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Favorite Movies 2016

Ah, 2016. Honestly, the less said about it, the better. But I’m a sucker for making lists and I think I’ll always have a compulsivity to make my top ten movies list of the year until the day cinema ends (which will hopefully be never). This wasn’t a particularly great year for film; there was a lot of “okay,” plenty of “meh,” but not too much “holy effing shit where’s the bottom of my jaw?!” However, there thankfully were ten movies that tickled my fancy. They are:

Last Minute Emmy Predictions

OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES: Veep

OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES: Game of Thrones

OUTSTANDING VARIETY TALK SERIES: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

OUTSTANDING VARIETY SKETCH SERIES: Key & Peele

OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES: The People Vs. O.J. Simpson

OUTSTANDING TELEVISION MOVIE: All the Way

OUTSTANDING REALITY COMPETITION PROGRAM: The Voice

LEAD ACTOR, COMEDY: Anthony Anderson, Black-ish

LEAD ACTRESS, COMEDY: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep

SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY: Tony Hale, Veep

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY: Allison Janney, Mom

LEAD ACTOR, DRAMA: Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

LEAD ACTRSS, DRAMA: Keri Russell, The Americans

SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA: Jonathan Banks, Better Call Saul

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA: Lena Headey, Game of Thrones

LEAD ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: Courtney B. Vance, The People Vs. O.J. Simpson

LEAD ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: Sarah Paulson, The People Vs. O.J. Simpson

SUPPORTING ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: Sterling K. Brown, The People Vs. O.J. Simpson

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: Jean Smart, Fargo

DIRECTING, COMEDY: Alec Berg, Silicon Valley “Daily Active Users”

DIRECTING, DRAMA: Jack Bender, Game of Thrones “The Door”

DIRECTING, VARIETY SPECIAL: Kahlil Joseph and Beyonce, Lemonade

DIRECTING, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: John Singleton, The People Vs. O.J. Simpson “The Race Card”

WRITING, COMEDY: Master of None “Parents”

WRITING, DRAMA: Mr. Robot “eps1.0_hellofriend.mov”

WRITING, VARIETY SPECIAL: Tig Notaro: Boyish Girl Interrupted

WRITING, LIMITED SERIES/MOVIE: The People Vs. O.J. Simpson, “From the Ashes of Tragedy”

#emmys #emmys 2016 #emmy predictions

Fall Movies 2016

Not one movie has blown me away so far this year. The best ones I’ve seen have been Captain America: Civil War and 10 Cloverfield Lane, and to be perfectly honest, that’s unacceptable to me, as much as I liked those movies. Maybe I’ve become more cynical, or maybe everything just subconsciously pales in comparison to last year’s Inside Out the same way it took me a while to be dumbstruck by a film after the double sucker punch of awesomeness that was Wall-E and The Dark Knight in 2008. Or perhaps the crop of movies we’ve gotten this year have just not been that great. A lot of good ones, to be sure, but nothing that really stands out, except for the bad ones, which have been exceedingly bad *cough*Independence Day: Regurgitation*cough*.

Let’s hope at least one of these is something special. The ten movies I’m looking forward to the most this fall are:

10. THE LIGHT BETWEEN OCEANS—ah, nothing like a maudlin tale of mourning parents accidentally kidnapping a baby. It’s like Raising Arizona, but with more tears and less John Goodman. Seriously, though, this looks like it carries some emotional weight, which a lot of films have been lacking this year, and it’s from Derek Cianfrance of Blue Valentine and The Place Beyond the Pines fame, and that’s a track record one can get behind.

9. SULLY—for the record, I think modern Clint Eastwood is pretentious. I think he believes his films are better than they actually are and he slathers every moment he shoots with that belief. That’s not to say he hasn’t made any good films, and there are still plenty that I haven’t seen yet. What attracts me to Sully is Tom Hanks and a hopefully somewhat return to form, something I was hoping to get from Captain Phillips, but instead got motion sickness by all the handheld camera work.

8. THE FOUNDER—John Lee Hancock seems to direct a lot of schmaltz, supposedly inspirational films meant to lift the spirit in some and make me personally lose my lunch. (For those counting, that’s three vomit jokes in the span of five paragraphs. You’re welcome.) I’ve never been drawn to anything he’s done, and The Alamo is just a godforsaken piece of trash in my eyes. This, however, is giving me Social Network vibes, and Michael Keaton looks damn good, so I’m willing to give Mr. Hancock a shot.

7. A MONSTER CALLS—young boy retreats into his imagination in order to deal with a personal tragedy and ends up coming of age? Okay, who’s been reading my dream journal?

6. THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN—I unfortunately have not read the book, but this looks to be in the same vain as Gone Girl, so if it is indeed anything like that, then this is sure to be a twisty, disturbing thriller. And I’m all for that.

5. DOCTOR STRANGE—beyond all of the spectacle the trailers have displayed for us and the controversy surrounding the casting and my back-and-forth love/hate for comic book movies, I think I’m most interested to hear Benedict Cumberbatch’s American accent more than anything else.

4. THE BIRTH OF A NATION—the behind-the-scenes story for this is almost more inspiring than the film itself may be. Just that an actor, and not a well known one at that, took the reins of a heavy chapter in history, directed it, acted in it, and already has the unofficial frontrunner for next year’s Best Picture Oscar…Seriously, who’s been reading my dream journal???

3. ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY—there’s still a part of me that takes offense that this movie and the other spin-off films we’ll all be getting actually exist. I know the Star Wars franchise has been more about raking in the dough through various types of merchandising than displaying real artistic integrity for many, many years now. But I’d like to think the original trilogy is such a sacred piece of storytelling (give or take an Ewok or a Christmas special) that expanding it into its own cinematic universe beyond the primary saga just betrays it all. At the same time, of course I’m gonna fucking see this, and if nothing else, it LOOKS amazing.

2. LA LA LAND—Damien Chazelle showed us how genius a filmmaker he is with Whiplash, one of the most well done movies I’ve seen in recent years. The fact that his next project is a friggin’ musical of all things, and what looks to be a dreamy, somewhat surreal one at that, that’s pretty bold. But I have faith in him, one hundred percent. The guy’s a talent.

1. FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM—it’s been five years since the last Harry Potter movie topped one of my Most Anticipated lists, so is it really any surprise that this new foray into the wizarding world finds its place at the top once again? I want to go back into this world. I want to know how J.K. Rowling fares as a screenwriter. I want to see if I can actually like an Eddie Redmayne performance without thinking he’s trying too hard. I honestly don’t know what to expect with this. It’s completely foreign territory. But the fact that it also feels familiar intrigues me all the more.

Some other movies worth mentioning are:

DIVING IN, HEAD FIRST: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, American Pastoral, Passengers, Allied

I’LL DIP MY TOE IN: Hacksaw Ridge, Queen of Katwe, The Magnificent Seven, The Edge of Seventeen

TREADING WATER: Inferno, Assassin’s Creed, Why Him?, Sing

DROWN ME, DROWN ME NOW: Deepwater Horizon, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Trolls, Tyler Perry’s Boo! A Madea Halloween

Please give me something great, 2016. Pretty please. All the sugar on top.

My Take on Independence Day: Resurgence

In 1996, I was nine years old, and I had convinced myself that Nickelodeon’s first ever movie, Harriet the Spy, was my favorite movie of all time. I say “convinced” because I came to this conclusion before ever seeing it. I was just that sure that it would be my favorite, because I was nine years old, and the confidence/naïveté of someone that age is through the roof. My friend Sean expressed his concern over this preemptive honor and did so for two reasons: he was of the mind that one needed to see a film before it could be called their favorite (a controversial stance), and he was sure Independence Day would trump any other film I’d see. Because to a nine year old, that’s what Independence Day was: the ultimate movie-going experience. It had everything: aliens, explosions, swear words, more explosions, stuff blowing up…yeah, best movie ever, right?

I did inevitably see it and did inevitably love it, though it didn’t claim the number one spot on my favorite movies list. Still, I was not only entertained by the popcorn thrills, but I loved the characters; the film did a good job as setting up our heroes and how they would all come together. As I’ve grown older and (mildly) wiser, that love of Independence Day has not gone away, but I can see it for what it truly is: dumb fun. But it’s dumb fun that still tells a complete story and has some emotional heft thanks to the characters and their relationships. Sure, a lot of it is cheesy and cliché, but it’s still there, and that is a big reason why the film was such a success. But again, as a nine year old, it was hard not to focus only on the spaceships and force fields and Will Smith spouting catch phrases left and right, because that’s what nine year olds like.

Independence Day: Resurgence, the long-awaited sequel that was not as long-awaited as the filmmakers believe it to be, plays off like some of those nine year olds got together, cooked up some make believe and wrote an elaborate fan fiction of their dream sequel. In other words, this thing was probably written in crayon with backwards Rs and “IndependEnce” spelled “independAnce.” It’s a limp and horrifically executed mess. No, that’s not good enough; I need to be emotionally hyperbolic for a second: this is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen. There, better.

Admittedly, my expectations weren’t too high off the ground going in. This movie never needed to exist, with or without Will Smith’s involvement (by the way, nice move, dodging this bullet, buddy) and nothing about it looked, well, good. But I felt a certain obligation to check it out. My inner nine year old was thirsty, and that thirst needed to be quenched lest a tantrum be thrown (this would likely manifest as heartburn or indigestion or some kind of stomach problem, but whatever). I was expecting something stupid, but something I could still enjoy.

I never expected it to be this bad, though. Because lordy oh lordy, I lost track of how many times I rolled my eyes or sighed painfully. I knew I was in for trouble within the first three minutes, when Bill Pullman’s famous speech from the first film seemed to be echoing its way across space toward an alien mothership, Contact-style…despite the fact that it was never broadcast nationally or anything. Oh well. In any case, some holographic gibberish pops onto the screen, and then we see Bill Pullman’s face, delivering that speech, and it’s the shot from the first movie. The same close-up. Not even something from the side to suggest it was a retconned news camera that was there the whole time despite the fact that it wasn’t. It’s like one of the aliens popped in an old VHS and fast-forwarded straight to the speech. Right away I knew that no care would be put into this movie. It was going to be a slapdash string of CGI vomit, shoehorned references to the first film for nostalgia’s sake, and not a lick of emotional depth whatsoever.

And I was right.

The majority of dialogue is either exposition or boilerplate action movie bullshit. There are maybe a few moments here or there that could technically qualify as characters bonding, but none of them feel earned.

For example—yes, I am going to spoil something here, going against my mantra, but I so feel this movie is not worth anyone’s time, and this particular spoiler has no bearing on the rest of the film whatsoever, that I’m going to make an exception, but if you are still spoiler weary, please skip to the next paragraph right now because this long aside is about to end in five, four, three, two—Vivica A. Fox returns as Jasmine, Will Smith’s love interest from the first film. Will Smith’s Capt. Steve Hiller has been dead for some time, and now Jasmine is either a doctor or a hospital administrator or who knows because they don’t bother to make it clear. When the aliens start their destruction, Jasmine decides to deal with only one patient: a woman and her recently born baby. Because screw everyone else. They make it up to the helicopter pad, where Jasmine and Steve’s son Dylan (Jessie Usher), an air force pilot like his stepfather, abandons doing his duty as a soldier and protecting the people just in time to watch a poorly rendered sim version of his mother dangling off the side of the helicopter as the building crumbles beneath her, only to lose her grip and fall into the flames. With only two scenes featuring Fox up to this point, the writers were clearly banking on the notion that we’d all recognize her from the first film and therefore care about her. NOPE. If that didn’t work, then hey, let’s give her a Save the Cat moment and have her die while saving a mother and her new baby. DOUBLE NOPE. You would think all this would cause Dylan to act irrationally or at least give him some kind of motivation, but instead, after looking sad for a minute, Liam Hemsworth’s dullard of a character shows him some boring empathy, and then Dylan’s suddenly done mourning and his mother is never mentioned again.

There are no heroes in this film. No one to root for. It’s not even worth it to root for the aliens to win because everyone and everything is so bland and trite that I could have been watching a sheep be sheered and would have gotten more entertainment value. Not to mention a nice sweater. Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman are back, but they only feel like various pieces on a game board that are moved here and there for the sake of the plot. Goldblum’s David isn’t as neurotic or as funny or as intelligent as he was in the first film, and he spends the climax driving a school bus full of children that serve no purpose whatsoever. Whitmore’s courage and strength from ID4 has been withered down due to what basically amounts to alien PTSD, but this isn’t treated like something he needs to overcome; it’s just a thing he goes through.

The first Independence Day was schlocky and silly, but the progression of the story still felt natural. I’m not saying it was perfect, a deus ex machina here and a lucky golden retriever outrunning a fireball there, but for the most part, one thing affected another thing affected another thing. Not to mention, there was a sense of togetherness at the film’s core, the world coming together and all to defeat this intergalactic threat. We only witnessed the destruction of three U.S. cities, but because it dashed between these locations and characters, everything felt spread out. Also, the characters would talk about the destruction, would react to the destruction, would show fucking emotions, which added to the grand scale. Everything in Resurgence feels disconnected and self-contained, right down to the dumb ending. If the first movie was going for a pro-humanity vibe, this one’s message is, “Hey, at least the pretty people lived!” So really, just like most brainless action movies.

They had twenty years to do this right, or preferably, not do it at all. Perhaps they didn’t realize that those nine year olds who saw the film in 1996 and bought the toys and trading cards are now almost thirty and ask more from their motion pictures. Maybe they strictly wanted to cater to the nine year olds of today, and maybe those nine year olds will enjoy the film. They deserve better, though. So, so much better.

Rating: One star

#independence day: resurgence #movie review #everyone's a critic #movies #independence day #resurgence #id4 #hollywood has given up completely #unnecessary sequels #will smith #bill pullman #jeff goldblum #vivica a fox #jesse usher #liam hemsworth

My Takes on Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and The Lobster

Occasionally during an improv set, I’ll suddenly find myself in an apathetic mode. Something weird or comically intense is happening on stage with me, and my response to meet this event with monotone indifference. It’s as though my brain believes this will be met with laughter because how could this character I’m playing not be affected by what’s happening next to him? It’s so unnatural, it must be funny! It isn’t. It’s a poor, involuntary move on my end that’s hard to dig myself out of sometimes. It goes against two of the core philosophies I’ve learned studying improv: the scene needs to be about the relationship between the characters on stage, whether they’re supposed to be lovers, siblings, coworkers, etc. And if the audience doesn’t know how those characters feel and feel about each other, there’s no way they can empathize, which makes it more difficult for them to laugh. Improvisers need to react honestly, even if they’re playing a knight with antlers or some sentient amorphous blob. It’s the best way to insure success.

I bring this up because two movies, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and The Lobster, both represent these two sides of the spectrum. These are obviously two films that are nothing alike, and mentioning them in the same breath is kind like combining Shakespeare and Captain Underpants, but they still exemplify the success of focusing on relationships and the failure of performing apathetically.

And not in the direction you’d expect.

The Lobster is an indie film, through and through. It’s almost in the same vain as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, in that it is a story about romance done in an unorthodox, somewhat futuristic way. It takes place in a functioning dystopia where everyone is expected to be in a couple (we’re never told why, and it doesn’t really matter), and if someone is single, they’re whisked away to a hotel where they are expected to meet someone and fall in love within 45 days, or they’ll be turned into an animal of their choosing. Colin Farrell’s David wants to be the titular lobster.

This concept is more than intriguing. But the execution is way off. This is supposed to be a movie about relationships, but every single character speaks in the same monotone, overtly polite-yet-phony manner, holding everything under the surface and just basically sleepwalking through the whole film. This isn’t a concern of acting; this is a deliberate choice the director has given everyone; even the occasional narration by Rachel Weisz is delivered in a stilted way. And I can’t understand why. This choice made it near impossible to care about anyone let alone David. There are only two times where David shows real human emotion, and those are the best moments of the film. But it’s just two. Everyone else, meanwhile, even under dire circumstances, keeps the same blank face and voice, seemingly unaware that this is neither funny (this is supposed to be a comedy, by the way) nor captivating, like they figure the story will save them and entertain the masses. Nope. This mass was disappointed.

Popstar, meanwhile, has more focus on its relationships. Don’t get me wrong: this is a Lonely Island movie, so it’s off-the-walls bonkers 90% of the time, full of profanity, gags and bathroom humor. But there’s a heart. Conner4Real (Andy Samberg) is estranged from one of his childhood best friends/former band mate Lawrence (Akiva Schaffer) and is in the process of becoming estranged from his other best friend/current DJ Owen (Jorma Taccone) due to years of neglecting him. Other relationships aren’t fully fleshed out and are mostly treated as jokes, but the film keeps coming back to these three. Their presence and hopeful reconciliation looms over the entirety of the story, and that makes everything successful. Conner is an idiot, but I cared about him, because, despite the hardships and separations, Lawrence and Owen cared about him, too. This grounding helped the laughs come more easily and with more fervor.

This is a dumb movie, though. Extremely dumb. But in the best way possible. It isn’t trying to be anything more than it is, but that little helping of humanity surprisingly sets Popstar high above The Lobster in my estimation. It really should be the other way around, with Lobster being in tune with its characters and Popstar being stupid and silly for stupid and silly’s sake. This is not the case. Believe me, I wish I was making this up, but Popstar is an uproarious romp, and The Lobster is a listless letdown. No joke.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping rating: Three and a half stars The Lobster rating: Two stars

#movie review #everyone's a critic #popstar #the lobster #popstar: never stop never stopping #the lonely island #andy samberg #akiva schaffer #jorma taccone #conner4real #colin farrell #rachel weisz #movies #film

My Take on X-Men: Apocalypse

I think franchise fatigue is dawning on all of us. We’re still in the habit of seeing all these sequels, reboots and reimaginings while neglecting more original flare like The Nice Guys (which I did see and enjoy, but didn’t really feel inspired to write a review about it), but I believe there’s more of a sense of obligation when it comes to those preexisting IPs; there’s a need to know how the story will continue to play out, or how the new version will honor or dishonor its predecessor. This is something I’ve written about countless times already (I actually got déjà vu while typing this paragraph), but I mention it here because, at least to me, the X-Men film franchise has seemed to escape or even transcend this criticism.

That’s not to say that every X-Men movie has been amazing; on the contrary, when it’s been weak, it’s been weak, and there are really only two or three films that can be considered close to incredible. For the most part, though, they’ve all been enjoyable and have rarely given me a sense of, “Oh, great, another one?” This could be because they can all pretty much stand on their own, or because they throw continuity into the wind, rebooted timelines be damned. But I believe these movies have been successful because there is an emphasis on the characters and less on the CGI action sequences. The people have always come first, not their powers. The stakes are high because we’ve learned to care about these people and want them to make it out alive. Like I said, not every film has achieved this task (The Last Stand and X-Men Origins: Wolverine are the ones that stick out like sore bone claws), but when they do, that’s when they succeed with flying colors.

Which is why X-Men: Apocalypse is a bit of a disappointment.

While there is some character stuff here, it is overwhelmingly overshadowed by CGI set pieces. Relationships are set aside, and the overall narrative flow seems rather limp when I stop to think about it. There are a lot of cool things going on here and I nodded my head with approval several times while watching the film, but overall, those head nods were just as valid as the shoulder shrugs I had in between.

First and foremost, the villain. Oscar Isaac is probably the best male actor we have going around these days, and sure, he’s pretty awesome as Apocalypse. But he isn’t really given that much to do. There isn’t a lot of depth to this guy beyond typical “I know better than these peon humans and want to rule over everything and everyone.” He expresses no emotion, he doesn’t have much conflict with other characters beside the overall threat he poses, and the most impressive thing I found about the character was his voice, because it pretty much matched how it sounded in the 90s X-Men animated series, so I have to give it nostalgia points.

Next, the young mutants. The first person we’re introduced to is teenage Scott Summers (Tye Sheridan) just as his optic rays manifest in the middle of class. From there, he’s whisked off to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters by his older brother Alex aka Havok (Lucas Till), who still looks 23 but is probably supposed to be closer to 40 at this point given that this takes place 20 years since we first saw him, which brings to question his parents’ ages as well (I shouldn’t quibble so much with stuff like this, but it is a bit distracting). Scott and Alex don’t share that much screen time together, but their relationship could have been a more important one if they had, especially given what transpires, which I will not spoil here (although even saying what I just said is kind of a spoiler, so sorry…but again, it’s hard to care because of poor character development). Scott in general doesn’t seem to have an arc: he’s introduced as a sarcastic teen with aspirations toward rebellion, but halfway through, that’s abandoned and he just becomes an interchangeable character who’s there to help out with the plot. At no point does he become the leader of the X-Men that Cyclops is supposed to be. (Then again, the films never really did quite know what to do with Cyclops, so maybe I can let this one slide a little bit.)

Jean Grey and Nightcrawler are the next two we meet. Jean (Sophie Turner) is really the only one given a chance at any kind of development, but it isn’t executed as skillfully as I think the movie thinks it is. She’s supposed to be scared of her growing power, scared to really harness it, own it. All the ideas are placed in front of her and us, but none of it is fully grasped, allowing there to be a sense of catharsis. She just becomes another interchangeable mutant trying to save the day. And the same goes for Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee). He’s presented as a kid who’s been persecuted his whole life, which makes him shy and quiet. As soon as he reaches the school, however, and meets his new friends, yup, you guessed it, kid with cool powers that turns into a hero. Sheridan, Turner and Smit-McPhee are all reasonably okay in their roles, but like Isaac, they aren’t given that much to do.

Really, two of the only characters that have any sort of arc are Raven/Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peter/Quicksilver (Evan Peters). This First Class trilogy has given plenty of time and focus developing Mystique as a character, mostly due to the fact that Lawrence is a big star and a more compelling actor than Rebecca Romijn was in the original trilogy. Her character has had an arc in First Class, Days of Future Past and now here in Apocalypse. First, it was about accepting who she was, followed by finding her place on the right side of good and evil, and here, it’s about accepting who she is again, only it’s more about taking on that role on the side of good and being a leader. Which, of course, kind of betrays her comic book counterpart, but fuck it, Lawrence is awesome (though she’s been better). Quicksilver, meanwhile, besides once again having he best sequence in the whole film, is fleshed out more once he reveals Magneto (Michael Fassbender) is his father. He wants to face him and tell him, but there is conflict there because Magneto is such a scary figure that Peter isn’t sure if he wants him to be his dad. This isn’t given too much attention, but I very much appreciated it when it was.

The heart of this entire series, though, has been between Charles (James McAvoy) and Erik (Fassbender). Their friendship, their brotherhood, their disagreements, their love for one another. It’s been the defining basis for not just these last three films but the original trilogy as well. And here, it’s just…not there. Erik is given the proper motivation for joining Team Apocalypse when tragedy befalls him after living peacefully for ten years, but once he’s back in the red cape and helmet, he doesn’t really have that much to do beside scowl and float in the air while manipulating all that metal. And he certainly doesn’t have that much interaction with Charles. There is one good scene where Charles contacts Erik psychically after Erik’s personal woes, but then the plot kicks back in and now Charles is a Macguffin that everyone is trying to get. TLDR, this movie lacks a real heart.

I don’t know what went wrong here; this movie was never just an obligation, and a decent story with decently drawn characters could have been achieved easily, what with the caliber behind the scenes. But for the most part, like a lot of its characters (namely Hank/Beast, Storm, Angel, and Psylocke) it’s just kind of there with not a whole lot to do or say. There are cool sequences and funny moments and very good acting (McAvoy and Fassbender in particular), but it’s not a lot to pick the movie up off the ground. I didn’t dislike X-Men: Apocalypse and won’t say “avoid this movie at all costs,” but I will admit that, after all these years, the mutants are making me feel a bit tired.

Rating: Two and a half stars

My Take on Captain America: Civil War

Not to join the chorus of high-praise that has no doubt gotten a bit tired for some, but I recently started listening to the Hamilton soundtrack, and it’s absolutely amazing. I haven’t seen the show (and probably won’t for some time; hell, I still haven’t seen Avenue Q yet), but after multiple people told me to listen to it, I had to give in to peer pressure. And I’m glad I did. It’s unfairly brilliant. What strikes me as interesting is the sympathy and emotionality in general that I felt for Alexander Hamilton. The play is essentially a history lesson, but the only real history lesson I recall about Hamilton is that he was kind of a crazy prick. At least that’s how he was portrayed in the HBO miniseries John Adams. But that was John Adams’ story, so everything needed to present him as the hero, just as everything in Hamilton needs to present Hamilton as the hero, even with the flaws (for both men) laid bare for all to see and judge.

It’s a matter of perspective. Our opinions on any given matter are probably going to be shaped by the source from which we are receiving the news. Say a friend tells you one thing about someone you both know; you’re likely going to take their side, right? Meanwhile, that someone you’re gossiping about is telling their friends about the first friend, so those people are automatically going to adopt that viewpoint as their own. It doesn’t matter who’s right or who’s wrong; what matters is what you believe and how strong that belief is. Or better yet, how loyal you are to the people who believe it with you, and what if those people were, say, your family? What wouldn’t you do for your family?

These are just some of the themes present in Captain America: Civil War, the latest episode of all things Marvel. And this is a big deal. Notice I just said themes? This movie has themes. Multiple themes. Can that be said about any of the other movies in the MCU? Probably if you dig deep enough, but here, it can be said easily. This is not so much a comic book movie as it a personal story about loyalty and vengeance that just happens to star superheroes. It’s also probably my favorite Marvel movie to date.

First and foremost, it does not feel crowded. There are a shit ton of characters jumping and punching and kicking on screen, but they are all tied into the main plot, so not once did the story feel overstuffed. In fact, the Civil War aspect of the story takes up very little of it, at least in terms of watching your favorite heroes duke it out with one another. There are disagreements abound, but they are done with quieter scenes that are still fraught with tension. There’s a nice balance here between those types of scenes and the action-packed wowzer moments.

And those moments are particularly wowzer (I just wanted excuse to say “wowzer” again). The Russo brothers seemed to borrow heavily from action directors of the past for The Winter Soldier, but not in a copycat way, managing to honor those films while still making the sequences their own. Here, it’s all theirs right off the bat, and everything is a joy to behold. Whether it’s the opening mission or the tunnel chase scene or the big, epic airport battle we’ve all been waiting for, the action in this movie is near perfect.

It’s also one of the better-performed Marvel movies; everyone does well in all of them, but here, there’s more juicy stuff to work with, more subtext to convey that gives every squabble an intimate touch. Chris Evans continues to evolve as Captain Bland, er, America, but I think I need to side with Team Iron Man here, because Robert Downey Jr. knocks it out of the park; I think it’s his best work in this series. It’s Chadwick Boseman who steals the show, though, as Black Panther. He gives T’Challa multiple layers as he becomes driven by a need for vengeance as he sees fit. He carries many burdens, and it’s all there in his eyes and in his voice. He’s fantastic. And yes, for the record, Tom Holland is a great Spider-Man, though in all honesty, if Marvel didn’t end up getting him in this movie, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference; he doesn’t add much in terms of plot-progression. But he sure is neat!

Still, the same problems present for the majority of Marvel’s other movies are still there, one of which being that nobody really changes by the end. Only a couple of characters, Tony and T’Challa included, seem to have a real arc. But this is Captain America’s story, so shouldn’t this be his journey? He goes through a lot of shit, but only physically, not psychologically. By the end, he’s still the same boring Steve Rogers with the same boring morals and ideals he was at the beginning of the film, so in a sense, that reveals the movie to just be an excuse for awesome battles and things going kaboom. In other words, a cash grab (but what comic book movie isn’t a cash grab?).

On the other hand, there’s a surprising amount of depth to the story. It’s about loyalty between friends and family and what that is worth to different people. Friendship and family are probably the two most important things we can have in our lives (obvious statement of the week), but that doesn’t mean they remain absent of tension forever and ever. Disagreements or other negative situations will arise; our judgment may become clouded by factors not known by the other parties. Then there’s just sheer stubbornness and the unwillingness to admit any fault, thereby making any conflict worse. We’ve all been guilty of this in some shape or form, myself included. It’s just human nature. Sucks, don’t it?

For Steve and Tony, the heart of this story, it really brings to mind the classic American Civil War adage, “brother against brother.” I’ve always seen them as brothers: they love each other, but they have fundamentally different views of the world, so it’s all the more disappointing for one when the other can’t see things the way he does. Steve is always trying to keep the little guy out of harm’s way from bullies; Tony is trying to atone for the sin of making the world more dangerous. And these two motivations clash: Tony thinks Steve is blind to reason, but Steve thinks Tony is just being selfish and not seeing the bigger picture. The two of them don’t want to fight, but they both feel that the world is at stake. At least to start off. It later becomes about something much smaller, but the sense of betrayal is overwhelming, so much so that the rift may never be repaired, and loyalty between brothers is now rendered expendable.

Besides the typical Marvel flaws and another villainous plot that relies on an impossible amount of foresight and luck, Captain America: Civil War is a plain, good time at the movies. None of these films have been perfect, but they’ve always been fun. Some more than others, sure, but fun nevertheless, and Civil War hopefully foreshadows a new level of maturity that’s to come for Phase Three. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m not throwing away my shot and will be listening to a certain record for a while (Hamilton fans will get that reference. Do yourself a favor and become one).

Rating: Four stars

Summer Movies 2016

I’m going to be perfectly honest: this doesn’t look like the greatest crop of summer movies we have coming this year. Don’t get me wrong, there are some big blockbusters and event pictures heading to theaters from the months of May through August, but the majority of them are sequels, reboots, reawakenings and just overall reek of Hollywood desperation. My cynicism is getting the best of me. Of course, I’m part of the problem, because I’ll likely see most of those movies, but hey, I live to be entertained. Let’s hope these ten movies do their job well.

10. STAR TREK BEYOND—I am an Into Darkness apologist, and I personally didn’t mind the Trek and Furious teaser trailer that was released. Who knows if Justin Lin will bring new life to this franchise or bury it under six feet of Tribble fertilizer? This cast has done a great job, and Idris Elba as the villain is enough reason to check this out.

9. GHOSTBUSTERS—yes, the first trailer was a disappointment, but I have a sneaking suspicion they’re keeping their cards close to the vest. I have faith in Paul Feig, and this cast he put together is a funny bunch; the world doesn’t need another Ghostbusters movie, but as long as we’re getting one, I’m glad it’s with these four hilarious women.

8. SWISS ARMY MAN—I can’t decide if this movie looks awful, just downright bizarre, or absolutely brilliant. All I know is it sounds like nothing I’ve ever seen before, so that breath of fresh air (give or take a flatulent Daniel Radcliffe corpse) is something.

7. MONEY MONSTER—I think I’m a fan of hostage situation movies (hell, the first screenplay I ever wrote was a hostage situation story). Blame Airheads, of all things, for that. In any case, I’m drawn to this not just because of the genre, but because the cast and story appear to pack a powerful punch. Plus, I’m curious to see how Jodie Foster is at the helm of a thriller. She did an awesome episode of House of Cards, so something tells me she’s fantastic.

6. THE LOBSTER—like Swiss Army Man, this is a highly original concept, one I’ve been waiting for ever since I heard about it a year and a half or so ago. A post-apocalyptic sci-fi love story comedy? Yes please.

5. FINDING DORY—I will always be skeptical when it comes to Pixar sequels, especially when they come so long after the initial film. Monsters University was fine, Toy Story 3 was genius, and Cars 2, I don’t acknowledge its existence. Finding Nemo is a near-perfect film in my mind and it never warranted a sequel. Still, I feel Pixar killed it twice last year, with Inside Out and The Good Dinosaur, so this creative upswing bodes well for an unnecessary sequel such as this.

4. X-MEN: APOCALYPSE—this is honestly the least excited I’ve been for an X-Men movie, and that includes the Ratner-ized Last Stand. I’m sure it will be good and I’m still very down for it, but nothing in the trailers has wowed me yet. These last two movies have been successful because the relationship between Charles Xavier and Magneto was front and center, but it looks to be taking a back seat to spectacle here, which this series has (usually) never been about. I hope I’m wrong.

3. SUICIDE SQUAD—this DC Cinematic Universe is 0 for 2 in my book, and there’s still a certain amount of skepticism going into this, but I don’t know, I’m holding out hope. If they can flesh out every character and make sure everyone has an arc, and Jared Leto doesn’t end up pissing all over The Joker with his wacky antics, then this could be fun.

2. CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR—superhero fatigue also accounts for the last two films and this one not taking the top spot. We all need something fresh. If preliminary reviews are any indication, then Civil War is going to be a welcome sight. I’m having trouble swallowing the conflict from just the trailers—why does everyone need to solve their problems with fighting? Hatch it out over coffee, people, jeez!—but like Suicide Squad, if they can manage to give everyone something worthwhile to do besides look neat, if everyone can have a human moment and the relationships are real and relatable, then we’ll have a winner on our hands.

1. THE NICE GUYS—have you seen Kiss Kiss Bang Bang? No? Then why am I talking to you? How about you? You have. Good! Then you’ll know what I’m talking about when I say this has a very Kiss Kiss feel. Shane Black seems to excel at crime capers featuring bickering duos that love each other despite their differences. With this 70s-era throwback, I think he may have another masterpiece here. No other recent trailer has gotten me as fired up as this one. Hence, the movie I want to see the most this summer.

Some other flicks worth a mention?

DEFINITELY THIS: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, Warcraft, The Secret Life of Pets

MAYBE THAT: Free State of Jones, Independence Day: Resurgence, Now You See Me 2

FORGET THESE: Alice Through the Looking Glass, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, The Legend of Tarzan

UGH, THOSE?: Central Intelligence, Ice Age: Collision Course, Nine Lives

Seriously, have you seen the trailer for Nine Lives? ARE THEY SERIOUS?!?!?! Ahem…I’ll focus on the movies I want to see. Let’s hope they’re good!

sidneycrobsy

general hux always looks like he’s watching someone not use a coaster

lierdumoa

My Take on Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

When you dislike something, that dislike can take on a life of its own. Case in point, Man of Steel. I didn’t hate the movie after I first saw it; I was just very disappointed. But as time went on, that disappointment turned into offense: what Zack Snyder had done was suddenly an insult to Superman, comic book movies and cinema as a whole. Any chance to pan the film, even in brief discussion, was something I felt and still feel obligated to do. But honestly, it isn’t even worth all that energy. It’s not a big deal. It’s just a movie I happened to not like. Other people enjoyed it. Other people share my opinion. That’s the joy of movies. The end. Move on, me.

Now we have the sequel, or rather, precursor to the DC Cinematic Universe, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, also directed by Snyder. Once more, we have beloved characters, both heroic and villainous alike, front and center, asking for our money as they try to entertain us with a good and epic story. The anticipation is high. Even for me, and walked into this movie with low expectations. But I still did my best to keep an open mind and not let my sour opinion on both Man of Steel and Snyder as a director affect my take on this film.

I’d like to think I succeeded, but it’s hard to know, considering I ended up believing this movie is a failure. Is that because of the bias, or because it truly is a complete and utter failure? Hard to say, but I’ll try and back it up.

First off, I didn’t hate this movie (ask me again in three weeks and we’ll see), and there are some elements to it that I am fond of. When I say “failure,” I don’t mean to say it’s a “massive catastrophe” or even as insulting as I believe Man of Steel to be. What I mean by failure is…well here; I’ll put it this way. I once heard that when someone asks a storyteller what their story is about, they shouldn’t necessarily give the elevator pitch and provide the one-sentence logline for their tale. Anyone can do that. What they should say is what their story is about thematically or at its core. For example, say someone wants to know what The Dark Knight is about. It’s easy to answer, “Batman fights The Joker,” but it’s more interesting to say, “A hero is pushed to his limits and learns what real heroism takes, even at his own expense.” Hell, this can even be done with Man of Steel: “An outsider searches for his place in the world and discovers who he can be.” That personalizes everything, and audiences respond the best when they can personalize the film they are watching.

For the life of me, I cannot tell you what Batman v Superman is about beyond “Batman fights Superman but then they becomes besties and more movies in the pipeline are lazily foreshadowed money money money money money.”

What was this movie trying to say? What lessons were its characters supposed to learn? It teeters on the cusp of almost asking and answering these questions and allowing the movie to have at least two fucking layers, but instead it gets too comfortable where it is and falls back on the Snyder tradition of having just one fucking layer.

Before I go on with my lambasting, I want to talk about what I did like. First and foremost, Ben Affleck is great. He’s a fantastic Batman and an even better Bruce Wayne. He looks the part; he gives his all to it. I was very satisfied. Gal Gadot is also very good as Diana Prince, but when she finally dons her Wonder Woman gear, that’s when she shines. She doesn’t have a whole lot to do up to that point, but she leaves a definite mark; the audience applauded for her, after all. Other performances that stood out for me are Jeremy Irons as Alfred and Diane Lane as Martha Kent. While they each have limited screen time, they manage to give humanity to their roles; I wish there was more of them, because this movie could have used some more of that.

The action is entertaining and I can see people getting invested in it more than I did. It’s very intense, but some of it isn’t edited or shot too well, and there’s one scene, a dream sequence of all things, which does not need to exist. It adds nothing. They could have replaced that with an action sequence that is regrettably left off screen for some reason. The dialogue is very impressive; there are plenty of choice lines that I felt were original without being too stylized. The music…well, it’s not bad, but at least Hans Zimmer’s Man of Steel theme was memorable, whereas here, working with Mad Max: Fury Road’s Junkie XL, everything’s just neat and forgettable. And overused. And pretentious. Okay, maybe it is bad.

What soils this movie for me, besides the inevitable and excessive destruction (but hey, at least thousands of innocents aren’t being crushed by falling buildings! Progress!), is the fact that every character and every relationship is underdeveloped, which gives me no reason to care. As good as Affleck is, we only see one side of Bruce Wayne. Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor is…interesting, to say the least, but the motivations for his grand scheme are completely lost on me. He just does what he does to do it. What the fuck is his endgame? I heard someone say it’s because he doesn’t like the idea of a god being more powerful than him, which I like, but maybe if that were apparent at all during the course of the film, I would have understood Lex a little better instead of just thinking he was out of his mind. Amy Adams’ Lois Lane is once again just kind of there; she adds little to the story besides being a motivator for Superman, which is a complete waste of Adams’ talents, and goes to show that the powers that be still don’t know what to do with Lane as a character.

Even the big fight we’ve all been waiting for…IT DIDN’T NEED TO HAPPEN!!! I’m saying this right now: Batman and Superman never needed to come to blows. They didn’t have to like each other, but their battle could have been avoided entirely, or at least been cut in half once Superman remembers that he just wanted to talk, not punch a guy a bunch of times. So the entire purpose of the movie is gone. Bye bye, twelve dollars! You were not put to good use.

It’s easy to get hyperbolic, obviously. But that’s the thing about dislike: it possesses you. Bruce Wayne only sees a threat that destroyed one of his pretty buildings. Clark Kent only sees a vigilante brutalizing people. So: conflict. If this theme—letting yourself be overcome by hate—was present at all, I might have liked this movie more. But it’s not. There is no theme. There is no journey for any character here, no arc. Just the hint of one, like I said before. It keeps reaching and reaching for that amazing, thought-provoking story, but it gets lost in the hands of a fifty-year-old toddler smashing his toys together and making explosion noises with his mouth in order to get his jollies, and a studio that only wants to have a pissing contest with Marvel because money money money money money. And so, any feeling of fulfillment, of believing those two and a half hours spent in a crowded theater were worthwhile, is lost, and I can only shake my head and sigh. I don’t know if Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will be covered with more and more trash for me as time goes on, but for now, it can rest soundly at the bottom of garbage bin, waiting for that day to come.

Rating: Two stars

My Take on 10 Cloverfield Lane

I saw the original Cloverfield during a rough time in my life. In 2008, I arrived at CSU Northridge ready to give college a second shot. I got there on a Thursday, decided to drop out on Friday, and went back home on Sunday. I was running away. Plain and simple. Running away from the mounting pressure I had built up in my head, and the only way to relieve it was to get out of there. Another way was to go to a movie, so on that Saturday, my friend Dan and I went to see Cloverfield, and I stopped thinking about all my troubles for a shaky cam-filled ninety minutes. It helped. I was nauseous, but it helped.

That’s why it rather surprised me to discover that the theme of 10 Cloverfield Lane, the non-sequel sequel to the movie that basically resurrected the whole “found footage” genre, was based around running away. This is a scary thriller with some creepy things lurking underneath, but at its core it’s about one woman learning that the only way to be truly comfortable with yourself is to stick things out, to fight for yourself, not just abandon all hope.

Now, like I said, this is not a full-on sequel to 2008’s Cloverfield. Maybe there are some Easter eggs here or there or maybe it’s meant to be set within the same universe, but the events of the first movie have no bearing whatsoever on the story of this one. Those going in expecting a spindly-legged sea behemoth wreaking havoc again will be disappointed. The true connection between the two films is that they are classic genre movies told at a smaller, more isolated scale. Cloverfield was a monster movie told from the point of view of one camera lens, and 10 Cloverfield Lane is…well, that would be telling.

This is the story of Michelle, exquisitely played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Michelle is an excellent, multi-dimensional character. She’s smart and crafty, resourceful even under dire circumstances. She’s brave, but not dumb-action-hero brave where nothing fazes her. She feels like a real person, and when she finds herself in an underground bunker with Howard (again, exquisitely played by John Goodman) after surviving a car accident and is told that the world has ended outside, her first instinct is to run away. That would probably be anybody’s first instinct, but it goes double for her because that’s who she is.

The bunker is a metaphor for that trapped feeling she gets, when the pressure begins to build and the flight-or-fight response in her brain kicks in, only up to this point, it’s veered toward flight in every instance. Escape and leave your troubles behind and move onto the next moment: that’s Michelle’s inner mantra. But here in this bunker, she literally can’t go anywhere. The world might be over, so there isn’t even anywhere to go. She has no choice but to tough it out, to take her time and not just cut and run. It stinks that it takes this situation to help her learn that, but it’s rewarding nevertheless.

Along with all that personal growth, this is a very scary and tense film. Dan Trachtenberg is a first time director who proves he is a formidable presence right out of the gate. He crafts suspense very gradually, undercutting most scenes with a sense of dread that rises and rises. I knew something would be coming, I just didn’t know when and I didn’t know what. When it finally did, sure, more often than not it was a jump scare. But these weren’t jump scares like the kind that were in one of the trailers that came before the movie, Summer Camp, which looks god-awful. Those cheesy, bland horror movie scares are all about screwing with the audience and are only meant to last for a second. The ones here are felt through the characters, and the rush of adrenaline that comes with those scares lingers on long after the moment has passed. The truly scary things here are the unknowns: what exactly did happen outside the bunker? Who is Howard and is he insane? What will he do next and will Michelle make it out of this alive? Questions like this are what help make the movie a winner in my book.

I don’t look back on my dropping out of college a second time with a lot of regret, but I do occasionally wonder what my life would be like if I had stuck it out. It doesn’t get me anywhere to dwell on what-ifs, but my instinct to just give up doesn’t fill me with too much pride. 10 Cloverfield Lane is a film about not giving up. Some people might give up on this movie because skyscrapers aren’t being leveled left and right like the title may suggest, and that’s their right as a film-goer. But judge it based on its merits, not on the implications of its title. This is more than just a title. This is very good film.

Rating: Three and a half stars

#movies #film #10 cloverfield lane #everyone's a critic #movie review #cloverfield #mary elizabeth winstead #john goodman

Last Minute Oscar Predictions 2016

I always say "last minute," but I came up with these three days ago. So it's more like third...last...minute? Never mind, here they are: BEST PICTURE: The Revenant BEST DIRECTOR: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, The Revenant BEST ACTOR: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant BEST ACTRESS: Brie Larson, Room BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Sylvester Stallone, Creed BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Spotlight BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: The Big Short BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: The Revenant BEST COSTUME DESIGN: Cinderella BEST FILM EDITING: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: Son of Saul BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: Inside Out BEST DOCUMENTARY: Amy BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST SOUND EDITING: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST SOUND MIXING: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST ANIMATED SHORT: World of Tomorrow BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: A Girl in the River BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT: Shok BEST MAKEUP/HAIRSTYLING: Mad Max: Fury Road BEST SCORE: The Hateful Eight BEST SONG: "Til It Happens To You" from The Hunting Ground

#oscars #academy awards #oscar predictions

frameborder=”0” allowFullScreen> As C-3PO would say: “Thank the maker!” Star Wars: Episode VIII is officially underway. Disney and Lucasfilm made...

Let’s do what the internet does best and speculate over 30 seconds of raw footage, most of which is the director just saying “CUT”!

(SPOILERS for TFA)

#star wars: episode viii #episode viii #pointless speculation #star wars #the force awakens #rian johnson #rey #Luke Skywalker

boredpanda

10 Oscar-Nominated Movies Recreated With Winnie The Pooh

theavc

Nickelodeon is actually making that Avengers-style Nicktoons movie

Nickelodeon and Paramount are actually going to make thatAvengers-style Nicktoons movie that we reported on back in September, and Deadline says that it’s going to be directed by Napoleon Dynamite’s Jared Hess.Deadline specifically compares it to Who Framed Roger Rabbit, so it’s not clear if the movie will actually be about these characters teaming up to fight some evil force, or if they’ll just hang out in the background while a Bob Hoskins-like figure does his thing. But the report confirms that—at the very least—Rugrats, Ren & Stimpy, Rocko’s Modern Life, Aaahh! Real Monsters, and The Angry Beavers are going to be involved.

Full story at avclub.com

ricky-rampage

I don’t know if this pleases or upsets me.

#nicktoons #nickelodeon #rugrats #doug #ren & stimpy #rocko's modern life #aaahh real monsters #the angry beavers #jared hess

Favorite Movies 2015

I didn’t see a movie released in 2015 until March. This was a painful drought for me. 2015, in general, was a painful year. Thankfully, there were a number of films that helped to take me away from everything going on outside the theater. Here are the ten I loved the most.

10. THE WALK—even if the appeal of this movie is the last half hour, what an amazing half hour it is. Philippe Petit’s story is about realizing your dream, even at great expense to yourself and those around you. An infectious character I can’t help but love, he leads us through a story that literally ascends into the clouds, and I was there with him. He proved anything is possible. Exhilarating.

9. CAROL—the best romance films don’t pull any punches when it comes to love. Hell, most of the time, the main couple doesn’t even end up together in the end, or at least there’s a lot of uncertainty for their future. Blue Valentine, Her, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind are a few examples, and Carol can join these ranks easily. The film is never cynical, and it portrays a real relationship that happens to be between two women in 1950s New York without making that, which was an unfairly taboo thing back then, the primary focus. Todd Haynes does a beautiful job navigating the intertwining lives of Carol and Therese, and Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara perform wonders on screen.

8. STEVE JOBS—classic Sorkin, but Sorkin is outshined by the film’s other elements, most notably the top-notch performances by the four leads, Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen and Jeff Daniels. The argument scene between Fassbender and Daniels alone merits a place on my list. This could have just been a too-much-talking picture, but under Danny Boyle’s direction, it became an effortless examination of a man caught between genius and dickishness.

7. EX MACHINA—upon my first viewing, I was a little taken aback, probably because the film was not what I expected. I finally truly appreciated the movie after my second viewing. It’s a dark and twisted take on free will. Are we all programmed? Are we all conditioned? What exactly is freedom? Everyone in the cast is at the top of their game, Alicia Vikander especially; she threads that line between innocent and manipulative perfectly. This movie makes you think, in the best way possible.

6. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS—people can scrutinize this movie till the wampas come home, for better or worse. But nothing can take away the feeling I had while watching it: I had fun. Everything I observed filled my heart with shimmering glee. Daisy Ridley is a star and Rey is the heroine we need. Forget about where this ranks in amongst the other Star Wars films. If it entertains, then it’s automatically a winner, and I was entertained.

5. CREED—when a film has you audibly cheering (although not too loud, as you don’t want to disturb your fellow movie-goers) and doing mild fist pumps at your side, you know it’s taken a hold of you. They aren’t reinventing the wheel here; most of the boxing movie tropes are hit (no pun intended). But the characters and their relationships let this soar. Michael B. Jordan gives many layers to Adonis, and Sylvester Stallone gives a career best in a role he’s already played a bunch of times. Who would have thought? Ryan Coogler burst onto the scene with the incredible Fruitvale Station. With Creed, he proved he’s a master behind the camera, a true filmmaker, in every sense of the word.

4. ANOMALISA—what’s worse: being self-absorbed, or being self-absorbed and not even realizing it? That’s just one of the questions at the heart of this animated gem. After a while, I forgot I was watching stop motion. I was just watching people. I was watching a man, bored with the world and on the lookout for something he’ll never grasp. And I was watching a woman, drunk of a rare bit of attention and almost naïve enough to follow that feeling anywhere. This film blindsided me. I didn’t know what to expect. What I got was something amazing.

3. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD—I’ll express my views in a frenetic fashion in honor of this wonder of a film: eyes and ears satisfyingly ached. Tom Hardy was silently stunning. Charlize Theron was a heroine for the ages. Nicholas Hoult was crazy and tragic. Volcanic-looking explosions. A heart-attack inducing score. The definition of high octane, but not just a brainless action flick. Break-neck entertainment. WOW.

2. ROOM—the book was a marvel, and the movie is almost more so. Something may have been taken away by not having the entire film told from young Jack’s POV, but nothing was hurt in the adaptation. Everything here still wrapped its fingers around my heart and tugged. Brie Larson…She already could do little wrong in my mind, but here she was just perfect. The same goes for Jacob Tremblay, who is just honest as five-year-old Jack, never coming off like a kid actor reading their lines. Not an ounce of film is wasted here.

1. INSIDE OUT—Wall-E was my favorite film of 2008. I loved it so much that every movie I saw after that paled in comparison (save The Dark Knight). It basically ruined movies for me. Inside Out did the same thing. This film drilled into my core and nestled there comfortably. It changed me (briefly, anyway). The magic of Pixar returned in full force. BING BONG! I don’t know if I’ve ever cried that much in a theater. Inside Out tells us there’s nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to feeling sad and we shouldn’t allow anyone to marginalize us because of it either. I saw this at the right time in my life; I needed to breathe that message in. This movie is extraordinary, and it’s my favorite of the year.

Now let’s follow up all that praise with some panning. Here are me five least favorite movies of 2015.

-1. THE DANISH GIRL—a damn interesting story to be sure, but the portrayal here of Lili Elbe plays more like a malady than self-discovery, and that just comes off as offensive to me.

-2. TOMORROWLAND—one hundred minutes of set up and a half hour of story and none of it was interesting to me.

-3. TERMINATOR GENISYS—part of me wants to call this stupid, but another part wants me to call it stupid fun. The film is a mess, spitting in the face of everything that came before it, but in a sense it almost transcends how awful it is and becomes entertaining—this is a MST3K movie in the making. Still, it’s not good.

-4. JURASSIC WORLD—yes, I liked Terminator Genisys more than Jurassic World. Terminator at least knew what it was; Jurassic has an identity crisis. All at once, it is: a Jurassic Park sequel where science goes awry; a heartwarming tale of two brothers growing stronger; the story of a businesswoman learning there’s more to life than just business; an African Queen¬-esque love story between a rugged, dirty bad ass and a clean, prim and proper socialite with holds herself in high esteem; and one of plots the fourth Jurassic Park was supposed to have way back when, wherein genetically modified dinosaur/human hybrids are trained to be mercenaries (I wish I was making that up). Beyond all of that, there was no focus on characters or arcs, just neato dinos. I rolled my eyes enough times to get a headache. This movie is a headache.

-5. MAGGIE—on paper, a father-daughter story disguised as a zombie tale sounds great. This, though…NOTHING HAPPENS. Arnold Schwarzenegger is incredibly miscast and brings nothing to his role; it could have been an opportunity for him to stretch his abilities, but nope. There’s no tension, no danger, and just an overwhelming stench of “whatever” smoking off this turd. Bury this under two tons of dirt, please.

That’s your cue, 2016. Show me what you got.

Favorite TV 2015

Making my list of the best television I saw last year, I was surprised when Netflix, basic cable, and premium took up the majority of spaces. Granted, that’s been the case for the last few years or so, as network television has kind of taken a back seat, but this was the first time I really noticed. Just goes to show you how creative TV has become. Here are my ten favorites of 2015.

10. PARKS AND RECREATION—I originally had Silicon Valley here, and while I did thoroughly enjoy their second season, the more and more I thought about, the more I felt I needed to put Parks and Rec somewhere on my list. I may not have felt its final season was its best (and to be fair, a bad season of Parks and Rec is still incredibly good), but this show shaped me, became a part of me. What, with its amazing cast that struck gold year after year, or its taut and hilarious writing, how, after it appearing on my list year after year, could I leave it off for its one last ride?

9. HANNIBAL—this season was strange. That’s probably an understatement for a series that already featured a dead body totem pole, someone being sewed into the torso of a horse and a hallucinatory devil creature with antlers. But even with all of that and more, there was a seeming consistency to everything. With Season 3, things felt slightly askew, and it was a bit unnerving. But that was likely the point. This was essentially two seasons in one: the tale of Dr. Lecter’s inevitable capture (come on, it was always going to happen), followed by Bryan Fuller’s twisted retelling of Thomas Harris’ Red Dragon. Sometimes it all felt like too much, but most of the time, it was poetic visuals that happened to be doused in gore. That doesn’t sound too appealing, but trust me. This show will be missed.

8. UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT—a live action cartoon. Everything about this is absurd in the best way possible. I’m thankful NBC passed on this, because on Netflix, there’s nothing holding Tina Fey and Robert Carlock back. They never went raunchy, but were able to fully develop their characters and all their quirks. There were times when the show was too weird, and Jane Krakowski basically plays another version of Jenna Maroney, but the show still received uproarious laughter from me 95% of the time. 30 Rock is gone, but we may have a worthy successor.

7. DAREDEVIL / JESSICA JONES—both of these shows deserve a mention because they represent a huge step in the behemoth that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe (does this still count as “cinematic”? Too bad! I’m saying it does!). It’s one thing for there to be mature themes represented in a story about superheroes; it’s another altogether to do it twice, and it’s even more of a big deal when the level of storytelling at play here is just plain good. I’ll say I preferred the season arc of Daredevil more than Jessica Jones, but the character of Jessica, expertly played by Krysten Ritter, was miles above Matt Murdock (though no ill will meant toward Charlie Cox, who is also quite good). Interesting, complex villains; grit, grime and blood you’ll find nowhere near Tony Stark or Thor; and just an overall sense of satisfaction after each episode that the movies have started to lose for me. Both of these shows are pulp fiction stunners in capes and tights.

6. MASTER OF NONE—when it comes to shows based, loosely or not, on comedians’ lives, there are only a handful of ways they can go. The comedian can purposefully portray himself as an asshole; they can transform their world into something surreal, one without logic or rules; or they can do what Aziz Ansari did, which is something in between the two. Dev isn’t an asshole, but he is human and makes mistakes, and he never finds himself in beyond belief situations, but he does get involved in stories that become the best anecdotes because of how wackadoo they are. What sets Master of None above the other shows is that it is incredibly grounded; any assholery or surreality is something instantly relatable. Whether it’s embarking on an affair with Claire Danes, nabbing a role in a brainless action flick, or finding oneself in a long term relationship with every up and every down, Ansari brought maturity and heart to the half-hour comedy.

5. BETTER CALL SAUL—let’s be clear: this is not as good as Breaking Bad and probably never will be. But the same feeling is there, give or take a decapitated head on a turtle. Stylistically, character-wise, the writing, the use of music—it’s all prestige. By the end of Bad, Saul Goodman had gone from sleazy to sympathetic. At the beginning of Saul, Jimmy McGill is sympathetic with that undercurrent of sleaze ready to bubble up. What Bob Odenkirk has done is convey all of that, bringing a great continuity to this character and making it easy to believe that this is the course Jimmy’s life has taken. Oh, and for “Five-O” and Jonathan Banks’ performance alone, of course this is on my list.

4. VEEP—with Parks and Rec over, Veep can now claim the position for funniest ensemble on TV. Selina Meyer and her inept staff continue their follies as they waltz into the White House and kept me doubled over with laughter. The full time inclusion of Kevin Dunn’s self-deprecating Ben Cafferty and Gary Cole’s Kent Davison was more than welcome, and the introduction of Hugh Laurie’s Tom James added great flare to an already great season. But it’s Tony Hale and Anna Chlumsky who especially stood out this season, as both of them reached their breaking points and spoke their minds to their Commander in Chief in two of the best scenes on television last year. The departure of creator Armando Iannucci worries me greatly, because under his guidance, the show’s trajectory could only go up. For now, Season 3 can stand as the series’ best.

3. BOJACK HORSEMAN—who knew a show about a talking horse could be so devastating? Sure, it’s devastatingly funny, but it’s also devastatingly real and heartbreaking. This series could have been a joke, easily brushed off as too weird and unnecessary. But like Master of None, great care is taken towards the characters. Each one, whether they’re animal or not, has human feelings and makes human errors. When Bojack abandons his life to try and get a glimpse of where he could have ended up…yeesh, the conclusion to this arc wrecked me. But all throughout the season, there is a wonderful feeling hiding behind everything: it doesn’t matter how hopeless life may seem at any given moment. There is always hope somewhere on the other side. You just need to look for it. That takes effort, but it’s doable.

2. MR. ROBOT—I don’t know why, but I’ve always had an aversion towards series that air on USA. Maybe it’s the way they’re advertised. Maybe it’s just that the quality isn’t perceived to be as good as other channels. Or it’s probably some unfair and unapologetic snobbery on my part. Either way, that’s what kept me away from Mr. Robot when it first aired, in spite of its glowing reviews. Cut to December 30 of last year. And then cut to the wee hours of January 1, when 2016 wasn’t even three hours old. In that time frame, I binged this paranoid, twisted, fucking outstanding series. Like Orphan Black, the concept can sound a bit silly. But in hands such as these, and with an actor like Rami Malek front and center, eyes bulging with creepy and confused sincerity, that concept is changed from silly to superb. It’s the mark of a good series when you don’t know where it’s heading. With Mr. Robot, I can’t even begin to guess.

1. FARGO—let me put it this simply: after the sixth or seventh episode, I started to cry. Not because of any heart wrenching moment, but because the series is just so perfectly and beautifully done (and I was probably already super sensitive at that time, but it was mostly the art thing). From the cinematography to the editing to the writing to the acting, somehow this show about, of all things, midwestern crime outdoes the creators that thought it up in the first place. I don’t believe I’m the first to say this, but Noah Hawley has out-Coen-ed the Coen Brothers. He took their little, snow-laced thriller and crafted a mythology so rich that, well, it makes me tear up! Aliens, you say? Whatever! It worked. I love it all.

As for the worst shows I saw last year? Well…

-1. THE LAST MAN ON EARTH—the show is funny, but I had to stop watching because I just couldn’t stand anyone. Phil was not a hero I could root for, and everyone else treated him and each other so poorly. I just felt uncomfortable.

-2. HEROES REBORN—reeks of pointlessness. There are moments and plot threads I could invest in, but not strongly. I watched out of lingering obligation to the original series and had hopes that it could reclaim the magic of Season 1. No such luck.

-3. BEST TIME EVER WITH NEIL PATRICK HARRIS—very entertaining, and NPH is, of course, the best, but something about putting hidden cameras in people’s homes and catching them off guard and doing what basically amounts to stalking them…it just didn’t feel right. Oh, and it could be incredibly corny. Oh, and Nicole Scherzinger.

-4. TRUE DETECTIVE—snooooooooooorrrrrrree.

-5. FEAR THE WALKING DEAD—this is how much I disliked this show: it originally didn’t appear in my bottom five because I’d completely forgot about it. When an audience knows more than the characters they are watching, then those characters just come off as stupid, and it’s hard to care about stupid people. So many illogical moves, so much wooden acting, and so many moments where I yawned instead of yelped. I wanted the walkers to eat everyone and then eat the film so no one would know this series existed.

Coming soon, my top ten favorite films of 2015.

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