Keep Running Up That Hill

Andor (Disney +) - This is it. This is the vibe. To put it plainly, Tony Gilroy should have been involved in the sequel films. Andor executes a smart and fairly adult experience in the Star Wars sandbox 3 episodes at a time - fleshing out more new characters with Andor often taking a backseat to it all. There is political intrigue (thankfully no trade disputes ala Phantom Menance) and the best live action look into the Imperial behind the scenes inner-workings yet. It also contains the two best Star Wars monologues period... in the same god damn episode. "I can't swim" - that's the first Star Wars line that ever broke me. More of this please.

The Bear (HULU) - Frentic pacing, never ending issues that need continuous fixing, everything is broken all the time. Chaotic characters with major personal problems who seem broken all the time. Perseverance despite it all.

“I’m Gonna Fix This Place.” Good luck Chef.

The Rehearsal (HBO) - The premise? Ordinary people rehearse difficult conversations or life events through the use of sets and actors hired to recreate real situations. It's Nathan Fielder so it goes off the rails in ways you'd never expect.

Barry (HBO) - The motorcycle chase sequence in S03E06 is just bonkers.

Peacemaker (HBO Max) - The opening credits to Peacemaker is an all-timer. The show that follows is actually some of DCU's best output to boot. John Cena makes the perfect dumb oaf with a heart of... shall we say light bronze?

Severance (Apple TV+) - Part science fiction, part pshychological thriller, this series directed by Ben Stiller follows a group of workers at Lumon Industries. They use a procedure called 'severance' to separate your at work memories from your outside of work memories. Living two different lives, with distinct personalities and agendeas gets... complicated.

Barbarian - The whiplash going from an ominous threat and unknown danger that lies ahead to rooting for someone to just get fucking wrecked really might make you wonder if you're a good person or not. Horror sometimes feels like it doesn't have a lot of juice left in the tank, so you've gotta get really, really creative. Flipping tropes and your own moral compass on it's head is certainly one way to go.

Prey - Finally a worthy successor for the Predator franchise. A prequel set in the Great Plains in 1719, it follows a group of Comanche crossing paths with the mandibal jawed alien.

X / Pearl - The first two entries in a triolgy (MaXXXine 2024) follows Mia Goth playing dual roles of a woman named Maxine and elderly woman named Pearl. These are just breezy, tight budget, fun slasher (X) and horror (Pearl) films.

Nope - I gotta be honest, I didn't expect this to hit. Don't doubt Jordan Peele. There are moments in this film I'll be thinking about for a long time. Jean Jacket and Gordy. What a pair.

The Batman - Can we really do anything new with this material? We'll end up with a continuous stream of Batman (and Spiderman for that matter) until we're all dead and buried so we better get used to endless attempts. We've been singing the same song for awhile now - darker AND grittier?! ANOTHER actor who seems unfit for a Batman role?!

This one works. You wouldn't think you could even strike a new visual language (thanks Greig Fraser), or build a new world that was interesting here - but they really did it. Some of the best uses of "The Volume" in a big budget movie (Thor Love & Thunder among the worst offenders). If he fires up the muscle car Batmobile for the first time and it doesn't make your hair stand up on end, maybe there is something wrong with you.

How to Blow Up a Pipeline - A crew of young environmental activists execute a daring mission to sabotage an oil pipeline. It's tense, realistic and honestly really is a playbook on how to blow up a pipeline.

Tár - Look, nothing against Michelle Yeoh but Cate Blanchett not winning best acctress here is absolutely insane. I'm still thinking about this movie. It's just stuck in my brain. The one'er student sequence alone is a materclass in direction and acting.

Eight Billion Genies (Image) - At exactly the same moment everyone on earth gets a genie and one wish. All hell breaks loose in some very funny and very dark ways. Each issue jumps in time (#1 Eight seconds / Eight Minutes after the event, #2 Eight Hours, #3 Eight Days, #4 Eight Weeks, #5 Eight Months, #6 Eight Years, #7 Eight Decades, #8 Eight Centuries). Predictably humanity and the decisions made leave you simultaneously confounded and hopeful.

Rogues (DC Comics) - Ten years ago, the Rogues disbanded and went their separate ways. But time hasn't been kind to the former blue-collar super-criminals. Featuring some 'lower-tiered' DC Comics villians, watch as they battle aging out of their heyday and try to find purpose in a world that has long moved on with one last job.

Top Spun is a curated playlist of the best new music from 2022. If you're looking for more from seasons past - find more mixes here.

Every Actor Everywhere All the Time - Every movie right now, from Amsterdam to Glass Onion, stars a million A-listers. It's not great and it's really ruining a lot of projects. Vox has a great article about it.

Line Goes Up: The Problem With NFTs - The great promise of Web3, cyrpto and nft's still continues to be a grift of the highest order.

Acquisition of Twitter by Elon Musk - It's cooked folks.