Repeat viewings of Movies?

[Agamon]

See, I can't do that. If the TV's on, everything else fades into the background automatically. That's mostly why I don't watch much TV anymore. I get tired of not feeling like I'm ever getting anything done in the evenings.

Yeah, I turn on G4 or a music station for background TV. Anything else diverts my attention.

 

[Pants]

I used to watch the following four films nearly every day when I was growing up:
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Empire Strikes Back
Return of the Jedi
Ghostbusters

I've lost count of how many times I've seen each movie, but I think I've seen Ghostbusters the most.

Fellowship of the Ring
The Last Crusade
Independence Day

All are also pretty high up there.

 

[gtJormungand]

I didn't keep count of numbers of times that I've watched movies until after August 2002, but I'm sure that prior to that, I had watched the following movies at least 10 times:
Star Wars
Return of the Jedi
Indian Jones
Lion King
Aladdin

Since that time, however, I haven't watched any other movies quite that often. TV series started taking larger chunks of time.

 

[Welverin]

I have trouble rewatching anything nowadays, and there has to be quite a bit of time inbetween before I'll do so. I have to really like something more than once in a short period of time.

I can't watch the original Star Wars movies anymore, because I watched them so many time when I was younger. I know them so well that when I start watching them my attention wanders so badly that I end up not actually watching them.

 

[MonsterMash]

Probably no more than three times as there are always more movies I haven't seen to catch up on.

 

[nakia]

I guess it surprises me that so many people so far have seen a single, particular movie more than ten times. If I had thought this through more before I added the poll, I might have distinguished between "in a theatre" and just seeing it at all, but the more I think about it now the less I feel that is important.

Seeing it is seeing it and it's really the time commitment that I feel is important.

Someone has to feel that at any given time when they have the choice between seeing a movie they have already seen and doing something, anything, else, they choose to rewatch the movie. For some, that's like a week's worth or work at a fulltime job. That kind of devotion impresses and surprises me.

For me, the bulk of repeat movie watching ocurred in a four year span known as "college." Certian movies would get "discovered" in my group of friends and then we would collectively watch them, ad nauseum. These included: Dumb and Dumber, Happy Gilmore, The Usual Suspects, Dazed and Confused (there was about an eight day span where my friend Daniel and I watched this every day), Mallrats, Clerks, Empire Records, and the various movies which were childhood touchstones like Star Wars and Indiana Jones.

College was lots of free time and little sleep. Given the choice between watching a movie we liked and doing something, anything else (studying, cleaning the apartment, sleeping) we usually opted for the movie. I cannot count how many times I walked into a friend's apartment to see if they wanted to go get something to eat or go study, only to find them watching some movie I had already seen 12 times, and then sitting down and watching the movie with them.

And I don't even consider all of those movies I watched over and over good movies. Empire Records is not a good movie. But it was entertaining and fun and seemed a better way to spend two hours than, say, reading psychology.

In fact, I would distinguish between a good movie and a rewatchable movie. Traffic, for example, is a really good film, but it's not one I'd watch over and over. There are some movies I think are really good that I purposely do not watch repeatedly, lest they become routine. Before Sunrise is the best example of this, for me.

Sorry this turned into an essay. . .

 

[diaglo]

Star Wars i saw 7 times when it was originally released.

since then, i've probably seen it a good baker's dozen more times at home or at friends' houses.

 

[Dingleberry]

These days, I generally only ever watch a movie once. I used to be able to watch movies over and over, but now I'd rather spend two hours doing something new rather than watching something where I know what happens.

For me, it depends on my mood and how much time I have. If I can devote time to something new, I'll usually try it. But lately, with free time at a record low (new baby at home), I usually just want to decompress and I don't know how much time I'll actually have, so I'd much rather start watching something I know I'll enjoy and won't mind turning off in the middle than trying something new that either (i) I might find to be a waste of time, or (ii) I'll be frustrated if I can't finish.

Basically, movies as comfort food.

 

[Psychic Warrior]

In the theater it would probably be Fellowship of the Ring. I saw it 5 times.

On DVD I really don't know. Maybe Spirited Away (at least 20 times)?

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

I'd have to say the movie that I watched the most times ever is a toss up between:

Star Wars (my favorite, and the one I usually put in if I want to watch a SW film)
Empire Strikes Back (it was the first of the SW films I had on tape, so watched it over and over and over)
Pee Wee's Big Adventure (have to qualify this one, it was my little sister's favorite film when she was 5-6 years old, and she would watch it EVERY DAY after school. Being the good older brother, I would sit and watch it with her while I did my homework)