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: The Best Plays I Saw

Representing 14 of Chicago’s fine theater companies, plus touring or special engagement shows, as well as a piece of Kabuki Theater in Tokyo, I saw 33 plays in 2019.

This does not include musicals, revues or operas, although a good number of plays did feature live music, just not in a storytelling way that connotes musical theater.

Some works were world premieres and others rather recent, a few can be considered classics and one was by Shakespeare.

A few plays featured just a single performer, while others had rather large casts.

Many were dramas, though I also saw a good number of comedies. 

More than two-thirds of the plays I saw merit recognition on this Best of 2019 post and EVERYTHING I saw was valuable and worthwhile, even the handful of works I gave @@@ (out of 5) or less on my Seth Saith rating scale.

So as much as a ranking of “The Best” per my tastes and whims, please see this list as a celebration of live theater--I also love musicals and posted this list yesterday—and particularly the remarkable work being done virtually every day on a stage near you, especially if, like me, you reside in the Chicago area.

The Best Plays I Saw in 2019
All were in the Chicago area. New/recent works are denoted with an *.

1. Every Brilliant Thing - Windy City Playhouse
written by Duncan Macmillan; directed by Jessica Fisch
(my review)

2. Wiesenthal - Touring production at North Shore Center for the Performing Arts

written and performed by Tom Dugan

(my review)

3. Cambodian Rock Band* - Victory Gardens Theatre

written by Lauren Yee; directed by Marti Lyons

(my review)

4. Equus - Aston Rep Theatre 
written by Peter Shaffer; directed by Derek Bertelsen

(my review)

5. How I Learned to Drive - Raven Theatre

written by Paula Vogel; directed by Cody Estle
(my review)

6. Black Ballerina* - Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre and Piven Theatre
written by Stephen Fedo & Tim Rhoze; directed by Tim Rhoze

(my review)

7. The Undeniable Sound of Right Now* - Raven Theatre 

written by Laura Eason; directed by BJ Jones
(my review)

8. John Leguizamo - Latin History for Morons* - Touring production
written and performed by John Leguizamo
(my review)

9. Oslo* - TimeLine Theatre
written by J.T. Rogers; directed by Nick Bowling
(my review)

10. A Map of Myself* - Touring production at Stage 773
written and performed by Sara Abou Rashed; directed by Larry Smith
(my review)

11. Sweat* - Goodman Theatre 
written by Lynn Nottage; directed by Ron OJ Parson
(my review)

Honorable Mention
(in alphabetical order)

The Crowd You're In With - Aston Rep Theatre
written by Rebecca Gilman; directed by Derek Bertelsen
(my review)

Four Chords and a Gun* - Touring production

written by John Ross Bowie; directed by Richard Ouzounian
(my review)
 
Into the Breeches* - Northlight Theatre
written by George Brant; directed by Jessica Thebus
(my review)

Landladies* - Northlight Theatre

written by Sharyn Rothstein; directed by Jess McLeod
(my review)

Lottery Day* - Goodman Theatre
written by Ike Holter; directed by Lili-Anne Brown
(my review)

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom - Writers Theatre
written by August Wilson; directed by Ron OJ Parson
(my review)

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein* - Lookingglass Theatre
written and directed by David Catlin
(my review)

Mother of the Maid* - Northlight Theatre
written by Jane Anderson; directed by BJ Jones
(my review)

The Niceties* - Writers Theatre
written by Eleanor Burgess; directed by Marti Lyons
(my review)

Tiny Beautiful Things* - Victory Gardens Theatre
adapted by Nia Vardalos; directed by Vanessa Stalling
(my review)

True West - Steppenwolf Theatre
written by Sam Shepard; directed by Randall Arney
(my review)

The Winter's Tale - Goodman Theatre
written by William Shakespeare; directed by Robert Falls
(my review)

-- If re-posting list or highlighting selections, please attribute to: Seth Arkin on SethSaith.com

The Best of 2019: The Best Rock Concerts I Attended

Foreseeably, I will continue going to rock concerts--in one form or another--for as long as I can figure out how to get to them, and comfortably enjoy them.

Although as you can see in my list below, I have continued to see huge, historic acts in football stadiums and hockey arenas, and not just in the Chicago area, my caveat of "in one form or another" is not meant lightly.

The majority of my favorite rock artists--the ones that haven't yet passed--are at least 70 years old, and some are soon retiring from the road.

So even if my health continues to allow me to attend big shows, I may be resigned to seeing tribute bands in bars and parks (this year I saw tributes to ABBA and the Beatles, as well as a student ensemble covering several artists). And especially if one includes cover bands as theatrical performances (such as Simon & Garfunkel and The Ramones this year), this might become an even bigger part of my live rock and roll fix.

But for now, I've been lucky to see enough non-tribute rock shows--26 in 2019--to put together a fairly solid lists of the best ones.

Somewhat beyond the rock realm, I also really enjoyed concerts by Hugh Jackman (my review) and Barbra Streisand (my review). And even what I'm considering as "rock" ranged from a solo acoustic Bruce Cockburn to Cher with numerous costume changes to George Clinton with some assemblage of P-Funk on a crowded stage.

But as best I can recall, these were:

My Favorite Rock Concerts of 2019
Artists seen multiple times ranked just once; venues in Chicago area unless noted.

1. Paul McCartney - June 8, Lambeau Field, Green Bay (my review) 

2. The Who (w/ The Arkells, Reignwolf) - May 9, Key Center, Buffalo; May 21, Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, Tinley Park (my review)

3. The Killers (w/ Death Cab for Cutie) - July 5, American Family Insurance Amphitheatre, Summerfest, Milwaukee (my review) 

4. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band (w/ Anthony Rosano & the Conqueroos) - October 19, United Center (my review)  

5. The Rolling Stones (w/ Whiskey Myers) - June 25, Soldier Field (my review)

6. Bob Mould (w/ Beach Bunny) - February 23, Metro (my review)

7. Elvis Costello & the Imposters - November 22, Chicago Theatre (my review)

8. Kiss - March 2, United Center (my review)

9. Diana Ross (w/ Rhonda Ross) - July 10, Chicago Theatre (my review)

10. Liz Phair  (w/ Juliana Hatfield) - June 22, Out of SPACE at Temperance Beer Co., Evanston (my review) 

11. Willie Nile (w/ Brad Ray) - October 19, SPACE, Evanston (my review)

Honorable Mention
(in preference order)

- Wilco (w/ Robyn Hitchcock) - December 15 - Chicago Theatre (my review)

- Bruce Cockburn - May 8, Asbury Hall at Babeville, Buffalo, NY (my review)

- The Waterboys - September 29 (early show), Old Town School of Folk Music (my review)
- Peter Frampton (w/ Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience) - July 28, Huntington Bank Pavilion (my review)

- Lucinda Williams - June 14, Old Town School of Folk Music (my review)

- REO Speedwagon (w/ Charlie Farren) - August 3, Rosemont Theatre (my review)

- Mumford & Sons (w/ Cat Power) - March 29, United Center (my review)

---

If re-posting lists or highlighting selections, please attribute to: Seth Arkin on SethSaith.com

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