Chronological Journey Through Film History

[steel_breeze]

Never started a thread before; I’m sure someone will point out if this isn’t correct for some reason, lol. I already know it's too long-winded.

I’ve just embarked on an admittedly eccentric but undeniably epic journey I’ve made only twice before: a chronological viewing of my Top Tier “Film History” library. Even though I actually own around 250 titles in my library, this “Top Tier” is a carefully curated collection of 150 Blu-rays and UHDs (and a smattering of DVD holdouts) that span the entire sweep of film history, from the work of the Lumiere Bros in 1895 to Terrence Malick’s TREE OF LIFE in 2011 (I don't love modern movies, so that's as recent as my Top Tier gets). I’ve completed this chronological journey twice before: in 2006 when I got my first projector, and then again in 2011 after my wife and I had moved into our house and established my current home theater.

The whole thing takes awhile — about a year and a half, ‘cuz of course it’s not ALL I’m doing with my life. And I’ll still be watching new releases as they come out, and even continue to watch other movies outside of the chronology, whenever we have friends over or simply feel like watching something else — it’s not meant to be an all-consuming chore, after all. But any time I do dedicate myself to watching the next chronological installment, I like to take myself back to that particular moment in history, like an actor falling into a role, and try to feel what these movies felt like to audiences that were watching them when they were “new”. Thus, when titles like KING KONG, GONE WITH THE WIND, BREATHLESS, or 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY arrive, I’m actually able to catch a glimpse of the “original experience”, and enjoy the full impact of these masterpieces as if no one has ever seen them before. It’s really the most amazing way to experience the whole magnificent sweep of cinema history: from silents to talkies, from the studio system to the French New Wave, from the film school auteurs of the 70’s to tent-pole blockbusters.

So tonight I kicked it all off with the wonderful “Landmarks of Early Film” DVD, which contains a collection of Lumiere Shorts dating from 1895, including “Workers Leaving the Factory" and the infamous “Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat”, which terrified audiences upon initial exhibition. The DVD also contains Edwin S. Porter’s THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY from 1903, and D.W. Griffith’s THE GIRL AND HER TRUST from 1912, along with much much more. And of course I capped off the night’s viewing with the magnificent Blu-ray of Georges Melies’ A TRIP TO THE MOON from 1902, restored to its original hand-painted glory. It’s easy to fall back into a sense of wonder at these moving images as they’re paraded up on the big screen. What must people have felt when these films first arrived? Fantastic stuff.

Anyone else want to join me by taking a chronological journey through your own “sub-collection”? I know many of you have thousands of titles… but remember, I’m not even watching MY whole collection; only those titles that represent “Film History” to me — as viewed through the lens of my own personal taste, of course, ‘cuz this sort of thing is never entirely objective. But it’s pretty easy to edit down my own collection and see that Hitchcock’s VERTIGO will be included, whereas XANADU will not. I can’t recommend this experience highly enough; you’ll appreciate cinema in a way you never have before.

Tonight I covered 1895-1912, so next stop for me is the Blu-ray of D.W. Griffith’s epic INTOLERANCE from 1916. What would be first for you?