One Last Time
Something interesting has been happening over the past couple of years while I watch movies, I've begun to proclaim, "That'll be the last time I ever watch that." I've always been a guy who loves to revisit movies I enjoy. Coming up in the VHS/cable era, it wasn't unusual to watch the same film a dozen times, just based on availability. But as I've gotten older and I've accepted that my time is finite, I take a closer look at how I spend my time, particularly what I read/watch and if I'm enjoying it or not.
For a long time, I'd revisit the same films annually, or specific franchises every few years. I might watch all of the Halloween movies yearly and the The Terminators every three years. But as I've racked up the views, and as I've realized I have no one to impress but myself, I've come to accept that when I watch some of these movies, even ones I once considered favorites, it may be my final time watching them.
Recently, I rewatched the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. While overall it was an enjoyable experience revisiting the films, it did help me rank the films in my head, determine what I appreciated about them, and then decide that if I ever get an itch to see a Freddy movie, I'll know which one to watch (I'm going with Dream Master, FYI).
I have begun a Friday the 13th rewatch and I plan to bounce through some of my favorite horror franchises over the next year or so, but I know that these rewatches will be my final watches of many of these films. It's time to thank them for the entertainment (or frustration) and put them to bed. There's a whole world of entertainment out there yet to be discovered and I need to only spend time on things that I truly enjoy before my time on Earth is done.
A very incomplete list of movies I think I may have watched for the final time:
Star Wars (all of them)
Star Trek I-VI
The Terminator Franchise
Gremlins I-II
All of the Marvel Movies
Superman I-IV
The Snyderverse
The Rambo Films
Rocky V