Sean’s Top 10 Movies of 2024

It’s only been a few days but it’s become abundantly clear that our disorienting four-year weird period is definitely over and we’re back in the shit. I don’t know how I’ll remember 2024 in the years to come, but right now it’s the little things I treasure. Thinking back to John and I laughing at the title card reveal at the end of the trailer for AfrAId. An undeserved accusing look from Nancy during Dune: Part 2 because I definitely was not asleep. Being called a fucking asshole by an old man for sneaking back into Cinerama to look for something my dad dropped after a screening of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Overdosing on the Babes-inspired Sour Patch Kids popcorn at Nosferatu with Colin. These are the experiences that make life worth living.

All I know is that no one can take those memories away from me. And if you’re feeling down, at times like these, I am reminded of the immortal words of Stacker Pentecost:

Today. Today, at the edge of our hope, at the end of our time, we have chosen not only to believe in ourselves, but in each other. Today there is not a man nor woman in here that shall stand alone. Not today. Today we face the monsters that are at our door and bring the fight to them! Today we are cancelling the apocalypse!

In conclusion, I guess I have to pick an audience to represent? Because John said he fights for the freaks and perverts and then Colin wrote he’s here for the thoughtful misfits. Does that leave for me the normies? The good-time Charlies? The kind of person M. Emmet Walsh would call a “typical bastard”? Maybe, except those nut jobs loved Deadpool 3 and that shit gives me a migraine just thinkin’ about it.

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Colin’s Top Ten Movies of 2024

2024 was a year where I really wanted to have some transcendent moments at the movies and unfortunately, I didn’t quite get what I wanted, but at the very least got what I needed. I probably went to the theater about as much as I have since the pandemic, as I probably watched about 5 of the 30+ movies I saw last year on streaming. Which is a very silly thing to congratulate myself for, but sometimes you just gotta get out there and rip yourself away from the other screens in your life. Even if you’re seeing a director’s less-remembered 2024 film like Luco Guadignino’s Queer or slightly disappointing holiday fare like Nosferatu or Babygirl. Really my only regret is that I basically saw no foreign films, but that’s always a problem that can be rectified by Criterion Month.

Anyway, my list is more for the thoughtful misfits than the freaks and perverts, but as was apparent in 2024 cinema, they’re certainly welcome. Continue reading →

John’s Top Ten Movies of 2024

Every year we ask ourselves “Was BLANK a good year for movies?” But I don’t care about that. All I care about is whether BLANK was a good movie year for the FREAKS and PERVERTS. If you’re wondering what the hell I’m talking about, it’s whether or not it was a good year for horror and was it a good year for horny movies.

For horror we had; Abigail, The First Omen, Late Night with the Devil, Longlegs, Oddity, and Strange Darling to name a few critical hits.

For horny we had; Anora, Babygirl, Challengers, Hit Man, Love Lies Bleeding, and Queer. I’d name more but my hands are getting sweaty.

That leaves everything else. Which was good too. I wish I’d seen Nickel Boys and A Real Pain but decided on Strange Darling at the last minute because it felt like more of a John movie. Except it only made my honorable mentions so I probably should have gone the other way. I’m sure Colin will cover those other two.

Here’s a list for the freaks and perverts:

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Colin’s Top Five Shows of 2024

In 2024, TV really got away from me. A lot of it was for reasons my colleagues have already mentioned — the 2023 strikes in the entertainment industry, the further erosion of television feeling distinct from other online content we consume, living in the post-peak TV era, etc. TV also just doesn’t serve as vital of a service to me in my day-to-day at the moment. Music is something I listen to at various times throughout the day in a way that feels very personal and full of limitless discovery. Movies are something I tend to watch in a theater, so they’re a bit of an event that I get to build my day around. TV has become… just something to put on to pass the time.

That said, there were a few TV shows that I watched this year that felt like a bit more than that, so I’m more than willing to recognize their ability to stand out from the content swill, even if it felt like there wasn’t quite as much of that as in years past. Continue reading →

John’s Top Five Shows of 2024

So many shows, so little time. Sorry Shogun and The Penguin and Da Bear. I’m very movie focused in my day-to-day media consumption so unless a show has an insane premise or more buzz than the beehive that killed Macaulay Culkin in My Girl, it’s gonna end up in the “To Do” pile.

I want to note that I did start The Penguin and The Sympathizer but I don’t have that binge me in anymore. Purge? Yes. Binge? No. Here are all the shows that escaped the purge.

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Sean’s Top Five Shows of 2024

Well, congratulations Hollywood, you did it. You’ve fractured the landscape of television so completely that if you’re not watching something in the same room as someone else, no one has any idea what the hell you’re talking about anymore. And it’s not just about community: TV criticism has all but been killed off and with so many streaming services now (and the crackdown on password sharing), it’s too expensive to even try to keep up with everything anyway, so the sense of urgency when it comes to shows is just gone. It’s so bad, we decided to do top fives this year instead of 10 because this has become a futile and stupid gesture. And the saddest thing of all? While this is all happening, creatives are still making a lot of good TV, arguably too much good stuff!

I have got a long list of shows that are supposed to be great that I just never made time for, shows like Bad Monkey, The Diplomat, Jerrod Carmichael: Reality Show, Shrinking, Silo, and Slow Horses. And another list of franchise shows I definitely, actively want to watch like The Acolyte, Fallout, House of the Dragon, Penguin, Rings of Power, and Skeleton Crew. But fuck it, they just never happened for me in 2024 because I was too busy watching One Piece at the time or I wasn’t subscribed to the right streaming service at the time or I was still too burnt out on meaningless Star Wars prequel movies stretched out into miniseries.

Can we come back from this? I sure hope so. I still haven’t given up on my watchlist. Maybe we just need everyone in America/the world to start a blog and do annual top tens? Or suddenly all try to care about the Emmys at least as much as we care about the Oscars? Maybe putting some effort into thinking about the media we consumed all year instead of just letting an algorithm tell us (or an AI in Spotify Wrapped’s case) could be good for us all? In the meantime, let’s at least try to keep in mind that while the era of peak TV might be over, that doesn’t mean the medium has been reduced to just reality junk and mindless reruns.

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John’s Top Ten Albums of 2024

Every year I start this post making excuses for why my list isn’t more “hip”. Last year I talked about finding peace in my growingly mainstream lists. This year I feel the same BUT I want to make a vow that I’ll never start another one of these lists with apologizing. I put a lot of time into movies, podcasts and books. What, I’m supposed to be Anthony Fantano too? No more. Welcome to my basic bitch era.

As for “What Kind of Year was 2024 for Music?” I have no fucking idea. A lot of pop. Like, real talk if we didn’t all sleep on Chappell Roan last year and her debut came out this year then she would 1000% be my number one. I got a couple of pop princesses but 2024 was Chappell’s year. Anyways here’s some bullshit:

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