Status Updates From 1001 Movies You Must See Be...

Today's going to be a terrible day for getting any reading done. A book like this, that can be read a few pages at a time, is marvellous for these times.

While the text is doing an adequate job of explaining why each entry is an essential film and worth watching, I feel like the images were chosen for the benefit of those who've already seen the film so they can nostalgically say, "Ah, I remember that!" This comes from comparing films I've seen and those I've not; for those I've not, the photos offer little context but those I have feel like the perfect images.

I'm not mad about any of the selections so far, and I'm not upset at the omissions either. There are obviously films I will never watch, or watch again, no matter their significance; Birth of a Nation doesn't need to be in my canon. I might hold my nose to watch a film because my fondness for a director outweighs my contempt for an actor (e.g. Stagecoach: John Ford good, John Wayne a-hole).

Still shocked to see how many of these movies are unavailable to stream, even to rent. If I had infinite funds I think I'd be on ebay looking for old VHS cassettes.

It continues to disgust me that so many older films that used to be on HBOMax, via the association with TCM, aren't there any longer. THANKS ZASLOV. The good news is that a lot of them have ended up on Tubi for free with commercials. But Tubi is owned by Rupert Murdoch, so that's icky too. My days using HBOMax have been numbered for a while, and I expect by summer I'll be subscribed to Criterion or MUBI.

I'm as surprised by the number of silent films I haven't seen as I am by the number I have. What's infuriating this the number of them that are difficult to track down. They're in public domain! They're not lost media! A lesser annoyance is the number of them that have been needlessly colorized. Gah. Black and white film is legit. Thhpppt!

My wife and I got this for Christmas, because we both love film, love discovering things we haven't seen, and hate decision fatigue. While I'll read the book in traditional fashion, I plan to pick one or two streaming services per month, pick 10 films from this book that are on those services per month, and watch them. I won't be bitching about the selections like some reviewers.