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I can’t believe a fifth lap is about to begin!

Four whole years on, I can’t seem to thank my friend James McNally enough for planting this seed in my brain. It has led me to some truly fantastic films, prompted some interesting lines of thought in this half-empty head of mine, and even introduced me to some fantastic people.

Speaking of which, I need to give much overdue props to Beatrice for designing this year’s splendid banner – and likewise for providing banners for every other year in the series so far. She’s a star, and I am not worthy!

In case you’re new here (Hey, how’s it goin’?), the concept is simple. Once a month, I make a concerted effort to see a particularly egregious title of my watchlist. When that’s done, I come back here to discuss whatever thoughts came to mind while the film unspooled…not so much a review (though there’s nothing wrong with that), more the general meanderings inspired by finally catching up with “an essential”.

By keeping the tally to a mere dozen films, it becomes a watchlist that was both enjoyable and attainable…as opposed to drawing up a to-see list of, say, fifty. Likewise, by choosing a specific set of films, it gives the project a sense of purpose, since really any catalogue film you haven’t seen before could be considered a blindspot.

Some of the films I have chosen for this project throughout the years have burrowed deep into my marrow, and become selections not soon to be forgotten. Others…well…haven’t.

I also continue to be impressed that several of my brothers and sisters in arms have stayed on-board…but of course as the year goes own, many wane. But that’s the way with resolutions right? We’re there at the gym bright and early on January 1st, by April it’s a different story

Never the less, I’m hoping a few will keep the project going and choose a new dozen films. I’m also hopeful that some of the other movie-lovin’ bloggers who frequent this space will set out a dozen of their own to dig through in 2016! In case you’re new to the whole idea, here’s the skinny:

I intend to post my entries on the final Tuesday of every month, and at the bottom of each post, will likewise link to anyone else who is participating in the series. So if you want to partake, drop me an email (ryanatthematineedotca) when it’s up and I’ll make sure you get linkage at month’s end.

This year, I got to choose my own selections again after looking to my readers for curation last year. As usual, I aimed for variety with titles from several different countries, one piece of silent cinema, a doc, a homegrown entry, and at least two films directed by women.

Here’s what I’ll be watching…

 

AN ANGEL AT MY TABLE
L’AVVENTURA
THE HITCH-HIKER
INTOLLERANCE
LATE SPRING
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP
MON ONCLE ANTOINE
SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE
SOLARIS
SOPHIE’S CHOICE
THE THIN BLUE LINE
VIVRE SA VIE

 

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SITES & BLOGS PARTICIPATING IN 2016…
ALMOST GINGER
BIG SCREEN, SMALL WORDS
THE BLAZING REEL
BLUEPRINT REVIEW
CINEMA AXIS
CINEMACITIES
CINEMATIC SCRIBBLINGS
COOG’S REVIEWS
DEFIANT SUCCESS
DELL ON MOVIES
EPILEPTIC MOONDANCER
SHE LIKES MOVIES
F FOR FILM
FILM FLARE
FLIX CHATTER
JOURNEYS IN DARKNESS AND LIGHT
LA MOT DU CINEPHILIAQUE
LIFE OF THIS CITY GIRL
LIFE VS FILM
MYERLA’S MOVIE REVIEWS
NOW VOYAGING
RAMBLING FILM
RAMBLINGS OF A CINEPHILE
SK ON MOVIES
SOUL OF THE PLOT
SPEAKEASY
SPEAKS IN MOVIE LINES
SPORADIC CHRONICLES OF A BEGINNING BLOGGER
SURRENDER TO THE VOID

85 Replies to “Blindsided (Announcing The 2016 Blind Spot Series)”

  1. I’m one who dropped off during the year but I intend to do it again next year 😀 A retro film festival has just started and they are screening a ton of my picks

    1. Is the retro film festival going on all year? They could potentially act as your curator! Just pick one a month that you haven’t seen and let them do the heavy lifting for you

    2. Its only running through December but it is playing a ton of classics that I haven’t seen… Maltese Falcon, Citizen Kane, The Apartment, Sunset Blvd, Casablanca. I’m gonna see as many as I can 😀

      1. Enjoy it – very few of my selections have I ever had the chance to see on a big screen before writing my entry, but those I have seemed to land that little bit harder.

  2. Wow, with the exception of The Hitch-Hiker and Sophie’s Choice as I haven’t seen them. The films I have seen are great picks. I just made my own announcement for next year’s series as I’m doing 2 trilogies for 2016.

  4. I’m definitely in! I need to catch up with my last three films in December but I can do it. Loved being a part of it this year. I’ve actually got a few on my list already for next year.

    1. Any time you post an entry late, do ping me somehow and I’ll drop its link into the appropriate page (that goes for everybody, just in case anyone was curious).

      Any ideas what you’re going to circle for 2016?

    2. I do! I have a list all sorted – although there was one film I couldn’t decide whether to include or not but I felt like the list needed comedy somewhere. My films this year were all so serious.

      -Russian Ark
      -Peeping Tom
      -Gaslight
      -Forbidden Planet
      -It’s a Wonderful Life
      -Local Hero
      -Grey Gardens
      -The Lives of Others
      -The Odd Couple
      -The Innocents
      -The Triplets of Belleville
      -Breakfast at Tiffany’s

  5. You’ve got some great stuff coming up – and some stuff I haven’t seen! Can’t wait to see what you think of Intolerance, L’Avventura, and Vivre sa vie.

    I’m not doing Blind Spots per se, but something even more ambitious – I’ll be posting about it soon, and I hope you’ll be part of it!

    1. Wow – you weren’t messing around! Hope you enjoy my selections for your project, I’ll definitely be anxious to read what you have to say about them…especially the Scorsese.

      I’m pretty sure you don’t want me horning in on your action by linking your posts to mine every month, but I would love to…if you’re up for it.

      We also need to get back to that book of ours in the new year.

    2. We’ll see if I can keep up with it! I think the accountability of everyone wanting to see what I think of their picks will help motivate me. You’re welcome to link the more Blind-Spotty type films to your posts! You can probably figure out which ones those will be – no need to link the Power Rangers movie to a Blind Spot post! 🙂

      And yes we do! Currently the book is packed up in one of these boxes in my living room – moving is such a hassle. But once I unearth it, we definitely should bring that series back. I never meant to let it go, time just got away from me and suddenly it was months later.

    3. I’ll leave them up to you – if you want to send me a link at month’s end, feel free. If not, I’ll look forward to reading about your adventures all the same.

      And I’m ready to reconvene our book club whenever you finally get settled. Just let me know and I’ll set out the coffee and biscotti

  6. My list will be up by tomorrow. Solaris is one of the films I’m planning to watch next year. I struggled with completing my list this year, hopefully I have better luck on my new list.

    Glad you liked the banner!

    1. Wait a second…where was that teacup banner when you sent me the email??!! That thing is precious!!! May I…could I…I mean, it would please me greatly miss if I could…

      You have some of my all. time. favorites. coming up this year. Can’t wait to read your thoughts on them.

      Thanks a mil for being such an enthusiastic participant in this little experiment of mine.

  7. Good list, seen a few of those and you have some treats ahead. I’m in, for one a month for sure, and maybe I’m crazy but I’m thinking I want to challenge myself with one a week! Either way, I’ll post my list sometime next month. Cheers.

    1. Sweet! Fresh blood!!

      I’d love to see what makes your list Kristina – as I’m always fascinated to see which classics the classic-lovers haven’t seen yet. Do be sure to give me a poke when you have your twelve, and spread the word so we can get a few others in on the action!

  9. I’ve tried and failed to do this a couple of times, but I might try again next year as I do love the idea. I’ll post my list hopefully before the end of the year.

    3. Ohhhh yes! Mister Brook you have some fun times ahead of you. Don’t over-think it. If all you have time for is two paragraphs, it’s better than nothing. Don’t waste words on recapping plot…just express a gut reaction or two.

  11. Wow. This is quite a list. I’ve only seen three of them, L’Avventura, Solaris, and Vivre Sa Vie. All were intriguing in very different ways. Judging by those and other picks, you’re in for a great year.

    I still want to catch up with the ones I missed from last year’s series, so I’m not going to get too ambitious this year. I just want to get back on track and watch more movies, but I’m not going to force it.

    1. If it helps, Mette Kowalski turned her entries in the series into a few paragraphs in a Letterboxd post…so if time is a factor, you could always go down that road and let me link to those.

    2. That may be a good idea. I’ve been doing short reviews on Letterboxd periodically when I watch a movie. Now the trick is actually watching the movies.

  12. Great list Ryan! I’ve seen half of your picks, and judging from that you’re in for a good year.

    I’ll definitely be participating in the Blind Spots series again for 2016, I really enjoyed doing the project for the first time this year.

    1. I get the feeling that I need to go spelunking through your site a little bit – it seems like I missed linking to one or two of your posts.

      I was certainly hoping to read another round of your posts, so hearing that you’ll be back in ’16 is great news on this dreary November morning

    2. I’ve been forgetting to let you know when my posts are up, sorry about that! I’ll look through my blog and email you links to the ones that were missed.

      And my Blind Spots list will be revealed with my year-in-review post next month. 🙂

    1. Welcome to The Matinee, Michaël! I’ve actually only seen one or two of your selections myself, so many of them will be blindspots for me too. Definitely looking forward to reading your entries though, so be sure to send those links along.

  15. Pingback: The 2016 Blindspot Series | The Blazing Reel

  16. Vivre Sa Vie, yassss! And An Angel at my Table is pretty amazing. In my last year of high school I had to do a solo performance as Janet Frame for a drama assessment, so thank goodness that film existed!

  17. I’m excited to do this again! I haven’t seen any of your choices though. Though I read the complete summary for Sophie’s Choice for whatever reason, once. lol

    1. One of your selections for 2016 (THE APARTMENT) is one of my all-time favorites. I’ll definitely be anxious to see what you have to say about it when you get around to it!

      Also, considering the amount of books you read, do you use Goodreads at all to log your titles?

  18. I’ve seen three of yours: Colonel Blimp (Powell and Pressburger are my favourite directing duo and this is a GREAT film), Sophie’s Choice and Solaris. I’m definitely doing my round 2, I’m still going to focus on Foreign films again because I’m quite enjoying it, makes sure I’m being cultural at least once a month.

  19. I’ve only seen Sophie’s Choice (Meryl, man) and The Thin Blue Line. I loved them both. The Thin Blue Line is one of the greats without a doubt. I skipped a couple this year. Got too bogged down in other things. But I’m going again this year. My list is up.

    1. I’m beginning to feel like a broken record in this comment thread, but you have some of my all-time faves in that watchlist, so I’ll eagrely be keeping an eye on your space to see how some of these go (esp. DR. STRANGELOVE, THE STING, 8 1/2, and SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN) go over for ya.

    1. Of everything you’re going to watch this year, I think I’m anticipating your thoughts on THE RED SHOES the most…perhaps because I came to that one pretty late myself!

  21. Pingback: Twelve Classics for 2016 | Cinematic Scribblings

    1. I mentioned it already on Twitter, but again – Welcome to The Blindspot Series. Now the only thing you need to keep in mind, is that when you get to HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY, you mustn’t watch the film while continually muttering to yourself “thisbeatcitizenkane…thisbeatcitizenkane…thisbeatcitizenkane…

      😉

  23. Is this project open to anyone to join? If so, I would like to join. I think this would be a great way to ensure that I get some more blogging in. I love the way these events spark conversation.

    3. Two of my 2015 Blindspots are on your list for this year (Paris TX and SEVENTH SEAL) – so there certainly seems to be a slight bit of hive mind at play here!

      Welcome to The Matinee and The Blindspot series, Joshua. Hopefully 2016 brings us both rewards from our selections.

    1. There are titles on your list that I would give my right arm to go back and see for the first time (Raging Bull, Chinatown, Sunset Bld)…so I have a hunch you’re in for one great year

    1. Sweet Jesus – you’re going to tackle the ENTIRE Potter franchise in December!!?? I’m not sure what throws me more, the fact that you’re using one slot for eight films, or the fact that you’ve never seen any of ’em.

      Good luck with that one!

      Also, food for thought – when you DO get to December, do yourself a favour: Take a long afternoon and watch Deathly Hallows 1 & 2 in one long go. I’m of the opinion that they work better as one 4+ hour epic than they do as two separate entities.

  27. Pingback: Films in 2015 Review + 2016 Blind Spots | cinema cities

    1. Hey Ladies!

      Don’t sweat falling off the wagon; much like a fitness centre I’ve noticed through the years that The Blindspot Series is far more crowded in january than it is in December. The good news is – there’s always time to start again!

      I’ll add you to the list of links for this year – welcome back, and remember: everything is easier the second time around

  29. Hi Ryan, I haven’t seen any in your Blindspot list, ahah. I guess I should check in and see if there’s one I should add to my list next year. As for time of posting, I don’t know if I can commit to finishing by the the last Tuesday of the month, but I always tweet it when mine is up so I’ll let you know that way as well.

    1. Welcome back Ruth – it’s always a shot in the arm to have a pillar of the community like yourself playing along with my crazy shenanigans.

      I always try to update link round-ups in the days/weeks that follow my posts…so even if your post for a month falls two weeks into the month that follows, ping me on social media and I’ll make sure to add you in.

      Here’s to another year of stepping into the light, yes?

  30. Ryan– I love your blindspots this year. I always love them. I would love to return to the blindspot series eventually. I don’t know if I have time to do once a month, but I’d love to occasionally participate.

    1. Hey Mariah – Feels like it’s been a while!

      Don’t sweat trying to keep up with my crazy schedule. If you even write one post this year, be sure to let me know and I’ll be sure to link to it.

      It’s funny though – you’d think after so many years, I’d feel a little less blind…and yet there always seems to be more to see

  31. I’m pleased to say that I completed my Blind Spot last year and couldn’t be happier with the results. Watched some great films and intend to follow it up this year with another dozen blindspots. Will email you when I have my list and blog post completed, sometime in the next week is my plan. Thanks again for spotlighting this great idea and extending the Blind Spot Series to the film watching community, we love it!

  33. Pingback: 12 for 2016 | F for Films
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  35. Pingback: Blind spot series 2016 | Ramblings of a cinephile

  38. Hi!
    I heard about the blindspot project through fellow bloggers and have already done it for january (Blade Runner) and February (Tron). Here’s rest of my list:
    Porco Roso
    Dark Knight Rises
    Tales from Earthsea
    Yentl
    400 Blows
    Unbroken
    The Jerk
    Looper
    Talk to Her
    The Ref

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