consumption report // notables of 2014

as I am truly bad at a) going to the movie theatre, b) visiting Barnes & Noble / reading the NYT's bestseller list / not going straight to the back of the library, and c) changing the radio to a non-NPR station in the car [d) all of the above, yes?] -- this is a list of the best media of 2014 as I experienced it, not as it entered the world. which means that a good chunk of it is not from 2014.

uncategorized & in no particular order (actually, in an intentionally confusing order):

battlestar galactica (2004) is a show I've been watching for two years now, and I'm still in the middle of the third season. it is haunting & lovely & frustrating & highfalutin & down-to-earth & all too much, so contradictory in the best of ways.

interstellar (2014) was transcendental! way-too-soaring pianos & inexplicable climax (regrettably, explained anyway) notwithstanding. I cried; the father-daughter bond was the film's greatest strength. I will say nothing further; the ending makes everything rather hard to discuss without a thorough knowledge of what the hell was going on with that black hole. 

deutschland: ein sommermärchen (2006) was one of the many good things to come out of my midsummer German/soccer/German soccer kick. (unusual for such obsessions, that.) if you already love the German NT, this film is precious -- filled with the WC débuts of Basti & Poldi, a questionable haircut given to Miroslav Klose, dear old Jürgen Klinsmann back before he transplanted to California -- back when he had Joachim Löw working underneath him. (if you don't already love them, you will.) you know how the 2006 World Cup ended; that won't change the suspense you'll feel leading up to the match that [redacted, in case you were somehow living under a rock during all the 2014 coverage & don't know how it ended]. it'll make you laugh & cry & feel all fuzzy inside, as do the best of sports films.

run lola run (1997) is the movie I now put under "favorite movie" when STAR WARS seems too trite. (hello, USC application.) it's that good -- perhaps only because I watched it while feverish, as I've yet to watch it again. but the memory is good -- as were my memories of STAR WARS as a twelve-year-old, before I watched it aged fifteen & felt jaded. I've taked about this twice before: Franka Potente, violently redheaded, racing through Berlin. three times over. to a killer soundtrack. what's not to love?

l'auberge espagnole (2002) is adorable & accurately represents all of my pipe dreams. also, it stars Romain Duris & (sort of ) Audrey Tautou, so why aren't you watching it right now?

guardians of the galaxy (2014) is all I've ever needed out of a Marvel film; it's more irreverent yet has more heart than THE AVENGERS (like, Groot's last line beats every line of throwaway dialogue in that film, much as I appreciated it) & it's full of really good music. as a plot point, to boot. also, just watching the DVD extras & seeing James Gunn's passion for what he's created was pretty incredible (& pretty daunting; don't send me to film school, I cannot handle that much work).

brooklyn nine-nine (2013) is a show I ought to have started watching during my time in the doldrums last year. it's heartwarming, even among -- well, everything in the news about the NYPD these days -- and it's unfailingly hilarious. Andy Samberg is golden, but I think Stephanie Beatriz is my favorite. almost an inspiration to wear all black, every day. almost.

mona lisa smile (2003) is very much as dogmatic and as heart-rending as DEAD POETS SOCIETY, but it's full of girls with their gorgeous wardrobes & doesn't feature a death, which apparently makes it far less worthy of critical attention. bullshit, I say. sure, Julia Roberts's feminist streak in the film is a bit pushy, a bit much -- but others call her out on it, which is one of the film's greatest strengths. you will fall in love with every character: Maggie Gyllenhaal is absolutely sublime, Kirsten Dunst is a sneaky not-quite-bad antagonist, Julia Stiles is the one who calls her professor out, & Ginnifer Goodwin is... underrated & underrepresented in the promotional material. if there's something the producers did very wrong, it's that.

modern vampires of the city (2013) provided the borderline-depressing soundtrack to my physics/chemistry/calculus studying of March & April. it's not sad, per se, & it's not The National's particular brand of melancholy. it's not even melancholy, really. "step" & "ya hey" & eventually the entire album will get stuck in your head & make you horribly nostalgic.