I’ve had to play catch-up several times during this last group of twenty-five films, as I’ve been vacationing and spending time down in Eugene with my family, making the ‘one movie a day’ goal a little difficult to finagle. But I did make my 75th film goal on time! …I’ve just procrastinated getting this post up, so that’s where I’m actually behind schedule. But never mind that, here we go to the highlights of films 50 through 75!

In this twenty-five, I’ve bounced around a lot, between recent releases at the theater, old classic films, not so old classic films, old but not really classic films, and several films that my parents were shocked to hear that I hadn’t seen, so we promptly sat down and watched those from their collection.

(For other posts about my MovieADay Project, head over here. And as always, you can follow along with my up-to-the-minute watched list on IMDb here!)

The Great Dictator (1940): This film feels incredibly topical right now - if you don’t feel like you want to sit through it (even though you definitely should), just watch the final monologue from Chaplin, because it’s great, and expresses sentiment still pertinent to human relations today. The rest of the film is Chaplin’s signature combination of slapstick physical humor paired with sly political and social observation/commentary, on display here in his only ‘true’ sound film.

Cinema Paradiso (1988): I loved this movie so much, and I went in with pretty high expectations, so that’s saying something. It’s definitely a movie about the love of movies, with beautiful performances and equally beautiful cinematography. Add to that a lovely score by Ennio Morricone, and this film was everything I wanted it to be. (Plus it checks off another Top Rated movie listed on IMDb for me, which is always a plus.)

The Thomas Crown Affair (1968): This movie has the sexiest chess game ever filmed. Enough said.

Get Out (2017): I don’t know what else I can say about this film that hasn’t already been said by the numerous glowing reviews from critics, but I’ll try. I found it clever as well as entertaining, with a combination of laughs and jumps enough to keep me watching, even though I typically don’t like to see ‘scary’ movies in theaters. This ended up having more of a biting cerebral statement to it than just cheap scares, so I enjoyed it a lot.

The Dressmaker (2015): Described by its director as “‘Unforgiven’ with a sewing machine”, I just adored this film. Kate Winslet is nearly always flawless for me, and this was no exception. A darkly humorous tale of homecoming and revenge, set in a teeny-tiny town full of secrets, blends the film Western with high-end fashion. Needless to say, the costumes are fantastic, and the story itself was great fun. (Well, mostly. You’ll understand why I say that when you watch it.)

Back to the Future Part III (1990)/A Fistful of Dollars (1964): I’m grouping these together because one begat the other. After realizing that I’d never seen any of the Back to the Future movies all the way through a few months ago, I got them on Bluray and made sure to watch them. The second one was fine, but I actually loved the third one because of how absurd they made it. Pushing them even further into the past, ‘Back to the Future Part III’ is largely an homage to Westerns, and it just works. You know the tropes, you also know the patterns of the Back to the Future films themselves by this point, but I really enjoyed how they incorporated them together for the film. The big gunfight climax is straight out of ‘A Fistful of Dollars’, which I recognized but hadn’t actually seen the Eastwood film all the way through. So I followed ‘Back to the Future Part III’ with a viewing of ‘A Fistful of Dollars’ once I found it sitting on my parents’ DVD shelf. Clint Eastwood is great, of course, but I have to admit I prefer other Leone films over this one.

All Films: 51 through 75

51. License to Kill (1989)
52. The Great Dictator (1940)
53. The LEGO Batman Movie (2017)
54. Shampoo (1975)
55. Trolls (2016)
56. The Doctor Takes a Wife (1940)
57. A Night to Remember (1942)
58. Insomnia (2002)
59. The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
60. Back to the Future Part II (1989)
61. Weird Science (1985)
62. Together Again (1944)
63. Cinema Paradiso (1988)
64. Back to the Future Part III (1990)
65. Get Out (2017)
66. Easter Parade (1948)
67. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
68. The Dressmaker (2015)
69. 42nd Street (1933)
70. A Fistful of Dollars (1964)
71. Bull Durham (1988)
72. Kong: Skull Island (2017)
73. Diner (1982)
74. Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
75. Liberal Arts (2012)

I should be hitting number 100 by April 10th, so don’t go far! And be sure to check out the rest of my MovieADay Project posts here.