Hello, hello, happy (belated) New Year! I'm so sorry about my absence (have been through a lot this year, don't ask don't tell), but I thought I would post a really quick rating of all of the best and the worst of what I've read and watched this year so that 2023 can get some closure. Hope y'all enjoy! (Also, if you're interested in hearing more specific thoughts, I probably have reviews about most of the ones that are on this list, so go read them, too!)
Let's start with movies, shall we? And the best movies of 2023 go to (DRUM ROLL):
Theater Camp (2023)
No need for explanation. Funny, warm, just a little quirky (she's not like the other girls), and all-together so nerdy that even the theater kid in ME couldn't keep up, this movie is the perfect thing to watch if you're a theater kid (don't lie to yourself), a happy person, or a sad person. Just... Everyone.
Tár (2022)
Cate Blanchett is transcendent, the music is brilliant (I'm thinking of this very specific scene where the film cuts from a silent scene to a loud one, and my sibling in Christ I swear to you I have never truly understood the phrase "swelling of music" until that moment), and I literally traveled across international borders to see this film. That's how good it is. SEE IN THEATERS IF POSSIBLE!!
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse (2023)
I saw this film three times in two different countries. I literally said, hey, seeing this in one country isn't enough, I need to now spend double the money I did in China to see this in America. That's how much I loved this film. It's the pinnacle of what I think animation in film can do. If you haven't seen it, what have you been doing with your life? (Just kidding, but also, not kidding.)
And now, Ladies and Gentlemen and everyone in between: the WORST of the films I saw in 2023.
First up, and a strong contestant for Worst Film Ever, is Mafia Mamma (2023).
What- Why- What was the point? Why did this film cast Toni Collette and Monica Bellucci and decide that, hey, we're going to be making a terrible film with horrible dialogue, horrendous plot, and absolutely no character development with just a smidge of queer baiting. WHAT WAS THE THOUGHT PROCESS?
Next, we have another strong contender, this one made even stronger because it is a series. That's right, ladies and gents and NBs, we have Tiny Times 1 (2013) and 2 (2013)! (There would have been TT3, but I lowkey just couldn't finish that film.)
This film is so stupid it's actually funny. I watched this while I was drunk and sleep-deprived, and somehow it still didn't make sense. So I think the only way to really enjoy this film is if you take your brain, hang it up somewhere on the hat rack, and then sit down and turn on the TV. Then it might be just the slightest bit of enjoyable.
The Royal Hotel (2023)
When the general public said they wanted morally gray characters, I don't think the general public meant that they wanted characters who would hurt the only person who was nice to them and not actually have personalities at all. You see, once again, I must ask, WHY ARE WE CASTING AMAZING ACTORS IN HORRIBLE CHARACTERS?
Finally, last, but certainly not least, is Soul Mates (2023)
I saw this film in the theaters. In the theaters, my friends. I spent money to see this crap. I swear to you, watching this was like eating feces. It felt like someone was forcing me to see and know and hear things that I did not ever need in my brain. My brain cells and ear cells are never coming back after this. Was it worth it? No. The plot is nonsensical and gory for no reason, and the actors were (I usually don't say this, so you know how bad it really was) as emotive as an IKEA sofa.
So. Movies. Some good, some bad, and some really bad. Some really, really bad. But now we have TV shows, which are always a lot of fun. Let's start with the best (POSITIVITY!):
Mine (2021)
I had to. I really had to. The plot isn't actually all that good, but Kim Seo-hyung is so beautifully tragic as Jung Seo-hyun and I am always here for lesbianism (especially when it's done well, which this one was), so I watched this show about, eh, 20 times? By quantity alone it had to be on my best list.
Good Omens Season 2 (2023)
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Sorry, lost my mind for a bit there. Actually, my mind has been lost. It's been lost since the moment Aziraphale looked at Crowley in 1941, the moment David Tennant strutted onto my screen again as Crowley after four (FOUR!) long years. All I could think about for the latter half of 2023 was Good Omens, and the show isn't just good because of the actors (though the actors are AMAZING). The plot? The character development? The continuity? The ending (IT HURTS)? The chemistry between all of the cast? The writing? Chef's kiss. Chef's make-out session. Brilliant. Watch it.
Schmicago (2023)
My theater kid is flaring up again. Sorry not sorry. Chicago is iconic, and Dove Cameron is iconic in that bob. Also, the references to Sweeney Todd, Chicago, A Chorus Line, and all of the jazz (you get the pun? The PUN? I'm so punny.) were amazing. It's also short and sweet, so it wasn't a big time commitment and I felt joy in my dead soul. 10 out of 10 win for me.
Now for the worst. There's only two, thank God, but both are K-dramas. I swear I don't have anything against K-dramas, though. Just these two.
Durian's Affair (2023)
Don't get me started. The queer baiting? The character massacre at the end? The wasted potential of the cast's chemistry? The ridiculous plot? This show was a load of steaming, stinking, poop.
Bad and Crazy (2021)
I was about to go bad and crazy by the time I finished this show. Schizophrenia can be learned, and it can be learned by watching this show, because by god sometimes I wondered who was the person who was possessing me to keep watching this show.
Shows, not too bad. Two negatives, three positives, overall positive (by math). So now books. I actually didn't have any books that I didn't like, this year, so just the good ones:
The Buried Giant and The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Buried Giant feels like an old story that we've all forgotten. That's the best way to describe it, and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The Remains of the Day is so gut-wrenchingly sad in the most calm, normal way possible, and all I can say is, Kazuo Ishiguro is officially one of my favorite authors. He ate down with these two.
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Kind of similar to The Buried Giant in that it feels like an old tale that I've known forever. Also, the writing is so beautiful it's practically poetry, and I love any book about books or stories, so this book was perfect for me.
Finally, we have stage productions! Unfortunately for my Theater Kid Syndrome, I only saw a few shows (hopefully I see more in 2024), and my favorite was definitely:
Elisabeth (2005 Recording)
This is the first time I've ever seen anyone compare suicide to having a love affair with death and Jesus did that hit hard. The show is beautiful, the actors are so emotive, and the songs are terrible in the old sense of the word (like awe-inspiring type of awesome). Would 10 out of 10 recommend.
Okay, that's it for 2023. See y'all later, and 2024, don't be a brat, 'kay?
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