pizzacentral
Jan 21
2023 ANNUAL FAVORITES
Hello! Welcome back to my annual year-end list of favorite things. I think it was actually a really strong year for new movies, music, and games, so I'm going to get to the point fairly quickly here. It was a year where I was lucky to have a good amount of time to take in new media, and I am thankful for that. Here's what I enjoyed most!
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2023 (that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2023) was eligible. This was ranked on January 1st, 2024, and remains unchanged since then (no matter what I end up thinking about it in the future.)
Favorite Films
I watched 105 movies that were widely released in 2023 this year, up from 96 in 2022. 67 of those were in a movie theater, up from 40 last year. Actually, streaming movies slipped through the cracks more this year, as I prioritized watching films in one sitting instead of in chunks during my commute to work.
It was pretty difficult to make a top twenty-five list this year, least of all to cull it down to ten, so it is with apologies to everything else that I present my favorites. By the way, if you'd like to hear me talk about these movies, give Cinema Bums a listen.
10. Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé
9. The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
8. Eileen
7. How To Blow Up a Pipeline
6. Oppenheimer
5. BlackBerry
4. American Fiction
3. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
2. The Killer
1. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Favorite Records
I feel like I listened to less records this year than I'd have liked to, but when I look at this list, I know pretty much all the words to every song on every album (and had to cut probably five others that I felt the same way about). So that's not bad!
10. KAYTRAMINÉ - Aminé and Kaytranada
9. In the End It Always Does - The Japanese House
8. the record - boygenius
7. So Much (For) Stardust - Fall Out Boy
6. The People's Champ - Quinn XCII
5. GUTS - Olivia Rodrigo
4. And the Charm - Avalon Emerson
3. Desire, I Want To Turn into You - Caroline Polachek
2. The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess - Chappell Roan
1. Something To Give Each Other - Troye Sivan
Favorite Songs
As always, any song on one of my Favorite Records was not eligible to be included on my Favorite Songs list.I've probably listened to singles and playlists more than records recently, and the shortlist for this category was over a hundred songs long. That list may have contained some more adventurous cuts, but these were the ones that meant the most to me.
10. "Psychedelic Switch" - Carly Rae Jepsen
9. "Ant Pile" - Dominic Fike
8. "Coping On Unemployment" - Del Water Gap
7. "ALÉRGICA" - Paty B
6. "Even When I'm Not With You" - Pierce the Veil
5. "All Dogs Go To Hell" - Chase Rice
4. "A&W" - Lana Del Rey
3. "Outskirts" - Sam Hunt
2. "Dance the Night" - Dua Lipa
1. "Co-Star" - Amaarae
Favorite TV Shows
Probably not as great of a year for the handful of TV shows I watch as 2022 was, but I think the top three here are really good!
5. Loki (Season 2)
4. Ahsoka (Season 1)
3. Poker Face (Season 1)
2. The Last of Us (Season 1)
1. I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson (Season 3)
Favorite Video Games
These are all for the Nintendo Switch. In 2024, I hope to finally play Persona 5 Royal on Switch, then finally get a Steam Deck and play Marvel's Spider-Man, and then get a Switch 2 when it comes out. Maybe those plans are kind of in conflict with my plans to spend more time writing.
5. Vampire Survivors
4. Suika Game
3. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
2. Metroid Prime Remastered
1. Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Favorite Theater
I thought this would be fun to add as its own category this year, since I live in New York City and have somewhat okay luck at winning the lottery for shows!
5. Shucked (Broadway)
4. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Broadway)
3. Camelot (Broadway)
2. The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window (Off-Broadway)
1. Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (Off-Broadway)
Assorted Favorites
Stop Making Sense (Remastered Theatrical Run and Remastered Album)
Joe Pera: Slow and Steady (Comedy Special)
Blank Check's 8th Anniversary Live Show
"Ana Fabrega: One Hour" (Live Show)
To a T Reveal Trailer
Movie Trailers: Somebody I Used To Know, Past Lives, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, Maestro
That's all for this one. Happy New Year!
pizzacentral
Jan 4, 2023
2022 ANNUAL FAVORITES
Hello, and Happy New Year! Welcome back to my annual year-end Favorites list. 2022 was a year where I felt hungry for new media, eager to find something new that would connect or entertain or thrill. It was a busy year, a year full of routines, and a year filled with more time than usual to watch movies or listen to music, for better or worse. Even if it wasn’t always a banner year for new releases, there was some incredible art that is absolutely worth celebrating.
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2022 (that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2022) was eligible. This was ranked on January 1st, 2022, and unchanged since then (no matter what I end up thinking about it in the future.)
Favorite Films
I watched 96 movies that were widely released in 2022 this year, up from 72 new movies in 2021. 40 of this year's films were seen in a theater, while 56 were streamed. It was the worst year in recent memory for blockbusters (this list reflects that) and there were few universally acclaimed awards season entries (although I loved The Fabelmans, The Banshees of Inisherin, and Decision To Leave.)
Instead, what filled the year were strong mid-budget releases, often streaming, often way better than expected or strictly necessary. I loved seeing everyday movies like Thirteen Lives, Prey, Resurrection, The Woman King, The Black Phone,Fresh, Rosaline,Catherine Called Birdy, and The Northman all deliver an exceptional experience. Even major franchise entries like The Batman,Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, and the magnificent Black Panther: Wakanda Forever seemed determined to maintain an artistic integrity and production value far beyond what was expected.
For more in-depth discussion of 2022 on film, check out our annual round-up episode of Cinema Bums. Here are my top ten films of the year, all of which I dearly love and the top eight of which I think are some of the best movies I’ve ever seen:
10. See How They Run
9. Bones and All
8. Aftersun
7. Petit Maman
6. Scream
5. White Noise
4. After Yang
3. TÁR
2. The Worst Person in the World
1. Nope
Favorite Records
It’s always been hard to make a good album. In the age of overstuffed streaming Deluxe Editions, it might be harder than ever. The records I loved this year were ones that felt like“whole moods” - designed as a complete experience and intended to be listened to cover to cover. I look at the albums on the list and I don’t see any wasted songs.
Here is what delivered that transcendent experience for me this year, from disco and classic country revivals to pop rock girl groups and dream girl evil:
10.Thin Ice On the Cake- Cautious Clay
9.Beatopia- beabadoobee
8.Being Funny in a Foreign Language- The 1975
7.Air Guitar- Sobs
6.MUNA- MUNA
5.The Loneliest Time- Carly Rae Jepsen
4.I Walked With You a Ways- Plains
3.Surrender- Maggie Rogers
2.Dance Fever- Florence + the Machine
1.RENAISSANCE- Beyoncé
Favorite Songs
As always, any song on one of my Favorite Records was not eligible to make it on my Favorite Songs list. I definitely spent as much time listening to singles or playlists on Spotify this year as I did listening to albums on Apple Music. Some of these songs are strong standalone singles, while some are excellent songs from records that didn’t quite rise to meet them.
With regards to Chappell Roan’s other incredible singles (particularly“Femininomenon” and“Naked in Manhattan”) and the two great new Pierce the Veil songs (”Pass the Nirvana” and“Emergency Contact”), all of which would have made my top fifteen list. Very excited to hear both of those full records next year. Here are my ten favorite songs of 2022:
10 "Mean Girls" - BLKBRD
9. "Grapejuice" - Harry Styles
8. "Danielle (smile on my face)" - Fred again..
7. "Cursed" - King Princess
6. "Green Green Grass" - George Ezra
5. "This Hell" - Rina Sawayama
4. "Cash in Cash Out" - Pharrell with 21 Savage and Tyler, The Creator
3. "Runner" - Alex G
2. "My Kink is Karma" - Chappell Roan
1. "American Teenager" - Ethel Cain
Favorite TV Shows
I watched more TV shows in 2022 than in the last three years combined, something I’m not particularly enthused about. Still, there was a lot to love. Some of the best media experiences I had this year were watching The Rehearsal and Los Espookys(rest in peace) week to week, diving into fan theories during the week, or watching Andor in arcs and seeing several movie’s worth of stories complete a single season. Here is what stood out to me:
5. Stranger Things (Season 4)
4. Atlanta (Season 3)
3. Los Espookys (Season 2)
2. The Rehearsal (Season 1)
1. Andor (Season 1)
Favorite Video Games
This year in gaming was more divided than usual for me. I played my Switch in bursts, but also played more on my phone (often on the subway). I even got a Playdate, playing through half of the season pass and several standalone games. It was a wonderful summer experience and I’m hopeful to return at some point in 2023 to finish the lot.
I am excited (and weary) to finally be able to play Persona 5 Royal on my Switch in 2023, after playing through all of Persona 4 Arena Ultimax this year. I also want to get a Steam Deck. Here are my favorite gaming experiences of 2022:
10. Flipper Lifter (Playdate)
9. Nintendo Switch Sports (Switch)
8. Box Office Game (Web)
7. Bloom (Playdate)
6. Pac-Man World Re-Pac (Switch)
5. Casual Birder (Playdate)
4. Fall Guys (Switch)
3. Marvel Snap (Mobile)
2. DemonQuest 85 (Playdate)
1. Wordle (Web)
Assorted Favorites
Here are some of my other favorites of the year, from funny YouTube videos and new film podcasts to the best of Broadway and Bill Nighy in a wonderful music video:
Rothaniel (Comedy Special)
The Piano Lesson (Broadway)
Ana Fabrega and Julio Torres: An Hour of Your Time (Comedy Live Show)
Little Gold Men (Podcast)
The Big Picture (Podcast)
Dunkey’s Fortnite Daycare Video
Demi Adejuyigbe’s Lost Lana Del Rey Single
Kent M. Wilhelm’s 2022 Oscar Medley
Florence + the Machine’s“Free” Music Video
Maggie Roger’s“That’s Where I Am” and“Want Want” Music Videos
The Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Teaser
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie Teaser
The Hades II Reveal Trailer
Happy New Year!
That’s all for 2022, folks. I hope everyone has a great 2023 filled with movies that make you happy, songs that make you dance, and video games that make you gleefully avoid personal responsibilities.Please listen to Cinema Bums! Until next time,
Yours,
Wade
pizzacentral
Jan 9, 2022
2021 ANNUAL FAVORITES
Hello, and Happy New Year! Welcome to my favorite thing to do every year, my Annual Favorites List. Looking back, I was surprised at how full of a year 2021 was for new media. As much as it may have felt like a blur or a carry-over from 2020, there was so much that 2021 offered that set it distinctly apart as its own year. Let’s get into it!
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2021 (that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2021) was eligible. This was ranked on January 7th, 2022, and unchanged since then (no matter what I end up thinking about it in the future.) I gave myself an extra week this year because everything is arbitrary!
Favorite Films
I watched 72 new movies this year that were released in 2021, up from 44 in 2020. I did get to catch pretty much everything I was seriously excited for - the things still on my Watch List, aside from The Beatles: Get Back, are all films I was more mildly interested in. That’s never happened before.
It was difficult to cull my top fifteen favorites down to ten. This year had a lot to offer, from genre blockbusters and indie dramas to lush comedies and a shocking amount of musicals. For more of my thoughts on movies, and to hear in-depth reviews of these ten, listen to my podcast Cinema Bums!
10. A Quiet Place Part II9. tick, tick... BOOM!8. Licorice Pizza7. Judas and the Black Messiah6. The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun5. The Harder They Fall4. In the Heights3. Drive My Car2. West Side Story1. The Green Knight
In 2022, I’m particularly looking forward to The Batman, Bullet Train, Nope, Don't Worry Darling, Mission: Impossible 7, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One.)
Favorite Records
Music was the hardest to whittle down to a short list this year. Recording seems to be the artistic industry least affected by the pandemic (obviously live music is largely off the table,) so it makes sense that music delivered so much more than films, video games, or anything that needs shipping or a computer chip.
Some of the absolute best records I heard all year (Tyler, The Creator; Wet; Arooj Aftab) didn’t make the list simply because I felt I hadn’t taken the proper time to get to know them as fully as I’d like to yet. Other records, like Halsey, Kacey Musgraves, and both K.Flay’s, I adored half of and the other songs didn’t connect with me very much.
It’s not lost on me that two of my favorite records of the year are EPs instead of LPs (and two more were in my top fifteen.) I know that I valued brevity this year, especially spending less time in the car or on my own. Records that were able to deliver a lot in little time really worked for me. Here are my favorites:
10. HEIGHTS - WALK THE MOON9. Juno - Remi Wolf8. Different Kinds of Light - Jade Bird7. In the Meantime - Alessia Cara6. Blame Game - Beach Bunny5. Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night - Bleachers4. Counterparts - Mallory Merk3. Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish2. SOUR - Olivia Rodrigo1. The House is Burning - Isaiah Rashad
Favorite Songs
As always, any song featured on one of my Favorite Records was not eligible to be one of my Favorite Songs.
10. "Silk Chiffon" - MUNA with Phoebe Bridgers9. "Please" - Jessie Ware8. "honey" - Halsey7. "Altar" - Kehlani6. "Good Ones" - Charli XCX5. "Last Day On Earth" - beabadoobee4. "23" - Sam Hunt3. "Get into It (Yuh)" - Doja Cat2. "Little Things" - Big Thief1. "Rainforest" - Noname
Favorite Video Games
I played much less Nintendo Switch this year than I did in 2020 (and much less than I wanted to.) A lot of what I did play were local multi-player games, which I love but don’t tend to rank here. The two games I played the most were Hades and FUSER, both excellent 2020 releases that I just caught up on this year. Of the five 2021 video games where I did roll credits (I loved the first half of Metroid Dread but it was too difficult for me to beat - yet,) here are my favorites:
3. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury2. Overboard!1. Cruis'n Blast
Assorted Favorites
Apple and Onion (Season 2) (TV Show, on HBO Max)
Sex Education (Season 3) (TV Show, on Netflix)
The Exodus (Podcast)
The Review (Podcast)
The House of Gucci Trailer
The Kirby and the Forgotten Land Trailer
Normani and Cardi B's "Wild Side" Music Video
Chloë's "Have Mercy" Music Video(and VMA and Fallon Performances)
Demi Adejuyigbe's "9/21/21" Video
That’s all I got! I hope everyone had a great Holiday Season, and gets to watch, listen to, and play some great new stuff in 2022. Please listen to Cinema Bums! See you next year!
pizzacentral
Jan 1, 2021
2020 ANNUAL FAVORITES
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2020, that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2020, was eligible. This was ranked on December 31st, 2020, and unchanged since then (no matter what I end up thinking about it in the future.)
The upside of spending a lot more time indoors this year was that I got to consume a lot more media and share it with my roommates. I’m nixing the blurbs going forward on my Annual Favorites list, but posting on time, which is almost unprecedented! Here’s to all the good stuff we’ll get to watch and hear and read in 2021!
Favorite Films
I watched 119 films in 2020, 44 of which were released this year. Film being more accessible and released straight to on demand meant I got to see a lot more new films than I usually do. I didn’t get to catch Never Rarely Sometimes Always, First Cow, The Nest, Sound of Metal, or Wolfwalkers - but that list is way smaller than most years.
If you’d like to hear more about my list, check out the podcast episode of Cinema Bums about it! You can subscribe to Cinema Bums to hear my thoughts about movies every week!
10. Lovers Rock9. Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn8. i'm thinking of ending things7. Tenet6. Straight Up5. The Trial of the Chicago 74. Trolls World Tour3. Onward2. Bad Education1. The Vast of Night
Favorite Records
10. What's Your Pleasure? - Jessie Ware9. It Was Good Until It Wasn't - Kehlani8. Imploding the Mirage - The Killers7. Limbo - Aminé6. Notes On a Conditional Form - The 19755. Future Nostalgia - Dua Lipa4. evermore - Taylor Swift3. Punisher - Phoebe Bridgers2. RTJ4 - Run the Jewels1. Manic - Halsey
Favorite Songs
As always, any song not included on one of my Favorite Records was eligible.
10. "Tattoos Together" - Lauv9. "bus beat" - The Front Bottoms8. "Malibu" - Kim Petras7. "My Phone is Trying To Kill Me" - The Aces6. "Hate the Other Side" - Juice WRLD with Marshmello, The Kid LAROI, and Polo G5. “Fresh Out” - Mallory Merk4. “The Steps” - HAIM3. “invisible string” - Taylor Swift2. “Ungodly Hour” - Chloe x Halle1. “BLACK PARADE” - Beyoncé
Favorite Video Games
I finished playing 20 Nintendo Switch video games in 2020 (double my quota from 2019,) and 10 of those came out this year. Here are my favorites:
5. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity4. A Short Hike3. Paper Mario: The Origami King2. Streets of Rage 41. Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Favorite Episodes of The Mandalorian (Season 2)
I liked all of these, and was glad for the chance to consistently look forward to them every week!
8. “Chapter 9: The Marshal”7. “Chapter 11: The Heiress”6. “Chapter 12: The Seige”5. “Chapter 15: The Believer”4. “Chapter 10: The Passenger”3. “Chapter 13: The Jedi”2. “Chapter 16: The Rescue”1. “Chapter 14: The Tragedy”
Assorted Favorites
Newcomers (Podcast)
The Clone Wars (Season 7) (TV Show)
Reply All #158: The Case of the Missing Hit (Podcast Episode)
Middleditch and Schwartz (TV Show)
Sex Education (Season 2) (TV Show)
The Bachelor: Listen To Your Heart (TV Show)
Lil Nas X’s“Old Town Road” Remixes Performance at the Grammys (Video)
Phoebe Bridgers Performing“I Know the End” On Seth Meyers (Video)
The F9 Trailer
The Halloween Kills Teaser
The Judas and the Black Messiah Trailer
The Patty Jenkins Rogue Squadron Announcement
pizzacentral
Jun 8, 2020
2019 ANNUAL FAVORITES
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2019, that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2019, was eligible. This last was ranked on December 31st, 2019 and unchanged since then (no matter what I end up thinking about it.) Some of the blurbs were written in 2020.
FAVORITE FILMS
10. The King
9. Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw
Hobbs and Shaw is finally David Leitch's follow-up to Atomic Blonde that we were promised: a stylish Saturday morning cartoon on the big screen from a director who actually knows how to shoot action. These latterday Fast and Furious movies are made to be shared with family and friends, to splendor in their ridiculous excess, and this spinoff somehow manages to raise the bar once again. The Rock and Jason Statham's chemistry is undeniable, but it's Idris Elba's gentleman villain who very nearly steals the show. By the time he looked straight into the camera and said "Genocide, schmenocide," this entry has forcefully secured a spot on my top ten list.
8. Knives Out
Rian Johnson's whodunnit bucks the genre send-up trend by making a faithful Agatha Christie lookalike set in modern times instead of a subversive digression. It is elevated and gloriously derailed by Daniel Craig's Southern sleuth Benoit Blanc, and supported by a murderer's row of major actors all treating minor roles like they're Shakespeare summer stock. Its twists and turns play fair and work even better on a second viewing. It's not common for an old fashioned mystery to be this much of an old fashioned good time.
7. Marriage Story
6. Jojo Rabbit
5. Us
4. Ready or Not
3. Little Women
2. Booksmart
1. The Lighthouse
FAVORITE RECORDS
10. The World is Yours 2 - Rich the Kid
9. CLARITY - Kim Petras
8. Fine Line - Harry Styles
Harry Styles achieved near The Black Keys status of "your-dad-thinks-this-might-be-real-music" with his eponymous 2017 debut, trading gang vocals for 1970's The Who style ballads. In the interim he became a queer fashion icon, and with his sophomore record Fine Line, he trades the trim Britrock for zany British Invasion escapades. The songs are more lush and spacey, and nearly everyone is a standout - the claustrophobic jungle beat of "Lights Up," the Discover Weekly campfire singalong "To Be So Lonely," or "She," which apes all the atmosphere of "Eleanor Rigby" that scarred me as a child. My favorite is "Canyon Moon," an optimistic road trip anthem seemingly ripped straight out of An Extremely Goofy Movie. That a pop album of this grand scale can have this much of a unique voice behind it is a small miracle in 2019.
7. Norman Fucking Rockwell! - Lana Del Rey
6. WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? - Billie Eilish
5. Solutions - K.Flay
4. Hot Pink - Doja Cat
3. Heard It in a Past Life - Maggie Rogers
2. Father of the Bride - Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend ditch the high stakes and Ivy League angst to deliver a double serving of '90's "world music" about environmentalism. The pitch is, at best, disappointing, along with their Kacey-Musgraves-inspired stance of dumbing down their lyrics for festival singalongs. But once you get over yourself - which Ezra Koenig is so passionately telling you he's done - there's a rich, lush soundscape of country, folk, and scat that features some of the bands most comforting ("Harmony Hall," "Flower Moon") and adventurous ("Sympathy," "Bambina") music yet. The standout is "Stranger," a catchy spring jam about letting your partner's family break you out of your social anxiety. Wherever Vampire Weekend go from here, it's clear it'll be where they want to be.
1. Dedicated - Carly Rae Jepsen
How do you follow up a classic? Make another one.
FAVORITE SONGS
As always, any song featured on one of my ten favorite records of the year is not eligible to also appear on my favorite songs list.
10. "Panini" - Lil' Nas X
By any tangible measure other than personal preference, Lil' Nas X's "Old Town Road" is the song of 2019. However, it's his follow-up "Panini" that proved he wasn't a one trick pony. "Panini" is a fun, short sing-songy lamentation on losing your fanbase as you get famous: "Thought you wanted me to go up/Why you tryna keep me teeny?" It's notable for being another entry from the young memelord in rap music clean enough for kids and still hard enough for older ears.
9. "Shake It" - Charli XCX with Big Freedia and CupcakKe and Brooke Candy and Pablo Vittar
Charli XCX's sublime "Shake It" plays like a twerk anthem from the year 3019 being used as a stereo test for Bose surround sound. The British party girl/sad fembot invites a who's who of queercore rap to get down with her, and they all come to party. From a record and a year blessed with great Charli singles, this is a few lightyears ahead of anything else she or any other pop star was doing.
8. "Señorita" - Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes
7. "Alligator" - Of Monsters and Men
What I didn't expect from Of Monsters and Men, the "Little Talks" outfit that managed to smooth over some of their Mumford and Sons aping smaltz by mixing it with the kitchen sink jam appeal of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, was an absolute barn-burner. "Alligator" is hard as nails, roaring to life with its metalcore double-drums and electric (!) guitar riffs. Lead singer Nanna Bryndís lifts the chorus into the stratosphere, boldly crying "I'm fever dreaming!" It's like they've never sounded before, and tragically never did again on the rest of the record.
6. "A Thousand Bad Times" - Post Malone
5. "Gloria" - The Lumineers
4. "Apple" - Julia Michaels
3. "Who Hurt You?" - Daniel Caesar
2. "Zanies and Fools" - Chance the Rapper with Nicki Minaj
Chance the Rapper's The Big Day was fun, a fitting tribute to his wedding reception, but all the dance-centric odes to young monogamy felt a little low stakes in comparision to his previous records. Then comes the final track "Zanies and Fools," with its list of grievances spanning the personal, historical, and political. It all starts with an interpolation of Rodger and Hammerstein's "Impossible/It's Possible," recalling most specifically Brandy and Whitney Houston's unbelievable rendition in the neo-woke 1997 Cinderella. Then Chance comes to life, starting with an admission of failure ("I had a bunch of midlife crises before I turned twenty-five") before telling the charming story of meeting his future wife for the first time as a child at his mother's office party. His third verse argues, as the whole record does, for the remaining importance of marriage, before careening through the brutal truth of American history, arriving on revelations universal ("For every small increment liberated, our women waited") and personal ("Sometimes love come with its own barricade.") It's a beautiful, stunning conclusion to a record full of quiet revolution.
And then Nicki Minaj comes on, to close out the record and bookend the decade by delivering her best verse since 2010's career defining Kanye West assist on "Monster." She follows Chance's lead and tells the story of her rise alongside the meeting of her future husband. She chronicles her career, her reconciliation with her convicted lover, and looks forward to an upcoming wedding of her own, all with the hunger and technical prowess of a rapper far less rich. She finds time to drop one of the best brags of the year ("I'm in your top two/And I ain't number two/Conquered rap, then the pop too") before singing along to the sample: "It's possible/It's possible to me." In a record concerned primarily with challenging modern norms, "Zanies and Fools" places romance as being as historically important as everything else, merging worlds until you lay astounded by Chance's conviction that maybe it is possible.
1. "Cruel Summer" - Taylor Swift
The best part of any Taylor Swift song is her dramatic, sarcastic, conversationalist writing style, and the best thing she writes are bridges. Her absolute best ones - "Love Story," "Mine," "All Too Well" - serve as legitimate climaxes to the song, exploding the building tension of the verses as we follow characters getting down on one knee or chasing another into the street. That unique songwriting voice was almost entirely absent on 2017's imposed exile experiment reputation, so Lover arrived onto my phone with impossibly low expectations. I shouldn't have counted a good writer out.
"Cruel Summer," Lover's orienting call to arms, arrives fully formed as a sepiatone soaked August waste instant classic. She sets the scene in the verses, exacting the experience of being infatuated with someone before the breaking point. "Hang your head low/In the glow of the vending machine," she coos. The chorus is evervescent, flightly and transcendent all at once: "It's new/The shape of your body/It's blue/The feeling I've got." And then comes the bridge, roaring to life, and all of a sudden you're right back there in 2008, dancing in a storm in your best dress. We're there with her as she lies to her friends, cries in the back of Ubers, and gives up on secrets as soon as she makes them. "And I snuck in through the garden gate," she screams, "Every night that summer just to seal my fate!" It's a singalong of epic proportions, a bridge to rival the best of her immense catalog, and a perfect enscapsulation of the beautiful brutality of summer love.
FAVORITE VIDEO GAMES
I played less games this year than any other since the Switch came out. I'd like to change my personal attitude about time management to play more next year. Most of what I spent time on this year was the Smash Ultimate DLC, but here are the five games I played this year that actually came out in 2019.
5. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled
I've realized I'm kind of a junkie for a good racing game, although I never think of it as one of my favorite genres. I put a lot of time into this game's story mode and it's ingenius Battle Pass. It served as a good companion to the N. Sane Trilogy I played last year.
4. Sayonara Wild Hearts
This game to me was pitched as "Carly Rez Jepsen," which is maybe too perfect to ever live up to its hype. I think the music and the style are better than the gameplay, but I think it's constant experimentation and brief length are major selling points.
3. Mortal Kombat 11
The story mode of Mortal Kombat 11 is one of the best things I've ever watched/played. It's got the tone of Fast and Furious with the scale of Avengers: Endgame, and all the great character connection that's available to a thirty-year-old franchise. The gameplay may look like hot garbage on Switch, but it plays excellently and the cut scenes looked incredible.
2. Cadence of Hyrule
A wonderful game that is maybe better paced than any other I've ever played. It gives you just enough of everything you want and then doesn't overstay its welcome. The music is great, it looks gorgeous, the gameplay is wonderful and the basic conceit of moving in time felt way less foreign to me than I thought it would. With its open world and fast travel slates, this is the perfect "second Zelda" to play after Breath of the Wild.
1. Ape Out
The title screen of Ape Out made me gasp out loud at how excellent its font choice was. This is a game with style to spare, slick gameplay, and the amazing hook of timing jazz drums out with your action to the music. The structure of being several old jazz cassettes telling a surprisingly moving and subliminal story worked like gangbusters to me, and led to the most satisfying climax in any game this year.
FAVORITE EPISODES OF THE MANDALORIAN
The Mandalorian gave me new Star Wars to share weekly with my roommates, partner, and family, and I watched it (and Baby Yoda) bring all kinds of people closer this year. It felt frustratingly small at times compared to the films, but when it was at its best, it was some of the best Star Wars ever made. Plus, it gave us Ludwig Goransson's absolutely incredible industrial drill/triumphant trumpet score. Here's how I would rank the episodes.
8. “Chapter One: The Mandalorian”
Dave Filoni's pilot mostly fails because it can't figure out what it's pretending to be before it finally reveals what it actually is. It finds its groove in the last ten minutes, and the reveal absolutely killed me the first time.
7. “Chapter Five: The Gunslinger”
Dave Filoni's Tatooine side story was real rough, and it had nothing to do with "fan service." It had to do with the boy band level acting ability of certain featured side characters.
6. “Chapter Seven: The Reckoning”
It's a testament to the rest of the series that this episode is so low. This one finally ties everything together in a way that is so satisfying and leads perfectly into the finale.
5. “Chapter Three: The Sin”
Deborah Chow's brutal and desply satisfying Star Wars via John Wick revenge tale. This episode was the point where the show solidified as something really special.
5. “Chapter Two: The Child”
Rick Famuyiwa's action-packed first episode mines the comedic potential of Jawas in a way that nothing else has since 1977's A New Hope. An absolute banger.
3. “Chapter Four: Sanctuary”
Bryce Dallas Howard's standalone episode wins big by turning up the sweet, sweet romance in some beautiful forest vistas. It manages to make chicken walkers terrifying for the first time maybe ever?
2.” Chapter Six: The Prisoner”
Rick Famuyiwa's horror flairs make this dark episode a series high. Give this man a Star Wars movie already.
1. “Chapter Eight: Redemption”
Taika Waititi's finale starts with an extended comedic beat from a Saturday Night Live guest star, a staple of this series - only this time, it's actually funny. The final episode lived up to the hype, paying off the plot threads that had been building all season and featuring the best action and character development we got to see on the show. It was a fitting end to this season and an exciting set-up to the next one.
OTHER
Stranger Things 3
This faster, more intense season of Stranger Things was maybe the most satisfying genre work of the entire year. The scope of it was absolutely insane - these kids with slingshots are going to fight the Russian army??? The newfound confidence in pacing, camera work, and comedy make sure that there are almost no low points. This plays like a six hour movie that's right next to Return of the King and Toy Story 3 as a third entry that really gets it all right.
Halsey
Halsey somewhat quietly had a killer year, especially for one where she didn't release a new record. She had one of the best guest features of the year on her remix of "Without Me" - Juice WRLD, rest in peace - and dropped another one of her own on Post Malone's "Die For Me," where she "Went through your phone/And called the girls in your DMs/And took all them home." Her summer stomper "Nightmare" took the best side of radio rock, her music videos and SNL live performances showed an impressive control of visual storytelling, and she ended the year with "Graveyard," the best Jon Bellion track of 2019. I'm excited to see how she pays off all of the pent up good will in 2020.
It's Still Nothing Personal - All Time Low
An approach to the album anniversary that I found way more satisfying than the standard remastered rerelease or tour - a live studio rerecording of the entire record as all the songs exist ten years later. This record was a huge part of being in high school ten years ago, and it was so much fun to revisit it this year right alongside the band.
K.K. Slider Covers
These things are a hoot. I prefer Overspace 2 on SoundCloud and Clay Kramer on YouTube.
TOP TEN DEFINING MUSICAL ARTISTS OF THE 2010s (IN MY LIFE)
This is a little bonus for you - not my favorites, but an attempt to think about the whole last decade and rank which artists had the largest influence on my life personally (for better or worse.) There are so many more waiting in the wings. My life changed an incredible amount in these last ten years, which is oddly comforting when I think about feeling like things never change anymore.
10. Taylor Swift
9. Frank Ocean
8. Kendrick Lamar
7. Lana Del Rey
6. Chance the Rapper
5. Kanye West
4. Fall Out Boy
3. Carly Rae Jepsen
2. Lorde
The poet laureate of my generation.
1. The 1975
Maybe beating out Lorde not necessarily in preference but just virtue of having three records that hit me so hard in the last decade instead of two.
Thanks everyone for a great five years! See you in the new decade!
pizzacentral
Jul 19, 2019
2018 ANNUAL FAVORITES
As always, any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2018, that I personally consumed within the calendar year 2018, was eligible.
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: Oops, I did it again! The year’s list was ranked well before December 31st, 2018, and this list is entirely unchanged regardless of any changing opinions I may have had throughout this year. I held out on posting it in order to get all the blurbs done in time, and now here we are in July, without all the blurbs done. This list has been one of my favorite things to do ever since 2010, and I am sad about how defined by work load it’s been the last two years. Instead of empty promises for next year’s, I will say: nothing! Enjoy! *
FAVORITE FILMS
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: 2018 turned out to be a really strong year for film, maybe especially in quality over quantity. I would consider films numbered 8 and up on this list to each be one of the best films I’ve ever seen. Especially now in a quieter year looking back: can you believe we got Infinity War and Into the Spider-Verse all in one year? 2018 was the new 2015. *
10. Overlord
Overlord is a World War II thriller that starts intense and never stops. Director Julius Avery captures the frantic fear and desperation of war throughout every frame of the running time. Every single performance (there aren't many) is pretty much a standout: Jovan Adepo's innocent protagonist, Wyatt Russell's alarming antihero general, and particularly Pilou Asbæk as Captain Wafner, the most deliciously detestable Nazi villain this side of an Indiana Jones film.
9. BlacKkKlansman
8. Mary Poppins Returns
7. Blindspotting
6. A Quiet Place
5. Mission: Impossible - Fallout
Fallout is the entry where the Mission: Impossible series finally went from "way better than it needs to be" to "the best in class." Writer/Director Christopher McQuarrie delivered the best action film since Mad Max: Fury Road by shooting his breakneck scenes with jaw-dropping practical effects and a confident hand. On top of the action, he figured out exactly what was compelling about each character and zoned in on it, and took the series canon seriously for the first time ever to go back and sort out all the unresolved plotlines from J.J. Abram's Mission: Impossible III. It's also great to see Henry Cavill get to use his charisma and physicality to the height of his powers. I yelled more in the theatre watching this than anything else this year, including Hereditary.
4. Annihilation
3. Game Night
2. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Alright, let's do this one last time. Into the Spider-Verse was the film I saw this year that made me the happiest, and also the film that felt like it will best stand the test of time.
1. Avengers: Infinity War
I spent more time talking about Infinity War than I did about anything else this year. The week before it came out, I called my brother and we talked in circles for two hours about everything that could happen. The night it came out, I got dressed for my Senior Banquet, more nervous about the film than the event. Maybe it's not a coincidence that most of my favorite media of the year came from this time frame - a culmination of the last few years and a forward thrust into the unknown. Late that evening, I sat in a packed theater surrounded by people I love and heard everyone around me gasp and scream and laugh. Imagine seeing that ending in the small town that Black Panther himself, Chadwick Boseman, is from. I stayed up for hours after we got home talking to my roommates, theorizing and trying to piece everything together. And I called my brother again.
Infinity War is a culmination as well - not a conclusion, as it was marketed, but a proof of concept, a show that all these threads and characters and styles do come together into something cohesive. It is an entire universe coming together, once and for all, and it works. It totally works. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely's script smartly focuses the story around Thanos, the bad guy who is finally an actual threat to the Avengers, and roots him with a smart backstory and objective. It is his movie - Josh Brolin gets almost all the moments where the momentum stops long enough to admire some acting, and his performance is compelling and emotional, a testament to his abilities and how far CGI has come even in the last three years since the previous Avengers all-CGI-all-the-time villain Ultron. Zoe Saldana's Gamora, Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth's Thor, and Paul Bettany's Vision are the only others who manage to steal truly impressive moments away from the films madcap pace. Alan Silvestri's score shines and accentuates these moments more than it ever has before as well - everyone is giving it their all this time.
Infinity War is a culmination not just of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's lore, but also it's premise and tenements. The MCU is something primarily to be enjoyed and shared. This film, in the capable hands of Joe and Anthony Russo, banks on that in spades, stuffing the film with incredible hero moments and ridiculous, hilarious jokes, even when the stakes are the gravest they've ever been. Those moments just work - watching them in a packed theater on opening night or alone in my bedroom, a few days before Endgame comes out. It is the best film in the storied series to entertain you and the best film to talk about with your friends, the mega-blockbuster high water mark that never sacrifices its own artful ambitions. There are truly beautiful, haunting scenes in this film, and even a few that don't pull their punches. It raised the bar for what is possible in event filmmaking. And it gave us all something good to talk about.
FAVORITE RECORDS
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: A lot of stuff that meant a whole lot to me on this list. A lot of songs that made me happy in a short spring and that I took solace in during a long summer. *
10. Shawn Mendes - Shawn Mendes
9. High as Hope - Florence + the Machine
8. Trench - twenty one pilots
7. Voicenotes - Charlie Puth
6. Bloom - Troye Sivan
5. Sweetener - Ariana Grande
4. Music From “Black Panther” - Various Artists
3. Golden Hour - Kacey Musgraves
2. A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships - The 1975
1. Staying At Tamara's - George Ezra
FAVORITE SONGS
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: Guess I listened to a lot of female-fronted pop this year! New freezer! *
10. "Fuck Your Money" - Elohim
9. "Miami" - Kali Uchis with BIA
8. "Dancing's Not a Crime" - Panic! At the Disco
7. "Curious" - Hayley Kiyoko
6. "Kiss" - Pale Waves
5. "R.A.D. Moves" - Kady Rain
4. "New Freezer" - Rich the Kid with Kendrick Lamar
3. "Americans" - Janelle Monáe
2. "This Woman Loves You" - Wet
1. "SGL" - Now, Now
FAVORITE PODCASTS
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: I did a ton of driving and laundry to these podcasts this year! *
10. This Had Oscar Buzz
9. Dunkview
8. Song Exploder
7. Lend Me Your Ears
6. Half in the Bag + re:View
5. Pop Culture Happy Hour
4. Kotaku XP + Videos By Tim Rogers
3. IGN UK Podcast
2. Kotaku Splitscreen
1. Kinda Funny Reviews
FAVORITE VIDEO GAMES
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: A slow year for Switch games, especially in comparision to 2017, the greatest year for video games ever. Indies kept the Switch alive for the first ten months of 2018, and that’s not a bad thing! *
10. Arena of Valor
I thought that Floor Kids came out this year. When I was researching this list, I realized with horror that it came out in December 2017, meaning I only played exactly ten games in 2018 that actually came out during the calendar year 2018 (I spent a decent amount of the year catching up on my 2017 backlog, as I am sure I will spend much of 2019 catching up on games I missed this year.) Accordingly, Arena of Valor is the tenth best game I played this year.
9. Night in the Woods
Infinite Fall's Night in the Woods was a difficult game for me to get through, both because its themes of twenty-something disillusion and the failings of capitalism resonated particularly at the time I played it, when I was living back in my parent's home after graduating college and working a dead end job, and because the game gets way too long and repetitive. I only played ten games that came out this year, however, and this is probably better than Arena of Valor. There are some things I really liked: the wonderful bass-playing minigame, the two supplemental prelude games that are included in the package, and the first and last hour of the main game, respectively, which I think ask more questions than they answer in a delightful way.
8. Fe
I played the EA Original Fe across a couple days as I was bedridden after a small surgery, and its zen exploration and Gamecube-style polygons were just what I needed to nurse me towards a speedy recovery. I loved its beautiful environments and tranquil music, and I loved having a good indie game that wasn't a 2D platformer.
7. Sonic Mania Plus
Sonic Mania Plus (on this year's list on a technicality call) is a BLAST to listen to and to look at.
6. Kirby Star Allies
Kirby Star Allies is definitely cute and easy, which some critics cite as a cause for dismissal, but it still felt great to play. I got into a groove with Star Allies that I didn't with any other game this year: there was a few weeks where all of my free time was spent blasting through it while listening to Kinda Funny's MCU in Review series. I think its supremely silly and neat that both its final world and final boss expand to a truly ridiculous level, so much more gigantic than anything else seen before in the game.
5. Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy
I played a lot of Crash Bash on the original PlayStation as a kid. It's one of the strongest gaming childhood memories I have. My girlfriend played a ton of the original Crash games growing up, so I was really excited when she bought this game for us to play through together. Vicarious Visions pulls off a great magic trick with making the games look and play exactly how you remember, even though the graphics have been astronomically improved. It's fun seeing some of the series comes back to you as muscle memory, and also relearning just how punishing that first game is (the sequels are much kinder, and I probably should have started with them, but alas, I am just a simple fool.)
4. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is a buffet that features every food in the entire world, except it's all hidden, and there's no maps to find it. If you flag down a waiter and ask them where to find the food, they just ask you if you've been there before. "No," you reply, and then the waiter simply yells at you "More food is coming across the next year!" "Don't worry," someone at the table next to you whispers, "I've been here before, and it's different every time I come too." When you eventually do find some of the food, there's no utensils, and no one working there will tell you how to eat it. I guess that sounds like a bad restaurant, but when you get it, it is a delicious, well-made, filling meal, and like all the best food, it's just as good alone or with company.
3. Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee!
Let's Go, Eevee! ratchets up the cute factor and ditches the timesink grind of past Pokémon titles to create the installment in the storied franchise that I've always hoped for. It looked pretty, it felt great to play, and it finally wasn't fighting against you at every turn. It didn't feel like going back home - it felt like being a kid again.
2. Fortnite
Fortnite was the most popular game in the world this year for a reason: it's so much fun. It's also free, and a million other reasons, but for me, this game lined up with my interests perfectly. I loved that I could play it safe and feel accomplished or go out and try things. I loved that I could listen to podcasts while playing it and hit that zen sweet spot of concentration. I really, really, really loved that I started playing it on Switch as soon as it launched in May, because I was given the gift of being able to discover how to play it alongside an entire patient community, and wasn't ever punished for being late to the party like I would have been trying to jump in on any other platform. This is the only game I've ever had to force myself to stop playing for good (in order to ever play other games,) and sometimes, deep in those late, lonely nights, I wonder what it would be like to play it again...
1. Celeste
Celeste is perfect, a game that people will still be playing and discussing for decades to come. It tells a simple but refreshing story about personal strength and mental health that climaxes in one of the best unions of theme and gameplay I've ever seen in a game. It's platforming is perfect, as good as any Mario game, and what feels fresh is the attitude that Matt Makes Games has imbued into the package about its difficulty. The game has copious amounts of difficulty settings to make the game easier for those hoping to get through it quick and painlessly, but it also gently reminds you that the game is supposed to be a challenge and there is value in overcoming it. It never feels punishing or impossible like a Super Meat Boy or Cuphead does. The music is whimsical and the graphics are both classic and polished. It feels like something new, and like something representative of the era we're in.
I spent a lot of the early winter months playing Celeste. I played it at home, in rehearsals for Othello, and on a few long car rides. One of my favorite gaming memories of the year was playing through the final few hours in a marathon session in the backseat of Chandler's car on the drive home from New Orleans. Everyone else crammed in the backseat would check in on my progress throughout the ride, cheering on my victories and commiserating my struggles. The feeling of finally beating it was one of the most accomplished completions I've ever experienced. I absolutely love games like Splatoon 2 that will go on forever, but there's something powerful about an experience as thrilling as Celeste that you finally finish and then don't return to. It feels like those memories of playing it are crystalized in my brain, and I won't soon forget the way it made me feel.
FAVORITE OTHER THINGS
Floor Kids and Oxenfree (Games)
I finally played both Floor Kids and Oxenfree this year, playing catch-up on 2017 games I hadn't yet gotten to experience. They are both some of my favorite games of all time. There is nothing in either of them that feels like it wasn't tailor made for me specifically. MERJ Media's Floor Kids mixes a beautiful hand-drawn animation style and a delightfully fresh story mode with an incredible original soundtrack by Kid Koala in a rhythm game that feels forgiving and exciting at the same time. It's so much fun in co-op too, and it realizes every bit of its goals to the fullest possible extent. Night School Studio's Oxenfree also perfectly captures a spooky atmosphere with its synthwave soundtrack and impressive voice acting and dialogue system. The story it tells is engrossing and haunting, worldly and personal all at once. It's the game I would most want to go back and play for the first time again.
Threes! and Reigns (Games)
Threes! didn't come out this year, and neither did Reigns, but I did get an iPhone X this year, so I regularly played mobile games for the first time in about seven years. I love both of these games, and how easy it is to get in and out of games with them. I've also gotten back into Super Mario Run, one of my Favorite Games of 2016. I've heard nothing but amazing things about Florence, which I hope to dive into in the new year.
MoviePass and AMC Stubs A-List
2018 fundamentally changed the way I go to the movies, and it's hard to believe that it's only been a handful of months. I've always gone to the movies a lot, but now I pay for a subscription monthly instead of tickets for each visit, and its honestly so wonderful. I had MoviePass from February until its breakdown in late summer, and I've Stubs A-List ever since, never looking back.
"Real Guns, Virtual Guns, and Me" by Kirk Hamilton (Article)
https://kotaku.com/real-guns-virtual-guns-and-me-1824159338
I voraciously devoured this article by Kotaku's Kirk Hamilton about his personal relationship between playing video games and guns. It made me a consider a lot, and felt at moments like a balm to the year of mass shootings we've had without any tangible legislative change to the way we view guns as a country.
* A NOTE FROM 2019 WADE: Thanks for reading! See you next year! *
pizzacentral
Aug 22, 2018
2017 ANNUAL FAVORITES
Any media that was widely released in the calendar year 2017, that I consumed in the calendar year 2017, was eligible.
Author’s Note: So here we are at the end of August 2018, and here I am finally posting my Annual Favorites list for 2017. I once again (see 2016) held out on posting in order to finish the blurbs, and I once again let time slip past me. So here I am, once again, vowing to do better this year. I want to clarify that I ranked this list in December 2017, and have not altered it in any way since then (although, as with every year, there are small changes I would make in hindsight.) There is also, as with every year, great media from 2017 that I’m just discovering now in 2018. I’ve left the few blurbs that I did complete untouched, and presented the rest of the list without comment. As always - thank you for reading. I’m hoping to make 2018 something special for you.
FILMS
10. Blade Runner 2049
My favorite thing about Blade Runner 2049 is that it finally got me to watch Blade Runner, a film that is atmospheric and gorgeous without equal, and also somehow becomes a horror film in it’s final act, which I love. My second favorite thing about Blade Runner 2049 is how it refutes the dangerous “Chosen One” narrative that has covered literally all of pop culture since Harry Potter reached the zeitgeist in the ‘90’s. The film not only refutes it, but also manipulates your expectations to reveal to you how you feel about the concept as a whole. My third favorite thing about Blade Runner 2049 is Robin Wright as the police chief. My fourth favorite thing is Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford punching each other with those big, goofy Indiana Jones sound effects.
9. Atomic Blonde
8. Kingsman: The Golden Circle
The Golden Circle is a dense, ridiculous, perfect sequel, with a lot going on thematically and even more going on at any given moment onscreen.
7. Spider-Man: Homecoming
6. Lady Bird
5. Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a film that, beat for beat, makes perfect sense on a thematic level. Diana Prince wants to help people that can’t help themselves, and she thinks that fighting evil will achieve that goal. The way the film, over it’s slow burn of two plus hours, challenges and develops her viewpoint are all intrinsically tied in to what we know her character to be. It works so well on a thematic level that when the film’s villian goes from an interesting concept to a horrible Xbox 360 cutscene, it doesn’t even matter, because it makes sense on a thematic level and you’re locked in along for the ride. The slow burn doesn’t matter either, because by the time it pays off halfway through with that watershed moment of the No Man’s Land scene, it has actually earned all the righteous heroism it revels in. In that sense, it’s the superhero film we needed in 2017 - a modern update to Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman: The Movie. That’s failing to mention the many, many other great things about this film: the incredible opening act fight scene, a fully awake dreamboat Chris Pines, an amazing colourscape that feels like Moana came to life, and Patty Jenkin’s relevatory genre shooting style that doesn’t oogle heroines even as it idolizes them. The fact that it felt so wrong when Wonder Woman showed up later this year in Justice League with leering camera angles and sexualized outfits is a testament to how Patty Jenkins changed the cultural landscape with this film, and let’s hope it’s just the first through the door, leading the way for an onslaught of female-directed genre films.
4. The Big Sick
3. Baby Driver
Baby Driver has its peaks and valleys - it’s certainly more flawed than films lower than it on this list, but it also occupied more of my headspace and influenced the art I created more than anything else in any medium this year, so for that reason alone it’s status is cemented on this list. And good golly, that soundtrack.
2. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
1. Get Out
RECORDS
2017 was a supreme year for music, anchored by one of the best sonic summers in decades. This was my hardest list, by far, to get down to a top ten. There are about twenty others that it’s unacceptable I didn’t have the space to acknowledge here. This probably should’ve been a top fifty list.
10. Last Young Renegade - All Time Low
9. What If Nothing - WALK THE MOON
8. Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 - Calvin Harris
7. ÷ - Ed Sheeran
6. DAMN. - Kendrick Lamar
5. Going Grey - The Front Bottoms
4. Lust For Life - Lana Del Rey
3. Gone Now - Bleachers
2. Big Fish Theory - Vince Staples
As the present got bleaker, Vince Staple’s futuristic world got starker. His imagery remains what seperates him from the pack: on “745,” he admits “Your eyes can’t hide your hate for me/Maybe you was made for the Maybelline/Spent so much tryna park the car/Barely got a tip for the maître d’.”
1. Melodrama - Lorde
Following up Pure Heroine took Lorde four years, but in retrospect, it’s amazing it only took that long. Pure Heroine was a debut record so new, so focused, so singular, that it felt like it existed in it’s own dimension - nothing had come before or after it, it just took its rightful place in the universe. Melodrama isn’t as cohesive or shiny as Heroine - there are now acoustic songs, hip-hop interludes, short reprises, and a lead single (“Green Light”) whose verses and chorus seem like completely different songs Frankenstiened together. It’s harder to digest, but its ultimately more satisfying - you can feel that every second of it has been perfected to take you through the emotional journey that it offers.
Much of Heroine was about searching for a genuine love in our modern day, and falling into it for the first time. Melodrama is about being out of love for the first time. It’s a loose concept record that follows Lorde through one single party, after her first real break-up, and we get to move through all the steps of trying to move forward she runs through. “Green Light” is a desperate plea to move on disguised as a dance song, “Liability” finds her blaming herself, “Writer in the Dark” has her calling on her mother’s advice for help. Even as the musical styles change more than we’re used to, Lorde’s lyrics remain engaging throughout. She’s outdone herself with some amazing writing on Melodrama - I anticipated putting some quotes in here, but couldn’t narrow down which ones I wanted to pick. Certainly no other pop star in 2017 - and honestly, maybe no one other than Vince Staples - filled a party banger like “Homemade Dynamite” with the crystal-clear imagery of “I’d get your friend to drive but he can hardly see/We’ll end up painted on the road/Red and chrome/All the broken glass sparkling/I guess we’re partying.” Every single song is filled with these sort of standout moments.
In the end, even with its lofty storyline and diverse range of musical influences, Melodrama wouldn’t work if the songs didn’t stand up. And boy, do the songs ever stand up. “Supercut” gives us the best modern metaphor for nostalgia about a relationship. It’s an anthem that refuses to stop building, a fever pitch techno ballad that starts at 11 and then turns it up to 20, all just to break your heart. “The Lourve” is the ultimate summer love soundtrack, a track tailor-made for playing over the end of an O.C. episode fifteen years ago. It’s lush verses get anchored by the hypnotic chorus (the way Lorde draws out “A ru-u-ush at the beginning” lingered in my head for months.) Is there a better description for young love than “Burn all my friendships/To sit in hell with you”? And everything ends with “Perfect Places,” the poppiest and most succinct song on the record, that finally allows us to feel some acceptance in the middle of this mess. “I’m nineteen and I’m on fire,” Lorde spits out, “but when we’re dancing, I’m alright.” In the same way that teenage rebellion covered Pure Heroine, self-doubt soaks through Melodrama - the constant questioning of where things went wrong, what was your fault, how things could be different. “Perfect Places” ends the record by accepting things for what they are, and giving us one last smirking return to teenage rebellion: “If they keep telling me where to go/I’ll blow my brains out to the radio.” The beat drops out, we hear Lorde make the sound of a shotgun cocking with her mouth, and the chorus thunders back to Earth, and Lorde rides off into the sunset. Or maybe, in this case, the sunrise. It has been, after all, “just another graceless night.”
SONGS
10. “Caroline” - Aminé
9. “Moonlight” - JAY-Z
8. “Bike Dream” - Rostam
7. “Everything Now” - Arcade Fire
I’ve struggled with materialism my entire life. I think it comes with the territory of being a hardcore Star Wars fan. Arcade Fire cut directly to the heart of the issue on Everything Now’s title track: “Every room of my house is filled with shit I couldn’t live without/I need it/Stop pretending that you’ve got everything now.”
6. “American Teen” - Khalid
Khalid deservedly blew up this year off the one-two punch of “Location” and “Young, Dumb, Broke,” but the real highest peak on his overstuffed, vibrant debut record is the eponymous “American Teen.” There might be no other image as familiar and evocative to modern youth writ large in lyrics this year as Khalid, trying to remember what he’s had and where he’s going, crying about his hometown in the backseat of an Uber ride while his best friend passes out next to him. “Wake me up in the spring,” he begs, “when I’m high off my American dream.”
5. “Love Galore” - SZA with Travi$ Scott
4. “Rose-Colored Boy” - Paramore
3. “Shine On Me” - Dan Auerbach
2. “Boys” - Charli XCX
1. “Cut To the Feeling” - Carly Rae Jepsen
VIDEO GAMES
Since 2013, this column has been dedicated to 3DS and Vita games, and now we have the Switch. Good golly, the Switch. When I think about 2017, I think about the death of human empathy, and I think about the Switch. It’s the most useful and satisfying purchase I’ve made since my first iPod in 2006.
10. Fast RMX
9. Rocket League
8. Mr. Shifty
7. Fire Emblem Warriors
6. Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together!
5. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
4. Spectre Knight
3. Super Mario Odyssey
2. Splatoon 2
When I think about the summer, I think about Splatoon 2.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Breath of the Wild isn’t just my favorite game of 2017 - it’s my favorite game that I’ve ever played (sorry, Persona 4 Golden.)
SOME OTHER STUFF I LOVED
Stranger Things 2 (the show)
Dude, talk about a smart sequel! Stranger Things 2 spends almost the entire run slowly dealing with the consequences of the first season and the natural problems that would evolve from that. It seamlessly folds new characters into the narrative, giving us maybe the year’s best villian in Dacre Montgomery’s delectable Billy. And then, after seven episodes of build-up, it blows everything away and returns to that thrilling, petal-to-the-metal, jump-out-of-your-seat Stranger Things that you remember from the first season. The season’s ultimate climax, with Eleven and Hopper in an old mining lift, is the most visually beautiful set piece in anything this year.
Doomsday Clock (the comic series)
Oh, Hush! (the band)
Death Note (the film)
Mister Miracle #1 (the comic issue)
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency (Season 2) (the show)
Very weird, and fantastic, I guess? Episode four - “The House Within a House” - is the best of the whole series, with awesome set design, an emotional human element to the mystery, and a little bit of refreshing horror.
“17776, or, What Football Will Look Like in the Future” (the article)
https://www.sbnation.com/a/17776-football
Jon Bois’s “What Football Will Look Like in the Future” article on SBNation starts off as what I assume is a fairly standard article about sports, and over time becomes something very, very different. It’s best experienced with no prior knowledge. I came across it in the middle of a Dentist appointment, and spent the rest of the day totally engrossed, ignoring the dentist and most everything else I had to do that day. It does ultimately revolve around football, and the way that entertainment connects us, and just why that matters so much.
pizzacentral
Feb 12, 2017
2016 ANNUAL FAVORITES
All media released to the general public in the calendar year 2016 (that I consumed) was eligible.
This got really delayed because I wanted to write blurbs on everything like I did last year, and then I realized it was the middle of February. Next year the blurbs will be back.
Favorite Films
10. Me Him Her
9. Hell or High Water
8. Sing Street
7. Rogue One
6. La La Land
5. Hunt For the Wilderpeople
4. Arrival
3. Captain America: Civil War
2. Moana
1. The Nice Guys
Favorite Records
10. Don’t You - Wet
9. Atrocity Exhibition - Danny Brown
8. Telefone - Noname
7. The Human Condition - Jon Bellion
6. I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it - The 1975
5. A Seat At the Table - Solange
4. Teens of Denial - Car Seat Headrest
3. Blonde - Frank Ocean
2. LEMONADE - Beyoncé
1. Coloring Book - Chance the Rapper
Favorite Songs
I wanna give a shout-out to a trio of “radio songs” that I think are brilliant and I listened to as much as anything else this year: “Cheap Thrills” by Sia with Sean Paul, “Red Dress” by MAGIC!, and “Treat You Better” by Shawn Mendes. I think sometimes it’s easy to discredit a song for being catchy and vapid, but those were the songs that gave me some of the best memories this year.
10. “Goosebumps” - Travi$ Scott with Kendrick Lamar
9. “Jacked Up” - Weezer
8. “Stand By Me” - Florence + the Machine
7. “Brocolli” - D.R.A.M. with Lil’ Yachty
6. “Mind Body Soul” - American Authors
5. “Cranes in the Sky” - Solange
4. “The Sound” - The 1975
3. “Really Doe” - Danny Brown with Kendrick Lamar and Ab-Soul and Earl Sweatshirt
2. “A 1,000 Times” - Hamilton Leithauser + Rostram
1. “Daddy Lessons” - Beyoncé
Favorite TV Shows
5. The Get Down
4. Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
3. Star Wars Rebels
2. Stranger Things
1. Atlanta
Favorite Comic Lines
10. Green Arrow
9. Green Lanterns
8. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl
7. Doom Patrol
6. Scarlet Witch
5. Superman
4. Paper Girls
3. Detective Comics
2. Vision
1. Superman: American Alien
Favorite Handheld Video Games
This was a pretty slow year for me and video games, particularly the second half.Despite the 3DS and the Vita both being pretty much dead by the end of the year, there were a few real gems. It’s worth mentioning that I haven’t played BoxBoxBoy! or Shantae: Half Genie Hero yet, both sequels to games that ranked high on my list last year. I’m pretty confident I’m going to love them.
5. Severed (Vita)
4. Downwell (Vita)
3. Super Mario Run (Mobile)
2. Pokémon Sun (3DS)
1. Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright (3DS)
Favorite DKG Songs
10. “outside the party”/“there is a place i go on sundays to feel the sun shining (and when you smirk at me, i am there again)” - Wade Danger
9. “Loki Session” - 2/3
8. “monogamy, bravery, and illinois” - Wade Danger
7. “Lost in the Sauce” - DIRTY SEXY
6. “Tape Deck Mouth Pt. 2” - Temple of Doom
5. “Emma Stoned” - Temple of Doom
4. “the girl in grant park in the joy division t-shirt” - Wade Danger
3. “Subtweet (Burt’s Song)” - DIRTY SEXY
2. “Twice a Week” - 2/3
1. “Tape Deck Mouth Pt. 1” - Temple of Doom
Films I’m MostLooking Forward To in 2017
10. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
9. Blade Runner 2049
8. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
7. The LEGO Batman Movie
6. Kingsman: The Golden Circle
5. The Fate of the Furious
4. Kong: Skull Island
3. Wonder Woman
2. Logan
1. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
pizzacentral
May 26, 2016
Feature: Ranking the X-Men Series
In honor of today’s domestic theatrical release of X-Men: Apocalypse, I’ve ranked all eight films in FOX’s X-Men series. This is a historic franchise at this point, one that both is responsible for the modern superhero era and now seems trapped far behind it. None of these films have the thematic consistency or attention to storytelling detail that Marvel Studios releases do, but there is something pretty impressive about a series that has spent almost two decades in the same continuity without recasting. (There is definitely recasting, but if it’s in a different timeline, does it count? Probably.)
Without further ado:
8. X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)It's impossible to separate The Last Stand from the decade of unceasing vitriol the internet has served it. While I don't think any film deserves that level of aggression, it is truly bizarre how The Last Stand mangles everything the previous X-Men films successfully set up. The film moves at an unceasing pace, fitting in two completely separate storylines and three main character deaths and making sure none of them make sense, are given any time to breathe, or are thematically tied together in any way. Every single character who reappears from a previous film, without exception, make decisions wildly out of line with everything we knew about them before. This is the most egregiously written superhero film I've ever seen (mark that I survived Batman v Superman,) and all that new director Brett Ratner brings to the series is a crude sense of humor that leads to the b-word being thrown around a lot. Speaking of gender politics, Famke Janssen's Jean Grey gets less than ten lines in a film that is a direct adaptation of her character's most iconic storyline. Kelsey Grammer's Beast is a refined addition to the series, as is Ellen Page stepping in as Kitty Pryde, but only when she's being Ellen Page and not saddled with making inexplicably dumb decisions as Kitty Pryde. Those are the only good things I have to say about this film, which retroactively hurts everything that's come before it with its horrible new interpretations of all of these characters. The Last Stand is actively terrible, like your parents telling you that Santa isn't real and then denying you dessert and then killing you all in one hundred-minute period.
7. X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)There's not a lot to like in X-Men Origins. It isn't aggressively offensive like The Last Stand, but its pure vanilla. You get a hundred minutes of Hugh Jackman, which can't be a bad thing, but there isn't really any ground covered here that wasn't already done better in X2 or doesn't get done better later in First Class. There are a handful of fan favorite mutants who are all lost in interpretation and execution. The ending of Wolverine sets up a heap of continuity errors, which is why this entry was largely ignored by the canon even prior to Days of Future Past.
6. X-Men (2000)At this point, X-Men's historical importance outshines its value as a film. It ushered in the modern era of superhero filmmaking, founding both the superhero team film and the "villain-has-a-machine-on-top-of-a-building-in-New-York-City" third act we've seen in practically every genre origin story since. Taken on its own merits, Bryan Singer's film is a scant exercise in concise storytelling, keeping a brisk pace as it introduces heaps of comic iconography to the big screen. Presenting Wolverine and Rogue as co-protagonists and audience surrogates is inspired.Both are compelling anchors into the universe. X-Men establishes the adult tone of the series at the same time as neutering all the fun out of the world design (and Cyclops.) Sixteen years later, it is pretty unbelievable we're still building off of this first film in a continuous canon, and even more incredible that the film sort of holds up.
5. Deadpool (2016)Deadpool is funny, and it's crass in a way that superhero films usually aren't, and now we know both of those things for sure. The question is: Does it hold up? The answer is "mostly." Comedies, along with horror films, have the hardest time standing up to repeat viewings after you already know what's coming. Deadpool survives thanks to its full throttle “we-let-middle-school-boys-write-this” energy, the wacky and aggressive high it lives and dies by. It suffers from origin-itis and a non-responsive villain, and the small budget leads to some really inventive choices and some really frustrating ones. There are ostensibly only three scenes in the entire film, the first two told simultaneously across the first hour. I think this film really comes alive in its last twenty minutes in the same way I think The Wolverine really falls apart at the same point. Deadpool's connections to the X-Men timeline are pretty exciting ifobscure, but it still manages to get shackled to the "black-leather-no-fun-ever" tone of the X-Men series. There is plenty that makes Deadpool really, really wacky, but we don't get to see much of what makes it fun to be him. There's so much potential for a sequel to expand, and as it stands, Deadpool is a testament to the maximum effort of Ryan Reynolds and some select well-picked supporting cast members (Brianna Hildebrand's Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Karan Soni's Dopinder, and T.J. Miller's Weasel, yes please.) Also, why does Vanessa become totally toothless after her first two scenes?
4. X-Men: First Class (2011)Matthew Vaughn's film deserves full recognition for showcasing the most colourful and fun world of any of the X-Men films (and that includes Deadpool,) trading standard black spandex for standard yellow spandex. It also scores big for introducing McAvoy and Fassbender as the two best-acted characters with the most compelling relationship in the entire series. They are handled excellently, and everything else in First Class is varying degrees of "okay." Jennifer Lawrence's Mystique is a far cry from Rebecca Romijin's siren, but that's what makes her character arc interesting, even when her love scenes with Nicholas Hoult's Beast are deftly written. Kevin Bacon's villain is a strange snooze fest flanked by even lamer prosthetic-effects-turned-henchmen, and most of the actual "first class" assembled here feels expendable at best. Is it all worth it for Professor X using a mutation speech to pick up girls at parties and Magneto as a young Nazi hunter? Yes.
3. The Wolverine (2013)The Wolverine is a pretty stellar showcase for Hugh Jackman's titular character, utilizing the deep humor and pain and grizzly edge that comes with playing a role for thirteen years straight. This might actually be the most "standalone" standalone superhero film we've ever gotten, and its Japanese locale and cast of characters do a refreshing job of separating it from the standard X-Men fare. James Mangold directs it like it’s a Western, and apart from a pretty dumb finale, it totally is. Rila Fukushima's Yukio is one of the best characters in the X-Men film universe, silly and exciting and actually used well. There is a very smart storyline involving stripping Wolverine of his powers, and in a lot of ways, this film does pretty much everything that vocal online fans are always saying they want to happen in their superhero films. Speaking of, the way The Wolverine uses Jean Grey is inspired, and looking at this as a sequel to The Last Stand, it's absurd how much better she's used here than in that film. She has five timesthe lines, and more importantly, she's thematically essential to the story about Wolverine that is being told. Famke Janssen displays a real ownership over the role here that is great to see after seven years out of the game, and I hope that future films find a substantial way to bring her back to that character.
2. X2 (2003)It is unbelievable that X2 turned out (and held up) as well as it did. Its operatic first act is legitimately flawless, and the rest is pretty strong too. Its slow build of a climax remains disturbing and unique in the visual language of what we see in superhero filmmaking. Alan Cumming's spiritual Nightcrawler adds so much to the proceedings, as does the developing teenage drama involving Rogue, Iceman, and Pyro. Director Bryan Singer seems much more confident in finding unique ways to showcase their powers onscreen than he did in X-Men. It is interesting how Singer repeats himself when several of these beats show up again in Days of Future Past - busting Magneto out of a plastic prison, Mystique getting caught stealing computer files, how William Stryker is handled as a human villain - but, then again, there is a reason these two films are the best in the series by a wide margin, and a lot of it comes down to Singer feeling comfortable in the director’s chair and pushing things like he really has something to prove. X2 is genuinely emotional, supremely acted, dark and strange, exciting and adult, and thanks to its necessity-driven practical effects, still mostly easy on the eyes. Some of its sequences - Wolverine defending the mansion, Nightcrawler in the White House, and Bobby coming out to his family - rank among the best scenes in any superhero film ever.
1. X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)Days of Future Past is a love letter to the entire X-Men series, but beyond that sweet fan service, it tells an extremely smart and emotional story. Pretty much anyone who has ever been in an X-Men film is back in this one, and across the board are on the top of their game. Hugh Jackman is the best he's ever been, but the story really belongs to James McAvoy's Professor X. When we see how broken he is, it's about as dark as the series ever gets, and watching him struggle to believe in humanity again is heart-wrenching. There are some big action sequences here, but the scenes of McAvoy and Fassbender trying to understand each other are the most involving and rewatchable elements (just like First Class.) Peter Dinklage's Trask proves again that the best X-Men villains are completely human, Lawrence's Mystique and Hoult's Beast both are used better than their already favorable turns in First Class, and Michael Fassbender exudes so much power and conviction in the third act that it's actually show-stopping. The film never feels out of place and never feels like it's biting off more than it can chew, even while dealing with multiple timelines and multiple casts. The ending reveal is the biggest "game-changer" we've seen yet in superhero filmmaking, and feels genuinely earned instead of coldly devised. Days of Future Past plays like the culmination of a fifteen-year ride through themes, characters, and action set pieces. Also, Evan Peters's Quicksilver completely steals the film, and walks away with the best use of superpowers on film anywhere in this entire series.
The X-Men series holds a special place in my heart because of how X2 ignited my nine-year-old imagination when it came out. I still think they’re well-made and unique, but there is a real drabness to the adult tone and world design that gets exhausting after too long. I think the recent entries have been the strongest entries, and I remain excited about the future of the series even as it’s clear that Simon Kinberg and Bryan Singer and Fox really aren’t sure where they’re going after Apocalypse.The thing about these X-Men films is that the connective tissue between them barely holds together, but it’s always been like that. Only in the age of shared universe has thisbeen raised as a frustrating issue. It’s kind of easy to pick them apart, but there is a lot of heart in some of these films, and a lot of energy that’s been thrown into them over the years. The high points are undeniable.
X-Men: Apocalypse is in theaters tonight, and my review will be here on Pizza Central soon.
pizzacentral
May 9, 2016
Review: Captain America: Civil War
Review Score: 5 / 5Released: May 6, 2016
Captain America: Civil War is a crowning achievement in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It accomplishes with grace what two Avengers films have strained for: tying together the rich roster of Marvel characters we know so far to a single thematic struggle. Civil War benefits from being the thirteenth entry in the series: we are not burdened with subplots, summaries of past stories, or heavy exposition. This is a film that retroactively improves what we've already seen in the MCU, seems to define what will come after it, and even gives the new characters we meetan important role to play in this specific story, regardless of setting up for any future films. It can be difficult in a series filled with Phases and trilogies to figure out where we are in the overall story Marvel is telling us, but it is clear that Civil War is the MCU's Empire Strikes Back: the dark, beautiful middle chapter that wins big by challenging what we already know and focusing on the character interactions in the middle of this grand adventure.
Civil War deals with the fallout of the past eight years of world-ending climaxes we've seen in the MCU. The United Nations drafts the Sokovia Accords, a document taking control of the previously-independent Avengers in hopes to reduce accidental civilian casualties. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) is all for the Accords putting the Avengers in check, while Captain America (Chris Evans) fears the consequences of signing away their autonomy. The conflict between the two sides escalates while a new plot tied to Cap's best-friend-turned-brainwashed-assassain-turned-confused-runaway Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) develops across the globe. The story is fairly simple, but Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (who wrote both of the previous Captain America films together) do an excellent job of keeping the action moving and bringing in characters from all corners of this universe only when they have something important to contribute. The writing is certainly smart and efficient, but it also evident that Markus and McFeely really love these characters and the films that have come before, as we pick up threads and call back to small moments from the entirety of the MCU. Civil War works excellently as a self-contained story, but it takes full advantage of what's come before and what's yet to come, rather than being burdened by it.
The performances are superb across the board. Evan's Captain America has a touch of reservation here, but he remains the consistent moral hero he's been since he arrived fully-formed in 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger. This is bar nonethe best performance Downey Jr. has given as Iron Man. He is truly broken in this film, put through some unshakeable emotional turmoil, and as a result we get a more somber Tony Stark than we're used to, one trying very hard to do the right thing and feeling the weight of the whole world on his shoulders. His work here is spectacular, career-best, and while Cap seems to have a slight edge in terms of moral strength for most of the film, Tony holds all the emotional high ground in the film's harrowing third act. Neither of these central characters would have chosen their sides the same back when we first met them, and that's part of what makes Civil War so satisfying: we've watched Tony Stark in films for eight years, seen him get challenged and change at almost every single turn, so when we meet him here, alone and empty, there is such a real weight because we love his character and we saw exactly how he ended up here.
All the rest of the team is present, minus Thor and Hulk, and while none of them dominate the story, they all get moments to shine in battle and dialogue. Anthony Mackie's Falcon is hilarious, continuing his shining star status from 2014's Captain America: The Winter Soldier to very well be the most likeable character on screen. Paul Bettany's Vision and Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch feel absolutely at place in this universe after being introduced in last year's Avengers: Age of Ultron, and share the strangest and sweetest subplot in the film. Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye, fresh off of finally becoming three-dimensional in Age of Ultron, is excellent in the brief moments he gets, utilizing a paternal charisma and emotional weight Renner doesn't get to show off oftenenough. Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow and Sebastian Stan's Winter Soldier are both strong, neither getting as much screen time or development as they did in The Winter Soldier, but both getting some of the most visceral action scenes their characters have seen. Paul Rudd's Ant-Man is spectacular as an audience surrogate. Even Don Cheadle's War Machine, relegated to comic relief in the Iron Man films, has a relevant perspective on the Sokovia Accords and gets to deliver one of the most emotionally rich moments of the film.
It is another testament to the writing that the new characters we meet here all have a very important part to play in this story, and never feel like commercials for upcoming films in Phase Three. Daniel Brühl's Zemo, the mysterious antagonist in the background of Civil War, is one of the MCU's best villains, and everything he does in this film is completely achievable and based in trying to do the right thing. The way the film unfolds information about him over time is inspired, and Brühl brings a quiet sorrow to him that goes a long way. Tom Holland's Spider-Man, Civil War's secret weapon and biggest calling card, only gets two real scenes on screen, and he's outstanding in both of them. When we see him fighting, it is finally Spider-Man straight from the comics, a wise-cracking, kinetic, stupendous teenager who deservedly steals the show. Holland delivers just as hard in a scene in Queens as regular Peter Parker meeting Tony Stark, and he gets to deliver a speech that is right at the film's moral center, a statement that revives Stark's hope in heroism and reminds the audience that there are still compelling, honest stories to be told in superhero films. Spider-Man has a real thematic importance, but it is Chadwick Boseman's Black Panther who has a very central part to play in Civil War's plot. Black Panther is the best part of the film, a different kind of hero than we've ever seen in the MCU, played elegantly with a regal dignity and consuming rage by Boseman. His action sequences are the only things in Civil War that top the visceral hand-to-hand of The Winter Soldier. His sense of honor and duty demand the audience's attention, and a small scene between him and Zemo in the snow during the film's finale is the most powerful moment in any of the MCU's grandiose third acts. Where we leave Black Panther suggests there are some very interesting things still to come with his character, and I cannot wait until we see him again.
The Russo Brothers, returning Directors from The Winter Soldier, successfully mix that film's real-world intrigue and action with the larger superheroscope of characters who can fly, shrink, and shoot lasers out of their foreheads. The airport sequence that serves as the film's centerpiece is the best example of superhero action ever captured on screen. It is a glorious splash page straight out of a comic book, fast and funny and smart and with room to showcase everyone's unique abilities. The Russos treat these fantastical characters as real, so even that inventive and gigantic fight scene has to operate on the same level of cohesion as a show-stopping ground-level middle act chase scene involving the Winter Soldier and Black Panther. The action is easy-to-follow and exciting, and even though it loses some of the real-world velocity of The Winter Soldier, it is only to expand to a much larger superhero actionvocabulary. The whole film is gorgeous, hopping across Africa and all of Europe, and grounding the film's climax in a snowy compound is visually abundant. We never see the Russos sweat or swerve under the pressure to deliver with this many characters or locales, and this concretely reads as proof that they are the right team to handle the gigantic two-part culmination of the entire MCU, Avengers: Infinity War.
The film naturally invites comparisons to other entries in the superhero canon. There is a serious case of Spectre/Rogue Nation going on between Civil War and Batman v Superman, and while that might merit an entire upcoming feature breaking down the eerie similarities in plot between the two, it is clear that Civil War succeeds as a film because Marvel Studios understands these characters, and Batman v Superman fails because Warner Bros. has brutally misunderstood and mismanaged DC's rich characters. Batman v Superman is no Civil War not because it is only the second in the series, and not because it has a dark tone, but because it was made by creators who did not understand why those characters are beloved. I think Civil War goes a long way towards dispelling the Dark Knight theory that a comic book film must go gritty and realistic to be a truly great film. It also trumps last summer's Age of Ultron in how well it handles juggling everything it is tasked to do. Age of Ultron felt dense, and Civil War feels rich: there's a lot to get out of both films if you put the work in, but Civil War is infinitely more accessible with what it offers to viewers. It’s only real competition in the mainland MCU is it’s predecessor, The Winter Soldier, and boy it is tough tosay which one is a better film. I think The Winter Soldier is telling a deeper and better story, one that utilizes Captain America himself more than Civil War does, but Civil War is ultimately so much more ambitious that it is truly amazing when Civil War actually delivers. Winter Soldier is a sucker punch, but Civil War is a roundhouse kick. Who would've thought that the best Iron Man film would be a Captain America one?
Captain America: Civil War is not perfect. There's some distracting use of shaky-cam, the score is weak, and it can be overwhelming at first glance. Nonetheless, it deserves a perfect score because it is ground-breaking, stunning entertainment, delivering above and beyond in terms of action and emotion. It is the best film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the best example of on-screen comic-book action so far, a rewarding and engaging culmination to the last twelve films in this series, not to mention all the other superhero films we've seen in the last fifteen years. It is technically masterful, but it ultimately succeeds because it understands and loves these characters, and it puts our focus on them. Captain America: Civil War is astounding, an achievement to be studied and celebrated and enjoyed for years to come.
pizzacentral
May 5, 2016
Feature: Ranking the Marvel Cinematic Universe
In preparation for Captain America: Civil War's US release today, I've spent the last two weeks re-watching and ranking all twelve films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I'm a DC kid, but it would be ridiculous to say that I don't love these films. The MCU defined the “event film” in a whole new way, but more than that, it legitimately changed the way stories are told. There's a reason every single other universe has tried to cash in on long-form storytelling following The Avengers, and there's a reason none of them (including Warner Brother's DC Extended Universe) have worked as well: Marvel did it because they actually wanted to tell a wide variety of stories, both huge and small in scale, not just pepper hints at sequels and team-up films throughout. It's not like anything else we've seen in cinema.
So here's my well-considered and thoroughly-researched list, from worst to best:
12. The Incredible Hulk (2008)This is a strange one. This is the film that feels the most divorced from the rest of the MCU, even more than Guardians, not only because it has Edward Norton as the Hulk but because it strikes up a somber tone and slow pace that seems out of step with most entries in this universe. This is a neo-science film, indebted to The Matrix and shot almost entirely in shades of green. It has some big crazy performances, including Tim Roth as a super-soldier and the dad from Modern Family as the Hulk's girlfriend's boyfriend. It treats the relationship between Betty Ross and Bruce Banner with an actual maturity, an adult sorrow rarely glimpsed in cinema, least of all superhero films. Craig Armstrong's score underlines the weight of the proceedings even more than Louis Leterrier's calculated directing. And Edward Norton is good as the Hulk, the problem is just that we know now that Mark Ruffalo is the Hulk, and it's hard to remember that they are playing the same version of the same character. The climactic brawl, at this point a poorly rendered Xbox 360 cut-scene, totally flubs any tension and actual science the narrative is trying to build throughout. William Hurt's General Ross is fine here, not exactly interesting, but I am thrilled he will be returning in Civil War, if for no reason other than it will be one of the very rare acknowledgements of this film's events within the MCU.
11. Thor (2011)Credit must be given to Thor for expanding the MCU in a major way, using the success of Iron Man to create an other-worldly fantasy film. It is also the film that introduces us to Tom Hiddleston's Loki, supremely compelling and gloriously performed. Director Kenneth Branagh captures all the Shakespearean subtext of the Thor/Loki/Odin relationship, but largely fails at making engaging action or visual sequences. The film tells an interesting story, and is genuinely funny throughout, but feels disjointed, a lot like Iron Man 2. Unlike Iron Man 2, however, it is clear that Thor was shot for about $12, with subpar visual effects and costume designs trying to disguise four different rooms as three completely separate planets. The flat visuals do not disfigure the capable acting, but it cannot be overlooked that this film has the worst action scene in any MCU film, a fifteen-minute romp where the blandest of bland CG robots sets fire to a single abandoned street in New Mexico. Thor alternates between being compelling and funny, and distractingly vanilla and clunky. It is also the coolest Hawkeye has ever been (and probably will ever be.)
10. Iron Man (2008)I am not part of the Iron Man generation. I'd actually only watched it once prior to this, back before The Avengers came out in 2012, and I don't think I even saw it all the way through then. On the whole, it holds up better than I expected. It's weird watching Terrence Howard as Rhodey, it's weird seeing Tony Stark as a playboy, and it was a trip seeing the role Agent Coulson played all the way back in this. But I think it is well-paced and genuinely well-written, I love Pepper Potts here, and some of the easter eggs are spot-on (Rhodey's final moment with the silver suit made me laugh out loud.) I think all of the Iron Man films suffer from having poor villains, but I liked Jeff Bridge's Obediah Stane a lot more than I remembered, even though he totally falls apart once he gets into the suit. Even if it's not very indicative of the tone and depth to come from the MCU, there's a lot to like in this first film, a lot more than I remembered.
9. Iron Man 2 (2010)This is the film that really sets the pace for the MCU: the world-building, the flashy colour palate, the weak villains, the humor. In terms of what a "modern superhero film" looks like, it feels miles ahead of the original Iron Man. This is not as well-written as that film, but a lot more ambitious: some things they throw at the wall work, and some just don't. The Tony/Pepper interactions in this film are excellent, just superb, the best back-and-forths they ever get. The SHIELD stuff is fun. Don Cheadle's War Machine has a surprisingly compelling arc, and the final tag-team battle alongside Iron Man is genuinely exciting. Also, Black Widow owns the film, and her hand-to-hand take-down of the enemy's base is ridiculously good. Unfortunately, we get the two least compelling villains in all of the MCU (and that's saying something) both in the film: Mickey Rourke's barely-there Whiplash, whose only personality trait seems to be cracking a whip, and Sam Rockwell's aggressively annoying, relentlessly obnoxious Justin Hammer. Both of these dudes drag the film down big time. Also the birthday party scene is dumb. I think this is not as strong and singular as Iron Man, but the stuff here that works really works, and there's enough genuine fun to secure it a higher spot on the list.
8. Thor: The Dark World (2013)The Dark World is a stylish, scant sequel that works hard to make up for the shortcomings of the original Thor. When we see Asgard, it is a full-fledged fantasy location, populated and detailed and a far cry from the redecorated storage closet we knew from its predecessor. Furthermore, the action is high-stakes and exciting, the pacing is quick, and the scale is grand, mostly sticking to the skies rather than Earth. The Earth sections don't drag anything down when they do appear, and Kat Denning's Darcy is even funnier this time around and given a great sparring partner in Jonathon Howard's Ian. Given the break-out success of Tom Hiddleston's Loki in The Avengers, it is a small wonder that his character is handled so sparingly and effectively here. Christopher Eccleston's Malekith is barely there, like too many Marvel villains, but unlike many others, he's never annoying or distracting with the time he's given. The production design on this film is flat-out spectacular, the cinematography is distinctive, and this is actually the most gorgeous film in the MCU so far. The Dark World flirts with consequence, but in the end it is a short, satisfying, light-hearted, stylish stand-alone fantasy adventure that sets up lots of questions about what the state of Asgard will beby the next time we see it.
7. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)The First Avenger isn't perfect, but it's so far ahead of the other Phase One origin stories that it's almost unfair. Most of the other Avengers are working up to their characters in these films, but Chris Evans' Captain America enters fully formed, an inspirational and honest superhero unafraid of bringing the weight and the humor. The film is paced pretty slowly, but it is filled with big performances, and literally all of them are spot on. Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter and Dominic Cooper's young Howard Stark are both stylish and exhilarating to watch. Tommy Lee Jones and Stanley Tucci bring a tenderness to archetypal roles that makes a real impact in the story. Sebastian Stan's quiet rage as Bucky Barnes is so much more delicious if you know what's coming for him in The Winter Soldier. And Hugo Weaving's Red Skull is (finally) a capable villain, maybe not compelling but absolutely intimidating. The production design is delightful, and the film itself is fun, a genuine old-school adventure film with plenty of action and heart. This stands as one of the few MCU films that builds to a genuinely emotional climax and pay-off, treated seriously and never exploited. It isn't exceptional, but maybe it isn't trying to be, because it succeeds at everything it tries.
6. Iron Man 3 (2013)I'm not a big Iron Man fan, so when I say Iron Man 3 is really good, it's really good. It has such a smart script by Director Shane Black and Co-Writer Drew Pearce, a real humbling and challenging character arc for Tony Stark that simultaneously preys into all of our cultural fears at the moment. Going dark and personal and PTSD really works for Tony Stark, and elevates supporting characters Pepper Potts and Rhodey (even Happy) to new levels of gravitas. The Act Three change-up is a ballsy and valid move; but it does falter the momentum of the thrilling first two acts; if for no other reason than that the glowing Extremis subplot is the least interesting thing in the film. It ends on a huge note, a complete inversion of the end of the first Iron Man, one that feels deserved and satisfying and unexpected all at once. I only wish it had been respected more by the stories going forward. It also has some of the best child acting ever from Ty Simpkin's Harley, true knock-out interactions in every scene he gets with Robert Downey Jr.'s Stark.
5. Ant-Man (2015)Ant-Man wins by simplicity. It is part family drama, part heist film, full San Francisco sitcom, and it succeeds at all swimmingly. The smaller scale is a refreshing and refocusing end of Phase Two following Age of Ultron, and by the time we reach the film's inventive climax, we care a lot more immediately about what happens in a little girl's bedroom than we did about the whole floating city of Sokovia. The film is further set apart from the rest of the MCU by its diverse cast of very unique and silly actors. Paul Rudd is every bit as charismatic as you'd expect, but brings a palpable sense of honesty to Scott Lang's familial separation. Bobby Cannavale finds a way to make a police officer step-dad compelling, Judy Greer continues her argument that she should be in every single film ever made, and Michael Peña's Luis is straight-up one of my favorite characters in the whole MCU. His storytelling sequences are revolutionary and breathlessly hilarious. I might make a separate list ranking MCU characters just to put Luis at the top. Evangeline Lilly does a strong job despite being saddled with a truly tragic haircut, and the way the film turns the hoops it jumps through to not have her as a female protagonist into actual plot points is bizarre. The end credits hint at a brighter future on that front. Corey Stoll throws everything he can at Yellowjacket, and does an admirable, interesting job, but in the end that character is another case of origin-story-itis, the corporate advisor turned evil who ends up with the same powers as our hero. The origin tropes are here: the heavy exposition, the training montage, the threatening of the family, but they are all fairly toned down and handled lightly. Director Peyton Reed succeeds at telling a simple and fun story in a much more ordinary corner of the MCU, and it hooks way harder than any Infinity Gem could.
4. The Avengers (2012)Much has been written about how The Avengers was so successful because there were five films leading up to it, but this really feels like the film Marvel has wanted to make eversince the first Iron Man. Ostensibly, the plot of The Avengers is barely there: they come together in the first thirty minutes, then fight each other on a ship for an hour, then fight bad guys in New York for an hour. That's it. It succeeds because of Director Joss Whedon's wunderkind script, which miraculously manages to tie all of the character arcs into a single story and deliver an almost one-to-one line/quotable-line ratio. I mean, this film is jam-packed with quotable lines. There's a real sense of joy, a colourful sheen that separates this from other mainstays of the genre and ensures its lasting appeal. It holds up better than I remembered, thanks in no small part to the strong performances. Tom Hiddleston's Loki really shines here, the best antagonist in the MCU to date. The film is alsoa coming-out party for Mark Ruffalo's Hulk, who fits in so perfectly it's easy to forget he ever wasn't on screen. There are certainly things that don't work: not all thejokes are winners, the action is better than Whedon's television roots but not shot on a true blockbuster scale, and the Chitauri are forgettable, a CGI army of action figures so uninspired in design and execution that they never even got their own action figure. This is an awesome season finale of Phase One, but mostly just a textbook example of long-form storytelling, an achievement in writing and capturing pure pop cinematic joy.
3. Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)Age of Ultron starts at a hundred miles an hour, and that opening fight scene does a lot to convince us that these characters have been working together since we last saw them, and that we still want to watch them working together. This is the densest MCU entry yet, and all credit should be given to Director/Writer Joss Whedon for successfully (but not effortlessly) crafting a film that is simultaneously a stand-alone adventure, a sequel to both The Avengers and all the preceding Phase Two films, a direct set-up for Black Panther, Thor: Ragnarok, and the soon-to-be-renamedInfinity War, and, strangely, a reaction to the "collateral damage" criticism of Man of Steel. Age of Ultronis a film that is aware of the story it is telling as well as its place within the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the outside world of superhero films in general. That isn't easy, and Age of Ultron doesn't make it look easy, but it mostly makes it look good. While it is frustrating how the film ignores some of the outside progressions of the MCU (the endings of Iron Man 3 and The Winter Soldier are close to outright rejected here, which is frustrating since the whole point of the MCU is supposed to be that all the storytelling matters,) it is commendable how the film isn't a rehash of the massively successful The Avengers in any way. This film is about the Maximoff twins, Elizabeth Olsen's Scarlet Witch and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's Quicksilver, as much as it is about the already-established Avengers, and it is Scarlet Witch and (incredulously) Hawkeye who have the central and most impactful character arcs, both worth the price of admission alone. James Spader's titular villain is certainly well-written and creepily-voiced, but his CGI performance ultimately undermines his believability and terror. The dark psychological explorations in the first act are great, Paul Bettany's J.A.R.V.I.S. finally appearing physically as the Vision is golden, and the Hulk/Black Widow relationship is interesting and disarmingly cute. The farm house scenes are some of the best character development on the summer blockbuster screen this decade. The film is too long, it desperately lacks a good score, the action improves on The Avengers but pales next to The Winter Soldier, and while the status quo has dramatically changed at the end, we're not given a very compelling reason that it should. Avengers: Age of Ultron is a mixed bag, and I can feel that I still need to spend more time with it, but it manages to both contain a genuinely compelling narrative from master storyteller Joss Whedon and improve in every single way (except simple coherence) on The Avengers.
2. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)Captain America: The Winter Soldier is engrossingly excellent. I could write chapters of hyperbole praising everything that it gets right, but the highest compliment I can give it is that it stands alongside The Dark Knight as not just a great superhero sequel but a true achievement in film. Directors the Russo Brothers achieve that by sticking to a distinct genre and fully exploring the extent of that world. There is something to be said for a realistic political thriller that has a main character who flies with mechanical wings. Speaking of, Anthony Mackie's Falcon is a brilliant addition to this superhero universe, as is Robert Redford's Alexander Pierce, for very different reasons. Sebastian Stan's Winter Soldier ranks next to Loki in the pantheon of MCU antagonists, not in charmingness, but as a compelling, damaged, dangerous man who continually does actual damage to our heroes. The action sequences here are visceral, jaw-dropping, outstanding, unprecedented in genre film history. The brutal hand-to-hand combat and practical effects divide the distance between The Raid 2 and Kingsman for fantastical, amazing scenes with action you can actually track and palpable concern for how it's even possible our heroes will make it out alive. Best, the action doesn't mean a decline in character progression: all the writing and the performances here are flat-out spectacular, from the smaller newcomers (Emily VanCamp's Agent 13 and Frank Grillo's Rumlow) to the seasoned co-stars like Scarlett Johannsson's Black Widow, who is more fully-formed and emotional here than we've ever seen her. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely's script deserves as much praise as the Russo's direction for making smart choices while continuing taking risks. Don't even get me started on the truly ingenious and disturbing way that Toby Jones's Zola re-appears in this film. Winter Soldier starts with an affecting fake-out, but it ends with the biggest game-changer in the MCU yet, something that alters the status quo of both what we've seen before and everything that comes after. Henry Jackman's wailing electronic score is an underrated addition to the proceedings, and boy, does that Marvin Gaye tie it all together.
1. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)Say all you want about The Avengers, it was the 2014 one-two punch of The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy that cemented Marvel Studios as the force to be reckoned with for quality superhero output. Guardians doesn't quite match Winter Soldier's technical mastery (it comes close,) but Director/Co-Writer James Gunn's film has a secret weapon on its side: sheer joy. Chris Pratt goes full 1980's Harrison Ford as Star-Lord, leader of a fast, furious, and irreverent tag-team of anti-heroes including, but not limited to, Bradley Cooper as a talking raccoon and an anthropomorphic tree that has more than one tear-jerking emotional moment. If that sentence sounds ridiculous, it's because it is, but Guardians of the Galaxy takes all of itin stride, making bold, stylish choices at every turn and ensuring these new characters resonate in the hearts and minds of the audience. The film is effortlessly paced, the humor is never overdone, and it even manages to make you totally forget it has a totally forgettable villain. That glorious '70's soundtrack is divine and makes it clear that Guardians has its own bright, beautiful vision for the MCU, and it's not changing for anyone. Is that something good? Something bad? A bit of both.
Watching the entirety of the films in the MCU back to back reinforces how interconnected they are, and justhow many easter eggs are hidden in there. I caught recurring characters and references I never did before. Parts of the re-watch were definitely an endurance test. Going back at this point, some of the Phase One films are rough, origins told with a real deftness and a hunger to get to The Avengers. I think it is an achievement how the characters are able to progress while staying in the continuity of the world, especially considering how dense it can be. The MCU seems to break conventional Hollywood wisdom by getting better with each outing. I don't think there's a sequel in the MCU that isn't significantly better than its predecessor, which is downright astounding.
Which is to say, I'm very excited for Phase Three, which starts tonight and will carry us through the next three years. Age of Ultron left some concerns about how sustainable this large-scale story-telling really is, and as equally as that is legitimate, I am worried that we won't get a real satisfying ending to this series simply out of financial necessity. Those are just fears at this point, and looking at the listings for what we've got coming, it absolutely seems like Marvel knows what they’re doing.Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok, and Ryan Coogler's Black Panther are all absolute slam dunks on paper. The word on Spider-Man: Homecoming is that it really is a John Hughes film set in the MCU, and that's maybe the most exciting thing that could be said about it. If Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and Ant-Man and the Wasp can manage to go stranger and not just re-hash the success of their first entries, then they're set. Doctor Strange and Captain Marvel are all that's left to be unsure about, and like everything, we'll see. It's an impressive amount of writers, directors, and actors who are deeply invested in this world, telling substantial conclusions to stories that have been building for almost a decade. It's thrilling.
I'll see Civil War tonight, and my full thoughts will be posted right here on Pizza Central this weekend.
pizzacentral
Jan 12, 2016
2015 ANNUAL FAVORITES
All media released to the general public in the calendar year 2015 (that I consumed) was eligible.
Top Ten Films
10. Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation
The fifth entry in Tom Cruise’s American spy series is way better than it has to be, thanks in part to a perfect storm of good decisions: it has an impressive arsenal of practical effects, it has a complex and intriguing female lead in Rebecca Ferguson, none of the best sequences were ruined in the marketing, and, somehow, it has beat-for-beat the exact same plot as Spectre: but an appreciation of the minor characters and a sense of forward momentum cements this as the more successful espionage outing of the two.
9. Ex Machina
Alex Garland goes full authentic adult science fiction in his directorial debut, and Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow’s electronic score adds as much to the unsettling atmosphere as Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, and Alicia Vikander’s intimate performances do. Also featuring the best dance scene of the year (Sorry, Dope.)
8. Kingsman: The Secret Service
Director Matthew Vaughn finally reaches peak Matthew Vaughn with this rude, exhilarating send-up of ‘60’s Bond films. None of the casting here should work, but every performance is on fire, even from seasoned pros like Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Caine, who both seem more awake than they have in any non-Tarantino film this decade. The church scene is a revelation in choreography, music, and cinematography, one of the most electric sequences ever recorded on film.
7. A Most Violent Year
Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, and David Oyelowo all contribute some of the best work of their prestigious careers in this tense thriller. J.C. Chandor’s 1980’s New York City is a triumph of world-building, and the sheer conviction of Isaac’s character makes for one of the most engrossing original stories told this year.
6. Creed
A beautiful and understated inversion of the original Rockythat tells a timeless story about legacy and rage. Surprising and cathartic at every turn.
5. Jurassic World
A fun summer blockbuster that is more reserved and self-aware than anyone expected. Colin Trevorrow and the leading members of his cast make the best of a convoluted script and over-reliance on CGI to allow the film to shine in characters moments and when it pays respect to the original Jurassic Park, both building to a killer pay-off of a third act. The best thing I can say for it is that I’ve seen the young generation today embrace its mythology in the same way I embraced its predecessor growing up.
4. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Teenage anguish and despair handled maturely and honestly. The most true-to-life film about adolescent behavior since The Spectacular Now, this film’s relentless sense of humor and refusal to deal at all in melodrama set it ahead in a league of its own. Every actor here is beat-for-beat perfect, and each of the three leads are divine revelations: Thomas Mann’s performance as the titular high school “me” is a textbook for any aspiring young actor dealing with modern material.
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
A jaw-dropping, face-melting exercise in kinetic visual storytelling. Tom Hardy’s Max is at his most intriguing when he’s quiet, and Nicholas Hoult gives the best performance of his young career, but it’s Charlize Theron’s Furiosa and the world itself that truly shines here. One of the best showings of practical effects ever, it still takes the time with a quiet scene in the middle to show just how powerful mere colour changes can be on screen.
2. It Follows
Quiet and complicated, David Robert Mitchell evades every over-played horror trope to present the most beautiful and honest depiction of suburbia and youth captured on film this decade. Maika Monroe is endlessly compelling as the protagonist, a young woman dealing with the loss of her father and her own transition into adulthood.
1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Not just my favorite film of the year but perhaps the most important, The Force Awakens is a hugely emotional and accessible entry point into the new life of the Star Wars universe. Embracing diversity and empowering imagination in the same way Star Wars has since its inception, this film not only unified the cinema-going world in anticipation and discussion, but also opened the doors to a new generation of fans, both young and old, captivated by the tale of a young woman struggling to accept her destiny.
Top Ten Records
10. Barter 6 -Young Thug
Young Thug’s eclectic and joyous contributions to rap in 2015 outshine any single release, but the most concentrated dose comes in his sprawling and low-stakes debut record Barter 6. His experimentation is his most delightful strength, and some album cuts (”Can’t Tell,” “Constantly Hating”) rank among the best in his catalog.
9. Summer Bones - Hit the Lights
Using frontman Nick Thompson’s excellent 2014 solo record My Heavy as a starting point, Hit the Lights double down on their “short and sweet, fast and fun” brand of aggressive pop-punk. The vocal harmonies, Midwest-centric lyrics, and cultivated summer vibe all set this fourth record apart from other mainstays of the genre.
8. Dark Sky Paradise - Big Sean
The corniest pop rapper of our time goes dark for his third record, and it mostly works. The real gem is the soundscape, ranging from moody minimalism (”I Know,” “Paradise”) to soulful samples (”Outro,” the beat shift in “I Don’t —- With You.”)
7. Artangels -Grimes
Grimes seems to have taken Kim Wilde’s “Kids in America” and crafted an entire record of spiritual sequels. No one else is creating fifty minutes of guitar driven tooth-and-nail pop, and after listening to Artangels, no one else could deliver the same way. Grimes is strange in delivery and lyrics, but she is at least somewhat accessible here: “California” and “Easily” are the two catchiest hooks she’s ever written, and the title track and “Kill V. Maim” both rely heavily on guitar riffs without abandoning the pop sheen that coats all fourteen tracks.
6. To Pimp a Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar subverted expectations for the follow-up to 2013’s cinematic masterpiece Good Kid, M.A.A.D City by going jazzy, going long, and doubling-down on storytelling. Weighty in concept and execution, the overarching narrative of To Pimp a Butterfly slowly reveals itself and builds to a surreal conclusion of divine proportions. The songs don’t stand on their own in the way its predecessors did, but perhaps that’s purposeful - Lamar’s honest and bleak look into the black male consciousness is confident and unapologetic.
5. Hamilton - Various Artists
An artistic masterpiece that manages to make a story that’s already more interesting than it should be accessible to a new generation in an unconditional way. The reverence it pays to both history and hip-hop delves deep, and certain movements in the first act (”Right Hand Man,” “Satisfied,” “Helpless”) are flawless.
4. How Big, How Bold, How Beautiful - Florence + the Machine
The best summer listen on this list, Florence’s third record is drenched in sunshine and sorrow. Maintaining a bloody sneer almost all the way through, How Big coats regret in pop (”Ship To Wreck,”) rock and roll (”Third Eye,”) big band pomp (the title track,) and Rolling Stones dancing grooves (”Mother.”)
3. Back On Top - The Front Bottoms
New Jersey’s The Front Bottoms deal in a brand of hilarious honesty found nowhere else in the modern music scene, save for some of the less hazy tracks on Courtney Barnett’s debut. The band chose to handle following up 2013’s Talon of the Hawk by not crafting a perfect calling card song in the same way as that record’s “Twin Size Mattress,” but instead spreading a careful uniformity of quality across all eleven tracks. The lyrics are always the biggest joy, but some experimentation pays off here: the jingle keys of “The Plan (—- Jobs),” the rainy power ballad “West Virginia,” the alternative folk breakdown on “Cough It Out,” the gospel call-to-arms ending the record on “Plastic Flowers.” Back On Top never overstays its welcome, but leaves every listen with an unshakeable incredulous excitement.
2. Emotion - Carly Rae Jepsen
Nobody expected Carly Rae Jepsen, the untested artist behind 2012’s song of the summer “Call Me Maybe,” to produce a perfect pop record. None of the twelve tracks here resemble “Call Me Maybe,” and that’s the point: Jepsen has crafted a fully-formed, perfectly-paced record where everything feels iconic, from the huge '80’s synths that open the record on “Run Away With Me” to Jepsen’s rainbow jumper on the black front cover. Even with every second perfectly danceable, Emotion never comes across as having been engineered in a pop lab or anything beyond the artist’s own unique expression - Jepsen’s autonomy over this glimmering send-up of the last three decades of pop music is her greatest contribution, a unifying thread that allows these twelve delectable pop songs to function as a cohesive listen or stand-alone sing-alongs.
1. American Beauty/American Psycho - Fall Out Boy
Somehow, Fall Out Boy made their fifth record (and second since reuniting) the best one they’ve ever released, a career-defining rock and roll romp capturing Pete Wentz’s most relatable songwriting since 2007’s Infinity On High and Patrick Stump’s most aggressive vocal delivery since 2005’s From Under the Cork Tree. American Beauty takes those seminal records as a starting point, but delivers more than they ever did, packed tightly with successful experimentation and cohesive narrative. The record dips into stadium anthems (”Centuries,”) hip-hop heavyweight (”Irresistible,”) alternative orchestration (”The Kids Aren’t Alright,”) and dance samples from old television shows (”Uma Thurman,”) and still manages to deliver the best anthem (”Jet Pack Blues”) and hardest rock song (”Twin Skeleton’s (Hotel in NYC)”) of their entire catalog.
Top Ten Songs
10. “American Candy” - The Maine
The Maine’s fifth record is mostly a feel-good breeze, but its best moment is when the band gets deadly on the title track. A measured unease gives way to a massive chorus, with lead singer John O'Callaghan crying out for lost youth, lost friends, and lost hope.
9. “Music To Watch Boys To” - Lana Del Rey
Lana Del Rey’s third record, Honeymoon, finds her at her most reserved and tightly controlled, a bit of a left turn after 2014’s excellent sad rock opus Ultraviolence. The benefit of Del Rey reigning it in is that when she lets it fly, it really flies: and boy, does it ever on “Music To Watch Boys To,” the most iconic and complete illustration of her summer sorrow she’s ever released.
8. “Leave a Trace” – Chvrches
Chvrches’s second record expanded on all the best parts of their golden 2013 debut, and “Leave a Trace” siphons all of that into one brilliant outing. Lauren Mayberry’s vocals and lyrics cover a lot of ground in three minutes, and even while matching perfectly with Iain Cook’s gigantic synthesizers, she still manages to drop the best humble brag insult of the year: “You talk far too much, for someone so unkind.”
7. “The Way” - Kehlani with Chance the Rapper
Kehlani’s breezy duet is her best song in a year filled with strong outings from her. Chance’s slowed-down verse cements the appeal, but it’s Kehlani’s hook that drives the vibes through every second of this sun-kissed song.
6. “Colors” – Halsey
Halsey breaks through her Lana Del Rey adoration long enough to deliver the biggest sucker-punch of a chorus she’s ever had - and still, her electric songwriting in the verses leaves the strongest impression. "You’re dripping like a saturated sunrise,“ she rasps breathlessly, daring us to keep up with the story she needs to tell.
5. “Harsh Light” - Nate Ruess
The only song this year that made me feel in love the way only outstanding pop music can. Ruess chants "Nothing here is bringing me down” all the way through the song fading out, willing it to be true.
4. “Hotline Bling” – Drake
The catchiest, least misguided, most likable thing Drake has done since 2011.
3. “U Mad” - Vic Mensa with Kanye West
Bombastic and belligerent, Mensa stands on his own in the company of greats to deliver the most raucous, explicit, hypnotic car stereo anthem of the year.
2. “Take Ü There” - Jack Ü with Kiesza
Diplo and Skrillex both had amazing years, redefining their own careers as well as Justin Bieber’s, and no song better encapsulates their energy than this standout from their joint EDM record. The infectious female vocals and shimmering beat builds make this the hottest, most danceable song of the year.
1. “Cigarettes and Saints” - The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years’s emotional powerhouse about the loss of a friend to prescription drugs is easily the best song of the year. Instantly affecting, every second of the song serves the mood, and Dan Campbell’s lyrics cover every stage of grief, from despair to rage to beauty. "You were heat lighting,“ he cries, "You were a storm that never rolled in.”
Top Ten Handheld Games of the Year
10. LEGO Jurassic World (Vita)
Stuffed with content and console-comparable features, LEGO Jurassic World is a great run through all four films in the titular franchise, perfectly capturing the summer excitement over the latest blockbuster.
9. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D (3DS)
The oddball cousin of the Zelda series gets a remaster from Grezzo, who pour as much love into updating and upgrading the SNES classic as they did with Ocarina of Time 3D in 2011.
8. Xenoblade Chronicles 3D (3DS)
Monolith’s epic RPG may have been first released on Wii, but the New 3DS port is the superior version of the game, offering portable access to a gigantic open world and genre-defining action combat. The story and music make up for the disappointing character models, and the sheer speed and power of the game is awe-inspiring.
7. The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel (Vita)
The regrettably-titled JRPG sets a new standard for localization, with the care and enthusiasm of an excellent translation turning the anime tropes into genuinely compelling characters and surprising situations.
6. Bastion (Vita)
Supergiant’s SRPG finally gets the Vita release it deserves. The gameplay is tight, but the stylized art and youthful narrative are where Bastion stands apart from its peers.
5. BOXBOY! (3DS)
A simple and charming surprise, HAL Laboratory’s puzzle-platformer continued to introduce fun mechanics all the way up to its ending.
4. Super Time Force Ultra (Vita)
Capybara’s side-scrolling shooter did not disappoint its pre-launch hype, delivering a breathless and surprising neon action-fest.
3. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (3DS)
Capcom’s portable masterpiece sets the standard for the Monster Hunter series and genre. Stuffed with hundreds of hours of content and then fortified with monthly DLC drops, 4 Ultimate somehow manages to also squeeze the best graphics and controls imaginable out of the 3DS’s lackluster hardware.
2. Persona 4: Dancing All Night (Vita)
A brand-new entry into the Persona 4 timeline - probably the last before 2016’s Persona 5 - Dancing All Night gives us the furthest-forward look at our beloved characters and a rewarding exclusive to the handheld audience that has flocked to ATLUS’s unique series since 2012’s Persona 4 Golden.
1. Shovel Knight (Vita)
One of the best games of last year becomes the best release of this year, with additional levels added exclusively to the PlayStation version and the visuals looking breathtaking on the Vita’s OLED screen.
Top Ten Star Wars Fiction Books
10. Star Wars: Aftermath (Del Rey)
Chuck Wendig’s prose has been a source of endless debate since Aftermath’s release, but beyond the hit-and-run writing style and suggestive interstitials, Wendig’s best contributions are exciting original characters, foremost ex-Imperial Loyalty Officer Sinjir, and expanding the role of Imperial Admiral Rae Sloane, one of the best parts of 2014’s A New Dawn.
9. Star Wars: Darth Vader Vol. 1: Vader (Marvel)
Although the best moments in Vader seem like companion pieces to the mainline Star Wars series, writer Kieron Gillen does contribute two impressive original characters to the canon: Doctor Aphra, a female Indiana Jones, and Black Krrsantan, an intimidating Wookiee bounty hunter.
8. Star Wars: Princess Leia (Marvel)
Although the story being told in this miniseries is vastly inconsequential, it’s Terry Dodson’s art that secures it a spot on this list. The heavily stylized pencil art is a joy to read, and stands out from anything else in the current Marvel line.
7. Star Wars: Smuggler’s Run - A Han Solo and Chewbacca Adventure (Disney-Lucasfilm)
The voice of our two protagonists never feels quite right, but it’s the climax of Greg Rucka’s one-off adventure, leading to one of the coolest and most original maneuvers I’ve seen the Millennium Falcon do, that stuck in my head afterword.
6. Star Wars: Heir To the Jedi (Del Rey)
Kevin Hearne’s stand-alone Luke Skywalker adventure almost captures the excitement and pacing of A New Hope, and definitely captures the innocence and loss in Luke’s character. The whole book is basically to service one moment in The Empire Strikes Back, but it never feels like time wasted.
5. Star Wars Rebels: Servants of the Empire: The Secret Academy (Disney-Lucasfilm)
The conclusion to Jason Fry’s young adult series about Zare Leonis manages to satisfy all the original plot lines of the series, as well as featuring true-to-form appearances from the Rebels main cast and shedding new light on characters from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
4. Star Wars: Shattered Empire (Marvel)
Writer Greg Rucka’s post-Endor story of Poe Dameron’s Rebel parents is disjointed in its storytelling, but Marco Checchetto’s realistic art and the glimpses at our Original Trilogy heroes after Return of the Jedi are both strong highlights in this year’s contributions to canon.
3. Star Wars: Lords of the Sith (Del Rey)
Paul S. Kemp’s non-stop action fest works in part due to its understand of Vader’s lore and compelling minor characters, but mostly because it entirely skips the heavy exposition most Del Rey Star Wars fiction falls prey to.
2. Star Wars: Lost Stars (Disney-Lucasfilm)
Claudia Gray breathes new life into the Star Wars universe. An absolute joy to read, Lost Stars is uncompromisingly a young adult novel and a Star Wars story, elegantly paced as it brings the action and romance in equal doses.
1. Star Wars Vol. 1: Skywalker Strikes (Marvel)
Jason Aaron captures the tone of the original trilogy and the inner life of those iconic characters more perfectly than anything else in the new Star Wars canon has. With John Cassaday’s art picking up on every nuance of the actors, this collection of Marvel’s flagship series is the only book on this list to genuinely feel like a mainline Star Wars film from start to finish.
Top Ten DKG Songs
(Third-Person Opinions About My Own Work)
10. “Race To the Stop” - 2/3
The “track for the club” is a new angle for 2/3, but both artists jump on the drop-heavy beat with a hungry vigor more reminiscent of 2014’s Literally Just Another Rip-Off Album than anything else on the less chaotic record that houses it.
9. “Scrambled Dregs” - Temple of Doom
Curbing the beat from 2/3’s “Western Omelette” and re-recording the original cut were two risky moves that both paid off on the first track of Temple of Doom’s sophomore release. The double-time rhymes and pop culture wordplay make for an engrossing repeat listen. A personal favorite: “I’m literally literary, so come on baby, check me out at your library.”
8. “Opera” - Wade Danger
A sprawling closer, the two halves of “Opera” offer separate angles on romance: the first a claustrophobic longing over a spacey Jamie xx beat, the second a reassured appreciation over slow soul samples.
7. “Prose and Cons” - 2/3
The gentlest 2/3 song, the title track of the sophomore record loops an unassuming sample from The 1975’s “Menswear” to create a tender, quiet moment in an otherwise loud soundscape.
6. “Quantum Third” - Temple of Doom
Temple of Doom finds the most 2003 Shady Records beat since The Eminem Show to drop his wittiest lyrical outing yet, playing fast and loose with word association to supreme effect.
5. “c//rush” - Wade Danger
Tanner Pöff’s lush production brings a similar sense of honesty to Wade Danger as it did to Temple of Doom on “Elegy_Breezy,” grounding this Get Away Car highlight in nervous hope and triumphant joy.
4. “Fascists For Breakfast” - 2/3
Despite lasting thirty seconds longer than it has to, “Fascists For Breakfast” finds 2/3’s first dip into written verses and a hypnotic beat working leaps and bounds better than any other social commentary track from either artist’s catalog.
3. “Reign Damage” - Wade Danger
The opening track to Get Away Car works more cohesively than almost anything else on this list: the hazy, jazzy beat, the flippant verses, the half-sung chorus all serve the blistering energy of the track. A promising start and a great way to bypass the “epic introduction” expectations set by previous first tracks “Initiation,” “They Used Us,” and “Starting.”
2. “Elegy_Breezy” - 2/3
The touching, ridiculous, bizarre closer onProse and Cons could have failed at any point, but it somehow succeeds thanks to Tanner Pöff’s sunny acoustic beat and Temple of Doom’s earnest sung vocals. The song shows 2/3 taking a strong left turn stylistically, one that is both refreshing and rewarding.
1. “Amateurs and Innocents” - Temple of Doom with Evan $cott Hustle and Wade Danger
This tag-team takedown of anything and everything you love finds both rappers playing to their strengths and delivering hungrier and more energized verses than any they’ve dropped since 2013’s “2:13am,” and maybe since ever. Evan $cott Hustle’s brief chorus grounds the song as more than just an overblown cypher, and ascends the track to be the hardest three minutes DKG released this year.