Documentary Films and Movie Reviews

Movie reviews and evaluations started around the year 1966 in the US when Jack Valenti was chairperson of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). The era was illustrated by changes in American morality largely due to protestations, street riots and women's rights. As always the case, the arts were influenced greatly by these societal changes, leading to the emergence of a new genre of American picture that tended to be more open, and less moderate.

The evolutions on the other hand, caused controversy, particularly in the movie "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf," where the words "screw" and "hump the hostess" were listened to on the screen for the first time. After a conference among the fellows of the MPAA's governing counsel and team, the following actions were performed: delete "screw" but retain "hump the hostess." And this somehow started the unsettling of a new era in motion picture.

Also, a lot of controversy was related to the film "Blow-up" (from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) since it was the foremost film with nudity; as an outcome, the Production Code Administration (PCA) denied its seal of approval.

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Then, it was in April 1968 when the United States Supreme Court authorized laws about the prohibition of children to prints and flicks that have adult content. This was the real blow-up between different social flows - the drive of the movie makers who were decided to make their motion pictures and the probable interference of the authorities into thepicture arena. Such a situation needed a proper solution.

In weeks, discourses of the plan of Valenti for a movie rating system started with the president of the "National Association of Theatre Owners" (NATO) and with the "International Film Importers & Distributors of America" (IFIDA), an assembly of individual producers as well as distributors. The assemblies went on and these involved actors, writers, guilds, directors, producers, religious organizations, critics as well as presidents of MPAA member fellowships.

Later on, the NATO recognized how essential it is to create a fresh and revolutionary system to movie evaluation. Initially, four classes were established: G (for General Audiences), M (for mature audiences - parental guidance is advocated but all ages are allowed). R (for Restricted where minors under the age of 17 - before, it was 16 - need to be attended by a guardian) and X ( where kids below the age of 17 cannot be allowed to watch the film).

Modifications occurred when people realized the M category for "Mature" was perceived by most parents as a stricter ranking than the R category. As a result, M was adjusted to GP, General Audiences, but parental guidance is still suggested. The subsequent year, this went to its official tag, "PG: Parental Guidance Suggested."

It was in 1984 when the rating was sub-categorized into 2: PG and PG-13, the last mentioned which means the film has a high strength. Then, in 1990, a brief account of why a certain movie is classified as R was accepted.

Simply put, the objective of the movie reviews scheme was to assist parents determine which movies should be seen - or shouldn't be seen - by their kids.

Documentary films are first and foremost, one of several creative modes. It is either an experimental avant-garde or a narrative fiction. A documentary should have a purpose, and also a special viewpoint, and they can be either scripted or spontaneous, being limited to reality or actuality.

What makes documentary films special is the fact that there are no sets and no actors.

Documentaries are also credited as having a great impact on cultural meanings. It's a great thing that the art of documentary filmmaking is taught in many film schools all over the world. The schools and classes teach understanding the fundamental aesthetic tools of documentary filmmaking like camera operation, sound, structure, and also the interview.

For the students to learn directing and producing, classes are geared towards having exercises that lead to the real production of a film project.

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There are issues that the teacher and students deal with in documentary filmmaking having to do with the development of ideas, preproduction and the actual production.

To complement their learning, students will be made to watch segments of films and videos that are representative of the highlights in documentary filmmaking history. Usually, there are "celebrity" film makers who lecture in the courses to mentor and provide supplementary education.

Documentary films are an extremely difficult form of filmmaking, that usually stir up controversies. The very first known documentaries are the actuality films of the Lumire brothers while the latest works are the postmodern explorations of film truth. Classics include Flaherty, Grierson, Riefenstahl, Rouch, Vertov, and Wiseman, along with contemporary works. Documentary filmmaking classes also examine the effect of shifts in social and political realities, changing technology and personalities of influential individuals into the term "documentary." Ethical as well as aesthetic issues are also of consideration.

Documentaries frequently present challenges for cinematographers who usually must work alone or in small crews. They should learn how to capture beautifully-framed, meaningful footage during low budget and sometimes chaotic circumstances that usually surround the film shoot. Emphasis on shooting cinema verit is usually done in documentaries. Technical aspects of digital cameras are taught, and here, the students handle cameras and a crew.

Documentary films are also an art. Award-giving bodies have a place for documentaries and several are covered often by movie critics, as evidenced in as early as 1942, when there were four awardees namely: The Battle of Midway; Kokoda Front Line; Moscow Strikes Back; and Prelude to War. This 2009, Fighting for Life, a documentary on military medicine, is expected to reap tons of awards.

Los Angeles, CA (Marketwire-December 2, 2009) - MovieReviewIntelligence.com, Inc. announces the launch of the movie industry's first specialized movie review iPhone app, designed to give moviegoers as well as movie industry professionals accurate real time movie reviews information in a user-friendly format on the iPhone platform. The price of the app is 99 cents.

Developed by Bay Area developer Appfam.com, the app provides you up-to-the-minute summaries of movie reviews for all current and upcoming movies in the United States and Canada. Upfront, you'll see a list of current movies with each movie's measurement of positive movie reviews. People can then click on individual movies for more specifics. The app can be found in the iTunes App Store by searching for "Movie Review Intelligence."

The Movie Review Intelligence iphone App allows you to access the most comprehensive movie reviews of that day's films on your iphone (like when you're standing in line trying to decide which movie to see).MovieReviewIntelligence.com provides the fountain of information that is used by the app. The site works 24-by-7 - collecting movie reviews, analyzing hundreds of them and providing the most accurate, detailed and complete picture of the reviews.

"An iPhone app is a convenient tool for moviegoers and professionals who want to stay current and informed about what's playing; what they need to know about; and what they want to see," stated David A. Gross, founder, editor and publisher of MovieReviewIntelligence.com.

"The app is designed for easy use," claimed Matt Bearson, founder and managing partner of Appfam.com. "You get the key information fast and then can click for more detail. This is valuable information that belongs on a mobile platform in real time. We're looking forward to doing more."

MovieReviewIntelligence.com is the product of Gross' dream of providing moviegoers and film industry professionals the most accurate picture of movie reviews possible; the site was launched in June of 2009. The site covers all movies -- big, small, mainstream, indie, foreign and documentary. The critics included are chosen since they represent the body of film criticism that moviegoers see and read on a daily basis.

Based on ten years of research, what sets MovieReviewIntelligence.com apart from other movie review web sites is its thoroughness and faithfulness to the critics.

MovieReviewIntelligence.com is an independent web publication; the site isn't affiliated with a movie studio or other entertainment firm. "This is the best site to rely on as a moviegoer," Gross proclaims. "It's the site I would have liked to have had as an executive at the studios."

With the intention of creating iPhone apps that are fun information tools, Bearson, in June 2009, launched Appfam.com. The App from Movie Review Intelligence is the first commercial release of the company.

To learn more about the movie reviews app, visit the app's page at iTunes.