You MUST see this.
If you don't watch this, you will regret it.
WHAT! You STILL haven't seen this?
I am guilty of saying these things to people. All the time. In fact most of the time when I say this to people, they are the ones who say it to me too. I suppose I am known for brushing aside others opinions to evoke my own, only when it comes to films and TV though. Those are the areas where I have my strongest and yes, most aggressive opinions. But I think its better to be quite passionate about a neutral subject like that rather than a subject where people fight over it ... just my opinion.
Apart from me, trying to convince everyone at work that The Hobbit films are amazing works of cinema and trying to get my parents to watch anything I suggest without them only watching it because someone else suggested they watch it, that really annoys me, there are plenty of films and TV shows where I have be hounded to watch. Yes, literally hounded. Here is only a small selection.
Oldboy, 2003, dir. Park Chan-wook
Yes, I get it, this film is (meant to be) amazing, STOP TELLING ME. This started off in college, my friends who loved the film would not let it go. Being stubborn, if I am told to watch something enough times and it didn't interest me in the first place, I just won't do it. I was hounded so much, I didn't watch it. My interest was peaked though when the remake came out, I thought it was time to watch the original. But then the hounding started again. I've seen the remake, but more on my thoughts about that film in another post. I will one day watch the original film, probably by accident.
The Seven Samurai, 1954, dir. Akira Kurosawa
Being told to watch this film started off as a joke and to be honest, its only my Dad who keeps telling me to watch it. He even tried to bribe into watching the film. It didn't work. It comforts me that there are some film enthusiasts and film critics and filmmakers who have not watched this (so I'm told) masterpiece. So in my defence, there is really no rush to watch this. Stop telling me to watch it Dad!
Scarface, 1983, dir. Brian De Palma
Sorry gangster film fans, I really have no interest in this film. Al Pacino is a good actor but not the best that ever lived. I would however be interested in the original black and white film made in 1932.
The Godfather Trilogy, 1972, 1974, 1990, dir Francis Ford Coppola
I have actually seen the first film, I liked it but (please don't strike me down for saying this) I started to watch the second film but got bored and left the room. I suppose its the old gangster film vibe that didn't interest me. Going back to the first Godfather, I can see why its a classic and why every film fan holds it in high esteem.
Breaking Bad, 2008-2013
This is a major one, like Oldboy. I've actually seen part of the first episode, long before i was harassed to see it, long before it was even remotely popular. I downloaded the first episode because it was free and I couldn't ease into it. I kept it for another day but that day turned into years. Then it was popular. Everyone started talking about it but I just pushed it to the back burner, decided to wait until first season was done but then there was other shows I wanted to watch more so again, I waited til the show ended but guess what, it's still waiting to be watched. I am have been hounded, again, by so many people to watch it, I think I might just burn the DVD. Now, I can be persistent but no where near as bad as others have been about this damn TV show. Even the media hounds me about it. I will watch it or I won't watch it, it really doesn't matter.
Those have been the main ones, also, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but they are all popular films and a popular TV show. I like to think that apart from defending Middle Earth, I try to recommend films and shows not seen by many or talked about many, therefore I like to think that I am recommending variety and unusual finds. Right?
So, go and watch Green Wing, Utopia, Bored to Death, In Plain Sight and Banshee. Oh and look up, Death to Smoochy, The Fall, Broken, The Lonely Guy and Micmacs.