are print indexes; there’s also a year by year index of popular magazines entitled “Readers Guide to Periodical Literature” which lists film reviews under hte heading “Motion Pictures- Reviews”.
To find books on any film or artist or director, etc., no matter how obscure, you can use the Library of Congress catalog (or the database Worldcat, available through most libraries, but LoC is easier to use). Any book or article that you find that your library doesn’t have you can request through Interlibrary Loan. (If you’ve never used this before ask your librarian- s/he’ll know exactly what you’re talking about and it’s almost always free of charge to college students.)
Always remember that the librarian is your friend. (Well, maybe not, but it’s really better - the librarian is PAID to help you find info on any topic that you’re interested in. Don’t be afraid to use him/her like the only woman on a pirate ship.
Thanks for the help! Today I finally worked up the guts to ask a librarian and all is well.
Sight and Sound is also considered to be one of the foremost magazines for cinema and is practically required reading for film students in some universities – it was an essential resource in the film library when I was a film student.
It is produced by the BFI and is available on newstands in North America.