INTRODUCING: The No Content For Old Men Cinephile Bucket List

My movie recommendation magnum opus, now a perfect gift for you or others this holiday season!

Over the past four-plus years of publishing this newsletter, I’ve given out hundreds, maybe even thousands of spoiler-free movie recommendations.

It’s been a constant in my life during a time when so many other things changed — I went through and finished grad school, moved across the country (twice), started three different jobs, survived a pandemic, and generally contended with the identity crisis common among privileged 20-somethings.

Every Friday, come hell or high water, there was going to be something new, something old and something to stream in your inboxes. And I’ve loved doing it.

Hearing back from so many of you all who have watched my recommendations and discovered movies you love that you would’ve never otherwise paid attention to continues to be one of the great joys of my life.

That’s why I’m so insanely excited to share what is basically this newsletter’s magnum opus. I’m calling it…

The No Content For Old Men Cinephile Bucket List

…or the TNCFOMCBL, for short…

What is it?

It’s a scratch-off poster containing my 100 best movie recommendations, divided into 10 categories and spanning every genre, style and decade.

Even if not a single person buys this poster, I’m still very proud it exists. It’s a tangible byproduct of my cinephilia and this newsletter I’ve been putting out (for free, I might add!) for a handful of years now.

But I still think it would be an awesome thing to have hanging in your room, or a fantastic Christmas present to give to someone this holiday season.

Never again will you be caught in the black hole of scrolling through the library of your favorite streaming service, paralyzed by the millions of choices with no clue what is worth your time. Now it’s as easy as glancing at the poster and picking anything on there with the confidence that it’s going to be really good, regardless if you’re in the mood for “heart-warmers” or “mind-blowing” or “essential directors.”

How’d you pick which movies to include?

My goal was to pick movies that weren’t “obvious,” which is a very subjective sliding scale that ultimately came down to my own personal judgement, but with the goal of recommending as many movies you’ve never seen (or even heard of) as possible. So on this poster you won’t find, for instance, The Godfather, or The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, and other iconic films (if you haven’t seen those and want a good list to start from, I’d recommend the AFI Top 100).

As is the mission of my newsletter, I hope my selections will expose you to movies as an art form and experiences that are both provocative and accessible. If you haven’t watched a lot of movies (or only ever watch Marvel movies), my goal is to offer a crash course in the power of cinema without making you feel like it’s homework. If you read my newsletter consistently and understand what I mean when I say my favorite movies are “upper-middle brow,” I think you’ll find a lot of movies on here you’ll like.

In fact, I’m making a bold claim:

If you watch all 100 movies on this poster, I’m confident one of them will be your new favorite movie of all time.

That promise applies no matter what kinds of movies you like going into the exercise. I worked very hard to ensure the diversity of entries in terms of tone, genre, race, gender and appeal. To be fair, the list skews white and male and hetero not only because I am all of those things but because those are the projects which have gotten funded and produced across the past decades of Hollywood history. Still, you’d be hard pressed to find any subgroup not represented here.

How does it work?

Each time you watch a movie, you can scratch-off the corresponding sticker to reveal a photo from the movie underneath it. That way you can quickly see which movies you still haven’t seen yet, and when it’s all revealed you’ll have a multi-colored testament to your own certified cinephile status!

How’d you make them?

Making these posters is a labor of love. I designed the poster personally on Photoshop, got the posters printed, bought the shipping tubes, and bought the scratch-off stickers. Using tweezers, I am placing all 10,000 stickers individually (100 stickers x 100 posters). Because of this, you may notice that a couple of the pictures are off-center or the stickers askew. Sorry about that. I am but one man!

How can I get one?

I’m selling the bucket list posters for $30 each. Fill out the Google Form linked below with your basic information and preferred payment method. I’ll work with you all individually to ensure payment and mailing is done in the quickest and easiest way possible.