As a self-declared film buff, I am occasionally embarrassed by all of the movie viewing experiences I have never attempted. I’ve never made it out to a midnight movie. I’ve never gone theater hopping to watch multiple movies at multiple cinemas in a single day. I’ve never gone to a convention to watch cult classics with their obscure filmmakers and stars in attendance. Recently I have been able to scratch a few items of my “movie lover’s must do” list, and I would like to share my insights with you.
First I have to give some public thanks to my two brothers for teaming up to give me a gift subscription to Netflix. I never was fiend for renting movies. Part of that is I tend to forget when I’ve rented a movie or get distracted so I either don’t watch them or fail to return them on time. Partly, I am just a cinema snob and I sometimes resent having to watch classic movies shrunk down to fit on my TV screen. Mostly though, I just find it difficult to give up the time and hand the money over to my logo video store conglomerate. The problem with avoiding video rentals is that there are many, many fabulous movies that any true cineaste is obliged to see that were released before I was born and the revival house is dead in America. So, if I want to fill in the gaps in my knowledge of film history I have to make the occasional effort.
Now I realize the next paragraph is going to sound like a sales pitch, but you have to trust that I am sincere in everything I am about to say. Anyone who reads this blog must know its too far under anyone’s radar for anyone to bribe me to plug their product or service. I just want to present the reasons why I believe Netflix is a must for the modern movie lover.
First being able to make unlimited rentals and not have to worry about what’s in stock is just a huge advantage over any video store. The “no due dates” selling point doesn’t do much for me, because the longer you take to watch movies the fewer rentals you can squeeze into a given time frame. So I try to make the trade-off for quantity rather than flexibility. The immense catalogue is perfect for anyone who, like me, has a bunch of cinema history to catch up on, and let’s be honest we all do. Plus, it is great for catching up on recent releases you couldn’t watch in theaters. This is a growing phenomenon that I am resenting with increasing intensity as the Hollywood studies insist on doing one of two stupid things with almost every movie worth seeing. 1) The release them during a “season” such as “summer blockbuster season” or “Oscar contender season” which means there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to watch all the quality, entertaining films at the cineplex. If the studio doesn’t get a movie lost in the crowd it strands it in limited release in art house theaters in select cities only, so just a lucky few ever get to see them. So I find great utility in using Netflix as a resource for catching up on film history. Also, I have a great time coming up with my own revival series, where I pick a bunch of related films and watch them in a row. At the moment I am in the middle of watching all of the forgotten Disney animated features from the 1980’s. There are several solid family films in that group, like The Black Cauldron, The Great Mouse Detective and Oliver and Company, that are often overlooked between the revered classics, such as Snow White and Pinnochio, and there string of blockbuster at the turn of the millennium, including Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. Other movie clusters I’ve looked at include the Monty Python movies, Martin Scorsese’s non-gangster movies, classic Japanese samurai movies, going back and matching Oscar contenders head to head, the possibilities are only limited by your imagination. I definitely believe Netflix is one of the best entertainment values for any true lover of film.
Perhaps surpassing my enthrallment with Netflix was my recent thrill at finally attending a film festival. While the recent Escapism Film Festival in Durham, North Carolina is far from the spectacle of Cannes, it is still a convergence of multiple movies, deeply passionate fans, and filmmakers who are thrilled to finally get a chance to interact with their audience. This festival focused mostly on small time or revival pictures almost exclusively of the horror or science fiction genres. In the middle of a busy weekend I could only sacrifice a few hours to this delightful cinematic experience, but is was absolutely satisfying none the less. Some friends and I had a great time watching a little under-the-radar horror/comedy movie called Black Sheep. So rarely do I go into a movie theater with no expectations for a film that it was liberating to watch a movie without knowing the best scenes in advance because of the omnipresent trailer and marketing blitz (*ahem* NBeeC TV Juniors *ahem*) or to have all the plot twists spoiled by the internet buzz. Then my wife and I indulged in a little nostalgia with a revival screening of TRON a film a know mostly from foggy childhood memories. While the special effects today seem hopelessly dated, I was still awed by having the chance to see it on the full scale screen and not boxed into my TV by video. When you see a movie like that one that mostly exists as fragments that your failing memory and imagination have warped in the years, in a full blown theater showing it feels like someone has made a movie out of your dreams. I know that film festivals are generally thought of as snooty, artsy affairs, and that most film fans will never get a chance to go to the big name fests, like Telluride or Sundance, but if you get the chance to go to even a one theater, three-day, local talent showcase, type of event. I urge you if you really do love the movies you owe it to yourself and the gods of good cinema to patronize these film festivals. They are well worth it.
So that’s it from me. Two recommendations. I may come back to give some bite sized movie reviews or to give a rundown of what trailers are intriguing me. For now though I’ll just let my movie blogging stop with two items on your “movie lovers must do” list that everyone should scratch-off.
