2024 Film Challenge
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I have 70 films yet to watch and I am . . . .*checks calendar* . . . . concerned.
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Weren't you usually done by summer? What changed this year?
But I've got some momentum now. I just finished a category, which feels good, and I've got a good direction for my next category. It's just a question of whether I can watch 70 movies in 25 days. (I mean, obviously I can, it's just a question of trying to have fun doing it, lol.)
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I have quite a bit to go through but I may be able to finish it this time. This year was rough with all of the OT I was saddled with, which out a dent not only into my availability, but also left me too tired to concentrate at times.
I’m pushing forth this week, so either way, I should at least finish normal mode.
As always, looking forward to next years
I’m pushing forth this week, so either way, I should at least finish normal mode.
As always, looking forward to next years
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Just finished category D with the wonderful Train de vie!
D. I coulda been a contender:
[watch a film that has won the following awards]
1. Cannes Film Festival: Sedotta e abbandonata (1964) - Pietro Germi
(Best Actor - Saro Urzì)
2. Academy Award: 7th Heaven (1927) - Frank Borzage (Best Actress in a Leading Role - Janet Gaynor; Best Director, Dramatic Picture - Frank Borzage; Best Writing, Adaptation - Benjamin Glazer)
3. Sundance Film Festival: Train de vie (1998) - Radu Mihăileanu (Audience Award - World Cinema)
4. Toronto International Film Festival: Incendies (2010) - Denis Villeneuve (Best Canadian Feature Film)
D. I coulda been a contender:
[watch a film that has won the following awards]
1. Cannes Film Festival: Sedotta e abbandonata (1964) - Pietro Germi
(Best Actor - Saro Urzì)
2. Academy Award: 7th Heaven (1927) - Frank Borzage (Best Actress in a Leading Role - Janet Gaynor; Best Director, Dramatic Picture - Frank Borzage; Best Writing, Adaptation - Benjamin Glazer)
3. Sundance Film Festival: Train de vie (1998) - Radu Mihăileanu (Audience Award - World Cinema)
4. Toronto International Film Festival: Incendies (2010) - Denis Villeneuve (Best Canadian Feature Film)
Last edited by *Sky*; 3 weeks ago at 02:33 AM.
91/110
Completed another category. Year of the dragon:
1916 Intolerance
1928 Passion of Joan of Arc
1940 Dead of Night
1952 Singing in the rain
1964 Kwaidan
1976 Eaten Alive
1988 Who Framed Roger Rabbit
2000 How the Grinch Stole Christmas
2012 The Hobbit an Unexpected Journey
2024 Love Lies Bleeding
Completed another category. Year of the dragon:
1916 Intolerance
1928 Passion of Joan of Arc
1940 Dead of Night
1952 Singing in the rain
1964 Kwaidan
1976 Eaten Alive
1988 Who Framed Roger Rabbit
2000 How the Grinch Stole Christmas
2012 The Hobbit an Unexpected Journey
2024 Love Lies Bleeding
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Any chance at a early look at next years categories?
👀
👀
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Just finished this category:
A. The Human Condition
[watch a film that prominently features the common themes listed below]
1. Blackmail: Dial M for Murder (1954) - Alfred Hitchcock
2. Infidelity: Les parapluies des Cherbourg (1964) - Jacques Demy
3. Theft: The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) - Michael Curtiz, William Keighley
4. Murder: Double Indemnity (1944) - Billy Wilder
A. The Human Condition
[watch a film that prominently features the common themes listed below]
1. Blackmail: Dial M for Murder (1954) - Alfred Hitchcock
2. Infidelity: Les parapluies des Cherbourg (1964) - Jacques Demy
3. Theft: The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) - Michael Curtiz, William Keighley
4. Murder: Double Indemnity (1944) - Billy Wilder
Back in February, I celebrated my very first completed section (C. Sophomore's Choice) in this, my fourth year of Jab's VERY Cool Challenges. As always, THANK YOU, @Jabs.
And shock beyond shock, I've completed four more!
The price of this is an abysmal lack of Nightmare Mode, but damn worth it, lol.
A. The Human Condition
watch a film that prominently features the common themes listed below
1. Blackmail Too Late for Tears (1949) +++
2. Infidelity Dangerous Liaisons (1988) +++
3. Theft Kansas City Confidential (1952) +++
4. Murder Knives Out (2019)
Too Late for Tears (1949) A satchel of cash is tossed into the wrong car of an unsuspecting couple. The wife, played by Lizabeth Scott, is ruthless, wreckless, and scheming; her resolution to keep the money no matter what was a magnificent spiral to witness. I loved seeing Dan Duryea playing a more confident role than the usual weasel, and then Scott's femme fatale tears him down. Damn fine noir!
Dangerous Liaisons (1988) An old and endeared favorite that I had not seen in some twenty-odd years, and my love and appreciation remain in great measure. Glenn Close and John Malkovich play lovers and seducers in 18th-century France. Wolves in sheep's clothing manipulate and corrupt at a whim. A sexual reward is made between the two if Malkovich's Valmont seduces a fervently religious, devoted wife (Michelle Pfeiffer). But when Valmont falls in love with her, the smitten Marquise refuses him.
Kansas City Confidential (1952) With both Jack Elam and Lee Van Cleef rounding out the hired thieves whose identities are hidden from one another, including the one masterminding it in a snatch-and-grab heist involving an armored truck. The successful job has only one hiccup. A flower delivery man with a record is snatched up because of the similar van used in the robbery. Pissed off and getting jerked around by the cops that arrested him, he goes after the crew to get his share for his troubles.
The twist/reveal at the end was one I was hoping for while viewing this, and I'm sure it surprised the original movie theater audience.
Knives Out (2019) Rian Johnson delivers an old-school detective novel rendition of such iconic authors as Agatha Christie and her contemporaries. A wealthy, dysfunctional family is at the heart of this whodunit when the father is murdered, and detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is on hand to solve it. Well-scripted with an underlying morbid quirkiness to the members of the family.
H. Michael Jackson in Disneyland
[watch one film for each category inspired by Michael Jackson songs]
1. Remember the Time: a time-travelling film The Adam Project (2022)
2. Smooth Criminal: a Gentleman Thief film Raffles (1930) ++
3. Black or White: a black & white film released between 1958-2009 H-8 (1958) ++ REVIEW
4. Beat it: a martial arts film Fist of Fury aka Jing wu men (1972) +++
5. Bad: a film with an IMDb score below 5.0 Batman & Robin (1997) IMDb Rating: 3.8
The Adam Project (2022) Ryan Reynolds has made bank on a slew of very entertaining popcorn-munching action films with heart and humor, and this is one of them. It was not memorable per se, but quite fun when I saw it late spring or early summer.
Raffles (1930) My anticipation going into this Ronald Colman film was very high. Though it never really gripped me. In no way a disappointment but rather one I should genuinely seek to give a second view to.
H-8 (1958) I was quickly engaged with the documentary-esque exchange of two narrators detailing the inevitable crash and setting the story as we meet and get to know everyone involved. The tension was very tangible, having become endeared to the characters beyond a fatality list. I was invested in every storyline of each passenger and each of the drivers. My worry and concern built as the story evolved and the time drew near as the empty seats of those who would die were filled. Those final narrations focus beautifully on the losses and the lives of those who survived. Quite brilliant.
Fist of Fury aka Jing wu men (1972) With all the cornball extravagance of the B-Film Seventies Kung Fu genre, I had a blast revisiting the legendary Bruce Lee as a vindictive student of a Chinese dojo that is threatened by Japanese school of martial arts.
Batman & Robin (1997) A 3.8 rating on IMDb is too high for this schlock attempt at the nostalgic silliness of the sixties TV Show ramped up with a big budget. Its one saving grace is Uma Thurman's Poison Ivy.
J. There's no place like home
[watch a film corresponding to each of the settings below]
1. a road film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) +
2. a stranger-in-a-foreign-place film Poor Things (2023) ++
3. a film taking place in a confined space One Way (2022)
4. a film that is an homage to a city Angel-A (2005) REVIEW Paris, France
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) A fanboy of this series, we enjoyed this demented humor at the theater when it came out.
Poor Things (2023) Speaking of fanboy, Emma Thompson was mesmerizing as the Creation in this reimagining of the Frankenstein legend. With Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe as her Creator, the film focuses on the open curiosity to all of life and its experiences. I simply loved it!
One Way (2022) A gem in the rough, what initially appeared to be a high-octane, frantic running-on-the-lamb action/crime flick became a finely taught, exceedingly well-done suspense-thriller with a truly satisfying ending. Centered on the last bus ride to a final destination, with pilfered heist money and a bullet in his belly, the tension and additional obstacles created by other passengers make for a highly recommended watch.
Angel-A (2005) This is a fantastical love story infused with dark, quirky comedic tones, shot in a French-Auteur camera style, à la Luc Besson.
Besson's stylized storytelling sets an excellent pace, occasionally easing with moments of self-exploration and self-realization via the genuinely excellent chemistry and character nuances of the two leads, Jamel Debbouze and Rie Rasmussen. I so do love them.
Much like Besson's dialogue, his usual cinematographer, Thierry Arbogast, is given a day in the sun as the artistic composition visually entices us throughout this film of not only Andre and Angel-A but of Paris herself.
L. Are we there yet?
[watch one film for each of the miscellaneous challenges listed below]
1. a biographical film Missing (1982) +++
2. a film from a country you've visited or live in God's Little Acre (1958) United States REVIEW
3. a film with more than 300k votes on IMDb Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) 344K +
4. a film in theaters Dune: Part Two (2024) ++
Missing (1982) American journalist Charles Horman is arrested during a military coup d'état in Chile. His wife (Sissy Spacek) and his father (Jack Lemon) desperately and eventually learn the truth of his disappearance. I drifted in and out of this film and could never seem to locate a purchase. The reasons are utterly unknown to me.
God's Little Acre (1958) This is a problematic film to evaluate, with only one viewing honestly. Due to the hard shifts from the opening storyline regarding Ryan's character, which felt more like a TV rendition of a hillbilly, it made me think of Tobacco Road and similarities with what would become Buddy Ebsen's Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies, which isn't actually a critique in itself. Moreso, it is an odd starting position for where the film goes into a sultry Tennessee Williams-esque melodrama, which I immensely enjoyed. It almost feels like that aspect was more of a comedic buffer to offset the sexual intensity and passion-drunk characters that make up the best parts of this film. While I do see the necessity of Ryan's character as the Voice of Wisdom and the amusing twist of him indulging in his addiction with innocent abandonment, on a first-time viewing, it's a tricky speed bump.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) I had been curious to venture into the Spider-Verse only to grow disinterested. It's a solid movie, but one I never really jived with. A shame, that.
Dune: Part Two (2024) Having been completely blown away by Part One, it was absolutely mandatory to experience this on the big screen and sound system. The thrumming pulse of the gigantic machinery in said sound system was impressive.
While I have only read a few chapters out of sequence on one of the books, I could not help but feel this is, for myself, the essential rendition of the Dune mythology.
And shock beyond shock, I've completed four more!
The price of this is an abysmal lack of Nightmare Mode, but damn worth it, lol.
A. The Human Condition
watch a film that prominently features the common themes listed below
1. Blackmail Too Late for Tears (1949) +++
2. Infidelity Dangerous Liaisons (1988) +++
3. Theft Kansas City Confidential (1952) +++
4. Murder Knives Out (2019)
Too Late for Tears (1949) A satchel of cash is tossed into the wrong car of an unsuspecting couple. The wife, played by Lizabeth Scott, is ruthless, wreckless, and scheming; her resolution to keep the money no matter what was a magnificent spiral to witness. I loved seeing Dan Duryea playing a more confident role than the usual weasel, and then Scott's femme fatale tears him down. Damn fine noir!
Dangerous Liaisons (1988) An old and endeared favorite that I had not seen in some twenty-odd years, and my love and appreciation remain in great measure. Glenn Close and John Malkovich play lovers and seducers in 18th-century France. Wolves in sheep's clothing manipulate and corrupt at a whim. A sexual reward is made between the two if Malkovich's Valmont seduces a fervently religious, devoted wife (Michelle Pfeiffer). But when Valmont falls in love with her, the smitten Marquise refuses him.
Kansas City Confidential (1952) With both Jack Elam and Lee Van Cleef rounding out the hired thieves whose identities are hidden from one another, including the one masterminding it in a snatch-and-grab heist involving an armored truck. The successful job has only one hiccup. A flower delivery man with a record is snatched up because of the similar van used in the robbery. Pissed off and getting jerked around by the cops that arrested him, he goes after the crew to get his share for his troubles.
The twist/reveal at the end was one I was hoping for while viewing this, and I'm sure it surprised the original movie theater audience.
Knives Out (2019) Rian Johnson delivers an old-school detective novel rendition of such iconic authors as Agatha Christie and her contemporaries. A wealthy, dysfunctional family is at the heart of this whodunit when the father is murdered, and detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is on hand to solve it. Well-scripted with an underlying morbid quirkiness to the members of the family.
H. Michael Jackson in Disneyland
[watch one film for each category inspired by Michael Jackson songs]
1. Remember the Time: a time-travelling film The Adam Project (2022)
2. Smooth Criminal: a Gentleman Thief film Raffles (1930) ++
3. Black or White: a black & white film released between 1958-2009 H-8 (1958) ++ REVIEW
4. Beat it: a martial arts film Fist of Fury aka Jing wu men (1972) +++
5. Bad: a film with an IMDb score below 5.0 Batman & Robin (1997) IMDb Rating: 3.8
The Adam Project (2022) Ryan Reynolds has made bank on a slew of very entertaining popcorn-munching action films with heart and humor, and this is one of them. It was not memorable per se, but quite fun when I saw it late spring or early summer.
Raffles (1930) My anticipation going into this Ronald Colman film was very high. Though it never really gripped me. In no way a disappointment but rather one I should genuinely seek to give a second view to.
H-8 (1958) I was quickly engaged with the documentary-esque exchange of two narrators detailing the inevitable crash and setting the story as we meet and get to know everyone involved. The tension was very tangible, having become endeared to the characters beyond a fatality list. I was invested in every storyline of each passenger and each of the drivers. My worry and concern built as the story evolved and the time drew near as the empty seats of those who would die were filled. Those final narrations focus beautifully on the losses and the lives of those who survived. Quite brilliant.
Fist of Fury aka Jing wu men (1972) With all the cornball extravagance of the B-Film Seventies Kung Fu genre, I had a blast revisiting the legendary Bruce Lee as a vindictive student of a Chinese dojo that is threatened by Japanese school of martial arts.
Batman & Robin (1997) A 3.8 rating on IMDb is too high for this schlock attempt at the nostalgic silliness of the sixties TV Show ramped up with a big budget. Its one saving grace is Uma Thurman's Poison Ivy.
J. There's no place like home
[watch a film corresponding to each of the settings below]
1. a road film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) +
2. a stranger-in-a-foreign-place film Poor Things (2023) ++
3. a film taking place in a confined space One Way (2022)
4. a film that is an homage to a city Angel-A (2005) REVIEW Paris, France
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) A fanboy of this series, we enjoyed this demented humor at the theater when it came out.
Poor Things (2023) Speaking of fanboy, Emma Thompson was mesmerizing as the Creation in this reimagining of the Frankenstein legend. With Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe as her Creator, the film focuses on the open curiosity to all of life and its experiences. I simply loved it!
One Way (2022) A gem in the rough, what initially appeared to be a high-octane, frantic running-on-the-lamb action/crime flick became a finely taught, exceedingly well-done suspense-thriller with a truly satisfying ending. Centered on the last bus ride to a final destination, with pilfered heist money and a bullet in his belly, the tension and additional obstacles created by other passengers make for a highly recommended watch.
Angel-A (2005) This is a fantastical love story infused with dark, quirky comedic tones, shot in a French-Auteur camera style, à la Luc Besson.
Besson's stylized storytelling sets an excellent pace, occasionally easing with moments of self-exploration and self-realization via the genuinely excellent chemistry and character nuances of the two leads, Jamel Debbouze and Rie Rasmussen. I so do love them.
Much like Besson's dialogue, his usual cinematographer, Thierry Arbogast, is given a day in the sun as the artistic composition visually entices us throughout this film of not only Andre and Angel-A but of Paris herself.
L. Are we there yet?
[watch one film for each of the miscellaneous challenges listed below]
1. a biographical film Missing (1982) +++
2. a film from a country you've visited or live in God's Little Acre (1958) United States REVIEW
3. a film with more than 300k votes on IMDb Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) 344K +
4. a film in theaters Dune: Part Two (2024) ++
Missing (1982) American journalist Charles Horman is arrested during a military coup d'état in Chile. His wife (Sissy Spacek) and his father (Jack Lemon) desperately and eventually learn the truth of his disappearance. I drifted in and out of this film and could never seem to locate a purchase. The reasons are utterly unknown to me.
God's Little Acre (1958) This is a problematic film to evaluate, with only one viewing honestly. Due to the hard shifts from the opening storyline regarding Ryan's character, which felt more like a TV rendition of a hillbilly, it made me think of Tobacco Road and similarities with what would become Buddy Ebsen's Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies, which isn't actually a critique in itself. Moreso, it is an odd starting position for where the film goes into a sultry Tennessee Williams-esque melodrama, which I immensely enjoyed. It almost feels like that aspect was more of a comedic buffer to offset the sexual intensity and passion-drunk characters that make up the best parts of this film. While I do see the necessity of Ryan's character as the Voice of Wisdom and the amusing twist of him indulging in his addiction with innocent abandonment, on a first-time viewing, it's a tricky speed bump.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) I had been curious to venture into the Spider-Verse only to grow disinterested. It's a solid movie, but one I never really jived with. A shame, that.
Dune: Part Two (2024) Having been completely blown away by Part One, it was absolutely mandatory to experience this on the big screen and sound system. The thrumming pulse of the gigantic machinery in said sound system was impressive.
While I have only read a few chapters out of sequence on one of the books, I could not help but feel this is, for myself, the essential rendition of the Dune mythology.
__________________
What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes
What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes
~Mr Minio
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We have and Ed Arsenal sighting!
I repeat, we have an Ed Arsenal sighting!
I repeat, we have an Ed Arsenal sighting!
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Oh my God, where!? That guy owes me money!!
Welcome back. May your return be more permanent
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H-8 (1958) I was quickly engaged with the documentary-esque exchange of two narrators detailing the inevitable crash and setting the story as we meet and get to know everyone involved. The tension was very tangible, having become endeared to the characters beyond a fatality list. I was invested in every storyline of each passenger and each of the drivers. My worry and concern built as the story evolved and the time drew near as the empty seats of those who would die were filled. Those final narrations focus beautifully on the losses and the lives of those who survived. Quite brilliant.
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That would be cool, Wylde.
And watching H-8 I kept thinking this is a film I'd have heard and inspired to watch from a Takota review.
And watching H-8 I kept thinking this is a film I'd have heard and inspired to watch from a Takota review.
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94/110 Nightmare Mode
For the movies all by the same director, I decided to try Wes Craven since I'm only familiar with his Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream movies.
Turned out to be a mistake. 7 of the first 8 I tried were so bad I just finished with Scream and Scream 2.
Deadly Friend, Shocker, My Soul to Take, Cursed, Deadly Blessing, Hills Have Eyes (1977, this was the only one of the first 8 worth watching), Stranger in Our House, Red Eye, Scream 1, Scream 2
Deadly Friend also includes the dumbest kill in movie history. A woman with a microchip in her brain (but otherwise normal) throws a basketball at another woman's face, causing her entire head to explode.
For the movies all by the same director, I decided to try Wes Craven since I'm only familiar with his Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream movies.
Turned out to be a mistake. 7 of the first 8 I tried were so bad I just finished with Scream and Scream 2.
Deadly Friend, Shocker, My Soul to Take, Cursed, Deadly Blessing, Hills Have Eyes (1977, this was the only one of the first 8 worth watching), Stranger in Our House, Red Eye, Scream 1, Scream 2
Deadly Friend also includes the dumbest kill in movie history. A woman with a microchip in her brain (but otherwise normal) throws a basketball at another woman's face, causing her entire head to explode.
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Deadly Friend, Shocker, My Soul to Take, Cursed, Deadly Blessing, Hills Have Eyes (1977, this was the only one of the first 8 worth watching), Stranger in Our House, Red Eye, Scream 1, Scream 2
Deadly Friend also includes the dumbest kill in movie history. A woman with a microchip in her brain (but otherwise normal) throws a basketball at another woman's face, causing her entire head to explode.
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99/110 Nightmare Mode
10 movies with long takes:
The Shining, Jaws, Poltergeist, The Birds, Royal Wedding, One Cut of the Dead, Stalker, Ghost Story (2017), Wings (1927), Atonement
Most of these were re-watches. Wings was sappy, but okay. the restored version goes on too long.
Atonement was breathtakingly beautiful. That Dunkirk scene is better at being the film "Dunkirk" than the film "Dunkirk".
10 movies with long takes:
The Shining, Jaws, Poltergeist, The Birds, Royal Wedding, One Cut of the Dead, Stalker, Ghost Story (2017), Wings (1927), Atonement
Most of these were re-watches. Wings was sappy, but okay. the restored version goes on too long.
Atonement was breathtakingly beautiful. That Dunkirk scene is better at being the film "Dunkirk" than the film "Dunkirk".
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I will roll out a few of the newer stuff in this thread in the coming weeks...
👀
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Nightmare Mode 102/110
Home stretch!
10 Films same actor: Will Smith.
I Am Legend (alt ending)
Bad Boys 1
Bad Boys 2
Bad Boys 3
Bad Boys 4
Men in Black
Men in Black 3
Independence Day
Aladdin
Suicide Squad
Dumb Will Smith movies are comfort food. And I love that in Bad Boys movies, no matter how many gunfights I remember there being, there's always like 50% more.
Home stretch!
10 Films same actor: Will Smith.
I Am Legend (alt ending)
Bad Boys 1
Bad Boys 2
Bad Boys 3
Bad Boys 4
Men in Black
Men in Black 3
Independence Day
Aladdin
Suicide Squad
Dumb Will Smith movies are comfort food. And I love that in Bad Boys movies, no matter how many gunfights I remember there being, there's always like 50% more.
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