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Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 9 21:23

OK, I based who sends to who based on geographical locations. Not that it really matters when sending things but figured it was as good as a way as any to pick.

If we are going to do a package every other month... then I say we skip December and that leaves us with only 5 packages a year.

November 2012 should be the month that we decide if we are going to continue in 2013. If we want to keep it every other month or feel comfortable enough to go to monthly.

This... way... in 2013 first package can start in January and if only doing every other month.... will give us 6 packages.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 13 1:42

Ha, I thought the December 2012(???) was cuz, you know, the Mayan thing.

Anyway, this sounds great!

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 14 16:22

The setup sounds great, after all the packages have gone around the horn once, then we can decide how we want to proceed - if we make it a monthly thing, then I would probably suggest decreasing the number of movies from 5 to 4 to save on postage.

As I said, my initial thought for the 5 movies to send out were 5 Clint Eastwood movies :

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Bridges of Madison County
Unforgiven
In The Line of Fire
The Dirty Harry four pack of movies

but if that is to much Clint I have some ideas for possible substitutions

Quick Change (A Bill Murray movie I love that I noticed nobody else has seen)

Empire of the Sun (One of my favorite Spielberg movies I also notice nobody has seen)

Trading Places (Was thinking about including it since it shows off Philadelphia so well, on top off being a great movie - Eddie Murphy back when he was funny)

Crimson Tide( my favorite Denzel Washington movie)

I have noticed their are a number of 80's movies that not everybody has seen, so I would be happy to help get you caught up - so let me know which movies you are interested in.

Phillydude

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 14 18:04

@philly I think if you take out the four pack and substitute "Empire of The Sun" that would be cool. I believe that Xanadon't and I were both sort of on a Spielberg protest for a little while.

I think the only thing that is keeping me at this moment is making sure I watched all the extras on "Clean Shaven" before it needs to leave home and if "Enter The Void" makes the whole package way too... pretentious and depressing.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 14 18:05

Oh, and worth repeating what I wrote on the side...

OK, sorry to those people who aren't part of this group. Normally, I wouldn't make this list public (I don't even bother making most of my film diaries public) but it is the only way for the other members to see if a comment has been made on the list.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 0:35

**Had to edit this a few times as I thought more about it...sorry haha.**

I'm up for all the movies you mentioned, phillydude. I haven't seen any of those films. And you can always do an 80s or Philly package next time around, since if we all watch the films 2 per month from each package we'll be done with them in September at the latest (earlier if some films have been seen already by someone, unless we're all committed to watching the films regardless of whether we've already seen them). So we'll all need to plan one more package for the rest of the year.

Also to jaytoast, I haven't seen The Secret in Their Eyes. :P

If I figured it out correctly, then in September we'd watch the last film from each package, plus one from the next. That means the 2nd packages will each get one viewing by years' end if we skip December (which I'm fine with...the holidays throw everything off). So it looks like we'll be carrying this over into next year, which is fine by me.

All right, off to finally decide which films I'm putting together for my package. jaytoast I'll send you a message about those shortly to add to the list.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 1:45

Ah, but wait, I'm forgetting something. How about this for an idea...

After all the packages have gone around & been sent back to their owners, what if each owner watches the films he sent out at the same rate of 2 per month (so one for August, 2 for Sept., etc.)? Then we could re-watch the films we sent out after having seen each person's feedback & give our thoughts in our respective journals in response to the feedback we've received. Thus potentially looking at the films in another way or seeing things we missed but someone else picked up on. That would stretch the project out longer.

And if that idea is cool with everyone, then I say we take a break in October for our horror focus as well. That way the project runs through November & leaves December as a break. Thus we can all put off worrying about a 2nd package until next year.

And perhaps when we focus on horror we can all agree on a pair of films we'll all definitely watch, just in keeping with our interactive spirit. :)

All right, I need sleep...just had to drop back by & leave this while thinking about it lest it keep me awake longer.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 3:26

So we'll all need to plan one more package for the rest of the year.

Okay, so I'm afraid I'm already a bit confused. My initial impression was that we were all sending out 5 of our own packages per year, one every two months if you cut-out January (obviously) and December. And that each package would make its rounds thru the other three members over the course of those TWO months. (Er, so let's see... if everyone does a 5-film package, that makes 15 movies per 2 months. A 4-film package would be 12 per 2 months.)

But possibly that was never the plan, as it now sounds as though we're each assembling one package in February and sending it off. Then EACH member has a 2 month window in which to watch those 5 movies before forwarding it to the next member. Is that the case?

Ha, I swear I'll be really good at all of this once I'm clear on the logistics.

Anyway, haven't seen anything mentioned so far that I would positively object to watching. I'm under-schooled on Eastwood and could lift my Speilberg boycott long enough to watch Empire of the Sun, a film my sister actually recommended I see not all that long ago.

And jaytoast, I'll leave the decision about Enter the Void up to you, but you know that I need a kick in the ass when it comes to watching that one...

Any other ideas mentioned I'll hold off on weighing in on until I'm familiar with the basics ;)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 9:38

@Xanadon't - I thought we were each doing a 5 film package, and if we do 2 films from each per month, then each package would be held onto for 2 1/2 months before moving onward. So if we start in February, we'd watch 2 films in Feb., 2 in March, and 1 in April before sending it off, with the idea that when the new package arrives we watch 1 from it in April, then 2 in May, etc.

So we start with 4 packages of 5 films (one package from each of us) to rotate among us. I don't see the need to pass along new packages before the originals make their way back to their owners. Make sense?

I'm not sure why jaytoast thought we had to do 5 packages.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 10:42

Thanks for explaining that giraffe, I was a little confused too - so when I get Xanadont's package, I watch 2 of the movies in February, 2 in March and
1 in April and then the second movie for April will be the first movie from your package. My 5 movies will go to jaytoast in February, you in April, Xanadon't in June and back to me in August - do I have that right?

I like the idea of watching our own 5 movies again after reading everyone's comments. Then the horrorfest is for October and in November we discuss how we will continue in 2013 - either making it monthly or sticking with the two month system.
It makes sense to skip over the holidays and start fresh in January again.

I think I settled on the 5 I will be sending -

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
Unforgiven
In The Line Of Fire
Empire Of The Sun
Quick Change

And I like the idea of putting together an 80's package for next time - looking forward to getting started :)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 10:56

so when I get Xanadont's package, I watch 2 of the movies in February, 2 in March and
1 in April and then the second movie for April will be the first movie from your package. My 5 movies will go to jaytoast in February, you in April, Xanadon't in June and back to me in August - do I have that right?"

Exactly. Looking forward to your films! Mine should be added here soon I think. :)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 15:26

OK, I was so beyond brain dead tired when I started reading the posts last night that I figured I would wait until I had some sleep. Now, I'll waiting for the second cup of coffee to start kicking in...

2 1/2 months before moving onward

I thought we would just keep the packages for two months before moving onwards. The 1/2 is going to kill my brain.

I was only including a fifth 'extra' film because I figured that there would be at least one film from each package that someone from the group has already seen.

Since the timing works that we should be getting our first package sent back to us in August. Perhaps that is the date that we can decide on if we want to switch to four a month?

Even then it wouldn't be quite monthly...
Proposal...
August our second package of four movies goes out...

August - Send Four Out
September - Forward
October - Skip for Horrorfest
November - Forward
December - Skip for Christmas
Jan - Package Returned to owner

Any'who... that is just a thought. I still need to work out what I'm going to send. Xanadon't has seen the films that I was planning on sending.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 15:46

The 1/2 is going to kill my brain.

I tend to agree.

I should have a 5-pack put together by this time tomorrow. Ooo, I'm excited!

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 16:01

Oh, and are Blu rays in or out?

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 16:05

Out for me... sorry :(
I have been trying to figure out how I'm going to introduce Blu Ray into my life. It might happen this year but it isn't very high on my list right now.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 16:19

Hey, no worries! That's actually the least of my difficulties in putting together a 5-film package of stuff you haven't already seen :) You may end up with one film you've already seen, but looks like you're running into the same difficulty with me. I certainly don't mind a rewatch here and there if you don't.

Oh, and have you seen Aronofsky's Pi? Looks like you've watched it, but haven't rated it.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 16:27

I actually watched "Pi" in the theater when it came out but my memories is so fuzzy about the film I figured I needed to re-watch the film. I remember who I went to see the film with and what they had to say about the film but... that is about all.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 16:36

Okay, perfect then!

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 17:01

I don't have Blue Ray yet either -
I have been putting it off because I already replaced my VCR tapes with DVDs, and don't really want to replace everything again - but that seems to be the direction movies are headed so I probably will buy one eventually - does Blu Ray require a HD Television?

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 18:52

I thought we would just keep the packages for two months before moving onwards. The 1/2 is going to kill my brain.

I was only including a fifth 'extra' film because I figured that there would be at least one film from each package that someone from the group has already seen.

OK, cool. That's fine by me. And I'm also OK with deciding on the next package once the first ones are on their way back (or perhaps even better deciding on them shortly BEFORE we send the packages back).

Looks like Xanadon't is the only one of us with Blu-ray then. Always good to know I'm not the lone hold-out. ;)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 20:14

Yep, so we will all need to plan on one more package for the year to be sent in August. I'll leave the months to forward up to you guys to decide.

Is everyone fine with the movies I have listed for them so far?

My package is pretty much 'set' even if it does have two movies Xanadon't has seen but just think... now you can watch the bonus features! Ha!

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 21:11

Okay, well based on what the majority of you haven't seen, it turns out that my film-package has taken on something of a B & W theme. So, we've got:

Who's That Knocking at My Door?
Notorious (Hitch)
Pi
Roman Holiday
Lady Vengeance (This is a color film, but includes a bonus "fade to white" version if anyone's interested)

I feel like this is more or less "set", though it appears the giraffe didn't much care for Lady Vengeance. Sorry man... if you object I could replace it with something else entirely different.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 23 22:07

Your B&W them works perfectly for me Xanadon't -
I will be watching the 31 days of Oscar next month, so B&W movies will fit right in - I went with sort of an actors theme - three have Clint and two have John Malkovich - I thought about Crimson Tide for the 5th movie to make 2 Gene Hackmans, but decided on Quick Change instead for a little comic relief :)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 24 14:39

Looking good!

@Xanadon't - No worries on Lady Vengeance...either I'll re-watch it to see if I like it more now or I can skip it.

And as far as my films go, Black Snake Moan & Young @ Heart have a common theme of music; Shaolin Soccer & Kung Fu Hustle both came from the same director (Stephen Chow); and Versus is a zombie/samurai/gangster movie which COULD fit in with Stephen Chow's films & I think complements jaytoast's package theme also.

So we should send these off next week, yes?

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 24 16:26

Start sending next week sounds good. I might get mine off before Friday... my need to score some 'food' that isn't corn dogs and gummy worms might put me near a post office. I'll post the ETA if that happens just so you have a heads up.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 24 18:59

I will mail my movies off on Monday so they should be assured of arriving no later than Friday of next week and jaytoast, I will let you know the ETA the post office gives me.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 25 18:36

Cool, in that case I'll plan on getting to the post office no later than Monday. Will drop back by with an ETA when I have it. :)

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 26 11:45

OK, well sent my package off. ETA next Thursday... yep Ground Hogs Day and yes sent it the least expensive way. To send 5 dvd cost about two bucks. I guess there is a discount if it is media. Ah... the connection with Library Services benefits us all or something.

Posted: 1 year, 4 months ago at Jan 26 14:35

Yep, I'm shooting for Monday too!

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Jan 31 22:14

@jaytoast - Your package has been received. :)

And I already told Xanadon't, but mine has been sent (yesterday) & is slated for delivery to him on Feb. 2nd.

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it...going forward shall we all refer to our project as "Movies via Post" on our monthly lists? I want to be sure so that when I start watching these I can title the section appropriately. ;)

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Jan 31 22:30

Yay! I'm glad it got to you all right. Sorry, I sent it ghetto class it was a rather rough day. I updated the notes with the ETA's.

I think "Movies via Post" sounds better then "Packages by Mail" the constant use of the term "package" seems illicit. The most common abbreviation of MvP, would be "Most Valuable Player". So, even abbreviated I think it works.

Welcome to "Things I have thought *way* too much about" hope you enjoyed your visit LOL ;)

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Jan 31 23:19

@jaytoast - Right on. Had you asked for an alternative suggestion, I would've said "Movie Exchange Program" heh. I'm good with "Movies via Post" though...was just wondering.

All right off to watch something....

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 0:59

I like the sound of The Movie Exchange, that has a nice ring to it - we could call it Netflix, but that name has already been taken - maybe Mailflix :)

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 1:20

@Philly ROFL... I'm fine with "Movie Exchange Program". Maybe I can come up with some interesting UNICEF type logo. Ah... our poor neglected movies being cared for by other homes.

Looks like Mr X might have the last word on this one.

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 13:48

OK, I changed the name to "Movie Exchange Program" and now to try and map out my movie viewing for the month. Cheers :)

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 15:59

@ Xanadon't - your movies arrived today,
you certainly packed your movies better than I packed mine, but at least now I know what to do for the next leg of their journey.

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 17:37

@ the giraffe- Received your movies today! And thanks for the NIN bonus gift! I'd forgotten all about that, so happy surprise!

Way to go gang! Look at the diligence- all 4 of us on the ball!

Movie Exchange Program sounds just fine to me. It's probably better than talking about each others packages all month ;)

I've been trying to think of a cinematic variation of chain-letter, or pen-pal, or shipping and handling, or something, but I'm drawing a big fat blank.

Okay, well I plan on diving right in with one title later tonight, but maybe don't hold me to it.

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 22:03

I'm fine with "Movie Exchange Program". Maybe I can come up with some interesting UNICEF type logo. Ah... our poor neglected movies being cared for by other homes.

Hahahahahahaha :D Yes, do that!

Glad to know everyone's movies reached their destinations safely. Looking forward to digging into these myself, though I may wait until next week to do so.

@Xanadon't - You're welcome! I'm sure you'll enjoy that, and was thankful for the opportunity to finally give that to you. And indeed I think it's best we not spend the rest of the month/year talking about each other's packages haha.

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 1 23:28

LOL about the Unicef box logo - our poor movies must think we have abandoned them. I am looking forward to starting to watch the movies - I will probably start this weekend, if not sooner, and
watch one every 10 days after that - Can't wait to
see Notorious - Nothing like classic Hitchcock :)

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 5 20:03

I posted the Movie Exchange Program section of my movie log - Instead of a Super Bowl Sunday, I had a Movie Exchange Sunday - Notorious was terrific,
it was a great way to wrap up the weekend.

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 5 20:34

Posted: 1 year, 3 months ago at Feb 5 20:36

Ha! No... I fixed it... no more "Pink Package Plot"... yay!

Posted: 1 year, 2 months ago at Mar 25 2:25

Phase 1 complete - all of Xanadon't's movies are watched, packed and ready to be shipped to jaytoast on Monday - they were fun to watch and now I'm looking forward to the arrival of The Giraffe's movies :)

Posted: 1 year, 2 months ago at Mar 25 20:29

I am about ready to send off my movies as well. I had hoped to watch more films this month but things are a little rough around here right now and any 'personal free time' seems almost fantastical.

So, I should be sending my films off on Monday and then updating my journal entry.

Posted: 1 year, 2 months ago at Mar 26 1:42

As I think I've already let you guys know, I've got one of jaytoast's films left to watch (Enter the Void). My intention is to get it watched Monday night so I can send the films off on Tuesday, or failing that Tuesday night to send off Wednesday. I will be sure to drop back by here & say for sure once they're shipped off.

Now I'm off to sleep....

Posted: 1 year, 2 months ago at Mar 26 2:46

You're all doing better than I am. I've still got one to watch before shipping the giraffe's movies off to phillydude. And I'd like to say it'll be watched soon, but it's looking like Wednesday night watch/Thursday ship at the earliest. I'll check back after I've dropped em in the mail.

Posted: 1 year, 2 months ago at Mar 27 2:32

Wow, do you realize how hard it is to be a full time drama queen? Thankfully there is no glitter or a glue gun in my apartment. Pretty sure that owning such items would put me on some kind of watch list and my neighborhood would have to be notified.

ANY'WHO... If it isn't that big of a deal for Mr Giraffe. Would it be a problem to send the movies on the 3rd and that way you would get them by the weekend? Might give you a head start on the dollars trilogy ;)

And yes... my mental impairment regarding making people editors of a list has been cured and you should ALL be editors of this list now.

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Mar 27 17:51

Just for the sake of appearances I'll reply here too. Yes, that's OK. I do indeed plan on watching the Dollars Trilogy next month at the rate of one film per week, so as long as the films arrive by the 3rd week in April it's cool. ;)

And just so this comment isn't entirely repetitive (since I replied to jaytoast via message), I see where I can edit the list now. So yes, that worked!

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Mar 28 20:07

jaytoast's films are now en route to Xanadon't. I edited the info above to reflect that. No idea what the ETA is, but last time it got there in a couple days so I'd guess 3/30.

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Mar 31 5:51

Oops, almost forgot- sent the giraffe's movie off to you, phillydude! ETA Monday.

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Mar 31 11:08

Thanks, Xanadon't - I will be keeping an eye out for them :)

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 2 15:59

the giraffe's movies are now safe and sound at my house :)

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 4 19:09

Rain, hail, break fluid spewing from the truck... the universe really didn't want me out of the house today. However, the movies have been sent to the giraffe and should arrive on Friday. I'll be more curious to hear if the cookies held up during the trip. I'm glad half of them are out of the house... I pretty much made myself sick eating cookies all day long. Meh but I have made worse dietary choices ;)

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 5 1:46

Glad you managed to overcome your obstacles to get the movies sent off to me, though with all that I would have understood if you'd waited too. I'll stop by to let you know they got here & what condition the cookies arrived in. :D

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 6 14:43

phillydude's DVDs are now in my possession, sitting atop my collection. As for the cookies, I see only one that broke...otherwise we've determined they are damn tasty & will each do our part in ensuring their swift consumption. ;)

p.s.--Excellent choice dude, snickerdoodles are my favorite.

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 8 15:22

Okay, well back from vacation and to the drudgery of "real" life. Among the little annoyances I've encountered since my return is the troublesome fact that the person who was supposedly stopping by the house to check on the cat everyday doesn't seem to have been by as frequently as we thought we all agreed. So... I'm afraid that among the mail waiting for me on the dining room table was something that once resembled a package. Apparently it sat out in the rain for some spell, because it was all wet and torn, and yes, there is some water damage to the DVD Cover-jackets. Damnit. It actually pains me, jaytoast, to see a Criterion Collection DVD edition looking a little like it just stepped out of the shower. None of them are too bad, I suppose, but Clean, Shaven looks to have gotten the worst of it... I'm sorry :(

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 8 15:44

That is horrible... mainly for your cat. The Clean, Shaven dvd had already looked like it got ran over by a car. Which is the only reason I found it so cheap. So, I wouldn't stress too much.

I hope you had a great vacation... I was just starting to miss you ;)

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 9 0:32

@Xanadon't - Yeah, when I got the Clean, Shaven DVD a few plastic pieces of the package fell off...since the package looked fine I figured it wasn't in the best condition before it was sent off (which jaytoast seems to have confirmed). Glad to know they arrived & you got them though. Was mildly concerned when I knew you'd left & you hadn't said you received it yet. Was hoping maybe they showed up the morning before you left & you simply didn't have a chance to drop by here.

And that reminds me of one of the times we left town for a few days last year...our neighbor was supposed to check on our cat while we were gone & when we came back there was no sign he'd ever been by. Water bowl was empty, litter box full...good times. Guess who has never been asked to check on anything at our house since? ;)

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 9 2:15

Okay, well that does provide me a bit more peace of mind. And yes, I dare say we had a spectacular vacation! San Juan, Puerto Rico is a lovely and vibrant place- so much so that despite the persistent urge to see new places for the first time, it would be extremely difficult to not return again if given the opportunity.

Ha, yes you see we normally have someone that's terrific about looking after things anytime we travel. But she recently underwent a medical procedure, and we didn't want to put her up to the task this time around. Doesn't sound like our substitute cat-checker-onner was as grossly negligent as yours, (holy shit, seriously? Water bowl low with food particles and whatnot floating around in it isn't very impressive, but empty?! That's pretty damn distressing) but all evidence points to a borderline failing grade. Which sucks, cuz we always like to express our gratitude with some kind of cool gift/gesture but...well I'm not exactly inspired to run out and purchase any restaurant gift cards or spa packages.

Posted: 1 year, 1 month ago at Apr 9 15:33

this is awesome! :O

Posted: 1 year ago at Apr 27 12:43

While August is far away. I figured I would post two proposed films for the next round. I'm pretty sure none of you have seen "No Man's Land" or "The Rapture"... and this way can save anyone the trouble of renting the films if they know what is coming.

Any problems with these picks? Ah, and ya... they have nothing in common with each other.

Posted: 1 year ago at Apr 27 18:12

I haven't seen either, and will make sure I don't rent them between now and August - for the next round I was thinking of sending a 80's Jeff Bridges double feature Against All Odds and Jagged Edge - and I thought of including a horror movie for the horrorfest - would you be interested in seeing Psycho II?

Posted: 1 year ago at Apr 27 18:55

That's 5 films I haven't seen, so no problems here with any of them. For my 2 films I've decided on Bellflower and Black Dynamite, and if everyone wants to do one horror film I'll figure out which one to include. I'm good either way.

Posted: 1 year ago at Apr 28 6:08

Haven't seen any of titles mentioned above, so I'm good to go. WAAAY past my bedtime at the moment, but I'll look and see what I want to send out sometime over the weekend.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 18:21

Well of the films in my collection the one that I'm most surprised none of you have seen is 25th Hour so I think that's a definite. Unless of course there are objections, in which case please speak up because there are a number of other options. The others that stand out most to me that it looks as though nobody has seen are:

Art School Confidential (good, relatively obscure compared to some films on the list)
Broken Embraces (newer Almodovar)
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (near essential viewing in terms of its cast- Liz Taylor, Paul Newman)
Inland Empire (Lynch- haven't yet watched myself, daunting proposition)
The Life Aquatic (Wes Anderson)
The Man Who Wasn't There (B&W Coen Brothers)
Miracle (good hockey flick)
Rendition
Super
Talk to Her (was my introduction to Almodovar)
Thumbsucker
Tennis, Anyone? (Good, but there are better films in the list- included mostly because you're not likely to come across it any-old-where)
Win, Win

I've got a few I'm leaning toward but figure all of you should exercise the power to veto one or more films from the list. Fire away.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 18:34

@phillydude I actually have seen both those films but never rated them. I wouldn't mind watching "Jagged Edge" again (good thriller)... "Against All Odds" I think I still have the soundtrack running through my head so I would prefer to not re-watch that film but nothing I'm going to complain to my Senator about ;)

@Xanadon't Almost everything you listed is in my queue so I would be grateful for any clearing of queue space. Except for "Tennis, Anyone?" which I have never heard of before and will now have to hunt it down on IMDb.

@Everyone... OK, so I was the shmuck who brought this up on the list when it could have been done via email... but I have been thinking if we are still toying with the idea of adding a horror film. We might as well. The fact that it being October or not hardly seems to prevent any of us from watching a horror film ;)

So, just a quick thought on the 'yet undecided third film' ;)

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 18:48

Ha, well i'm inclined to send Martyr's since both the giraffe and jaytoast claim to "want to watch" it. So... phillydude is allowed to hate me afterward, but that's it ;)

And really most everything else "Horror" in my collection fall into one of two camps: "Stuff You've Already Seen" and "Crap".

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 19:03

Ooo... none of you have seen "The Haunting" (1963). Yes, scared the piss out of me when I watched it and even after multiple viewings remains my favorite.

@Xanadon't The fecal content of a film has never been an automatic disqualification for a film to take up residency in my queue LOL

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 21:29

Haha! Well I don't want to give anyone the wrong idea, so I'll clarify that fecal matter doesn't come into play with Martyrs. But oh, don't worry- there's still plenty there to shock and amuse.

Awesome- I very nearly rented The Haunting yesterday. Now I'm glad I didn't!

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 22:33

Yes please to both Martyrs and The Haunting! And for my part I'll throw in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde so you can all see the 1931 version, with the bonus of also watching the 1941 version if you like since it's a double feature DVD. I haven't watched the 1941 version yet myself & may do so before I send it out. Heh.

@Xanadon't - Nothing in your list I'd outright vote down, though I'll offer for your consideration that I have The Man Who Wasn't There in my IQ & the one time I got my hands on a copy of Life Aquatic it wouldn't play past the first 25 minutes or so & I've never bothered to try it again. Wes Anderson seems very hit or miss with me.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 1 23:33

@jaytoast - I haven't seen The Haunting but it is on my list of movies I want to see, so by all means include it. Thanks for letting me know that you have seen Against All Odds and Jagged Edge - I will select two other movies - I love the sound track to Against All Odds - I think it is what first turned me on to Phil Collins.

@Xanadon't - The Martyrs is fine for the horror selection - I haven't heard of it before, but when it comes to movies I will try anything once :) of the movies you listed the only one I have seen is Miracle, I didn't like it that much because I watched the real thing in 1980, so there wasn't much mystery in the movie for me.

@the giraffe - love the idea of the Dr. Jekyll double feature - I am especially interested in the one with Spencer Tracy - and I am steal leaning toward Psycho II as my horror selection.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 2 12:22

Dr. Jeckyll and Psycho II are both films I've wanted to watch. Bueno!

Think I'll be sending out 25th Hour, Talk to Her, and Martyrs. And no, not much of anything in common except that all 3 are films that I responded strongly toward in one way or another.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:08

I am kicking around some possibilities for my other two movies to go along with Psycho II:

Gandhi
Sophie's Choice
(I am surprised nobody has those two marked as watched, so they are the front runners at the moment, especially since it is their 30th anniversaries this year)

Some other possibilities

The Way We Were
Same Time Next Year
Trading Places
Coming to America
Crimson Tide
Terms Of Endearment
The Right Stuff
A Soldier's Story
Murphy's Romance

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:11

@phillydude - Nothing there I'm opposed to & definitely nothing I've seen yet. So whatever you choose to go with, I'm cool with it. :)

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:12

I'm all for finally catching up with the 30th anniversary titles. Been meaning to tackle Gandhi for long enough now. And have heard enough about Sophie's Choice that I probably ought to just watch it finally.

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:13

Bam. 42 seconds apart! What's up the giraffe? Hope you had a good friday evening!

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:15

Hahaha. Was about to sign off & head for bed when I saw your comment. Had a good evening indeed & hope you did as well. :)

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:16

Sleep well. Cheers!

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 2:32

Ok, so unless jaytoast has seen them, my two movies to go along with Psycho II will be Gandhi and Sophie's Choice - Ack - I can't believe I am still up - I'm still on an Avengers high - time for bed :)

Posted: 1 year ago at May 5 18:15

The list has now been updated with everyone's 2nd round of films. :)

Posted: 1 year ago at May 9 14:37

@phillydude Ah, see now you have me... "Gandhi" and "Sophie's Choice" are films that I haven't seen and still feel a little guilty for not watching.

@the giraffe Thanks for updating the list. Yep, back from the beach but now I think I need a few days to recover.

Posted: 12 months ago at May 26 15:09

@jaytoast - the giraffe's movies are now packed up and ready to be shipped out to you on Tuesday -
I will let you know on the ETA.

Posted: 12 months ago at May 26 15:18

Cool, I doubt my films will be out until Friday. Next week is looking to be a rather unpleasant adventure.

Posted: 12 months ago at May 26 15:41

It'll be closer to Friday for me as well. Wow, May is flying by fast for me!

Posted: 12 months ago at May 26 18:47

I'll ship off what I have no later than June 1st. Hoping to get my last film watched this weekend since I'm off work for once, but we'll see.

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at May 31 16:45

phillydude's movies have been shipped to Xanadon't as of today. Expected delivery date is June 6th.

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at May 31 16:57

Yay, and your movies arrived safe and sound from phillydude. I noted that on the list :)

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at May 31 17:01

Excellent, I will be eager to receive them on Wednesday then. I only just now finished with jaytoast's films (procrastination got the better of me this month) but should get them to the post-office tomorrow. I'll drop by again to give you an ETA phillydude.

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at May 31 17:05

Glad I'm not the only one with procrastination issues. Yep, I'll be hitting the post-office tomorrow as well and should have my ETA. Sadly... no cookies this time :(

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at Jun 1 0:11

@jaytoast - No worries on the lack of cookies. We've got some now thanks to a party we had over the weekend...one of our good friends dropped off a few dozen, some of which were eaten & only a handful of which got sent home with anyone. Still a few left in the box heh.

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at Jun 1 17:39

@phillydude- jaytoast's movies are set to arrive on Monday.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Posted: 11 months, 4 weeks ago at Jun 1 18:04

Thanks Xanadon't - I will keep an eye out for them - and I'm glad the giraffe's movies arrived safely :)

Posted: 11 months, 3 weeks ago at Jun 4 14:59

jaytoast's movies arrived today safe and sound which I have noted on the list :)

Posted: 11 months, 3 weeks ago at Jun 4 15:35

And I got movies in my mailbox today too. :)

Posted: 11 months, 3 weeks ago at Jun 6 16:22

Movies showed up today! -as noted above.

Posted: 10 months ago at Jul 27 2:26

Okay, so. Big Festival Weekend coming up for me which will mean ridiculous hours at work dealing with lots of drunk sunburnt rednecks. Whoo-hoo. And then I leave first thing Monday morning for Minneapolis. This means I'll be returning phillydude's movies and sending out my August package whenever I get the chance- likely Friday afternoon.

But yeah, I'll jump back on here with an ETA when I know more...

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Posted: 10 months ago at Jul 27 9:51

@Xanadon't - I recently saw something about that festival...a few bands I love are playing it, but definitely not enough artists on the bill that I'd book a flight out for it heh. But perhaps in the future I should keep an eye out for their lineups in case it'd give me an excuse to hang out in NC for a little while. ;)

I've got a busy weekend ahead too. Was hoping to get my last film watched last night but it didn't work out. Odds are I'll send the package off on Wednesday, unless by some strange magic I get it watched before Monday. But then again if you're leaving town then Wednesday may be best anyway.

Posted: 10 months ago at Jul 27 10:10

Damn, it's August already? - where is the Summer going - I am so backed up on my movie watching, but I will try to get the last of jaytoast's movies watched this weekend and mail them off with my second round movies early next week - Tuesday at the latest

Posted: 10 months ago at Jul 27 18:36

I would say that I have it pretty easy. I just have to be in Portland in August but then there is finding clean cloths, shaving, learning to suppress my social tourettes.

Really didn't get as much watch this month as I had hoped but still this month should wrap up nicely.

Posted: 10 months ago at Jul 28 3:01

@phillydude- look to get some mail on Monday!

Posted: 9 months, 4 weeks ago at Jul 30 15:51

Yay, my movies are home!

Xanadon't, I look forward to watching your second round movies.
jaytoast, my 2nd package is all ready to be shipped out tomorrow as long as you are around.

Posted: 9 months, 4 weeks ago at Jul 30 19:58

Gah, sorry... I had company this weekend and am just now recovering. I forget how much energy small children can have, it was like a hyper-active bomb went off. Ah, but yes... I am around. I have a few Listal Projects that need tending to that will keep me busy but not visibly active. So, not sure when I'll be getting to updating my diary for the month :P

Posted: 9 months, 3 weeks ago at Aug 1 19:27

@Xanadon't - Movies shipped your way...should arrive on Friday. :)

Posted: 9 months, 3 weeks ago at Aug 4 14:40

@the giraffe- Thanks, received my movies and yours this afternoon.

And like jaytoast, the beginnings of my movie journal aren't even on the horizon yet...

Posted: 9 months, 3 weeks ago at Aug 6 19:41

Offical Update August 6th So, until further notice do *not* send me anything through the mail. Phillydude and my films are officially MIA, with the post office saying that the the package was signed for... then the next saying that there was never any signature. I at last got them to admit that the package was left with no signature... so *ya* on to the next faze of the inquiry :(

I think there might still be a few dvds from the 'not so official exchange program' floating out there if so... hold on to them. There is no point in sending them to me until this matter is resolved.

Posted: 9 months, 2 weeks ago at Aug 9 16:16

August 9th Update: So... confused and cranky. Had fun with the USPS at the national level. Then had some fun with USPS regional office. Then finally got a hold of the actual person investigating the case. They haven't talked to my mail carrier yet... so... yep... still in the dark. I am finding that I became a little bit more and more pissed off regarding conflicting information regarding what needs to be signed for, if the package was signed for and why they keep thinking *I* signed for something when in fact, I did not sign for anything. Well, if I don't develop split personalities by the end of this I'll be happy :P

Posted: 9 months, 2 weeks ago at Aug 10 7:36

I don't understand... they don't let just anybody drive their trucks. But they let just anybody take your packages? Oh sure, they get all bent out of shape if it's their shit. Man, I'd steal the keys and joyride one of those fuckers.

Posted: 9 months, 2 weeks ago at Aug 11 20:28

Note: There has been a change in contents of phillydude's movies. This is a replacement package for the one that is MIA. It should arrive to the giraffe on August 21st. Also, it does not contain, whiskey, cookies or fireworks.

I sent a message via google groups... not sure if anyone got the message. Hum, perhaps I'm just cursed this month. Given the option between being incompetent or cursed... I'm sticking with cursed.

Posted: 9 months, 1 week ago at Aug 20 19:52

The replacement package of DVDs from Amazon arrived today, one day ahead of schedule. :)

Posted: 9 months, 1 week ago at Aug 20 21:22

Thank you for replacing the package, jaytoast. I want to let you know that I already replaced the movies myself - so when the package gets to me I will send them on to you if you would like to keep all three movies, or divide them up between you, the giraffe and Xanadon't - whomever wants which movie, what every way works best for you - but I think you should have them back since you bought them and as a thank you for dealing with the stupid post office, I hope that you are able to move to a better situation soon. As for Xanadon't's movies, I plan to mail them to the giraffe on the Tuesday after Labor Day and giraffe, I am going to mail your movies back to you next Monday :)

Posted: 9 months, 1 week ago at Aug 20 22:54

I guess that it would be best to hold on to any movies until I'm in a new place. So, once the movies go around just hold on to them.

I was mildly under the impression that the post-office might deal with the insurance claim but I guess that gets forwarded to the "Snow Ball in Hell" department. I have yet to get a response from anyone.... about anything.

Posted: 9 months, 1 week ago at Aug 21 0:08

Whee more movies coming my way! Hmm...guess I should get started on some of the ones that are NOT mine haha. So I guess I'm off to watch whatever is shortest now before bed.

@jaytoast - Good to know that USPS continues to live up to its poor reputation. At the same time though it'd be better if they'd acknowledge your existence at least. Should phillydude, Xanadon't, and I start calling them incessantly on your behalf? ;)

Posted: 8 months, 3 weeks ago at Sep 3 10:21

Updated the list a bit. jaytoast's films are en route to Xanadon't as of Friday.

Posted: 8 months, 3 weeks ago at Sep 5 16:59

Ok, I mailed Xanadon't's movies off to the giraffe today, braving a cold and occasional downpours - Its been raining here the last three days, feel like I'm back in Portland - the package ETA is Friday, hopefully we can find a way to get the package safely to jaytoast at some point so he can watch the movies too.

Posted: 8 months, 2 weeks ago at Sep 7 23:24

Updated the list to reflect Xanadon't's movies arrived here today.

Posted: 8 months, 2 weeks ago at Sep 10 3:31

Holy shit, how come I thought I had until October to watch the giraffe's movies and then forward them? Okay, well I'm gonna try to get the remaining two titles watched and shipped within the next 36 hours. Sorry gang... head hasn't been in the game.

Posted: 8 months, 2 weeks ago at Sep 11 16:24

@phillydude- the giraffe's movies should arrive Friday or Saturday.

Posted: 8 months, 2 weeks ago at Sep 11 16:31

Cool! - I will be keeping an eye out for them :)

Posted: 8 months, 2 weeks ago at Sep 13 14:52

The Giraffe's movies arrived today safe and sound and I've updated the list.

Posted: 6 months, 3 weeks ago at Nov 1 18:36

October is officially over now. Sad. But on the upside I made it to the post office today & got phillydude's films shipped off to Xanadon't. Should arrive on Saturday (list has been updated).

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 14 15:47

@Xanadon't - I am waiting on jaytoast's movies, are you going to be mailing them soon?

@jaytoast - if you haven't moved by the holidays, it is possible that I could bring your movies out to Portland myself if you want, as I will be visiting my brother again for Christmas, and you could pick them up while I am there.

@ All - what is the plan going into 2013?

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 0:49

We definitely need to discuss what to do next year. Here's how I see it...

Option 1: We keep it going. This may entail finding one or two Listal members to participate for next year first, depending on whether jaytoast wants to bow out at this point (which would be totally understandable). Then of course we have to figure out the number of movies & whatnot after we know who's participating.

Option 2: We keep it going, but just not as an official ongoing project. I know we've all exchanged movies outside of those designated specifically for the project, and I think it's safe to say we've been enjoying doing so.

Option 3: Start a new project. This will require some thought & discussion as to what it might be. Perhaps instead of exchanging films we could watch certain films each month that are available for streaming online (preferably free or else cheap, just to make it easier on everyone...or via Netflix though not all of us use it at this point).

Option 4: Quit. Definitely not a choice I'd support though as I think overall this has been a lot of fun. ;)

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 2:01

@phillydude-- Oh my gosh, my apologies. I've been... bad at life lately. I won't be able to get them out on Thursday, but I should be able to get them sent off on Friday. Maybe I can find a little something to toss in with it to make up for my negligence.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 2:24

@ the giraffe/all--

Thanks to the giraffe for laying it out- I feel like you pretty much covered everything so far as options going forward. To be honest, right now I'm hesitant to commit to proceeding in the manner we have been for another year. This project has certainly been a good deal of fun, but over the last couple months I've been struggling a bit with it, whether it be sitting down with whichever movies, sending them in a timely fashion (as evident above) or just feeling like I'm into it and having a good time, rather than MEP just feeling at times like "one more thing". That's wear I'm at personally, and I don't know that my enthusiasm/engagement will change for the better (return to what it was) in the coming months.

That said, it is cool that we've all exchanged movies upon our own volition in certain instances and I'm not opposed to sending something someone's way if/when it comes to my attention that there's a desire/usefulness. Or receiving them now and then.

As for option 3, I think I'd be more suited to a streaming thing than the commitment of exchanging movies physically. I know that the giraffe was particularly good about rewatching his own movies after getting them back and newly equipped with all the other members' feedback. But I sucked at, big time. In a streaming scenario there are probably fewer limitations than operating from personal collections. And I imagine most often the movie would be new to everyone, which I think would be kind of cool.

I do have a Netflix instant account, buy I'm not opposed to relying upon other formats at a reasonable cost. (Most amazon instant watches, Vudu rentals, etc aren't any more expensive than postage.)

So yeah, I guess at this stage I'm leaning toward a sorta funky combination of options 2 & 3. But by all means, if you guys would rather keep things rocking the way it's been, certainly don't let my 2 cents sway you. If that's the case I'd certainly reconsider things before making a decision to stay fully on board or gracefully bow out. And even if I did step aside, you know I'd still be scoping out everyone's journal every month to see what's going on :)

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 8:31

I have had fun informally exchanging movies with the giraffe, and would enjoy doing the same with Xanadon't and jaytoast - so if everyone wants to move to a more informal system for next year, that is Ok with me, there would be less pressure as to getting the movies watched that way - I also like the streaming/Netflix idea - maybe each person picks a 'movie of the month' for everybody to watch - that would also be the easiest way to include more people, in any case I do hope we keep this going in some form in 2013 :)

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 12:42

Well, I'm messed up regarding watching any films until January. Work, apartment hunting, establishing two new doctors on top of trying to juggle (weasel my way out of) holiday plans... yay!

I still have one movie rented in October that I still haven't bothered to glance at and now I sort of wonder where it is under all the preparing to move/packing clutter. Hum...

I'll have to think about my Listal commitment and ponder some ideas.

I know most stream through Netflix or Amazon but have you checked MUBI out yet?

I guess the one thing that I would miss about the dvd's was watching films that were lesser known or forgotten. OK, well my brain is fried and I'm going to hobble to the store just for some fresh air.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 16:15

Sounds like streaming may be the way to go then. Never heard of MUBI until now, but I just looked at it & that could be cool. I didn't see a single thing on there that I'm familiar with, so it'd definitely fulfill the lesser known side of things. Also, I know I have movies bookmarked from Youtube which has a fair share of free movies available. They also charge for some movies & the prices are fairly reasonable from the look of it. So that's a possibility too. Or there's bmovies.com too. So we could either focus on one site or more than one & write down whichever ones we think would be worth watching & aim for films none of us have seen. Of course we have to figure out whether to continue with two per month or maybe just one at a time or whatever. Getting enough films to watch doesn't look like a problem though. Heh.

Could be kinda cool too if we could watch them around the same time somehow, though I know we've all got different schedules, commitments, and what have you. So maybe just stick with getting whichever film(s) watched each month.

And again, if anyone is interested in continuing to share films via the mail we can do that too, just maybe outside of the project. I've still got a stack of films sitting here that aren't part of our project to watch, and every month they get pushed aside for one reason or another. Hoping to get some of them worked in this month and/or next, but we'll see.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 15 18:35

Well, in a glimmer of hope I started a MUBI account. Yay, they take my card unlike Netflix. Depending on how things go I'll toss Blockbuster and focus on streaming more from MUBI, Amazon and YouTube. I think with the free and inexpensive services that are out there should be able to work some time of "To Watch List".

I would be more keen on trying to watch the films around the same time with (given my lapse) skipping a month not being a huge flaw in other member's viewing experience.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 16 16:39

@phillydude- Okay, got to the post office today, yay! jaytoast's movies are scheduled to arrive on Monday.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 17 0:21

Thanks Xanadon't - I will be keeping an eye out for them :)

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 17 2:47

I looked at MUBI (I also hadn't heard of it 'til now) and it's too much for my brain to handle at the moment. Looks pretty awesome though so maybe I'll poke around a bit more when I've got more time/resolve.

Posted: 6 months, 1 week ago at Nov 19 14:56

jaytoast's movies arrived safe and sound today and I have updated the list.

Posted: 6 months ago at Nov 25 15:46

Last night I watched the last of Xanadon't's films for the exchange program, so I'll be shipping those back to him this week. Once I do that I plan on avoiding the post office for the rest of the year, so any other films I have lying around here won't get sent back to their homes until next year. Just giving everyone a heads up on that.

I'll start digging around for online movies this week for next year. Would y'all like me to make a list for us to submit suggestions & then vote on which films we want to do? Or maybe one list for us to come up with ideas & then a public list for everyone (meaning all of Listal, if anyone else wants to participate) to vote on our picks? Just an idea I'm kicking around in my head. Let me know.

Off now to enjoy what's left of my Sunday before work...

Posted: 6 months ago at Nov 25 23:51

Thanks for the link to the free yahoo movies, I found some good ones there and once I figured out how to get around the ads it was good quality, I will be switching back to Netflix streaming next month and I have Amazon, there is also VUDU which has a lot of $2 movies, which is the same price as having a redbox movie for two nights, I looked at MUBI briefly and will check it out more thoroughly later. I hope we can also keep the mailing DVDs going on at least a casual basis too, as I have enjoyed doing that and have plenty more movies I'd like to share - I think a list for us to kick around ideas for movies to watch each month is a good idea, that way we could see how accessible the movies are for us. I am going to slow down on buying movies next year (famous last words as I've become addicted to Amazon, way to easy to point and click) and want to dedicate a large portion of next year to watching my DVDs before I move on to blue ray, which looks to be inevitable since Blue Ray movies are often the same price as DVDs now.

Posted: 5 months, 2 weeks ago at Dec 8 17:22

OK, peeps. I just sent out a bulk email to the group or to one person in the group and two people I don't know but are in my email address contacts... LOL

I forgot to mention that if you respond to the email make sure you hit "Reply All"! Sending messages via the group turned out to be very unreliable. If you don't get an email from me... let me know.