if you like film you'll love this class...if not then you might learn to love it. Pro Smoodin is so passionate about what he teaches it makes you want to learn. The lectures are kinda repetative but the discussions are good. Plus take home final and no midterm.just a 8-10 pg paper you have all term.

This class had challenging papers, but was overall amazing. Although lecture is STRICTLY required (he calls roll), the film showing night consists of MANY interesting films. The final is a take home, so that isn't bad at all. The professor is very passionate about what he teaches as well and has a great sense of humor.

Well.. I wished I would came to this website earlier! LOL Not to sound too mean, but this class has a really hard paper which isn't really explained well. It's pretty much you out on your own. I would not recommend this class for freshmen!I made quite a mistake, in that sense. Also, the professor is quite unclear and takes mandatory attendance!

UMM...Everyone is ragging on Smoodin. I absolutely loved him, he was always entertaining and enthusiastic. You do have to attend all screenings and lectures cuz of random role call. But smoodin is a great Proff and the class is easy, you really dont have to do anything but write one paper and the final is take home.

alright, everyone posting here has been way too harsh on smoodin. He's a great guy! He's really friendly and helpful if you go to his office hours. One thing i will say though, he is much better in smaller class settings. Put him in a huge lecture hall and its just not the same.

He is a good professor, classes are held in a discussion format, the paper is fun to do, and the participation points help your grade. He is a reasonable person and he is easily approachable. Take this class.

Very cool teacher, has high expectations that you must be clear in showing him but you can get an A if you try your hardest

This guy is awesome! I've had him twice now (FMS 001 & FMS 125), and I would recommend taking his 125 class if you can. This class was much more interesting than the intro class, and it was certainly easy. Just put enough input in discussion for him to know you by name and you'll be set. Highly recommend!!!

Smoodin is great. He's an incredible resource all around. Very friendly, very knowledgeable about film and history. About the reviews of FMS1, I think that most people have a similar experience with any professor in FMS1. It's the class not the teacher. There's not enough lecture time, it's a basic overview and obviously a hard class to teach.

Very knowledgeable on the subject. Class is simple, one 8-10 page paper due near end of quarter, rough draft due at halfway point. Final consisted of two take home essays, two pages each. Homework is all reading articles from printed reader, lectures can be very boring. Reading the assigned articles is not absolutely necessary but it helps.

The class was pretty fun. The reading was a bit much and didnt pretain to anything except for the final. The paper was long but managable. I found his office hours useful

This class wasn't as bad as people made it seem. Sure lectures can be boring,but it is clear that Smoodin is highly knowledgeable of the subject. Reading the articles is annoying cause of the tiny font. The movies were surprisingly very good although they were silent. As long as you're willing to put in the effort (lotta writing) you'll do fine.

I LOVE Prof. Smoodin. Had him for FMS 124 and 125. He is so funny and super knowledgeable. You have to know what you're getting into with him - he only shows films from before 1960 and focuses more on how films are understood at the time than on the film techniques themselves. One of my favs at UC Davis!

Smoodin is great. He is really an expert in early to 1930s-1940s cinema so you learn a ton in his upper div FMS classes. Always interested in students' opinions and can be really funny. Only work is reading (easy), a term paper which you can write about anything relating to the class subject and a take-home final. Great prof for FMS majors!

I was really worried when I saw his grade on ratemyprofessor, but Smoodin is great. He's nice, cares about what he teachers, and loves input. Random rollcall, but not too often. Grades based on a little participation, one big paper, and a take home final. All of which you get to mold the thesis. It taught me a lot. One of my favorite classes at UCD

A lot of people seem really down on Smoodin. I took Film history with him and really loved it. He's incredibly knowledgeable and enthusiastic on the subject. He doesn't give much guidance on the topic of papers, but that challenged me in a positive way and I was proud of the final I came up with.

Had Smoodin back at AU and loved his film classes. It sounds like some of the criticisms here are from people who expected a blow off course and have no knowledge of or interest in classic films -- in which case, why are you even taking a film class?? Go waste some more time on Facebook, Nintendo and the crap that passes for movies these days.

Smoodin was the best professor I had at Davis. He LOVES what he teaches... so don't take his class if you're not interested in what he's teaching--but its pretty hard to not love all the beautiful things this man brings to the table. If you put the effort in, his classes are amazing and truly worth it!

I don't understand why he has such a low rating! Smoodin is probably one of the few professors i've had at UCD that is the most enthusiastic about the subject they're teaching. And having the professor be enthusiastic makes ME enthusiastic and eager to learn! I thought he was kinda funny too. Overall, great!

He is a very good lecturer, very exciting and engaging. When people ask questions or share their ideas, he tries to get your name right, so thats cool. He stutters and I have sort of picked up a small stutter, so that sucks.

Film Genres - War Films. Smoodin is an excellent lecturer. Discussions are very interesting and he seems primarily interested in film reception, the possibilities for Hollywood films, & attitudes about film and how these have changed over time. It was a difficult class bc the assignments were a bit vague. Readings were usually very interesting.

Smoodin is a great prof!! I took two classes with him! he's really knowledgeable. and he's really willing to help. I would recommend to take his classes. he's fun, his lecture is great!! you'll def. learn a lot from him!!

The teacher was very passionate about what he taught. However, the class was boring and I felt like we were over-analyzing articles and photos. But, bringing in my beanie-baby was fun.

FMS124 is a Frank Capra-specific film history class. Class is a treat for people who like to read about and discuss '30s and '40s film and early studio culture. Smoodin is a great lecturer--funny and knowledgeable. Readings are manageable (and interesting), but term paper expectations are unclear, so ask for guidance from both professor and TA.

Smoodin is a bit of an oddball but is very kind and passionate. The class is easy with the one caveat that you have to show up to and sit through really boring lectures treated like discussions. Homework is minimal and there's only one 7-8 page essay you work on. No midterms, take home final. Very very little workload. Fine prof, easyboring class.

This was my favorite class of the quarter. Prof Smoodin adds humor to a discussion class that few students actually participate in. I participated in every class and really enjoyed the topics we talked and read about. The essay was very easy and was very open-ended. I was really sad for this class to end and I hope to take another class of his.

Professor Smoodin is incredibly passionate about teaching and the topics he teaches. He knew each student by name and made an effort to connect with his class and the students. He allowed you to choose the topic you wanted for the essay and he gave meaningful feedback on the rough draft. A lot of reading, but a lot of photos and films in class.

CTS 41a is a class on film history pre-1945, which is Smoodin's specialty. He is extremely knowledgeable about the material, and leads interesting discussions during lecture. Some of the films were kind of boring, and the grading criteria is kind of vague, but overall I would definitely recommend him for this class.

Lectures were discussion based and he was really funny. He would make lots of commentary, so it felt like you'd get cut off talking, but it wasn't intentional. He loves his students - tries to know everybody by name by second lecture. The reading is long but he gives you a lot of time. There were no tests, but the essays were graded a little harsh

I don't know why everyone is being so harsh towards Professor Smoodin. After four years at Davis, he's still my favorite professor on campus. The movies he chooses are always interesting and the readings are never long. He appreciates participation in class and he's very understanding. Also, the essays weren't graded unfairly at all in my opinion.

I don't understand the negative comments towards Smoodin! Attendance is necessary and his lectures can be quite dull at times, however it's all worth it for the easy A! He is very friendly and loves input from his students and can make a simple discussion very meaningful. The Ta's are fairly chill and his expectations are vague and very broad.

Smoodin's one of the coolest guys ever. He's always enthusiastic & genuinely wants to hear what we have to say, although the class itself was SO boring. The discussion was so unnecessary but determines most of your grade. Blog posts/participation (20%), paper draft (20), final paper (20), final exam (20%). Great teacher but painfully boring subject

He is such a great professor! Hes so sweet and loves to hear your opinion, class itself was super interesting and easy. I loved going to his lectures.

So take this with the context of I took his class 6-9 months into a global pandemic: He's the most caring professor I've ever had at UC Davis. He knew me by name (he knew everyone by name!). He understood the stress Covid was having and adjusted his expectations accordingly (to the point where it was almost too easy). He's great. Give him a chance.

I am so surprised at his low rating on here! Having him as a professor during COVID was a god-sent! Down to earth guy who would ask us how we were doing at the start of every class. Every class we had great discussions about the films and he did not overload us with work. Tried by best to show up to every online lecture because I enjoyed this class

EASY A

His specialty seems to be silent films, so if you are not interested in that I don't suggest it. I took it thinking it would be about iconic films throughout history, but we started at the dawn of film. We did watch some cool movies, but it took a while to get to actual films. He is a cute old man who is pretty entertaining though.

I had professor Smoodin while we were still in COVID lockdown, and his course was an easy A. Attendance was not mandatory, but helpful and fun to go to. The only assignments he had us do were weekly blog posts about the films we watched in class, and the final wasn't too complicated. He's been super nice and considerate during online learning.

He was so nice! I had him for AMS 152 and he is very considerate about online learning. His class was interesting , and I really appreciated that he was very understanding as a professor.

Professor Smoodin is one of the nicest and most caring professors in Davis! His lectures always have a good vibe to them with him being super comfortable and easy to talk to! I took this class online and there are some readings as well as writing assignments weekly. The final was fair in terms of difficulty. Take his courses if you can!

Loved his class! Very sweet & kind. Lecture heavy.

Amazing professor. Gets to know everyone in his classes and probably one of my favorite classes I've taken. Expectations and guidelines for assignments are vague and that did stress me out, but just ask for clarifications and get feedback on your paper.

I think Smoodin is great. He's super laid back and really cares about establishing a relationship with his students, and always asks us about our days and cares about our wellbeing. The content is interesting, it's easy to skip class, and we have a final essay that we work on all quarter thats most of our grade. I'm really enjoying this class!

I almost never went to class and when I did I just did other work. Music video to start class. Super respectable. Final- 2 2 page papers. 1 term paper. I did not take any notes the whole time just used the class to relax. Watched some films. Assignments had no real instruction just "include a thesis" thats about it. Super easy but no structure