Midweek Mumbling – The New Years Resolutions of a Film Lover.

I promise to not become engaged in any type of marathon!
The more I see of people doing that thing, the more convinced to I get that it’s an efficient way of killing your film watching passion, turning it from a pleasure into a job. Spontaneity is the way to go and I’ll do my best to stick to it.

Great set of resolutions for the next year Scot, hopefully you will do them all! I agree on Looking Back and stop fighting 3D, I must do the same!

maybe you should ask Kate Winslet to read you books
I myself adore spoilers, I couldn’t live without them, I must have them, always, ever, forever, ’tis my spying thing

Good luck with those, Scott.
I think reading film textbooks counts as worthwhile reading, though I have only read 3 books of any kind this year, which is shameful.
But one of those books was House Of Leaves – It’s possibly the best book I’ve ever read… really imaginative, unsettling and addictive. The kind of thing that permanently lodges itself in your brain. Give it a go. Also check out Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk – fantastic collection of connected short stories. One of the stories made me feel physically sick and people have passed out at readings, so best not read just after dinner. I desperately want to make the film version…
My main resolution is to make a feature film next year, which is what I’m now prepping.

Nice one.

I hardly read, but these holidays I’m reading the Game of Thrones series. It’s sooo good. Merry new year sir!

Good luck with the resolution Scott

I should make this kind of resolution too. Your last one makes me smile…I guess you will never answer the question I ask to everyone who read my second last post…how many book have you read this year?

I plan to write about movies I vote not to watch next year. I have so many plans for next year

New Year’s is upon us. I can’t believe this year flew by. I’m not sure if you saw the post on the Blind Spot series I’m taking part in, but it’s a great way to schedule out some films that are must see.

The reason you keep putting off the films you vowed never to see is because you really don’t want to see them. Seeing films is at it’s core supposed to be something enjoyable. I’m not sure I could get myself to watch any of the films you mentioned either.

I would also like to read more. I got a Kindle for my anniversary recently and I’m sure that would make the GF happy. I’m currently reading Tiny Fey’s ‘Bossypaints’. It’s a short read but really funny. I’d also like to look into the books by John Le Carre (Tinker,Tailor). I love a good mystery.

Welcome back matey, I’ve missed you! Hope you had a nice Christmas break.

These are great resolutions, best of luck to you. I am so with you on #1, but thanks to Gregory Peck, I now have a whole new appreciation for classic films as well as past films I haven’t got around to that people have been recommending.

My dear hubby got me a Kindle for Christmas too, so I hope to read more as well next year. Fingers crossed

Definitely agree with 1 and 6 for myself. I think as film fans and critics the more we have seen and watched films from the older times the ultimately smarter we will be about the movies from our own time, which is basically what you said haha. I always think of Roger Ebert and Emmanuel Levy, two professionals who are some of the few that still review old films. And I figured “be more like Ebert” is not a bad resolution either

Great list. Agree with you on everything except… Although I enjoy 3D when I HAVE to watch it, I shall never give up fighting it till the glasses are removed and till the ticket prices are reduced and till the option of 2D runs simultaneously in all or most theaters.

And as for Sucker Punch, well law or no law, it was still more entertaining than Source Code

A great list Scott. All things that are worthy of being on your resolutions list!

I like Scott’s Law quite a bit!

On the 3D issue, I’m right there with you for a lot of films. In-home viewing would be better though. I don’t enjoy having to wear glasses over my glasses in the theaters when i go with others, because then i can’t see my friends during the film (a mixed bittersweet thing)!

oftentimes, it’s: put on the glasses and say goodbye to everybody (including your date) until after the movie. haha

I am in complete agreement about #5. If a trailer looks bad, then the film will probably be too.

Definitely be sure to look back more often this year. Some of the most rewarding experiences this year have been digging through the vault.

Nice resolutions! Especially the trailer one. I got a bit caught up with Sucker Punch, but at least I didn’t see it in cinemas!

My resolutions, so far, are to watch 300 new-to-me films (I tried to this year, but so far I’ve only watched 281, and I don’t think it’s possible for me to watch 19 films in the next 48 hours), watch all of the Star Wars movies, hopefully see all of Steven Spielberg’s movies and go to see The Dark Knight Rises on opening night. That’ll be it for now.

And yeah, I need to read more too! But I find reading so hard…I can read, but I just struggle to keep my attention on a book for too long!

A mighty set of resolutions you have there, Scott. Very commendable. Some thoughts for each:
1. You can never go wrong with this one.
2. “You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!” As I’ve mentioned to bloggers Ronan (Filmplicity) and Julian (Dirty With Class), I fear the inability to ‘unring the bell’ once I’ve watched something I truly wish I hadn’t . ‘Irreversible’ and ‘Antichrist’ remain on my never-to-see-athon.
3. The Internet now makes this a very hard thing to do.
4. The tech does have its place.
5. Being instinctual is not a bad thing.
6. Great endeavor, and one worth the effort. I recommend audiobooks — it’s what saved my reading once parenthood and work made elective reading that much harder to accomplish.

Good luck, my friend.

Some great new year’s resolution Scott. Many of those I should take heed as well. I’m very much guilty of overlooking older movies (although I have Kurosawa’s Hidden Fortress on tap tonight) and I certainly should be reading a lot more.

Haha good list of resolutions, I actually agree with most of these. But I’ll believe #2 when I see it.

Great compilation of things to do in the upcoming year.

I need to read more as well.

A resolution for myself … strive to be as prolific as Scott Lawlor.

Cool post, Scott. All the one syou listed sound like noble endeavors.

Book suggestions: High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (very funny and observant), Join Me by Danny Wallace (no book has ever made me laugh so much), House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski (mind-blowing and unlike anything I’ve read before or since), Revolutionary Road by RIchard Yates (worth it even if you’ve seen the film), IT by Stephen King (the only King novel I’ve found truly great as he’s not just there to tell a story but actually has something to say). And plenty more.

I don’t make resolutions myself, as I know I’d just be bummed out if for some reason I didn’t follow through on them.

Keep up the great work, mate!

What a nice resolutions, Scott. I totally agree with your number 1, I just started doing reviews for classic and I just saw Casablanca last week With these last months, I try to keep up with 2011 movies and forgot to watch non-new great movies, and I miss seeing them.
I too sometimes didn’t take much time seeing spoilers and on-set-photos, because not knowing sometimes is a plus. I agree to read more, I read some novels that have been made into a movie and they are great.

Great list! I was going to do my own list of these, but you beat me to the punch. There’s definitely some overlap. #’s 1 and 2, or variations of them, are both on my list. I’ve also got a handful of directors on my list, and a few other items.

It’s so easy to get swept up in the new releases or even the more recent work, and to forget that there’s a great big world of awesome movies from the 20th century to check out.

For a second I thought you meant you’d seen 1102011 films this year :p
Which would be quite a feat for even the most committed film fan. I need to pay closer attention. Maybe that should be one of my resolutions…

Giant well done on the uptick in professional journalism my dear – You’re one of the few people I can think of who deserves to get paid for it

Great list all round S. Except for one – I cannot accept the 3D thing. I say do exactly what your statement more directly relates to: become an aficionado on 3D DVD/BluRay for home cinema consumption and totally ignore the cinema releases unless the kids demand to go.

My argument goes, you being the voice of authority on home cinema excellence it makes sense to only comment on which production is designed best for home viewing. The cinema releases are still going to be plagued by issues of incorrect usage of projection bulbs, other errors generally applicable to certain cinemas and the ticket price is still an insult. Its not you being negative if you end up reviewing them at home. I on the other hand have been joking with Ant that I might start the ‘screwRemakes’ movement this year, which is blatantly negative and pouty!

I’ve still yet to start up the new blog [its in the resolutions along with MANY other things] but when I do I was planning on doing mini reviews of everything I’ve ever seen, and seeing alot of oldies as part of that – we could hit each other up for recomms if you fancy? I been doing Ealing Comedies at the mo…

Hoping you guys have a brilliant new year, this next 360 days is going to be awesome!

I’m with you on those resolutions Scott, I actually bought a 3D Blu-ray player and was thinking of getting a 3D projector but decided to wait till they fix all the kinks before buying one. I’m sure a year or two from now, all of the front end projectors will be cheaper and work much better.

Also, I’m going to try to not read too much about films I’m most looking forward to see next year, it’s going to be hard ignoring all the news on the internet.

Some great resolutions. Haven’t made any myself.

If you need any support for not looking at set photos etc, you can always come to me for advice!

Really don’t understand why you would watch movies you vowed to never watch

For Casablanca, I think it is being re-released, right?
We have rep theaters all over the place here and I need to do that more often myself. It is while watching the restored Vertigo on the big screen in college that I began to appreciate the film a greater deal.

GIVE IN TO 3D …. Kidding.I guess if properly done it could be alright, but frankly it makes my head hurt and added no value in films like Captain America or HP 7b.

Book resolutions are always admirable. For me it is the finsihing the book that I have to face – The Hobbit, Dragon Tattoo and countless others. I am so bad my reading of East of Eden spanned a couple of years!

You saw 110 2011 films this year? Holy FUCK! You definitely beef to see some older movies, my friend. Seriously.

Best of luck with these resolutions, my friend. I am right there with you on #6… I am ashamed at the lack of reading I have done lately. My problem is that I start so many books and then get distracted with something else halfway through! Not a good habit to have, haha.

Hi Scott, great resolutions, very encouraging to see that a great and prolific blogger like yourself also has some resolutions for the new year! Congratulations for a fantastic year of blogging. I hope 2012 is even more of success for FRC and that you nail every one of your resolutions for 2012! I particularly look forward to reading your vow-never-to-watch list.

Congrats on the Hit List, Scott!

I particularly like Scott’s Law, it makes you sounds a bit dangerous.

I’ve gotta start using the trailer rule as well! I’ve also noticed the pattern, but I still go against my instincts. Anyway, ‘Slaughterhouse 5′ is a great book! It’s so enjoyable and entertaining, and has Kurt Vonnegut’s hilarious wit all over it! Seriously, if you’re gonna read just one book this year, make it ‘Slaughterhouse 5′!

Hi, Scott and company:

Congratulations on being linked to IMDb!

I’ve been lucky to have read several books that were made into films.

Dog Soldiers by Robert Stone. Which became Who’ll Stop The Rain .
The Short Timers by Gus Hasford. Which became Full Metal Jacket
No Beast So Fierce by Ed Bunker. Which became Straight Time
Not to mention The Godfather and Kesey’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest

The books are usually better. Though nothing can beat a good book and your imagination.

Speaking of older films. I submitted a Guest Review of the 1947 Burt Lancaster prison film, Brute Force to Ruth at FlixChatter. Should be out this or next week.

I’m with you on the read more resolution. I’m aiming to read at least one a month – I’ve started with Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic!

I agree with most of these resolutions though I’m not sure about No 4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is being shot in 3D and I think it will be the turning point for me – if PJ and his crew can’t make me appreciate 3D then I don’t think anything will!

Another movie you should add to you’re vow-to-never-watch-athon (if you haven’t already seen it) is Man Bites Dog. It’s a faux French Horror Documentary and it made my skin crawl for weeks (ok, months) after watching it, but it is really an extraordinary film.

Scott,
About number 6. Reading more books. I am 100% with you on that one. Here’s a friendly suggestion – get some audio books from the library. I am listening to a history book on my daily commute which burns up about an hour of my time. I am listening to Washingtons Crossing, and traffic jams in Houston do not phase me one bit. The book is that good. DUH (Pulitzer Prize).

It’s hard to know where to begin with book recommendations (having no idea what books you’ve already read), but one suggestion springs immediately to mind: start reading books on which films you love were based. Since people so often say that “the book was better than the movie!”, you’re bound to enjoy the source material of beloved films, aren’t you?

I embarked on a reading project some years ago when I began taking public transportation to work in Chicago. As with my film-watching history, I had some large gaps in my literary experience, and I used my commute to fill some of those gaps. Some of the new favorite books I read during that time included “Fahrenheit 451,” “Catcher in the Rye,” and the works of Henry James.

Happy reading!

I like Scot’s Law, I certainly agree about Sucker Punch, I think the world was disappointed with that film!

Books: The Lord of the Rings, naturally. If you’ve read it before, read it again because it’s so good.
A Long Walk to Freedom; Nelson Mandela. Not short but an amazing account of his struggles against apartheid.
Touching the Void; Joe Simpson. An incredible true story of human fortitude after a climbing expedition in South America goes wrong.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Aron Ralston. Kind of film related, the true story behind 127 hours. Again amazing story of human fortitude.

Happy reading whatever you find.