The Year in Paul: 2003

What I’ve Seen

 

A Mighty Wind

American Wedding

Brother Bear

Bruce Almighty

Cheaper By the Dozen

Daredevil

Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat

Elf

Finding Nemo

Freaky Firday

Goodbye Lenin!

Gothika

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Hulk

Intolerable Cruelty

Kill Bill: Vol. 1

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Mystic River

Old School

Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

The School of Rock

Shortcut to Happiness

The Animatrix

The Corporation

The Fog of War

The Haunted Mansion

The Italian Job

The Jungle Book 2

The Last Samurai

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

The Matrix Reloaded

The Matrix Revolutions

Timeline

Touching the Void

Underworld

X2

36 Total

A mild improvement over 2002, if only because there are more good movies. The amount of crap remains pretty high, and will for a few years after this, I’d imagine. I feel much better about my top five though, and don’t feel the need to name any runners up.

The Year in Paul: 2002

What I’ve Seen

40 Days and 40 Nights

Austin Powers in Goldmember

Big Fat Liar

Blind Spot: Hitler’s Secretary

Catch Me If You Can

Clockstoppers

Gangs of New York

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Hero

Ice Age

In America

Kung Pow: Enter the Fist

Like Mike

Lilo and Stitch

Men in Black II

Minority Report

Mr. Deeds

Orange County

Pinocchio

Pokemon 4

Punch-Drunk Love
Red Dragon

Reign of Fire

Return to Never Land

Scooby-Doo

Snow Dogs

Spider-Man

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams

Star Wars: Episode II—Attack of the Clones

The Bourne Identity

The Count of Monte Cristo

The Emperor’s Club

The Lord of Rings: The Two Towers

The Master of Disguise

The Powerpuff Girls

The Rookie

The Santa Clause 2

The Time Machine

The Tuxedo

Treasure Planet

Tuck Everlasting

Two Weeks Notice

Van Wilder

XXX

44 Total

2002 is the first year in a unfortunate time that will last for another few after this, during which I was finally old enough (12, for most of the year) to start seeing a lot of movies but not old enough to recognize when a movie is going to be, y’know, good. Consequently, I’ve seen a ton of terrible movies from 2002, and not a whole lot of good ones. I mean, look at that list above again. Yikes.

The Year in Paul: 2001

What I’ve Seen

A Beautiful Mind

A Knight’s Tale

American Pie 2

Amelie

Atlantis: The Lost Empire

A Beautiful Mind

Black Hawk Down

Black Knight

Cats & Dogs

Cowboy Bebop: The Movie

Donnie Darko

Dr. Doolittle 2

Enemy at the Gates

Evolution

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

Legally Blonde

Millennium Actress

Monsters, Inc.

Not Another Tean Movie

Ocean’s 11

Pearl Harbor

Planet of the Ape

Recess: School’s Out

Rush Hour 2

Shrek

Spirited Away

Spy Kids

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

The Mark of Cain

The One

The Princess Diaries

The Royal Tenenbaums

Zoolander

34 Total

The Year in Paul: 2000

What I’ve Seen

Almost Famous

American Psycho

Battle Royale

Beautiful

Best in Show

Chicken Run

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Dinosaur

Dungeons & Dragons

Gladiator

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Memento

Miss Congeniality

Mission: Impossible II

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Pitch Black

Remember the Titans

Requiem for a Dream

Rugrats in Paris

Scary Movie

Snatch

The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle

The Emperor’s New Groove

The Endurance

The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas

Titan A.E.
Traffic

Unbreakable

X-Men

29 Total

The Year in Paul: 1999

The long-delayed cinema chronology is back. In honor of the fact that we've finally reached the point where it makes sense to go year-by-year, the series will continue under a new name.

What I’ve Seen

10 Things I Hate About You

All About My Mother

American Beauty

American Pie

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me

Baby Geniuses

Bicentennial Man

Dogma

Election

Fantasia 2000

Fight Club

Galaxy Quest

Inspector Gadget

The Iron Gian

The Matrix

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

My Favorite Martian

Mystery Men

October Sky

Office Space

Pokemon: The First Movie

The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc

The Simple Life of Noah Dearborne

The Sixth Sense

The Virgin Suicides

South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut

Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace

Stuart Little

The Talented Mr. Ripley

Tarzan

Toy Story 2

Wakko’s Wish

The War Zone

32 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology, 1997-1998

What I’ve Seen

1997

Air Bud

Anastasia

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

Boogie Nights

Cats Don’t Dance

Contact

Dante’s Peak

Flubber

Gattaca

George of the Jungle

Good Will Hunting

Hercules

Home Alone 3

Jackie Brown

Life is Beautiful

Liar Liar

Men in Black

Princess Mononoke

Starship Troopers

The Big One

The Boxer

The Game

The Rainmaker

The Sweet Hereafter

The Tango Lesson

Titanic

Wag the Dog

1998

A Night at the Roxbury

Almost Heroes

American History X

Armageddon

Dark City

Elizabeth

Jack Frost

Meet Joe Black

Mulan

My Date with the President’s Daughter

Perfect Blue

Quest for Camelot

Rush Hour

Saving Private Ryan

Shakespeare in Love

Smoke Signals

The Big Lebowski

The Opposite of Sex

The Parent Trap

The Prince of Egypt

The Truman Show

48 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: 1995-1996

What I’ve Seen

1995

Twelve Monkeys

Toy Story

The Usual Suspects

Species

Se7en

Pocahontas

Outbreak

Memories

Ghost in the Shell

GoldenEye

Dead Man Walking

Canadian Bacon

Casper

Braveheart

Balto

Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls

1996

Waiting for Guffman

Trainspotting

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The Birdcage

Swingers

Space Jam

Sgt. Bilko

Scream

Romeo + Juliet

Muppet Treasure Island

Mission: Impossible

Matilda

Jerry Maguire

Independence Day

Happy Gilmore

Hamlet

101 Dalmations

33 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: 1990-1994

What I’ve Seen:

1990

Back to the Future Part III

Dances With Wolves

Die Hard 2

Goodfellas

Home Alone

Presumed Innocent

The Godfather: Part III

The Hunt for Red October

The Rescuers Down Under

1991

An American Tail: Fievel Goes West

Beauty and the Beast

Dead Again

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves

Rock-A-Doodle

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

The Rocketeer

The Silence of the Lambs

1992

A Few Good Men

Aladdin

Glengarry Glen Ross

Honey I Blew Up the Kid

Malcolm X

My Cousin Vinny

Porco Rosso

The Last of the Mohicans

Unforgiven

White Men Can’t Jump

1993

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

Groundhog Day

Ninja Scroll

Jurassic Park

Look Who’s Talking Now

Philadelphia

Robin Hood: Men in Tights

Schindler’s List

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Three Colors: Blue

1994

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

Clerks

Dumb and Dumber

Forrest Gump

Hoop Dreams

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision

Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills

Pulp Fiction

Quiz Show

Speed

The Crow

The Hudsucker Proxy

The Lion King

The Mask

The Santa Clause

The Shawshank Redemption

The Swan Princess

54 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: 1985-1989

What I’ve Seen

1985

Back to the Future

Brazil

1986

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

The Great Mouse Detective

Hoosiers

An American Tail

Three Amigos!

Platoon

Little Shop of Horrors

Castle in the Sky

Aliens

1987

The Chipmunk Adventure

The Untouchables

Full Metal Jacket

Spaceballs

The Brave Little Toaster

The Princess Bride

Wall Street

1988

Bull Durham

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

A Fish Called Wanda

Die Hard

The Land Before Time

Rain Man

Cinema Paradiso

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

Talk Radio

The Naked Gun: From the Files of the Police Squad!

1989

The Abyss

The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids

Back to the Future Part II

Glory

34 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: 1980-1984

What I’ve Seen:

1980

Caddyshack

Airplane

The Empire Strikes Back

1981

Clash of the Titans

Raiders of the Lost Arc

Heavy Metal

1982

E.T.

Blade Runner

Tron

The Scarlet Pimpernel

Tootsie

Gandhi

The Secret of NIMH

1983

The Meaning of Life

Return of the Jedi

Scarface

1984

This is Spinal Tap

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

Streets of Fire

Ghost Busters

Amadeus

The Terminator

Nineteen Eighty-Four

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

24 Total

Paul's Film Chronology: The 1970s

What I’ve Seen

1970

The Aristocats

Patton

1971

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Dirty Harry

A Clockwork Orange

1972

The Godfather

1973

The Exorcist

Robin Hood

Charlotte’s Web

Badlands

1974

Young Frankenstein

The Godfather: Part II

Chinatown

Blazing Saddles

1975

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

The Apple Dumpling Gang

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Barry Lyndon

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

1976

Taxi Driver

Rocky

Network

All the President’s Men

1977

The Rescuers

Star Wars: A New Hope

Saturday Night Fever
Cross of Iron

1978

The Star Wars Holiday Special

Animal House

1979

Manhattan

Life of Brian

Apocalypse Now

Alien

32 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: The 1960s

What I’ve Seen

1960:

Pycho

Inheret the Wind

Spartacus

1961:

One Hundred and One Dalmation

Judgement at Nuremberg

1962:

To Kill a Mockingbird

Lawrence of Arabia

Dr. No

1963:

The Sword in the Stone

From Russia with Love

1964:

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Neindeer

Mary Poppins

Goldfinger

Dr. Strangelove

1965:

The Sound of Music

1966:

A Man for All Seasons

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

1967:

The Jungle Book

1968:

Yellow Submarine

Romeo and Juliet

Barbarella

2001: A Space Odyssey

1969:

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Age of Consent

24 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: The 1950s

What I've Seen

1950:

Cinderella

Rashoman

1951:

A Streetcar Named Desire

Ace in the Hole
Alice in Wonderland

1953:

Roman Holiday

Niagara

Peter Pan

1954:

Seven Samurai

Rear Window

On the Waterfront

1955:

Les Diabolique

Lady and the Tramp

1957

Nights of Cabiria

12 Angry Men

Paths of Glory

The Seventh Seal

1958

Vertigo

1959

North by Northwest

Ben-Hur

The 400 Blows

Some Like it Hot

21 Total

Paul's Cinema Chronology: Film Until the 1950s

Today I’m debuting a new feature, which I’ll call Paul's Cinema Chronology unless and until I think of something better. The idea is for me to write about the movies I’ve seen in a given year. If I have any specific thoughts on the year I’ll give them, although I doubt I’ll have many. The plan is to list all of the movies I’ve seen from that particular year, then give a top and maybe bottom five with a brief explanation (only a couple of sentences), and finally to mention any notable films from that year that I haven’t yet seen.

Obviously this will be a long-running series, but it won’t be quite as bad as it might sound. For the first few installments I’ll be conglomerating the years; until the late 90s I usually have seen only a handful of movies from any given year. The plan is to cover everything up to 1950 in this first (and probably shortest) entry, then have one each for the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I’ll probably do two to cover the 80s, and then one that covers the first half of the 90s before I get to year-by-year. Also, the point of this isn’t any sort of essay on how a particular time period affected film history. I might possibly write a few things, as I mentioned above (about a particularly interesting Oscar race, for example), but for the most part this is strictly about me. So there.