MOVIES I kinda got into watching baseball and football this year, so my totals certainly felt a little down from previous years, although that’s not really the case. This year, I saw 21 movies in theaters (a big screen showing of The General is included). I also saw 103 movies at home, although 8 of those were rewatches of a movie I had already seen this year).
Comparatively, last year I saw 129 movies in total, with 22 being in theaters. In 2007, I saw 203 movies in total and 33 in theaters, and in 2006 I saw 200 in total with 26 of those being in theaters. So, in actuality, I saw about the same as last year, which is about 60% of what it used to be. But enough with the numbers.
My three favorite movies I saw in theaters in 2009 (in alphabetical order) were:
I’m having a hard time ranking them right now, though. Additionally, Avatar and The Hangover would probably round out the top five, though there could be some competition from Drag Me to Hell, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Friday the 13th, and other such embarassing fare. I should also give a special mention to Food Inc. which although I’ll not likey watch it again, did have a temporary lifestyle affect on me.
The film I saw in theaters that I liked the least was probably Bruno, but I was also pretty particular about what I saw, so its certainly not the worst movie that came to theaters.
For home video, I’m only considering the movies I saw for the first time (or first time in a long time). In this case, the best movie I saw was The Mist. I almost forgot how much I enjoyed the movie, which I went out and bought pretty quickly. I guess I also was relatively happy with Hatchet, Meet the Robinsons, Speed Racer, Halloween, and The Hire. However, the crap is pretty easy to pick out. I really, really didn’t like (in order of terribleness):
Also, bad vibes go out to Alice in Wonderland (1985), The Incredible Hulk, Today You Die and Zardoz. Finally, I should make special note of my bigger themes this year, which were Bond movies (I saw 20) and Seagal movies (12), as well as make a special note of The Bad Seed, which was an okay movie, but the absolute worst ending I had seen in a long, long time.
TELEVISION The major TV shows I watched on DVD this year were:
Doctor Who (a lot of it, both old and new)
Flight of the Conchords (Seasons 1 & 2)
Friday the 13th: the Series (Season 1)
Monk (Seasons 6 &7)
NewsRadio (Seasons 1 & 2)
Parker Lewis Can’t Lose (Season 1)
Spaced (The whole series)
Tales From the Crypt (Seasons 1 through 5)
Torchwood (Seasons 1, 2, and Children of Earth)
Additionally, I watched all the episodes that aired of The Office, Community, 30 Rock, Parks & Recreation, and V. I also watched quite a few episodes of shows such as Pawn Stars, Steven Seagal: Lawman, The Soup, Cha$e and Estate of Panic, when I could find them. Ooh, and I finally got around to seeing Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.
MUSIC The artists/songs/albums/themes that were
most prominent for me this year were:
1) Pop Music – Having spent the last five or so years
ignoring it, I finally started listening to modern hits this year thanks to,
off all things, RockFest. I’d like
to credit Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and the Black-Eyed Peas, but there’s a lot
of bands that can take part (including 3Oh!3, Miley Cyrus, Pitbull and Kelly
Clarkson) in that credit, whether I want them to or not. From the country, to the R&B, the
unabashedly pop-rock, it was finally worth coming back to (Preferred Song: Too
many to mention, but Boom Boom Pow, Calle Ocho, Don’t Trust Me or You Belong
With Me are all possibilities).
2) Flight of the Conchords – I saw both seasons of the TV show, listened and relistened to both albums, and saw them live. It was a good year for us (Preferred Song: If You’re Into It).
3) The Dandy Warhols - I futher immersed myself in their
music, and likewise discovered that they are awesome to work out to (Preferred
Song: Bohemian Like You).
4) Mika – I kinda got into Mika on the way back from the Conchords concert, and Grace Kelly may well have been my song of the year (Preferred Song: Grace Kelly).
5) Cake – I finally got around to checking them out this
year, and although my interest has signicantly waned at this point, they still
appear a lot on my iTunes (Preferred Song: Short Skirt/Long Jacket).
6) Fountains of Wayne – They didn’t release a new album this
year or anything, so it’s hard to put them very high on this list, despite
probably being my favorite band. However,
they did come to Madison, I did get to see them live and, best of all, they
kind of hung around in the highly accessible courtyard before and after the
show. I’m not the kind of person
who would actually talk to them (though a friend did) , but just being that
close to them, and seeing them as people rather than pop stars, ranks as one of the coolest things of
the year for me.
7) Green Day – Furthering the American Idiot experience from
a few years ago, I was almost as happy with 21st Century Breakdown
and (not to their credit) American Edit this year. It feels a little guilty to like them this much, but what
can I say? (Preferred Song: Last
of the American Girls)
8) The Kinks – I first heard The Kinks are the Village Preservation Society in 2009, and found that it is great to listen to it while mowing. (Preferred Song: The Village Green Preservation Society)
9) Weird Al Yankovic – I revisited every album this
year. (Preferred Song: I’ve always
been a sucker for It’s All About the Pentiums, I suppose)
10) Best of Bootie – Kid Rock’s Rock N Roll Jesus almost
made this spot, then I remembered how awesome some of the tracks are from this
free internet compilation. Among my highlights are The Safety Booty, Badd to
Me, and old favorites like Short Skirt/London Bridge, Supa Holla Tricka, My
Other Car is a Beatle and Black Beatles, but my Preferred Song currently is
It’s Fun to Smoke Dust by DJ Lobsterdust.
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