In Case You Missed It… 2016

• Lori Palminteri
• Uncategorized
• January 15, 2017

For all the shit 2016 is getting, there wasn’t a lack of amazing creative content for our enjoyment and perhaps distraction.  TV is really in a golden age making it harder and harder for even extroverts to leave their homes.  A lot of really great films were released, and if you’re an indie rock fan, we got anticipated new albums from old favorites and introduced to some really amazing new talent as well.  It’s not easy narrowing my favorites down, but since every one already has long “watch/listen/read” lists, these are some of my most highly recommended.

TV

STRANGER THINGS

I really cannot say enough good things about this.  Before it came out, I remember reading an article about it, and as a sci-fi kid, I was like, “I need to watch this.”  I’m not a big binge watcher.  I get restless.  If I’m binging it, it’s because I really love it.  That happened with Stranger Things.

COLIN QUINN: THE NEW YORK STORY

Available now to watch on Netflix!  Stop reading this, watch it, and come back.  I’ll wait.

…

Back?  That was so fucking hilarious, right?  Colin Quinn is the best.  He really is.  If you ever have a chance to see him live, don’t miss out.  But while you’re home, watch New York Story, and you’ll see why Colin is revered in the comedy community as one of the most hilarious and prolific comedians.

WESTWORLD

If you’re sick of people talking about Westworld, it’s probably your fault for not watching it yet.  Because the show makes you think about morality, and free will, and consciousness, and what it means to be human.  It’s as much philosophy as it is science fiction.  The series finale is one of the best series finale’s I’ve ever seen.  I still think about this show all the time.

MOVIES

ARRIVAL

Man, it was a good year to be a sci-fi nerd.  But Arrival is so much more than an alien arrival sci-fi flick!  It’s about language, communication, misinterpretations, time, and love.  Love, guys. And I still thought it was fantastic!  Make sure you see this one.

DON’T THINK TWICE

Birbiglia’s movie about a break out comedy star and his left behind comedy troupe is real, funny, heart warming and heart wrenching.  If you really want a peek behind the curtain of the grind, and often ugliness of comedy, this film really captures it.  This is a movie I told my parents they had to watch even though I don’t think they are going to like it.  But comedy realness aside, the script is awesome.  And so is the directing.  Mike Birbiglia is so fucking talented.

DR. STRANGE

I think Dr. Strange was my favorite movie of 2016 (yep, it beat out a Star Wars flick).  There was so much I liked about this movie.  If you missed out on seeing it in 3D, you should find someone with a 3D TV, and watch it at their house.  Better than Avatar in 3D.  It was meant to be seen that way, and if you like to do drugs, you should do them for this.  Marvel really kills it with their movies.  It’s really a fun movie.

MUSIC

SHUT UP KISS ME – Angel Olsen

I really dig this song.  I hate this music video though.  Just listen to the song, but don’t watch the video, okay?

A 1000 TIMES – HAMILTON LEITHAUSER + ROSTAM

This is a song I cannot and won’t stop listening to.  The whole album is really great to be honest.

ON HOLD – THE xx

This one is still pretty new, but an instant favorite.  Seems to be a common theme with my favorite 2016 songs.

BOOKS

Okay, I’m kind of cheating here, because these books didn’t come out in 2016, but I read them last year and really loved them.

THE TERROR – Dan Simmons

There has been no book I’ve been pitching to people more than this historical fiction novel by Dan Simmons.  It’s about the Franklin exhibition, two ships the Erebus and Terror that disappeared in the Northwest passage in the 1800.’s.  Years later, they found the bodies of the crew who had abandoned ship, and they were hauling all this unnecessary crap, and what happened became a great mystery (after autopsies, it is believed they went daft from lead poisoning from food in tin cans, which was new at the time).  This is a fictional story of what happened to those real men, and it’s SO FUCKING GOOD.  Oh my god, it’s terrifying and yet, inspiring.  I love this book.

THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS – M.R. CAREY

This movie is coming out soon, so go out and read the book before it’s too late!  If you’ve seen the trailer, you already know too much!

EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED FROM A STAR WARS LITTLE GOLDEN BOOK

I’m not even kidding you.  I love this book.  This book is like all those cheesy quotes your annoying friend posts all the time, but it’s so much better, because those little life lessons we roll our eyes at are accompanied with Star Wars imagery, and it is both cheesy and awesome (like Star Wars).  I’ve read a lot of self help books this year, and this one has all the lessons you need to learn in like five minutes.  Shout out to my Aunt Judy for sending this one to me.