Rock and Reel
100 Favorite Songs: 90-81

See 100-91

90. The White Stripes- Icky Thump

89. Frankie Valli- Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You

88. The Avalanches- Frontier Psychiatrist

87. Iron Maiden- Hallowed Be Thy Name

86. Van Halen- Jump

85. Lady Gaga- Bad Romance

84. Big Star- Thirteen

83. Massive Attack- Teardrop

82. Otis Redding- Try a Little Tenderness

81. Weezer- Tired of Sex

See Also: My 100 Favorite Songs of All Time (2 years ago), My 100 Favorite Songs of the Decade (2 years ago), Top 10 Songs Of Each Hall of Fame Inductee Class: 1986-Present (2 years ago)

100 Favorite Songs: 100-91

It’s been about two years since I last made a list of my 100 favorite songs. I’m due for an update. I’ll be posting 10 songs a day, each with an embedded YouTube video. As usual, I limited myself to one song per artist. More importantly, I tried to pick songs that are actually my current favorites. I sometimes try too hard to make lists of my “ALL-TIME FAVORITES,” and in doing so I end up listing songs I might love but don’t listen to very much and/or have worn out a bit. Also, I often feel the need to arbitrarily pick a favorite song by an artist I love, even if I might not be particularly passionate about the track itself. The Beach Boys are a favorite of mine, but I think I’ve listened to Pet Sounds too many times, and there’s no one song I could pick. However, old favorites from Bruce Springsteen and the Replacements still hit home, so they’re on the list. Here we go!

100. Taylor Swift- You Belong With Me

99. Bat for Lashes- Daniel

98. Prince- When You Were Mine

97. Interpol- Obstacle 1

96. Kanye West- Say You Will

95. Jay-Z featuring Rihanna- Umbrella

94. Uncle Tupelo- Still Be Around

93. Phoenix- Love Like a Sunset

92. Ben Folds- Fred Jones Part 2

91. Paul Simon- Slip Slidin’ Away

See Also: My 100 Favorite Songs of All Time (2 years ago), My 100 Favorite Songs of the Decade (2 years ago), Top 10 Songs Of Each Hall of Fame Inductee Class: 1986-Present (2 years ago)

Kayleigh and I both offered our predictions and personal favorites for the 2012 Academy Awards. Question is, how did we do? We break it down in the post linked above, category by category.

See Also: 2012 Oscar Nominations Predictions, 2011 Academy Award Nominations, 2010 Academy Award Nominations

This year the number of nominees is a mystery, anywhere between 5 and 10 depending on the number of pics that receive the minimum threshold of votes. Below, I’ve listed my predictions for the five locks and ranked the remaining possibilities, in anticipation of there being 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 finalists. Check out the link for Kayleigh’s predictions, along with both of our semi-educated guesses for 17 of the 23 other categories. Agree or disagree? Tell us in the comments!

The Artist
The Descendants
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris

6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
7. Bridesmaids
8. Moneyball
9. War Horse
10. The Tree of Life

Kayleigh and I offer our predictions for 17 Oscar categories, including all four of the acting races. Below is a summary of our semi-educated guesses. Click the link for all of our picks. Best Picture still to come!

1. Hugo (10)
2. The Artist (8.5)
3. The Descendants (5)
3. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (5)
5. The Help (4.5)
5. Moneyball (4.5)
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (3)
7. Midnight in Paris (3)
9. Albert Nobbs (2.5)
9. The Tree of Life (2.5)

See Also: 2012 Oscar Nominations Predictions, 2011 Academy Award Nominations, 2010 Academy Award Nominations

With basically no good new movies coming out in January, Kayleigh and I are left with no choice but to talk about last year’s titles for awards season! The major guilds (e.g. producers, actors, directors, writers, etc.) have already announced their nominees, so everybody’s getting a better idea of the names that will be announced on January 24. Here, we make our semi-educated guesses and select our personal favorites.

Covering a few categories each day, we will try to predict for most awards, though we’ll likely skip Foreign Language Film, Documentary Feature and the shorts categories. We’ve also decided to disclose our blind spots, the movies we predicted (and in some cases included in our personal picks) based on media buzz and general knowledge without having seen them. When we reach a consensus on the predictions, we’ll only list them once.

Here are the categories we’ve done so far. Click on the link above for our predictions and picks!

Actor in a Leading Role (posted January 18)

Actor in a Supporting Role (posted January 15)

Actress in a Leading Role (posted January 18)

Actress in a Supporting Role (posted January 13)

Animated Feature (posted January 18)

Art Direction (posted January 12)

Cinematography (posted January 14)

Costume Design (posted January 19)

Directing (posted January 18)

Film Editing (posted January 17)

Makeup (updated January 14)

Music (Original Score) (posted January 18)

Sound Editing (posted January 20)

Sound Mixing (posted January 19)

Visual Effects (posted January 11)

Writing (Adapted Screenplay) (posted January 14)

Writing (Original Screenplay) (posted January 16)

Skipping: Documentary (Feature), Documentary (Short Subject), Foreign Language Film, Music (Original Song), Short Film (Animated), Short Film (Live Action)

See Also: 2011 Academy Award Nominations, 2010 Academy Award Nominations

Top 10 Albums of 2007

1. Spoon- Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Listen: “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb

2. Dinosaur Jr.- Beyond

Listen: “Crumble

3. Bon Iver- For Emma, Forever Ago

Listen: “Flume

4. Kanye West- Graduation

Listen: “Can’t Tell Me Nothing

5. Various Artists, I’m Not There

Listen: “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” by Antony and the Johnsons

6. Jens Lekman- Night Falls Over Kortedala

Listen: “The Opposite of Hallelujah

7. The White Stripes- Icky Thump

Listen: “Icky Thump

8. Arcade Fire- Neon Bible

Listen: “Intervention

9. Radiohead- In Rainbows

Listen: “All I Need

10. Brandi Carlile- The Story

Listen: “The Story

Honorable Mention: Andrew Bird’s Armchair Apocrypha, Kevin Drew’s Spirit If…, Flobots’ Fight With Tools, Lil Wayne’s Da Drought 3, Modest Mouse’s We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, The New Pornographers’ Challengers, Josh Ritter’s The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, The Swell Season’s Once: From the Motion Picture

Updated: January 13, 2012

See Also: Top 10 Movies of 2007, Top 10 Albums of 2006, Top 10 Albums of 2005, Top 10 Albums of 2004, Top 10 Albums of 2003, Top 10 Albums of 2002, Top 10 Albums of 2001, Top 10 Albums of 2000, Top 10 Albums of 1999, Top 10 Albums of 1998, Top 10 Albums of 1997, Top 10 Albums of 1996, Top 10 Albums of 1995, Top 10 Albums of 1994, Top 10 Albums of 1993, Top 10 Albums of 1992, Top 10 Albums of 1991, Top 10 Albums of 1990, Top 10 Albums of 1989, Top 10 Albums of 1988, Top 10 Albums of 1987, Top 10 Albums of 1986, Top 10 Albums of 1985, Top 10 Albums of 1984, Top 10 Albums of 1983, Top 10 Albums of 1982, Top 10 Albums of 1981, Top 10 Albums of 1980, Top 10 Albums of 1979, Top 10 Albums of 1978, Top 10 Albums of 1977, Top 10 Albums of 1976, Top 10 Albums of 1975, Top 10 Albums of 1974, Top 10 Albums of 1973, Top 10 Albums of 1972, Top 10 Albums of 1971, Top 10 Albums of 1970, Top 10 Albums of 1969, Top 10 Albums of 1968, Top 10 Albums of 1967, Top 10 Albums of 1966, Top 10 Albums of 1965

Top 10 Movies of 2011

I often wonder if I’ve seen enough movies to make a top 10 list at the end of the year. Even though I saw nearly 60 new releases in 2011, probably more than most people, I feel that my habit of largely seeing critical favorites results in an incredibly predictable list. But this is an honest reflection of what I saw and liked this year, and that means something (I think). And indeed, the fact that I put The Tree of Life over Certified Copy, the only two serious choices for best movie of the year in my mind, might be simple common sense to someone but confounding to another. And the fact that I excluded favorites including Melancholia and Moneyball altogether will upset others. Maybe there are a few surprises to be had after all.

As I’ve already made clear, I haven’t seen everything worth seeing, so I felt it necessary to disclose my most serious “blind spots,” made up of Slant favorites, significant award season contenders and the latest from serious filmmakers I haven’t seen yet. I also had to include 10 honorable mentions because there will inevitably be days I would rather watch the joyous Arthur Christmas or the underrated Source Code over The Tree of Life.

1. The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick)

Combining the episodic stream-of-consciousness of William Faulkner and the eternity-spanning existentialism of Arthur C. Clarke, the latest from the infamously shy Terrence Malick proves to be the director’s fifth consecutive masterpiece (in a career of five films). Hunter McCracken offers one of the most thoughtful performances ever by a child actor as Jack, a young boy in mid-20th century Texas who, at one point, prays for his father to die. The mixture of these brutal insights about familial dynamics with a kaleidoscopic view of the earth’s natural beauty makes The Tree of Life a rare movie that attempts to capture the totality of the human experience. Although it inevitably falls short of this goal, Malick’s intensely personal vision manages to be one of the greatest films ever made about life and everything that comes before and after.

2. Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami) [Available for streaming via Netflix]

Are Juliette Binoche and William Shimell strangers acting like a long-married couple? Or are they longtime lovers pretending to meet for the first time? The premise of Abbas Kiarostami’s film is deceptively simple: a man and a woman have a series of conversations one day in Tuscany, and a provocatively playful twist halfway through turns everything on its head. The ambiguity of the story is far from a flaw but perhaps the film’s greatest strength. The formal and narrative uncertainty keeps the audience engaged while also lending a great deal of complexity to the characters’ questions about authenticity, truth and beauty in both life and art. The cameo of screenwriter and former Luis Bunuel collaborator Jean-Claude Carriere alludes to the surrealism in this film’s DNA, and indeed, this masterpiece is one the helmer of That Obscure Object of Desire would have been proud to claim as his own.

3. Drive (Nicolas Winding Refn)

Every decade needs a Los Angeles masterpiece, a film that redefines our view of the living and breathing simulacrum I call home. There has been Chinatown, Blade Runner, The Player, Mulholland Dr. and now Drive. Although Nicolas Winding Refn’s slow-burn descent into madness is admittedly not nearly as good as the other films I just mentioned, it similarly presents a vision of this city that is at once incredibly progressive but also undeniably nostalgic. With 80s pop and gloss running through its veins, this fairy tale-turned-nightmare feels like a true product of the digital age. In part motivated by his love for Irene (Carey Mulligan), an unnamed driver (a stoic Ryan Gosling) steers off the deep end as he protects her and her family from gangsters. Albert Brooks has received critical praise for his turn as the villain Bernie Rose, and while some cynically attribute this response to casting rather than acting, I think it’s possibly the best supporting turn of the year. The character’s no-nonsense directness terrifies in the moment yet haunts you long after the film is over.

4. Of Gods and Men (Xavier Beauvois)

Religion is often mocked or undermined in serious art, so a poetic film that takes the Christian faith of Trappist monks seriously without resorting to condescension feels like a true accomplishment. It’s been a while since I’ve seen this film, an early 2011 U.S. release after its second-place finish at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, yet its attention to detail and its ability to build dramatic tension with such a subdued approach remains vivid in my mind. Instead of perpetuating the myth of Christians and Muslims as irreconcilable enemies, the film sensitively recognizes how followers of the two faiths can be driven to accept each other because of, not in spite of, their core beliefs.

5. The Interrupters (Steve James)

As a journalist, I understand the difficulty of crafting coherent stories from a seemingly endless supply of reportage. Filmmaker Steve James makes it look effortless. This masterful documentary interweaves the stories of several Chicago “interrupters,” former convicts who, through one-on-one interventions, attempt to halt the cycle of violence in which they once took part. Condensing the yearlong journeys of different individuals to two hours, this doc refuses to provide easy answers and instead presents compelling stories of human beings looking to pave the way for a brighter future for themselves and the community. The result is a rich tapestry of characters trying to redeem themselves, often stumbling but ultimately reaching for the glimmers of hope.

6. Into the Abyss (Werner Herzog)

Ostensibly about capital punishment, Werner Herzog’s latest documentary is not simply political propaganda meant to bring about change in the American justice system. Instead, it’s a thorough look at all the perspectives of a particular case: the families of the victims, the families of the convicted murderers, the locals affected by the crimes and, perhaps most chillingly, a young man sentenced to die. If part of film’s mystery is its ability to animate that which once lived, this film is an absolute enigma, sensitive to the individuals involved but also a constant reminder of the threat of death that hangs over our heads. The two most powerful conversations involve a pastor who offers comfort to death row convicts in their final moments and a former state executioner who wrestles with the guilt of his past work.

7. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Tomas Alfredson) [Currently in theaters]

Deliberate pacing is rarely as viscerally effective as it is in Tinker Tailor Solder Spy. This Cold War spy thriller from the director of Let the Right One In dishes out a great deal of story information along the way, but as you try to keep up with the connections and histories at play, you realize how slyly this film has sunk under your skin. Tomas Alfredson helms the complex story with such a command of atmosphere, wielding a cool style that impresses without ever distracting from the material. The ensemble is a “who’s who” of British cinema (or a reunion of the Harry Potter and Batman casts) with Colin Firth, Tom Hardy and John Hurt being just a few of the highlights. But at the center of it all is the chillingly stoic yet quietly expressive Gary Oldman, a spy approaching his task of finding a Soviet mole with the utmost professionalism but carrying the weight of the past on his shoulders. The original score by Alberto Iglesias is my favorite in any movie this year.

8. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul) [Available for streaming via Netflix]

If this film was just the masterful exercise in composition and sound design it is, it would deserve a spot on any 2011 list. The fact that it is also an incredibly sophisticated reflection on death and time, marked by a disarming formal and narrative sense of humor, makes it one for the ages. As Uncle Boonmee suffers a fatal illness, he begins to recollect his past lives, some of them posited as flashbacks, others integrated into his present-day consciousness. Having only seen this film once, I have yet to explore the many layers of this film. Few films have the boundless imagination of this film: a catfish making love to a human woman, a long-lost son returning as a large monkey, ghosts appearing with minimal shock from the living.

9. A Separation (Asghar Farhadi) [Currently in theaters]

Most American filmmakers couldn’t craft a sophisticated melodrama that explores religion, divorce, depression, economic distress, class, old age and adolescence among other weighty topics without preaching or patting themselves on the back. Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farhadi manages to humbly deal with all of these issues while sweeping you in a small-scale drama so engaging you don’t realize the way it’s challenging you emotionally and intellectually until it’s all over. Simin has left her husband Nader, who now lives alone with his elderly father, in need of constant care, and a teenage daughter. After an accident caused by a caretaker’s negligence, a complex story of desperation propels forward with breathtaking effortlessness. With the Iranian bureaucracy underlining much of the proceedings, the film manages to care for its characters even as they make horrific decisions, much like Mahamet-Saleh Haroun’s A Screaming Man. As characters brush others aside to protect their pride, there is often a glimpse of regret in their eyes as they realize what they’re doing.

10. 13 Assassins (Takashi Miike) [Available for streaming via Netflix]


The first half of this film features 13 men banding together and preparing to assassinate a sadistic feudal lord bound for more political power. The second half is relentless carnage. An homage to the likes of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, this remake of a 1963 film makes up for what it lacks in substance with the catharsis of relentless, operatic bloodshed. The brilliantly directed set pieces of the film’s final showdown, pitting the 13 men against more than 200 guards, can be best described by the words of the villainous target’s limbless sex slave: TOTAL MASSACRE.

Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order): Arthur Christmas (Sarah Smith), Carnage (Roman Polanski), The Descendants (Alexander Payne), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (David Fincher), Hugo (Martin Scorsese), Meek’s Cutoff (Kelly Reichardt), Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen), A Screaming Man (Mahamat-Saleh Haroun), Source Code (Duncan Jones), Take Shelter (Jeff Nichols)

Blind Spots (in alphabetical order): The Adventures of Tintin (Steven Spielberg), Cave of Forgotten Dreams (Werner Herzog), Extraordinary Stories (Mariano Llinas), El Sicario, Room 164 (Gianfranco Rosi), Film Socialisme (Jean-Luc Godard), In the Family (Patrick Wang), Leap Year (Michael Rowe), Le Havre (Aki Kaurismaki), Margaret (Kenneth Lonergan), Mysteries of Lisbon (Raul Ruiz), Nostalgia for the Light (Patricio Guzman), Poetry (Chang-dong Lee), Rango (Gore Verbinski), The Skin I Live In (Pedro Almodovar), The Time That Remains (Elia Suleiman), Tomboy (Celine Sciamma), Tuesday, After Christmas (Radu Muntean), Warrior (Gavin O’Connor)

Updated: January 27, 2012

See Also: Top 10 Movies of 1953, Top 10 Movies of 1957, Top 10 Movies of 1962, Top 10 Movies of 1972, Top 10 Movies of 1984, Top 10 Movies of 1986, Top 10 Movies of 1989, Top 10 Movies of 1992, Top 10 Movies of 1999, Top 10 Movies of 2002, Top 10 Movies of 2003, Top 10 Movies of 2004, Top 10 Movies of 2005, Top 10 Movies of 2007, Top 10 Movies of 2008, Top 10 Movies of 2009, Top 10 Movies of 2010

Top 10 Albums of 2006

1. The Hold Steady- Boys and Girls in America

Listen: “Stuck Between Stations” [Non-Album Live Version]

2. Ghostface Killah- Fishscale

Listen: “Shakey Dog

3. Tom Waits- Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards

Listen: “Missing My Son

4. Belle and Sebastian- The Life Pursuit

Listen: “Another Sunny Day

5. Sonic Youth- Rather Ripped

Listen: “Another Sunny Day

6. Yo La Tengo- I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass

Listen: “Mr. Tough

7. Bob Dylan- Modern Times

Listen: “Thunder on the Mountain

8. Bruce Springsteen- We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions

Listen: “We Shall Overcome

9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Show Your Bones

Listen: “Gold Lion

10. Neil Young- Living With War

Listen: “Let’s Impeach the President

Archival Highlight: Neil Young- Crazy Horse at the Fillmore 1970

Listen: “Winterlong

Honorable Mention: Lily Allen’s Alright, Still; Islands’ Return to the Sea; My Chemical Romance’s The Black Parade; Sufjan Stevens’ The Avalanche; The Streets’ The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living; Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSounds

Updated: December 31, 2011

See Also: Top 10 Albums of 2007, Top 10 Albums of 2005, Top 10 Albums of 2004, Top 10 Albums of 2003, Top 10 Albums of 2002, Top 10 Albums of 2001, Top 10 Albums of 2000, Top 10 Albums of 1999, Top 10 Albums of 1998, Top 10 Albums of 1997, Top 10 Albums of 1996, Top 10 Albums of 1995, Top 10 Albums of 1994, Top 10 Albums of 1993, Top 10 Albums of 1992, Top 10 Albums of 1991, Top 10 Albums of 1990, Top 10 Albums of 1989, Top 10 Albums of 1988, Top 10 Albums of 1987, Top 10 Albums of 1986, Top 10 Albums of 1985, Top 10 Albums of 1984, Top 10 Albums of 1983, Top 10 Albums of 1982, Top 10 Albums of 1981, Top 10 Albums of 1980, Top 10 Albums of 1979, Top 10 Albums of 1978, Top 10 Albums of 1977, Top 10 Albums of 1976, Top 10 Albums of 1975, Top 10 Albums of 1974, Top 10 Albums of 1973, Top 10 Albums of 1972, Top 10 Albums of 1971, Top 10 Albums of 1970, Top 10 Albums of 1969, Top 10 Albums of 1968, Top 10 Albums of 1967, Top 10 Albums of 1966, Top 10 Albums of 1965

Top 10 Albums of 2005

1. The Hold Steady- Separation Sunday

Listen: “Your Little Hoodrat Friend

2. Kanye West- Late Registration

Listen: “Diamonds From Sierra Leone (Remix feat. Jay-Z)

3. The White Stripes- Get Behind Me Satan

Listen: “Blue Orchid

4. Franz Ferdinand- You Could Have It So Much Better

Listen: “Do You Want To

5. Sufjan Stevens- Illinois

Listen: “Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois

6. Wilco- Kicking Television: Live in Chicago

Listen: “At Least That’s What You Said

7. Serena-Maneesh- Serena-Maneesh

Listen: “Drain Cosmetics

8. My Morning Jacket- Z

Listen: “Off the Record

9. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah- Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

Listen: “Over and Over Again (Lost and Found)

10. Art Brut-Bang Bang Rock & Roll

Listen: “Emily Kane

Archival Highlight: Bob Dylan- The Bootleg Series, Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack

Honorable Mention: Fall Out Boy’s From Under the Cork Tree, Gogol Bordello’s Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike, The New Pornographers’ Twin Cinema, Nine Inch Nails’ With Teeth, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals’ Nothing But the Water, Bruce Springsteen’s Devils & Dust, System of a Down’s Mezmerize; Tapes ‘n Tapes’ The Loon, Weezer’s Make Believe

Updated: December 31, 2011

See Also: Top 10 Movies of 2005, Top 10 Albums of 2007, Top 10 Albums of 2006, Top 10 Albums of 2004, Top 10 Albums of 2003Top 10 Albums of 2002, Top 10 Albums of 2001, Top 10 Albums of 2000, Top 10 Albums of 1999, Top 10 Albums of 1998, Top 10 Albums of 1997, Top 10 Albums of 1996, Top 10 Albums of 1995, Top 10 Albums of 1994, Top 10 Albums of 1993, Top 10 Albums of 1992, Top 10 Albums of 1991, Top 10 Albums of 1990, Top 10 Albums of 1989, Top 10 Albums of 1988, Top 10 Albums of 1987, Top 10 Albums of 1986, Top 10 Albums of 1985, Top 10 Albums of 1984, Top 10 Albums of 1983, Top 10 Albums of 1982, Top 10 Albums of 1981, Top 10 Albums of 1980, Top 10 Albums of 1979, Top 10 Albums of 1978, Top 10 Albums of 1977, Top 10 Albums of 1976, Top 10 Albums of 1975, Top 10 Albums of 1974, Top 10 Albums of 1973, Top 10 Albums of 1972, Top 10 Albums of 1971, Top 10 Albums of 1970, Top 10 Albums of 1969, Top 10 Albums of 1968, Top 10 Albums of 1967, Top 10 Albums of 1966, Top 10 Albums of 1965