Correlation between Film Criticism, Social Issues and Student Audience Reception

The main objective of this research is to define the correlation between film criticism, social issues in films and student audience reception, and how media literacy affects this process. In this case study the quantitative research will be used as a main method. A questionnaire will be used to question 400 students in 4 different Croatian universities. Croatia will be used as a case study and the results will be compared to those of other researches in this field.

A detailed questionnaire will be used with questions about the students (age, gender, etc.), how many of them read film reviews and where (printed media, online written media, video blogs, social networks, etc.), and the way the film reviews and different social issues in the films affect their decision to watch the film and its reception. We will also ask them how and which film books from university and public libraries they read influenced their choice and reception of films, and how the film courses they attended at their universities affected their choice and reception of films.

Qualitative research methods will also be used, with in-depth interviews with film professors at these 4 universities, in order to see how they present the importance of film criticism to students, what social issues in films they discuss with students, how the students react to film reviews and to films that deal with different social issues in their discussions on classes and in written papers.

In analyzing and commenting on the results of this research, the works of renowned researchers in these fields will be consulted. Eliashberg and Shugan (1997) empirically researched the correlation of critical reviews and box office; Livingstone (2004) considered how far existing theories and methods for researching audiences can be extended to new media; McDonald (2007) emphasizes the need of critical evaluation of films challenged by cultural studies and media democratization; Hobbs (2011) demonstrates how to incorporate media literacy into the classroom, providing the tools teachers need to effectively foster students’ critical thinking and communication skills; Gillespie (2012) claims that criticism is opposing the consumerist approach to culture and resisting the monetization logic of the cultural market; Frey (2014) writes about the challenges of film criticism in the age the new media and Eagan (2020) proved the influence of contemporary film reviews, especially negative ones.

This study will show how different aspects of media literacy affect the ways in which students choose and evaluate films. On the basis of this research an evaluation model will be established, applicable to other countries, and could have a wider impact on film literacy researches at universities. It should also be emphasized that the proposed research model, taking into account the specifics of theatrical and literary works, could be applied to theatrical and literary criticism. Therefore we believe that this research will give relevant scientific results, inspire new studies in mentioned similar contexts and give valuable input to a better understanding of information and media literacy.

Reference

• Eliashberg, J., & Shugan, S. (1997). Film critics: Influencers or predictors? Journal of Marketing, 61, 68–78.
• Livingstone, S. (2004). The challenge of changing audiences or, what is the researcher to do in the age of the internet? European Journal of Communication, 19(1), 75–86.
• McDonald, R. (2007). The death of the critic. Bloomsbury Publishing.
• Hobbs, R. (2011). Digital and media literacy: Connecting culture and classroom. Twelve Oaks: Corwin.
• Gillespie, R. (2012). The art of criticism in the age of interactive technology: Critics, participatory culture, and the avant-garde. International Journal of Communication, 6, 56–75.
• Frey, M. (2014). The permanent crisis of film criticism. The anxiety of authority. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
• Eagan, O. (2020). The influence of film critics on movie outcomes. In Oscar Buzz and the Influence of Word of Mouth on Movie Success. Cham: Palgrave Pivot.

Zlatko Vidačković¹, Nikša Sviličić²

¹MET, Zagreb, Croatia; ²University North, Koprivnica, Croatia