At the Movies, Film Reviewing, and Screenwriting

Unpacking a decade of Australia's most famous TV reviewing programme to reveal how film reviewing mediates cultural taste and cinematic storytelling.

At the Movies, Film Reviewing, and Screenwriting discusses the interplay between film criticism and screenwriting, providing a different view on how reviewers engage with story and dialogue. Steven Maras draws on Pierre Bourdieu's theories of cultural taste to examine film reviewing as a key site of cultural production, analysing ten years of television scripts from At the Movies (2004–2014). Hosted by Australia's most influential film critics Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton, this long-running programme shaped public discourse on cinema and left an indelible mark on Australian screen culture.

Studying the programme's broadcast scripts, this book addresses how film reviewing operates as both critique and storytelling. Of particular interest to media scholars, screenwriting researchers, and cinephiles alike, it provides fresh insights into the evolving role of criticism in contemporary screen culture. Engaging and deeply researched, this work rightfully emphasises the cultural significance of movie criticism in film culture in Australia and beyond.