Tuesday, December 8, 2009

The First 25 Confirmed

Well the first post felt a little rushed and a little unprofessional. To make up for that I will go into more detail about this endeavor, what I imagine it to look like (although it will most likely change as I get going), and my initial selection of films that are must sees in this challenge.

The Details:

100 Films in 100 Days is a challenge to myself to sit down and do something with the same gun ho attitude that I gain when I become passionate about something. Unlike those previous passions in which I would burn out and have to walk away from it for weeks and then return to it with less zeal, the goal of 100 Films is to endure the initial burn out and continue even if I feel overwhelmed or depressed.

Although 100 films is about watching all of these movies that I need to see, it is something more for me. It is an attempt to hold on to the passion that drives my erratic endeavors, and see it through to the end.

What it should look like:

In an ideal world I would blog about each movie each day directly after viewing it. Writing up a short 300-500 critique of the film, some thoughts about the initial viewing and whether or not I liked it, or would recommend it to anyone.

This is the goal for which I will be aiming for. It is assumed that for all 100 days I will be unable to reach this goal. This shall be a forgivable crime against the challenge. The key to this blog is to attach a following, a watchable goal for friends and strangers, and a catalog for future reference.

The real goal is what is stated with the title: Watch 100 films in 100 days. I am reaching high, and to allow myself to stumble but still succeed, instead of saying I must watch 1 movie each day, I can instead watch multiple in one day to catch up, or get ahead of the goal. That said, expect there to be days where I watch no movies, and days I watch 5 or 6.

Wow, just thinking of 6 movies in a day sounds exhausting.

The first 25:

Before I go into the first quarter of the list, I feel as if I should explain the few criteria I have for the films I have chosen. Also, I feel as if I should warn readers that I might not get to every film on the list and that this list is more of an outline than a set in stone sort of thing.

The Criteria:

  1. I cannot have watched the film before. Some of these films I have attempted in the past, and others I have seen fragments, but not their entirety. These I am counting as unwatched, because a film is its entirety and should be treated so.
  2. The films must be reasonably well known. Seeing as this is a crash course in classic film these movies need to be known and respected. Be it as a classic like The Godfather or a cult favorite like The Evil Dead 2.
  3. I want to have the desire to watch it. This basically cuts out the actors who I just cannot stand and the movies that I have no love for. (Sorry Mel Gibson and whoever is behind the travesties that are natural disaster films.)

These criteria are not too terribly strict and should keep me up to my eyeballs in good movies.

That said, I feel as if I have gone on far too long and should get to the meet of the post for those reading this and the tentative first 26:

  1. American Psycho
  2. Mulholland Drive
  3. The Godfather
  4. The Godfather Part Two
  5. Citizen Kane
  6. Lawrence of Arabia
  7. The Evil Dead 2
  8. The Maltese Falcon
  9. West Side Story
  10. American Graffiti
  11. Rocky
  12. Fargo
  13. Pulp Fiction
  14. Blade Runner
  15. The Shawshank Redemption
  16. The Drunken Master
  17. Dirty Harry
  18. Insomnia
  19. Up
  20. Up in the Air
  21. 2001 A Space Odyssey
  22. Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan
  23. Spartacus
  24. The Birds
  25. A Hard Day's Night
  26. The Big Lebowski

It was 25 when I first entered the list, and then the Coen brother's cult classic, The Big Lebowski, came to my brain and it made the first 25 list, be it the 26th in the selection.

There might be something to say about that... but I digress.

That is it. Chosen from my own want, lists of classic movies, academy best picture lists, and word of mouth. That still leaves 74 more movies, and right now I am trying to iron out what should be in there and should not be, with the help of friends of course.

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