This reply works fine if you’re talking about a movie with your friends, but if you have to write a comparison essay about a book and its film adaptation, your teacher is going to expect a little more (okay a lot more) than “it just was.”

If you need a push to help you move beyond that basic “I just like it more” as your standard of comparison, keep reading to learn how to write a killer book and movie comparison essay.

How to Write a Killer Book and Movie Comparison Essay

Sometimes, the mere thought of starting a new assignment can cause more stress than you’d like to admit. But by following a few important steps, you can alleviate at least a little of your stress and write a killer essay.

To work through the process of developing an effective book and movie comparison essay, I’m going to use an example that many of us have read and watched in high school: To Kill a Mockingbird.

Begin by understanding your assignment

The first step to writing a successful book and movie comparison is to understand your assignment.

In many cases, your professor will have already assigned a movie and book to compare. This means that now is not the time to take it upon yourself to draw an amazing comparison between a Harry Potter novel and its movie counterpart simply because you’re a superfan.

Knowing your assignment also means that, if you’re assigned to read and watch To Kill a Mockingbird, for instance, and your professor tells you to pay attention to characterization and symbolism, you should definitely follow her suggestion.

If you know that these elements will be required analysis in your paper, then you already have a head start and know what you should be looking for as you read and watch.

Take careful notes

I know annotation can seem like a royal pain, but trust me, you’ll thank me later. Taking notes not only helps you understand the information more completely but also saves you a lot of time because you can easily find information later when you write your paper.

Remember, you’re writing a compare and contrast essay, so you’ll want to take notes on both the book and the movie to help you draw comparisons.

Taking notes if you do know the required focus of your paper

If you already know what you should be looking for, jot down everything that seems important about the assigned topic.

If I were taking notes on one or more characters in To Kill a Mockingbird, for instance, here are a few points I’d look for:

• Physical descriptions
• Personality traits
• Characters’ thoughts on events or other characters
• What motivates characters to complete specific actions
• Interactions between characters
• Types of characters (protagonist, antagonist, round, flat, etc.)

I might also include any questions about characters or sections that leave me a little confused or wondering, “Why in the world would the character do that?”

Though you’ll look for the same elements in both the book and the movie, you might end up with notes about completely different characters or character traits after watching the movie, especially if the film takes a lot of creative liberties and vastly differs from the book.

Don’t worry! A drastically different set of notes will likely serve you well—it’ll help you establish true comparisons between the novel and the film.

If I were writing about the film version of To Kill a Mockingbird, here’s one of the key points I’d note about the characters:

• There’s a distinct change in the treatment of characters, particularly Jem and Scout’s mother. In the novel, their mother is only mentioned briefly, but in the movie, Jem and Scout have a detailed conversation about their deceased mother.

Because I’m only taking notes, I may not have a clear sense of why, how, or even if this is important to the story yet. That’s okay. Remember, the point is to start developing ideas.

In this case, I may wonder if the mention of their mother in this scene is meant to foreshadow another conversation, if the mother will somehow play a larger role in the movie, or if this scene is only a way for the producers to help develop the story on film.

Taking notes if you don’t know the focus of your paper before you read the book or watch the movie

If you’re assigned to read a book and watch the movie but you don’t yet know what the actual essay assignment will be, it’s time to search your memory for the literary terms you’ve been discussing in class.

Take notes on literary devices, such as theme, character, symbolism, imagery, simile, and metaphor. (Notice how this essay about To Live analyzes, among other devices, character, plot, and tone.)

One important thing to remember about the process of note-taking is that you don’t want to become so overwhelmed with writing notes that you don’t even remember what you just read or watched. In other words, don’t take notes on everything. Limit your notes to a handful of key devices.

As you take notes, look for elements that appear identical in both versions, but also look for anything that seems strikingly different.

Don’t worry if you don’t end up using everything in your notes or if a point seems really important at first but ends up being insignificant. The purpose of annotation is to get your ideas down on paper. You can sort through them later.

Think about what it all means

After you’ve finished reading, watching, and note-taking, set everything aside for at least a day or two to think about what it all means.

A list of notes and a whole bunch of random similarities and differences are great, but they don’t provide any information about the significance of these points (and they don’t yet provide you with a focus for your essay).

Remember, the goal of a comparison essay isn’t to simply identify points that might be the same or different.

The goal is to analyze the differences and explain how any additions, omissions, or changes in the film change the story or its interpretation.

In my example of To Kill a Mockingbird, I might have listed questions about Mrs. Dubose. In the book, she’s a crabby, old, racist neighbor of Jem and Scout, and it is later revealed that she is struggling with a morphine addiction. She plays a much smaller role in the movie version of To Kill A Mockingbird, though, and the issue of addiction isn’t brought up.

In my notes, I may ask the following questions:

• Did the producers feel that Mrs. Dubose’s addiction simply wasn’t important enough to include in the film?
• Does the omission actually have an impact on the story?
• Could the changes to Mrs. Dubose’s character affect elements such as plot, theme, or characterization (or the viewer’s interpretation of characters)?

Sifting through your notes and random thoughts and questions can get messy, so to stay organized (and to help you develop your ideas even further) try various prewriting techniques. (A Venn diagram can be particularly useful when examining similarities and differences.)

Determine what is important enough to be included in your comparison essay

After you’ve organized your notes and developed some initial analysis, it’s time to decide what’s important enough to include in your essay.

Not every similarity or difference is worth noting in your paper. Include only relevant and significant points that make the greatest impact between the book and movie.

Here’s what I mean.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, there is little physical description of Atticus Finch, other than the facts that he’s about 50 years old, is tall, and wears glasses. In the 1962 movie adaptation starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, Peck more or less fits this description. But in the movie, it’s evident that he parts his hair on the right (his right, not yours when looking at the image below).

Though there is no description of how Atticus wears his hair in the novel, and his hairstyle is obviously visible in the movie, there’s no point in mentioning this in an essay that compares the book and movie. It’s an insignificant point. His hairstyle is not relevant and doesn’t influence or shape the story in any way.

Let’s say, though, that a character’s hairstyle in a book is described in detail because it’s part of the character’s personality or because it symbolizes freedom, rebellion, or strength.

If the movie changes the character’s hairstyle, in this case, the entire character could change. This would most certainly be a time to analyze the importance of a change in appearance from book to film.

To see how one writer analyzes significant differences between a book and its movie adaptation, read A Comparison of the Similarities and Differences Between The Princess Bride Film and Novel.

Find a focus and outline your ideas

At this point, you have a solid list of relevant points to analyze, but you still don’t have a focus for your paper.

To start, develop a solid thesis statement.

Don’t write a bland statement like, “There are many similarities, but only a few differences between the book and movie.”

This doesn’t tell your readers anything about the true focus of your essay.

Instead, craft a thesis statement that is specific in its comparison and lets readers know exactly what you’ll be discussing.

In my essay about To Kill a Mockingbird, I might write the following thesis statement:

• Though the 1962 film adaptation of Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird is true to the themes of the original novel, its omission of minor characters leaves the audience with an incomplete understanding of the people and culture of Maycomb.

This thesis statement presents a clear roadmap for the essay and lets readers know the focus will be on the omission of characters and how they affect the story. (Want to see an effective thesis statement in action? Check out this essay from our library. It clearly illustrates why the writer feels The Great Gatsby novel is superior to the film adaptation.)

Once you’ve written your thesis statement, use it to provide guidance as you move to the next step of the writing process: outlining.

You’ll need roughly three or four key ideas and examples from the book and movie to support your claims.

If you’re looking for more specific information about outlines, read This Compare and Contrast Essay Outline Will Help You Beat Writer’s Block. The post also includes a compare and contrast essay outline template to help you get started.

Finally … Draft (and Revise and Edit) Your Comparison Essay

I know. It’s been a long journey, and at this point, you feel like you’ve just completed a marathon. The good news: it’s finally time to draft your essay.

Follow your outline to help you craft a catchy introduction, at least three body paragraphs to support your thesis, and an awesome conclusion.

To help you with the finer details of your draft, here are a few must-read posts:

• How to Start a Compare and Contrast Essay on the Right Foot
• 13 Compare and Contrast Thesis Statements to Inspire You
• Compare and Contrast Essay Tips From a Kibin Editor
• How to Revise an Essay and Make It Better Than Ever

Have a completed essay but aren’t sure whether you’ve focused enough on analysis or whether you’ve included significant points in your comparison? Let a Kibin editor take a look at your essay. We’ve edited tens of thousands of essays and can help you with your book and movie comparison essay too.

Stuck on Your Analytical Essay?

Check Out These Example Analytical Essays

Yes! Show me examples.

This not-so-detailed analysis is fine if you’re critiquing a movie with your friends, but it isn’t going to cut it when you have to write a film analysis. (In fact, it’s better left on the proverbial cutting room floor.)

But if you can’t write about how much the movie sucked or how hot the actors are, what’s left to include in the paper?

Believe me, there are lots of things to include. I can’t possibly discuss them all in this post, but here are 10 cinematic techniques you need to know for a better essay.

10 Cinematic Techniques You Need to Know for a Better Essay

The purpose of this post is to describe 10 cinematic techniques you might use as part of film analysis essay.

This post isn’t designed to teach you how to write a film analysis. If you’re looking for help with that, read How to Analyze a Movie for Dramatic Effect.

Let’s dive into those techniques now.

Cinematic technique #1: Genre

Genre refers to a type of film (or piece of literature) that follows a specific style and usually focuses on a specific subject. A few examples of genres are western, romantic comedy (a.k.a. chick flick), sci-fi, and documentary.

Genres can sometimes become formulaic, so if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. Think of every romantic comedy in existence. They’re all basically light-hearted comedies, and the characters have to overcome a number of obstacles in order to find their true love.

Cinematic technique #2: Literary terms

Okay, so “literary terms” isn’t technically a technique exclusive to film, but in many literature classes you’re asked to analyze films. If you’re asked to critique a film as a piece of literature, you better believe your prof is going to want to see a detailed discussion of literary devices.

Think about movies like Lord of the Rings and the Christian symbolism involved. Think about the classic film Citizen Kane and the sled as a symbol of Kane’s childhood.

How about theme? The Disney movie Cinderella exemplifies the theme of love conquers all.

And Luke interacting with Darth Vader in Star Wars? This is clearly a great example of foreshadowing (even though we may have not realized it until much later in the movie).

Check out these posts if you’re in need of a little help with the literary analysis part:

• 8 Components of a Smart Literary Analysis
• How to Write a Literary Analysis That Works
• Literary Analysis Tips from a Kibin Editor

Cinematic technique #3: Music (or musical score)

Don’t tell me you’ve never caught yourself singing one of those catchy Disney tunes. Like it or not, those songs are earworms.

The fact that you can’t get a song out of your head is evidence of the importance of music in a movie.

Music, though, isn’t just used for catchy Disney flicks. Think about the scary music that plays in every horror movie or the high-energy music that plays in every car chase.

The music is chosen for a reason, so pay close attention to it as you critique a movie.

Cinematic technique #4: Point of view

Point of view is essentially the viewpoint through which a story is told. This is another term borrowed from literature, but I’ve included it as a separate term here because the chosen point of view alters the entire movie.

Take, for example, the Planet of the Apes movies. Since 1968 we’ve been watching the series about a group of astronauts who realize that Earth is now run by apes.

Now think about how the story would change if told from different viewpoints.

If told from the point of view of the astronauts, the movie becomes a horror movie, with humans no longer in control, being forced to live as slaves. If told from the point of view of the apes, it becomes the story of the uprising of a few trouble-making humans who are trying to overtake society as they know it. Completely different movies, right?

Cinematic technique #5: Shots

Shot simply refers to a series of frames that establishes the scene, emotion, and story in a movie.

If you’ve ever watched a western, for example, you’ve seen long, expansive shots that seem to encompass the entire desert, with one lone cowboy riding into the sunset.

A movie might also use close-up shots. As the name implies, these shots zoom in to a character, generally only showing the character’s face. You’ve seen lots of these shots in serious, dramatic movies when characters have important information to disclose.

Cinematic technique #6: Lighting

Lighting might not be one of the first things you think about when you think film analysis, but it plays an important part in the overall composition of shots and the movie itself.

A comedy, for instance, would be more likely to be brightly lit, while a horror movie may include dark, dreary, and generally scary lighting.

Low-key lighting is also very common in specific types of movies, such as film noir. This type of low lighting creates dark, moody scenes and strong shadows on actors’ faces.

Check out the scene below from the film Out of the Past. Notice the dark coloring and shadows on the actors. Also notice how your eye is drawn to the brightest, lightest point in the shot, the beautiful face of Kathy Moffatt (played by Jane Greer).

Cinematic technique #7: Camera angles

Camera angles might include eye-level shots, aerial shots, or high or low shots.

Eye-level shots are common as they generally put the viewer at the same level as the characters.

Aerial shots can be used to show a large, expansive scene (like the western with the cowboy riding into the sunset).

High camera angles allow the viewer to see the character from a vantage point that is higher than eye level. In other words, you’re looking down on another character. This type of shot is often used to illustrate superiority or power of one character over another. (The person looking down has the power.)

Low camera angles, on the other hand, allow the viewer to see the characters from a vantage point lower than eye level. The character looking up at another character is the less dominant character.

Remember the scene in A Christmas Story where Ralphie is looking up at Santa and telling him he wants a Red Ryder BB gun? This is an amazing example of a low shot. Ralphie is powerless at that moment as he looks up at Santa, and Santa shoves Ralphie down the slide.

Cinematic technique #8: Sound

Sound doesn’t necessarily refer to the dialogue or music in a movie. Instead, it refers to all of the other sounds you hear in the film. These might be background sounds, such as sounds of a room or the noise of a city.

The sounds might also be amplified to create an effect. Ever watch a horror movie where you could suddenly hear every footstep, every creaking floorboard, and even the faintest sound of a wolf howling in the background?

Those sounds are there for a reason. Take note of them, and consider what effect they have on the viewer.

Cinematic technique #9: Special effects or computer-generated imagery (CGI)

Moviegoers love a good car chase ending in a fiery explosion. This type of special effect is, of course, common in many movies. While older movies had no choice but to actually blow up cars if they wanted to create such a scene, modern filmmakers can use CGI to virtually create an explosion.

Special effects aren’t all about explosions, though. Special effects might refer to the makeup worn by actors, to the tornado created on the set, or to digitally placing characters in different scenes.

Some people now argue that movies are overwhelmed with CGI (such as superhero movies like Batman or X-Men). Your analysis might include a discussion of the effectiveness of special effects, whether the effects are realistic, or whether the movie contains too many effects.

Cinematic technique #10: Mise-en-scène

This is a big one, so I’ve saved it for last. Mise-en-scène refers to the arrangement of everything you see in the shot. This includes the actors, costumes, set/background, lighting, props, and camera work and angles.

Essentially, mise-en-scène is the world in which the characters live and is the result of everything coming together to form the movie’s overall feel and look.

If you’re analyzing a film, you might use mise-en-scène to help describe the mood, the goals, or the themes of the film.

Cinematic technique #10: Focus on mise-en-scène to describe the film’s mood, goals, or themes.
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Roll the Credits

As the film credits roll and as you wrap up your thoughts about your film analysis essay, don’t forget to think about the actors. Mega-celebrities bring a certain amount of star-power to a film. Cameos bring a certain amount of realism to a film. Thus, consider why specific actors are cast and how these people influence the movie.

Looking for a few film analysis examples to use as inspiration? Check out these essays:

• A Film Analysis of Citizen Kane
• An Analysis of the Film The Graduate
• The Powerful Cinematic Tools Used in the Movie Interstellar by Christopher Nolan

To make sure you get the credit (and grade) you deserve on your film analysis essay, let a Kibin editor review your paper.

And as Roger Ebert used to say, “I’ll see you at the movies.”

Finally, a topic you can get into. Besides, how hard can it be to write about a movie, right? You’ve been watching movies forever, and you can certainly tell whether they’re good or not. You’ve got this one in the bag.

I’m sure you can write an opinion paper about a movie in your sleep, but writing a film analysis is not an opinion paper. It’s an analysis. Yes, there’s that word again: analysis. You just can’t escape it, can you?

As I’m sure you’ve figured out by now, writing a film analysis paper means you’ll have to look at the film more objectively and examine its merits. You can’t just write about whether you like it.

So set aside your personal opinion about movies and check out these five simple steps to learn how to analyze a movie.

How to Analyze a Movie for Dramatic Effect

Step 1: Brush up on cinematic terminology and decide your focus

When you watch a movie, you usually kick back with some popcorn and settle in to be entertained. But before you do anything, even before you pop the popcorn and watch the movie, you need to brush up on all those film terms you were supposed to learn about in class.

Remember, this time when you watch, your goal will be to analyze. Before you can do that, you need to know the how in how to analyze a movie. In other words, you need to know what to look for in the film—elements such as symbols, lighting, points of view, camera angles, etc., that will help you critically examine the movie.

Not sure what aspect(s) of the film to focus on? Check out 10 Cinematic Techniques You Need to Know for a Better Essay.

You’ll also be able to write a stronger analysis if you have a general sense of your paper’s focus (or thesis) before you review the film.

Don’t just start watching a movie and hope to figure out something to write about at the end. Instead, make a few decisions about what your paper will be about before you write.

If, for instance, you want to focus on lighting, take another look at the terminology specifically related to lighting and get ready to look for examples as you watch. Know whether you’re looking for examples of dark shadows in a film noir or bright lighting in a comedy or musical.

Step 2: Take notes as you watch the film

I know, it kind of takes all the fun out of watching a movie if you have to take notes, but trust me, you won’t remember everything if you don’t.

If you’re really organized, you might want to set up your notes before you start watching.

Here’s what I mean. Let’s say you’re going to focus your paper solely on the use of various shots and camera angles. You might divide your page (or screen) into sections for close-up, long range, aerial, or whatever other type of shot you want to include. Then when you notice a specific shot, you can easily list the information in the proper category.

NOTE-TAKING TIP: If you have the ability to stop the movie, take advantage of it! Stop the movie at key points to write a few comments. Don’t forget to note the time or location of the scene too, so you can easily find it again if you need to review it.

Step 3: Organize your ideas

Before you draft, review your notes again and determine a plan for your paper. You might do this with traditional outlines, or you might try one or more prewriting strategies to get started.

One key strategy to organizing a film analysis essay is to consider in what order you’ll discuss the information. Unless your prof has clearly stated in the assignment guidelines that you need to follow a specific format, you’ll need to create a pattern of organization.

For instance, if you’re writing about the use of special effects in a movie, will you discuss them in the order they appeared? Will you group them into least important to most significant? Will you group mediocre effects into one section and discuss stellar effects in another?

In some cases, you might not focus on only one element (such as lighting or special effects). Instead, you might look at a variety of cinematic techniques to discuss the overall dramatic effect. If that’s the case, again, you’ll need to decide how to organize the information.

Step 4: Draft the essay

Like any essay, a film analysis essay should have a solid introduction, body paragraphs, and a killer conclusion.

Remember, the key to this essay is analysis. That means it’s not enough to simply identify lots of different cinematic techniques used in the film. You’ll need to explain their importance.

Don’t write that the film uses creepy music, dark lighting, and eerie special effects to create a convincing horror movie without explaining the following:

• How these techniques are used
• Why they are used
• The overall effect they have on the movie and its viewers

Also, remember to include examples to support your analysis. Describe examples of the eerie special effects and what role they played in the movie. Describe the dark lighting in specific scenes and how it influenced the mood.

RESEARCH NOTE: In some cases, it’s not enough to simply incorporate a discussion and analysis of film techniques. You may need to include outside research. If this is the case, you’ll need to provide other evidence, such as facts, statistics, or even expert commentary.

Learn more about supporting your argument by reading 3 Types of Essay Support That Prove You Know Your Stuff.

Want to add some commentary? Be smart about it.

Looking for more help with writing analysis? Read 4 Expert Tips to Writing an A+ Analytical Essay.

And now, the end of the movie… but not quite the end of the writing process.

Step 5: Revise

Thought you were all done with learning how to analyze a movie? Well… technically you’re right. But just like a movie doesn’t end with the last outtake, your essay isn’t quite finished.

After you’ve watched the movie and written your analysis, don’t forget that revision is always an important final step. And it’s one that you definitely should not skip.

Read How to Revise an Essay and Make it Better than Ever to help you get the most out of your revising.

To get even more out of the revision process, let a professional Kibin editor help!