2017 – Page 7 – PopCult Reviews

The State of the Blog 2018

Reflections on growth of 2017

Fast & Furious July

The most painful achievement of the year was watching all eight (plus one) of the Fast & Furious franchise in a single month. If you want to relieve my pain you can you do so by clicking below.

Fast & Furious July

Twin Peaks: The Return coverage

I blogged about all 18 parts of David Lynch’s return to television, plus made sure to finish his filmography by filling those last few gaps. The most expansive coverage of anything I did in 2017 and will be returning to it in 2018.

Twin Peaks: The Return posts

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Movie Review – Lady Bird

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Lady Bird (2017)
Written & Directed by Greta Gerwig

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Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson is a high school senior living with wanderlust in the suburbs of Sacramento circa 2002. She has a strained relationship with her mother, Marion who is forced to play the bad guy while her father, Larry deals with issues of employment and finances in the background. Lady Bird is an incredibly strong personality with ambitions of attending one of the mid-tier Ivy League schools of the East Coast. She’s pointed in the direction of the theater when seeking out extracurriculars to add to her C.V. It’s doing theater that pushes her into her first complicated romantic relationship.

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Favorites of 2017 – Top 25 Films I Saw

My 25 Favorite Films of 2017

As I have posted online for about ten years now, these are the best films I saw in 2017. They are not just films that were released in 2017, but anything I saw that this year that was one my favorites. The list is in ascending order so we’ll countdown starting with number 25. Click on the title or picture to read my review.

The Levelling

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Movie Review – The Florida Project

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The Florida Project (2017)
Written by Sean Baker & Chris Bergoch
Directed by Sean Baker

Moonee is a six-year-old girl living in Kissimmee, Florida with her young mother, Hailey. The pair stays at the Magic Castle, a low rung motel where Moonee pals around with her friends Scooty, Dicky, and Jancy getting into tons of trouble The hotel manager, Bobby, tries to keep things in line but finds the girl and her mother to be incorrigible. The kids are desperate for fun over this long summer and discover it where they can. Hailey keeps her daughter in the dark about their money problems but finds the stress growing.

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Favorites of 2017 – Documentary Films

My Favorite Documentaries of 2017

These are my favorite docs I managed to catch in 2017, all about fascinating people and topics and all very different.

Too Funny To Fail: The Life & Death of the Dana Carvey Show

In 1996, I watched the Dana Carvey Show and loved it, this comedy that spoke to me. Well, it didn’t speak to everyone and being on right after Home Improvement put it in a bad spot. This hilarious doc brings back the original cast and writers (Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Robert Smigel, Jon Glaser, and more) to talk with a sense of humor looking back at a show that bombed and bombed hard. Only available on Hulu.

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Movie Review – The Disaster Artist

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The Disaster Artist (2017)
Written by Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
Directed by James Franco

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Struggling actor Greg Sestero has a problem bringing out emotion in his performances. Then one night he witnesses Tommy Wiseau, a quiet man in his acting class delivers an embarrassingly over the top monologue from A Streetcar Named Desire. Greg and Tommy strike up a friendship that brings them to Los Angeles to pursue their dreams. Tommy becomes jealous as Greg gets a girlfriend, an agent, and acting parts while he struggles. This pushes Tommy to write the script for The Room which, against all the odds and logic, he produces and goes on to become a modern cult classic.

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Movie Review – The Levelling

The Levelling (2017)
Written & Directed by Hope Dickson Leach

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Clover is a veterinary student estranged from her father, Aubrey. She has returned to the family farm in Somerset Levels wetlands in the south west of England in the wake of her brother, Harry’s death. Clover can tell right away that her brother’s death was a suicide despite Aubrey’s insistence that this was just an accident with a gun in the bathroom. The farm has been in decay since a massive flood which the insurance company would not pay out damages for. As Clover seeks the truth about what drove Harry to kill himself, she finds the tension between she and Aubrey growing.

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Most Anticipated Films of 2017: A Look Back

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At the beginning of the year, I wrote up a post of films that I was anticipating in 2017. Now that the year has come to a close I have either seen those movies or they have been delayed. For the films that I have seen just click on the title to read my review.

the last jedi

Star Wars Episode VIII (Directed by Rian Johnson) – Exceeded my expectations. First Star Wars movie to leave me having no idea what comes next and that is amazing.

Alien: Covenant (Directed by Ridley Scott) – Hated this movie. So boring and dumb. No interest in the follow-ups

The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos) – Lanthimos’ darkest work to date. Loved the aggressive and uncomfortable nature of the film.

Mute (Directed by Duncan Jones) – Delayed to 2018 Continue reading “Most Anticipated Films of 2017: A Look Back”

Favorites of 2017 – Television & Music

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My Favorite Television & Music of 2017

Television

Twin Peaks: The Return

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There’s no question for me that Twin Peaks: The Return is my favorite media experience of 2017. Out of all the books, movies, music, etc. of the year, nothing affected me and meant as much to me as this revival. David Lynch delivered the most surprising piece of art I have seen in many years. I was continually shocked, awed, and frustrated in all the best ways. I wept at the opening titles of Part 1 and found myself sitting in dazed silence and wonder at the close of Part 18. While some people talk about wanting a Season 4, I believe this was the perfect place to end the series. I first watched Twin Peaks when I was nine years old so to be able to return to this world at the age of 36 will always remain one of the most profound honors of my life.

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