Greetings, my friends!
This marks the 11th year that I have taken the time to not only reflect upon "the year in movies" gone by, but attempted to give it context and shape by assessing the quality of the films in question, and noting any particular patterns or interests that made the year distinctive. In 2009, I began breaking the Horror Views and Civilian Views into two separate sections, being that the blog I had just started was called, after all, HORROR 101.
Having already given 2017’s fright flicks their deserving measure of thought (click HERE to see), it’s time to dive into the less-scary side of things, as well as looking at the Views overall.
This year, it should be mentioned, marks the lowest total of films (251) watched since I started tracking such minutiae back in the early 1990s. (I know, I know, it may still seem like a lot to some. Everything is relative, no?) I attribute this to a variety of elements, not least of which being the amount of time I simply sat staring at the computer screen in disbelief at the madness occurring in the political arena. I was, quite literally, stunned by this world that had been allowed to manifest itself and almost didn’t dare turn my back… for fear things would slide past the point of no return during the period between opening and closing credits. I also found myself looking for ways to combat the various situations rather than escape from them, and often decided against a movie if there was a worthier task at hand, be it the organizing of a self-defense workshop or contributing time or money (or both) to a fundraiser or protest, etc.
This is also probably a good time to point out that there also wasn’t much coming to the cinema that I was interested in seeing. Outside of the two film festivals (BIFFF and Cinepocalypse), there was only one day that I spent at the multiplex seeing more than a single movie. One. (August 8, to be exact.) The rest of the time I was single-viewing it, i.e. going to the theater, seeing ONE MOVIE (“inconceivable!”) and then going home. I mean, seriously, who is this and what have you done with AC?
Add to this the insanity of running on minimal sleep during the 25 weeks that I
was rehearsing and/or performing onstage while maintaining my personal training
practice of 25-30 sessions a week, and suddenly it becomes clearer why the
numbers are the way they are. To be honest, I’m genuinely surprised the tally
isn’t lower. Then again, BIFFF, Cinepocalypse, and October’s SCARE-A-THON 2017
represent approx 35% of the total Views, even though they cover only 6 of the 52
weeks. (It seems we can still dive in deep when the occasion calls for it.)
This is why we record these things, to remember each year and what was different and special. So… let’s look around a bit, shall we?
2017 Totals: 251 films, 179 first time views, 111 horror, 52 cinema
(2016 Totals: 272, 183, 131, 31)
(2015 Totals: 352, 190, 224, 41)
(2014 Totals: 399, 203, 251, 48)
(2013 Totals: 306, 240, 185, 69)
(2012 Totals: 607, 520, 362, 166)
(2011 Totals: 640, 419, 355, 59)
(2010 Totals: 364, 253, 242, 45)
(2009 Totals: 472, 276, 289, 38)
(2008 Totals: 384, 278, 226, 39)
(2007 Totals: 409, 284, 260, 40)
TOP CIVILIAN RELEASES OF 2017
Baby Driver
Boy Missing
Brigsby Bear
Free Fire
Hentai Kamen 2
Jailbreak
Logan
Saving Sally
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Tunnel
Wonder Woman
TOP 2016 MOVIES SEEN IN 2017
Deepwater Horizon
The Nice Guys
Patriots Day
Sausage Party
TOP CIVILIAN DISCOVERIES (i.e. non-2017 movies seen for the first time)
Bullet in the Head (1990)
Le Dernier Combat (1983)
The Hidden Fortress (1958)
The Piano Teacher (2001)
Red Beard (1965)
Roar (1981)
Sanjuro (1962)
Scandal (1950)
Wetlands (2013)
DOUBLE VIEWS (so nice we watched ’em twice)
The Eyes of My Mother
Tonight She Comes
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
SAME BUT DIFFERENT
Funny Games (1997, 2007)
Children of the Night (2014, 2017)
The Lower Depths (1936, 1957)
Our Brand is Crisis (2005, 2015)
DOCUMENTARIES (15)
20 Feet from Stardom
A.K. (Akira Kurosawa)
American Movie
Beauty Bites Beast
CitizenFour
Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me
Forgotten Scares: An In-Depth Look at Flemish Horror Cinema
Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD
Jodorowsky's Dune
Kurosawa: The Last Emperor
Listen to the Light: The Making of Brain Damage
Message from Akira Kurosawa: For Beautiful Movies
OJ: Made in America
Our Brand is Crisis
The Search for Weng Weng
MOST WATCHED DIRECTORS:
Akira Kurosawa (24)
(The Bad Sleep Well, Dersu Uzala, Dodes'ka-den, Drunken Angel, The Hidden Fortress, The Idiot, I Live in Fear, Ikiru, Kagemusha, The Lower Depths, The Most Beautiful, Maadadayo, No Regrets for Our Youth, One Wonderful Sunday, Ran, Rashomon, Red Beard, Rhapsody in August, Sanjuro, Sanshiro Sugata, Scandal, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, Yojimbo)
Michael Haneke (7)
(Funny Games, Cache, Time of the Wolf, The Piano Teacher, Code Unknown, Funny Games, The Seventh Continent)
Peter Berg (5)
(Deepwater Horizon, Patriots Day, Lone Survivor, Friday Night Lights, Very Bad Things)
Dario Argento (4)
(Suspiria, The Cat o' Nine Tails, Four Flies on Grey Velvet, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage)
Alex Cox (4)
(Kurosawa: The Last Emperor, Walker, Sid and Nancy, Repo Man)
Luc Besson (2)
(Lucy, Le Dernier Combat)
James Isaac (2)
(Skinwalkers, Jason X)
LONGEST STREAK OF SEEING MOVIES FROM EACH YEAR: (1993-1964)
Okay, this is insane. Apparently, I did not watch ANY movies from 2008, 2009, or 2010. I can’t remember the last time that my streak has been killed that early. From 2007-1996, then 1993-1964, and then it’s all downhill from there.
GOING A-Z
This marks the 11th year that I have taken the time to not only reflect upon "the year in movies" gone by, but attempted to give it context and shape by assessing the quality of the films in question, and noting any particular patterns or interests that made the year distinctive. In 2009, I began breaking the Horror Views and Civilian Views into two separate sections, being that the blog I had just started was called, after all, HORROR 101.
Having already given 2017’s fright flicks their deserving measure of thought (click HERE to see), it’s time to dive into the less-scary side of things, as well as looking at the Views overall.
This year, it should be mentioned, marks the lowest total of films (251) watched since I started tracking such minutiae back in the early 1990s. (I know, I know, it may still seem like a lot to some. Everything is relative, no?) I attribute this to a variety of elements, not least of which being the amount of time I simply sat staring at the computer screen in disbelief at the madness occurring in the political arena. I was, quite literally, stunned by this world that had been allowed to manifest itself and almost didn’t dare turn my back… for fear things would slide past the point of no return during the period between opening and closing credits. I also found myself looking for ways to combat the various situations rather than escape from them, and often decided against a movie if there was a worthier task at hand, be it the organizing of a self-defense workshop or contributing time or money (or both) to a fundraiser or protest, etc.
This is also probably a good time to point out that there also wasn’t much coming to the cinema that I was interested in seeing. Outside of the two film festivals (BIFFF and Cinepocalypse), there was only one day that I spent at the multiplex seeing more than a single movie. One. (August 8, to be exact.) The rest of the time I was single-viewing it, i.e. going to the theater, seeing ONE MOVIE (“inconceivable!”) and then going home. I mean, seriously, who is this and what have you done with AC?
This is why we record these things, to remember each year and what was different and special. So… let’s look around a bit, shall we?
2017 Totals: 251 films, 179 first time views, 111 horror, 52 cinema
(2016 Totals: 272, 183, 131, 31)
(2015 Totals: 352, 190, 224, 41)
(2014 Totals: 399, 203, 251, 48)
(2013 Totals: 306, 240, 185, 69)
(2012 Totals: 607, 520, 362, 166)
(2011 Totals: 640, 419, 355, 59)
(2010 Totals: 364, 253, 242, 45)
(2009 Totals: 472, 276, 289, 38)
(2008 Totals: 384, 278, 226, 39)
(2007 Totals: 409, 284, 260, 40)
TOP CIVILIAN RELEASES OF 2017
Baby Driver
Boy Missing
Brigsby Bear
Free Fire
Hentai Kamen 2
Jailbreak
Logan
Saving Sally
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Tunnel
Wonder Woman
TOP 2016 MOVIES SEEN IN 2017
Deepwater Horizon
The Nice Guys
Patriots Day
Sausage Party
TOP CIVILIAN DISCOVERIES (i.e. non-2017 movies seen for the first time)
Bullet in the Head (1990)
Le Dernier Combat (1983)
The Hidden Fortress (1958)
The Piano Teacher (2001)
Red Beard (1965)
Roar (1981)
Sanjuro (1962)
Scandal (1950)
Wetlands (2013)
DOUBLE VIEWS (so nice we watched ’em twice)
The Eyes of My Mother
Tonight She Comes
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
SAME BUT DIFFERENT
Funny Games (1997, 2007)
Children of the Night (2014, 2017)
The Lower Depths (1936, 1957)
Our Brand is Crisis (2005, 2015)
DOCUMENTARIES (15)
20 Feet from Stardom
A.K. (Akira Kurosawa)
American Movie
Beauty Bites Beast
CitizenFour
Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me
Forgotten Scares: An In-Depth Look at Flemish Horror Cinema
Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD
Jodorowsky's Dune
Kurosawa: The Last Emperor
Listen to the Light: The Making of Brain Damage
Message from Akira Kurosawa: For Beautiful Movies
OJ: Made in America
Our Brand is Crisis
The Search for Weng Weng
MOST WATCHED DIRECTORS:
Akira Kurosawa (24)
(The Bad Sleep Well, Dersu Uzala, Dodes'ka-den, Drunken Angel, The Hidden Fortress, The Idiot, I Live in Fear, Ikiru, Kagemusha, The Lower Depths, The Most Beautiful, Maadadayo, No Regrets for Our Youth, One Wonderful Sunday, Ran, Rashomon, Red Beard, Rhapsody in August, Sanjuro, Sanshiro Sugata, Scandal, Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood, Yojimbo)
Michael Haneke (7)
(Funny Games, Cache, Time of the Wolf, The Piano Teacher, Code Unknown, Funny Games, The Seventh Continent)
Peter Berg (5)
(Deepwater Horizon, Patriots Day, Lone Survivor, Friday Night Lights, Very Bad Things)
Dario Argento (4)
(Suspiria, The Cat o' Nine Tails, Four Flies on Grey Velvet, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage)
Alex Cox (4)
(Kurosawa: The Last Emperor, Walker, Sid and Nancy, Repo Man)
Luc Besson (2)
(Lucy, Le Dernier Combat)
James Isaac (2)
(Skinwalkers, Jason X)
LONGEST STREAK OF SEEING MOVIES FROM EACH YEAR: (1993-1964)
Okay, this is insane. Apparently, I did not watch ANY movies from 2008, 2009, or 2010. I can’t remember the last time that my streak has been killed that early. From 2007-1996, then 1993-1964, and then it’s all downhill from there.
GOING A-Z
Came close to seeing movies starting with every letter of
the alphabet – missed Q and X (again). As I said last year, one of these days
I’m actually going to think about this before the end of the year rolls around!
NOTABLE 2017 VIEWING MILESTONES
4 Peter O’Toole films
NOTABLE 2017 VIEWING MILESTONES
4 Peter O’Toole films
First two installments of three
franchises (Die Hard, Teen Wolf, Creepshow)
10 werewolf(ish) movies
EARLIEST FILM WATCHED:
The Lower Depths (1936)
FIRST FILM OF 2017:
Arrival (2016)
LAST FILM OF 2017:
The Princess Bride (1987)
COUNTRIES OF RECORD: 31
Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Scotland, Senegal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda, UK, USA
VIEWINGS BY MONTH:
January – 5
February – 3
March – 22
April – 53 (BIFFF)
May – 20
June – 15
July – 8
August – 12
September – 18
October – 36 (October Horror Movie Challenge)
November – 36 (Cinepocalypse)
December – 23
VIEWS BREAKDOWN BY DECADE:
(This is only the second time since I start recording this nonsense that the 1970s have lost out to the 1980s. Weird.)
10 werewolf(ish) movies
EARLIEST FILM WATCHED:
The Lower Depths (1936)
FIRST FILM OF 2017:
Arrival (2016)
LAST FILM OF 2017:
The Princess Bride (1987)
COUNTRIES OF RECORD: 31
Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Scotland, Senegal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Uganda, UK, USA
VIEWINGS BY MONTH:
January – 5
February – 3
March – 22
April – 53 (BIFFF)
May – 20
June – 15
July – 8
August – 12
September – 18
October – 36 (October Horror Movie Challenge)
November – 36 (Cinepocalypse)
December – 23
VIEWS BREAKDOWN BY DECADE:
(This is only the second time since I start recording this nonsense that the 1970s have lost out to the 1980s. Weird.)
1910s – 0
1920s – 0
1920s – 0
1930s – 1
1940s – 5
1950s – 12
1960s – 11
1970s – 27
1980s – 38
1990s – 16
2000s – 21
2010s – 119
Whew. That’s it, folks. Here’s to better
times and brighter projector lights in 2018! See you at the movies!
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