My Life In Film: Part 1: The 70's

Sorry, Oliver...

 It's well known that I'm a sucker for lists.  Can't resist delving into various subjects and trying to pick and choose favorites (or not-so-favorites, as the case may be) - so when I saw yet another fun list over at The Mike's From Midnight, With Love; I had to comply.  It's just in my nature.
 
What we have here is a list of the "films of my life".  Now I must admit, The Mike's list is a shorter one than mine as he has been on this planet a shorter amount of time.  So I will split this post into parts by decades -for ease of reading- (except this installment where I stuck in 1968 and '69).

The rules:  Pick a film for every year you've been alive.  As in:  1999:  Sleepy Hollow.  Though truth be told, that film is a runner-up to my choice, but you get the picture.

The Mike even cut the apron strings of horror and went all out, just picking films from any genre all willy-nilly like.  I am doing this a bit differently. I just can't NOT (double negative, Ahhhh!) pick a horror film - but I wanted to get some of my favorite non-genre picks in there too - so just for shits and giggles, I will pick a non-horror fave as an honorable mention.  I'll see if I can contain myself to just one honorable mention...
So let's go.

1968: Night of the Living Dead
(we're starting this out on the right foot...)

Honorable Mention:  Rosemary's Baby
(because I couldn't find a "regular film" to choose as an alternate)

         

1969:  A Boy Named Charlie Brown
(because apparently 1969 sucked for horror and I can't even find anything online!)

1970: The Bird with the Crystal Plumage
(But of course, Argento. A great giallo film...)

Honorable Mention:  Airport
(I saw this so many times as a kid it's not even funny.  I think that's why Airplane! is so hilarious to me.)

1971: Let's Scare Jessica to Death
(I can't stress how great this film is, I really can't. So don't ask.)

Honorable Mention:  Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
(Not sure if perhaps this was the scarier of the two '71 choices)

1972: Vampire Circus
(Hammer and vampires:  Akin to oreos and milk!)

Honorable Mention:  Deliverance
(Still scares me to this day.  Seriously never want to go to Georgia.)

1973: The Wicker Man
(Yeah, I could have chosen The Exorcist, but I didn't. So there.)

Honorable Mention:  Charlotte's Web
(Brutal in its honesty, a film that shaped my youth)

1974: Young Frankenstein 
(Still one of my most favorite movies.  Blücher!! *horses whinney*)

Honorable Mention:  The Godfather Part 2
(Though the first was great, the second is orgasmic)

1975:  Jaws
(I'm sorry, was there another film made in 1975?)

1976: Carrie
("They're all gonna laugh at you!)

Honorable Mention:  Rocky
(Chicks dig "guy's films" too, dammit!)

1977:  Suspiria
(Yep, more Argento.  Sue me.)

Honorable Mention:  Pete's Dragon
(I loved this as a kid.  I have a thing for dragons.)

1978:  Halloween
(Simply put, there can be no other '78 horror film for me)

Honorable Mention:  Grease
(Because Grease truly is the word.)

1979:  Dracula
(Yeah, so I like the romantic side of the count.  Mmm...)

The Black Stallion
(Few films run the gamut of emotions like this one for me. True love indeed.)

And there you have the 70's, folks.  In a decade of truly awesome horror, it was quite difficult to ignore some of the profoundly great stuff that was out.  But I have tried to best encompass my own life's films that inspired, provoked, excited, and affected me.  Some of my picks may surprise you, but in all honesty it's so hard to choose. 

Next up is the gnarly 80's, with the seriously awesome year of 1981 - in which about a hundred great films were produced.  I need some time to think about it....