12.29.2011

60/60 Thoughts: Part 1 (Stats).

For the next 3 days, I'll be posting details related to the 60/60 Project, each covering its own type of information. It's been one heck of a year with this list, and I hope you enjoy what came of it. Here we go.

For Part 1, I want to discuss random statistics that you might find interesting. Let's get right into it.

I discovered that there were some directors that seemed to take over the list more than others. Of course, Hitchcock had his own month, but the others just kind of appeared scattered throughout, which was completely unplanned. The following is a list of directors that appeared more than once on this list and how many times they appeared:

Alfred Hitchcock (7)
-I found I liked him more often than not. I loved some (Rope, The Birds, Rear Window, North by Northwest), but was let down by others (Psycho, Vertigo, Strangers on a Train).

Stanley Kubrick (5)
-Boy did I gain a love-hate relationship with this guy. It's no secret that one film in particular became a running joke for the rest of this project (2001). And there were a couple I just didn't care about (Dr. Strangelove and The Killing). But, I'll be honest... there were two in particular that I did truly come out loving (The Shining and A Clockwork Orange). And I have to give the man credit--love or hate his films, I haven't been able to stop thinking about at least 2 of them. (Special Note: I'll be viewing some of his other titles in the near future, as well.)

Brian De Palma (3)
-He started off strong with me (The Untouchables), but quickly sank into the realm of "I really don't care" (Scarface and Carlito's Way).

Roman Polanski (3)
-Another case of starting off strong (The Pianist) and then sinking into something I just didn't care for (Chinatown and Repulsion). And similar to 2001, my thoughts on Chinatown received some controversial comments...

Steven Spielberg (3)
-On the reverse, though, Spielberg started off rough with me (Close Encounters) and then got excellent (Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's List). And there was also yet another controversial discussion that stemmed from one of these films, as well.

Francis Ford Coppola (2)
-Same series... one I really liked (Godfather Part II)... one I didn't (Godfather Part III). Simple as that.

Terry Gilliam (2)
-Gilliam is one of those directors you either like or... really don't. I'm a big fan of 12 Monkeys, for instance. As for this list, one of them started off alright but really grew on me as the year went on (Monty Python). The other still remains rather WTF (Brazil).

George Roy Hill (2)
-Both movies (Butch Cassidy, The Sting) starred the same two fellas and... shocker... I absolutely loved both films. Big surprises of the year.

Ang Lee (2)
-Again, on the other hand, I was kinda let down by both films (Crouching Tiger and Brokeback Mountain) that this director left me with.

Sidney Lumet (2)
-The original 12 Angry Men is one of my all-time favorite movies. And I do quite enjoy some others of this director. Of his two films here, one gave me some good enjoyment (Network). The other was... it was pretty decent (Orient Express).

Mike Nichols (2)
-Prior to this project, I'd seen Closer and... REALLY didn't like it. With my rather so-so feelings towards his two films here (Catch-22 and The Graduate), I can't say I'll be going out of my way to seek out others.

Martin Scorsese (2)
-I like the dude in general. He's not a super-favorite, but I like him. I really liked one of his films here (Goodfellas)... unfortunately, I really didn't like the other (Casino).

NOTE: I found it especially interesting that of all 100 films I viewed for this project, there was only ONE female, and she was a co-director. That honor went to Katie Lund - Co-Director City of God, one of my favorites of the year.

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But how about in front of the camera? When it comes to actors, I'm going to be looking at the ones that appeared more the twice throughout the year. Why? Because it turns out there were a LOT that appeared at least twice... even some really random people. So here's a list of those that showed up three or more times. Some are kind of surprising.

Robert De Niro (6)
-Funny how the bulk of his appearances were in the same 2-month span (Godfather Part II, The Untouchables, Goodfellas, Casino, Heat), but there was one that was much earlier in the year (Brazil). And you know what? I enjoyed him quite a bit each and every time.

Al Pacino (5)
-Almost the exact same thing could be said of this actor; Hell, they intersected for a couple of the movies (Godfather Part II, Heat). The others (Scarface, Godfather Part III, Carlito's Way) I didn't particularly care for... but I did love his performance each time.

Gene Hackman (4)
-This was the biggest surprise to me. Unfortunately, I only liked one of the movies (Bonnie and Clyde). The others (Unforgiven, The French Connection, The Quick and the Dead)... I really didn't care for. And I can't say he himself particularly blew me away, either. He was fine, particularly in French Connection, but I could take him or leave him.

Jack Nicholson (4)
-While there were two I didn't really care for (Chinatown, Easy Rider), there were two I totally loved (The Shining, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest). But no matter what I think about the films, his performances, especially in the latter two, were fantastic.

Jimmy Stewart (4)
-I was surprised that he kept turning up, but it was always a complete delight, even if I didn't care for the overall movie (Vertigo, Harvey). On the other hand, there were two I really dug quite a bit (Rope, Rear Window). Funnily enough, I kept reading how Hitchcock (and his audiences) always felt he was miscast, particularly blaming the initial failure of Vertigo on him... to the point he refused to ever work with him again.

Martin Balsam (3)
-He'll always be the foreman in 12 Angry Men to me, but it was nice seeing him show up a few times this year (Psycho, Orient Express, and Catch-22)... even though my feelings on each movie as a whole was only so-so.

Faye Dunaway (3)
-I know she had big roles in all three (Chinatown, Network, Bonnie and Clyde), but I only really remember her performance in the last. Of course, she's really good, but she never super-excited me.

Diane Keaton (3)
-The same could be said here with her three (Godfather Part II, Godfather Part III, and Annie Hall). Two of those are excellent--I'm sure you could figure out which. One of them is actually one of my favorites of the year. I'll give you a hint. She plays the titular character.

Peter Lorre (3)
-His voice alone is enough to make you love this guy. He was my favorite part of all three films he was in (M, Casablanca, and The Maltese Falcon).

Paul Newman (3)
-One of my two favorite actors this year. A hint on the other... Newman shared two of his three movies (Butch Cassidy, The Sting, Cool Hand Luke) with him. There's no surprise to me that one of these films is in my Top 10, and the other two barely missed it.

Anthony Perkins (3)
-Another shocker that showed up in more than the obvious (Psycho). But his appearances in the others (Catch-22, Orient Express) were fine. His best, though, was the first.

Robert Redford (3)
-He comes in second due to a lackluster film (The Hot Rock)... but otherwise, See: Paul Newman.

Tom Sizemore (3)
-This one came out of left field for me. Even looking back at the three (Saving Private Ryan, Black Hawk Down, Heat), I can't remember his characters, much less performances... so no comment.

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Next, I'll say how many films I saw from each decade.

20s (1) - Nosferatu

30s (3) - Gone with the Wind, M, Freaks

40s (6) - The Great Dictator, Casablanca, Citizen Kane, Laura, Rope, Maltese Falcon

50s (12) - Plan 9, Seven Samurai, Harvey, Les Diabolique, Vertigo, Rear Window, Strangers on a Train, North by Northwest, The Killing, The Seventh Seal, A Streetcar Named Desire, Singin in the Rain

60s (14) - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Good/Bad/Ugly, The Apartment, Dr. Strangelove, The Producers, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Repulsion, Psycho, The Birds, Easy Rider, Cool Hand Luke, Bonnie and Clyde, Lawrence of Arabia, The Graduate

70s (20) - Close Encounters, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Westworld, Drunken Master, Monty Python/Holy Grail, Kentucky Fried Movie, The Sting, Network, Annie Hall, Catch-22, Eraserhead, Salo, A Clockwork Orange, I Spit on Your Grave, The French Connection, Chinatown, The Hot Rock, Orient Express, The Godfather Part II, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

80s (9) - Brazil, Stripes, Platoon, Cannibal Holocaust, The Untouchables, The Lost Boys, The Shining, The Changeling, The Goonies

90s (21) - Unforgiven, Quick and the Dead, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Rumble in the Bronx, Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, Schindler's List, The Pianist, Life is Beautiful, The Crying Game, Primal Fear, Heat, Goodfellas, Carlito's Way, Casino, The Godfather Part III, Troll 2, Dead Alive, Boogie Nights, Dazed and Confused, Swingers

00s (13) - Good/Bad/Weird, Crouching Tiger, Mother, Lady Vengeance, Black Hawk Down, The Counterfeiters, Haute Tension, Visitor Q, Irreversible, Shark Attack 3, City of God, Brokeback Mountain, The Lives of Others

Note: Funny how the majority of the films on a list about classics came from the 90s. Granted... not all of them were particularly all that great. So while we're on that subject... just for fun, which was my favorite decade and least favorite decade? Well, funnily enough, each decade has its ups and downs... but I'd say the 70s is equally my favorite and least favorite decade.

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Going along the same lines... let's take a look at how many films I gave particular ratings. Remember, this is out of 100 films.

Royale with Cheese - 21
A Keanu 'Whoa' - 23
I Am McLovin - 27
Stop Saying OK! OK. - 16
Feed Me, Seymour - 4
The Zed Word - 2
She's Gone From Suck to Blow - 1
A Hot Mess - 2
WTF - 4

NOTE: The films for each rating will be revealed tomorrow.

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Here are the movies from the list I now own. Now, there are two categories here. The first is for movies I actually had to purchase (or have someone send me a copy of) in order to even watch it in the first place:

-Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
-The Great Dictator
-Strangers on a Train

And this category is for the movies that I loved and now own because of that:

-The Good, The Bad, The Weird
-A Clockwork Orange
-The Shining
-North by Northwest

I'm sure there will at least be a few more added to this second list when I get around to it, as there are a handful I'd like to own. But as for now, that's what I got.

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Finally, let's do some TIME.

The longest month, clocking in at 19 Hours and 6 Minutes - August (Crime Month - Part 1). In second place with 18 Hours, 49 Minutes was September (Crime Month - Part 2). How coincidental.

The shortest month, clocking in at 5 Hours and 29 Minutes - November 2010 (Space/Sci-Fi Month). The first month I started. But I figure only because I hadn't started doing "Extras" yet, and I started a week late. So the runner-up in this category would be, ironically, the last month - December 2011 (What's Left - Light), with 10 Hours and 50 Minutes.

So, ladies and gentlemen... after adding up all the running times of all the movies I watched for this project... the final time count for the project is...

202 Hours and 34 Minutes. That is 8 Days, 10 Hours, and 34 Minutes. Now that's a long time of straight movie-watching!

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Alrighty guys and gals. Stay tuned tomorrow when you'll get a bunch of lists, favorites, and least favorites of things!

7 comments:

  1. This is going to sound awful, but that argument that you guys had over 2001 was one of the most entertaining things I read this year. I had to keep reminding myself that you guys weren't teenage girls :P Sorry, that sounded *really* awful, and I'm not likening you to teenage girls (because we're awful), but that argument...whoa. Please don't hate me!

    I love how you have a love-hate relationship with Kubrick. Everyone runs around saying that he is God - and they might be right - but I'm pretty 'meh' about him. Mind you, I've only seen A Clockwork Orange and The Shining, and while he does some amazing stuff with them, I'm not amping to watch any of his other films. Especially 2001. I'll save that until...well, I don't know. One day.

    I think it's funny that the sci-fi month was the shortest. I've always thought that sci-fi films were always really long...but I think that's just because I don't like them very much.

    Anyway, I'm looking forward to the next set of stats!

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  2. lol, Stevee... you have no idea how far that 2001 argument went. It went beyond just those comments and got pretty bad. Glad you found some entertainment with it, though.

    Orange and Shining are my two favorite Kubricks... but I can't blame you for not wanting to check out his others. But if you can get through Tree of Life or Melancholia, you can easily deal with 2001. Just think of 2001 as Tree of Life done WAY before its time.

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  3. Nick, this is a really impressive group of movies. I need to go back to the early part of the year and check out your 60/60 posts. I really want to see the Chinatown review (a movie I really like) and to see the 2001 arguments. Looking forward to the series next year.

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  4. Love the stats. I also love some of the movies you watched this year--there are a couple that I envy you the first watch of because they're so good.

    What makes me the happiest, though, is that if memory serves, my favorite movie ever made your top 5.

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  5. Dan: lol, the craziest part of the 2001 argument didn't even happen in the comments. But you can go right ahead.

    Steve: It's quite possible!

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  6. Whoa...there was more?! Golly. Are you guys still friends now? Haha.

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  7. Lol, I'd love to see more about these infamous 2001 arguments as well. Sounds entertaining!

    Seriously, an impressive list, as mentioned. Still find it odd that you didn't like Chinatown (not that you didn't love it, per se) and that you even watched Carlito's Way. :P

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