Anyone interested in a MeFi Film Club?

November 12, 2009 6:49 AM

Anyone interested in a MeFi Film Club?

I thought of the idea after hearing about the MeFi bookclub and reading this post on Reddit. The club would work the same way a book club does; we all watch the same agreed-upon film, then discuss it. Whether this should be a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly thing is up to everyone who's interested. If you are, let me know through MeFi mail and in this thread, and say what a good schedule would be.

posted by Taft to MetaFilter-Related at 6:49 AM (83 comments total)

Yes, please.

As long as the only thing it has in common with Reddit is the internet-film-club idea.
posted by paisley henosis at 7:02 AM on November 12, 2009

This sounds great.
posted by nfg at 7:11 AM on November 12, 2009

Absolutely.

And while reasonable minds may differ, I'd love it if we had more little offshoots. Why do we have MeFi Music and not MeFi Visual Arts? Yes, there are other places to go to discuss different activities (Flickr, e.g.) but I value the thoughtful community here and the level of discourse.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 7:12 AM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

I might be very interested in this.
posted by Nanukthedog at 7:20 AM on November 12, 2009

I would be interested in this pony.

Although, I guess it's not really a pony per se. More like half a pony. What do you call half a pony?
posted by pixlboi at 7:38 AM on November 12, 2009

Count me in as well.
posted by Captain_Science at 7:39 AM on November 12, 2009

Yeah I would be up for this.
posted by burnmp3s at 7:41 AM on November 12, 2009

Count me in!
posted by EarBucket at 7:48 AM on November 12, 2009

Awesome, a really big incentive to get through my NetFlix queue. I'm in!
posted by mkb at 7:48 AM on November 12, 2009

Yep, sounds good.
posted by fire&wings at 7:51 AM on November 12, 2009

What do you call half a pony?

I call mine my Eliza. I call the other half Beth. You can probably guess what we called her before the accident.

I, too, am interested in a Film Club.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 7:55 AM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

Yeah this sounds cool, I'm in. As long as everyone agrees to pick good movies. Y'know, good, as in, ones that I like.
posted by afx237vi at 7:57 AM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

Yes, absolutely.
posted by specialagentwebb at 7:59 AM on November 12, 2009

I'm interested. How would the actual discussion happen? Voice or Text?
posted by Mitheral at 8:04 AM on November 12, 2009

This sounds pretty great to me; I would probably be interested.
posted by k8lin at 8:04 AM on November 12, 2009

I'm in.

I should probably join the book club too.
posted by ODiV at 8:11 AM on November 12, 2009

What do you call half a pony?

A Sicilian alarm clock!

Also, I'm interested in this.
posted by greekphilosophy at 8:12 AM on November 12, 2009 [3 favorites]

Yes - this would be great.
posted by jpdoane at 8:47 AM on November 12, 2009

I'd be interested too. I'd suggest that doing it weekly with a schedule of films planned out at least a month in advance could work—it's often enough that folks who miss a week or want to skip a specific film here and there won't be out in the cold for too long, and the lead time means people can plan ahead on getting ahold of whatever the title is.
posted by cortex (staff) at 8:54 AM on November 12, 2009 [2 favorites]

I'm in
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 8:59 AM on November 12, 2009

I'm interested. Also, it's a long shot but I would love for the discussions to take place in a subsite of mefi a la mefimusic like Admiral Haddock suggested upthread.
posted by pwally at 9:00 AM on November 12, 2009

I think weekly with some lead time would be a good idea as well. I'm wondering if live IRC chat would be a good idea ("okay, hit play... NOW!") or if it would detract from viewing and post-viewing discussion.
posted by ODiV at 9:02 AM on November 12, 2009

Cool idea... should we vote on nominations within certain genres?
posted by starman at 9:03 AM on November 12, 2009

I'm game, but I warn you. I can talk about movies. Like a lot.
posted by The Whelk at 9:04 AM on November 12, 2009

Ooh ooh ooh count me in. We can start with something easy like Salò: The 120 Days Of Sodom and work our way up.
posted by shakespeherian at 9:04 AM on November 12, 2009

What do you call half a pony?

Depending on which half, you might call it a horse's ass.
posted by owtytrof at 9:07 AM on November 12, 2009

This sounds super cool!
posted by HeyAllie at 9:30 AM on November 12, 2009

Count me in for MeFilm
posted by Mick at 10:05 AM on November 12, 2009

Once again, MeFi is behind the MeCha curve. What's next, y'all gonna start having photo fridays?
posted by Eideteker at 10:08 AM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

I'm in too. I agree that it might be best to categorize and rotate the selections by genre.

We can start with something easy like Salò: The 120 Days Of Sodom and work our way up.

Oh em gee. How about a double feature with Caligula?
posted by fuse theorem at 10:16 AM on November 12, 2009

In all seriousness (maybe?) I see that Netflix has both After Last Season and Crispin Hellion Glover's What Is It?, either of which would provide ample conversation fodder.
posted by shakespeherian at 10:38 AM on November 12, 2009

Actually on closer inspection, Netflix does not offer either of these films. They are, however, listed on its site.
posted by shakespeherian at 10:39 AM on November 12, 2009

What do you call half a pony?

Eric
posted by InfidelZombie at 10:44 AM on November 12, 2009

Yes!
posted by smartyboots at 10:45 AM on November 12, 2009

Very interested.
posted by scody at 11:06 AM on November 12, 2009

Yes, please! Sounds great.
posted by emd3737 at 11:10 AM on November 12, 2009

Can we have waffles, too? If so, count me in.
posted by ooga_booga at 11:27 AM on November 12, 2009

I'm sorry Greg Nog, but if you flake out we'll be forced to dispatch the hit squad.

Fortunately, they flake out fairly often as well.
posted by ODiV at 11:56 AM on November 12, 2009 [2 favorites]

I'm in as long as the film club doesn't include any snuff. Not the genre, the tobacco product, which makesme sneeze like you wouldn't believe.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:04 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm interested. How would the actual discussion happen?

The first rule of Film Club is, you do not talk about the films!
posted by msalt at 12:17 PM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

I might be up for this.
I'm hesitantly enthusiastic.
posted by mmmbacon at 12:24 PM on November 12, 2009

So into this idea. No chewing and spitting either please.
posted by Babblesort at 12:26 PM on November 12, 2009

I like the sound of this -- count me in
posted by prettypretty at 1:21 PM on November 12, 2009

msalt:
The first rule of Film Club is, you do not talk about the films!

I was in a club like this once.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:34 PM on November 12, 2009

A club where they recycled ten year old jokes?
posted by ODiV at 1:35 PM on November 12, 2009

Yes, and the whole time I was thinking Why oh why didn't I take the BLUE pill?
posted by shakespeherian at 1:42 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm in! I feel like my movie consumption is down, so more excuses to watch interesting things does me just fine. Weekly might be a bit of a reach, but cortex's schedule idea upthread would be a great way to figure out what I can realistically prepare for.
posted by Monster_Zero at 1:50 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm in. Wings of Desire (1987) was just restored to Blu-Ray / 1080p and it is still sitting shrink wrapped. The Berlin Wall anniversary makes it topical. And it's Criterion.
posted by geoff. at 2:24 PM on November 12, 2009

Totally in -- and also agree with what cortex suggested.

Would be interesting if we set up the schedule so that we watched a set of movies around a certain theme/genre/director -- but I guess that may exclude certain people for long stretches if they if they didn't care for said theme/genre/director.

So I guess Film Club should decide to do whatever Film Club wants to do. And I'll probably follow either way.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 2:27 PM on November 12, 2009

I like cortex's idea for weekly films planned out a month ahead.

Here's what we need right now:

- A forum of some sort to discuss films.

- A way to decide on movies.

I could go ahead and establish a forum. As for deciding on movies, I'd suggest a nomination system in which the top 4 voted-for films would be the month schedule.
posted by Taft at 2:29 PM on November 12, 2009

So, speaking as someone who has never been in a book or film club, what are we... uh... supposed to talk about? Is there a moderator or something to guide the discussion? Because whenever I watch a movie with friends, I must admit the discussion rarely goes further than "well I enjoyed that" or "well that was shite".

Any tips for watching movies with a more critical eye? I always seem to miss the subtle metaphorical bits. Ooh, look, pretty explosions!!!
posted by afx237vi at 2:41 PM on November 12, 2009

I would definitely be down for this. And voting on upcoming films is a great idea.

Or we could just wait a month for the release of the Kurosawa box set and spend the next 2 years discussing that, either way is fine with me.
posted by the bricabrac man at 2:41 PM on November 12, 2009

Any tips for watching movies with a more critical eye? I always seem to miss the subtle metaphorical bits.

A movie is what's on screen not what's coming out of the actor's mouths.

The camera isn't always objective.
posted by The Whelk at 2:42 PM on November 12, 2009

If you guys want to do a poll, I'd suggest using Doodle. I have a movie night with my friends each month and it's what we use to decide what we watch.

As for the forum, in both my failed attempts to start some activity with MeFi members (Writing Group and Pen Pals), I've used Google Groups. It does the job, and I like the interface better than Yahoo groups.

Also, I'm in for this. I just ask that we not watch any romantic comedies from the last 15 years.
posted by reenum at 2:44 PM on November 12, 2009

I just ask that we not watch any romantic comedies from the last 15 years.

And miss out on My Sassy Girl? That'd be a tragic shame.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 2:54 PM on November 12, 2009

As far as I know, Google Groups is overrun with spam. The best-case scenario would be a MeFite that offers some of his/her website space for a forum. Worst-case is a free forum service or Google/Yahoo groups.
posted by Taft at 2:55 PM on November 12, 2009

Peter: Let's revise that to any American major studio produced romantic comedies. You know, the kind that star Jennifer Lopez and/or Matthew McConaughey.
posted by reenum at 3:01 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm in. I can offer hosting too if no one has a better alternative. Though, I'm not sure what kind of software would be appropiate. phpBB? Wordpress (with a *filter theme clone)? bbpress? Vanilla?
posted by Memo at 3:45 PM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

I'm in. Wings of Desire (1987) was just restored to Blu-Ray / 1080p and it is still sitting shrink wrapped. The Berlin Wall anniversary makes it topical. And it's Criterion.

It's not at the local library yet, so I'll be getting City of Angels and call it even, OK?
posted by filthy light thief at 4:16 PM on November 12, 2009

Hey guys, wait up! (tags along)
posted by Kinbote at 4:18 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm deeply enthused. (No Hamburger.) Hope some of us low brows can use the word "movie" because "film" is just too classy for me.
posted by bearwife at 4:54 PM on November 12, 2009

i like movie cause it sounds better (MOOO-Veeee vs. Fee-iiiiiilm) and doesn't have another meaning attached. a film can be a thin layer of something on something. A movie is just a movie, but fig newtons are fruit and cake.
posted by The Whelk at 5:03 PM on November 12, 2009

It's neither "movie" nor "film" - it's "cinema". I am kidding with a big :) !

Count me in.
posted by shino-boy at 5:07 PM on November 12, 2009

Memo, I think phpBB would be perfect. If you set that up I would love you for-ev-ah.
posted by Taft at 5:16 PM on November 12, 2009

I would love this!
posted by niccolo at 6:08 PM on November 12, 2009

Or, as an alternative to doing this from scratch - see here.
posted by dg at 7:22 PM on November 12, 2009

Film Club sounds great, as long as we can we discuss the killer new Blu-Ray of Michael Mann's sprawling masterpiece Heat, for it is fantastic and as solid as a cinder block dropped in your lap.
posted by porn in the woods at 7:37 PM on November 12, 2009

The Whelk:
i like movie cause it sounds better (MOOO-Veeee vs. Fee-iiiiiilm)

I have no idea how you are managing to get two syllables out of "film."
posted by paisley henosis at 8:15 PM on November 12, 2009

four years of french and three years of Latin.
posted by The Whelk at 8:35 PM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

'Movie' is one of those words that sounds incredibly stupid once you think about it. Like: Hey, look, it's moving! It's a move-y!
posted by shakespeherian at 8:43 PM on November 12, 2009

Say "king" ten times.


Okay, now try "moist."

Awful, right?
posted by The Whelk at 8:46 PM on November 12, 2009

TaftPoster: "Memo, I think phpBB would be perfect. If you set that up I would love you for-ev-ah"

Here it is. I'm not a big fan of phpbb but the last version seems better than it used to be.

Metachat would also work well though.
posted by Memo at 9:05 PM on November 12, 2009 [2 favorites]

Ok, we're about ready, thanks to Memo.

Here is the forum we can use.

Nominate and vote on films here

Thanks, Memo, for the awesome forum, and to everyone participating.
posted by Taft at 9:22 PM on November 12, 2009 [1 favorite]

Taft: Here is the forum we can use.

Nominate and vote on films here

Done and done, member #3 reporting for duty.

I made sure not to use my MeFi password, so now I have a stronger p/w there than here. That seems broken.
posted by paisley henosis at 9:34 PM on November 12, 2009

Peter: Let's revise that to any American major studio produced romantic comedies. You know, the kind that star Jennifer Lopez and/or Matthew McConaughey.

Then I agree 100%.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:45 PM on November 12, 2009

I'm tentatively in. Depends on the movie and it's availability in my area.

And by availability, I mean what I can check out for free from my awesome local library.

We got to watch all of Deadwood thanks to that library.

Whatever you all think is worth watching, I'll take as a recommendation and try to acquire it. We also liked the HBO series Rome and the first couple seasons of Dexter, but then I read the books.

I love cinema. Especially when I can comfortably watch it at home and my back ailments don't give me extra theater stress.
posted by lilywing13 at 1:37 AM on November 13, 2009

Well, I would agree that sitting through HEAT again would be about as enjoyable as having a cinder block dropped in my lap.
posted by the bricabrac man at 4:02 AM on November 13, 2009 [2 favorites]

I would also like to be a member of this club (provided the club would not be interested in having me as a member).
posted by haveanicesummer at 7:19 AM on November 13, 2009

A club where they recycled ten year old jokes?

You know, if references to classic movies really bug you, you might be in the wrong topic. Just saying
posted by msalt at 9:27 AM on November 13, 2009 [3 favorites]

I'm in.
posted by defenestration at 11:14 AM on November 13, 2009

It's not at the local library yet, so I'll be getting City of Angels and call it even, OK?

This does bring up a good point. Would anybody be opposed to running a private tracker? If we avoid doing it with Hollywood mainstream movies and only allow the current film on the tracker, our risks are really low. It would also help level things out as a lot of these non-mainstream films aren't going to be available in all regions, if they're available at all. For example (bad example because it is now in HD), I had a copy of A Grin Without A Cat that I eventually rented the 35mm and pointed a Sony HD cam at (then Icarus released it on DVD).

It would be cool and help alleviate the inevitable "my netflix hasn't arrived / can't find the movie." You've now hit on my dorky home theater hobby, I take everything and encode it myself to my htpc, carousels are rubbish. Plus when you get things like "Let the Right One In" where the American release had a crap translation compared to the Oscar screener that was floating around, it is nothing to slap the better subtitles in.

Gazelle is apparently fairly easy to install and configure. I can't imagine the overhead would be large for the smalll amount of users that would want in.
posted by geoff. at 4:57 PM on November 13, 2009

I'm interested.

I also have hosting and a ton of bandwidth I'm doing nothing with, though (like others) I have no idea what would be the best software. Just another option.
posted by johnofjack at 9:49 AM on November 14, 2009

Ah. Nevermind. I see a site & software have been decided already.
posted by johnofjack at 9:50 AM on November 14, 2009