Doctor Who Title Movies Challenge: Done

Almost a year ago, I gave myself an odd movie-watching challenge - the theme: Movies That Share Titles with Doctor Who Stories. 72 movies were identified, and though there are nine I could not find (or affordably find), I am ready to throw in the towel and say "good enough".

It's been, after all, a year of scouring YouTube for old, lost TV movies, and getting accounts from various streaming services that host terrible B-movies, and on occasion, springing for a DVD or online rental. As you can imagine, choosing what movies to watch based on titles alone, and Doctor Who titles at that (which might favor horror films), has not necessarily yielded the best movie-watching experience. Gems were few and far between, which is why I'm not so sad to see the challenge end.

It's worth mentioning those gems, however:
Reign of Terror was a stylish film noir take on the French Revolution.
The Savages had name actors and a thoughtful story about putting one's aged parent in a home.
Watching War Games again was nostalgic fun.
There was an Argento film in Inferno.
Sea Devils, an uneven but amusing Rock Hudson vehicle.
Os Mutantes (The Mutants), a Portugese indie film about disaffected youth.
42, a solid Jackie Robinson biopic.
The Claudette Colbert screwball comedy, Midnight.
The Lodger, a silent era Alfred Hithcock classic.
Hong Kong's Cold War, not quite the next Infernal Affairs, but still interesting.
The endearing French comedy Un drĂ´le de paroissien, AKA Heaven Sent.
1975's beauty pageant satire, Smile.
And Oxygen, a pretty smart neo-noir with Adrien Brody and Maura Tierney.

Sometimes, a movie was so bad that it made for good dinner conversation, so shout-outs to Terminus (with Johnny Hallyday and Karen Allen), Mysterious Planet, and Runaway Bride. Most were middle-of-the-road and forgettable. There are few I actually regretted specifically seeing, but when I take into account the time spent to research, find and watch these things, the above baker's dozen doesn't seen to justify the effort. It was fun to do the TARDIS bit in the reviews, but that was slim compensation.

So will I get myself into another movie-watching challenge? Not yet. I don't really have a "special idea" for one, and I think I'd rather spend my movie time trying to clear my unwatched DVD shelf, my DVRed TCM movies, and the films cued in the various streaming services I subscribe to. That should help with the overall quality of the material covered in This Week in Geek, at least.

But you know me, a stupid idea is bound to strike SOMEtime...

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