An introduction to the key concepts and cultural paradigms employed in the study of film. Students are introduced to the diverse ways in which films are examined and critiqued, central theoretical, ethical, and critical issues surrounding the study of film, and major film theories based on cognitive, psychoanalytical, ideological, semiotic, structural, and feminist perspectives. Various schools of film criticism (e.g., formalist, auteur, genre, humanist, and religious) are considered. Prerequisite: CAS 145, 281, or permission of the instructor.