Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Best of 2015 - From my perspective

                        


This year I've been very sloppy with my blog. Between work and social life it's difficult to find time... But I will admit I could have done a bit more effort.

In any case, I still watched movies... A lot of them! 
2015 brought us a lot of quality and variety. It was very easy for me to make this list, even without watching many likely candidates like Carol, The Room, The Revenant and Creed just to name a few.

So without further a do, here's my top 10 movies of 2015:

Mad Max
Youth
The Gift
The Lobster
Ex Machina
Straight Outta Compton
The Martian
Me, Earl and The Dying Girl 
Amy (documentary)
Dope

Special mentions to the wonderful surprise that was Danny Collins, plus the triumphant return of Star Wars.

Here's to another great year ahead of us... Not only with great films but everything culture wise.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

James Vincent McMorrow - Cavalier


A friend of mine said James Vincent McMorrow has the voice of an angel.

Couldn't agree more.

Monday, December 21, 2015

Dope (2015)



My latest streak of film viewing has made me come back to write for the blog. I don't promise to be consistent, but to at least drop a few suggestions here and there.

I start with the following:

DOPE​.

Directed and written by Rick Famuyiwa, produced by Pharrell Williams, Sean 'Diddy' Combs & Forest Whitaker and starring wonderful young ensemble featuring  Shameik Moore (!!!), Tony Revolori, Kiersey Clemons, Zoe Kravitz, A$AP Rocky, among many others.

And don't get me started on the soundtrack... Kicks off with Naughty by Nature... is heavy on A Tribe Called Quest...  and gets it going with Public Enemy, NAS and Gil Scott-Heron.

Definitely going into my Top10 of 2015.


Thursday, July 02, 2015

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Farewell David Letterman





Some time ago, I posted about the role that The O.C.​ played on the expansion of indie music for the masses. Most of us never heard about Death Cab for Cutie​, Modest Mouse​, The Shins​ and Bright Eyes​… Bloc Party​ and The Killers​ were gaining traction and even some of the cult classics like Sex Pistols​ and The Ramones​ got their place on the show’s spotlight.











Despite having a sense of gratitude towards the Californian soap opera, I am now “morning” the end of show - maybe more musically relevant to generations before “The O.C”: David Letterman’s.

For the few of you who don’t know who Dave Letterman is, my advice is for you to look him up on YouTube and get acquainted with his magnificent work.

Talented writer, great communicator and incredible comedic skills have made Mr. Letterman one of the most prominent forces in the history of TV.

So why am I putting “The O.C” and David Letterman in the same post?

Because way before Seth Cohen and Marissa Cooper were engaging in their musical taste, Letterman was already getting on his stage a mix of artists that went from some of the most popular names at the time, to the unknown bands who would end up achieving greatness.

From R.E.M.​’s first television act on his show, to Arcade Fire​ break out followed by the likes of The Strokes​ and Letterman’s favorite band Foo Fighters​, we have seen an outrageously good list of musical artists… most of which we can thank him for introducing to the general public and therefore making it possible for a lot of bands being in our iPods.












So, as a way of paying homage to the legendary TV host and his colossal influence on music, I am leaving you this small article written by The Independent​, which contains their selection of the Top 18 musical performances ever to grace us on David Letterman's show!

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/the-best-late-show-with-david-letterman-musical-performances-10263503.html

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Films seen in the last week


Relatos Salvajes


This Oscar nominated Argentinean film is one of the best funny things I've seen in recent times. I had no idea whatsoever of what to expect and maybe that's for the best... so I will avoid any sort of details. I will say however that, rather than being your typical movie, this is actually a mix of short movies with a couple of themes in common, all of which told with a very (very!) dark humor. 

Maybe it's not your kind of thing, but I had a blast.
 

Magic In The Moonlight


Woody Allen's latest feature presents itself with a good cast and although it does provide good moments, it is far from being among his best work.  By all means watch it, but I honestly don't think it will make worth your time.
 


Whiplash


Seen it before, but with my Mom in town, just had to see it again. One of the best movies I've ever seen. Incredibly well directed, great acting and amazing soundtrack. Should be on everyone's "To see" list.



 Bad Words



This is Jason Bateman's directorial debut... and it's a great one. Sharp on the tongue, beautifully shot and with various moments that will make you chuckle, this is a great unexpected surprise as I had no idea of what was coming.




While We're Young


Noah Baumbach is back with another of his indie movies that a lot of people out there are bound to relate with. He's reunited with Ben Stiller after their previous collaboration in Greenberg, while also adding the talent of the incredible Naomi Watts, followed by Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried. 
Not entirely sure how this movie will go down in comparison with Baumbach's previous film Frances Ha (2012), but i can tell you right now that this an OK movie with good moments... but felt like it was never great. Maybe my expectations were too high... I remember seeing the trailer and thinking to myself that this would be incredible! 
Having said that, you wouldn't certainly waste your time if you were to see this though...


Sunday, January 11, 2015

Gattaca (1997)



Saw Gattaca (1997) for the first time. What an incredible movie! Smart and profound... capable of making a big testament to the core of the human spirit and soul. Nothing is impossible!


Friday, January 02, 2015

Best of 2014 - From my perspective



As per usual, here's my "Best of" the year that has passed... 

Unfortunately I won't compile a list of "Best albums" since I wasn't able to listen to that many throughout 2014. Can't really justify why... I guess I ended up getting my hands on older albums - which obviously wouldn't serve the purpose of this list.

In regards to the film list, there are going to be a lot of great absences, some of which I haven't seen yet (Birdman, St. Vincent, Selma, Still Alice...). Nonetheless, I can honestly say that this year has been really strong. 

With that said, here's my "Top 10 films" of 2014:


Some good movies that didn't make the cut this year include Cold July, Chef, Edge of Tomorrow, 22 Jump Street (my guilty pleasure) and Interstellar

The latter needs a second watching. I found it tremendously overcomplicated and very silly at times, but there is a lot in it that can (and should) make this film a classic. Maybe I'll change my mind about it...

There you have it. As I said, 2014 was really strong when it comes to movies...and there's plenty more that need to be watched. Feel free to comment on these picks and share your own. 

Have a wonderful 2015!