An MLA review citation lists the reviewer, the review title, “Review of” + the work and creator, then the container, date, and pages or URL.
What Counts As A Review?
A review evaluates a work and appears in a newspaper, magazine, journal, blog, video channel, or database. It can cover a book, film, performance, exhibition, product, or game. Your entry describes the review itself, not the original work. The reviewer is the author of your source, while the book writer, director, or artist is named inside the “Review of …” part.
The MLA Template In Plain English
MLA builds every works-cited entry from a shared set of core elements in a fixed order: author, title of source, title of container, other contributors, version, number, publisher, publication date, and location. Use what you have and move on when an element is missing. For a quick refresher, see the Works Cited quick guide from the MLA Style Center.
Citing A Review In MLA Format: Quick Start
Most review entries follow one pattern. Spot the reviewer’s name, the review’s title, the phrase “Review of” plus the work and creator, then the container, date, and location. The table below maps the pieces for common places you’ll find reviews. You can also compare with Purdue OWL’s advice for periodicals under “reviews.”
| Where You Found The Review | Works-Cited Template | Sample Entry |
|---|---|---|
| Newspaper website | Reviewer Last, First. “Title of Review.” Newspaper Name, Day Month Year, URL. | Lopez, Mina. “A Quiet Thriller With Bite.” The Daily Herald, 12 May 2024, www.dailyherald.com/quiet-thriller-review. |
| Print newspaper | Reviewer Last, First. “Title of Review.” Newspaper Name, Day Month Year, p. or pp. range. | Grant, Theo. “Return To Form For A Master.” The Globe, 8 Feb. 2023, p. C1. |
| Magazine site | Reviewer Last, First. “Title of Review.” Magazine, Day Month Year, URL. | Ahmed, Rida. “The Novel That Won’t Sit Still.” LitWeek, 7 Sept. 2022, www.litweek.com/wont-sit-still. |
| Scholarly journal (database) | Reviewer Last, First. “Title of Review.” Journal, vol. #, no. #, Year, pp. range. Database, DOI or permalink. | Chan, Rowan. “New Light On A Classic.” Journal of Modern Letters, vol. 19, no. 2, 2024, pp. 151-54. JSTOR, doi.org/10.0000/abcd.12345. |
| Blog or independent site | Reviewer Last, First. “Title of Review.” Site Name, Day Month Year, URL. | Nanda, Priya. “Waves Of Sound, Waves Of Grief.” SoundBench, 25 Mar. 2025, soundbench.net/waves-of-grief-review. |
| Streaming app or store | Reviewer Screen Name. “Title of Review.” Platform, Day Month Year, URL. | FilmFan22. “Sharp, Moody, And Human.” Letterboxd, 4 Apr. 2025, letterboxd.com/filmfan22/film/ashen-tide. |
When the review has no title, start with Review of Title of Work, by Creator. Sample: Perez, Alma. Review of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, by Samin Nosrat. Food Today, 14 Oct. 2021, www.foodtoday.com/salt-fat-acid-heat-review.
Need more detail on periodicals? See Purdue OWL’s periodicals page, which includes wording for reviews.
Step-By-Step Build: From Notes To Entry
- Author: Write the reviewer’s name as it appears. If only a screen name is listed, use it.
- Title of source: Use the review’s title in quotation marks. If none, craft Review of + the work’s title.
- Review label: After the title, add Review of the work and name the creator with a brief role phrase.
- Container: Name the site, newspaper, magazine, journal, or platform in italics.
- Version/number: Add version, volume, and issue when present.
- Publisher: For journals, the publisher is often omitted; for sites, the site name may act as publisher.
- Date: Use Day Month Year for periodicals; Year for journals; include update notes that change content.
- Location: Add pages for print, a DOI for scholarly items, or a clean URL for web pieces.
Examples By Medium
Newspaper Review Online
Works-cited: Rivera, Joel. “Chasing The Storm On Stage.” City Ledger, 9 Jan. 2025, www.cityledger.com/chasing-the-storm-review.
In-text: (Rivera)
Journal Review In A Database
Works-cited: Osei, Laila. “Reassessing A Landmark Study.” Quarterly Review of Science Writing, vol. 11, no. 3, 2024, pp. 263-66. Project MUSE, doi.org/10.1353/qrsw.2024.0041.
In-text: (Osei 265)
Book Review In Print
Works-cited: McBride, Nolan. “Wildlands And The Writer.” North Shore Times, 2 Mar. 2023, p. B4.
In-text: (McBride B4)
Film Review On A Website
Works-cited: Tang, Mei. “Grace Under Pressure: A War Story That Stays.” ScreenCircle, 18 Aug. 2024, www.screencircle.org/grace-under-pressure-review/.
In-text: (Tang)
Performance Review
Works-cited: Patel, Kavya. “Echoes In An Empty House.” The Playgoer, 5 Dec. 2023, www.theplaygoer.net/echoes-review.
In-text: (Patel)
Punctuation And Styling Tips
- Put the review title in quotation marks. Capitalize headline style.
- Italicize the container: the newspaper, magazine, journal, site, or database.
- Use the label Review of before the work’s title. After that title, identify the creator: by Author; directed by Director; performed by Company.
- For web entries, drop “http://” and “https://”. Keep stable URLs or DOIs.
- Use pp. for page ranges in journals and magazines; use p. for single pages in newspapers.
- Follow the source’s date order: Day Month Year for periodicals; Year for journals.
- If a screen name is the only author credit, cite the screen name as the author.
When Details Are Missing
Some pieces lack a reviewer name, a date, or page numbers. Work with what you have. If no reviewer is named, start the entry with the title. If there’s no date on a site, include the access date only when a teacher asks for it. If a publication gives a permalink that acts like a location, include it even when pages appear.
Common Edge Cases And Fixes
| Situation | What To Do In Works-Cited | In-Text Example |
|---|---|---|
| No reviewer listed | Begin with the review title, then proceed with “Review of …” and the rest of the template. | (“A Fierce Debut”) |
| Untitled review | Use Review of + the work’s title, then “by” + creator. | (“Review of Night Market”) |
| Multiple reviewers | List both names in the author element. If three or more, use the first author + et al. | (Liu and Ortiz 42) or (Liu et al.) |
| Translated review | Add “Translated by Name” after the review title if the translation is the version you read. | (da Costa) |
| Review inside a video | Cite the video as the container, credit the channel or site as the publisher, and include the duration as a location if noted. | (River Review 12:03-12:25) |
| Paywalled article | Use the standard template. If a stable link is provided by the site or database, add it as the location. | (Barton) |
| Advance or first-look review | Use the posted date. You do not need “forthcoming” unless the review itself is forthcoming. | (Khan) |
| Errata or updated review | Note “Updated Day Month Year” after the date when the update changes substance. | (Rossi) |
In-Text Citations For Reviews
Use the reviewer’s last name for a basic parenthetical citation. If your works-cited entry begins with a title, use a shortened version in quotation marks. Add a page number when the source has pages. For time-stamped media, you can give a range in minutes and seconds.
- One author, no pages: (Dorsey)
- One author, pages: (Dorsey 14)
- Article with no author: (“Why This Album Works”)
- Video review with time stamps: (Martinez 3:12-4:05)
Signal Phrases
Blend the reviewer into your sentence to keep reading smooth: As Rivera notes, the staging “turns the storm into a character” (C3). When you name the reviewer in the sentence, place only the page, time code, or short title in parentheses.
Corporate Or Group Authors
If a review is credited to a staff desk or an organization, use the group name both in the works-cited entry and in text: (National Film Desk). Abbreviate only when the name is long and the abbreviation is common to readers of your field.
Credit The Work Under Review Inside The Entry
The “Review of …” segment identifies the work being judged and its creator. Add one brief role phrase so a reader knows what kind of work it is: by Poet; directed by Filmmaker; choreographed by Artist; performed by Orchestra; designed by Studio. If the work is part of a series or exhibition, add that detail after the creator. Keep this piece short so the author element stays clear.
Mistakes That Cost Points
- Leaving out the review label: Without Review of, a reader may think you cited the work itself.
- Mixing title styles: Put review titles in quotation marks and italicize containers only.
- Dropping creator roles: Add by, directed by, or a similar tag after the work’s title.
- Using unstable links: Trim tracking strings and use DOIs where they exist.
- Mismatched in-text and entry: The first words of your in-text citation must match the first element of the works-cited entry.
Mini Glossary For Reviews
Container: The larger source that holds the review, such as a site, newspaper, magazine, journal, platform, or database. Many reviews live in a first container (a magazine) and, when indexed, a second container (a database).
Location: A page range, a DOI, or a stable URL. On video platforms, a time range can guide readers to a specific segment.
Other contributors: Translators, editors, or hosts credited for the version you used. Place them after the title of the source.
Version/number: Volume, issue, or edition data that helps readers find the same item.
Precision That Saves Grading Time
Names And Capitalization
Write names exactly as given in the review. Preserve accents. Use headline capitalization for titles. Keep short prepositions and conjunctions in lower case unless they start or end the title.
Numbers, Dates, And Ranges
For journals, include volume and issue numbers. For magazines and newspapers, use Day Month Year. For page ranges, use a short hyphen. For online dates that show an update, include that note when it helps identify the version you read.
Links And DOIs
Prefer DOIs when present. If you use a URL, keep it stable and readable. Drop the protocol and remove long tracking strings so the link is clean.
Troubleshooting Flow
When a review does not fit a neat mold, trace the template in order. Author? Title? Review label? Container? Date? Location? Fill each box you can and move ahead. If you’re stuck between two choices, pick the one that helps a reader find the exact piece you used and keep the pattern consistent across your list.
Checklist Before You Publish
- Does the entry credit the reviewer as the author?
- Does the title match the review? If none, did you build a clear “Review of …” title?
- Did you name the work and creator after the “Review of …” phrase?
- Is the container italicized and the date style suited to that container?
- Did you include pages, a DOI, or a stable link as the location?
- Does your in-text cite match the first element on the works-cited entry?
Your Next Steps
Grab the details from your review, match them to the template, and build the entry in the order MLA lists. When a field is missing, move to the next one without inventing data. If you want a model to compare with, the MLA Style Center’s quick guide and Purdue OWL’s periodicals page linked above are solid anchors. With a few clean examples and the two tables here, you can handle reviews from print, the web, and scholarly databases with confidence.