A good movie review is so much more than the number of stars after the movie title. I know that’s what most people want to see, but think about it. A movie producer has just invested $60M and the director has given two years of his life. Do you really think they want to see that reduced to a casual two second glance at the number of stars following the title? I know the internet has turned us all into ADD consumers that have lost the ability to process through written information thoughtfully, but really! Think about the art forms and how they blended together to bring the film to life. Consider this before passing your “two star” judgment. In this article I will attempt to describe four artistic lenses that craft a movie so that when you see your next blockbuster epic or quiet romantic comedy, you will have a greater appreciation for what the film makers have attempted to do.

Genre

This is the start button for every movie. The pitch to the studio money people begins, “It’s a __________ about …” The blank is the genre. Romantic comedy, drama, horror, action/adventure, buddy movie, coming of age movie, etc. Genre is the first lens we look through in unpacking a movie. It defines how the story will unfold, the pace of the editing, the musical theme as well as the incidental music, even the costumes and lighting will be determined by the genre. Each genre has its own set of rules, but genres also are reinvented and redefined successfully by Hollywood’s more creative movie makers. Barry Levinson’s “Rain Man” broke several genre rules but successfully told a very dramatic and engaging story about two brothers setting out on a cross country journey of discovery. Being able to identify the elements of genre in the movie will clarify why the movie is what it is.

Story

The next lens is story. When story is combined with genre the filmmaker’s intent and purpose in making the film becomes clear. Look carefully at each character as they are introduced and trace their arc. When and where do the arcs cross? When do they run parallel? The length of the arc indicates the character’s importance. Is the character introduced to set something up later. When the movie is over, remember the main characters’ introduction and story arc. Was it resolved or left open.

Morality

Every movie has a moral message. It is impossible to tell a story and not have a moral. The message of the film maker will be seen through the moral lens and remembered as we leave the theater. Moral messages include: Good always wins over evil. Nice guys finish last. The bad things you do in secret will be publicly exposed. The morality of the movie can be positive or negative. Horror movies usually end with everyone getting killed except for that final one who either defeats evil or escapes to fight evil another day.

Art

The artistic lens will reveal a movie’s longevity. If care was taken to creatively tell a story by expanding its genre, and revealing well formed characters with developed arcs, the film will become a classic. Every year the movie “Somewhere In Time” is celebrated on Mackinac Island, Michigan at the Grand Hotel. When the movie was first released in 1980, the box office was disappointing. But, when it began showing on cable TV, the artistic beauty of the well told romantic story captivated thousands of viewers. In 1990 the International Network of Somewhere In Time Enthusiasts was formed to plan the Mackinac Island event that became an annual celebration. In 2010 they will celebrate their 20th anniversary when the movie turns 30 years old. Its moral theme of timeless love still causes the movie’s fans to celebrate.

All That To Say…

…While we often are fans of particular movie stars, when you decide to go to a movie, look to see who’s directing the film. The film is their vision and the actors are only playing out the parts.Three movies later, they’ve usually established a moral history that will be repeated in future movies.

Revisit your movie experience through these lenses. Don’t be quick to pass judgment based on your personal opinion. The movie is over and the credits are rolling. Think about everyone who worked on the movie and how they contributed to the genre, story, morality, and art of the film. Do you think the director was able to accomplish what he and the producers set out to do? Read through the films reviews. Do you agree or disagree? As you look through these lenses, your experience at the movies will become far richer.

Consider an example. A Web site generates 6 million unique visitors per month. That is strong traffic. 6 million unique visitors per month means 200,000 unique visitors per day. The question is how many of them will click on a movie review? The numbers appear to be pretty small – less than 10 percent. For some Web sites, this may be a generous estimate. 10 percent is less than 20,000 readers per day. Compare this with a medium size newspaper, which has about 500,000 readers on an average Monday through Saturday. Research suggests that on a Friday, when most movie reviews are printed, between a third and a half of readers look at the entertainment section. Because of the nature of the printed medium, that means that roughly 166,000 to 250,000 readers are likely to see the review, including the headline and the picture, and some will read the text. It seems for a medium size newspaper, a movie review has a chance at being seen or read by between 166,000 and 250,000 readers, while for a successful Web site, a review has a chance at being clicked on and seen or read by around 20,000.

It is true that a review on a Web site remains available for more than one day and additional readership accumulates over time, but that is true for print and broadcast reviews as well, since those reviews are online too.

Basically the leading newspapers and magazines are industry-leaders online as well as in print. Newspapers in the top 25 markets alone attract over 150 million unique visitors per month to their sites and are included in the list of top Web sites of any kind. Movie critics are the most influential online even though they may be known best in newspapers and magazines or on television or radio. For these reasons, it is essential that each Web site’s online traffic be taken into consideration.

In sum, covering movie reviews online is extremely important. The question is for online publicaitons, do they have an audience on the level of the leading print publications and television and radio programs? It’s worth continuing to research this issue to look for data to support publications online.

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Angels and Demons Cast and Crew Genre: Drama, ThrillerDirector: Ron HowardCast: Tom Hanks, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, Stellan Skarsgård, Pierfrancesco Favino Screenwriter: David Koepp, Akiva GoldsmanProducer: Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, John CalleyComposer: Hans ZimmerStudio: Columbia Pictures

Radio – 4 Stars (Excellent)

“Radio”?the true story of high school football coach Harold Jones and a mentally-challenged young man named James Robert “Radio” Kennedy?might well be one of the most under-rated and under-appreciated movies in film history.

James Kennedy was nicknamed “Radio” by the townspeople of Anderson, South Carolina because he was always listening to discarded radios. As a youth he would push or ride a grocery cart down the street, talking to no one. It was 1976 and Radio did not attend school because he was mentally challenged, and an easy target for kids more fortunate.

After some football players on coach Harold Jones’ T. L. Hanna High School team harass, intimidate and scare the living daylights out of Radio (played by Cuba Gooding Jr.), Jones befriends and protects Radio by slowly winning his trust and inviting him to the team’s football practices.

Coach Jones (played magnificently by veteran actor Ed Harris) eventually has Radio helping out as a “coach” and sitting on the bench during the games. When Radio’s new-found acceptance leads to his self-image and self-confidence rising, his enthusiasm creates a distraction for the team at a critical moment, and some boosters (like the father of a star player) want Radio gone.

Fortunately for Radio, his unpretentious love and loyalty to the coach and players resonates, and Radio is allowed to remain part of both the team and the school. At this point in time, Radio is attending school, not as a student, but as a positive influence on the students and a welcome school-helper.

All of this is reminiscent of the biblical admonition “if you hear His voice today, harden not your heart.” Radio is about love, acceptance, approval, understanding, compassion, kindness, loyalty and finding peace in our time.

Radio the movie was inspired by Gary Smith’s 1996 article titled “Someone to Lean On” that first appeared in Sports Illustrated magazine. The film benefits greatly from the script by Mike Rich and direction by Mike Tollin, also one of the producers with Herb Gains and Brian O’keefe. Radio managed to generate $52+ million at the box office, but received mixed positive and negative reviews by the critics (of which I am one).

Radio was a terrific movie with a genuine message of value. Radio gets a positive answer to my most searching question as a movie reviewer: Am I a better person for having seen this film? You better believe it.

I am incensed that Radio was absolutely snubbed at major awards time. It is not like Ed Harris is a nobody. Before Radio was made, Ed Harris had been nominated for 3 Oscars as Best Supporting Actor (”The Hours”, “The Truman Show” and “Apollo”) and been nominated for Best Actor in “Pollock”. Add to those honors 4 nominations by the Golden Globes and a Best Actor Golden Globe for The Truman Show.

Cuba Gooding Jr. had won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor in “Jerry Maguire” (remember his famous line “Show me the money”), and was nominated for a Golden Globe for the same award.

The really good news about Radio is that Radio is still helping coach the Hanna High School team and bringing his presence to the school. He remains a story that continues to grow and radiate with positive vibes.