As the year quickly comes to a close, it is time to start thinking about next year’s Blind Spot Series. Created four years ago by James McNally, and championed by Ryan McNeil, the series is designed to encourage film lovers to catch up on films that they have been procrastinating on seeing for some reason or another. Though I came up three films shy of reaching my 12 film goal for 2015, I have not given up on my commitment to see Incendies, Withnail & I and The Spirit of the Beehive. I simply moved them to next year’s list and surrounded them with another crop of diverse films. Here are the films I plan to watch as part of the 2016 Blind Spot Series:
La Jetée (Chris Marker, 1962)
Incendies (Denis Villeneuve, 2010)
Daughters of the Dust (Julie Dash, 1991)
The Spirit of the Beehive (Víctor Erice, 1973)
The Bridge on the River Kwai (David Lean, 1957)
Rope (Alfred Hitchcock, 1948)
Withnail & I (Bruce Robinson, 1987)
Martyrs (Pascal Laugier, 2008)
La Strada (Fedrico Fellini, 1954)
The Big Sleep (Howard Hawks, 1946)
49th Parallel (Michael Powell, 1941)
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (Ashutosh Gowariker, 2001)
What films are currently in your cinematic blind spot?
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Cinema Axis 
Make sure you get the brain bleach out for Martyrs. lol That’s the only one I’ve seen on your list.
I have heard that Martyrs is quite an experience to say the least. I will be sure to have the bleach by my side while watching. Lol
The ones I’ve seen are: La Jetee, Incendies, The Spirit of the Beehive, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Withnail & I, La Strada, and 49th Parallel. Here’s my list.
I have only seen four from your list (The Exorcist, The Killer, Das Boot and Roman Holiday) but look forward to catching up with the rest someday.
Excellent list, Courtney. I’ve only seen La Jetee, Rope, Bridge on the River Kwai, and The Big Sleep, but I can vouch for all of those for sure. La Jatee is such a brilliant sci-fi story, and I love the mind-boggling plot of The Big Sleep. Looking forward to reading your thoughts!
Thanks, Dan. I have been procrastinating on La Jetee for years, so I am excited to finally cross it of the list. The Big Sleep is a title that I kept seeing on lists of top noir films. Figured it was time to see what all the fuss was about.
Oh you’ve chosen some great ones! Lagaan was actually on my list this year! My goodness is it long, but worth it hopefully. I’ve also seen Rope, 49th Parallel, and Withnail & I (the little cottage they go to was filmed really close to where I’m from! Don’t worry that’s not spoiling anything haha) enjoy! 🙂
I am slowly trying to fill my Bollywood blind spot (which admittedly is massive) so Lagaan is a must-see for me. I will be sure to give your review a read after I have jotted down my own thoughts on the film.
You have some amazing films on this list! Martyrs is brutal, I’m looking forward to reading your write-up on that one.
I have a feeling I will be watching Martyrs through my fingers as my hands shield my eyes. Lol. Definitely going to need something light and fluffy to watch after that one.
I haven’t seen Daughters of the Dust or Martyrs, but of the other 10 Incendies is definitely the hardest hitting. Kwai would be next. Withnail and I didn’t do much for me, and I surprisingly didn’t get much from La Strada, either. 49th Parallel is more interesting now as a piece of propaganda and for its cast and location shooting.
I hope you enjoy all of them.
It seems a lot of folks are not too keen on Withnail and I. May need to lower my expectations slightly on that one.
Have seen five from your list, which are all well worth watching. Have published my own choices recently.
I’m doing Blind spot series and have been really enjoying it. So far I’ve reviewed and watched for first time Blade Runner and Tron. Rest planning on
Porco Roso
Dark Knight Returns
Tales from Earthsea
Yentl
400 Blows
Unbroken
The Jerk
Looper
Talk to Her
The Ref
Very strong list of films. I still need to see Unbroken, Tales from Earthsea and Yentl.