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How To Write A Review in 5 Paragraphs

This document provides guidance for writing a 5 paragraph review of a movie, TV show, restaurant or other experience. Paragraph 1 introduces the topic with who, what, when, where and how. Paragraphs 2-3 each discuss 1-2 reasons for being attracted to or repulsed by the experience, providing examples and quotes. Paragraph 4 summarizes the assessment without including spoilers or personal opinions. The review concludes with a catchy quote in paragraph 5. Proper writing structure, third person perspective, and proofreading are emphasized.

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Analia Putri
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224 views2 pages

How To Write A Review in 5 Paragraphs

This document provides guidance for writing a 5 paragraph review of a movie, TV show, restaurant or other experience. Paragraph 1 introduces the topic with who, what, when, where and how. Paragraphs 2-3 each discuss 1-2 reasons for being attracted to or repulsed by the experience, providing examples and quotes. Paragraph 4 summarizes the assessment without including spoilers or personal opinions. The review concludes with a catchy quote in paragraph 5. Proper writing structure, third person perspective, and proofreading are emphasized.

Uploaded by

Analia Putri
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

How To Write A Review In 5 Paragraphs

Writing a professional review of a movie, TV show, or restaurant is not difficult, but there are a
few things to watch for to make it appropriate for a newspaper or magazine.

To get started

Choose something new, exciting, and different to write about. If you write about something
that’s been around awhile, you’ll need to have a new angle to cover, like a new exhibit at an
existing museum. Your article should be new and original. Don’t use research from the internet
and don’t try to reuse an essay from a previous class.

Some suggestions include:

 Books, movies, or TV show reviews


 concert reviews
 museum and gallery exhibits
 new restaurants or clubs
 what's going on at the college or community that impacts you, the student s.

What you should do

Paragraph 1

The first sentence or the ‘lede’ tells who, what, why, when, where, and how. The lede can be as
simple as:

“A new comic book adventure opened this weekend at theaters across the
nation.”

or more dynamic such as:

"The nation was rocked over the weekend by an unexpected blast as the latest
installment in the superhero franchise blew all previous versions out of the
theater.”

Paragraphs tend to be short with direct sentences in news. Always write in 3rd person and past
tense. In news, everything you write should come from your observation or an interview.
NEVER repeat or reuse anything, even in a quote!

Also do not use ‘I’ and don’t include your opinion. Think that doesn’t make sense? Keep in
mind - a review is not so much your opinion as an analysis of the movie, show, restaurant, etc.
based on the established standard. Instead of saying:

"This movie is the greatest! You should go see it!"


try saying something like:

"This movie beats the earlier superhero movies because of a, b, and c."

Paragraphs 2 -3

State at least 3 reasons you were attracted to or repulsed by the movie, TV show, event or
restaurant. Name each reason in its own paragraph and provide examples and details. Don’t just
say:

“The food was great.”

Instead, try saying something like:

"The food was “fresh with fish caught that morning and served grilled with a
lemon sauce.”

For movies or TV, discuss reasons such as acting, lighting, costume, music, setting, photography,
etc. DO NOT discuss plot! A good film or TV review does not include spoiler alerts!

For books, discuss character, theme, setting, symbolism, tone, language use, etc. Again, DO
NOT discuss plot! No spoiler alerts!

Each paragraph should end with a quote. Ask other people, other viewers or customers, what
they think to support your assessment or to add another perspective.  Quotes should be formatted
like:

“He’s my favorite actor,” said person’s name.

Paragraph 5 –

Summarize your appraisal of the movie, TV show, event, or restaurant. Repeat your reasons for
recommending or not recommending it to the reader. Add a final quote, known in broadcast
journalism as a kicker, that is a funny or catchy ending. For example, the movie review might
end:

“My boyfriend hated it, but he loves me, so we’ll be back to see it again,” said
fan’s name.

Finally –

Proof read your article. Read it again – OUT LOUD – to catch and fix any punctuation or
grammar errors.

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