The Movie Files Monthly Update – February through April 2011 May 1, 2011
Movie Files Update (2011)Movie RelatedWriting
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This post has been a long time coming, but I wanted to give a progress update on my goals of the year since four months have passed.  School has taken a toll on my movie time, and most movies I’ve been watching have been for review at IP Movies.  The summer is merely one week away now, though, and I am looking at starting a (hopeful) minor in film studies with my acting MFA over the summer.  Details haven’t been fleshed out yet, but this means that I will be watching even more films as a course requirement, and hopefully a lot of the classics that I’ve missed to this point.  I’ve grouped the past three months together, so the breakdown below is for February through April.

The Movie Files Movie Update (2011): January 2011

Movies Star Breakdown (February – April):
4 Stars – 2
3 1/2 Stars – 4
3 Stars – 8
2 1/2 Stars – 7
2 Stars – 5
1 1/2 Stars – 5
1 Star – 5
1/2 Star – 0

Average Movie Score – 2.39

Formats:
Blu-ray Disc – 13
DVD – 13
Netflix Instant Queue – 3
Theatres – 2
Other – 5

Movie Genres:
Action – 2
Comedy – 2
Documentary – 2
Drama – 5
Horror – 18
Sci-Fi – 1
Thriller – 1
Other – 5

Favorite Movie of February, 2011: My Left Foot (1989)
Worst Movie of February, 2011: Paranormal Activity (2009)

Favorite Movie of March, 2011: Night of the Creeps (1989)
Worst Movie of March, 2011: Sugar Boxx (2011)

Favorite Movie of April, 2011: Scream 4 (2011)
Worst Movie of April, 2011: The Last Gun (1964)

Total Time Watching Movies & TV Series in February: 14 Hours and 37 minutes
Total Time Watching Movies & TV Series in March: 24 Hours and 50 minutes
Total Time Watching Movies & TV Series in April: 19 Hours and 41 minutes

Total Time Watching Movies & TV Series in February through April: 59 Hours and 08 minutes

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-Write one (1) non-IP Movies review each week, totaling 52 reviews for 2011.
Current Status – 6/52
Comments– This is another example of starting strong and losing focus as the school year dragged on.  We are currently 17 weeks deep in 2011, and I have written a non-IP Movies review only 6 times.  This is another stat I hope to get ahead on during the summer.  I have three months of no school, so this should see a significant increase by summers end.

-Watch all of AFI’s “100 Years…100 Movies” list in 2011.
Current Status – 0/100
Comments– This is genuinely sad that I haven’t watched one of these films yet, especially as this was my #1 goal for the year.  Thanks to this film studies project I am entering at my University, this will undoubtedly change by the end of the summer.  I have purchased a couple more of these (by chance, more than anything) and have North by Northwest on my Comcast DVR right now.  I hope to get at least 15 of these watched by summers end, if not 25.

-Watch 51 other movies in 2011.
[ ]Watch Ebert’s Top Movies Not on AFI Top 100
—[ ]Aguirre, Wrath of God
—[ ]Dekalog
—[ ]La dolce vita
—[ ]The General
—[ ]Tokyo Story
[ ]Watch (at least) Three (3) Films from the Following Directors
—[ ]Carpenter, John
——[X]Ghosts of Mars
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
—[ ]Fulci, Lucio
——[ ]Film One
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
—[ ]Hitchcock, Alfred
——[ ]Film One
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
—[ ]Kubrick, Stanley
——[ ]Film One
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
—[ ]Scorsese, Martin
——[ ]Film One
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
—[ ]Welles, Orson
——[ ]Film One
——[ ]Film Two
——[ ]Film Three
Current Status – 53/51
Comments– Only four months in and I’ve completed this goal.  It’s mostly because I was hoping to be much further along on my AFI Top 100 list, but alas, I am not.  My focus needs to be on the secondary aspect of this goal where I watch three films from each of the filmmakers listed.  This will not be difficult once the summer hits.  I’ve only gotten one John Carpenter film so far, but Hitchcock will be getting a notch soon (thanks to that aforementioned North by Northwest from TCM).

-Read five (5) full books in 2011.
—[ ]Book One by Author
—[ ]Book Two by Author
—[ ]Book Three by Author
—[ ]Book Four by Author
—[ ]Book Five by Author
Current Status – 0/5
Comments– I am exactly where I was back in January: still reading A Short Guide to Writing About Film by Corrigan.  I’m a slow reader.  This is another stat that will get a boost thanks to my graduate studies.

-Beat fifteen (15) video games in 2011.
Current Status – 1/15
Comments– With my Xbox 360 back in commission since January, I’ve played and beaten Homefront, an FPS with a story by the writer of Red Dawn.  I enjoyed the single player campaign well enough, but still think Call of Duty: Black Ops was a better campaign.  Crysis 2 will undoubtedly be the next game I attempt to beat once the summer hits.  I’ve immensely enjoyed the online multiplayer, which is a rarity in the FPS world for me.  

-Win the virtual World Title in all six (6) major sports.
—[ ]Baseball – Game
—[ ]Basketball – Game
—[ ]Football – Game
—[ ]Hockey – Game
—[ ]NCAA Football – Game
—[ ]Soccer – Game
Current Status – 0/6
Comments– Not much to say here. I’m currently playing an Online Dynasty in NCAA Football 11 with my buddy, but I don’t see any titles in my future.

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What’s coming this summer to The Movie Files?

– If it kills me, I will roll out a new feature for this website.  A weekly/bi-weekly feature that covers something, anything worth talking about.  I may put up a poll with a couple options to see what my readership would be most interested in following.

-I still hope to set up a domain name in the coming months.  This summer might see a massive overhaul on the site (meaning a new theme and web address).

-If anyone knows a good Microsoft Paint/GIMP tutorial that can help me make a free, decent blog header (until I can afford to hire a professional to create one) it would be greatly appreciated.