The Month that was December and the Year that was 2013

       Yes, I know it's been a week since the new year and 2013 is officially the old year and no one cares about it anymore, but I had two freaking exams to give in the middle and a day to recover from them, and so here I am! Hellooooo people! How is 2014 going so far?

        The new year brings with it the new film year and the new blogging year. But before that, I need to close up shop on 2013. I watched 292 films throughout the year, which *is* a massive drop from last year's 439, but I feel okay with because I did want to relax a bit. Also, there were the neverending exams and all the television stuff. Seriously, I watched a lot of TV last year.

        But first, December. I really have like no memory of December except that I decorated a Christmas tree with pictures of hot actors and that Matt Smith left Doctor Who *sniff*. And apparently I watched very few movies. Anyways, these are the films and TV shows I watched:-


Firsts:

1) Frozen- Dawww. This film is so funny and cute and lovely and heartwarming. The characters were great, the story at the centre was excellent, the humour was superb and it all looked soooo pretty. Oh and "Let It Go" was my December anthem.
2) The Hobbit: the Desolation of Smaug- I swear to god, if HFR becomes a regular thing, I'll have to stop going to the theatres. It literally makes me want to claw my eyes out. And this film was pretty disappointing on the whole. All I wanted was to see Smaug, who *was* excellent by the way, but by the time we got to him, I was just sooooo bored and sleepy! That whole love triangle was completely unnecessary, as much as I enjoyed seeing sassy and oh so graceful Legolas back.
3) The Spectacular Now- I know a lot of people like this film but I wasn't very into it. Mostly because I hated the main character. Since it is a realistic portrayal, I have to say that I have never been particularly fond of people like Sutter and so I just couldn't give two shits about him. Shailene Woodley is amazing in it though.
4) Saving Mr. Banks- I thought it was a very sweet film, exceptionally well-casted and I do love Emma Thompson so much.
5) Lee Daniels' The Butler- This film was a hot mess. Like I cared for it and at the same time thought it was a bit cray cray. Doesn't deserve any awards attention it is getting though. SO SORRY, OPRAH!!
6) Dhoom 3- In spite of all the stupidity and terrible CGI and plot-holes and literally everyone in it except Aamir Khan who were all silly and annoying, I had fun. And sometimes, that is enough. I do wish the money spent on making "Malang" could have been used on producing an indie film instead though.
7) American Hustle- I liked it... but this too was crazy... in a good way... I think... Anyways, I had too much fun with Bradley Cooper's and Jennifer Lawrence's characters.


Rewatched:

1) Home Alone 2: Lost in New York- For our holiday podcast. Man, this film is brutal.
2) Chungking Express- I effing love this film.
3) Brief Encounter- Ditto.
4) In the Mood for Love- It's literally like Chungking Express meets Brief Encounter if you think about it.
5) Stories We Tell- Yep, still my favourite. People can be so wonderful.
6) Dead Poets Society- My little brother was in town for holidays and so as usual, I decided to educate him a little bit.
7) Across the Universe- Saw it after soooo long. I still think it's brilliant and now, so does my brother. And I totes know what you'll are thinking- coolest sister ever, amirite?
8) The Heat- Second funniest film of the year. Melissa McCarthy needs some awards for this.
9) Snatch- Guess what I decided to watch on Christmas to improve my mood after Doctor Who?
10) Gravity- I cried so much this time 'round.


TV shows:

1) Masters of Sex, season 1- I think this show has the potential to be pretty great. True, I don't watch Mad Men and so maybe I'm a tad extra impressed, but I do love the way the show portrays gender roles, love and sex, taboos and experiments. It's not something grand but so basic that it makes for compelling television. And the acting obviously is just superb all across the board. a) Favourite episode- There are quite a few which really impressed me but I choose "Brave New World" because I like the changes in everyone's characters, and of course, Margaret Scully is magnificent in this. b) MVP- As amazing as I think Michael Sheen's acting is, it's between Lizzy Caplan's Virginia Johnson and Allison Janney's Margaret Scully for me. For Virginia, all you have to do is watch the ending of "Thank You for Coming". I think it says a lot about her character and what makes her so multi-faceted. Margaret on the other hand is one of the most heartbreaking characters I have ever seen in a show and Janney's doing such a wonderful job with her. c) Favourite quote- "My clitoris beat my vagina?" Jane's so cute. I laughed for ten minutes after she said that.
2) Orphan Black, season 1- Oh this show is captivating. I marathoned it without even realising how many episodes there are or wanting to know anything about anything because I was having so much fun and I was just so hooked! Tatiana Maslany is a revelation and this is one smart, sexy show.
3) Sherlock, series 1- In preparation for the already awesome series 3. Unfortunately I couldn't finish watching series 2 in time, but I predict we'll have A LOT of time to do multiple Sherlock marathons.


Final 2013 statistics:

First watches- 203
Rewatched films- 87
Shorts- 2
Total- 292

Number of Television series/seasons watched- 37 (between 27 shows)


       So as you can see, a good year for TV watching. And I thought it was a pretty fantastic year in television too. Between Breaking Bad coming to an end and all those Doctor Who specials, I was all set. My favourite new shows were Orange is the New Black, Orphan Black, Hannibal and The Originals. Among the returning series, Breaking Bad, Luther, American Horror Story: Asylum and of course Doctor Who were the best. And from the older shows that I watched for the first time , the Brits take the cake with The Mighty Boosh, The Hour and The Thick of It (need to finish that).

        In films, I did see some amazing ones. I'm still making my way through 2013 films but I am in complete agreement with everyone calling it an exceptional year of cinema. I did not think so up until August, with disappointments like Only God Forgives and Star Trek Into Darkness, but then the film gods corrected that because I watched Mud and Stories We Tell back to back and was totally mesmerised. My top 10 non-2013 first watches were:

Chungking Express

Brief Encounter

Dev D.

La haine

The American

Leaving Las Vegas

Eyes Without A Face

Witness for Prosecution

Sympathy for Lady Vengeance

Sleuth

(Listen to our New Year episode for more on my top 4)

      Entering rather unchartered territory for this blog, music-wise, 2013 was the year I decided that I like female lead singers more than male ones. I was pretty obsessed with bands like Savages, Wolf Alice, Deap Vally, Haim, Daughter and *of course* Yeah Yeah Yeahs throughout the year. I don't know what that implies. If I had to pick a favourite album though, it would have to be Arctic Monkey's AHMAZING AM. One of the best things I have ever read is the following, from its NME review-

"And the lyrics… oh, maaaan. At times they sound like they were written by a man with a burning hard-on who wants – or rather needs – to savagely fuck your body, mind and soul."

*swoons* Alex Turner, marry me!

       My other favourite albums were Peace's In Love, Arcade Fire's Reflektor, Daft Punk's Random Access Memories and Beyonce's Beyonce. As for favourite movie soundtrack, I am a happy Bollywood child still listening to the songs from Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.


      So that's it. I have to achieve a lot of things in 2014 so once again, I'm not going to make any film-related resolutions except the Blindspot series. I want to try and watch more Indian films too, so hopefully I can tackle that.

       Oh and this was my 500th post, you guyz! Yes, I know that's dismal and most of you do that much every month, but there you go. #suckyblogger4eva #keepinitreal #peaceout

Across the Universe Podcast: Episode 17

Episode 17: New Year 2014

Sofia, Mette and I welcome the awesome Stevee Taylor of Cinematic Paradox to our New Year episode in which we list down our favourite non-2013 films we saw in 2013. We also find our more about Stevee through our mini-questionnaire.

This is quite a giggly episode with a lot of witty (well, we hope) banter so you have been warned ;-)

Content:

0:21- Chick-chatter

3:40- Trailer

4:11- The Guest Questionnaire

11:14- The chicks and Stevee list each of their Top 3 non-2013 films

1:10:04- Plugs and Goodbyes

Songs:

Guest's choice- Lorde "Royals"

Nik's favourite song of 2013- Arctic Monkeys "Do I Wanna Know"

Sofia's favourite song of 2013- Lonely Island "Spring Break Anthem"

Mette's favourite song of 2013- David Bowie "The Next Day"

Fiona Apple "Across The Universe"

Follow us at: facebook.com/acrosstheuniversepodcast
Write to us at: acrosstheuniversepodcast@gmail.com
Find us on iTunes: search for Across the Universe Podcast
Download episodes from: Our Dropbox page

Hello 2014!

With a new year, we have a whole set of new films to look forward to. Of course, if you are like me, you still have a huge number of 2013 to get over with. But as it is becoming a tradition on this blog, I give you my most anticipated films of the coming year on 1st January (even though I'm failing my exams for writing this).

Honorable Mentions- Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Sils Maria, The Monuments Men, Beauty and the Beast, The Boxtrolls, Cuban Fury, Fury, Chef, 22 Jump Street, Tammy, The Interview, Dark Places, Madame Bovary,  The Imitation Game, Tom at the Farm, Maps to the Stars, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1, Unbroken, The Cobbler, Noah (still not sure on this one, but then, Aronofsky), Life Itself, Jupiter Ascending (again, for the directors), Jane Got a Gun, untitled Cameron Crowe, Neighbours, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, Stretch, The Maze Runner, Under the Skin, Annie, Get On It, The Search, Dumb and Dumber To, Horrible Bosses 2, Veronica Mars, Exodus, Cymbeline, Every Thing Will Be Fine, Happy Christmas, Frank, Brooklyn, Midnight Special, Need for Speed and any Terrence Malick film if he decides to release one this year.

The 25:

25) X-Men: Days of Future Past
This would have been higher on my list were it not for that gargantuan cast. Seriously, too many characters. There is big chance of this film not working, but I'm still quite excited. Also, that picture is hilarious.

24) Far From the Madding Crowd
Thomas Vinterberg made one of the most acclaimed movies of last year, The Hunt. This will be his English language debut. The material is great and so is the cast. I'm happy to see Tom Sturridge bagging such roles.

23) The Lobster
The concept is kind of genius- people forced to find their soulmates or else they turn into animals. The cast is exciting and I have become quite a fan of Yorgos Lanthimos over last year.

22) Muppets Most Wanted
The Muppets was one of the biggest surprises of 2011 for me. It was the happiest movie of the year and so I have high hopes for its sequel.

21) Nymphomaniac
I don't think any film has me equally intrigued and scared like this one. It is going to be something.

20) The Trip to Italy
I thought the first one was totally brilliant and super hilarious and I have a feeling this one will be too. And I love Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon!

19) Maleficient
Though the teaser did little for me, I have been excited for this film since day 1. Angelina Jolie is PERFECT for a role like this. And gotta love Elle Fanning.

18) Godzilla
Talking of teasers/trailers, Godzilla's absolutely rocked! Plus the cast and the visuals have my attention completely.

17) Transcendence
The trailer was absorbing enough and that cast is quite amazing. Curious to see how Wally Pfister fares as a director. Also, so nice to see Johnny Depp looking normal in a film... sorta...

16) Into the Woods

I love Chicago. That alone guarantees my interest in this film. But then we have fantastic actors like Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, Johnny Depp, James Corden (!), Chris Pine, Anna Kendrick in big and small roles playing fairy tale characters- oooooooooooo!!

15) Gone Girl
I'm sorry, David Fincher. I just hate Ben Affleck's chin so much! Otherwise your film would have been higher on the list, I swear on Jack's everything! I do love Rosamund Pike though.

14) How to Train Your Dragon 2
I regret not having watched How to Train Your Dragon in the theatres in 3D. Not making that mistake with its sequel, which looks quite breathtaking too.

13) Foxcatcher
Love it when an actor tries something different. Steve Carell looks set to wow us in this and, having read up on the whole incident, I think this might be a helluva movie.

12) The Fault in Our Stars
I absolutely loved the novel and Shailene Woodley has been fantastic in everything I've seen her in. I seriously hope and pray the film does John Green's beautiful, hilarious and heartbreaking book justice.

11) Guardians of the Galaxy
I think this is going to be a very atypical superhero movie, and we need some of those now. And wowsers Lee Pace, Chris Pratt and Karen Gillan in a movie together!

10) Magic in the Moonlight
Statistically, observing the trend in Woody Allen's recent films, this *should* be a dud. But I absolutely adore the idea of Emma Stone being in one of his films and this looks and sounds quite lovely.

9) Inherent Vice
It's probably a lazy reason but it's a Paul Thomas Anderson film. It's bound to be good if not great. Joaquin Phoenix is also in top-form right now and the story is very interesting.

8) The Raid 2: Berandal
Because The Raid is a perfect film. 'Nuff said.

7) The Double
Submarine is one of my most favourite films ever. This looks v.v.v.v.v. different, but that's not a bad thing, especially with some people talking about its similarities with Fight Club. Also, bless Richard Ayoade for bringing Jesse Eisenberg and Mia Wasikowska together in this film!

6) Captain America: The Winter Soldier
I am a huge fan of the first one and I like the fact that it seems to be merging superheroes with spies. Chris Evans is so great in this role too.

5) Only Lovers Left Alive
I like vampires. I like vampire romances. I like off-beat romances. I like John Hurt. I like Anton Yelchin. I like rockstars. I love Mia Wasikowska. I looove Tilda Swinton. I looooove vampire Tilda Swinton. I looooooove Tom Hiddleston. I looooooooove vampire Tom Hiddleston. I looooooooooove vampire rockstar Tom Hiddleston.
I think I will like this film.

4) Interstellar
I love a smart blockbuster and Christopher Nolan is just about the king of those. Excited to see what he does now, with the Dark Knight trilogy behind him. And then there is that cast which includes Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway and like a million other amazing people and basically, this might be brilliant.

3) Carol
Todd Haynes directing Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara in a film based on a Patricia Highsmith novel about two women in a relationship in the 50s on the run- YES PLEASE!

2) How to Catch A Monster
I *did* call this my most anticipated film of all time, but I am a bit scared about the surreal aspects of the film and obviously, how good the Gos will be as a director. Still, that's a picture of Ryan Gosling directing a shirtless Matt Smith. I'm ready to sell my soul to be able to attend the premiere.

1) The Grand Budapest Hotel

Look at that poster! This film is going to be gold. Don't you just wish that Wes Anderson was God so that the whole world would be as pretty as his films and everyone would be as fun as Ralph Fiennes's Gustav H. seems to be? Jokes (existential jokes? Idk) aside, my favourite thing about Wes Anderson's films are the darker layers hidden beneath their gorgeous exteriors and as delightfully screwball-like as The Grand Budapest Hotel's trailer seems to be, I think the film will have much more to offer. Cannot wait!


And there you have it. I hope all of us have a fantabulous 2014 :D

My Top 10 Films of 2013, Somewhat

       My annual incomplete favourite movies list is here! As usual, due to the unfairness of the universe and general release dates problems, there are a number of 2013 films I have not been able to watch and therefore am unable to do a proper best films list. I hope to do my year's favourites sometime in February, as always, so look out for things like performances, scenes, shots, films etc. then.

10.

Spring Breakers

It's a wonderful feeling when you see a film and you know that it is something totally original and it's unlikely you'll ever seen anything like it again. This film is as insane as it is beautiful, both a satire of and an altar to American pop culture, a feminist coming-of-age tale and a gangster flick- there is no one way of describing Spring Breakers and I love it for it.

9.

Blue is the Warmest Colour

I guess coming-of-age is a recurrent theme for my favourite movies this year, because in Blue as well, we see the enticing and flawed Adèle grow up while falling in and out of the most maddening and consuming sort of love. A gorgeous look at a character to whom Adèle Exarchopoulos gives it her all.

8.

Mud

This film broke my heart. The realisation of how true everlasting love doesn't exist in the real world is affecting enough, and then we have actors like Matthew McConaughey and the excellent Tye Sheridan who were just so good. Really touching film.


7.

Stoker
My first favourite film of this year. It's almost addictive in a way. The actors, the story, the cinematography, the music- I have had a constant need to keep revisiting this film throughout the year because of these. It's sexy and creepy just like that unforgettable piano scene. Really gets under your skin.


6.

The Blue Umbrella
Very few things make me as happy as a Pixar short, and I really do think this is one of their best. "The course of true love never did run smooth," as the Bard said, and we see that in the simplest yet most magical way in this short about a blue umbrella falling in love with a red umbrella.


5.

Wadjda
I regret not having written a review of this because it is easily the most inspiring film I have seen all year. Both the character of Wadjda and the efforts of director Haifaa al-Mansour warrant that title. It's lovely and hopeful and Wadjda is truly my hero.


4.

The Lunchbox
An Indian housewife makes food to impress her husband but the tiffin intended for him accidentally reaches a lonely widower and thus a most unexpected romance begins. This film does so much right, from the isolation felt by people in big metros to the adorable humour to getting the perfect tone between both, largely due to the phenomenal cast of character actors and the fantastic direction. Films like this keep my faith in Indian cinema alive.


3.

Gravity
I don't claim to be an expert on what makes a classic and what doesn't, but I genuinely feel that in years to come, Gravity will be hailed as one. To mesh so perfectly a tale of the triumph of human spirit, a nail-biting thriller and a visual extravaganza and just that, without any deviations or distractions, keeping the audience as rapt as possible, is no simple task. Kudos to Alfonso Cuarón and his team.


2.

Frances Ha
There's a lot in this movie that screams "First World Problems", but the moment Frances, played by the luminescent Greta Gerwig, says "I'm not a real person yet," it started to feel universal. Frances Ha is about a certain time in our lives when our dreams and reality go their separate ways. I can see it happening to me, and whereas that would usually just fill me with paralysing fear, the adorkability of Frances and the simple humour and pathos that pervades the whole film weirdly gives me hope. Added to that, the film is one of the most truthful portrayals of female friendship, and is reminiscent of Woody Allen's movies and the French New Wave. Altogether, it's like magic.


1.

Stories We Tell
I have not seen many documentaries in my life and so Stories We Tell completely caught me completely by surprise. It's so personal yet so universal. Sarah Polley traces her mother's life and subsequently her origins with the help of her family and close friends, and through that also explores the nature of stories and memories. I thought it was beautiful and brave and ingenious and nothing like I have ever seen before. Michael Polley's narration and the obvious love and caring that everyone in this film has for each other had me crying buckets. I really love this film.

       Happy New Year everyone :)

Merry Christmas!

Have a great day everyone. Hope all of you get the Christmas gifts you want. 

I have my fugly yet perfect Christmas tree to give me joy, which I will need because of Doctor Who. 

Also, you've all watched this, yes?

Happy Christmas indeed! Eat cakes and stuff :D

New Favourite 100-ish List

My new Favourite 100-ish List is up. There has been a lot of reshuffling with a few additions and removals. The Godfather isn't in my list anymore so I guess I'm going to cinephile hell. On the other hand, Hot Fuzz, my erstwhile number 101, has joined the list directly at 57. Yarp.

The most represented decade is the 2000s and the least represented is the 1930s (none from before 1930- need to work on that). 

Movies added to the list: La haine, Dogville, The Double Life of Veronique (re-added), Cloud Atlas, Dev D, Frances Ha, Hot Fuzz, Brief Encounter, Stories We Tell, Chungking Express, Toy Story 3 (in place of the Toy Story trilogy)

Movies no longer in the list: Breaking the Waves, A Hard Day's Night, Almost Famous, Polar Express, To Die For, The Godfather, Bande à part, Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Margaret, Dog Day Afternoon, Toy Story and Toy Story 2

Hope you like it :)