Movies, TV Seasons, and Books in 2010 (Part 2)

[kalient]

In roughly chronological order. * means I've seen it before, bold means I can't believe I haven't. There's a short list at the end of books I read. :)

July

1. The IT Crowd, Series 3
   
2. Glen or Glenda (Priceless!)
   
3. Conventioneers
   
4. Conversations with Other Women (A bit unsettling, but I really liked it.)
   
5. Spoorloos (aka The Vanishing) (1988)
   
6. Whip It (A little predictable, but Ellen Page is so cute!)
   
7. Midnight Cowboy (I felt like this was a must-see, but it really didn't do anything for me.)
   
8. Twilight and
   
9. New Moon, in preparation to see Eclipse. But I didn't right away, because I had a nasty cough, and didn't want to take it to the theater. That would be annoying for me and my fellow patrons.
   
10. I Could Never Be Your Woman (I love me some Paul Rudd.)
    
11. Bark! (Per Mom's recommendation. I did not like it.)
    
12. Lovely & Amazing
    
13. Scream (I remember going to see this at Flix, and walking out after the first scene. I don't like horror movies, but this seemed like something I needed to see at some point. It was actually pretty funny.)
    
14. The Human Face
    
15. Possession (2002)
    
16. On the Waterfront
    
17. Imagine Me & You
    
18. I Shot Andy Warhol
    
19. Martian Child (Tearjerker! I thought it was very well done.)
    
20. I-See-You.Com
    
21. Dakota Skye (I liked it, but I think I liked the concept more than the implementation.)
    
22. Eclipse (Ugh! People were praising it, so I had some expectations. I should have known better.)
    
23. The TV Set
    
24. Inventing the Abbotts
    
25. Dare
    
26. I've Loved You So Long (aka Il y a longtemps que je t'aime) (Wasn't expecting subtitles, and it was sort of slow, but I liked it.)
    
27. Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World, Season 1
    
28. Rocket Science (A very strange film. One of those that are hard to rate on Netflix's 5-star scale. Very "independent.")
    
29. Gamer* (I got a lot more out of it the second time around.)
    
30. Marie Antoinette (2006) (*yawn*)
    
31. The Illusionist (2006)
    
32. Arsenic and Old Lace (That was fun!)
    
33. Your Friends & Neighbors (I think wikipedia added a scene when they wrote the summary.)
    
34. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
    
35. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
    
36. A Life Without Pain
    
37. 9
    
38. The Sentinel (2006)
    
39. Visioneers
    
    July highlights: Conversations with Other Women, Martian Child, Visioneers
    Maybe Arsenic and Old Lace and 9
    
    August
    
40. Archer, Season 1
    
41. Natural Born Killers
    
42. Sleepwalking
    
43. Pillow Talk
    
44. I'll Come Running (Kind of threw me off by having occasional subtitles. Always tricky when bilingual characters are code-switching.)
    
45. The Spiderwick Chronicles
    
46. The Visitor (2008)
    
47. The Bounty Hunter (2010)
    
48. The Prestige
    
49. Gidget* (Sandra Dee was such a little Barbie doll!)
    
50. Volver
    
51. The French Connection (Felt like something I should see, but I was pretty bored. The car chase was pretty cool, as long as I kept in mind the year it was made.)
    
52. Sweet Charity
    
53. Being There (Made 10 years after Sweet Charity, but Shirley MacLaine looks a lot younger. A very cute and odd little movie. The power of a good suit.)
    
54. The Godfather
    
55. We're Not Married!
    
56. 300
    
57. The Running Man
    
58. Spartacus (1960) (Another one of those movies that I watched because I felt like I should at some point. What a waste of time. Actually, I was fascinated by the battle scenes; it's amazing to think about how they did epic scenes before CGI.)
    
59. Enemy of the State
    
60. Alice (2009 miniseries on Syfy. The actress playing "just plain Alice" annoyed me, but it was all quite pretty.)
    
61. Seven Years in Tibet
    
62. The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane (Naked 13-year-old Jodie Foster? Creepy!)
    
63. The Godfather: Part II (Very unsatisfying ending. Might've been okay with an impending sequel, but Part III wasn't made for 16 years. Huh.)
    
64. Catch-22 (The tone of the movie was very different from the tone in my head when I read the book. Of course, that was about 20 years ago. I liked the movie a lot, and wonder what it would be like to read it now.)
    
65. Oliver Twist (1948)
    
66. The Story of O (*yawn*)
    
67. Consuming Passions
    
68. Zombieland
    
69. The Losers (I really enjoy Chris Evans.)
    
70. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (So much fun!)
    
71. Away We Go
    
72. Chloe
    
73. Inglourious Basterds
    
74. Eat Pray Love
    
75. The V.I.P.s (It didn't have my full attention, but enough to count, I think.)
    
76. The Expendables (2010) (Wow. I was expecting action, but not blood & guts. There was a fair amount of blood & guts.)
    
77. No Reservations (2007)
    
78. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister (I still need to read the book. I like Maguire, and I'm sure this did not do him justice.)
    
79. The Invention of Lying
    
80. The Men Who Stare at Goats
    
    August highlights: Volver, Being There, Catch-22, Scott Pilgim, Away We Go
    
    September
    
81. All About Steve
    
82. Inspirations
    
83. Thumbsucker
    
84. The Jazz Singer (1980)
    
85. Happy-Go-Lucky (Cute, but a little boring.)
    
86. The Runaways (Dakota Fanning is an amazing actress, but I have yet to see anything resembling "range" from Kristen Stewart. I had hopes when I heard that Joan Jett was pleased with her performance. Now I just think that Joan Jett has low standards.)
    
87. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (Very touching.)
    
88. The Time Traveler's Wife (Loved it! I needed a good cry.)
    
89. Funny Girl*
    
90. Machete
    
91. Hard Eight
    
92. The Patriot (2000)
    
93. The Informant! (Sort of depressing, but the style was fun.)
    
94. Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?*
    
95. Rachel Getting Married
    
96. The Proposal (Ryan Reynolds!)
    
97. New York, I Love You (I didn't love, but it was better than Paris.)
    
98. (500) Days of Summer
    
99. Hot Tub Time Machine
    
100. Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World, Season 2
     
101. Funny Lady
     
102. Repo Men
     
103. Twin Dragons
     
104. Kenny (2006)
     
105. Dude, Where's My Car? (I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would.)
     
106. The Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) (It was weird how much Jay Baruchel reminded me of Heathers-era Christian Slater. I didn't like him in this as much as I usually do. On the flip side, I'm occasionally surprised by how much I like Nicholas Cage. It definitely depends on the role.)
     
107. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
     
108. Valentine's Day
     
109. Un homme perdu
     
110. The Tick, The Complete (Live-Action) Series
     
111. No Impact Man (Ack! I feel like such a hypocrit watching this on my huge TV with all the lights on and drinking soda from a can. Still, there are probably some small changes I could make and feel a little better about my contribution to/impact on the world.)
     
112. Strait-Jacket (1964) (I didn't really expect to like it -- but I did!)
     
113. Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (Finally! Loved it!)
     
114. Molly (Netflix mis-listed this as a "Drama Based on Real Life." It's totally Flowers for Algernon.)
     
     September highlights: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Hot Tub Time Machine, The Tick (which I did not expect to like at all), Dr. Horrible. I also really liked The Proposal and Valentine's Day, but "highlight" sounds a little strong. The Time Traveler's Wife was well-done; impressive considering how critical I've been of book-to-movie adaptations lately.
     
     October
     
115. A Painted House
     
116. Rocky & Bullwinkle, Season 4
     
117. Beetlejuice* (One of my all-time favorite movies. Catherine O'Hara at her best!)
     
118. Josie and the Pussycats, Complete Series
     
119. The Grand
     
120. Rails & Ties (I thought this might help my 'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' skills, but Marcia Gay Harden was the only other face I recognized. Doesn't help much.)
     
121. A Star Is Born (1976)
     
122. Fawlty Towers, Complete Set
     
123. The Last Kiss
     
124. The Last Time I Committed Suicide
     
125. Henry Poole Is Here
     
126. Don't You Forget About Me
     
127. HouseSitter (I liked this a lot more than I expected to.)
     
128. The Last Man on Earth (1964) (I liked it better as I Am Legend with Will Smith in 2007.)
     
129. King of the Zombies (Ah, segregation of the early 1940's. It does make for good comic relief.)
     
130. The Evil Dead*
     
131. White Zombie
     
132. Teenage Zombies
     
133. The Babysitters
     
134. Tales of Terror
     
135. Nightmare on Elm Street
     The Evil Dead (Again, because my sister hadn't seen it before.)
     
136. The Pit and the Pendulum (1961)
     
137. House of Usher
     
     October highlights: Henry Poole is Here
     
     November
     
138. Please Give
     
139. Laurel Canyon
     
140. Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
     
141. Tuck Everlasting (2002)
     
142. Couples Retreat
     
143. Raising Arizona
     
144. Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn*
     
145. Bruce Campbell vs. The Army of Darkness (aka, the 96-minute director's cut of Army of Darkness) - I was right the first time I tried to watch the series, when I decided that the series jumped the shark when Ash went back in time. Army of Darkness just confirmed it. Some fun one-liners, and a wonderfully crazed Bruce Campbell, but not nearly as entertaining as the first two movies.
     
146. Superhero Movie
     
147. Altered States
     
148. The Kid Stays in the Picture
     
149. Numb
     
150. Leaves of Grass
     
151. S.F.W.
     
152. Mindwarp
     
153. Kick-Ass
     
154. Son of Rambow
     
155. The Juror
     
156. Ghost Rider
     
157. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes*
     
158. Helvetica
     
159. Hopeless Pictures, Complete Series
     
160. In the Realms of the Unreal
     
161. Palindromes
     
162. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
     
163. Revenge of the Nerds (Loooooooooooong overdue.)
     
164. Tenderness
     
165. Queen of Blood
     
166. The Three Faces of Eve
     
167. Child's Play
     
168. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?*
     
169. Frogs (Oh good God.)
     Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, ... and the Chamber of Secrets, ... and the Prisoner of Azkaban, ... and the Goblet of Fire, ... and the Order of the Phoenix, ... and the Half-Blood Prince -- all in preparation for
     
170. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One
     
171. Tank Girl*
     
172. Dog Day Afternoon
     
173. Love Story (1970)
     
174. The Last Picture Show
     
175. What's Eating Gilbert Grape
     
176. Iris
     
     November highlights: A lot of interesting stuff this month. Definitely Son of Rambow, the Harry Potter movies, and What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Also interesting were: Please Give, Laurel Canyon, and Tenderness.
     
     December
     
177. Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy) (On my dad's recommendation. I really don't like concerts like this. Good to remember for next time.)
     
178. Clash of the Titans* (2010)
     
179. Smokin' Aces (I wasn't sure I really wanted to see this, but I'm glad I did. I really liked it, and not just for Ryan Reynolds.)
     
180. Holiday Inn (How had I never seen this before?!?!)
     
181. Kiss Me Goodbye (Because I was caught up in a sudoku puzzle and didn't change the channel. It was cute.)
     
182. A Very Long Engagement
     
183. Attack of the Puppet People
     
184. The Rock
     
185. Super Size Me (And yet, the next day I almost went to McDonald's. I guess it didn't do me much good. *grin*)
     
186. Super High Me
     
187. How to Be
     
188. Four Christmases
     
189. Murphy's Romance
     
190. Tell-Tale
     
191. A Christmas Story
     
192. Red
     
193. The Trouble with Harry
     
194. East of Eden
     
195. 3:10 to Yuma (1957)
     
196. Cool Hand Luke (It's always weird to see young versions of familiar faces.)
     
197. Greenfingers
     
198. Bunny and the Bull
     
199. Jeux d'enfants (aka "Love Me If You Dare") (Twisted!)
     
200. Homicidal (SUCH bad acting!)
     
201. Lady Jane
     
202. Paper Moon
     
203. Klute
     
204. Castillos de cartón (aka "3some")
     
205. Camelot
     
206. Producing Adults
     
207. Marathon Man
     
208. The Pink Panther (1963)
     
209. Rebel Without a Cause
     
210. Eyes of Laura Mars
     
211. Outing Riley
     
212. Lewis Black's Root of All Evil, Season 1
     
     December highlights: Smokin' Aces, A Christmas Story, Bunny and the Bull, Love Me If You Dare, Rebel Without a Cause
     

Books...
1. A Long Fatal Love Chase by Louisa May Alcott (Book club, chosen because it's such a departure from Little Women. I struggled with it, because the language was convoluted and there weren't nearly enough commas. I even had to check wikipedia to make sure I understood the ending. But I liked it -- yay for people who listen to NPR!)
   
2. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (The first Sookie Stackhouse novel -- I liked it!)
   
3. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
   
4. The Monkey's Raincoat (via CD. I started collecting books on CD for my drive to CA. I wasn't sure I would like this one, so I started listening before I returned it. Then I realized that the tracks were seriously short. I didn't want to load 690 minute-long tracks to my iPod -- I like to use random shuffle -- so I finished it as soon as I could.)
   
5. The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera (Wow, that was a lot of work. I got a lot out of it, so I'm glad I finally pulled it off the shelf. For a while I wanted to watch the movie, because I couldn't wrap my head around the idea of a book-to-movie adaptation. The book is all about the internal experience of these characters. How could they possibly translate that to the screen? They can't, and so now I have no interest in the movie at all. *grin* )
   
6. Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore (I listened to this on the way to LA, and when I arrived at my mom's house I was only 15 minutes from the end. It was good car "reading," and kept me engaged.)
   
7. You Suck: A Love Story by Christopher Moore (Also audio, this time on the return trip.)
   
8. What-the-Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy by Gregory Maguire
   
9. Make Love! The Bruce Campbell Way by Bruce Campbell
   
   I thought I'd have re-readings (full or partial) of the Twilight books, but apparently the fixation is over. Yay!