50 Weeks/50 Movies: The Wrap-Up.

Well, I made it through another project year! Yesterday I posted my wrap-up for the Video Game Movies project, and now it's time to wrap-up the 50/50 List.

Fun Fact #1: Between the 60/60 and the 50/50, I have now posted a review every single Wednesday for the last 2 years and 2 months.

Of course last year, I posted up a whole ton of stats, such as number of hours watched and longest month, etc. But I don't think this year's project was even close to being as ambitious as last year's with all the Extras I had added in. So I'm not bothering with that this year. I will, however, rank months and films in some Top and Bottom lists!

But first, I wanted to share a few minor stats with you. Let's look at decades of films I watched. I saw one from the 20s, two from the 30s, three from the 40s, two from the 50s, three from the 60s, five from the 70s, fourteen from the 80s, twelve from the 90s, and seven from the 2000s. If I were to pick a favorite decade from these films only... well, if I wanted perfect track record, I'd say 20s, as that was only Sherlock Jr., which I loved. But that wouldn't really be a fair choice. Between the three highest counts, I'd say 80s and 90s are pretty even. I bought two from the 80s and one from the 90s, though eventually two from the 90s (I just haven't gotten around to the other one yet). If I'm forced to choose, I'll say 80s, but just barely.

And how many ratings did I dish out of each type?

Royale with Cheese - 6
A Keanu 'Whoa' - 20 (though I think my opinion on at least one film might have gone up since the initial rating)
I Am McLovin - 12
Stop Saying OK! OK. - 6
Feed Me, Seymour - 2
The Zed Word - 2
She's Gone From Suck to Blow - 0
A Hot Mess - 1
WTF - 1

Fun Fact #2: I ended the 60/60 List last year with the Jack Nicholson classic, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. This year, I ended the 50/50 List with Infernal Affairs, which is, of course, the film that inspired The Departed... co-starring Jack Nicholson.

But let's get to the part y'all really want to see... the lists.

BOTTOM 10 FILMS

Based on ratings and personal memory, I ranked my 10 least favorite films of the project. Though keep in mind, there were very few I actually considered poor films. Because to me, being boring or having me not care a thing about the movie or its characters are far worse crimes to me than the film being poorly made. I watch films for entertainment, so these films had the largest portions of least entertainment for me.

10) Lone Wolf McQuade

This is the one I hate putting on here, because by every account it should entertain the heck out of me. And Jason is going to murder me for its inclusion here. However, outside of a few scenes here and there (and those scenes in and of themselves are rather glorious), this film didn't really do too much for me. Sorry, Jason.

9) My Favorite Year

I just didn't find it funny. I thought Peter O'Toole was fantastic in the film, but besides me realizing that it's just Get Him to the Greek, there was nothing surprising about this to me.

8) Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers

It had some really good ideas... but there was just some really poor execution. Amazing ending, though. I'll give it that much.

7) Black Orpheus

I honestly don't remember much about this film except chickens and masks. I think.

6) Out of Africa

It was a very beautiful-looking film, but I felt it was overly long and just not that interesting. And as I said, boredom is the worst thing a film can give somebody.

5) Rushmore

I am just not a Wes Anderson fan. Though I will say, I did kinda like Moonrise Kingdom. But I couldn't get into this one.

4) Friday the 13th - Part 3

The big argument between Joel and Jason on whether this or Part VI was the better film was infinitely more interesting than this film. Part VI all the way.

3) The Invisible Man

I realize this is the 3rd film from Joel's Month to appear on this list. Um... sorry, Joel. On the upside, I can promise this will be the last one to appear. I just didn't find it all that interesting, particularly since it's a story we've all seen done a hundred times since this version. The effects in this film were good, though.

2) The Red Shoes

There was a big dance number about halfway through, I believe, that was fantastic. Otherwise, I didn't care much about the film. Couldn't get into it.

1) Richard III

Despite its meta aspects, this was boorrrrrriiinnngggg. I couldn't get into the story, the characters, or the language of it. Therefore, I was just begging for it to end most of the time.

(Note: The last 3 films are prime examples of what I mean by they aren't bad films, but I just didn't care for them.)

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS

Please keep in mind that these aren't necessarily the films I think are the best; these are the films I was entertained by the most or just feel were my personal favorites throughout the project.

10) The Pusher Trilogy

I know it's kind of a cheat, but when you put them all together, they form one pretty dang solid experience. Let's just say it's a three-way tie.

9) Naked

This is one film I think I've grown to appreciate more the longer I think about it. And I haven't been able to stop thinking about it all year since I first watched it back in February. David Thewlis gives one of the best performances of all time in this film... in my humble opinion, anyway.

8) City Lights

While some gags go on just slightly too long, it's hard not to love this charming Chaplin film and some of the genius therein.

7) Peeping Tom

I'm with Steve Honeywell on this... I like this much better than Psycho. 

6) Hausu

Talk about a trippy movie. I definitely want to see this again just to experience how bizarre this movie gets. You've not experienced weird until you've seen Hausu.

5) Gymkata

And you've not experienced bad until you've seen Gymkata. I originally had this ranked much higher, but I realized I honestly couldn't justify putting it above some of the following films. It's damn entertaining, but it's almost blasphemous to put something so terribly made over the next couple films, no matter how entertained I was. (And I do now own this movie, by the way.)

4) Double Indemnity

One of my favorite full-length feature classics. I loved every minute of this movie and how it seemed to absolutely perfect the noir elements.

3) Sherlock Jr.

But it couldn't win me out over the brilliantly meta Sherlock Jr. While not a full-length feature, this is one that if you hate it, you just need to stop watching movies.

2) Grosse Pointe Blank

I was so surprised by how much I loved this movie. I don't yet own a copy, but I will in the near future, hopefully. While it's nothing special, especially in comparison to the last couple films, it's just damn entertaining. And it has a fantastic soundtrack, to boot.

1) Big Trouble in Little China

The second I watched it for Nolahn's Month, I went out and bought a copy immediately. And I've watched it a couple times since then, as well. I just hate that I hadn't seen this movie when I was younger, as I would have adored the heck out of it. Thank you, Nolahn, for making me watch this.

RANKED MONTHS

And now it's finally time. I'm sure you've been wondering... whose months did I like more? Where did you make the list? I decided to remove myself from the count since I only had 2 films anyway. Plus, I think this should be more about your lists that you gave me instead. After some careful calculating with your scored films along with how I feel now, I've ranked each month from least favorite to favorite in terms of the films I had to watch and how much I liked them. So here you go...

11) Joel

Again, sorry, Joel. But our tastes just don't mesh, it seems (though let's be honest, your taste doesn't mesh with most people's :P). Open Your Eyes was definitely a high point, though.

10) Travis

This month gave me the amazing Naked and the weirdly entertaining Hausu. But unfortunately, those weren't enough to counter the boredom endured by The Red Shoes and Black Orpheus. Videodrome was good, though I don't really remember much now except for the stomach vagina.

9) Jason

Sorry, buddy. You had some fun B-Movies in there, but while I overall enjoyed most of the films, the scores (and my feelings) weren't really all that high across the board. I will take away from this, though, that Snake Plissken is a total badass and Re-Animator is totally fun.

8) Rachel

Despite having my least favorite film of the project in this month, I overall enjoyed myself. I loved Much Ado. Titus was very strange, yet fascinating. And Scotland, PA was just damn fun.

7) Steve

I'm pretty sure it was Double Indemnity that got you super kudos here. Though Body Snatchers was good, the 70s version is better. I liked Devil's Backbone, but liked Pan's Labyrinth better. Peter O'Toole is the reason to see My Favorite Year... but I liked the overall comedy in Get Him to the Greek better (but not by much... didn't really love that film, either).

6) Dylan

The only reason you weren't higher on this list was Rushmore. The second half of Road House is fantastic. Trainspotting is rather respectable, though dark. And Point Break is... well... Point Break.

5) Jess

It was High Fidelity and Grosse Pointe Blank that shot you up into the Top 5. We already know my thoughts on Out of Africa, and Star Trek: First Contact was fun, though it did take me a while to get into it. But those Cusack films... great stuff. And I'm sad I hadn't seen them before now.

4) Kai

This was one of the most solid months. I don't think I outright disliked any of the films this month, although I didn't really care much for the majority of Pusher II. I did love how it ended, though. The rest of the films were great crime drama thrillers... and we all know we don't get enough of those.

3) Dan

The comedy and charm of City Lights. The dialogue of His Girl Friday. The smooth coolness a la Drive of Le Samourai. And... a western. Though a western with both John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart. This was easily the classiest month of the year.

2) Nolahn

It was hard not putting you at number one, brother. Between having my favorite film of the project along with the brilliant badness that is Gymkata, it was hard not to put you at the top. Not to mention the hilarity of Three Amigos. It may have been Ruthless People that brought you down a bit. I remember liking it, but I don't remember much else about it, and it was the lowest rated of your month. But a fantastic month nonetheless. And I'll say... you were barely beaten out. And I mean by mere fractions.

1) James

But I had to give the top spot to James for having consistently brilliant films. Sherlock Jr. is amazingly meta and charming. Peeping Tom made me rethink Hitchcock. We Own the Night came out of nowhere, but had one of the best car chase sequences I have ever seen on film. I don't even like many westerns, but I think my words were something along the lines of "If I really liked the genre, Once Upon a Time in the West would probably be my favorite." And then... Suspiria. Well, you can't win them all. But even that film had that crazy freakin' soundtrack. Solid month of some generally solid movies.

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And that will about do it! That's all I have for you in this wrap-up. I hope everyone enjoyed the project this year and enjoyed me looking over your assigned movies. I know I had fun doing it, too. Unlike the video game series, I actually often looked forward to the next movie I had to watch for the project. It's been a good year!