Guides: English 2322: British Literature Assignments: Major Project 2: Movie Review

Assignment

For your second, and final, major project, you should select a movie that represents something Shakespearean. This could be something that takes place in Elizabethan England, an adaptation of a Shakespeare play, or a film that represents the life of William Shakespeare. Once you’ve watched the film, write a movie review that includes the following:

An introduction and a conclusion paragraph.
A summary of the film.
A reflection about the film – what worked for you and what didn’t?
Two well-developed paragraphs in which you compare/contrast the film to one of the Shakesepare works we’ve read this semester: sonnets, Venus and Adonis, or King Lear.

You must provide quotations from the film in your compare/contrast paragraphs – and they should be properly cited according to MLA. I will provide a resource with instructions. You must also provide quotations from the works we’ve read in these paragraphs.

Rubric

Category	Point Value	Notes
MLA Formatting	10	Heading, header, double-spaced, paragraphs indented 12-point TNR font Works Cited page, properly formatted In-text citations, properly formatted
Summary	15	Covers the plot of the movie and relevant details
Reflection	15	Evaluates what works and what doesn’t Assertions are well-supported, explained, and developed
Compare Contrast	45	Two fully-developed paragraphs Quotes from film and texts Transitions between ideas Topic sentences Assertions are well-supported
Intro/Conclusion	15	Intro grabs the readers attention and sets up the review Conclusion signals closure and leaves the reader something to think about Both are well-developed

Roger Ebert was a famous movie critic. For ideas, read some of his reviews of Shakespeare movies.

https://www.rogerebert.com/cast-and-crew/william-shakespeare

Watch a Movie: Options for Access

Below are a selection of movies based Shakespeare's works or about him.

For additional movie options, please check Kanopy and our catalog first. Kanopy is a library movie streaming service, while the catalog lists movies you can request to check-out.

Also, there are streaming services where you can watch for movies for free. Or you might already subscribe to one such as Netflix, Prime, or Hulu.

If you need help locating a film, please don't hesitate to ask a librarian.