My Top Ten Films of 2010

Another Year. Another Top Ten list. Here's my two cents:

10.

"That's why I call myself Mr. Brainwash. It's because everything I do.... I brainwash your face!"

9.

"Maybe your mother wasn't born to have a son."

8.

"Hey there, Aron! Is it true that you didn't tell anyone where you were going?"

7.

"We don't know how she got out of her room. It's as if she evaporated through the walls."

6.

"You're going to go through life thinking that girls don't like you because

you're a nerd. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that

won't be true. It's because you're an asshole."

5.

"It just seemed a lot more fun than donating blood. I'm I glad I did it."

4.

"Why didn't he just make one? Another angel. I mean, he's God

after all. Why doesn't he just make another angel?"

3.

"Dreams feel real while you're in them. It's only when we wake up that

we realize something was actually strange."

2.

"Forty thousands years of human language and there's no word

to describe our relationship. We're doomed."

1.

"Now Woody's been my pal for as long as I can remember. He's

brave like a cowboy should be. And kind, and smart. But the thing

that makes Woody special is that he'll never give up on you.... ever."

Another fine year in cinema.... See last year's list here.

My 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years

My 10 Reactions To Entertainment Weekly's 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years:

1. Homer Simpson is #1? He's not even the #1 character of the fictional Simpson family.

2. I suppose the same can be said for Rachel Green (#6) of the 'Friends' cast.

3. I was never a 'Lord of the Rings' fan, but seeing Bridget Jones (#16) ranked 20 spots ahead of Gollum (#36) is embarrassing.

4. Hancock (#91) made the list...

5. Other than Homer, the top ten seems pretty solid. Harry Potter (#2), Buffy (#3), Tony Soprano (#4) and Hannibal Lecter (#8) are all great mentions.

6. Sue Sylvester (#18!) has been around for 22 episodes and she's a greater television character than Brenda Walsh (unranked)- the ultimate high school bitch?

7. This list (and mine, I suppose) is rather ridiculous, but I digress.

8. I suppose I never thought of it that way, but I guess Woody (#25) is Pixar's most iconic figure.

9. I suppose I'm biased, but Effie White (#68) is the only film musical diva? Whoa. At least Elphaba (#79) clocked in. Where's Satine? Velma Kelly? Or... The Phantom!?!

10. I need to stop caring so much about EW's lists. They just get me mad.

My Top Five Television Programs of 2009

To be honest, I don't watch enough television to make an actual top ten list of television programs. My take on television has always been watch what's good and dump the rest, the reason why I've "broken up" with no less than five shows in 2009 ('The Office', 'How I Met Your Mother', I'm looking at you). So here it is, my top five television programs of last year:

5.

Fun, infectious and easy on the eyes.

4.

Best produced Academy Awards ever.

3.

Unreal, dramatized and hilarious.

2.

Best drama on television. Period.

1.

Like 'Arrested', but tamer and a whole lot more heart.

My Top Ten Films of 2009

Yes, it has been over three months since my last entry. I won't even begin to explain why, but back with a vengeance are more late write-ups about last year. So here we go... my top ten films of 2009:

10.

“Your father was the captain of a starship for twelve minutes. He saved 800 lives, including your mother’s and yours. I dare you to do better.”

9.

“I was thinking how a man can spend thirty years in prison and come out and forgive the men who did it to him…”

8.

“This is a story of boy meets girl. But you should know up front, this is not a love story.”

7.

“Everything is backwards now. Like out there is the true world and in here is the dream.”

6.

“For the past eight months waking up actually hurts. The cold realization that I am still here slowly sets in.”

5.

“Who else was going to love me? Who else was going to touch me? Who else was going to make me feel good about myself?”

4.

“There is just something about fashion that can make people very nervous.”

3.

“There’s enough bang in there to blow us all to Jesus. If I’m gonna die, I want to die comfortable.”

2.

“I feel old, but really not very wise.”

1.

“If you publicly denounce respectable families and their children in this abject way, I’ll make sure that you will go to prison.”

Another fine year at the cinema....

My Ten Best Performances of This TV Season

Inspired by both Rant of a Diva and Oscar Tracker's Top 25 Performances of the TV Season lists, I went ahead and did my own- only scaled down to a top 10. Also, my love for rankings couldn't resist making a list. So here it goes: 

10. 

Jane Krakowski (30 Rock)

Immensely underused, but steals every scene she's in.

9.

Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live)

The declining show's MVP for the third season in a row.

8.

Stark Sands (Generation Kill)

Moral dilemmas on the battlefields never looked so good.

7.

Drew Barrymore (Grey Gardens)

Career best gracefully exceeded everyone's expectations.

6.

Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreations)

Storms out of the gate with heart and hilarity.

5.

Hugh Jackman (The 81st Annual Academy Awards)

Redefining hosting criteria while not hogging all the attention.

4.

Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother)

Nearly impossible to take your eyes off his charismatic charm.

3.

Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights)

Never resorting to the easier desperate housewife route.

2.

Jim Parson (The Big Bang Theory)

Humanizing an inhuman with impeccable comedic timing.

1.

Elizabeth Moss (Mad Men)

Brewing the perfect storm for Draper's ultimate nemesis. 

My Quality Airline

Hawaiian Airlines topped the annual quality study of US airlines with AirTran and JetBlue following in as #2 and 3, respectively. The criteria includes day-to-day complaints, luggage and baggage claims, bumping flights and overbooking and of course, customer service on and off the plane. My heart is still with Delta though, for all the discounted flights obvious reasons. (Yahoo)

My Titletown

Another year, another pointless ESPN segment special. Two years ago, when the "50 States in 50 Days" project fell flat after week 2 (They showcased street basketball for the entire state of New York...), I wonder how long it would take before the creatives over at the uber-sports network decide to bring in another breezy summer special. And oh boy, if I thought the results for the "50 Days" were bad, their search for "Titletown, USA" ended even worse. Of all the cities and towns across this country, they've announced Valdosta, GA as their choice for the crown. Second place is not better with Parkersburg, WV. You'd have to scroll to #5 before seeing a city with more than one professional sports team.

Valdosta, GA!?! Really!?! I've been there.... nothing about that place screamed sports, and definitely not this so-called "titletown". Many said choices like Los Angeles, Boston and New York were too obvious... because obvious is apparently bad. ESPN dropped another ball here, I wonder what special they'll come up with next for small towns to feel better about themselves. (ESPN)