Gobear

Could not disagree more. They are both classics, although they differ wildly in tone. And I have quoted Butch a hell of a lot more over the years than The Wild Bunch.

I just watched Dangerous Liaisons, still loads of wicked fun. However, the DVD, released back in 1997, is barely any better than an Archive disc, full of scratches and dirt. The film has never had a revisit in 15 years; isn't it time for a Blu-Ray restoration?

lisadoris

Watched Blazing Saddles for the millionth time. This really is one of the funniest movies ever made. Cleavon Little was great as Bart but imagine how much more awesome the film would have been if Richard Pryor had been allowed to play the role.

BobO'Link

I've felt that way longer than 15 years.

Yeah, I'm fairly certain that "all-star big Hollywood everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" aspect is what won it the Oscar. I really enjoyed that myself. It was quite fun seeing/discovering all those former stars in cameo rolls - although there were several I didn't know.

That Edward R. Murrow prologue is on the 2 disk DVD SE. I agree about his presence lending the film a certain unwarranted prestige. Considering his pedegree I was surprised to see him doing the introduction. I'd either never seen this or had forgotten it was there (it *has* been over 20 years since I'd last seen the film). It's another reason the film drug, and it's the *beginning* of the film! In spite of it being noteworthy on its own, the inclusion of the entirety of Georges Méliès "A Trip to the Moon" during that prologue didn't help the pace.

I actually like the Jackie Chan remake better than the original. For me, that's a very rare thing as I'm generally very unforgiving of remakes.

Indy24LA

I forgot how much I loved Quiz Show, what a great, eclectic cast.

Ash Ketchum

Does BUTCH have anywhere near the number of memorable quotes as BUNCH? I don't think so. Try these:

"If they move, kill 'em!"
"I'll stay here till hell freezes over or you say different."
"Hey, they was singin' 'Shall We Gather at the River.' Now, sing!"
"How'd you like to kiss my sister's black cat's ass?"
"Pike was dreaming of army horses while we were gettin' our bell ropes pulled by two--that's right-two Hondo whores."
"Now he does his killin' with a coffee cup."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
"I either lead this bunch or end it right now."
"What's so lindo about it? Just looks like more Texas to me."
"Hey, boy, you got a sister? I'd be proud to make her acquaintance." "And that of your mama, too!"
"She was my woman." "She sure ain't your woman no more, boy. Just look at her lickin' all inside that Heneral's ear."
"We share few sentiments with our government."
"Ten thousand dollars cuts an awful lot of family ties."
"Put it on a tripod!"
"Let's go." "Why not?"

All off the top of my head, except for one that I had to look up:

"'They'? Why, ‘they’ is the plain and fancy ‘they’, that’s who “they” is! Caught you, didn’t they? Tied a tin can to your tail. Led you in and waltzed you out again. Oh my, what a bunch! Big tough ones, huh? Here you are with a handful of holes, a thumb up your ass, and a big grin to pass the time of day with. They? Who the hell is “they?”"

darkhawk

Been trying not to watch the same movies that I saw last year. Only 6 Dups so far. Today, watched The Fugitive and Shakespeare in Love. It's been about 6 years since I watched The Fugitive last time. But about 11 years for SIL. Watched it in theater and liked it, but thought Saving Private Ryan was better.

gp1086

It's ironically arriving tomorrow for me to watch. Looking forward to checking it out.

davidh777

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Wild Bunch are both Westerns released in 1969, but vastly different movies. I like both but have no issue with anyone disliking either. (In fact, I have a few free minutes so I think I'll turn on BCATSK in the background.)

Whatever happens from here on out, my challenge will be a big success because I finally knocked off the big Russian elephant in the room, Doctor Zhivago! I meant to watch this for either the Oscar or historical challenge last year and never got to it because of its length. (Years ago, I carved out 200 free minutes and put it in the player, but the old Warner 2D SE crashed, for whatever reason, and I never went back to it.) This morning I had insomnia at 4 a.m. and broke out my BD, which looks luscious (and I had to take a little longer because I dozed off a couple times). I guess I didn't really know what to expect other than a sweeping Lean-style epic and a famous theme, and I got both of those, and I did find the story interesting.

Less of a milestone, but also a big first-watch for me was Stagecoach , which I tried to watch for historical or Criterion last year. I was holding out to get the BD from Netflix, but had an opportunity and just watched the Warner 2D DVD, which looked pretty decent (much better than the included trailer) but had visible scratches and whatnot. Very pleased to watch this one and read about how John Wayne was such a "risk" to put in a John Ford "A" picture. Thought it was kind of funny to have a banker character .

gp1086

We're in the home stretch! Happy watching over the next few days everyone.

orlmac

This is truly a good challenge for people who love movies. I've watched only 31 so far, but one of them was 29 minutes and another was 5 minutes and even still for those 31 movies I am still averaging over 2 hours for each. Of the 31 only around 3 have been a bust, and 2 of those were the shorts. I truly respect anyone that can top 60 movies for this challenge!

Trevor

Agreed on both that the quality of the films is generally high, and that this Challenge can be time consuming.

I might be slightly exaggerating, but I think that the month I watched every Best Film winner was more taxing than the month I watched almost 300 horror films.

orlmac

Yeah, my highest total is only around 90 in one month, but horror movies are like comfort food for me so the higher numbers are easier. I have also decided to attempt to watch only movies that I have not viewed previously for my checklists for the various challenges I will do this year. Watching any movie I haven't seen before requires more attention, and the Oscar winners generally involve even more effort in watching. It is tremendously satisfying to only watch movies I haven't seen before because so many of them are great and without these challenges I would probably fall back on my old favorites (or favorite genres) most of the time.

Indy24LA

I could not agree more, this is truly a challenge. For other challenges, sometimes I quickly pick out something almost to add another number to my total. Here I methodically choose a film. It's sometimes a film I don't really want to see, but feel I should see. And there's a little more pressure to enjoy it because it's a "classic" or deemed "Oscar worthy". I mean, how can I think of myself as a true film aficionado if I like Kingpin more than The King's Speech

I guess I take this challenge a little too seriously, but still enjoy the cuss outta it.

BobO'Link

I spend more time selecting films for this one simply because of the vast range of genres available. Currently I've been passing over films because they'll fit upcoming challenges and want to save them. This, too, makes the selection process take more time.

I used to feel the same way about "liking" a "classic" or "Oscar winning" film. I eventually came to the realization that I didn't *have* to like it just because "everyone else" did. There are some films which have won Best Picture that I'd not walk across the room to see again. In fact I've seen more films nominated for BP that I felt were far more worthy of the win than the film that took home the trophy that year. See my comments on Around the World in 80 Days for an example.
It's easy. Just because you're an "aficionado" doesn't mean you *have* to like a certain film because it's received wide critical and/or popular acclaim. Being an aficionado simply means that you have a liking for and are quite passionate and knowlegeble about a subject. For example, I do not care for The Wizard of Oz and like *any* of the "B" or "C" Sci-Fi films I own better but I know about the film and its historical significance. Even though there are genres for which I have little desire to watch with any regularity or own very few representative titles I *do* consider myself to be a film aficionado because I *know about* these titles and have an appreciation for their significance.
And *that's* what makes you an aficionado.

gp1086

We all have some favorite movies that many may not consider masterpieces. I enjoyed watching The Godfather parts 1 and 2 for the first time in this challenge and respect their place in cinematic history, but they are not some of my favorite movies of all time right now. There's no need to feel ashamed. The subjectivity of film is what intrigues me so much about it. Last year I rated The Change-Up and Dream House higher than Moneyball or Hugo. To each their own.

Even though this is my first challenge, I agree that I can envision it being a more difficult one. My goal was only 20 films and I will reach it, but given that they were all first-time views, more or less always ran over two hours, and often had deep plots, it was a more involved process for me than just rewatching some of my favorite horror or comedy flicks.

popcorn

I set an unrealistic goal of 75 this year. I forgot I was stuck at home for the years that watched close to 90! At this rate, I'd be satisfied completing the challenge list. Can anyone recommend a good 1920s flick I can find on Netflix?

gp1086

I assume you mean streaming?

Haven't seen any of them, but ran a search on InstantWatcher. The first one on the list, Bulldog Drummond, qualifies with two Oscar nominations.

For the complete list based on "Classic Films", see http://instantwatcher.com/genres/11?...test_year=1929

gp1086

Checked out My Left Foot tonight. Damn, Daniel Day-Lewis, you continue to amaze me!

Mao

Congrats, lisadoris!

You made it to 100 with a few days to spare....don't tell me you're gonna stop now?!?!?!

lisadoris

Woohoo I made it to 100 with a few days to spare. Beginners was touching and Christopher Plummer was awesome as usual. As for Bridesmaids Melissa McCarthy was hilarious but the movie itself didn't do anything for me. There are a couple movies I still want to watch but tonight and tomorrow I'm going to try to clear out my DVR of all the TV I haven't been watching.

gp1086

Congrats to you, lisadoris!

I'm still two away from my goal of 20 new watches. LOL

BobO'Link

Way to go, lisadoris! That's some heavy watchin' there!

Even with my late start I'm on track to surpass what I did last year. If my weekend watching stays on track I should pass 30. I'm pleased with that considering I didn't start until 17 days into the challenge.

shadokitty

Congrats lisadoris. I hope to break 20 by the end of the challenge myself.

orlmac

Very impressive lisadoris! That shows true dedication!

Chad

This challenge officially holds a personal record for films I thought were viewed in their entirety but turns out were just bits and pieces viewed over the years that my mind interpreted as a single complete viewing ...Rocky, High Noon, Cape Fear and The Jungle Book.

Also, Paul Muni is possibly the most underrated actor ever.