Mostly derived from literary criticism, and following the basics of "New Criticism," the style of interpretation follows the styles taught in the study of literature. The interpretation aims to exhibit the critic's master of the skills of attentive, usually "close" examination. The goal of the interpretation is to produce a film critique that explains why the work studied was significant to study, and to justify the film critic's overall claims about the work studied.
Methods used:
"ordinary criticism" - the ongoing program of a group of researchers using approved problem/solution routines to expand and fill out he realm of the known
it uses analogy, or "application" of themes that have been determined by the work of prior film critics and literary critics.
Examples: focusing on the white vs. black, focusing on the ideas of reflexivity (mirror = framing, looking = filming), symbolism of a dove within the work.
The good film critic receives more internal satisfaction from interpreting a difficult film to catagorize than one that follows easily into the schemes which have been defined by their predecessors.
There have been many applications and uses of film criticism. The following chart allows you to see what types of criticism can be used, and which forum you can use to share the information to the public.
Publishing Format Formal Institutions Informal Institutions Journalistic Criticism Newspapers and Popular weeklies (e.g. New York Times,
Villiage Voice) Television and Radio Programs Employment by periodical Professional associations (e.g. New York Film Critic's
Circle) Invisible colleges (network of acquaintances, mentors,
disciples, etc.) Essayistic Criticism Specialized or intellectual monthlies or quarterlies
(e.g. Cahiers du cinema, Artforum, Partisan Review) Employment by periodical Galleries, Museums, etc. Colleges or Universities Circles and salons around periodical Invisible colleges Academic Criticism Scholarly journals (e.g. Cinema Journal) Colleges or universities Centers and government agencies Academic associations (e.g.Society for Cinema
Studies) Conferences and conventions Invisible colleges "Schools" (group of practitionsers of a particular theory
or method; e.g. auteur criticism, feminist criticism)
The chart explains how there are three types of "macroinstitutions": Journalism, essayistic writing and academic scholarship.
The sub-institutions are both formal & informal.
When one is planning to write a critical review of a film for one of the macroinstitutions, their publishing format typically falls in the first category, and the formal & informal institutions where they find supporters of their style of criticism.
A brief HISTORY of film criticism
The Logic of Discovery, or Problem-Solving
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within Routines & Practices
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