Have You Been Influenced By This Board? Movie-Wise?

It might be hard to know, but try to think of your favorite 50-100 movies before joining this place, and then trying to see where you are at now. Even without message boards, chances are we all grow, anyway, but it could be accelerated here, and getting to know people and their tastes might help us pivot.

I'm sure I have, but maybe not on a large extent. I seem to watch recommendations from those who's tastes are similar to mine on here, and if I see something I haven't seen, I think "Chances are I'll like it". I'm constantly adding to my IMDB watch-list, which has risen to almost 3,000, but there are many I can't distinguish from how or where the recommendations came from. I do note those who have recommended me great movies, and I definitely expedite their suggestions, many times more than my own, since I'm very indecisive lately, and very quick to turn off a movie within 20-30 minutes (like today). I'm easily distracted by the news, this board (lol), and other things.

It just hit me that I do actually seem to watch movies I'd probably never hear of after seeing a review, or even a poster that has a woman who has a peculiar face. I'm thinking of movies made this century, but I notice they're all from outside of the US.

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Definitely. I watch more varied movies.

I suppose I like mainstream fare a little less, or at least I'm a bit pickier about it, but what I like is that interacting here hasn't made me like "fun" films less, really, it's just made me like more types of films more often. Really just a net gain.

It's also just gotten me in the habit of thinking like a capital-c Critic. It's made me think about why I did or didn't like something more, almost out of reflexive anticipation of having to post about it at some point later.

I owe a huge lot of my growth as a film fan to each and every single forum where I've posted. From the EW/Pathfinder forums back in late 90s/early 2000s, to the small family we had at AboutFilm.com, or the great exchanges with the guys/gals from RT/Corrie. After only a couple of months here, I'm sure this place will be no different.

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Definitely. A prime example would be the countdown preps which often completely alter my viewing patterns for a few months. There are also the many films I've watched over the past few years that I'd likely not even have been cognisant of without having seen them mentioned on here (I don't generally read/watch trailers, release schedules, critics etc.).

As to movie selections, probably not. I've picked up a few names here and there that I might never have known, but I still like what I like.

I guess the most influence has come in tactic and formality when writing about a movie relative to my experience with that movie. Back on RT I'd post a review (sort of) and that be that. Here, there is push back and an implied expectation to be able to defend my point of view. That has forced me to be more deliberate in my words rather than posting opinionated throwaways and really takes me back to college critique days. I miss that greatly, debating and even arguing points and references with others. That's good, and it's not to say that I've had serious arguments over movie opinions, though there have been exceptions with a few long running political tangents (for the record, my views on last Star Wars trilogy are fact and without debate. obviously).

The irony here is that outside of my first year or two, I've not really posted much of anything worth reading. Not that I posted anything of worth then either! What is it they say? "It takes half as long as a relationship to get over that relationship." Something like that? If that's true, I guess I may need another year or two to process my grief of those political threads.

Back to the OP, I remember commenting at one point on how refreshingly formal so many conversations have been on a handful of movie threads. Reading the dialogue, calling each other out on details of criticism rather than just letting low hanging fruit drop. That's something I've not experienced online very often and really enjoy following along, even if I'm not participating. With my short fuses, it's probably for the best I only spectate for a while longer.

But I dig it. I dig it a lot and I'm glad there is an outlet, here, when I need it.

*edit*
Chyp's post reminded me that the ever-so-often "monthly" music competitions have opened a lot of musical doors for me. Those are quick and fairly relaxing. I've taken part in only a few movie countdowns or Hall of Fames, but that seems to require more time than I'm willing to devote so I don't participate very often. Weird, I guess, being a movie forum and I'm taking away music. eh?

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Have I watched a lot of diversified movies because of MoFo and the Countdowns and especially all the HoFs? Yes.
Has it changed my movie taste? No.

I can say that yes I was influenced, especially finding out about some classic older movies about which I knew, but I found them classified and enumerated in here. Especially those from the Lists some of you created.
So since I joined, I saw like 3 new (new for me) Alfred Hitchcock films like North by Northwest, Rear Window & Vertigo, because I've seen only The Birds and Psycho... watched finally Aguirre, the Wrath of God which I wanted to see but haven't done it so far.
Also found out about Fitzcaraldo, I've seen Citizen Kane today; and other classic "must watch" movies which I found and saved so I can watch them in the following days.
Had and have a place or two where I can find these films, but I also watch other new films or documentaries (freshly appeared) , I also tried to post a few for others, just in case they have not seen them yet.
Since the beginnings I was a great fan of American English language films.... growing up with them - even since before the VHS appeared, watching all kind of films which you couldn't see in cinemas; but later I started watching French, Italian, Brazilian, Spanish, Hebrew movies - almost anything I could get my hands on if they seemed interesting and worth watching.
Being in a community like this is a plus because of the privilege you have of sharing and exchanging information and eventually filter what you're interested in, or like so much.
Also you can find all sort of people from simple funny ones to more sophisticated ones. They'll always be a great source of information and great pals to have fun with.
Diversity was always a great thing and having more people in one place it can be only helpful and fun.

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My taste in horror and comedy hasn't changed but otherwise I watch and prefer completely different movies now. It could just be that I never knew before what was out there.

I haven't been on this board a while, so not here, but back on RottenTomatoes/Corrierino, absolutely. I used to be a very surface level move watcher when I started in 2011, and would rate movies as I watched them and read people's reactions to my and others' reviews. From that, I learned so much about the ways in which you can appreciate a movie and all the things you can get from them. When I dislike a movie now, It's for more sophisticated reasons than I used to, and I can find something to enjoy in nearly every movie that puts in any kind of effort.

I have watched a lot of movies that I never would have watched without this forum, but it hasn't changed my favorite types of movies.

I still love rom-coms and musicals more than most other types of movies, but between the HoFs, countdowns, recommendations, etc., I have watched movies that I never even would have considered watching on my own. I've even watched horror movies for the horror countdown, and I'm currently watching foreign language movies for the upcoming foreign language countdown. (Those of you who know my taste in movies know that I rarely watch those types of movies.)

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OPEN FLOOR.

This board taught me that movies made after 1980 are the only good ones.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

I remember browsing around once, and seeing "Great Movies of the 70s" (or something like that) and saw the title and a picture of "A Woman Under The Influence" and it looked appealing, because at that time, I had only seen "Minnie and Moskowitz" which I had done years earlier, but it had a big impact on me - I remember that day well in 2005. So I watched it that same day and LOVED it... I just thought of three German movies from this century I liked, as a result of seeing "Rate The Last Movie" thread -- "The Forest For the Trees", "Paradise: Love", and "The Golden Glove" (not as great, but decent).


I wonder if people watch older movies who were only exposed to newer ones? If so, which ones did you like before, and which older movies did you like. How was that transition?

I think after 30+ HoFs it's hard not to feel influenced by all the different movies people around here like! I found new directors, new movements, countless new favorites... I still like what I liked before, at least for the most part, but I'm way more demanding on what I want to see and what I consider to be a good film! My rating system is drastically different than it was almost 7 years ago when I came here and a huge chunk of my Top 100 is composed of movies I heard about here or that I had to watch for the HoFs.

I think this encapsulates it pretty well. And I think this is what communities like this can and should do, in a nutshell.

I guess I have a little less patience for predictable or boilerplate stuff than I used to, but it's more that I'm aware of my options and it's just less likely I'll want the same stuff I used to on a given day. If you only have two foods available to eat you might strongly prefer one, and eat it a lot, but if you can eat any kind of food you become more sensitive to subtle differences and gradations of flavor and you'll simultaneously still "like" what you liked before, but not choose it as often.

I can't pinpoint where this board has influenced my top 100 at this point; however, I feel confident that if I were to watch all the films that I have read about that it would change my top 100. It's nice to get feedback from others also (both positive and negative)

Coming to this board has made me watch several films I might not have on my own, and even has opened up my eyes to several films I hadn’t heard of. Especially from the last 20 years where there are a rising tide of films released on a yearly basis.
The HOF is definitely one reason. So is Jabs yearly challenges. Ditto Siddon’s October challenge.
Jinnistans and Minio’s top 100 and 300 lists respectively, have also introduced several film I might not have stumbled upon left to my own devices.
And then there are the film movements I hadn’t heard of yet (Yugoslav Blackwave, Imperfect Cinema, and Cinema Novo for example), That I have discovered.

I owe it all to this site.

I've certainly been changed in the way that I watch more movies outside of my comfort zone.
Joining MoFo years back, I was all sci-fi... action.

I still am, but horror, and more arty movies, and certainly more older movies and the love they receive has tilted me to appreciate the movies outside of my own favourite genres and decades a lot more.

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No. Not at all.

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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.