Deola’s Corner: Highlights Of 2015

DISCLAIMER: The following article contains spoilers from TV Shows and Movies. So if you detest spoilers, then I suggest you leave while you can. If you don’t mind spoilers, well feel free to enjoy, read on and lets ki-ki.

My apologies for my unannounced absence; I have really missed you guys these past few weeks. In that time though, a shitload of things have happened. A lot of shows went on hiatus, and new shows for the New Year were announced. Award shows announced their nominations, and of course I have a lot to say about that. But seeing as it’s the end of the year, I’d like to also celebrate what has been a wonderful year in TV and Movies. This will be split in two sections, TV and Movies. So let’s dig in!

A YEAR IN TV

This is going to be a highlight of TV shows in 2015 that I watch. I don’t watch every single show, but I’ll try to touch every major topic. Read on and enjoy.

2015 really has been a magnificent year in TV. It was largely the year of reboots/remakes. There was Limitless and Minority Report, the former being the more successful of the two, largely due to the fact that A-Lister Bradley Cooper was attached to it. Minority Report had no such luck; with Tom Cruise not wanting to have anything to do with it, it is as of now DOA.

January also brought the premier of Empire, which went from being an unknown little project to a ratings and pop culture phenomenon, and by the second season, had started to show signs of sophomore slump.

Shameless had quite the uneven season; the return of Jimmy was largely unnecessary and ineffective.

Looking continued to divide its target demographic and failed to appeal to the larger gay audience and got cancelled; a special to air in 2016 has been ordered to give fans closure.

Suits had what I believe to be its strongest season yet. It was a largely emotional one for our players, and here’s hoping they follow through with that cliffhanger in the New Year.

Power returned for a second season with drama that was even better than the first; no sophomore slump there.

Starz’s period, time travel drama, Outlander, premiered and quickly became one of my favorite shows of the year.

Orphan Black‘s third season premiered; and it would seem to have learned from the errors of the second season and had a more clones-focused season, giving Queen Tatiana Maslany a chance to continue to put in high calibre performances that is still unlike anything on TV.

New Lifetime series, UnReal, premiered to raving critical approval, which was completely deserved.

Penny Dreadful returned for a second season that was as good as the first.

FX’s The Strain returned for what was a largely underwhelming second season.

How To Get Away With Murder ended fantastically and returned with even more ferocity.

Grey’s Anatomy killed off yet another major character (Derek Sheppard, how you doin’?) and somehow returned for a TWELFTH season that was largely strong.

The Good Wife’s split screen scandal happened, as we said goodbye to Archie Panjabi’s Kalinda Sharma, in what was a season to forget for the show. Thankfully, its seventh (and hopefully last) season has seen the show return to some form of years past. Its fall finale was one of the better ones of the year.

Scandal continued to slip downward and the fall finale was the opposite of The Good Wife‘s.

Halle Berry’s return to TV was cut short as her show Extant got cancelled.

Glee wrapped up its sixth and final season with an okay-ish series finale. Glee might have become a shadow of itself toward the end, but I’ll always be grateful for how it was fearless in tackling storylines that needed to be tackled.

Ryan Murphy followed the end of Glee with an offering of Scream Queens, a show that happens to be one of, if not the most quotable, meme-able, gif-able and yet unnecessary show out there. The show made zero sense and yet, you feel it’s one of those things that needed to happen. I doubt it gets a second season, but it’ll still go down as one of the campiest, stupidest, unnecessarily necessary shows ever.

Season seven of Rupaul’s Drag Race premiered and gave us Violet Chachki and Katya. (*squeals* I refuse to remember anyone else!). That two in one jumpsuit that Violet wore in the premiere episode still sends shivers down my spine.

The Vampire Diaries said goodbye to leading lady Nina Dobrev and her thousands of doppelgangers, leaving the show to start its seventh season without any Gilbert present. If there is any consolation, the show isn’t any worse than when she left; if anything, it’s a tad more bearable.

Marvel TV has had a wonderful 2015. Agents of Shield recovered from a rather poor first season to deliver a wonderful second season. Daredevil premiered to rave reviews and gave us Wilson Fisk aka Kingpin (Vincent D’nofrio), who happens to be one of the best villains in the MCU period. To close out the year, we got Jessica Jones, which was also a solid entry into the MCU. It gave us Kilgrave (David Tennant), another awesome villain. The third season of Shield has also continued to be awesome.

Game Of Thrones had its most uneven season yet, but thankfully finished on a high note. I still get chills when I remember the White Walker battle and the White Walker king raising the army like it was beans. And then there was Jon Snow… The less said about this one the better.

The CW’s Arrow expanded its own universe with the premiere of The Flash in 2014, but we got awesome crossover episodes in 2015 that tickled every nerd’s fancy. With the premiere of Blindspot, Greg Berlanti also became arguably the busiest man in TV. He already had The Flash, Arrow, and Mysteries of Laura under his belt, and has another show in 2016 (Legends of Tomorrow) on the way.

Downton Abbey kicked off its final season, and it was bittersweet. I am glad the show knew when it was time to call it day and didn’t stay past its welcome, but I am also sad that we won’t get to see the Crawleys in action, with the legendary matriarch, Dowager Violet Crawley doing what she does best. (*bows to Her Eminence*)

The Mindy Project got cancelled by Fox and then got rescued by HULU, who renewed it for a fourth season. Sadly, Forever wasn’t so lucky, as it got axed by ABC.

Sense8 happened and while it was a mediocre show sci-fi wise, it happened to be one of the best shows with regards to how it dealt with human relationships and interactions. Plus the show gets an A for having an original idea. In this age of reboots and sequels and prequels, this was a welcome sight.

The 67th Emmys happened, with Game Of Thrones setting the record of most Emmys won in a single calendar year with 12 wins, one of which was for Peter Dinklage for his performance as Tyrion Lannister. Also making history was Viola Davis (How To Get Away With Murder) who became the first black woman to win in the Outstanding Lead Actress category (Drama). Jon Hamm (Mad Men) finally won for Outstanding Lead Actor, after being nominated a shitload of times previously. Uzo Aduba (Orange Is The New Black) also became the only actress to win in both the drama and comedy category for the same role.

Honorable mention to Queen Tatiana Maslany  (Orphan Black) who finally got some recognition with her first Emmy Nomination a few months after her first Golden Globe nom.

In addition to Glee and Downton Abbey, shows like Parks and Recreation, Justified, Mad Men, The Mentalist, Parenthood, Two And A Half Men, Nurse Jackie, Key and Peele, Cougar Town, and Hot in Cleveland all ended in 2015.

And that’s it for TV in 2015!

UNDERATED TV SHOWS YOU SHOULD PROBABLY CHECK OUT IN THE NEW YEAR

Here are some shows you should try and check out next year. These shows are really good and are really worth checking out

The Americans: The Americans is a spy drama set in the 1980s during the cold war. It’s about these Russian KGB spies who enter the United States and pose as a boring ole American couple. I enjoy a series that is detail-oriented and slowly unravels its mysteries, and as such, I found The Americans to be quite brilliant. The show just finished its third season and has been renewed for a fourth.

UnReal: UnReal is about the behind-the-scenes workings of Everlasting, which is a reality TV show that is based on The Bachelor franchise. UnReal is filled with awful and selfish characters and really does show how ugly the world of Reality TV is. It shows you how far the producers of these reality TV shows are willing to go to provide “drama” for their audience.

Outlander: Outlander is a time travelling period drama (based on the novels of the same name by Diana Gabaldon) about a married war nurse in 1945 who travels back in time to 1743 Scotland and falls in love with a Scotsman. She is then torn with the decision of remaining in the past or going back home to her time. Besides the romance, which is well told and not at all cliché, Outlander has political drama and even a lil bit a fantasy magical elements in it. Throw in a killer cinematography and soundtrack and you have a masterpiece. Definitely one of my best finds of this year.

Izombie: I know, right? Aren’t zombies and vampires and werewolves so 2009? Well they kinda are, which is what makes this show so special. It takes a tired and worn-out trope and somehow makes it refreshing. Izombie’s zombies eat brain to survive (duh?), but the twist is that they get both the memories and personality traits of the person’s brain. That shtick gives lead actress Rose McIver, a chance to basically play a new character every week and it’s fun to watch. The acting is also surprisingly awesome.

MY WISHES FOR 2016 (TV)

Here are some of the things I wish would happen in the world of TV:

Enough With The Reboots/Remakes: Seriously I know this was a result of network executives being trigger-happy these last couple of years and not having the patience to let a TV show find its footing before killing it. And so showrunners thought, why not take something that is already successful and run with it again and hope they strike lightning twice. I know, but enough with it! When this happens, we get shows like Limitless, Minority Report and Blindspot (although not a reboot), three shows that on the surface look different but are in fact largely the same. Sometimes you watch an episode of Limitless or Blindspot and it somehow feels familiar because you’ve seen it in Minority Report. So here is to hoping we get some originality in 2016. It’s sad because the reboots worked for the movies (Jurassic World, Mad Max, Creed) but they just didn’t work for TV.

A Crossover Event For Vampire Diaries And The Originals: Both these shows are moving to Friday nights in 2016, which anyone who knows TV will tell you is the night were TV shows go to die. The ratings for both shows are piss-poor. So I wish Julie Plec would take a leaf out of Greg Berlanti’s book and have the shows crossover every now and then. Get Klaus to Mystic Falls, take Bonnie to New Orleans. Just mix it up and keep things fresh.

The Knick Should Get A Third Season: The Knick is an awesome show that is stuck at HBO’s sister network, Cinemax. The ratings are bad but the show is creatively one of the best out there. I hope it gets a third season to at least wrap things up. Fingers crossed.

Scandal Should Be Done Trying To Make Fitz And Olivia Happen: I know this is wishful thinking, but a boy has to try, right? I really wish Shonda Rhimes would drop it with these two, and also drop Papa Pope and his B6-13 madness too. I wish we see less of Jake and I wish Huck will learn to stop over-shining his eyes.

Empire Should Stop Trying To Tinker With Its Success Formula: Just keep it simple. We know who these characters are, write them in accordance to who they are, not what you think the public wants. Also enough with the guest stars and stop pushing a thousand new music in every episode. Basically, stop thinking about the money, Lee Daniels, and think about the integrity of your show.

AWARD SHOW ROUNDUP (TV)

The award season is upon us, and the Golden Globes, Critics Choice and SAG award nominations for the calendar year were announced. There were a few pleasant surprises here and there, and some infuriating exclusions and inclusions. So here we go.

Both the Golden Globes and Critics Choice preferred Empire over How To Get Away With Murder for some reason; in some universe apparently, Empire is a better drama than How To Get Away With Murder. The Globes though have always had a reputation for nominating underappreciated and overlooked programs that the Emmys are too snobby to consider, and as such, I was glad to see Outlander and Mr Robot get a Best Drama nod. While the Critics Choice left out How To Get Away With Murder, they gave nominations to Mr Robot, Penny Dreadful and UnReal, all of which I was glad with.

The Critics Choice also gave nominations to Jane The Virgin and Black-ish, both of which are smart comedies. Anthony Anderson (Black-ish), Gina Rodriguez (Jane The Virgin), Tracee Ellis Ross (Black-ish), Rachel Bloom (Crazy Ex Girlfriend) all got well-deserved nominations in the categories of Lead Actor and Actress in a Comedy. Jamie Camil (Jane The Virgin) also finally got some recognition for his outstanding work on that show.

I was quite happy with the nominations in the drama category for the Critics Choice; Clive Owen (The Knick), Rami Malek (Mr Robot), Shiri Appleby (UnReal) Eva Green (Penny Dreadful), Viola Davis (HTGAWM), Taraji P Henson (Empire), Krysten Ritter (Jessica Jones) all got deserved nominations in the Lead Actor/Actress category. That form carried over to the Supporting Actor/Actress category as Andre Holland (The Knick), Helen McCory (Penny Dreadful) and Constance Zimmer (UnReal) scored nominations.

The Globes nominations almost mirror that of the Critics Choice; the few surprises being the acting nom to Caitriona Balfe (Outlander), Tobias Menzies (Outlander) and Lady Gaga (AHS: Hotel).

There were no surprises with SAG award nominations, as the same old series/actors/actresses got nominated. The only decent surprise here was Ellie Kemper (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) getting a best actress in a comedy nom.

In conclusion, credit to the Globes and Critics Choice for being diverse and spreading the love and showing some love to some lesser known but deserving shows/actresses/actors. I am particularly happy about the Outlander, Crazy Ex Girlfriend, UnReal, Penny Dreadful and The Knick nominations. I am let down by HTGAWM not getting a best drama nom in all three award shows, and also that Tatiana Maslany and Orphan Black got no love this year.

A YEAR IN MOVIES

2015 was a decent year for movies. We got a new Star Wars (yay?) and a new Avengers. Fifty Shades Of Grey finally came out and somehow made a ton of money. The Hunger Games franchise came to a rather quiet end. There were huge flops (what’s up, Jupiter Ascending), unlikely box office winners and some lesser known movies that were wonderful gems. Jurassic world, Minions, Furious, Avengers: Age Of Ultron, and recently Star Wars: The Force Awakens all joined the “Billions Club”.

All in all, it was a decent year for a filmgoer and even better year for the studios.

Having said that, let’s start with what I believe to be the best 15 movies that I HAVE SEEN this year. I know there are movies like Carol, Sicario, and The Danish Girl that have been well received, but I haven’t seen any of them. So I can’t comment on them.

I’ll try to make this list as diverse as possible. Most of you will probably disagree with me, but just bear with me:

15. Cinderella: I can’t count how many Cinderella remakes I have seen in the last decade. There was one with Brandy, another with Hilary Duff, and a recent one with Lucy Hale; they were all decent-ish stories. But Disney realized that people had seen those, and thought about what other take on the classic story that could make them money. And so they did something rather smart. They basically made a life action version of the classic Cinderella cartoon and it worked. Throw in the acting talents of the amazing Cate Blanchett and Helena Bonham Carter, and you have a hit. Lily James and Richard Madden made surprisingly capable leads and their chemistry was delightful to watch. Cinderella basically took a classic story that we all know and somehow still made it magical. Did I mention the costumes were ridiculously incredible? Yeah, that too.

14. Avengers: Age of Ultron: This almost didn’t make my list and is probably just here out of sentiment. Make no mistake, Age of Ultron isn’t a bad movie; it’s just a lil bit disappointing. I can’t recall the last movie that had as much hype as this one (Ok maybe the new Star Wars). I mean, Age of Ultron was everywhere, the trailers were amazing, and the marketing for the movie was cool. Then the actual movie came out, and after watching it, I was left with this feeling of dissatisfaction, like, “Is that it? That’s all?” It’s either the movie wasn’t good enough or I made the mistake of buying into the hype to the point where there was no way it was ever going to meet my expectations. I think it’s a little bit of both. Having said that, this was another solid entry into the MCU; it was quite funny (maybe too funny?), had a decent plotline, and a cool but in the end weak villain, which by the way is a problem that Marvel have in general (they really should hire some Daredevil and Jessica Jones writers). I think the biggest crime Age of Ultron committed was that it ended up feeling more like a set-up movie for future movies rather than a movie that sets up our beloved heroes against a big bad guy. While I believe Ultron (played by the awesome James Spader) was never allowed to reach his full devastating potential, I am glad that with his introduction came that of Vision and Scarlett Witch who were, I believe, the highlights of this movie.

13. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation: MI5 had a lot to live up to; not only was it coming after a rather impressive MI4, but it was coming after Furious 7 and its over the top stunts. And it would have flopped if it wasn’t smart. It made some moves, one of which was Rebecca Ferguson. The MI franchise was frankly becoming a bit stale, and in comes Rebecca Ferguson’s Ilsa Faust as an MI-6 agent, and suddenly the franchise seems like it could go on for three more solid movies. Tom Cruise is one of those actors you can always count on to deliver, so it wasn’t surprising that that he was really good here. Another smart move was making Simon Pegg’s Benji more than just a trusty sidekick. Putting him in the thick of the action was smart as Simon Pegg shined with the more material he was given to work with. Throw in a decent bad guy, cool stunts, a cool bike chase sequence, a tension-filled underwater stunt and a tight storyline, and you have an awesome MI movie.

12. Furious 7: While a couple of people will deny it, a huge part of the hype of this latest entry into the Furious franchise was the fact that this was going to be the last time we would see Paul Walker in a Furious film. Say what you will about the rather weak plotline, Furious 7 was one of the best action films of the year. If you’re crazy about over-the-top stunts and high intensity car chases, then look no further to get your fill. Furious 7 was also faced with a problem of wrapping up Paul Walker’s Brian’s storyline, and I believe it was handled not just wonderfully but so beautifully that it was bound to make you teary-eyed.

11. Spy: I am not particularly a fan of Melissa McCarthy. I had seen her in a couple of movies and had thought meh, she is a decent comic actress, nothing impressive. Some other times in movies like Tammy, I found her to be unbearable. Then came Spy, and Melissa had more than her usual bag of tricks this time. The self-deprecating comedy, the fat jokes were there as usual (I don’t think she or Rebel Wilson can do a movie without having some fat joke in it), but they weren’t so prevalent that they bloated the movie. There was an actual decent storyline; her character was sweet and genuinely funny. Supported by Jude Law, Miranda Hart, Rose Byrne, and Jason Statham, who was a welcome surprise as a comic actor, Spy ended up being one of the best comedies I saw this year.

10. Trainwreck: Who knew LeBron James could act?! No seriously, the dude’s performance here puts some performances by some “professional actors” to shame (*side eyes Adam Sandler*). With that said, this movie features Amy Schumer and Bill Hader. Amy Schumer is apparently the new comedy “it” girl. I knew her from her from the fact that everyone was talking about how awesome she was and her show Inside Amy Schumer was busy winning awards left and right. So I said, let’s see what all the fuss is about sef, and I admit I was impressed. She was really good in this. She does self-deprecating comedy really well, but she also played being vulnerable well and could be nuanced when she was needed to. She had really good chemistry with Bill Hader, and they played really well off each other. Definitely the best romcom (romantic comedy) I have seen in a while.

9. Straight Outta Compton: I didn’t know much about the characters who the movie was based on, but I don’t think it mattered because this biopic ensured that not only do I know them now, but I see them in a different light. Straight Outta Compton is a biopic drama about the Hip Hop group N.W.A. Produced by Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, the movie is basically what happens when a biopic is done right. It was obviously well casted, had really good acting, a solid screenplay with awesome direction, and in it, you have a great biopic that will no doubt be a classic in time.

8. Dope: Dope is one of the smaller movies on this list. And just like I was pleasantly surprised that LeBron could legitimately act, I was even more impressed by A$AP Rocky here. It’s always nice when someone you expect nothing from pulls off something impressive. Dope is a coming-of-age story produced by Pharell, P. Diddy, and Forest Whitaker. It stars Shemeik Moore in the lead role of Malcolm Adekanbi. Dope is surprisingly funny, romantic and entertaining. Shemeik Moore plays the dooyey-eyed, sometimes naive high school kid role to perfection. A$AP Rocky, Zoe Kravitz, Tony Revolori and Kersey Clemons all shine in this dramedy.

7. Ex Machina: First off, can we talk about how beautiful this entire movie was. I really appreciate it when beautiful scenery is presented by a cinematographer. It helps me to buy into the world of the movie more and makes me feel like I am experiencing the movie’s events first hand. Ex Machina is a sci-fi movie that deals with the creation of AI (Artificial Intelligence) and the repercussions that we would face. It is thought provoking and even scary at times. From the get-go, it is a continuous pulse racer. The movie featured some of the best acting in a motion picture all year. Alicia Vikander who was simply stunning and breathtaking, Domnhall Gleeson who is fast becoming one of my favorite actors, and of course Oscar Isaac who was so freaking creepy in this role as the genius behind the creation of the AI. They all held theirs and made a really beautiful movie.

6. Jurassic World: After watching Jurassic World, I read a couple of reviews that complained about the movies’ special effects. They were implying that they weren’t good enough. I was left baffled and wondering whether I had seen a different movie. Jurassic World was a stunning visual piece. As someone who is fascinated by CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) and special effects, this movie was CGI porn for me. I marveled at every shot of the new park that had been created in the movie. The movie somehow made me feel the “event-ness” of visiting the park myself. Add some Chris Pratt in there and wonderful supporting performances from Nick Robinson, Bryce Dallas, Ty Simpkins and Irrfan Khan to mention a few, and I am willing to overlook the rather predictable plotline.

5. Mad Max: Fury Road: Mad Max: Fury Road is like the opposite of the previous two movies on the list, it featured very little CGI and had simple and practical effects. Mad Max had one of the simplest plotlines ever. But it was somehow able to stretch it into this long thrilling ride for the viewer. There was never a dull moment. This was a reboot of the previous Mad Max movies; I confess I hadn’t seen any of the previous entries lead by Mel Gibson, but it’s a testament to how wonderful this movie was that I didn’t feel lost at all when I got plunged into it. Led by Charlize Theron, Tom Hardy and Nicholas Hoult, Mad Max delivered a stunning tale; Theron’s performance in particular was Oscar Worthy IMO. Even after repeated viewings, I still can’t get over how awesome this movie is.

4. Creed: Southpaw, another boxing movie, came out before Creed. I saw that and I was impressed by it. Mostly by how well choreographed and surprisingly well acted it was. Jake Gyllenhaal, Rachel McAdams, Forest Whitaker and young Oona Laurence all put out awesome performances. The only drawback about Southpaw was that it felt a tad predictable. You could almost tell how it was going to end as soon as it begun, and that is where Creed gets the upper hand (yay, boxing pun!). Creed is such a well written story. It’s a sequel to the Rocky films. There are five Rocky films, I had only seen the first when I was a little kid, and Creed knows that it’s going to cater to both established fans of the series and newcomers, and so it drops little recaps here and there to catch you up so you don’t feel lost. Sylvester Stallone had written and directed all five Rocky films before this one, but in an interview, he said he recognized that what worked during his generation wouldn’t work here, and so he got new writers and a new director who did incredibly. Add Michael B. Jordan to that mix as Adonis Creed, the leading man, and it all works superbly. Stallone returns as Rocky in one of the best performances I have ever seen from him, and is joined by and the incomparable Phylicia Rashad and Tessa Thompson. Jordan somehow balances the needs of this character, who is meant to be angry at the world, is sometimes aggressive but yet vulnerable, and he does it all with aplomb. There is talk of Oscar nominations for this movie, but knowing the Oscars, I know that’s just reaching, but we’ll see.

3. Beast Of No Nation: No movie on this list was as hard to watch as this one. Beast Of No Nation is a story about young Agu, who is forced into becoming a child soldier. The country where this war takes place is unspecified, although it is made quite clear that it’s a West African country. The movie deals with the effects of war and we see it all through Agu’s perspective. Agu believes himself to be good boy from a good family, who is made into this “beast”. We see his downward spiral and sometimes we experience it through his harrowing voiceovers as he is made to see and do terrible things. The young lad struggles to retain his humanity despite being raped and forced to grow up too quickly. Beast Of No Nation is not without its faults (in fact there are more than a few them); it becomes way too chaotic and at times difficult to follow, but the commitment from the actors is never lacking. Young actor Abraham Attah plays young Agu in what is without a doubt one of the best performances of the year; he is supported by Idris Elba as the commandant, who is both his saviour and his nightmare. Idris Elba is terrifyingly good here. He captures your attention and doesn’t let go. The movie was directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, who thankfully knew how to balance the violence depicted in the movie with sweet moments. He showed you just enough and held back when it was necessary. Beast Of No Nation is based on the novel of the same name by Uzodinma Iweala.

2. Inside Out: This was, I think, the most original film of the year; another animated movie Anomalisa is getting rave reviews for its originality. I haven’t seen that yet, but I did see Inside Out and it was a movie that could have gone wrong in many ways; I mean, look at Tomorrowland. But somehow, Inside Out managed to pull it off. It was beautifully animated and scored. The voice acting was some of the best in recent times. Everything about Inside Out just worked. It was the most memorable film of the year for me.

1.Kingsman: The Secret Service: Yeah, this is going to be a controversial pick. Now I know Kingsman isn’t even the best movie on this list, let alone the best movie in 2015. But there is reason why it is number one here. No other movie on this list exceeded my expectations like this one. Kingsman came out right around the same time that 50 Shades Of Grey did. There was no way I was going to pay to see 50 Shades, and so, after seeing what was a pretty decent trailer, I decided to spend my Valentine’s Day watching this, thinking it would be better money and time spent than the alternative. And boy, was I right As Fuck! Kingsman was perhaps the most entertaining movie I saw all year. It was nonstop fun from the get-go. Armed with actually wonderful performances by Colin Firth, Samuel L Jackson, Mark Strong and new comer Taron Egerton, Kingsman is a British spy thriller that never once took itself too seriously. That church brawl scene still gives me goosebumps. Plus Kingsman gave us (me?) the hidden gem that is Taron Egerton, and for that I am grateful.

OTHER TALKING POINTS:

As much as there were really good movies in 2015, even Hollywood is not above making duds. Some were just downright awful, others were bearable, and yet some others left you wondering why anyone wasted their time making it. And here they are:

Aloha: Emma stone and Bradley Cooper, una no try at all. Horrible from start to finish. No redeeming value.

Fantastic Four: I think I have bashed this one enough. Some lemme just keep kwayet!

Tomorrowland: George Clooney, LOL. Nice try.

Fifty Shades Of Grey: Yep I went there. Awful stuff this one, just awful.

Get Hard: No words. None at all.

Seventh Son: I weep for the wasted acting talent in this movie. Here is hoping that they paid Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore and a ton of money for this disaster.

Jupiter Ascending: Channing Tatum, Mila Kunis and Eddie Redmayne, career lows for all of una. Una no read the script ni? *sigh*

Pan: Beautiful nonsense, this one. Never seen a movie so beautiful that is so nonsense. All that glitters truly isn’t gold.

Barely Lethal: Seriously I am left wondering if these people’s agents hate them. Jessica Alba hasn’t been in a decent movie since…well since EVER! But biko, Samuel L. Jackson, what was your excuse? As for the two of you, Hailee Steinfield and Sophie Turner, y’all are young, so I guess I’ll let you go with a warning.

Minions: Yeah a lot of people liked this one evidenced by the fact that it made over a billion dollars, even the critics though it was decent. Personally I just couldn’t stand it.

So that’s it, that’s my list for 2015. Let me know if you agree/disagree and what your own list looks like.

TV IN 2016

2016 should be another great year for TV. Apart from our returning shows, a couple of new shows that I am excited for or at least curious about will premiere. Damien, based on the 1970s horror flick The Omen, premieres on A&E. Shannara Chronicles premieres on MTV. The last show I was excited about a show on MTV is Teen Wolf, and it’s still making sense. A new Shondaland show, The Catch, also premieres after How To Get Away With Murder wraps up its second season.

So 2016 should be exciting.

MOVIES IN 2016

2016 is definitely going to be one of the most exciting years for movies in recent memory. This probably has to do with the fact that we have SEVEN!!! CBMs (comic book movies) coming out in 2016. There is Deadpool, Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, Captain America: Civil War, Xmen Apocalypse, Suicide Squad, Gambit (the October release date for this might be shifted to 2017, still unconfirmed) and Dr Strange. I am just giddy at the thought of it.

Apart from the CBMs, a couple of other “big” movies are coming in 2016: the Finding Nemo sequel, Finding Dory; the Snow White And The Huntsman sequel, The Huntsman: Winters War (don’t worry, Kristen Stewart isn’t in this one); the sequel to Insurgent, Allegiant (*rme*); London has Fallen (sequel to Olympus Has Fallen); Kungfu Panda 3; the Alice In Wonderland sequel, Alice Through The Looking Glass; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2; The Conjuring 2 (*SCREAMS*); Warcraft; The Jungle Book ( Hi Lupita); The Legend Of Tarzan (my bae, Margot Robbie is in this one); a Bourne Identity sequel (this one has Matt Damon back in it, not that fake one with what’s-his-face. Hi, Jeremy Renner); the Harry Potter prequel, Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them; and Assassins Creed (with Michael Fassbender). 

I look at some of these movies and I can barely breathe, let me kuku stop thinking about it before I pass out. Happy New Year, guys, and see y’all in 2016.

Written by Deola