We have finished James Bond. What's next?

A few months ago, I gave my husband the entire collection of James Bond Blu-Ray Box Set as a 'just because' present. I thought it would delight and amuse him, and maybe even make him understand why I neeeeed an Aston Martin. Little did I know, it would become a minor hobby of ours, as we embarked on a journey to watch each one in order. 

There are 26 official James Bond movies. 

This wasn't some short series we finished. It was a minor film genre. We saw Sean Connery all the way through to Daniel Craig, with the odd pit stop for Johnny English and Austin Powers. We formed strange, fierce attachments to Q and Felix. We agreed that Dame Judy Dench was the greatest M they could ever hope to cast. 

Upon finishing Spectre, we found ourselves a little crestfallen. Bond had provided us with something to look forward to each week. A spectacle full of babes and bombs that frankly wasn't always good... But was very nearly always entertaining. 

"What next?" John asked me, sipping a vaguely Bond-ish cocktail of his own invention. (Those of you who have paid entirely too much attention during Casino Royale will understand.)

"We could watch another series... Godfather, Star Wars..." I suggested

"They aren't as long, though. I liked how long this was." He replied.

"Maybe we could pick a prominent actor or director? Every John Wayne, or all the Steven Spielberg's?"

"That would get monotonous. They would all be too similar. And besides, James Bond spans 50 years. It's been fun to watch special effects improve."

"Maybe we could watch every Academy Award winner."

"Like, every nomination? That seems like a lot of movies." He made a face like he had found an olive pit in his hummus. 

"No. Just the winners. And just 'Best Picture'." I was thinking of Chariots of Fire and 12 Years a Slave. Doing this would be a great way to see a lot of movies that everyone is supposed to watch, that I'd somehow never sat through before. 

John fussed some more about how all Best Picture nominations are dramas, and how they are all in English, and how it was really an award for producers, so they might not even have anything in common anyway... Eventually, though, he had an idea. A terrible, awful idea.

"You could make a theme dinner for each one! Moroccan food for Casablanca! Fava beans and liver for Silence of the Lambs! And we could blog about it!" He lit up as he went on to describe our new minor hobby. 

So here we are. Welcome to our blog!