It’s time to start watching the films on your watchlist

I’m a professional procrastinator, even when it comes to doing things I enjoy.

I like to consider myself a movie buff. It’s no surprise, then, that I’ve racked up 222 films (and counting) on my Letterboxd watchlist. There’s so many movies I’d like to see, but I have what feels like so little time.

When I do actually have time, I find myself putting off the movies that have been sitting in my watchlist for months — some years, at this point. From what I understand, this seems to be a shared experience within the film lover community.

With the start of a new semester, I’ve been utilizing my free time — primarily on weekends — to work through my watchlist. Luckily, a lot of the films I’ve been wanting to watch are available on Tubi. Quick sidenote: check Tubi out, it actually has a lot of good, critically acclaimed movies available for free.

So, to start my journey, I began with a movie I’ve heard a lot about: “Requiem for a Dream.” After watching it, I finally understand why so many people talk about it.

The film follows four characters as they spiral further into drug addiction. The main character, Sara Goldfarb (Ellen Burstyn) becomes addicted to amphetamines. Her son, Harry (Jared Leto), his friend, Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) and girlfriend, Marion (Jennifer Connelly) are heroin addicts.

I loved director Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan,” and I thoroughly enjoyed “The Whale,” but “Requiem for a Dream” knocks it out of the park. The way the film is directed is anxiety-inducing — it makes your skin crawl and feel almost dirty — but you simply can’t look away.

Next, I watched “Precious,” which tells the story of 16-year-old Claireece “Precious” Jones (Gabourey Sidibe), a Black girl growing up in Harlem during the late ’80s. Precious experiences neglect and abuse at the hands of her mother, Mary Lee (Mo’Nique), and her father, who has impregnated Precious twice.

When Precious is transferred to an alternative school, her life is changed by teacher Blu Rain (Paula Patton). Blu pushes Precious to learn how to read, write and pursue her education.

“Precious” is certainly a hard and emotional watch, but so worth it. The story depicted is real; it’s something that, sadly, many people live through. Sibide and Patton’s performances are flawless, and the dynamic between the two makes the film even more impactful.

I bought into the TikTok hype by finally watching “Megan is Missing,” a film that’s been revered around the app as grotesque and horrifying, something that leaves viewers scarred. I love horror films and all things disgusting, so I thought I’d give “Megan is Missing” a chance.

It’s terrible.

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The film depicts the story of Megan and Amy, two 14-year-old girls who have gone missing from their hometown after interacting and meeting up with a man who was posing as a boy online.

It’s constructed through the use of webcam footage, cam recordings and news reports. It’s supposed to give a found footage feel (think “The Blair Witch Project”), but fails miserably.

The acting is downright awful, the editing is laughable and the final 20 minutes of the film just feel like exploitative, torture porn. It feels like director Michael Goi just wanted to make something shocking and gross rather than actually educate audiences about internet safety.

I needed to cleanse my palette after the abomination that is “Megan is Missing,” so I watched a film that was actually disturbing and well written: “We Need to Talk About Kevin.”

“We Need to Talk About Kevin” follows Eva Khatchadourian (Tilda Swinton) navigating life after her son, Kevin (Ezra Miller), has committed an unspeakable act. Leading up to this, we catch glimpses of the strained relationship between Eva and Kevin as he grows up.

Swinton’s performance in this film is absolutely phenomenal, and it lingered in my mind for days after watching.

And then came the big one. “Showgirls.”

I’ve heard references to “Showgirls” countless times on “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” It’s Michelle Visage’s favorite film. I wasn’t expecting it to quickly become one of mine.

At the center of “Showgirls” is Nomi Malone (Elizabeth Berkley), who finds herself pursuing a career in Las Vegas as an exotic dancer. When she’s noticed by the famous Cristal Connors (Gina Gershon), the lead in a dance production at the Stardust Resort and Casino, Nomi starts out on an unrelenting path to stardom.

I can’t express how much I loved this movie. From beginning to end, it was perfect. It’s campy, the cinematography is beautiful and the chemistry between Nomi and Cristal is enthralling.

I genuinely am not the same person I was before watching “Showgirls.” If you think this movie is bad or stupid, you need to take a step back and evaluate the way you view cinema, and I’m being so serious.

Finally, I watched “Moonstruck” and “Southern Comfort.”

“Moonstruck” is a romantic comedy starring Cher and Nicolas Cage. Typically, I don’t care for romcoms, but “Moonstruck” is funny, iconic and full of drama — plus, I love Cher.

“Southern Comfort” is a moving documentary that chronicles the last year of Robert Eads’s life. Eads was a transgender man who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was failed by the healthcare system. The film highlights the tight-knit community and found family between trans individuals.

It is also one of the only documentaries that’s made me cry. It’s such an important film, especially in today’s context. Please, if you’re going to watch any film I’ve written about in this article, let it be this one.

Working through my watchlist has been such an invigorating experience. There’s something so fulfilling about exposing yourself to all different kinds of movies. Some will change your life, some will open your eyes to ongoing issues in the world and some are just downright bad.

Now that you’re done reading this, go watch something you’ve been putting off. Once you start, you won’t be able to stop.

@_chloebowie_

southacr@miamioh.edu