Support NeoGAF

kinoki · Aug 2, 2015

donny2112 said:
Make our own rules, of course, but I thought that a TV show Season counting as 1 movie and 100-pages being the minimum for "books" was like a soft guideline. I've been doing that (read an e-Book < 100 pages and didn't count it in the # tally, so far, and counting Seasons of shows I haven't seen before as 1 movie) this year. Thought that was a generally accepted term. (Also rewatched old movies, since I do that for ones I like, and didn't count them.)

I usually have no problem hitting the 50 mark with movies seen, so I don't count them personally. Books however, while I've certainly sped up, is easily missable if I slack off. I tend to count any book that would be considered a piece of literature. I don't count pages. An 800 page novel or a 100 page novella still gets the same value on my final tally. That's me. The point, as everyone else notes, is that you're only competing with yourself.

Dandy Crocodile · Aug 2, 2015

July Update:

Dandy Crocodile - 31/50 books | 55/50 movies

New in July:
3 Books | 2 Movies

Books:
Landline - Rainbow Rowell - 4/5
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? - Mindy Kaling - 4/5
My Horizontal Life - Chelsea Handler - 1/5

Movies:
What We Do in the Shadows (2014) - 4/5
Walking on Sunshine (2014) - 3/5

January Update
February Update
March Update
April Update
May Update
June Update

Super slow month but I was studying in Europe this past month so it make sense. I really enjoyed the Kaling autobiography, though, and with Landline I've read all of Rowell's published works!

Wensih · Aug 2, 2015

kinoki said:
I usually have no problem hitting the 50 mark with movies seen, so I don't count them personally. Books however, while I've certainly sped up, is easily missable if I slack off. I tend to count any book that would be considered a piece of literature. I don't count pages. An 800 page novel or a 100 page novella still gets the same value on my final tally. That's me. The point, as everyone else notes, is that you're only competing with yourself.

Same with me. Anna Karenina and The Crying of Lot 49 will each be counted as one book, despite one being 864 pages and the other 150.

Ashes · Aug 3, 2015

choodi said:
The only rule that I think people should follow is that anything you list should be NEW. You should not have read or watched it before. The whole idea of the challenge is to expand your horizons with new stories. Anyone listing books or films that they have seen or read before is doing it wrong.

lol.

You're right.

But I'm a renegade.

And proud.

To be fair to my self. I've only done it a couple of times. And by re-reading I mean a proper reread. With all the supplementary books to help me along to 'get' the book as fully as possible. And I never count those supplementary books/articles/opinions/essays... etc

Wensih · Aug 3, 2015

choodi said:
The only rule that I think people should follow is that anything you list should be NEW. You should not have read or watched it before. The whole idea of the challenge is to expand your horizons with new stories. Anyone listing books or films that they have seen or read before is doing it wrong.

Ehhh... I don't know re-watching films or re-reading books can give new perspectives and insights on the work.

donny2112 · Aug 3, 2015

Minishdriveby said:
Ehhh... I don't know re-watching films or re-reading books can give new perspectives and insights on the work.

If re-reading books was an option, I'd read through the Star Trek: New Frontier series from beginning to end again. Haven't done that in several years, and the storylines are so worth reading again. The argument can be made to just read those in your time between new books, but if you're already pushing to get 50 books in a year, there's not really time to add another ~15 books on top of that, just because.

It's important to note that one of the goals of this challenge is to broaden your view by reading books you haven't read before and watching movies/series you haven't watched before. From that sense, allowing re-reads into the general tally could undercut that. A compromise may work, though, were you have to read 50 books and watch 50 movies with no more than half being re-reads/re-watches. That may satisfy all of that. Let's you spend time on good books/movies you already know you like and encourages broadening your views to read/watch at least 25 new books/movies in the year.

From the video game side, it allows replaying old games to count toward the tally, which is nice. One of the goals of it is to get us off our keisters and move from the "talking" seat and onto the "playing" seat + tackle some of the backlog. We get so caught up talking about video games that a lot on the gaming side have trouble sitting down to play through and finish actual video games.

Plus there have been beaucoups of studies showing that most video game owners don't finish their games, ever, which is concerning.

walkmetothelake · Aug 3, 2015

July update

Threads l 16/50 books l 112/50 films

Books:

Films:
94. The Craft (1996) - Andrew Fleming - ★★★½
95. Harakiri (1962) - Masaki Kobayashi - ★★★★½
96. Bound (1996) - Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski - ★★★★
97. Rabbit Hole (2010) - John Cameron Mitchell - ★★★★
98. Gerontophilia (2013) - Bruce La Bruce - ★★★
99. My Own Private Idaho (1991) - Gus Van Sant - ★★★
100. Disturbing Behavior (1998) - David Nutter - ★
101. Law of Desire (1987) - Pedro Almodóvar - ★★★½
102. Monster (2003) - Patty Jenkins - ★★★★
103. Shortbus (2006) - John Cameron Mitchell - ★★★★
104. Magic Mike XXL (2015) - Gregory Jacobs - ★★★
105. Gods and Monsters (1998) - Bill Condon - ★★★½
106. Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) - Elizabeth Banks - ★½
107. Mala Noche (1986) - Gus Van Sant - ★★★
108. All About My Mother (1999) - Pedro Almodóvar - ★★★★
109. Putty Hill (2010) - Matthew Porterfield - ★★★½
110. Charlotte Sometimes (2002) - Eric Byler - ★★
111. Vacation (2015) - John Francis Daley, Jonathan M. Goldstein - ★½
112. Synecdoche, New York (2008) - Charlie Kaufman - ★★★★

No books again. I'm going to try to at least finish one in August.

Wensih · Aug 4, 2015

donny2112 said:
If re-reading books was an option, I'd read through the Star Trek: New Frontier series from beginning to end again. Haven't done that in several years, and the storylines are so worth reading again. The argument can be made to just read those in your time between new books, but if you're already pushing to get 50 books in a year, there's not really time to add another ~15 books on top of that, just because.

It's important to note that one of the goals of this challenge is to broaden your view by reading books you haven't read before and watching movies/series you haven't watched before. From that sense, allowing re-reads into the general tally could undercut that. A compromise may work, though, were you have to read 50 books and watch 50 movies with no more than half being re-reads/re-watches. That may satisfy all of that. Let's you spend time on good books/movies you already know you like and encourages broadening your views to read/watch at least 25 new books/movies in the year.

From the video game side, it allows replaying old games to count toward the tally, which is nice. One of the goals of it is to get us off our keisters and move from the "talking" seat and onto the "playing" seat + tackle some of the backlog. We get so caught up talking about video games that a lot on the gaming side have trouble sitting down to play through and finish actual video games.

Plus there have been beaucoups of studies showing that most video game owners don't finish their games, ever, which is concerning.

Oh I definitely use this challenge to broaden my horizons and play new things. I'm just playing devil's advocate. I think it's worth while to revisit things you've experienced, especially if you experienced them a long time ago. But this year all the items on my lists have been new.

orthodoxy1095 · Aug 4, 2015

donny2112 said:
If re-reading books was an option, I'd read through the Star Trek: New Frontier series from beginning to end again. Haven't done that in several years, and the storylines are so worth reading again. The argument can be made to just read those in your time between new books, but if you're already pushing to get 50 books in a year, there's not really time to add another ~15 books on top of that, just because.

It's important to note that one of the goals of this challenge is to broaden your view by reading books you haven't read before and watching movies/series you haven't watched before. From that sense, allowing re-reads into the general tally could undercut that. A compromise may work, though, were you have to read 50 books and watch 50 movies with no more than half being re-reads/re-watches. That may satisfy all of that. Let's you spend time on good books/movies you already know you like and encourages broadening your views to read/watch at least 25 new books/movies in the year.

From the video game side, it allows replaying old games to count toward the tally, which is nice. One of the goals of it is to get us off our keisters and move from the "talking" seat and onto the "playing" seat + tackle some of the backlog. We get so caught up talking about video games that a lot on the gaming side have trouble sitting down to play through and finish actual video games.

Plus there have been beaucoups of studies showing that most video game owners don't finish their games, ever, which is concerning.

I know most people don't count rereads, but that last sentence is why I've counted a few of mine. If a book hasn't been read in the last decade, I'm counting it because at least it got me reading. My gaming backlog is terrible, but my book back catalog is even worse. My shelf is filled to the brim with books I've quit on or never stopped. Anything to get me into the "reading" mindset. Given that a decade old re-read would mean I last re-read the book at age 11, I'm not too concerned about it not adding something new to my life. If anything it adds something totally new with a new perspective. I think I've only actually ended up rereading one though anyways so ¯_(&#12484

_/¯

Ben Morales · Aug 4, 2015

My goodness. Just finished A Dark Lure by Loreth Anne White and it actually made me tear up. If you even have a fleeting interest in Suspense/Thrillers, you gotta check this out. I couldn't put the damn thing down.

Ashes · Aug 6, 2015

I think the cut off point for my list will be about six week... so you know... update if you haven't already..

GK86 · Aug 6, 2015

I know in the OP it says tv shows don't count, does that include TV documentary series?

Ashes · Aug 7, 2015

GK86 said:
I know in the OP it says tv shows don't count, does that include TV documentary series?

see above...

donny2112 · Aug 7, 2015

Speaking of personal splinter challenges for next year, I'm planning to do a 40/40/400 run of 40 books/40 movies/400 hours of gaming. And based on the discussion here, I think allowing a few re-reads would be good. Movies would be all new (allows Seasons as 1 movie or 90+ minute documentaries as 1 movie, though), but those are relatively easier, if you just take 2 hours to watch one. For books, I don't want to feel like I can't re-read a book I like because I'm so strapped for time to get through the new ones. Allowing 5-10 re-reads seems okay, though. 400 hours of gaming is because I'm finding myself actively avoiding long games I want to play because I'm behind on the gaming challenge. I'd rather play 20 games averaging 20 hours each than limit myself to 50 games of only 8 hours each to reach the goal. Both of those would reach a 400 hour goal, but only one of those would reach ~ the gaming goal.

I think that's much more achievable than 50 new books/50 new movies/50 games without feeling like all my free time has to be devoted to making those quotas. Having a goal is important to keep me on track, as I've rediscovered the last two years, but a 40/40/400 goal would seem to be more achievable without feeling constantly pressured by it. (^o^)

Ashes · Aug 8, 2015

I think that's an awesome idea. The fact that you're reading all those books is the main thing.

Having said that, if I were doing the thread, and I'm not going to, but if I were, I would not count you in the list. Fifty is a minimum. About a book/film a week.

But do feel free to be a maverick. Because those kind of peeps are the best peeps.

Wensih · Aug 9, 2015

I just finished The Corrections by Franzen. I really wish the rest of the book's scenarios were as well thought out as the last 100 pages. Franzen went for that contemporary hyper-sexual, anti-consumerist, individualistic, crassness that is all too common in authors like Chuck Palahniuk, albeit better prose, but the novel really resonated with me when there is interaction between family members, especially in the final Christmas scene and epilogue.

7 books down this year! I'm thinking of starting either:

Confederacy of Dunces (had started it 4 years ago but put it down during a hectic fall semester)
Autobiography of Red
The Crying of Lot 49

Apt101 · Aug 9, 2015

My August update:

Apt101 - 11/50 books | 35/50 films

I got sidetracked re-reading ASoIF: A Game of Thrones and wrapping up a very long audiobook. Working on two novels now: Go Set a Watchman (Harper Lee) and The Litigators (John Grisham). 'Watchman is a little boring but it's picking up. The Litigators is pretty good, but I have a soft spot for Grisham legal tales.

On the film front I've been burning through them. I was really impressed by Birdman. Entertained by The Sisterhood of Night and Transcendence - though both of these were a little on the shallow side. The Grand Budapest Hotel floored me.

Ashes · Aug 11, 2015

Ashes - 9/50 Books | 26/50 Films | 4/12 Seasons

True Detective was all over the place this season.

lastflowers · Aug 11, 2015

Ashes said:
Ashes - 9/50 Books | 26/50 Films | 4/12 Seasons

True Detective was all over the place this season.

no kidding. what a bizarre season. It's going to be a better show in retrospect than in actuality. When thinking upon season 2, we will all think of Stan and chubby kids going '...okay' in awkward situations. Hopefully we won't remember the god awful dialogue and QWOP-esque pacing.

Ashes · Aug 11, 2015

no kidding. what a bizarre season. It's going to be a better show in retrospect than in actuality. When thinking upon season 2, we will all think of Stan and chubby kids going '...okay' in awkward situations. Hopefully we won't remember the god awful dialogue and QWOP-esque pacing.

Agreed with pretty much all of that... except the bolded.

Week 33 numbers incoming.

lastflowers · Aug 11, 2015

I'd accept that response, haha.

Ashes · Aug 11, 2015

Code:

Name			Books
1. Piecake		62
2. Glaurungr		58
3. TestMonkey		58
4. Mumei		55
5. Narag		42
6. SleazyC		40
7. allegate		40
8. kinoki		37
9. tmarques		37
10. donny2112		36
11. Tragicomedy		36
12. Maklershed		34
13. Dandy Crocodile	31
14. Ben Morales		30
15. survivor		30
16. Jungleland		27
17. FUBAR McDangles	26
18. Ephidel		24
19. mu cephei		24
20. Saad		22
21. Choodi		16
22. Threads		16
23. Guamu		15
24. nacimento		11
25. Apt101		11
26. orthodoxy1095	10
27. Ashes		9
28. gaiages		8
29. Minishdriveby	6
30. [email=Zeitgeister	4][/email]
31. shem935		3
32. GK86		0
33. kamakazi5 		0

-------------------------
Top 33 Films
------

Code:

Name			Films
1. Ephidel		126
2. Threads		112
3. Glaurungr		111
4. GK86			81
5. Minishdriveby	76
6. FUBAR McDangles	68
7. kinoki		57
8. Dandy Crocodile	55
9. TestMonkey		54
10. tmarques		50
11. allegate		49
12. orthodoxy1095	46
13. donny2112		43
14. Narag		38
15. Saad		38
16. Apt101		35
17. [email=Zeitgeister		34][/email]
18. Maklershed		34
19. nacimento		31
20. Mumei		29
21. Jungleland		28
22. mu cephei		26
23. Ashes		26
24. shem935		23
25. gaiages		23
26. Ben Morales		23
27. Tragicomedy		22
28. Guamu		22
29. survivor		21
30. Choodi		20
31. SleazyC		8
32. Piecake		4
33. kamakazi5 		0

---
FAQ

Why am I too cool for this list? I dunno. Why are you? See thread title. Also post update.
What happened to the Champions league table you promised? Defo next time.
What happens to people who already surpassed fifty? Congrats! Go eat cake. Or candy. Celebrate. Then hit the gym.
Are you gonna do the next update? if so when? Probably at the end of the month.

kinoki · Aug 11, 2015

Who is that unidentified 33rd person?

Wensih · Aug 12, 2015

Watched Ex Machina. It was alright.

I thought there was a twist at the end or something, so I kept trying to figure out the twist. Turns out there's no twist, but an ending so cliche that the movie tells you throughout what is going to happen even as its happening.

Trey · Aug 15, 2015

I should probably get to those books...

Trey - books 8/50 | movies 50/50

Movies

Selma
Return to Paradise
Player's Club
Grand Budapest Hotel
Cast Away
Batman Forever
Dear White People
Birdman
Rain Man
Enemy of State
Kingsman
Starter for 10
Aliens
Aviator
Focus
Dallas Buyer's Club
Robocop (2014)
The Devil's Advocate
Hannibal
Under the Skin
Purge: Anarchy
Bounce
Children of Men
Ex Machina
Avengers: Age of Ultron
MAD MAX: Fury Road
Crank
Boyhood
Inside Out
Jurassic World
Beyond the Lights
Hot Fuzz
Boomerang
The Warriors
The Wood
The Counselor
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
Chasing Amy
Contact
Horrible Bosses 2
Straight Outta Compton
Whiplash
Wedding Ringer
Menace II Society
Seeking A Friend for the End of the World
Die Hard
The Perfect Guy
End of Evangelion
Annie
The Martian

Books

Ashes · Aug 17, 2015

Ashes - 9/50 Books | 27/50 Films | 4/12 Seasons

week 34.

Trying to find time to read novels. Really really behind.

walkmetothelake · Aug 18, 2015

Finished my first book (My Education) since May. Here's to making a bigger dent in the challenge/playing catch up.

orthodoxy1095 · Aug 18, 2015

Heyo, apologies for not sticking up the graph with last month's progress. I had it done, but I totally forgot while I was away traveling to some meetings.

Anyhow, here it is. 144 books and 266 movies consumed since I last updated.

cocopuffs · Aug 23, 2015

cocopuffs said:
cocopuffs - 0/50 Books | 20/50 Movies

19. Collateral (2004) - ★★★★★ - A hidden gem. The Cruise-missile had an amazing performance here as Vincent and Jamie Foxx was pretty good. Highlights include that nightclub scene, the scene where he kills those muggers, the whole scene in that jazz place and mr. terminator-ass-motherfucker at the end on the train. Visually and in terms of the soundtrack, Michael Mann did a great job as well. Definitely a film I would both wholly recommend and will definitely rewatch.

20. We're The Millers (2013) - ★★½ - It really wasn't that funny. Maybe it was because I was so bored that I was on my phone half the time missing the jokes but really the movie wasn't all that funny. And no disrespect to Jennifer Aniston or whatever but the whole I'm middle age and still sexy shtick isn't really working that well anymore. There were at least a few funny jokes here though, the guy the 'daughter' wanted to date, the family kissing scene and the "gay" Mexican police officer.

I'm also near the end of my first actual honest-to-goodness book this year, Leviathan Wakes. I really like it but seeing as how I only read books at night and I'm always busy the entire day, I have trouble finding the time to actually read it.

Apt101 · Aug 26, 2015

12/50, 37/50

Well I finished Go Set a Watchman (Harper Lee) but it took me a while to digest and reflect on it. At first I didn't care for much of it, but after scanning back through some passages I like it more.

It's not challenging, not by today's standards. But it has an interesting character who made me think: to get through to racists and bigots one must actually listen and engage them. It's not pretty, and it can feel unfair, but they'll never change if they're not challenged.

To Kill a Mockingbird is still a far, far superior book, and I can see why the publisher passed on this book all those decades ago. But it's still good in its own ways.

Ashes · Aug 26, 2015

Week 35.

Watched a random Turkish film and that newish Turing film. Imitation game.

Still reading three men in a boat or whatever it is called. Ten minutes here. Ten minutes there. Will definitely finish today, tonight or tomorrow.

Also read a children's book. Going to count it even if it is short. When I finish it. If ever. It's a very different experience. Especially since the book is written in the style of an 8 year old's speech. Grammatical 'errors' in tact and every thing.

Ben Morales · Aug 26, 2015

Halfway done with Stephen King's It. At the pace I'm going, I should be done in 3 days or so. I can't put it down. I love how King writes child characters. The Shining, Firestarter, etc. He just writes really charming kids in my opinion.

I never could finish the TV movie that was based on this book. I would always get bored and turn it off. Was thinking about giving it another shot after finishing the book, but the further I get, the more I realize there is no way in hell a lot of the stuff in this book made it into the TV movie.

This is a huge book though. The biggest I've read so far. And I thought Imajica was pretty meaty. But it's enjoyable and going by faster than I thought.

Christoff Yurievich · Aug 26, 2015

Ben Morales said:
Halfway done with Stephen King's It. At the pace I'm going, I should be done in 3 days or so. I can't put it down. I love how King writes child characters. The Shining, Firestarter, etc. He just writes really charming kids in my opinion.

I never could finish the TV movie that was based on this book. I would always get bored and turn it off. Was thinking about giving it another shot after finishing the book, but the further I get, the more I realize there is no way in hell a lot of the stuff in this book made it into the TV movie.

This is a huge book though. The biggest I've read so far. And I thought Imajica was pretty meaty. But it's enjoyable and going by faster than I thought.

A) Yeah, the kid-sex wasn't going to make it into a made for TV movie in the 80's.
B)

On March 12, 2009, Warner Bros. announced that a remake of Stephen King's novel had started. Dan Lin, Roy Lee and Doug Davison are set to produce. The screenplay is currently re-written by Dave Kajganich.[citation needed] On June 7, 2012, The Hollywood Reporter announced that the novel would be adapted into a two-part film, directed by Cary Fukunaga with David Kajganich and Chase Palmer as screenwriter; Jon Silk, David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith as producers and John Powers Middleton as executive producer.[8] The names and timeline will also be changed hinting that the remake will now take place in the mid-1980s and 2010s as opposed to the late-1950s and mid-1980s like in the novel and early 1960s and 1990s like in the original TV miniseries. The cast has not been announced yet. In March 2015 Cary Fukunaga, confirmed the start of the shooting for June 2015 in the New York area.[9] As of May 2015, Will Poulter was in negotiations to play Pennywise.[10] However, over Memorial Day weekend 2015 director Cary Fukunaga dropped out of the project due to "clashes" with the studio over his "artistic vision".[11]

On June 8, 2015, in an interview with Moviefone, Tim Curry who portrayed Pennywise in the miniseries gave his blessing to both the new film and his successor, Will Poulter, wishing him "good luck" stating that the role of Pennywise is a "wonderful part".

I did not know that Cary Fukunaga had dropped out, I have considerably less hope for it now.

Ben Morales · Aug 26, 2015

allegate said:
A) Yeah, the kid-sex wasn't going to make it into a made for TV movie in the 80's.
B) I did not know that Cary Fukunaga had dropped out, I have considerably less hope for it now.

Yes, I heard about Fukunaga dropping out the other day and was super disappointed. I wish they would have let him do his thing. It would have been fantastic! Maybe Frank Darabont will pick it up or something... But, yup, that took the wind right outta my sails for this project.

choodi · Aug 29, 2015

August update

Choodi - 19/50 books | 21/50 movies

Books

The Lies of Locke Lamora [audio book] - Scott Lynch (A)
The Sagan Diaries/Questions for a Soldier - John Scalzi (B)
In Cold Blood [audio book] - Truman Capote (A)

Movies

The Raid Redemption (A)

Everything i read or watched in July/August was fantastic.

Locke Lamora was such a breath of fresh air in the fantasy genre. Great characters, amazing setting. Some of the writing and storytelling was a little 'silly', but it was so easy to overlook its faults. I will definitely be continuing with the series.

I combined the Scalzi short story and novella into a single entry. I loved the way each one expanded the awesome universe he has created.

Not much i can say about In Cold Blood other than if you haven't read/listened to it, you should. Such great work.

The Raid was a great thrill ride and the best action movie i have seen in a long time. Even though i had seen Dredd, the similarities didn't bother me at all because The Raid was so much better.

kinoki · Aug 29, 2015

Another month, another post.

This month was very productive. Not only did I read a lot of books and watch a lot of movies I also managed to watch a lot of TV. Wet Hot American Summer - First Day of Camp, season two of The Wire, first two seasons of the Danish series Rita, season two of Silicon Valley, second season of True Detective and Sense8. Very productive indeed.

Will take some time writing small reviews for everything but I need to collect my thoughts on them so they'll come.

Next month will see me pass the 50/50 finish line!

kinoki - 48/50 books | 76/50 movies

Books

Disturbing the Peace (1975), Richard Yates - ★★★★ - Any folded story is a friend of mine. Yates continues to deconstruct family life and its relation to mental health. At times it feels more like an exercise than a pure work.
Aldrig Fucka Upp (2008), Jens Lapidus - ★½ - The second part in the Stockholm Noir-trilogy and damn did the quality drop noticably. This part is just stupid. Instead of focusing on what made the original good and interesting it doubled down on conspiracy theories and shoot-em-up action.
Cold Spring Harbor (1986), Richard Yates - ★★★½ -
In Search of Lost Time, Volume 5: The Prisoner (1923), Marcel Proust - ★★★★
The Old Man and the Sea (1952), Ernst Hemingway - ★★★★½
Egenmäktigt förfarande - en roman om kärlek (2013), Lena Andersson - ★★★
Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises (1926), Ernst Hemingway - ★★★
In Search of Lost Time, Volume 6: The Fugitive (1925), Marcel Proust - ★★★★
As I Lay Dying (1930), William Faulkner - ★★★★★ - The best book I've read so far this year. Really inspirational writing. I'm so impressed with the writing and the narrative structure that it's hard to talk about anything else.
Utan personligt ansvar (2014), Lena Andersson - ★★★½

Movies

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015, dir. Christopher McQuarrie) - ★★★½
A Most Wanted Man (2014, dir. Anton Corbijn) - ★★★★
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014, dir. Marc Webb) - ★★ - For what it's worth: it's an interesting movie. The movie is completly tone-deaf. This is Joel Schumacher territory, this it the Batman Begins of Spider-Man-movies. It's quite entertaining to watch. Like a train wreck. They really can't be going for what I think they're going for, right? Right?! If this is intentional then it's actually good, if it's not it's just mediocre.
Snabba Cash (2010, dir. Daniel Espinosa) - ★★½ - Way to take a good and entertaining book, keep the most shallow aspects of it, try and make it cooler and then fail completly at telling the real story in here. You can still see parts of the book between the filler scenes of the movie but mostly it's just crime-is-cool with some good film making on the side. It would have been nice if this had set out to be a Swedish Mean Streets.
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005, dir. George Clooney) - ★★★
Wet Hot American Summer (2001, dir. David Wain) - ★★★
Monsters (2010, dir. Gareth Edwards) - ★★★
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985, dir. George Miller, George Ogilvie) - ★★½
Zombieland (2009, dir. Ruben Fleischer) - ★★★
The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (2009, dir. Werner Herzog) - ★★★½
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962, dir. Robert Mulligan) - ★★★★ -
The Killing (1956, dir. Stanley Kubrick) - ★★★★ -
Safety Not Guaranteed (2012, dir. Colin Trevorrow) - ★★★ -
Conan the Barbarian (1982, dir. John Milius) - ★★★½ - The best kind of stupid fun. Arnold in the 80's.
Rosewater (2014, dir. Jon Stewart) - ★★★½ - This movie, atleast to me, is about Jon Stewart. I went into this movie expecting a movie made by a social commentator but got a movie from someone who understands exactly his place in culture and how to contribute to it. The subject matter is a perfect starting off point for his movie directing career. His next movie will be truely great.
Next (2007, dir. Lee Tamahori) - ★★½ - I'm a fan of anything PKD but this is hardly a PKD-flick. There's an original premise that's PKD but the end product is only a riff of that. Regardless you can feel the influence. Also, having Nick Cage in a movie that isn't bad is always a treat.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014, dir. Jonathan Liebesman) - ★★½ - Yes, it's stupid. It's very stupid. But it also gets a lot of things right. The story is absolute shit and there's probably not a single thing about it I can describe as positive. The turtles are fine though.
The Expendables 3 (2014, dir. Patrick Hughes) - ★★ - It's hard to recommend this as a movie. It's a guilty pleasure at best. It's almost like the actors were green screened in over stock footage of an action movie. The actors come in and read lines and collect their checks. The only one who seems to be having any fun is Mel Gibson who actually shows some acting chops. Wesley Snipes also has some good scenes. The rest is totally forgetable. Like it should be. The most entertaining of the three (as in the only one I haven't fallen asleep to).
Cracks (2009, dir. Jordan Scott) - ★★★½

I look at the list of movies I've seen this month and it occurs to me: I need to see more quality movies.

GK86 · Aug 30, 2015

Top 5 in movies? Aww shit. I have to catch up with the leaders.

Pau · Aug 30, 2015

Haven't even been updating my own count since I suck. But here's my update for August.

Pau - 41/50 Books | 18/50 Movies

kinoki · Aug 30, 2015

GK86 said:
Top 5 in movies? Aww shit. I have to catch up with the leaders.

The Top 5 is impregnable. I'm happy enough to be in the Top 10.

nacimento · Aug 30, 2015

Update:

nacimento - 15/50 books | 45/50 movies

Books:

Remembered Death - Agatha Christie ★★★★
Eight Cases of Poirot - Agatha Christie ★★★★
Fatherland - Robert Harris ★★★★
La Sombra del Viento (The Shadow of the Wind) - Carlos Ruiz Zafón ★★★★

Movies:

Open Range - Kevin Costner ★★★★½
Blow Out - Brian de Palma ★★★
Trance - Danny Boyle ★★★½
Hercules - Brett Ratner ★★★½
Conan the Barbarian - John Millius ★★★½
Elite Squad: The Enemy Within - José Padilha ★★★★★
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation - Christopher McQuarrie ★★★★
The Grapes of Wrath - John Ford ★★★★½
Sea of Love - Harold Becker ★★★★
A Private Affair - Guillaume Nicloux ★★½
Enemy at the Gates - Jean-Jacques Annaud ★★★★
The Imitation Game - Morten Tyldum ★★★★
Serpico - Sidney Lumet ★★★½
28 Days Later... - Danny Boyle ★★★

Wensih · Aug 30, 2015

I've been slacking a little on movies. I've been binging on television series instead. I completed The Office and I'm almost through the first season of Star Trek TNG as well as starting Cowboy Bebop (I've never watched it in order). That being said I still managed to watch 7 movies, and my biggest achievement, read 3 books!

Minishdriveby - 9/50 Books | 83/50 Movies

Books Finished in August:

7. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
8. The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
9. Autobiography of Red by Ann Carson

Movies Watched in August:

77. Metropolis
78. Ex Machina
79. Ant-Man
80. Rushmore
81. Kingsman: The Secret Service
82. Hercules (2014)
83. The Night Porter

gaiages · Aug 30, 2015

My August update:

gaiages - 10/50 Books | 26/50 Movies

I finished a 500+ pg book this month, and watched a couple movies. My progress is very slow on this front (although I did beat a lot of video games, so that's cool).

I have a few eBooks that I'm near the end of, actually, so I'm hoping I'll make a bit more progress. I do need to hunker down and watch more movies, though... I doubt I'll make the book goal, but I'd at least like to hit the movie goal.

GK86 · Aug 30, 2015

kinoki said:
The Top 5 is impregnable. I'm happy enough to be in the Top 10.

I'm 4th in the movies list. 12th overall. I need to read a book lol.

cocopuffs · Aug 30, 2015

Another day, two more films.

cocopuffs said:
cocopuffs - 0/50 Books | 23/50 Movies

Films

22. Inside Man (2006) - ★★★ - Wasn't a bad film aside from the fact that I saw the "twist" coming a mile away. And then Spike Lee had to insert random social commentary in the film that really wasn't necessary and didn't fit (the cop yelling "a fucking Arab", Sikh dude yelling about his turban and the cop using racial terms). I mean, come on, this is a heist film, not a commentary on racial issues in modern day America. Even the actual bank heist wasn't too exciting, the ending was way too obvious and the actual story about the whole safe deposit box wasn't all that interesting. Denzel wasn't even that good in it, I mean he wasn't bad but really nothing too exceptional. That about sums up this movie, distinctly average. Nothing particularly bad about it but really derivative and kind of just boring.

23. Prisoners (2013) - ★★★★½ - Really fucking good, can't say I have any complaints about it. Was paced well, story was interesting and good lord the cinematography was really good (ending sequence with

the rain and Jake speeding to the hospital

). Acting by Wolverine (Jackman) and Jake Gyllenhaal were both great too. In fact, I'm really warming up to Gyllenhaal, he's been great in about every film I've seen him in. But yeah, really good riveting film.

tmarques · Aug 31, 2015

August update.

tmarques - 44/50 Books | 75/50 Movies

Really productive month. García Marquez's Cuentos Peregrinos was the best thing I read this month, but I need to talk about Justine for a second here. How can anyone be shocked by 50 Shades in 2015 when Sade was writing far more disturbing stuff 300 years ago? And the actual writing was far better than I was led to expect. I need to tackle the companion novel, Juliette, at some point.

walkmetothelake · Aug 31, 2015

August update

Threads l 19/50 books l 122/50 films

Books:
17. My Education - Susan Choi - ★★★
18. Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides - ★★★★
19. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen - ★★★★

Films:
113. Five Dances (2013) - Alan Brown - ★
114. Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994) - Neil Jordan - ★★
115. Elephant (2003) - Gus Van Sant - ★★★★½
116. Deep Red (1975) - Dario Argento - ★★★★
117. Manic (2001)/ - Jordan Melamed - ★★★★
118. The Bling Ring (2013) - Sofia Coppola - ★★★½
119. Tom at the Farm (2013) - Xavier Dolan - ★★★★★
120. Alien (1979) - Ridley Scott - ★★★★★
121. Phenomena (1985) - Dario Argento - ★★★½
122. Inferno (1980) - Dario Argento - ★★★

Finally getting back into more reading. Hopefully I can hit 50 books still.

FUBAR McDangles · Aug 31, 2015

August Update:

FUBAR McDangles: Books: 30/50 +4 | Movies: 78/50 +10
Books:

The Scorch Trials - James Dashner | ★★★★
Echo Burning - Lee Child | ★★★
Fiend - Peter Stenson | ★★
Personal - Lee Child | ★★★

Movies:

Book of the month for me goes to The Scorch Trials. Yeah, they're aimed at tweens or whatever, and yeah they are hardly high art but they're fun to read. The story is good and always keeps me guessing and I can't wait to read the next one. I'm just really, really struggling to wait for it, because I want it to be closer to that movie. Doubt I can wait two or three years though. Second place to Echo Burning, third to Personal.

Movie of the month is Straight Outta Compton. Fun, engaging, and taught me more about a group I knew little about. Also has me listening to rap again for the first time in five years. Second place goes to Wall-E, third to Rock-E.

orthodoxy1095 · Aug 31, 2015

orthodoxy1095 - 12/50 Books | 49/50 Movies

Didn't watch much or read too much this month.

GK86 · Aug 31, 2015

August update:

GK86 - 0/50 Books | 96/50 Movies

1- Premonition 1/5
2- Birdman 4.5
3- Crazy, Stupid, Love 4/5
4- Hercules ('14) 3/5
5- The Theory of Everything 4/5
6- The Lost Boys 4/5
7- Pariah 3.5/5
8- The Running Man 5/5
9- Demolition Man 4/5
10- Horrible Bosses 2 5/5
11- The Spectacular Now 4/5
12- If I Had Wings 3/5
13- Gone Girl 3/5
14- Big Hero 6 3/5
15- Escape From New York 3.5/5

Cyan · Aug 31, 2015

Cyan - 38/50 books | 11/50 movies

I watched a few movies this month! Song of the Sea was quite well done. I meant to also watch Book of Kells from the same people, but haven't gotten around to it yet.

Support NeoGAF

50 books. 50 movies. 2015. (Follow Format in OP!)

Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.

Member

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Banned

Member

Banned

Member

Banned

Homeland Security Fail

Banned

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Banned

Banned

Banned

Banned

Banned

Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.

Member

Member

Banned

Banned

Banned

Banned

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Banned

Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.

Homeland Security Fail

Member

Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.

Member

Member

Banned

Homeland Security Fail

Banned

Member

Banned

Member

Banned

Homeland Security Fail

Banned

Similar threads