best of 2006, part 1: the books
best of 2006, part 2: the music
and now, the best of 2006, part 3: the movies and tv
the best movie of 2006: drama
the departed. has there ever been a cast like this? leonardo dicaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin. i was on the edge of my seat for 3 straight hours.
the best movie of 2006: comedy
little miss sunshine. it’s not exactly a comedy. it’s a dramady. but a movie that makes me laugh this much, AND makes me cry, AND causes me to be stunned by the beauty and complexity of human relationships, AND makes me think about god: well, that just has to win this category. i rented this again this past week. jeannie and i are gonna have to own this one, i think.
the best thing about tv in 2006
getting dvr (digital video recorder — like tivo). got it for my birthday at the end of may, right after the regular season for everything ended. so i really didn’t put it to use until this past fall. but — oh! — my tv viewing will never be the same. i never think about tv until after the kids are in bed. i never channel surf. i never have to choose between two shows i really want to watch. and i don’t watch commercials anymore, unless i forget that i don’t have to!
best tv show of 2006: drama
tie: 24 and lost. nothing more needs to be said. because these aren’t just my subjective opinion — these are clearly the best two shows on television.
best tv show of 2006: comedy
the office. one of the few absolutely must-see comedies ever produced, imho. owned the two seasons of the british version on dvd, and have never missed an episode of the american version. love it, love it, love it.
best tv show of 2006 that i’m a tiny bit embarassed to admit i watched
the biggest loser. i started watching it because a youth worker i know, matthew mcnutt, was a constestant (of sorts — he wasn’t a regular contestant). but i got hooked on the stories. the show annoyed me to no end, but i dvr’d it and watched it every week.
honorable mention (because i don’t watch it regularly, and don’t dvr it): mtv’s yo mama. yeah, i can hardly believe i’m admitting this.
agree? disagree?
to come…
the best of 2006, part 4: family moments
the best of 2006, part 5: the blogs
Totally with you on the Movies of ’06. The Departed was stunning! My movie of the year was Shooting Dogs (not sure if its been released across the big pond), haven’t seen Little Miss Sunshine yet, but its on the to watch list.
TV – right with ya on Lost and 24, compulsive viewing. Happy New Year!
totally agree with ‘sunshine.’ wow.
just watched ‘lady in the water.’ double wow. had no idea how good it was gonna be…
tv? one word: ‘heroes.’ we are SO hooked.
TV shows: #1 = 24. 2 = Lost. 3= Heroes.
Comedy – I can’t stand the Office for some reason. It’s like nails on a chalkboard for me, but Meet the Parents was awful to me the first time I saw it because it’s hard to watch someone suffer for me. I’m always rooting for them when I should just relax and laugh.
I wish I saw The Departed or Little Miss Sunshine, but our movie viewing with the 3 year old is severely limited.
Well, I was waiting to see if Biggest Loser was going to make the list – I was going to be all offended if it didn’t! After all, I had about 47 seconds of screen time over four episodes! : ) Would you believe I am only just now seeing season five of 24? It was one of the things I gave up to have more time at the gym working out; filming began about halfway through the season, so I only saw the first twelve episodes. Thankfully, I got it for Christmas and now I’m cranking through the season before season six begins! Man, if I had known I wasn’t going to win the $$$ I might not have skipped out on 24 …
Nope, I’m with Eric, can’t stand “The Office”. Probably because I’ve worked with some of those people. And that wasn’t funny either!
I love “Three and a Half Men”. Not sure I can explain it.
I think Heroes and House are real players in the drama category. Believe it or not, I’ve never watched 24. I want too, but I feel overwhelmed by the amount of catching up that I would have to do…same thing goes for Lost.
Sadly, I too am an overweight youth worker. I made sure to DVR TBL so I could watch it after my Wednesday night program. I think the most embarrassing thing about the show was the theme song…”Oh, what have you done today to make you feel proud…..” Am I a total loser for knowing that?
Also, Tina Fey’s new show, 30 Rock, is a fabulous piece of mindless comedy. You should give it a look if you haven’t already.
“The Wire” on HBO is the best it’s ever been (season 4 just wrapped). Intricate plot lines and maddenly complex characters are just the start of the brilliance with this show. And while the subject matter could lead to depression or outright cynicism, it almost always made me want to do something rather than stay on the couch. Oh, and “Miami Ink” was a regular view for me – it’s amazing to see world-class artists work. Makes me want to call for a reservation today. In fact…
Scott reminded me that the two other can’t-miss shows each week are House and Studio 60. Amazing writing both…