Thursday, July 30, 2009

I Have Seen a Few Movies...

I've been collecting recommendations and will post the full list soon. But I wanted to list a few of the movies I have actually seen, that were recommended to me for this list. It's a short list though!

Big
Bonnie & Clyde
Fletch
Harold & Maude
Life is Beautiful
Little Monsters
Psycho
Schindler's List
Some Like it Hot
Stand by Me
The Graduate
The Jerk
The Parent Trap
The Princess Bride
This is Spinal Tap
The Wizard of Oz
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Sound of Music

So I guess I haven't been living entirely in a cave, but have been poking my head out here and there.

Friday, July 24, 2009

The "Why"

I am on a journey.

I am on a journey to see every movie that is considered to be a "classic." The term classic has different meanings for different people, but I think that will make this a lot more interesting.

Why am I doing this?

I am married to a movie buff. I would even venture to say he is a film geek. My husband Bill hosts a weekly genre cinema podcast called "Outside the Cinema" (www.outsidethecinema.com - sorry, couldn't resist) in which he and his co-host Chris (also host of the "Are You Serious?" podcast at www.areyouseriouspodcast.com) sit down in our house every week and talk about movies. The show has been running for about a year and a half now, and two things have happened.

1. We have become friends with people around the world who are so startlingly intelligent and well-spoken in many ways, but mainly in the world of film knowledge. People with other podcasts, general listeners and others have become "friends" through this show. The one thing we all have in common is a love for film.

2. Though I love movies, I realized that I have seen practically nothing. I'm not exaggerating. I mean, I've seen a lot of movies. But most of the films I've seen have been more current box-office offerings. I love independent film and I like a lot of different genres, but have not really seen the movies that one would consider to be "essential." There are a few that I've seen, but really it's insane how many I have not.

So, in an effort to better myself, I am on a quest to see every movie that is considered to be a "classic" in any sense of the term. Casblanca, Gone With the Wind, etc, are at the top. But if it's something you consider to be essential for any reason - even if it's not an old film - I want to watch it.

This is day 1 and I have 126 movies on the list. My Netflix account is going to get some exercise - this is going to take years. But I'm looking forward to the ride.