Sometime in May, I decided to watch a movie every day in June from the year 1993: a fun assignment for myself. "30 in 30" felt right, a play on 30 for 30. I teach and practice a style of yoga where completing a "30-day challenge" was the norm. So, I spent 57 hours watching movies in June.
I realized I had a busy June despite it being my "summer break." Most months, I'm not home every day to do something like this, and the academic year is too busy. I wanted last summer to be "my" summer, and it wasn't. Therefore, this project was part of my attempt to claim this summer and follow what "feels right" each day. I worked my three part-time jobs 25 out of 30 days. Most days, I woke up at 6 AM to watch a movie and then went to work. Quite a few days, this project gave me a reason to get out of bed.
Inspired by my use of constraints in photography, I appreciated the limitations of a single calendar year. I was going to pick 1993 or 1995, but the former has two of my favorite films in it. Also, I was nine in 1993. I don't have any memories from 1993. This entire venture was a historical and escapist effort to learn something about the year. Escapism is one of the reasons I study history; I appreciate the opportunity to imagine other times and places. And, given the present, escaping to the past seemed appealing.
I reviewed the list of films released in the US in 1993 and cast a wide net to begin. I searched for films I had seen and those I had not, as well as directors and actors I was familiar with. I kept the day-to-day selection loose and dependent upon my mood. At one point, I ended up on a run of period pieces. At another point, I went down an Oscar path. A week before it was over, I revisited the entire 1993 list to make sure there were no glaring omissions. I didn't want the month to end and was worried I'd make a wrong choice in the last week. Ultimately, there can't be wrong choices, but by the end, I was pretty invested. The hope was to find surprises, revisit films I thought I knew, and learn something about filmmaking in 1993.
The biggest takeaway is that there were so many excellent films in one year. Today, I feel pleased if three films in a year are exemplary and memorable. Articles about the decline of Hollywood have been around for years, and all of it felt true and evident when comparing the films of 1993 and the 2010-2020s: the rise of Marvel, the decline of moviegoing, the rise of streamers, the cost of going to the movies and making films. There aren't as many films made, and certainly not as many good ones. If you search "the end of Hollywood," you'll find a raft of explainer articles.
The most notable difference I found was a "sense of place." The 1993 films were shot (at least in part) in real locations; the city is a character in the film, grounding it in authenticity. The opening helicopter shot of a city often establishes it from the start. One can feel the actors living in and navigating a genuine space: San Francisco (2), Nashville, Panama City Beach, FL, Chicago, Western Mass, Watts, Philadelphia, Memphis, the Caymans, Columbia, SC, Durham, NC, Saint Louis, MO, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Austin, Minneapolis, Woodstock, IL, Manor, TX. The standards, LA and NY, were only a total of three films.
Further, the fact that these were pre-digital films, "shot on film," made me feel like the whole thing was more real and honest. I'm likely to say that, given my bias toward film, but today, certain directors only shoot on film for particular reasons related to urgency, focus, and aesthetics. For all the cliché reasons that people (me) talk about shooting on film, the same applies to movies. The sense of importance is higher, and the pressure is greater. And there's an imperfection to it. Some of the takes aren't perfect, but the flaws make it real. Finally, I noticed better editing. I feel that all films today could benefit from a stronger edit. Editing is a dying art.
Over the month, I began to categorize the films in my head. Here's the abbreviated recap:
Surprises/Hidden Gems: The Thing Called Love, The Program, In the Line of Fire, Tombstone, King of the Hill, Fearless, Shortcuts, Menace II Society, Ruby in Paradise
To a degree, the "Surprises" and "Oscars-Nominated" categories were the point of this entire month. I wanted to find things I didn't know existed or had no prior knowledge of. Those "blank-slate" films were the most enjoyable experiences. I had no idea if they would be very good, and the ones I loved the most had a personal resonance for me. There were two female-led movies that I adored: The Thing Called Love and Ruby in Paradise. They are both coming-of-age films: one is about trying to become a singer-songwriter, and the other is simply about figuring out life. Ruby in Paraside is Ashley Judd's first film, and it's perfect. I cried a little.
The Program was also deeply personal; I should have expected a movie about a college football program to be so relatable. It's the best college football film I've ever seen. James Caan mailed in his performance, but the topics covered—academic integrity, steroid use, bar fights, hanging out in the weight room, and staying in hotels before the game—were all accurate to my childhood. Also, the gameplay was the best I've seen in a film, though the game plan often made little sense.
King of the Hill was another surprise: a kid manages to survive during the Great Depression without his family, directed by Steven Soderberg. On paper, I shouldn't have enjoyed this film (a historical drama starring a child), but it was beautiful. In the Line of Fire was fantastic; I have a soft spot for action/thrillers, and this one is well-acted (John Malkovich, yes), and the premise just works. Fearless was a complete surprise; Jeff Bridges survives a plane crash and thinks he's invincible. The film alternates between loud and quiet and asks some of the most profound questions about the meaning of life. Short Cuts had been on my list for a while; Robert Altman's three-hour ensemble piece. It's brilliant and clearly an inspiration for many films that followed. Finally, Menace II Society is excellent. The Hughes Brothers, then twenty-one years old, directed it. It's a gritty feat.
Oscar-nominated and felt like I should watch them: Philadelphia, Shadowlands, The Age of Innocence, The Remains of the Day, Searching for Bobby Fischer, What's Eating Gilbert Grape
The Oscars's category was hit or miss. I was happy to have finally seen Philadelphia, but it's more historically significant than good or enjoyable. I preferred Remains of the Day to The Age of Innocence. Michelle Pfieffer felt entirely miscast and had zero chemistry with Daniel Day-Lewis. Shadowlands was thought-provoking, and having taught C.S. Lewis, I was into it. Searching for Bobby Fischer was sweet but didn't entirely live up to my expectations. Finally, What's Eating Gilbert Grape is problematic, then and now. Beyond the fact that most of it doesn't age well, it's not great for a number of other reasons.
I was too young when I first saw them (and can barely remember them): The Fugitive, For Love or Money, So I Married an Axe Murderer, Dave, The Firm, The Pelican Brief
This category was quite fun for me. I had seen these films, but I had no recollection of them at all. And they were all very good. I enjoyed The Pelican Brief more so than The Firm (I read both books when I was probably 12); the plot of The Pelican Brief (two Supreme Court Justices are murdered) is more interesting than the plot of The Firm. And Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington are more captivating to watch on screen than Tom Cruise, Gene Hackman (despite my love of Hackman), and Jeanne Tripplehorn, somehow. So I Married an Axe Murderer is Mike Myers 101. It's all there and hilarious. Dave is one of the best films ever; I didn't remember this film, and I smiled throughout the whole thing. The Fugitive is as good as ever but a little long. And For Love or Money is a charming and fun romantic comedy.
Watched in the past five years and enjoyed: Demolition Man, Indecent Proposal, True Romance
I watched all of these in the summer of 2020. My memory was a bit hazy. Demolition Man is a piece of genius. It should be studied for its prescience brilliance. Indecent Proposal is a film for adults, and I wish we had more movies like this, just fun, conversation-starting, sexual thrillers. True Romance is as excellent as the first time.
Fine: Malice, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Twenty Bucks, Point of No Return.
Malice is absolutely wild; it's essentially a horror film. It earned bonus points for being filmed in the part of Western Mass I used to live in. Manhattan Murder Mystery was sufficiently and predictably Woody Allen. I thought I had seen it (I confused it with Broadway Danny Rose), but I hadn't. Twenty Bucks stars Brendan Fraser and follows one twenty-dollar bill throughout the film. It's fine. Point of No Return was rather annoying to me; it was the only film I actively didn't enjoy. Some gender-related things were off for me.
All-Timers in my top-five most rewatched: Groundhog Day, Dazed and Confused
I saved these for the final two days: a reward of sorts. I watched Groundhog Day with the director's commentary by Harold Ramis. It's not a particularly notable commentary, as far as this genre goes; the ability to "solo pod" or monologue wasn't a well-developed skill in 2008 for the 15th Anniversary DVD edition. But it's a perfect movie; it simply is.
My brother introduced me to Dazed and Confused on my last day of middle school. I learned he saw it at Brown when it came out in the fall of 1993. He held onto it for five years and showed it to me to correspond with the plot of the film. We quote this movie to each other nonstop. His son, my nephew, joined to close out the month, and we showed it to him for the first time. It felt like a full-circle family moment.
Overall, this project served as a reminder that you can cultivate any habit you desire. On July 1st, I felt an urge to watch a movie. My day felt incomplete without it. I also noticed that my attention span increased. I went to see F1 on the third, and it felt shorter than two hours and thirty-five minutes (though, of course, I think it could have been edited down). As attention spans wane, and watching a three-minute reel at 2x feels excessively long, it was enjoyable to sit and watch a whole movie. To be in the "present moment," each day for a certain amount of time, felt great. I certainly need more of that.
Ratings and order watched below, based on the Letterboxd scale (0-5).
1 So I Married an Axe Murderer - 3 1/2
2 The Fugitive - 3 1/2
3 For Love or Money - 2 1/2
4 Dave - 4
5 The Thing Called Love - 3
6 Malice - 2 1/2
7 Demolition Man - 3 1/2
8 The Remains of the Day - 3 1/2
9 The Age of Innocence - 3
10 Shadowlands - 3 1/2
11 Philadelphia - 3 1/2
12 The Program - 2 1/2
13 The Firm - 3
14 Indecent Proposal - 3
15 Point of No Return - 1 1/2
16 Tombstone - 3 1/2
17 In the Line of Fire - 3 1/2
18 King of the Hill - 4
19 The Pelican Brief - 3
20 Searching for Bobby Fischer - 3 1/2
21 Fearless - 3 1/2
22 Manhattan Murder Mystery - 3
23 Short Cuts - 4
24 Twenty Bucks - 2 1/2
25 Menace II Society - 4
26 Ruby in Paradise - 4
27 What's Eating Gilbert Grape 3 1/2
28 True Romance - 4
29 Groundhog Day - 5
30 Dazed and Confused - 5
N.B. Films I skipped: Schindler's List (seen and had recently watched The Pianist), Jurassic Park, The Piano, Mrs. Doubtfire, Sleepless in Seattle (all seen in the previous two years).
On the list but didn't get to: Carlito's Way, Blood In Blood Out, A Bronx Tale, Cliffhanger, The Nightmare Before Christmas.