The Beatles
Children Will Listen: 100 Favorite Songs
Amongst my worst qualities as a human being are my aggressive need to be right about the James Bond movies, my habit of impulsively buying food, and my disinclination to listen to complete albums. It’s not to say I haven’t done it (LEMONADE y’all!), it’s just that my taste in music, unlike my taste in people with whom I sleep and subsequently kick out of my room, is very high and finnicky. So, most of the music I listen to I’ve heard in commercials, trailers, movies, commercials and trailers for movies, the radio, and once in a while, recommendations from friends, enemies, and former lovers’ sister’s best friends. In honor and celebration of nothing in particular, here’s a list of 100 favorite songs that I originally intended on posting last year, but due to laziness and a bout of post-Mad Men depression, I never got to. Read the rest of this entry »
Stalk the Line: One Direction, Fandom, and Self-Reflexivity in “One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)”
Here’s something I never thought I would ever say: a One Direction song is brilliant. Yes, brilliant. I have been a bit of a naysayer about the band, more against their rabid, over-zealous, cultish fans than the band itself, but I have no choice to admit that one of their songs is a brilliant example of self-reflexivity of public image. Which track am I talking about? Technically, it’s not one of their original songs; it’s their cover of “One Way or Another/Teenage Kicks”, the former originally by Blondie and the latter by The Undertones. Whether or not this was a PR move or their own sly smarts, choosing the former song in particular, what can be described as a Stalker Anthem of sorts, and blending it with the angst and sensuality of the latter track makes for one of the most interesting tracks I’ve ever heard. Did I mention that the cover is actually pretty damn great?
2012 in Film: #111 – #160
111. Tokyo Drifter (1966) | Directed by Seijun Suzuki – B+
112. Branded to Kill (1967) | Directed by Seijun Suzuk – B
113. Alien3: Work Print Cut (1992) | Directed by David Fincher – B+
114. Tiny Furniture (2008) | Directed by Lena Dunham – B-
115. Alien3: Theatrical Cut (1992) | Directed by David Fincher – C
116. Alien: Resurrection (1997) | Directed by Jean-Pierre jeunet – C+
117. Everything Must Go (2010) | Directed by Dan Rush – A-
118. The Seventh Seal (1957) | Directed by Ingmar Bergman – A
119. Cinema Verite (2011) | Directed by Shari Springer Berman & Robert Pulcini – C
120. Shame (2011) | Directed by Steve McQueen – B
121. America Graffiti (1973) | Directed by George Lucas – A
122. Fatal Attraction (1987) | Directed by Adrian Lyne – A-
123. Steamboat Bill Jr. (1928) | Directed by Charles Reisner – A-
124. The Last Metro (1980) Directed by François Truffaut – A
125. Spy Kids (2001) | Directed by Robert Rodriguez – B
126. Help! (1965) | Directed by Richard Lester – D+
127. Smiles of a Summer Night (1955) | Directed by Ingmar Bergman – A-
128. The Terminator (1984) | Directed by James Cameron – B
129. Our Hospitality (1923) | Directed by John G. Blystone and Buster Keaton – A-
130. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) | Directed by Robert Wiene – A
131. Secret Sunshine (2007) | Directed by Lee Chang-dong – A
132. Mary and Max (2007) | Directed by Adam Eliot – B
133. Submarine (2010) | Directed by Richard Ayoade – B+
134. I Am Legend (2007) | Directed by Francis Lawrence – B
135. Mouse Hunt (1997) | Directed by Gore Verbinski – B+
136. The Avengers (2012) | Directed by Joss Whedon – B+
137. An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (1962) | Directed Robert Enrico – B
_02.jpg)
138. Citizen Kane (1941) | Directed by Orson Welles – A
139. The People vs. George Lucas (2010) | Directed by Alexandre O. Philippe – B
140. Outrage (2009) | Directed by Kirby Dick – B
141. The Lady Eve (1941) | Directed by Preston Sturgess – B+
142. Manderlay (2005) | Directed by Lars von Trier – B+
143. Dancer in the Dark (2000) | Directed by Lars con Trier – A+
144. Jules and Jim (1962) | Directed by François Truffaut – B+
145. The Exterminating Angel (1962) | Directed by Luis Buñuel – B+
146. Friends with Benefits (2011) | Directed by Will Gluck – C+
147. Lars and the Real Girl (2007) | Directed by Craig Gilespie – A
148. FreeDogme (2000) | Directed by Roger Narbonne – B
149. Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) | Directed by Joe Johnston – C
150. Blue Valentine (2010) | Directed by Derek Cianfrance – A
151. The Element of Crime (1984) | Directed by Lars von Trier – A-
152. Tranceformer: A Potrait of Lars von Trier (1997) | Directed by Stig Bjorkman – B+
153. Epidemic (1987) | Directed by Lars von Trier – D
154. Europa (1991) | Directed by Lars von Trier – A-
155. Do the Right Thing (1989) | Directed by Spike Lee – B
156. Heavenly Creatures (1994) | Directed by Peter Jackson – A-
157. Delicatessen (1991) | Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet – A-
158. An Andalusian Dog (1929) | Directed by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí – B+
159. Zéro de Conduite (1933) | Directed by Jean Vigo – B+
160. The Navigator (1924) | Directed by Donald Crisp and Buster Keaton – A
I Like Things That Look Like Mistakes 