It would be GTA 5 as "best", if I was going to bother, though.
Books
25 books this year, (19 fiction and 6 non-fiction), the same as 2018. Although that counts the three Robots series books I reread back in late summer. So 16 fiction is more accurate. There's so few non-fiction books, it's hardly worth trying to categorize them. A book on the history of baseball pitches, one of Marshall going to China, Hemingway's correspondence, the book about the Russian perspective on the American Civil War, and the book about how different scenarios could affect life on Earth. There's one other book I just finished last week, but the review won't be up for another two weeks. It wouldn't be worst or best, though. Lincoln and the Russians was a slog, in that it was not written very well, and didn't really live up to its billing. Peg it as the worst. K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches was interesting and I enjoyed learning the backstory behind pitches and how they wax and wane in popularity. Give it the nod for best.
On the fiction side, there's a lot of sci-fi and horror, even leaving out Asimov's Robots stuff. Three mysteries in there, and a few books that might qualify as classics, depending on your opinion towards Hawaii or Tristram Shandy. That said, Tristram Shandy easily wins worst book I read this year because, Jesus Christ, that was the worst choice in writing style I've ever seen anyone take. I hate myself for reading the whole thing, and hate Sterne for writing it that way. If I could summon his ghost to curse at him about it, I would (assuming I could banish him after. Last thing I need is some 17th Century ghost following me around giving me shit because I didn't like their book.) There were other books I read that were dull, or kind of a letdown, but that one was just painful.
Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is probably at the top of the best list, and then maybe Lou Fisher's The Blue Ice Pilot. Honestly, I read a lot of random science fiction in late spring-early summer, and with everything else going on at that time, most of it is just a muddle, or a vague memory at that. Fisher's book seems to have stuck better than the rest, so it wins second place.
Movies
71 movies. Well, that is one less than 2018, so I was right about watching fewer movies. Fair number of reboots or remakes between the recent Magnificent Seven, Halloween, and Predator movies. None of which were godawful, but none of which I'd declare great. Well, The Predator was pretty bad. A lot of movies like that this year, with parts I liked, but didn't love, but didn't hate.
Let's see, worst movies. I thought Get Low was doing pretty well, then the entire thing screeched to a halt at the end when they have Robert Duvall's character just make this big speech to everyone explaining everything. Nocturne was funny to my dad and I, but it wasn't supposed to be. I'm not sure what Hector and the Search for Happiness was doing, but I was distinctly unsatisfied when I finished watching it. January Man wasn't terrible, but I thought it would be better. Magnificent Seven Ride! was pretty bad, but I expected that. Ninja Assassin would fall in that category as well.
I might as well pick two, so Casa de mi Padre and The Outsider. The first one leaned too heavily on pretending to be some low-budget melodrama spoof, at the cost of having any kind of interesting story, or performances, and was almost totally devoid of any good jokes or gags. The second movie seemed to be trying to be artsy with the camera shots, but the story was so lazy and hammered certain points so many times for no reason that it actively hampered it. We didn't need five scenes of the marshal telling his son he's no good and he should kill him, but he promised his ma he wouldn't. The first was more than enough.
OK, so what wasn't shit? I liked Hell or High Water, although the constant racist jokes Jeff Bridges' character makes about his partner get old. Hotel Artemis had a concept, a look, and memorable characters I really enjoyed. Middle Man was very dark, but got some good laughs out of me. Sweet Smell of Success is not a happy movie, but the way things unfold, and how vicious and cutting some of the dialogue is sticks with you. Free Fire was nothing revolutionary, but it was really funny to me. All these criminals who are just kind of stupid in different ways, all following their worst impulses at the same time.
If I'm going to pick two for the best, then one is No Country for Old Men, which actually lived up to everything I'd heard about it. Rare thing these days. People build stuff up, and I feel disappointed once I see it, but that didn't happen here. I don't know if I enjoy all the interactions Chirgurh has with people, but I like the way his hunt for Josh Brolin's character is portrayed. Especially when he catches him in that upstairs hotel room, then the running gunfight through an empty downtown. The other would be, I guess 4L. I like these movies where people travel for some personal reason, and have a lot of unusual experiences along the way. It's like a vicarious vacation. Also, what the heck, I won't have a review up for it for two weeks, but I watched Us over the weekend, and that was really great, so throw it on here, too. Even knowing some of the backstory and reveals at the end, it's still really damn creepy.
I might as well pick two, so Casa de mi Padre and The Outsider. The first one leaned too heavily on pretending to be some low-budget melodrama spoof, at the cost of having any kind of interesting story, or performances, and was almost totally devoid of any good jokes or gags. The second movie seemed to be trying to be artsy with the camera shots, but the story was so lazy and hammered certain points so many times for no reason that it actively hampered it. We didn't need five scenes of the marshal telling his son he's no good and he should kill him, but he promised his ma he wouldn't. The first was more than enough.
OK, so what wasn't shit? I liked Hell or High Water, although the constant racist jokes Jeff Bridges' character makes about his partner get old. Hotel Artemis had a concept, a look, and memorable characters I really enjoyed. Middle Man was very dark, but got some good laughs out of me. Sweet Smell of Success is not a happy movie, but the way things unfold, and how vicious and cutting some of the dialogue is sticks with you. Free Fire was nothing revolutionary, but it was really funny to me. All these criminals who are just kind of stupid in different ways, all following their worst impulses at the same time.
If I'm going to pick two for the best, then one is No Country for Old Men, which actually lived up to everything I'd heard about it. Rare thing these days. People build stuff up, and I feel disappointed once I see it, but that didn't happen here. I don't know if I enjoy all the interactions Chirgurh has with people, but I like the way his hunt for Josh Brolin's character is portrayed. Especially when he catches him in that upstairs hotel room, then the running gunfight through an empty downtown. The other would be, I guess 4L. I like these movies where people travel for some personal reason, and have a lot of unusual experiences along the way. It's like a vicarious vacation. Also, what the heck, I won't have a review up for it for two weeks, but I watched Us over the weekend, and that was really great, so throw it on here, too. Even knowing some of the backstory and reveals at the end, it's still really damn creepy.
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