IB English A Lang & Lit Topic How to Write About Reviews Revision Notes (SL/HL)

IB English A Lang & Lit Topic How to Write About Reviews Revision Notes (SL/HL) | RevisionDojo

Written by official IB examiners

Annotated Example: Review

Definition

Review

A text that evaluates a cultural product such as a book, film, or restaurant, combining description, analysis, and personal judgement to guide an audience toward or away from the subject.

"Hollow Ground", Three Stars: the star rating appears before the review body, setting expectations immediately; three stars signals a mixed response, not a failure but not a recommendation, which tells the reader to look for both praise and criticism in what follows.
The conditional opening: "There is a version of this film that would have been genuinely great" is a sophisticated critical move that praises a film which does not exist; it signals that the reviewer sees the potential, which gives the subsequent criticism more authority.
Pattern as diagnosis: the word "keeps" in "keeps losing its nerve" identifies a recurring pattern rather than a single flaw; "losing its nerve" personifies the film as a coward, and the named alternatives make the failure specific and arguable.
Praise that redirects blame: the reviewer praises Cortez ("does what she can") while criticising the screenplay; this measured attribution of responsibility makes the reviewer appear analytical rather than dismissive, lending the overall negative verdict greater credibility.

Nice try, unfortunately this paywall isn't as easy to bypass as you think. Want to help devleop the site? Join the team at https://revisiondojo.com/join-us. exercitation voluptate cillum ullamco excepteur sint officia do tempor Lorem irure minim Lorem elit id voluptate reprehenderit voluptate laboris in nostrud qui non Lorem nostrud laborum culpa sit occaecat reprehenderit

Definition

Paywall

(on a website) an arrangement whereby access is restricted to users who have paid to subscribe to the site.

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Note

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam quis nostrud exercitation.

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit.

Tip

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.
Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris.
Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum.

Unlock the rest of this chapter with a free account

Annotated Example: Review

Definition

Review

A text that evaluates a cultural product such as a book, film, or restaurant, combining description, analysis, and personal judgement to guide an audience toward or away from the subject.

"Hollow Ground", Three Stars: the star rating appears before the review body, setting expectations immediately; three stars signals a mixed response, not a failure but not a recommendation, which tells the reader to look for both praise and criticism in what follows.
The conditional opening: "There is a version of this film that would have been genuinely great" is a sophisticated critical move that praises a film which does not exist; it signals that the reviewer sees the potential, which gives the subsequent criticism more authority.
Pattern as diagnosis: the word "keeps" in "keeps losing its nerve" identifies a recurring pattern rather than a single flaw; "losing its nerve" personifies the film as a coward, and the named alternatives make the failure specific and arguable.
Praise that redirects blame: the reviewer praises Cortez ("does what she can") while criticising the screenplay; this measured attribution of responsibility makes the reviewer appear analytical rather than dismissive, lending the overall negative verdict greater credibility.

Definition

Paywall

(on a website) an arrangement whereby access is restricted to users who have paid to subscribe to the site.

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Note

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam quis nostrud exercitation.

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Tip

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.
Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris.
Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum.

Everything You Need to Know About Analysis6 subtopics

Paper 1 Lang & Lit4 subtopics

Paper 2 Lang & Lit4 subtopics

Individual Oral (IO)4 subtopics

Higher Level Essay3 subtopics

Text Types13 subtopics

Literary Forms4 subtopics

IB English A Lang & Lit How to Write About Reviews Notes

Annotated Example: Review

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Unlock the rest of this chapter with a free account

Annotated Example: Review

anim nostrud sit dolore minim proident quis fugiat velit et eiusmod nulla quis nulla mollit dolor sunt culpa aliqua

Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit

Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident

Unlock the rest of this chapter with a free account

Everything You Need to Know About Analysis6 subtopics

Paper 1 Lang & Lit4 subtopics

Paper 2 Lang & Lit4 subtopics

Individual Oral (IO)4 subtopics

Higher Level Essay3 subtopics

Text Types13 subtopics

Literary Forms4 subtopics