Art and Entertainment Reviews

This is a research guide to some of the print, electronic and internet resources available in the Henry Birnbaum Library for finding REVIEWS of books, plays and movies. This is a selective list to help you get started on your research. There are many many other sources available.

**The Library does have video and dvd collections. Check the Library Catalog by title for holdings.

Print Indexes |  Databases | Internet Resources |  Evaluating Internet Resources |  Citing

PRINT INDEXES--Use these indexes to find articles in magazines and journals. All sources are current, but may be very useful if you have chosen a book/play/movie that is older.

Book Review Digest    Birnbaum Ref Index Case    Z1219.C95    1905-present
Indexes a limited number of popular and scholarly periodicals. Arranged alphabetically by author; includes a subject and title index. Most citations include a summary of the book, excerpts are from the reviews and indicate the length of the reviews.

Book Review Index    Birnbaum Ref Index Case    Z1035.A1 B6    1965-present
Indexes over 600 periodicals including review journals, national publications, and scholarly and literary journals. Arranged alphabetically by author, includes a title index.

Index to Black Periodicals    Birnbaum Ref Index Case    A13.O4    1984-2001
Look under the subject heading BOOK REVIEWS. Alphabetical by title within this subject heading.

Film Criticism: An Index to Critics' Anthologies    Birnbaum Ref PN1995.H4

Film Review Annual     Birnbaum Ref PN1995.F463    1981-2000
Each annual edition reviews the films from the previous year. Includes summaries of reviews from various sources. Organized alphabetically by title of the movie. Indexes include: awards, cast,  producers, screenwriters, and production crew.

The Kael Index: A Guide to Movie Critics' Work, 1954-1991    Birnbaum Ref Desk PN1983.3 K34 S63 1993

Magill's Cinema Annual    Birnbaum Ref PN1993.3.M34    1982-2003
Covers the films from the previous year. Alphabetical by the title of the movie. Gives a summary of the movie, credits and list of published reviews. Indexed by directors, screenwriters, cinematographers, editors, art directors, music directors, performers, subjects, and title.

Magill's Survey of Cinema     Birnbaum Ref PN1993.45.M32    Includes Magill's Survey of English Language Films 1st (1927-1980) and 2nd series (1928-1981). This series is updated by the Magill's Cinema Annual. And Magill's Survey of Cinema: Foreign Films. All multi-volume works.
Plot summaries of films. English series covers films from 1927 to the present.

Motion Picture Guide    Birnbaum Ref PN1993.M4334    1985-1999    The basic set covers 1927-1983 then is updated by annuals.
Alphabetical listings by movie title. Gives short review along with list of casts and MPAA ratings. Indexed by country, distributor, genre, MPAA rating, by parental recommendation, and names.

National Theatre Critics' Reviews    Birnbaum Ref PN2000.N76    1983-1996
Loose-leaf service. Reviews from various theatrical and newspaper sources. Full-text of review is republished.

New York Times Films Reviews 1913-1970    Birnbaum Ref PN1995.A43
A one volume edition (from an original 7 volume set) with selected reprints of reviews from 1913-1970.

New York Times Theater Reviews    Birnbaum Ref PN1581.N4    1870-2000
Arranged by date of publication. Reprint of articles from the New York Times. Includes a title and personal name index.

Readers Guide to Periodical Literature    Birnbaum Ref Index Case    A13.R48    1900-2002
Indexes book reviews in the most popular periodicals from 1900 to the present. Before 1976, look under the author of the book for book reviews. After 1976, a separate book review section appear the end of each quarterly and each cumulated year volume. Films reviews are listed under MOTION PICTURE REVIEWS- Name of Film. Theater reviews are under the type of theater ie. Musicals, Revues and under the name of the author of the play.

Social Sciences Index    Birnbaum Ref Index Cases    Z7163.S62     1974-2001
Last section of the annual issue is BOOK REVIEWS. Alphabetical by title of book or author.

You will need to find the original source to get a copy of the article. If you need assistance finding the article, please see "I have an article citation, now what do I do?" or ask a librarian.

Top of Page

DATABASES--Try one or two of these databases to find reviews in current or recent print publications. You will find reviews of books, plays and movies in all the databases unless otherwise noted.

All the databases can be accessed via the Library Homepage (http://www.pace.edu.library/), by clicking on the databases button and then choosing the database from list. 

Academic Search Premier
Enter author, director or title as keywords in the search form, then scrolled down to select Book Review or Entertainment Review from the Document Type menu. Click on search button.

Research Library
Enter author, director, or title in search box. Click on More Search Options tab. Select Review (or type of review) from Article Type menu. Click on search button.

FYI: The Library subscribes to over 100 databases. If these suggested databases are not helpful, please choose a database by subject from the database page or ask a librarian for help.

Not all articles in the databases are full text. If you need assistance finding the article, please see "I have an article citation, now what do I do?" or ask a librarian.

Top of Page

INTERNET RESOURCES--You may try these websites for book reviews or use a reliable search engine to find others.

Internet Movie Database    http://www.imdb.com
The ultimate movie reference source and covers everything you could ever possibly want to know about movies. Click on "EXTERNAL REVIEWS" once you are on the listing page for the individual movie.

Movie Review Query  Engine     http://www.mrqe.com/
More than 16, 000 titles and 103,000 reviews compiled in this easily searchable database. Extensive list of sources can be viewed. Results link to the original full-text articles. The database tries to keep the movie reviews as current as possible. 

New York Review of Books    http://www.nybooks.com/nyrev
Can search the archives by author or title. Full text of the review is available.

New York Times Book Review    http://www.nytimes.com/pages/books/index.html
Free registrations is required before searching the archives of the New York Times on the Web. Full-text of back issues is available for a fee. Covers reviews from 1980-present.

Theatermania.com     http://www.theatermania.com 
Listings include theater information for New York City and other cities. There are directions, recent reviews, and articles. Reviews are available without registering. 

Top of Page

EVALUATING INTERNET RESOURCES--Websites can be very good sources of information, depending on the reliability of the page and the publisher. Remember anyone in the world can publish a webpage! Try these sites for already evaluated websites.

Evaluated Sites:

Top of Page

CITING YOUR SOURCES--Once you have finished your research and written your paper,  you will need to prepare your bibliography and cite any items within the text. The library has prepared some information for you. Please check with your instructor regarding the correct style manual. We have given examples in both APA and MLA on the following webpage.

Also, see Bedford section 51 about avoiding plagiarism. MLA documentation begins on page 569 (Section 53), while APA begins on page 678 (Section 59).

Still Need Help? Ask a Librarian!

Birnbaum Library Reference (212) 346-1331
Mortola Library Reference (914) 773-3505
Graduate Center Library Reference (914) 422-4384

Return to:
Subject Research Guides  |  Research Help  |  Library Home

Created by Pace University Library
Revised 1/26/04
Helen Lane
hlane@pace.edu