PrepTest 146

Incorrect. All we know about these reviews is that they don't provide much insight into audience reactions to films. While one explanation is that they are released before the film is watched by the general public, there are others—such as the reviewer doesn't mention that reaction. Since this answer is just one explanation of many, it's not particularly well supported by the stimulus.

Incorrect. The stimulus notes that it's especially difficult to determine reactions from the early 20th century, but that doesn't mean it's easy to determine them from the latter half of that century. It could be difficult to determine both, just a little easier for the latter half.

Incorrect. The stimulus establishes that these aren't enough to determine audience sentiment, but that doesn't mean that they're not a factor in it or a requirement for success in the first place—just not something that can completely determine reaction.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Must Be True

Stimulus Summary:
Historians: It's difficult to determine audience reactions to films, especially for the first half of the 1900s. Newspaper/magazine reviews don't help.
Argument's author: Box office figures don't help since they don't prove reaction, just success.

Answer Anticipation:
We know that beliefs are important on the LSAT, and this stimulus provides three premises, two of which are attributed to a particular group. Those first and last statements reflect what the historians believe, and it is framed as a problem. When we've got two overlapping statements about a problem attributed to the same viewpoint, there's a great chance the correct answer will combine them. Here, it's likely, therefore, that the correct answer will state that newspaper/magazine reviews of movies typically didn't provide information relevant to determining how typical audiences reacted to a given film.

Answer Explanation:
Film historians believe that newspaper and magazine reviews fail to provide much insight. Into what? What the audience found funny, frightening, moving, etcÉ This is part of why film historians find it difficult to determine typical audience reactions to films. This answer brings together the several views attributed to the film historians, so it's correct.

Key Takeaway:
What a group believes is frequently relevant in a question where it's mentioned— especially when multiple beliefs are raised that overlap. At the same time, however, be careful to not jump between what they believe and what is true.

Incorrect. While it is established that film historians have particular issues getting insight into audiences' reactions to films in the early part of the 20th century, it's established that these historians generally don't find reviews useful to get those insights, so a lack of reviews can't be the source of the particular difficulty for that time period.