Mr. Breathmask 555 Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Last summer, I was talking to some people about movies that you're "supposed" to have seen. While there are many many lists out there, we kept getting back to the IMDB top 250. I'm sure there's some people that wouldn't bother with IMDB, but there's one thing that a user-voted list like the IMDB top 250 gives that a film buff's serious top list doesn't: pop culture value. Whether you like that is entirely up to you of course, but for the purpose of conversation, pop culture value can be pretty important.So a few months back I decided it would be fun to watch part of the list. As much as I would have liked to do a top 100 or even the entire list, there were a few considerations to cut it down to the top 50.First and foremost: money. When I started, I already had a fair amount of these movies in my collection. For this project, I did not want to settle for downloads. I wanted to get the lot on DVD. (Call me prehistoric - I don't own a BluRay player or even an HDTV. Yet.) I'm also silly enough to actually want the lot on my own shelf - not just watch a rental. This meant a small investment would have to be made. One that would get considerably larger were I to do the top 75 or top 100, let alone the entire top 250.The second factor is time and the commitment needed to watch all films. 50 seems like a decent, managable number. From the number 50 I get an idea of how long it might take me and it seems like a reasonable time.So even though there are a lot more films I'd like to include (some that I think actually belong in the top 50 on the list), the priority is going to be to watch the top 50.And review the lot of them. Just to make it more fun.Now because the list is constantly changing, I've decided on two things:1) Watch the movies in chronological order - This way I don't have to be bothered much with changing positions in the list, you avoid having to watch sequels before the original (which I hate) and because the top 50 spans about 70 years of film history, there's the added bonus of getting a nice idea of how the movies have evolved.2) Lock the top 50 down at a certain point in time - Some movies may come and go. So if you see a movie reviewed that might not be in the list at the time of the review, or if you're wondering why a certain high-ranked picture doesn't get a review, it might be because the list has changed since I've started.So keep watching this space. Citizen Kane is the oldest film on the list and I'll be starting with that one this week! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Breathmask 555 Posted March 23, 2011 Author Share Posted March 23, 2011 Just over 30, I think.I'll be seeing some of them for the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Sounds like a cool plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indy4 155 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Nice! I just skimmed over the list, and there are quite a few I haven't seen. I should change that, but I'm not enough of of a film buff to do something like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocodile 8,018 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 So keep watching this space. Citizen Kane is the oldest film on the list and I'll be starting with that one this week!You haven't seen it yet? Karol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Breathmask 555 Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 I have, actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I haven't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Brigden 7 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Anyone who considers themselves to be a film fan needs to see it, if only to say they've seen it and carry on (but mainly because it's awesome). It's the same with 'The Godfather'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koray Savas 2,251 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Yeah there are plenty of movies that I should have seen but haven't. I doubt I'll get to them anytime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodBoal 7,538 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maglorfin 196 Posted March 25, 2011 Share Posted March 25, 2011 How many films of the top 50 have you already seen ?As per current list, 21, but as I remember, the "result" was better with the older "versions" of the list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay 37,372 Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 Any update on this, Mr. B? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkissimo 1,973 Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 What a lousy list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,345 Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 What did you expect from IMDb? It does give us good view on what is popular. I wonder how many of those people simply mention Citizen Kane just to be taken seriously? Let's just say, I don't trust so-called personal lists that go like this:1) The Shawshank Redemption2) The Green Mile3) The Dark Knight4) Citizen Kane5) Gladiator6) The Empire Strikes Back7) Pulp fiction8) The Matrix9) A Beautiful Mind10) BraveheartOften Citizen Kane is replaced by 2001: A Space Odyssey, another film that looks good on your résumé.Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brónach 1,302 Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 I don't trust so-called personal lists that go like this:1) The Shawshank Redemption2) The Green Mile3) The Dark Knight4) Citizen Kane5) Gladiator6) The Empire Strikes Back7) Pulp fiction8) The Matrix9) A Beautiful Mind10) BraveheartOften Citizen Kane is replaced by 2001: A Space Odyssey, another film that looks good on your résumé.The only ones on that list that I would put in my list are The Empire Strikes Back and 2001. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unlucky Bastard 7,782 Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 What did you expect from IMDb? It does gives us good view on what is popular. I wonder how many of those people simply mention Citizen Kane just to be taken seriously? Let's just say, I don't trust so-called personal lists that go like this:1) The Shawshank Redemption2) The Green Mile3) The Dark Knight4) Citizen Kane5) Gladiator6) The Empire Strikes Back7) Pulp fiction8) The Matrix9) A Beautiful Mind10) BraveheartOften Citizen Kane is replaced by 2001: A Space Odyssey, another film that looks good on your résumé.AlexMy Top 10 has none of those. Mine's more like this.1. Troll 22. Poltergeist III3. Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan4. Batman & Robin5. Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem6. Allen Quartermain and the Lost City of Gold7. Supergirl8. Hellraiser: Bloodline9. Jewel of the Nile10. King Kong Lives Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A24 4,345 Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 No Citizen Kane to make yourself more creditable? How can we take you seriously?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unlucky Bastard 7,782 Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 Credibility is the only thing more overrated than Citizen Kane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocodile 8,018 Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 It is becoming increasingly difficult to list Citizen Kane without being ridiculed from playing it safe. Karol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Breathmask 555 Posted June 12, 2011 Author Share Posted June 12, 2011 Oh yeah, the whole review thing.Damn, I totally forgot about this.I'm rediculously busy these days, but in a few weeks I might have time to deliver some updates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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