Big project for 2010

Attention kids, 'cause here's the part where I outline my big project for 2010. As many of you know, I own a LOT of DVDs. Television shows, documentaries, Three Stooges shorts, but by far the largest section of my DVD collection is movies. I started buying them in high school, as I felt the transition away from VHS (remember those?) was upon us. Plus, I had started working at a certain bookstore chain that had a DVD section, and through my employee discount, started funneling my paychecks right back into the system. They were my first (and hopefully) only addiction.

Flash forward a dozen or so years, and I've amassed quite a few. I'm a bit afraid to count, but I'd guess over 300 feature films and 50 or so seasons of television. Some of these discs have not been played in years. So, in the spirit of the new decade, and furthering my sense of internal change, I've decided to embark on a bold journey. One that will test my patience, my resilience, and if I make it through to the end, may take a piece of my soul.

Between now and December 31st, 2010, I will watch and review every single movie I own.

Those with even a casual association with math and a decent guess at the current date can see that averages to about a movie a day, possibly more once I've counted them all up. Which means some days I'll have to watch several movies in a single day. I've come up with some ground rules, to which I will adhere to keep this whole mad plan moving as smoothly as possible:

1) I will watch the films in alphabetical order, staring with numerals, then from A-Z.

2) Upon hitting the first film in a series (say, 1989's BATMAN), I will watch the rest of the films in the series in chronological order. This means that there will be some movies I skip (say, 1992's ARMY OF DARKNESS) in order to get to the first movie in the series (that would be 1981's EVIL DEAD). This will be done mostly to keep my sanity, as I have no idea what would happen if I watched BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR and BRIDE OF RE-ANIMATOR before RE-ANIMATIOR. Universe-ending paradoxes, I'm sure.

3) There will be no television shows or mini-series. If I have any hope of getting through this by years' end, I have to concentrate on feature films only. Made-for-tv movies (of which I own a couple) WILL be included, for reasons that will become clear later. And as much as it pains me not to be watching all of the MST3K that I own, that's a whole other project. Maybe 2011.

4) When there are multiple versions of the film (as in the three different versions of 1978's DAWN OF THE DEAD), I will leave it to my discretion which one I will watch, both, or all. I'm already thinking of watching the director's cut of 1986's ALIENS, because we all know that one's better.

5) Some of the movies I'll watch by myself, some with others, wholly depending on my mood and the willingness of my friends to participate. Note to friends: I will buy beer. Keep that in mind.

6) After watching, I will write up my own personal review of the movie. These reviews won't be as formal and academic as Ebert's or Maltin's. I will share with you, the reader, my thoughts on the film, why I chose to own it, what memories I associate with it, and what this film says about me. In doing so, I hope to learn a bit about myself, how I've changed from when I started this collection that has travelled with me for all of my adult life. What do the films I choose to own say about me? We'll find out together.

So I hope that you'll join me on this somewhat daunting undertaking. I'll be constructing a separate blog to host it all, and once I figure out the name for this project I'll let you know. Sure, it's not as inherently cool as a trip around the world, or as substantial as reading about a couple falling in love (is that a blog? I don't know, I'm not their demo), but I think it's something worth doing.

Plus I get to sit on my ass and watch movies. Who doesn't like doing that?