Author Archives: Kip

21
Jan

TV Recap: Jan. 15-21, 2022

NEW SHOWSThe Last of Us – “When You’re Lost in the Darkness” (A) / series premiereAs a non-gamer, I didn’t know what to expect. Though as a fan of Chernobyl, my expectations were pretty high. This 90-minute pilot is about … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, Television | Tagged happy endings, hbo, last of us, mad men | Comments Off

21
Jan

Final Oscar Picks 2023

BEST PICTUREAll Quiet on the Western FrontAvatar: The Way of WaterBabylonThe Banshees of InisherinElvisEverything Everywhere All at OnceThe FabelmansTÁRTop Gun: MaverickWomen Talking Dark Horse: Triangle of SadnessLong Shot: The WhaleTotal Shock: RRR The skinny: It’s a little funny to me … Continue reading →

Posted in Awards, Film, Oscars, Previews | Tagged aftersun, all quiet on the western front, all the beauty and the bloodshed, amazon, argentina 1985, avatar, babylon, banshees of inisherin, batman, black panther, blonde, close, decision to leave, disney, elvis, eo, everything everywhere all at once, fabelmans, fire of love, glass onion, hbo max, house made of splinters, inu-oh, janes, living, marcel the shell with shoes on, mrs harris goes to paris, netflix, pinocchio, prime, puss in boots, rrr, she said, tell it like a woman, till, top gun, triangle of sadness, turning red, whale, women talking | Comments Off

20
Jan

The Best Film Performances of 2022

Ensemble in a DramaWomen TalkingTrying to single out a performance here is a fool’s errand, because what makes the movie so powerful is each individual’s grief, frustration and determination revealing themselves throughout. Another clear example of why the Oscars need … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Film | Tagged banshees of inisherin, barbarian, everything everywhere all at once, jackass, triangle of sadness, were all going to the worlds fair, whale, women talking | Comments Off

19
Jan

The Best and Worst Movies of 2022

10. Avatar: The Way of Water (dir. James Cameron) and Nope (dir. Jordan Peele)Is this cheating? Maybe. But in a cinema landscape dominated by disposable blockbusters, Cameron and Peele delivered big-budget films made to last. Both are films about family, … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Film | Tagged avatar, babylon, banshees of inisherin, decision to leave, everything everywhere all at once, fabelmans, nope, rrr, triangle of sadness, women talking | Comments Off

14
Jan

The Best TV Performances of 2022

Ensemble in a Comedy Series Abbott ElementaryMany comedies take a while to find their footing and figure out the balance of their ensembles. Not Abbott. It joins a rare club – whose members include Arrested Development and Brooklyn Nine-Nine – … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Television | Tagged abbott elementary, amazon, atlanta, barry, bear, better call saul, boys, english, evil, hacks, hbo, hbo max, hulu, netflix, ozark, paramount, prime, rehearsal, staircase, under the banner of heaven, white lotus | Comments Off

13
Jan

The Best TV Shows of 2022, Part 2

COMEDY SHOWS & SPECIALS Documentary Now! (IFC)One of the only shows on the air that feels like it’s tailor-made to my overlapping nerdy interests. Documentary Now! continues to deliver spot-on absurdist parodies of obscure documentaries, solely because IFC’s parent company … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Television | Tagged amazon, beavis and butt-head, documentary now, grace and frankie, handmaid's tale, hulu, jerrod carmichael, kevin can f himself, kids in the hall, netflix, norm macdonald, paramount, peacock, prime, reacher, reno 911, showtime, stranger things, this place rules, we need to talk about cosby, would it kill you to laugh, yellowjackets | Comments Off

12
Jan

The Best TV Shows of 2022, Part 1

If you thought we had hit “Peak TV” (a term coined by executive John Landgraf nearly a decade ago), you were wrong. With 600-plus scripted shows airing in 2022, there was absolutely no way to keep up. But I still … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Television | Tagged abbott elementary, amazon, atlanta, barry, bear, better call saul, boys, crown, english, evil, hacks, hbo, hulu, netflix, only murders in the building, prime, rehearsal, reservation dogs, righteous gemstones, sandman, search party, staircase, under the banner of heaven, what we do in the shadows, white lotus | Comments Off

9
Jan

Best Songs of 2022

Another year of not caring about new music has gone splendidly. Sure, I checked out some of the bigger albums (like Beyoncé’s Renaissance) but for the most part, I’m only listening to individual tracks. Were their some important and/or exhilarating … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Music | Tagged 1975, alvvays, anxious, baby keem, bartees strange, bear and the beasts, black thought, blessed madonna, bootie brown, brandi carlile, braxe and falcon, brian metolius, carly rae jepsen, chat pile, danger mouse, dawes, destroyer, durand jones, ezra koenig, future islands, gorillaz, hot chip, jacob collier, jamie xx, jess williamson, jimmy eat world, john mayer, kae tempest, kendrick lamar, kevin abstract, lcd soundsystem, lizzo, lizzy mcalpine, lucy dacus, ludwig goransson, marcus mumford, mf doom, Mitski, mj lenderman, panda bear, perfume genius, phoebe bridgers, phoenix, plains, pusha t, righteous gemstones, sam dew, secret machines, seratones, smile, soccer mommy, spoon, steve lacy, suffers, tame impala, taylor swift, trombone shorty, trsh, wallice, waxahatchee, weyes blood, yeah yeah yeahs, yeule | Comments Off

7
Jan

TV Recap: Jan. 1-7, 2023

BINGEINGThe Little Drummer Girl (A) While the acting is tremendous, the writing is taut and the production design is immaculate, what makes this one of the best literary adaptations ever is Park Chan-wook’s incredible direction. Even the quietest moments are … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, Television | Tagged little drummer girl | Comments Off

6
Jan

The Anniversary Albums Project: Best of 2022

New music has lost a lot of hold on me over the last few years. And four years ago I decided that instead of trying to keep up with it all, I’d look back at music history and listen to … Continue reading →

Posted in Best Of, Music | Tagged 24 hour party people, aretha franklin, beastie boys, big star, bill fay, broken social scene, bruce springsteen, coldplay, david bowie, dr dre, drive-by truckers, elvis costello, father john misty, fiona apple, flaming lips, frank ocean, fun, godspeed you black emperor, jam, japandroids, johnny cash, kendrick lamar, laurie anderson, linda thompson, lou reed, lyle lovett, marshall crenshaw, michael jackson, moby, mountain goats, neu, nick drake, nusrat fatel ali khan, pavement, prince, rem, richard thompson, rolling stones, sarah jaffe, sharon van etten, singles, steely dan, stevie wonder, tame impala, tom waits, wilco, xtc, yaz | Comments Off