Ryan McNeil
While this post series usually goes up on Saturdays, I wanted to push it to allow this entry to sum up 2011 on the whole. Here’s how the numbers break down…
421 Films watched
238 First showings
183 Re-watches
125 Screenings
287 DVD’s
20 Different theatres
67 Commercial films
4 Film festivals
32 Festival screenings
2 Films screened in theatres twice (THE ARTIST and THE MUPPETS)
25 Titles scratched off the neverending “To Watch” List
Looking at next year, all things being equal, I think I can add on another ten to twenty films (I lost a lot of time in the design and launch of this site). That said, even if the number stays where it is, or even drops, I’d like to focus on new material in the new year…get a few more scratched off that watchlist.
But before we look forward, let’s take one last look back…
Here’s The Final Week at Hand…
Screenings
WE BOUGHT A ZOO – Messy, but it left me with a smile.
Blu-Rays/DVD’s I’ve Never Seen
CERTIFIED COPY – A subtle film I’m happy I finally caught up with.
DON’T LOOK BACK – This might well cause my Bob Dylan playcount in iTunes to skyrocket.
THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS – A holdover in my Criterion BBS box. Interesting, if somewhat arty.
Blu-Rays/DVD’s I’ve Watched Before
LOVE, ACTUALLY – I discovered this week that “Christmas is All Around” gets especially painful in subsequent verses.
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE – Christmas Eve is the latest I’ve watched it in many, many years.
BATMAN RETURNS – It is too a Christmas movie!
WHITE CHRISTMAS – The perfect watch to end off a busy Christmas Eve.
SUPER 8 – A Christmas gift from Lindsay, and the film chosen to break in my new surround sound system.
RUSHMORE – Another Christmas gift, and a film I must admit I wasn’t fussed about when I first watched it years ago.
THE LAST PICTURE SHOW – The world needs more black & white
How’s about you – seen anything good?
I am going to count all the films I watch this year- resolution.
Firsts- Don 2– Bollywood’s version of MI4 (not really, just in an action movie sense) was actually rather enjoyable.
A Separation– Masterful and the best drama I’ve seen all year.
Contagion– Actually rather good, and I didn’t become a shut-in after that, so yaay!
Me and You and Everyone We Know– Very interesting and fun. I’m a bit in love with Miranda July.
The Future– Not as good as the first but I’m hooked on to July now.
Rewatched- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1– One of the best HP films, and I found Daniel Radcliffe very attractive in it this time.
Bring It On– It wasn’t this painful before, but loads of fun to watch with friends who are as non-cheerleadery as me.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2– Two of my friends hadn’t watched it. Last film of 2011.
Midnight in Paris– First film of 2012 and what a brilliant start!
I’ll be interested to see what your watchlist totals are both monthly and yearly!
A SEPARATION is one of the 2011 films I wish I’d seen, but I’m not sure it’s got a proper release in Toronto yet. Hopefully it’ll get some play this spring and save me from the Hollywood dregs we’re usually offered.
As always – some wonderful selections.
That is a seriously impressive count.
Re “The Last Picture Show”- I’d modify to “more black and white of such beauty and artistry.”
“The Artist” on New Year’s Day was a great way to start the year.
No kidding – THE ARTIST on New Year’s Day might qualify as the perfect start to the year. Mine curiously started with The Monkees…make of that what you will.
And perhaps it’s just the twerpy photographer in me talking, but I always consider black and white to come bundled with artistry and beauty. The black and white that doesn’t just saddens me.
This week was a busy one:
One Week (Buster Keaton)
Duck Soup
Fail-Safe
Black Swan
Jane Eyre
Margin Call
Rachel Getting Married
The Searchers
and one other I can’t remember…
Want to make an early guess on how many films you’ll watch in 2012?
Probably significantly less than I did this year-which was around 260. 2012 will prove a very busy year for me.
I didn’t really see anything new during that week other than David Fincher’s version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Young Adult along with Topsy-Turvy. I just needed to chill for the holidays.
What did you think of YOUNG ADULT? I know a lot of people didn’t really take to that movie, but I actually liked how it felt like a departure for both Reitman and Cody.
Glad you saw Certified Copy! Brilliant film.
First-Timers:
The Guard – Hilarious Irish comedy…Brendan Gleeson is great, as is the ever-brilliant Mark Strong.
Casino Jack – Meh…
Barney’s Version – Beautiful, if a little too long. But I really enjoyed it. Paul Giamatti was excellent.
Hobo with a Shotgun – Hilarious. Loved how cheap it was.
The Debt – The original 2007 Israeli version. It was actually quite good, but needed a bit of fine-tuning. Which I hope the remake does.
The Piano Teacher – Let’s not talk about this one…
Fargo – Coen’s goodness!
Repulsion – Seemed a little dated to me, but it was extremely unsettling.
Rewatches:
Meet Me in St Louis – My Christmas movie. Always a delight.
Hanna – Such a disappointing film. Love the music, though.
Easy A – Just coz
In Bruges – Absolutely hilarious. Ralph Fiennes is bloody hilarious, too.
Inception – On blu-ray as my last film of 2011. Lord, I can’t wait for The Dark Knight Rises.
Sunshine Cleaning – Was on TV. Such an underrated film.
Funny thing about FARGO – I really didn’t like it much when I first saw it in theatres back in 1997. At the time, I didn’t really understand Coen Bros humour, nor the idea of black comedy.
Of course, over the years, I came back to it and ended up taking quite a shining to it. When people bug me about me “watch it again” stance, I usually use FARGO as an example why.
I already asked Steven, and now I’ll ask you – any guesses on how many movies you think you’ll watch in 2012?
I plan to watch 300 new-to-me films. I did 282 last year so it is definitely achievable.
WoW!! That is a lot of cinema and film
I unfortunately do not have a log of what I watched last year. But this year I got a film journal that is helping me to log everything and keep on track…. I am embracing the inner geek
I know I got 110 films from 2011 done, I went to 2 festivals, but that is where it stops…
I am already 3 for 3 this year!! woohoo (I know I am sad)
Great job Ryan, thanks for sharing
The great thing about this time of year is that I’m never short on movies to watch, however, given the amount of TV series I’m given on DVD, much of my couch time goes towards things I don’t write about on this space.
If you feel like stealing my feature, it could make for a chronicle companion for that journal you got. Would love to keep up with your weekly watches.
I have no idea how many films I watched last year. I blogged 293, though, so I watched something north of that.
That feels like a lot of movies.
Less than one-a-day isn’t terrible. It all depends on what else you’re doing around that. I know people who don’t have cable so all they watch is movies. I also know people who are never home so they never get the chance to watch any.
It’s a new year – I vote in 2012 you keep count.
I suppose I’m one of those people you know who doesn’t have cable. I don’t see the need for it.
My guess is if I add up everything I watched for podcasts plus everything I watched for the hell of it, I come in around a movie per day. But I only have proof of those 293.