I suppose that this evades the question of “fan commentaries.” On the one hand, there may not be too many real “fans” today of series films like the Thin Man, Charlie Chan, and the Falcon. On the other hand, many true classics with real fans are fairly well-represented by the experts, and it is very difficult to produce a fan commentary that isn’t just a form of cribbing. In other words, good info isn’t easy to find.

Here, in no particular order, are some films that I would like to do that either have no commentaries at all to my knowledge (my knowledge may not be perfect), or the “historian” commentaries are inadequate (noted when applicable):

1) The Thin Man (and its 5 sequels);
2) The Glass Key;
3) Nightmare Alley (great historical commentary, but very dry);
4) The Longest Day (see above);
5) Midway;
6) Some Like it Hot;
7) The Best Years of Our Lives (perhaps the best B&W film ever made);
8) The Petrified Forest;
9) Fort Apache;
10) She Wore a Yellow Ribbon;
11) Rio Grande;
12) The Good Earth;
13) Manhattan Melodrama;
14) His Girl Friday;
15) To Hell and Back;
16) 3 Godfathers;
17) The Magnificent 7;
18) The Great Escape;
19) My Man Godfrey;
20) Life with Father;
21) Gung-ho! (1943) (getting hard to find in any format);
22) Bringing up Baby;
23) Cold Comfort Farm (newer movie, but no commentary!).

Looking at these, it dawns on me that most internet-savvy folks have never even seen these movies, much less have ready access to them. The comedies (and I tried to avoid them) are problematic. The only worse thing than a commentary like, “that was funny,” is having to explain a dated joke!

At any rate, the main thing holding me back is that I am not very technically proficient. As you may guess, I am an older gent, and I would appreciate any detailed tips on how to set up some minimal equipment and software. (I don’t even own a microphone.)

Since this post has gone on so long, I might as well list a few movies that I would LOVE to comment upon, even though they have excellent “official” commentaries of various types:

1) The Searchers;
2) Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (funniest movie ever?);
3) The Girl Can’t Help It (Paul McCartney’s fave film);
4) Stagecoach;
5) Days of Wine and Roses (Jack Lemmon version, natch);
6) Ladies and Gentlemen: The Fabulous Stains (best official “fan” commentary to date);
7) Dirty Harry.