Review

Review is about providing details on the task subject, giving your opinion and recommending (or not recommending) to
see/watch/read it. Your review can be on a variety of things such as books, movies, plays, events and much more.

Your writing can be either formal or informal. It is clear from the task which register you are supposed to use. Whichever
you use, you should be consistent and stick to one register throughout the whole essay.

Suggested Review Structure

Use the introductory paragraph to name what you are going to be reviewing, state its genre (i.e. a science fiction novel, a
horror movie, a vaudeville performance and so on). It is possible to write about author’s other notable works if there are
any. To make your introduction more engaging, you may briefly state your general impression on it. Make your
introduction at least three sentences long.

Your first body paragraph should give a short summary of the reviewed material. Give a brief overview — plot, setting,
actors, general idea. Avoid giving your opinion in this paragraph — you will do this in the following passages.

Second and third body paragraphs can be used to describe good and bad points respectively. Your paragraphs don’t have
to be of same length — if you liked the described thing then your paragraph with good points will be naturally bigger
than the other one. In the negative points paragraph you can name things that could be changed to improve the quality of
the product.

Conclusion will contain your general impression and your verdict. Use this paragraph to sum up the good and bad points
to make an objective assessment of the reviewed material. You may then recommend or dissuade your readers from
seeing/attending it.

Useful phrases:

 In my opinion, …
 In my eyes, …
 To my mind, …
 As far as I am concerned, …
 Speaking personally, …
 From my point of view, …
 As for me / As to me, …
 My view / opinion / belief / impression / conviction is that …
 I hold the view that …
 I would say that …
 It seems to me that …
 I am of the opinion that …
 My impression is that …
 I am under the impression that …
 It is my impression that …
 I have the feeling that …
 My own feeling on the subject is that …
 I have no doubt that …
 I am sure / I am certain that …
 I think / consider / find / feel / believe / suppose / presume / assume/reckon that …
 I hold the opinion that …
 I dare say that …
 I guess that …
  I bet that ….
 I gather that …
 It goes without saying that …

Linking:

 As I have said before…

 With respect to the point on…
 Regarding…
 Like I have said…
 In relation to…
 Taking into account…

Speculating :

 Probably – He will probably do the exam next week

 Perhaps/maybe – Perhaps he doesn´t have time
 May/might/could – You might be luckier next time
 What if – What if he doesn´t arrive on time?

An example Review task to illustrate these points:

Review Sample

Your teacher of literature asked you to write a review of your favourite book which has a film adaptation. Your teacher
wants you to compare them and tell which do you like more and why.

The title I am going to review is a rare example when the movie manages to trump the book it is based on. Today I am
reviewing Fight Club by an infamous American novelist Charles Palahniuk — his most widely-known, universally
acclaimed work.

It is a daunting task to find a person unfamiliar with the movie. The plot engages you from the very start — a young
professional finds his apartment destroyed by an explosion of unknown origin. Agitated, he phones his newfound
acquaintance Tyler whom he had met on the plane. They see each other at a bar and the story becomes increasingly
complex, yet pleasantly effortless to follow. Through its narrative a number of problems are tackled – self-identity, peer
pressure, middle-life crises and some other. The characters are likeable and easy to relate to. Both acting and directing
are superb. But what makes it better than the book?

The only objective fault I could find in the book was the order of events. It goes back and forth, which at times proves to
be confusing. The movie manages the sequencing much better. Other than that the book is brilliant — vigorous prose
that manages to evoke strong images. The movie however is so good that the book tends to slightly fade in all its glory.
People tend to read the book after seeing the adaptation, thus coming with high expectations that can be hard to meet.

To sum this up, I would recommend reading the book nonetheless. It may seem inferior in some respects, but it does help
to understand the main theme of “Fight Club” better.