My Movie Collection - 110/802
On the 31st January 2016, I started a project that I swore to myself I would finish: I would watch all of the movies that I own in chronological order - whether I’d seen them a dozen times or never before. Anybody that knows me know that movies make my world go round - they are moments in time, milestones in our life, the greatest company, lessons we have learned, relationships we have formed, and, most importantly, empathy that is created and maintained for the rest of our lives.
When I was a kid, I collected films on VHS. Then, when times and formats changed around when I was about 12, I had to start from scratch - and refuse to do so again with Blu-Rays. So I have been collecting movies on DVD for the past 14 years, and in doing so have collated over 800 - some I worship; some were gifts; some were free; and some were found on the street (no joke). There are still about 70 that I haven’t seen, and many that I’ve only seen once - hence why I wanted to do this project.
I’ve been viewing and ranking the films in order on my Instagram page in the hope that it will spark disputes and topics of conversation with fellow film lovers. Some beloved highlights on the list so far include It’s A Wonderful Life (a film that I will never ever tire of or remain dry-eyed during), Little Women (a childhood favourite), Hans Christian Anderson (a film that I would watch on my beloved grandma’s knee as she would sing along to every song), The Night of the Hunter (haunting beyond belief), Vertigo and Rear Window (I mean, come on), 12 Angry Men (to which there would never have been The Accused or Philadelphia), To Kill a Mockingbird and The Sound of Music - both of which induce immense nostalgia and joy like you wouldn’t believe. Whereas new discoveries include Captain Courageous, Lonely Are the Brave and Zulu - which I think is just phenomenal. One of the biggest revelations from doing this project so far is that I have discovered that I’m really not a fan of Audrey Hepburn; I find her a one-trick-pony, a bland actress and, whilst beautiful, would rather watch Bette Davis, Vivien Leigh or Doris Day any day - but it’s discoveries like this that are why I'm doing this.
So in 6 months, I have only managed to watch 110 out of 802 movies - so looks to be about 4 years until I finish this project (maybe longer with new additions set to be in place). Here is my list and ranking of the movies I own so far. I encourage oppositions, agreements and discussions and if you’d like to accompany me on my journey, then you can follow me on Instagram @victoriarussell44
Dracula (1931) dir. Tod Browning- 7/10
Freaks (1932) dir. Tod Browning - 7.5/10
Captain Courageous (1937) dir. Victor Fleming - 7.5/10
Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs (1937) dir. William Cottrell, David Hand - 8/10
Jezebel (1938) dir. William Wyler- 7/10
Dark Victory (1939) dir. Edmund Goulding - 6/10
Gone with the Wind (1939) dir. Victor Fleming - 9/10
The Wizard of Oz (1939) dir. Victor Fleming - 8/10
The Grapes of Wrath' (1940) dir. John Ford - 6.5/10
The Great Dictator (1940) dir. Charlie Chaplin - 7/10
The Letter (1940) dir. William Wyler - 6/10
Rebecca (1940) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 7/10
Citizen Kane (1941) dir. Orson Wells - 8/10
Dumbo (1941) dir. Samuel Armstrong - 7/10
Casablanca (1942) dir. Michael Curtiz - 7/10
Now, Voyager (1942) dir. Iring Rapper - 8/10
Shadow of a Doubt (1943) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 6/10
Double Indemnity (1944) dir. Billy Wilder - 7.5/10
Laura (1944) - 7/10 Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) dir. Vincent Minnelli - 7.5/10
Mr. Skeffington (1944) dir. Vincent Sherman - 7/10
Brief Encounter (1945) dir. David Lean - 7/10
The Big Sleep (1946) dir. Howard Hawks - 6/10
Gilda (1946) dir. Charles Vidor - 7.5/10
It's a Wonderful Life (1946) dir. Frank Capra - 9/10
Easter Parade (1948) dir. Charles Walters- 7/10
Portrait of Jennie (1948) dir. William Dieterle - 6/10
The Red Shoes (1946) dir.Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger - 8/10
Rope (1948) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 7/10
The Heiress (1949) dir.William Wyler - 7/10
Little Women (1949) dir. Mervyn LeRoy - 8/10
The Third Man (1949) dir. Carol Reed - 8/10
White Heat (1949) dir. Raoul Walsh - 6/10
All About Eve (1950) dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz - 8/10
Cinderella (1950) dir. Clyde Geronimi - 7/10
Sunset Boulevard (1950) dir. Billy Wilder - 7/10
The African Queen (1951) dir. John Houston - 7/10
Alice in Wonderland (1951) dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson - 7/10
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) dir. Elia Kazan - 7/10
Hans Christian Andersen (1952) dir. Charles Vidor - 7.5/10
Singin' in the Rain (1952) dir. Stanley Donen - 8.5/10
Calamity Jane (1953) - dir. David Butler 7.5/10
Peter Pan (1953) dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson - 6/10
Roman Holiday (1953) dir. William Wyler - 7/10
Tokyo Story (1953) dir. Yasujirō Ozu - 8/10
Rear Window (1954) dir. Alfred Hitchcock- 9/10
Sabrina (1954) dir. Billy Wilder - 5/10
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) dir. Stanley Donen - 7.5/10
Seven Samurai (1954) dir. Akira Kurosawa - 8/10
All That Heaven Allows (1955) dir. Douglas Sirk - 7/10
East of Eden (1955) dir. Elia Kazan - 7/10
Les Diaboliques (1955) dir. Henri-Georges Clouzot - 8/10
Love is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955) dir. Henry King, Otto Lang - 6/10
Love Me or Leave Me (1955) dir. Charles Vidor - 6.5/10
The Night of the Hunter (1955) dir. Charles Laughton - 8/10
Rebel Without a Cause (1955) dir. Nicholas Ray - 7.5/10
Summertime (1955) dir. David Lean - 6.5/10
Giant (1956) dir. George Stevens - 7.5/10
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 7.5/10
The Searchers (1956) dir. John Ford - 7.5/10
The Ten Commandments (1956) dir. Cecil B. DeMille - 7/10
12 Angry Men (1957) dir. Sidney Lumet - 9.5/10
An Affair to Remember (1957) dir. Leo McCarey - 7/10
Funny Face (1957) dir. Stanley Donen - 6/10
Paths of Glory (1957) dir. Stanley Kubrick - 7.5/10
The Seventh Seal (1957) dir. Ingmar Bergman - 8/10
Wild Strawberries (1957) dir. Ingmar Bergman - 8/10
Tom Thumb (1958) dir. George Pal - 6.5/10
Touch of Evil (1958) dir. Orson Wells - 7/10
Vertigo (1957) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 10/10
The 400 Blows (1959) dir. François Truffaut - 8.5/10
House on Haunted Hill (1959) dir. William Castle - 7/10
Pillow Talk (1959) dir. Michael Gordon - 8/10
Sleeping Beauty (1959) dir. Clyde Geronimi - 7/10
Some Like It Hot (1959) dir. Billy Wilder - 9.5/10
The Apartment (1960) dir. Billy Wilder - 9/10
A Bout de Soufflé (1960) dir. Jean Luc Godard - 6.5/10
Peeping Tom (1960) dir. Michael Powell - 7.5/10
Psycho (1960) dir. Alfred Hitchcock - 9/10
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) dir. Karel Reisz - 7.5/10
Shoot the Pianist (1960) dir. François Truffaut - 7/10
Spartacus (1960) dir. Stanley Kubrick - 7.5/10
The Virgin Spring (1960) dir. Ingmar Bergman - 7.5/10
Blue Hawaii (1961) dir. Norman Taurog - 6.5/10
Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) dir. Blake Edwards - 7.5/10
Lover Come Back (1961) dir. Delbert Mann - 7/10
West Side Story (1961) dir.Jerome Robbins, Robert Wise - 7.5/10
The Young Ones (1961) dir. Sidney J. Furie - 5.5/10
Cape Fear (1962) dir. J. Lee Thompson - 7.5/10
Cléo From 5 to 7 (1962) dir. Agnès Varda - 7.5/10
Days of Wine and Roses (1962) dir. Blake Edwards - 7.5/10
Jules & Jim (1962) dir. François Truffaut - 7/10
Jumbo (1962) dir. Billy Rose - 6.5/10
Lawrence of Arabia (1962) dir. David Lean - 7.5/10
Lonely Are the Brave (1962) dir. David Miller - 7.5/10
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) dir. Robert Mulligan - 9/10
Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) dir. Robert Aldrich - 8/10
8 1/2 (1963) dir. Federico Fellini - 7/10
Cleopatra (1963) dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz - 6/10
Move Over Darling (1963) dir. Michael Gordon - 7.5/10
Summer Holiday (1963) dir. Peter Yates - 6/10
The Thrill of It All (1963) dir. Norman Jewison - 7/10
A Fistful of Dollars (1964) dir. Sergio Leone - 7/10
A Hard Day's Night (1964) dir. Richard Lester - 7.5/10
Mary Poppins (1964) dir. Robert Stevenson - 7.5/10
Paris When It Sizzles (1964) dir. Richard Quine - 4/10
Send Me No Flowers (1964) dir. Norman Jewison - 6.5/10
Zulu (1964) dir. Cy Endfield - 8/10
For A Few Dollars More (1965) dir. Sergio Leone - 7/10
The Sound of Music (1965) dir. Robert Wise - 8.5/10