Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I love this idea as well. It would definitely help me narrow down my selection and watch some of my Criterions I just haven't gotten around to. Now when do we start??

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I have a thought. Maybe the model we need is not a monthly challenge, but more like a book club. Each week we have a discussion on a randomly chosen title from Criterion/Eclipse.

There is a Doctor Who forum I'm a member of that discusses one story from the series weekly, and that seems to work out quite well.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Simple is good, I agree.

The checklist is completely optional, and mainly for the people that like complexity or watching massive amounts, and/or more of a "challenge".

Same with the group discussion choices if we do that, just a completely optional subset to allow people to get the rest of us to watch their favorites with them.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

There could be the checklist challenge with its own thread... and then maybe a weekly discussion where someone picks a favorite Criterion (or one they just haven't seen). Everyone then watches and subsequently discusses in a new forum thread. Program lists should be posted ahead of time so everyone has a chance to obtain the chosen movie beforehand. Like book club. People would have to sign up for the discussion so they could get an assigned selection slot.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I was just thinking about this actually. I think this is a great idea. Have a film assigned for that day, and anyone that has it or can get a copy watch it on that day and then have a discussion on it. Like a book group would do.

I would like to see this in addition to the other ideas that are being thrown around, as only a limited number of people could participate in that portion of the challenge.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Why not just a thread, something like "post & review the last Criterion you watched"? The challenge thing is just too complicated for me, & I have literally piles & piles of unwatched films, w/ criterions just mixed in, so I don't like being committed to having to watch certain movies in a timeframe. But I do have (thanks to the sale) dozens of blind buy Criterions, like I'm sure others do, so I'm really just more interested in the discussion aspect. For instance, I''m watching Solaris for the first time, & now I'm on the extras, I'd like a thread where I can post more thoughts, but there is no thread like that. Rather than just start a thread for all of 8 people here who have probably watched the original Solaris, if we had a Criterion discussion thread like I suggested, it would be perfect.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

You don't think that with the many discs that criterion has released that a single thread would get too cluttered? I'm trying to think of a good way to do this, and so far that is the big con I come up with for a single Criterion thread. THe big con I come up with for individual threads is the one you mentioned.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Not at all, it's like 5% of us that post here that buy Criterions that aren't Michael Bay or Wes Anderson movies. Just look at the B&N thread, it was basically just the same people posting over & over. We will be discussing not just the films we watch, but the extras on the DVDs so we can keep it in DVD Talk, I guaranty that a general Criterion watch & review discussion thread won't get half the posts as just one Transformers movie thread. And if it does even better, we just keep the thread going when it gets too long & make a "Post your Criterion thoughts & reviews Part 2" or whatever thread.

My only suggestion is that the thread is a "post your reviews/thoughts after you watch a movie" type thread only. It's not a bargain discussion thread, it's not an announcement for upcoming release type thread.

That's just my 2-cents, if there is more enthusiasm for a challenge thread, by all means go for that instead, it's just too restricting for me. I'd just like to discuss the total package of a Criterion after I watch it, & right now there is no place to do that.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

^ I see your point, but I think there are a few avenues for that. There's an entire forum dedicated to movie reviews and recommendations. And even outside of that forum, people often post threads about specfic films/DVD releases with the purpose of discussing them.

Darn, lots more thoughts, but must work now, more later or tomorrow.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Yeah, but they are mainstream blockbuster films that get their own threads. Almost anytime someone posts a thread for anything off the beaten path, it gets very little replies & most of the movie talk forum is for recent films. Lets say last night I watched, L'Ecclisse, tonight The Obscure Object of Desire, & tomorrow I start on the Eric Rohmer set. Why would I start 3 separate threads for each movie, all 3 would have very little responses. That's why one general Criterion thread is a good idea, it's for everyone who once they try a new Criterion to then post their thoughts on it.

I would have loved one consolidated thread like that when this B&N sale started. This way we all have one place to look at when looking for a new Criterion to check out.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I'm down, I have about 100 or so unwatched criterions. I'd love to have a good chance to rip through a bunch of them.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

But keep in mind that few of us will have seen the same films. Counting Eclipse titles, we're at over 600 films in the collection. I'd quickly subscribe to a thread like you describe, but the first 80 films discussed could easily be ones I've never seen. Even if everyone was good with spoiler tags, there would be a lot of frustration.

But maybe some fine tuning? Like start one general catch-all Criterion thread, where one would discuss the collection, directors/films in general terms, even bargains, but discussion of specific films in detail would be moved to a separate thread with a link to it in the "master" thread.

Just thinking out loud....

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

While I didn't post in the B&N thread, I'd be thrilled to use a challenge to dig into the most recent additions to my collection.

Count me in.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

i respect everyones opinion and think just doing anything is great!

however, and you knew there was going to be a however, im not convinced about the one cc a day challenge. kinda like sessa, im not sure that would be very successful for participation of dialogue. call me jaded.

i guess i kinda misunderstood you trevor with the 30 vs 60 imaginary points thingy. i was thinking that points were only "awarded" for each checklist. maybe i still dont understand, buy why give a point for watching a criterion and have the strong possibility of it being worth another point because it is on the checklist?

i can imagine a checklist of 30 not encompassing each and every criterion out there, but so what? we can have a different checklist next year yesh? i dont want this challenge to be a one and done thing. and besides, im not looking for the perfect cc challenge. we live and we learn no? just my random thoughts.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Ok, this might be long, but I'll sort of summarize the history of Challenges here and my thoughts for this one.

Pretty sure that the first Challenge here was the Horror one in 2006. The main point was that each individual was challenged to watch 100 horror films that calendar month. Of course, anyone could fully participate in the discussions and listing, even if you didn't watch any horror. Later Holiday, Academy Awards, and Sci-Fi Challenges started and became annual events here at DVDTalk. Most are similar in that the goal is to watch 100 films.
The optional checklist feature of DVDTalk Challenges started in 2007, and have been included in each Challenge since. They are simply a fun extra "bingo card" to give each individual additional goals, and some direction in what to watch. They are completely optional and many Challenge participants don't use them. Here is an example checklist from the horror challenges. As you can see, it includes about 100 items. One movie may fill 5 or more places in your checklist by the way. In that checklist, Frankenstein (1931) would qualify for the 1930s decade, for unrated, for Boris Karloff, for the Frankenstein subgenre, and for based on a novel. These checklists aren't for scoring per se, but they do have the competitive aspect of people racing to complete them. Bingo!
Discussion is a vital part of any Challenge, and likely key for most participants. Look back at any of the threads in our challenge history here, and you'll find lively and sometimes heated discussion. Yes, set schedules or "book clubs" would allow for better or at least more focused discussion, but that's really a whole different topic. Each Challenge is different, and this may end up more different than most, but it is still a Challenge. People are free to watch anything they want, and people desiring tons of dialogue on a specific movie they choose to watch, may come away disappointed. Even if we had 50 participants, and you watch 30 films, it is possible that no one else watches or even has watched your specific choices.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

They have a bunch of Criterions at my public library system. I've always wanted to watch some of these Criterions but not neccesarily buy them (for fear of not liking the film). So count me in.

Can we still watch a film that is on the Criterion list but not an actual Criterion? For example, I've always wanted to watch Rushmore, however the Criterion is OOP and unavailable. I did find a normal dvd of Rushmore at the library and would like to watch that.

When is this scheduled to start? I have some Criterions I've requested at the library and they should be coming in soon and I want to watch them. Luckily, they give me two weeks to pick up the stuff.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I'm interested. I think it should be limited to actual Criterions. With such a massive catalogue (to include "Armageddon" ??) it would be too easy to just watch any movie on the list. I believe the point of the challenge would be for fellow viewers to share impressions of the film's presentation and preservation by Criterion, of which would be lost on those watching non-C editions. But we should also emphasize the point of just watching and discussing, so if you can only find three Criterions, you'd still feel a part of the discussion, plus get ideas/inspiration for further viewing.

I'd liken it to a cigar club. Similar-minded viewers sharing thoughts and impressions on the make and craftsmanship of great Criterions. I already picked out my Criterion-watching jacket, and a snifter of Remy Martin...

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I dont want to see people excluded from the discussion because certain movies are excluded. I do own the Bay Criterions, but not the Wes Anderson films. I enjoy watching the Ba Criterions. They are good fun. They are also not my only criterions. I dont think any titles hsoudl be excluded from the discussion just because someon ethinks the movie isnt worthy enough. My guess is that the most widely owned criterions are going to be the more mainsteram titles, and will hopefully produce the most discussion.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I never mentioned anything about excluding films, I'm not sure where you are getting that from. It's a Criterion thread, it doesn't matter what movie people post about, just as long as it's a Criterion. My point was that someone mentioned a Criterion review thread would be too long, but the posts in the forum show, that very, very few people here actually buy a lot of Criterions. Many only have dabbled no farther than the obvious Hollywood mainstream ones, so a Criterion review thread would not get as much traffic as one may think.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

The more i think about it, the more I like the Criterion checklist idea. I am still leaning towards the thought that seperate threads is the way to go, but realize that some titles may get little traffic. This makes me think that an ideal solution may be a sub forum for criterion discussion. Don't know if that is possible though.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Yeah, I think that I'm just going to post my idea for a general Criterion thoughts/review thread & if it dies with little interest then so be it. And then you guys can do your "challenge" thread.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

Sounds great. But any response to my thoughts in post 62?

I'd hate to go into a thread to discuss one movie, and have key plots points of five other movies spoiled for me.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I don't own many, but I'll particapate... My goal is 4, 1 a week. I need to save energy for october...... (I'm finally gonna hit 100)

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

I was really hoping for a B1G1 criterion sale at DeepDiscount this year. LAst year it took place in Mid July but we havnt had one yet this year.

Re: Anyone up for the 1st Annual DVDTalk Criterion Challenge?
 

We just had a much much better than B1G1 deal at B&N that ended days ago.