PERRLA/Guides/APA 7/Movie or TV review

How to Cite a Movie or TV Review in APA 7

An APA 7 movie or TV review reference starts with the reviewer and the date, then the review's title, then a note in square brackets naming what was reviewed and who made it: [Review of the film Title, by A. Director, Dir.], [Review of the TV series Title, by ...], or [Review of the TV series episode "Title," by ...]. It ends with the journal, newspaper, or website where the review ran. The in-text citation names the reviewer: (Mirabito & Heck, 2016).

The format

Reviewer, A. A. (Year). Title of the review [Review of the film Title of the film, by B. B. Director, Dir.]. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), page–page. https://doi.org/xxxx

PERRLA APA Experts · Updated October 21, 2026
Checked against the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition. Every example is formatted by PERRLA's reference engine.

First, the easy way: PERRLA

Add a movie or TV review with the form, not the reference search. A review's DOI comes back from PERRLA's search as an ordinary journal article, with the show's details run into the title and no bracketed note. Choose Reviews. Under Choose a type, pick Review in a journal, newspaper, or magazine, Review on a website, or Review on a blog. In What kind of article are you referencing?, pick A film or movie, A television series, or A television episode.

Add the person who wrote the review as the Reviewer. Then add who made the film or show: Director of Reviewed Work, Writer of Reviewed Work, or Writer & Director of Reviewed Work for someone who did both. Type the review's headline in Review Title and the film, series, or episode title in the box below it (Reviewed Film Title, Reviewed TV Series Title, or Reviewed TV Episode Title), in sentence case. Fill in the Publication Date and where the review ran, then the DOI for the Review or the URL for the Review. PERRLA adds the role labels, the italics or quotation marks on the reviewed title, and the in-text citation.

Not using PERRLA yet? Here is how to build the same reference by hand.

The parts of the reference

1. Reviewer

Start with the critic or scholar who wrote the review, last name first with initials. The director and writers aren't the authors here. They go inside the brackets.

Mirabito, L. A., & Heck, N. C.

With no reviewer named, the review's title moves to the front of the reference, and the in-text citation uses the title.

2. Date

Match the date to where the review ran. A journal review takes the year only. A review in a newspaper, a magazine, or on a website takes the full date.

(2016).

(1990, December 20).

A journal review published online first takes the year of the issue it later appears in.

3. Review title

Give the review's own headline in sentence case. It's plain type in a journal, magazine, or newspaper, and italic on a website that isn't a periodical.

Bringing LGBTQ youth theater into the spotlight

Many reviews have no headline of their own. Journals often top a media review with the show's details instead, and film sites often head a review with just the film's name. Leave the title out, and the bracketed note takes its place.

4. Bracketed description

Right after the title, add square brackets with three things: what kind of work it is, its title, and who made it.

  • A movie: Review of the film, the title in italics
  • A whole series: Review of the TV series, the title in italics
  • One episode: Review of the TV series episode, the episode title in quotation marks

[Review of the film The year we thought about love, by E. Brodsky, Dir.]

The people come after by, initials first, each with a role: Dir. for a director, Writer for a writer, and Writer & Dir. for someone who did both. A film credits its director. An episode credits its writer and its director, the same people an APA 7 TV episode reference names.

5. Source

End with where the review ran. For a journal, give the journal name and volume in italics, the issue in parentheses, the pages, and the DOI.

Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 3(4), 499–500. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000205

For a newspaper or magazine read online, give its name in italics and the URL. For a review site that isn't a periodical, give the site's name in plain type and the URL. Don't name the streaming service you watched the film or show on.

Examples

A film review in a journal

Two reviewers wrote about Ellen Brodsky's documentary about an LGBTQ youth theater troupe in an APA journal. The review has its own title, and the film's director is credited with Dir. This is the same reference APA PsycNet gives for the review.

  • Parenthetical citation(Mirabito & Heck, 2016)
  • Narrative citationMirabito and Heck (2016)

A film review on a website

Roger Ebert's review of Awakenings, Penny Marshall's film of Oliver Sacks's account of patients with encephalitis lethargica, is on RogerEbert.com. The page is headed only by the film's name, so the review has no title of its own. A website review takes the full date, and the site's name is in plain type.

  • Parenthetical citation(Ebert, 1990)
  • Narrative citationEbert (1990)

A TV series review in a journal

A review of Dopesick, the Hulu series about the opioid crisis, in BJPsych Bulletin, the Royal College of Psychiatrists' journal. The review ran online in November 2022 and in the October 2023 issue, so it takes 2023. Its heading is just the show's details, so it has no title of its own. Danny Strong created the series and wrote or co-wrote seven of its eight episodes, so he's credited as Writer.

  • Parenthetical citation(Witter, 2023, p. 308)
  • Narrative citationWitter (2023, p. 308)

A TV episode review in a journal

Two palliative medicine physicians reviewed one episode of The Pitt, "2:00 P.M." (season 2, episode 8), in the Journal of Palliative Medicine. An episode review names the episode in quotation marks and credits its writer, Joe Sachs, and its director, John Cameron.

  • Parenthetical citation(Chin & Choudhury, 2026)
  • Narrative citationChin and Choudhury (2026)

In-text citations

An APA 7 in-text citation for a movie or TV review names the reviewer and the year of the review, not the director or the year the film came out.

  • One reviewer: (Ebert, 1990) or Ebert (1990)
  • Two reviewers: both names every time: (Mirabito & Heck, 2016) or Mirabito and Heck (2016)
  • Three or more reviewers: the first reviewer and et al., starting with the first citation
  • No reviewer: a short form of the review's title in quotation marks, or in italics for a title that's italic in the reference
  • A quote: add the page, (Witter, 2023, p. 308), or a paragraph number for a review with no pages: (Ebert, 1990, para. 3)

Discussing the film or show itself, not what a critic said about it? Cite the film or episode with its own reference and use the review only for the reviewer's opinions.

Common mistakes

  • Marshall, P. (Director). (1990). [Review of the film ...]Ebert, R. (1990, December 20). [Review of the film Awakenings, by P. Marshall, Dir.]The reviewer is the author of a review. The director goes inside the brackets, with Dir. after the name.
  • [Review of the TV series episode 2:00 P.M. ...][Review of the TV series episode "2:00 P.M.," ...]A film or a whole series is italic. A single episode is part of a larger work, so its title goes in quotation marks, with the comma inside them.
  • [Review of the film Awakenings]. Netflix.[Review of the film Awakenings, by P. Marshall, Dir.]. RogerEbert.com.The source is where the review was published, not where you streamed the film. Name the film's director in the brackets.
  • Chin, J., & Choudhury, Z. (2026). The pitt. Season 2, Episode 8: 2:00 pm. HBO max. Written by Joe Sachs ...Chin, J., & Choudhury, Z. (2026). [Review of the TV series episode "2:00 P.M.," ...]A DOI lookup copies the journal's heading in as the title. That heading is the show's details, not a title, so replace it with the bracketed note.
  • (Marshall, 1990)(Ebert, 1990)Cite the person whose review you're quoting or paraphrasing. Marshall's name only belongs in a citation of the film itself.

Quick checklist

  • The reviewer first, or the review's title if it isn't signed
  • The year for a journal review, the full date for a newspaper, magazine, or website
  • The review's own title in sentence case, or nothing when it has none
  • [Review of the film ...], [Review of the TV series ...], or [Review of the TV series episode ...]
  • A film or series title in italics, an episode title in quotation marks
  • The director (and the writer for an episode) with a role label after by
  • Where the review ran, not the streaming service

Questions students ask

Do I cite the review or the movie?

Cite what you used. If you're quoting or paraphrasing a critic's opinion, cite the review. If you're describing a scene you watched, cite the film or episode with its own reference. Many papers cite both.

What if the review has no title?

Leave the title out and put the bracketed note right after the date: Ebert, R. (1990, December 20). [Review of the film ...]. A page headed only by the film's name, or a journal review topped with the show's credits, has no title of its own.

How do I cite a review of one TV episode?

Use Review of the TV series episode, put the episode's title in quotation marks, and credit the episode's writer and director. The bracketed note names the episode, not the series, so make it clear in your sentence which show the episode comes from.

Do I include Netflix, Hulu, or HBO Max?

No. A review reference ends with where the review ran, and APA 7 doesn't name the service you watched on. If the platform matters to your point, say so in your sentence.

Who do I credit for a whole TV series?

Credit the person the review or the series' credits name as its maker. PERRLA's roles for a reviewed series are Writer, Director, and Writer & Director, so pick the one that matches their credit. For Dopesick, creator Danny Strong wrote or co-wrote seven of its eight episodes, so he goes in as Writer.

What if the review is on Rotten Tomatoes or IMDb?

Cite the review where it was published, not the site that collects it. Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb link out to critics' reviews in newspapers, magazines, and websites. Follow the link and cite that page.

Rules checked against the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.), Sections 8.14, 8.17, 8.28, 9.8, 9.12, 9.14, 9.19, 9.21, 9.25–9.30, 9.34, 10.7, and 10.12, and the APA Style website's film and television, missing reference information, and italics pages. Example reviews verified on October 21, 2026, on APA PsycNet, RogerEbert.com, Cambridge Core, and the Journal of Palliative Medicine's article page; the Dopesick and The Pitt credits checked against each series' episode listings.

PERRLA writes the [Review of the film ...] note for you, role labels and italics included, from the reviewer, the film or show, and where the review ran.

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