PopGap #14: Movie Slot Machine, Spin One Completed

The first Movie Slot Machine experiment has been completed, and my initial thought is that the movies were not up to the usual standard. However, this should have been expected with the switch of criteria from Best of lists to a more random and varied method of selection of both themes and films. Only one movie from February's list of 12, Meek's Cutoff, ended up in the top 20% of my Flickchart, and it just barely squeezed in. However, the purpose of using the Movie Slot Machine this year is to discover more obscure movies, so it's a gamble I'm willing to endure.

Here's how February's movies ranked for me:

1. Meek's Cutoff (2010)
   Dir.: Kelly Reichardt
   My Rank: #644 (Top 19%)
2. Red River (1948)
   Dir.: Howard Hawks, Arthur Rosson
   My Rank: #769 (Top 23%)
3. Cries and Whispers (1972)
   Dir.: Ingmar Bergman
   My Rank: #987 (Top 29%)
4. The Slap (1974)
   Dir.: Claude Pinoteau
   My Rank: #995 (Top 29%)
5. Tobacco Road (1941)
   Dir.: John Ford
   My Rank: #1280 (Top 38%)
6. Dr. No (1962)
   Dir.: Terence Young
   My Rank: #1431 (Top 42%)
7. Night Moves (2013)
   Dir.: Kelly Reichardt
   My Rank: #1485 (Top 44%)
8. Gunfight at the OK Corral (1957)
   Dir.: John Sturges
   My Rank: #1718 (Top 50%)
9. The Lion in Winter (1968)
   Dir.: Anthony Harvey
   My Rank: #1743 (Top 51%)
10. All the King's Men (1949)
    Dir.: Robert Rossen
    My Rank: #2121 (Top 62%)
11. River of Grass (1994)
    Dir.: Kelly Reichardt
    My Rank: #2476 (Top 73%)
12. In the Heat of the Night (1967)
    Dir.: Norman Jewison
    My Rank: #2614 (Top 77%)

February's mini-themes were:

• New York Film Critics Circle Award Winners
• The films of director Kelly Reichardt
• Movies featuring actor John Ireland
• Movies from my Watchlist Lottery