The Best of 2019: The Best New Movies I Saw

Over the past 365 days, I saw 38 new movies, plus plenty of old ones.

Although there were some notable 2018 movies I didn't see until this year--The Favourite, Can You Ever Forgive Me, Isle of Dogs, The Mule--I believe there are only two that I watched that I couldn't have reasonably seen anywhere in Chicagoland in 2019:

Cold War and Capernaum.

I think those are the only films on my list below--or that I considered for inclusion--that were officially 2018 releases.

I will cite documentaries separately as I didn't see that many (and even the top one below was more just a concert film than a true documentary).

So before I get to my main list, these were the:

Best New Documentaries I Saw in 2019:

1. Western Stars (Bruce Springsteen) 
2. Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
3. Depeche Mode: Spirits in the Forest
4. Echo in the Canyon

As in years past, after my list I will also include the Top 10s of my friend Dave and Brad, who tend to see a wider swath of art films than I do.

I won't take the time to spell out which films are still in theaters, on Netflix or other streaming service, rentable or whatever else, but have found an app called Just Watch is quite valuable in this regard. 

Best New Movies Seen in 2019 (Feature Films)
(F = Foreign; 18 = Officially a 2018 release)

1. Little Women
2. The Irishman
3. Jojo Rabbit
4. Cold War (F, 18)
5. Parasite (F)
6. The Peanut Butter Falcon
7. Wild Rose
8. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
9. Ford v Ferrari
10. The Two Popes
11. Blinded by the Light
12. Hustlers
13. Marriage Story
14. The Farewell (F)
15. Long Shot
16. Capernaum (F, 18)
17. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
18. Us
19. Dark Waters
20. Everybody Knows (F)

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

Transit (F), Dolemite is My Name, Always Be My Maybe, Knives Out, Rocketman, Booksmart, The Souvenir, Hotel Mumbai

Notable 2018 Movies Not Yet Seen
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Joker, Pain and Glory, Harriet, 1917, The Lighthouse, Judy, The Report, Queen & Slim, Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, John Wick 3, Midsommar, Ad Astra, Toy Story 4, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, American Woman, Fighting With My Family, Bombshell, Under the Silver Lake

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above

Uncut Gems, The White Crow, The Aftermath, Yesterday, Captain Marvel

Dave's Top 10 Movies of 2018

1. Parasite (F)

2. Transit (F)
3. The Irishman
4. Pain and Glory (F)
5. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
6. Marriage Story
7. Little Women
8. Synonyms (F)
9. Cold War (F)
10. Queen & Slim

Brad's Top 10 Movies of 2018

1. Parasite (F)
2. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
3. The Lighthouse
4. The Irishman
5. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (F)
6. Western Stars (Doc) 
7. Marriage Story
8. 63 Up (Doc)
9. Avengers: Endgame
10. Us 

The Best of 2019: My Favorite Songs of the Year

After Best of the Decade posts covering 14 categories, I'm moving onto The Best of 2019. (Although I hope to do one more Decade post.)

I will start with the most unique Best of the Year category, as it is not ranked and is interactive.

The Spotify playlist below allows you to not only see 25 of the songs I most enjoyed this year, but actually hear them. You'll need a basic Spotify account, but it's free.

As noted, these are not presented in preference order, simply as what I found to be an enjoyable listening experience.

Though I did try to stretch a bit beyond my penchant for hard rock, I certainly don't pretend my tastes represent everything that was good or inspired this year.

But from what I heard, this is what I liked.

You can play the songs through the interface below, but can also find/bookmark the playlist online through the URL:

SethSongs2019.best

And should you happen to care, past yearly playlists of favorite songs can be found by clicking each year: 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014

Enjoy.

My Favorite Songs of 2019 

The Best of 2018: The Best New Movies I Saw

Of movies that were first made readily available for me to see in 2018, whether in Chicagoland theaters for a regular run--i.e. not a festival showing--or via self-producing streaming TV channels, I saw 39 over the past 365 days.

For the purposes of my list below, these include The Post, Phantom Thread, Hostiles and perhaps a few other films that were officially 2017 releases but didn't open locally until 2018.

I won't count as eligible a film called Fast Color, which I saw at a special screening--with star Gugu Mbatha-Raw present at Chicago's Music Box Theatre--but which won't open normally until March 29.

And because I believe I only saw two new documentaries in 2018--not counting straight concert movies or Springsteen on Broadway--I will take care of acknowledging them separately here:

1. Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story 
2. McQueen

As in years past, after my list I will also include the Top 10s of my friend Dave and Brad, who tend to see a wider swath of art films than I do.

I won't take the time to spell out which films are still in theaters, on Netflix or other streaming service, rentable or whatever else, but have found an app called Just Watch is quite valuable in this regard. 

Best New Movies Seen in 2018
(F = Foreign; 17 = Officially a 2017 release)

1. If Beale Street Could Talk
2. Roma (F)
3. Shoplifters (F)
4. Burning (F)
5. Green Book
6. The Post (17)
7. Widows
8. Leave No Trace
9. Eighth Grade 
10. Blackkklansman 
11. The Rider 
12. Disobedience 
13. You Were Never Really Here
14. Bohemian Rhapsody 
15. Black Panther 
16. On the Basis of Sex
17. Crazy Rich Asians 
18. A Simple Favor 
19. First Reformed
20. A Star Is Born

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

Mary Poppins Returns, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Foxtrot, Lean on Pete, Annihilation, Zama, Hostiles, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Notable 2018 Movies Not Yet Seen
The Favourite, The Sisters Brothers, Mandy, The Mule, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Wildlife, First Man, A Private War, Creed II, Museo, Boy Erased, Ben Is Back, Halloween, Cold War (not yet released in Chicago), The Death of Stalin, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, Love After Love, Isle of Dogs, The Other Side of the Wind, Colette, Bloodspotting, A Quiet Place, The Endless

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above

Phantom Thread (17), Fast Color, Support the Girls, Deadpool 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Set It Up, Anon, Game Night, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again

Dave's Top 10 Movies of 2018

1. Roma (F)

2. Eighth Grade
3. Can You Ever Forgive Me?
4. The Mule
5. If Beale Street Could Talk
6. The Favourite
7. Hostiles
8. Foxtrot
9. Green Book
10. Leave No Trace

Brad's Top 10 Movies of 2018

1. Roma
2. Blackkklansman
3. First Reformed
4. Burning (F)
5. Hereditary
6. The Other Side of the Wind
7. Black Panther
8. Eighth Grade
9. The Endless
10. Shoplifters (F)

The Best of 2018: The Most Enjoyable & Enlightening Museums, Exhibitions and Attractions I Experienced

If you're reading this--whether just this particular blog post, my current series of "Best of 2018" posts or my Seth Saith blog with any regularity--I appreciate it.

I like sharing my thoughts, and passions, and certainly hope doing so may enlighten, or merely entertain, somebody else.

Ideally several times over.

But the truth is that I write and maintain Seth Saith in large part for my own benefit.

Therapeutically, certainly, as the enjoyment of writing--and sharing my opinions on many superb performances--with consistency has been rather fulfilling.

But candidly, I also like having an archive of what I've seen, done, thought, etc.

Year-round, but in more capsulized form, via these Best of the Year posts.

This category, with somewhat unwieldy rankings of museums of differing types, sizes, scopes, exhibitions and/or permanent collections, etc., and also "attractions" of myriad forms, very much plays into this.

The lists wind up being rather non-parallel, and undoubtedly weighted to sights seen on vacation. Some of the "once in a lifetime" variety.

I realize the imperfections, and even more than most, the rankings are somewhat immaterial. But it'll be nice to have something to look back upon. And if you enjoy perusing this, that's even better.

(Note that in the museum listings, in some cases I cite particularly great Special Exhibitions, while in others simply a visit to the museum itself (or both). In the specific case of the Art Institute of Chicago, I have visited it for so long and so often--including a few times this year--here I will merely consider special exhibits I saw this year, although the museum as a whole could always rank near the top My Favorite Museums list.)

My Favorite Museum Visits of 2018

1. Museum of Fine Arts - Boston

2. Larco Museum - Lima, Peru

3. Isaballa Stewart Gardner Museum - Boston

4. Old State House - Boston

5. Harvard Art Museums - Boston

6. Ivan Albright and John Singer Sargent exhibitions - Art Institute of Chicago (seen on the same visit)

7. Speak Truth to Power / Kerry Kennedy - Illinois Holocaust

Museum & Education Center - Skokie, IL (my recap)

8. Milwaukee Public Museum

9. Paul Revere House - Boston

10. Japanese Prints - Art Institute of Chicago

11. Lima Art Museum - Lima, Peru
 





Best Non-Museum Attractions Visited in 2018

1. Machu Picchu - Peru 

2. Ollantaytambo Sanctuary - Ollantaytambo, Peru

3. Whale Watching Boston Harbor Cruise - Boston

4. Forced from Home interactive exhibit by Doctors Without Borders - Daley Plaza, Chicago (website)

5. Qorikancha - Cusco, Peru 

6. Convent of San Francisco and Catacombs - Lima, Peru

7. Boston Public Library, Old Building 

8. Huaca Pucllana - Lima, Peru

9. Plaza de Armas, Cusco 

10. Trinity Church - Boston

11. BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir - Bartlett, IL

 
Honorable Mention 

- Convent of Santa Domingo - Lima, Peru
- Plaza de Armas, Lima
- Fenway Park - Boston
- Harvard  University Tour - Cambridge, MA
- State House Tour - Boston
- Art Walk of River North Galleries - Evening Associates of the Art Institute of Chicago
- Convent of Santo Domingo - Lima
- Old North Church - Boston
- Basilica of St. Josephat - Milwaukee

The Best of 2018: My Favorite Songs of the Year -- A Spotify Playlist

Anybody who sees my post of The Best Rock Concerts I Attended in 2018--or most other years for that matter--will likely think, "Boy, he likes a bunch of old rock bands."

Which isn't incorrect. I do.

I still love rock music, and listen to it daily.

But I can count on two hands the number of rock acts I've really cared about that have arisen in this century, and on just one those from this decade.

Yet I rather constantly--and quite vociferously at year-end as research for lists like this and Best Rock Albums--try to catch wind of new artists, albums and songs that prove that rock really is still alive, in an ongoing sense.

And I also attempt to find some stuff a bit beyond my wheelhouse.

Different than most of my other year-end Best of 2018 lists, my selection of Favorite Songs isn't presented as a ranking, but rather as a playable Spotify playlist. It is sequenced to hopefully make for pleasant listening, without qualitative delineation.

You can play the songs through the interface below, but can also find/bookmark the playlist online through the URL:

SethSongs2018.us

And should you happen to care, past yearly playlists of favorite songs can be found by clicking each year: 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014

Enjoy.

My Favorite Songs of 2018

The Best of 2017: The Best New Movies I Saw

I can't help but think that if more people saw more of the types of new movies I saw in 2017, the world would be a better place.

Yes, I know how naive, foolish, snobbish and vainglorious that sounds.

Yet I really don't mean to suggest my tastes are better than anyone else's, or to condemn blockbusters about superheroes or space battles.

I enjoy several of those myself.

But I liked how the crop of new films I saw this year depicted real people facing identifiable issues.

Such as the British pensioners fighting cold bureaucracy in I, Daniel Blake, the Hasidic widower trying to retain custody of his child in Menashe, the Native American couple coping with tragic loss in Wind River, the Iranian theater director seething after an attack on his wife in The Salesman, African-Americans facing abject brutality in Mudbound and Detroit and aiming to rise above it, the Georgian (the country, not state) woman searching for appreciation & peace of mind in My Happy Family, the teenagers discovering young love, sometimes with those of the same sex, in Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name.

Hence, the idealist lefty in me can't help think that if more people saw--at least onscreen--others they presumed were nothing like them, but who faced similar struggles, heartbreaks, etc., we wouldn't be besieged by so much bigotry and xenophobia.

And with that I move onto my rather standard disclaimer my selections below do not adhere to Academy Award eligibility for "2017," but rather include any films that first played at a movie theater or TV screen near me over the past 12 months.

I've decided to list out My Favorite Documentaries separately, and actually will do so right here:

1. I Am Not Your Negro
2. Chasing Trane
3. Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two
4. One of Us
5. Loving Vincent
6. Joe Cocker: Mad Dog with Soul
7. Long Shot

As in years past, after my list I will include the Top 10 of my friend Dave, who tends to see a wider swath of art films than I do.

I won't take the time to spell out which films are still in theaters, on Netflix or other streaming service, rentable or whatever else, but have found an app called Just Watch is quite valuable in this regard. 

Best New Movies Seen in 2017
(F = Foreign; A = Animated; 16 = Officially a 2016 release)

1. Dunkirk
2. I, Daniel Blake

3. The Salesman (F, 16)

4. Lady Bird

5. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

6. Wind River

7. Mudbound

8. Call Me By Your Name
9. Silence (16) 
10. The Shape of Water

11. Molly's Game

12. Okja

13. Menashe

14. Detroit

15. My Happy Family (F)
16. Darkest Hour

17. Coco (A)

18. Hidden Figures (16)

19. Logan
20. Everybody Loves Somebody

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

Baby Driver

Columbus

The Lost City of Z

Colossal

Get Out

20th Century Women

Wonder Woman

The Big Sick
Their Finest

Beauty and the Beast

Good Time

Notable 2017 Movies Not Yet Seen
The Florida Project, The Square, All the Money in the World, The Disaster Artist, I Tonya, The Post, Phantom Thread, Wonder, It, The Ornithologist, God's Own Country, A Ghost Story, Blade Runner 2049, Battle of the Sexes, American Made, Logan Lucky, War for the Planet of the Apes, A Quiet Passion, Last Flag Flying, Thank You For Your Service, Marjorie Prime, Brigsby Bear, Brad's Status

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above
The Meyerowitz Stories, Megan Leavey, Graduation, A United Kingdom, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Spiderman Homecoming, Split, Paterson, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, John Wick 2, Atomic Blonde, Mother

Dave's Top 10 Movies of 2017

1. Baby Driver
2. The Salesman (F)
3. Lady Bird
4. Dunkirk 
5. Julieta (F)
6. The Square
7. The Big Sick
8. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
9. The Florida Project
10. Frantz (F)

The Best of 2017: "Other" Live Entertainment and Various Events

Of the 100+ live events I go to every year, 90% or so tend to fall into four categories:

- Rock Concerts
- Musicals
- Plays
- Baseball games

Except for baseball--and this year, I saw 14 Cubs and Sox games, including one between the two--these correspond with my Best of 2017 lists, which is what the hyperlinks above connect to.

But each year I also try to mix in jazz, blues and classical concerts, operas, stand up comedians, improv, ballets, other dance performances, Cirque du Soleil and/or whatever else catches my attention and fancy.

I probably didn't get to as much "other" entertainment as I should have in 2017, with no classical musical performances and almost no jazz. I did see, again, the great bluesman Buddy Guy, but included that among my rock concert rankings.

But some of what I saw was fantastic enough to justify this category and relatively brief post, including my #1 pick, which despite a Special Mention in the Rock Concert post and reference in Best Musicals, didn't really belong in either.

Choices #2, 3 & 4 were also among the best shows I saw, of any type.

Aside from the performances, with the Top 11 below being about all I saw in 2017, I'll also cite some quality events that weren't really entertainment, but quite worthwhile nonetheless.

My Favorite "Other" Live Performances (beyond rock concerts, musicals & plays)
(Date listed is the date seen, even if among a long run)

1. Springsteen on Broadway - Walter Kerr Theatre, New York - December 9 (my review)

2. Savion Glover's All FuNKD' Up (tap dance) - McAninch Arts Center, College of DuPage, Glen Ellyn, IL - November 26 (my review)

3. The Nutcracker - Joffrey Ballet - Auditorium Theatre, Chicago - December 1 (my review)

4. Reginald Robinson (jazz/ragtime pianist) - SPACE, Evanston, IL - December 20 (my review)

5. The Invention of Morel (opera) - Chicago Opera Theater - Studebaker Theatre, Chicago - February 26 (my review)   

6. The Rockettes Christmas Spectacular - Radio City Music Hall, New York - December 9

7. Julianne and Derek Hough - MOVE Beyond (modern dance) - Chicago Theatre - April 22

8. Dream Freaks Fall From Space (sketch comedy revue) - Second City, Chicago - November 2 (my review) 

9. Charlie Parker's Yardbird (opera) - Lyric Opera at Harris Theater, Chicago - March 24 (my review) 

10. The Nutcracker - Salt Creek Ballet - North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, Skokie - December 16

11. WWE Raw (professional wrestling) - Allstate Arena, Rosemont - March 6 (my recap & photos)




Non-Entertainment Events
(In chronological order; not ranked.
Doesn't include all baseball games attended.)

- Interfaith Protest Rally & March Against the Muslim Ban - Muslim Community Center, Morton Grove - January 28 (my recap & photos)

- Mike Huff - presentation by former major league baseball player - Wilmette Historical Museum - February 12 (mentioned in this piece)

- Muslims on Stage & Screen panel discussion - Muslim Community Center, Morton Grove - February 12

- Colson Whitehead - author presentation about The Underground Railroad - Evanston High School - February 27 (my recap) 

- Algren: The Movie panel discussion and Albany Park Tour by Chicago for Chicagoans - (my recap)
March 5

- Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks - United Center, Chicago - March 21

- Democratic Party of DuPage County Annual Gala w/ Keith Ellison, Keynote Speaker - April 23 

- David Ross Book Signing - Barnes & Noble Old Orchard, Skokie - June 1 

- Mark Buehrle Jersey Number Retirement Ceremony - Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago - June 24 (my recap & photos)

- Sameer Banerjee / Gate 1 Travel - Guided tour of Delhi, Jaipur, Abhaneri & Agra, India - August 8-14 (photo gallery)

- Six Word Memoirs - Fresh Off the Boat Book Release Party - Ikram, Chicago - September 7 (my recap)

- Chicago Cubs vs. Los Angeles Dodgers - NLCS Game 4 - Wrigley Field, Chicago - October 18 (my recap & photos)

- Jonathan Eig - author presentation on Ali: A Life - Bookends & Beginnings, Evanston - November 7 (my recap)

The Best of 2017: The Most Enjoyable & Enlightening Museums, Exhibitions and Attractions I Experienced

Dictionary.com defines "museum" as:

a building or place where works of art, scientific specimens, or other objects of permanent value are kept and displayed 

This seems a perfectly logical definition, but what if you go to a building that in itself is a work of art?

And so too is every painting or carving or sculpture or structure within?

On my 2-week trip to India this summer, I went relatively few "museums;" most prominently just the Gandhi Smriti in Delhi--the last residence of Mahatma Gandhi, which displays several images from his life, and death on the premises.

But in terms of appreciating art and beauty and history and "objects of permanent value," many of the sights I saw in India--the Taj Mahal, I'timād-Ud-Daulah's Tomb, Agra Fort, Humayun's Tomb, Amber Fort, Jaipur City Palace, the Elephanta Caves, Mysore Palace, Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue in Mumbai), ISKCON Temple, Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace, Lalbagh Botanic Garden and more--all could be considered museum like.

But so, too, I guess, could an ornate old church.

So like all of my Best Of lists, there are imperfections in terms of definition and delineation, but I've tried to have one list specifically for museums--or simply exhibitions--and another for other tourist attractions, such as the above.

And while the second list could be comprised entirely of sights in India, I'll try to mix things up a bit.

Speaking of which, in the museum listings, in some cases I cite particularly great Special Exhibitions, while in others simply a visit to the museum itself (or both). In the specific case of the Art Institute of Chicago, I have visited it for so long and so often--including a few times this year--here I will merely consider special exhibits I saw this year, although the museum as a whole could always rank near the top My Favorite Museums list.

My Favorite Museum Visits of 2017

1. Metropolitan Museum of Art - New York

2. Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art - Kansas City, MO

3. The Rolling Stones: Exhibitionism - Navy Pier, Chicago (my review)

4. Gandhi Smriti - New Delhi, India

5. Harry S Truman Presidential Museum - Independence, MO
 
6. Eugene Eda's Doors - Chicago Cultural Center (my overview)

7. Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution - Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center - Skokie, IL (my review)

8. National World War I Museum - Kansas City, MO

9. Negro Leagues Baseball Museum - Kansas City, MO

10. Take a Stand Center - Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center - Skokie, IL (my review)

11. Murakami: The Octopus Eats Its Own Leg - Museum of Contemporary Art - Chicago (my review)
 
Honorable Mention

- Frick Collection - New York
- Gauguin: Artist as Alchemist - Art Institute of Chicago (my review)
- American Writers Museum - Chicago (my review)
- Hallmark Visitors Center - Kansas City, MO
- Terry Firkins: The Saddest Happy Ending - Palette & Chisel Academy of Fine Art, Chicago (my overview)
- Evanston History Center (my overview)
- American Toby Jug Museum - Evanston, IL (my overview)
- Whistler’s Mother: An American Icon Returns to Chicago - Art Institute of Chicago
- American Jazz Museum - Kansas City, MO


Best Non-Museum Attractions Visited in 2017

1. Taj Mahal - Agra, India (my photos)

2. Amber Fort - Jaipur, India (India photo gallery)

3. Chand Baori Stepwell - Abhaneri, India

4. Oculus - New York (photos in this post)

5. I'timād-Ud-Daulah's Tomb - Agra, India

6. Elephanta Caves - Near Mumbai, India

7. Community Christian Church (designed by Frank Lloyd Wright) - Kansas City, MO (photos in this post)

8. National Elks Memorial - Chicago (recap & photos)

9. Mysore Palace - Mysore, India

10. Fine Arts Building - Chicago (my photos)

11. Albany Park Walking Tour - Chicago (recap)
 
Honorable Mention 

- Taj Mahal Palace Hotel tour - Mumbai, India
- Country Club Plaza - Kansas City, MO
- Crabtree Nature Center - Barrington, IL
- Chicago Botanic Garden - Glencoe, IL
- Central Park - New York
- Radio City Music Hall - New York
- Humayun's Tomb - Delhi, India
- City Palace - Jaipur, India
- Agra Fort - Agra, India
- Lalbaugh Botanic Garden - Bangalore, India
- ISKCON Temple - Bangalore, India
- Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue - Mumbai, India
- Chamundeshwari Temple - near Mysore, India

The Best of 2017: My Favorite Songs of the Year -- A Spotify Playlist

In actuality, the Seth Saith blog dates back to 2004, with my first real post coming on September 20 of that year.

But though I did write a number of posts over the next few years, I really think of December 2009 as the demarcation for when I stated blogging in earnest.

That's when I began a monthlong series of posts chronicling "My Favorite _____ of the '00s," with categories including albums, concerts, musicals, plays and movies.

Each December since then I've published a "Best of (Year)" series covering these areas and others (generally 5-10 posts).

I begin the "Best of 2017" barrage with "My Favorite Songs of 2017." But not only will I not cite these songs in ranked order--unlike most of the "Best of" posts--I'll provide them as a playable Spotify playlist.

You can play the songs through the interface below, but can also find/bookmark the playlist online through the URL: 2016, 2015, 2014

GroovyTunes.xyz

And should you happen to care, past yearly playlists of favorite songs can be found by clicking each year:

Again, the songs are not ranked in any order, but sequenced for what I hope is a pleasant listen.

Enjoy.

My Favorite Songs of 2017

The Best of 2016: The Best New Movies I Saw

When it came to movies in 2016, I was kind of lax.

Not so much in terms of seeing movies, although there were some stretches when--due to scant appealing selections, work hours and/or the success of the Chicago Cubs--I tended to watch relatively few.

Altogether I saw about 100 movies, including 44 new releases--whether in theaters or subsequently at home--which isn't as many as some previous years, but not a paltry sum.

But where I was lax was in keeping track.

In each of the past 6 years, I had maintained a Filemaker database in which I entered each movie seen, the date, location and my rating of it on a 0-10 scale.

This year I got lazy and didn't.

I merely kept a list in the Notes app on my iPhone of each movie seen--and whether it was a 2016 release--but with no notations about my reaction.

So even more so than in the past, my Best Films of 2016 will be suspect not only due to my whims and opinions--and the fact that I saw far less than every notable movie--but to a Swiss cheese memory that is bound to give greater consideration to recently-watched films than ones seen early in the year.

Oh, well. It's not like I expect anyone to agree with my rankings anyway. But hopefully I'll point out some movies that may be worth your time.

Because some official 2015 films--for Academy Award purposes--weren't released in Chicagoland until 2016, the main one being The Revenant (and Anamolisa, which I never did see), I am considering anything that was newly available for me to see this year. And unlike some previous years, my list will include (or consider) foreign films and documentaries, rather than ranking those separately.

Also, as in years past, after my list I will include the Top 10 of my friend Dave, who tends to see a wider swath of art films than I do.

With the disclaimers out of the way, as best I can tell or remember, here are my choices of the:

Best New Movies Seen in 2016
(F = Foreign; D = Documentary; A = Animated; 15 = Officially a 2015 release)

1. Manchester by the Sea
2. Sing Street

3. Kubo and the Two Strings (A)

4. Loving

5. Moonlight

6. Hell or High Water

7. 13th (D)

8. Fences 
9. The Revenant (15) 
10. Indignation

11. Jackie

12. Lion

13. Nocturnal Animals

14. Moana (A)

15. Zootopia (A)
16. Mustang (F)

17. 10 Cloverfield Lane

18. Midnight Special

19. La La Land
20. Rogue One

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

Arrival
Born to Be Blue
Genius
The Accountant
Deadpool
The Beatles: Eight Days a Week (D)
Love & Friendship
Papa: Hemingway in Cuba
Oasis: Supersonic (D)
The Fundamentals of Caring
The Nice Guys
Edge of Seventeen
Mountains May Depart (F)

Notable 2016 Movies Not Yet Seen
Queen of Katwe, Eye in the Sky, Don't Think Twice, Doctor Strange, Paterson, 20th Century Women, Neruda (F), Sully, I Daniel Blake, The Salesman (F), Toni Erdmann (F), Hidden Figures, The Handmaiden (F), Elle (F), Green Room, Silence, Fits, Little Men, Certain Women

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above
The Lobster, Everybody Wants Some, Captain America: Civil War, Miles Ahead, Hail Caesar!, Jason Bourne, Jane Got a Gun

Dave's Top 10 Movies of 2016

1. Manchester by the Sea
2. The Lobster
3. The Revenant (F, 15)
4. Hell or High Water
5. The Witness (D)
6. Magical Girl (F)
7. Tower (D, A)
8. La La Land
9. Elle (F)
10. Fences

The Best of 2016: The Most Enjoyable & Enlightening Museums, Exhibitions and Attractions I Experienced

The primary impetus for my travels, at least domestically, tends to be a live event: a rock concert, baseball game, theater performance (or several, as on Broadway).

This was again true in 2016, when Bruce Springsteen shows took me to Columbus, OH (by way of Cleveland) and Washington, DC (followed by Baltimore and Philadelphia). The Cubs playing in the World Series brought me back to Cleveland. A Paul McCartney show at Busch Stadium prompted a train trip down to St. Louis.

But as these events tend to be at night, my trips also allow for considerable exploration of museums--predominantly art--and other attractions.

Over five days in Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia--which included the travel time--I visited 15 museums, plus the White House, U.S. Capitol, Independence Hall and various other attractions, a few of which only from the exterior.

I also got to some places around and near Chicagoland, and this post aims to recall some of the cultural excursions I enjoyed the most in 2016.

As with all of my Best Of lists, there are imperfections in terms of definition and delineation.

It seems apt to split museum and non-museum attractions, but while the latter could theoretically include ballparks, restaurants or live performances, I'm not looping such things in here.

And even in terms of the museum listings, in some cases I cite particularly great Special Exhibitions, while in others simply a visit to the museum itself (or both). The point is more to highlight than to rank these, though in the case of Special Exhibitions, most have come and gone.

In the specific case of the Art Institute of Chicago, I have visited it for so long and so often--including a few times this year--here I will merely consider special exhibits I saw this year, although the museum as a whole could always rank near the top My Favorite Museums list.

My Favorite Museum Visits of 2016

1. Van Gogh's Bedrooms - Art Institute of Chicago (my review)

2. Cleveland Museum of Art

3. National Gallery of Art - Washington, DC

4. National Portrait Gallery - Washington, DC

5. Philadelphia Museum of Art

6. Baltimore Museum of Art
 
7. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - Cleveland

8. Barnes Foundation - Philadelphia

9. Vic Muniz exhibition and Eskenazi Museum of Art @ IU - Bloomington, IN

10. American Art Museum - Washington, DC

11. St. Louis Art Museum

Honorable Mention

- Phillips Collection - Washington, DC
- Missouri History Museum - St. Louis
- Walters Art Museum - Baltimore
- Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden - Washington, DC
- Museum at Ford's Theatre - Washington
- Strandbeest: The Dream Machines of Theo Jansen - Chicago Cultural Center
- Benjamin Franklin Museum + Benjamin Franklin Court - Philadelphia
- Babe Ruth Museum - Baltimore
- National Constitution Center - Philadelphia
- Indianapolis Museum of Art
- Liberty Bell Pavilion Museum - Philadelphia
- Second National Bank / Portrait Gallery - Philadelphia
- National Museum of the U.S. Air Force - Dayton, OH 
- America After the Fall: Painting in the 1930s - Art Institute of Chicago (my review) 
- The New Contemporary - Art Institute of Chicago
- Invisible Man: Gordon Parks and Ralph Ellison in Harlem - Art Institute of Chicago
- Pritzker Military Museum & Library - Chicago
- Vanishing Beauty: Asian Jewelry and Ritual Objects - Art Institute of Chicago

Best Non-Museum Attractions Visited in 2016

1. White House Tour - Washington, DC

2. Independence Hall Tour - Philadelphia

3. National Mall - Washington, DC

4. Bristol Renaissance Faire - Bristol, WI (my review)

5. West Side Market - Cleveland

6. Indiana University Campus + Student Union + Lilly Library - Bloomington, IN

7. Inner Harbor - Baltimore, MD

8. Library of Congress (main foyer only) - Washington, DC

9. U.S. Capitol Tour (limited due to construction) - Washington, DC

10. Gateway Arch "Journey to the Top" - St. Louis

11. Carpenters Hall - Philadelphia 
 
Honorable Mention 

North Park Nature Center - Chicago
Emily Oaks Nature Center - Skokie, IL
Keay Nature Park - Wilmette, IL

The Best of 2016: My Favorite Songs of the Year -- A Spotify Playlist

The exact rankings of selections on my recent Best Plays, Best Albums and Best Concerts of 2016 lists, and the upcoming Best Musicals and Best Movies aren't all that important. 

Even to me.

Sure, I spend a fair amount of time trying to sort out what I liked a bit more and a bit less--of creations or performances I enjoyed--but not only aren't the berths all that meticulously calibrated, when I look back at past years I'm sometimes surprised to see works I've continued to cherish ranked below others I've largely forgotten. 

The lists themselves are fun for me to peruse long afterwards to recall my artistic highlights from a given year, but exactly what I ranked where becomes even more superfluous as time goes by. 

Which doesn't exactly explain why, as opposed to most of my other year end lists, my choices of Best Songs of 2016 are not presented in ranked order.

Principally, it's because thanks to Spotify, this list is presented in a way so that you can listen to all my choices. And although I could, theoretically, sequence the songs in a ranked order, especially given what I explained above, I prefer to compile them in a way that makes for nice listening.

So hopefully I have.

You can listen directly through the Spotify player embedded below, but you can also find (and bookmark) the playlist through the following URL (i.e. web address) anywhere you have internet access--desktop, laptop or mobile. You must be a registered Spotify user (or become one) but it is both Free and easy.

GroovyTunes.xyz

But since you're already here, for now you can just click play and hear some groovy tunes as you go about your day. Again, the songs are not ranked in any order, but sequenced for what I hope is a pleasant listen.

My Favorite Songs of 2016

The Best of 2015: The Best New Movies I Saw

With a few hours left to go in 2015, I've watched 151 movies this year.

For my purposes, 53 of them were new releases, including some that for Academy Award purposes, or for list makers who have better access to everything, or for the main IMDB parentheses date, are officially 2014 movies.

But several of the "prestige films" that may have opened in New York or LA in December 2014 didn't hit Chicago area cinemas until January, February.

In a couple cases, movies may have played one screen in Chicago--typically the Century or River East--around Christmas 2014, but didn't open in the suburbs until awhile later.

Then there are movies--many of them foreign--that may have played film festivals throughout 2014 but didn't actually open anywhere in Chicago, or even on any U.S. screens beyond festivals, until sometime in 2015. (I'm really not sure how film festival screenings count against Academy Award eligibility for a given year.)

So while acknowledging the imperfections, I am essentially counting as eligible any movies I watched over the past 12 months that I didn't have a reasonable chance to see previously.

I realize that this logic could theoretically make eligible films that showed up for a week at the Siskel Film Center, Facets or the Music Box in, say, 2012--or didn't even--but only came to DVD, cable or Netflix in 2015, but in reality it means that I'm looping into the choices below about 7 movies technically from 2014 that I didn't get to see until 2015.

Given my erosive memory, there's always the possibility that films seen almost a year ago may suffer in my thought process next to ones seen just this week or month, but it's also possible I may recall something as even better than I would now find it to be.

So, take my rankings for what they're worth.

To augment my rankings, I also provide the Top 10 choices of my friends Dave and Brad, both--like me--members of the Chicago Film Discussion Meetup Group.

Obviously there are numerous other lists like this but I enjoy pointing out Paste Magazine's list of The 50 Best Movies of 2015, which further serves to reveal how many substantive movies I didn't see this year, whether I could have or not.

For no entirely explainable reason, I've decided to cite my favorite documentaries separate from feature films, possibly because some were never released in theaters.

Anyway, enough with the preamble, here are my:

Best New Movies Seen in 2015 -
Feature Films 
(F = Foreign; 14 = Officially a 2014 release)

1. Selma (14) 
2. Room

3. Phoenix (F)

4. Two Days, One Night (F, 14)

5. 99 Homes

6. The End of the Tour

7. Love & Mercy

8. Wild Tales (F)

9. Spotlight
10. Carol
11. Still Alice (14)

12. The Martian

13. The Big Short

14. American Sniper (14)

15. Ex Machina

16. Brooklyn

17. The Gift

18. The Danish Girl

19. Trumbo
20. Bridge of Spies

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

A Most Violent Year (14)
Grandma

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Experimenter
Son of Saul
Tangerine

Straight Outta Compton
Force Majeure 

Desert Dancer
A Borrowed Identity (F)
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
The Last Five Years
Leviathan (F)

Notable 2015 Movies Not Yet Seen
Anomalisa, Chi-Raq, Steve Jobs, Sicario, The Revenant, White God, The Tribe, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amselem, The Peanuts Movie, It Follows

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above 

The Hateful Eight, Trainwreck, Youth, Mad Max: Fury Road, While We're Young, Far From the Madding Crowd, Woman in Gold, Joy, Z for Zachariah

The Best New Documentaries Seen in 2015

1. The Jam: About the Young Idea
2. Keith Richards: Under the Influence
3. Amy
4. Lambert & Stamp
5. Red Army (14)

Didn't see: Cartel Land, Janis: Little Girl Blue, Iris, Seymour: An Introduction

Saw, didn't love: Cobain: Montage of Heck

Dave's Top 20 Movies of 2015

1. Wild Tales (F)
2. Human Capital (F, 13)
3. Tangerine
4. Mommy (F, 14)
5. Two Days, One Night (F, 14)
6. Steve Jobs
7. Carol
8. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (F, 14)
9. Spotlight
10. Goodnight, Mommy (F, 14)
11. Victoria (F)
12. The Gift
13. Bridge of Spies
14. Phoenix (F)
15. The End of the Tour
16. Leviathan
17. Selma
18. Inside Out
19. Inherent Vice
20. The Hateful Eight  

Brad's Top 11 Movies of 2015

1. Inside Out  
2. Mountains May Depart (F)
3. Mad Max: Fury Road 
4. The Hateful Eight 
5. Star Wars: The Force Awakens 
6. Son of Saul (F) 
7. Tangerine 
8. Anomalisa 
9. It Follows 
10. Love & Mercy
11. Spotlight