Cinematic Degrees Of Separation

The problem with the era of Lovefilm, Netflix et al, is that it opens up a universe of film possibilities, resulting in users suffering from "option paralysis". You can watch anything in the world, now what will it be?

Many an agonising (usually hungover) hour on a Sunday afternoon is spent with me and Sam making our heads ache even more by trying to decide which might be the optimal film to watch at that precise second. You know the drill, "what do you want to watch?" "NO NO NO, what do YOU want to watch?" Repeat until skull implodes.

So the weekend before last, we came up with a game. You have to link the last film you watched to the next with a common actor. A mild diversion which has now turned into something of an obsession.

It got us from:

(which is possibly THE perfect hangover film) via M. Emmett Walsh - bit-part actor because I was being wilfully obscure, as usual - to:

Then via John Goodman to:

Although being a Coen brothers film, we could have gone round and round with the same actors all day. So I opted out using Philip Seymour Hoffman (a trump card in this game - gives you a passport to many places) and on to:

I had forgotten how amazing this film is. Anyway, by this time it started to get really interesting/nerdy, as we decided we wanted to go and see the new Joss Whedon film The Cabin In The Woods this weekend, and that to make it more interesting we should make a path there with our connections, in the fewest possible moves, before we could go. Tough, as TCITW has loads of TV actors and very few big stars. I managed it in three hops though. Kate Hudson got us here:

Yeah so now we see the down-side to this game, you do have to watch some shite. But that makes the end point all the more rewarding, right? It gives me an excuse to rewatch this too (via Luke Wilson):

...as I was on a flight to Kuala Lumpur and doped up on valium last time I saw it. Natalie Portman will then take us to a film I've wanted to see for ages:

And from there, Chris Hemsworth brings us neatly to our destination:

And hopefully we'll get there before plot spoilers RUIN the whole thing for us (apparently there are lots doing the round in reviews - be warned if you're interested in seeing it).

So. Is this the saddest thing you've ever heard? Doesn't it sort of make you want to join in a bit though? OH GO ON....