How do I create an in-text citation for a film?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.

The in-text citation for a film should key to a works-cited-list entry. If you list a film under its title, you must refer to the title in your writing or cite it parenthetically:

Point of No Return, a remake of Nikita, deviates from the original French movie in several ways.

Luc Besson (Nikita) and John Badham (Point) approach the figure of the femme fatale differently in their films.

Works Cited

Nikita. Directed by Luc Besson, Gaumont / Les Films du Loup, 1990.

Point of No Return. Directed by John Badham, Warner Bros., 1993.

If you list a film under the director’s name, you must discuss or cite the director:

Luc Besson and John Badham approach the figure of the femme fatale differently in their films.

Point of No Return (Badham), a remake of Nikita (Besson), deviates from the original French movie in several ways.

Works Cited

Badham, John, director. Point of No Return. Warner Bros., 1993.

Besson, Luc, director. Nikita. Gaumont / Les Films du Loup, 1990.