Resources by Subject: Film Studies

Back to Film Studies Research Guide

Finding Film Reviews
  • American Film Institute Catalog - UW restricted - This catalog offers a national filmography documenting American films from 1893-1970. Find films, film reviews, background information, music, and much more.
  • Film Index International - UW restricted - In-depth listing of over 115,000 films, including recent releases and international films, biographical information on directors, actors, etc.; also includes coverage of international film awards and prizes, and searchable plot summaries and full cast and crew lists. Produced by the British Film Institute.
  • FIAF Internation Filmarchive Database - UW restricted
    Contains: International index to film periodicals, International index to television periodicals, List of periodicals indexed; Treasures from the film archives, a directory of film and TV documentation collections, and a bibliography of FIAF members' publications
  • Film Review Annual (1981--) PN 1993.3 F463 (Reference shelves) - currently available through 2001 (reviews of the films of 2000)
    Contains reviews in their entirety, of full-length films released in major markets in the U.S. over the course of the year. Also provides full listings of major film awards, nominees as well as winners.
  • Film Review Index (1882-1985) Z 5784 M9 F513 1986 (Reference shelves)
    A two volume retrospective bibliography of articles (and books) on selected films. Coverage begins in 1882 up to 1985. Provides citations to reviews, histories, and critical commentary for over 7000 films. Many of the articles and books listed in this index are located on the UW Seattle campus - use our Document Delivery service to request these materials.
  • Film Literature Index - UW restricted
    Citation index to film and television articles from hundreds of journals published around the world, beginning in 1976 and 2001.
  • Ethnic Newswatch - UW restricted
    Full text articles from newspapers and periodicals published by the ethnic and minority press in America.
  • Expanded Academic Index - UW restricted
    Provides indexing and abstracting for approximately 1,500 scholarly and general interest periodicals, covering all major fields of study in the humanities, social sciences, and science and technology. Many full text articles. Hint: For reviews type the title of the film and motion pictures reviews.
  • Index to Black Periodicals (1985-) Print, Reference Stacks/Indexes. See entries under "Film Reviews."
  • Internet Movie Database & MRQE movie review query engine
    Please Note: Many of the "reviews" you find on the Web are not from "published" sources. Many are from discussion groups or are posted by individuals. The quality will vary tremendously. See Evaluating Information Found on the Internet for tips on evaluating web-based sources.
  • Lexis/Nexis - UW restricted
    Provides access to the full text of many newspapers and magazines. Good for recent releases (reviews and industry information).
  • Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature (1890-1985) Print, Reference Stacks/Indexes
    Reviews may be listed under "motion pictures " or "moving picture plays". If the review appeared between 1963 and 1982, you can also try Reader's Guide Retrospective online.
  • Research Library Complete - UW restricted
    Indexing and full text for a basic collection of general-interest, humanities, social science and science periodicals and newspapers, from 1986 to present. Research Library Complete searches the newspapers and periodicals sections of the database. “Natural language” search feature allows you to type your question as a sentence rather than key words. Hint: Type the title of your film and motion pictures.
Maintainer of this guide: Amanda Hornby, Media & Technology Studies Librarian