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Top Ten Films of 2017

2019/01/072020/04/16 Jared Mobarak

We pretty much knew last year’s Best Picture Oscars race was coming down to La La Land and Moonlight right after the completion of the Toronto International Film Festival in September. But while there’s something to be said about the strength of films able to ascend to frontrunner position, I can’t help loving the idea of heading into March without a clue as to who might win. Ask ten different critics what their favorite of 2017 is and I’d estimate hearing at least eight unique titles. There’s a level of excitement to this reality…

Online Film Critics Society Ballot 2018

2019/01/022021/02/03 Jared Mobarak

Below is my December 27th ballot for the 22nd annual Online Film Critics Society Awards honoring movies released domestically in the United States during the 2018 calendar year. Each category is ordered according to my preferential rankings. Group winners are labeled in red. (No option to abstain was supplied this year.)

Posterized Propaganda January 2019: The Top 10 Movie Posters of 2018

2018/12/272020/04/02 Jared Mobarak

“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column (with a special year-end retrospective today) focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably. If there’s one consistency throughout the sixty-plus posters I shortlisted this year for Top Ten glory, it’s a conscious desire to play with and…

Top 100 Albums of 2017

2018/06/182020/04/06 Jared Mobarak

Honorable Mention Brother Ali – All the Beauty in This Whole Life; Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – The Tourist; Laura Marling – Semper Femina; Oh Wonder – Ultralife; Stars – There Is No Love In Flourescent Lights; Jay Som – Everybody Works; Real Estate – In Mind; Goldfrapp – Silver Eye; Katy Perry – Witness; Elder – Reflections of a Floating World; Mew – Visuals; Los Campesinos! – Sick Scenes; Death From Above 1979 – Outrage! Is Now; Björk – Utopia; Nick Hakim – Green Twins; Little Dragon –…

Top Ten Films of 2016

2017/12/302020/04/16 Jared Mobarak

Dare I say 2016 feels like a throwback to the stellar work of great auteurs doing their thing in the 70s without fear of never working in the industry again? We have the science fiction, horror, and western genres all finding their way into awards conversation and the best dramas have proven themselves to be both timeless in emotion and wholly contemporary when contextualized against our world’s state of political flux. Cinema has not only found a way to resonate in an inclusive manner, it’s also transcended surface appearances to…

Posterized Propaganda January 2018: The Top 10 Movie Posters of 2017

2017/12/282020/04/02 Jared Mobarak

“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column (with a special year-end retrospective today) focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably. It’s kind of crazy to see how far the poster industry has come in the past few years. Where we used to get excited…

Online Film Critics Society Ballot 2017

2017/12/242020/04/17 Jared Mobarak

Below is my December 24th ballot for the 21st annual Online Film Critics Society Awards honoring movies released domestically in the United States during the 2017 calendar year. Each category is ordered according to my preferential rankings. Group winners are labeled in red. (We were only allowed to vote for one nominee per category this year, but I ranked them all like previous years anyway.)

Top 100 Albums of 2016

2017/03/062020/04/11 Jared Mobarak

Honorable Mention BJ the Chicago Kid – In My Mind; Opeth – Sorceress; She Is We – War; The 1975 – I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it; Ed Harcourt – Furnaces; J. Cole – 4 Your Eyez Only; Nada Surf – You Know Who You Are; Against the Current – In Our Bones; Tall Heights – Neptune; The Lumineers – Cleopatra; Lissie – My Wild West; Thrice – To Be Everywhere Is to Be Nowhere; Green Day – Revolution Radio;…

Top 100 Songs of 2016

2017/01/032018/07/03 Jared Mobarak

#100: Pacifico by Majid Jordan #98: Swooner by The Zolas #96: Come Alive by The Jezabels #94: Faint Of Heart by Tegan & Sara #92: So Much Sky by The Temper Trap #90: Touch by Shura #88: Sometimes by Oscar #86: Hell’s Kitchen Angel by MAX #84: Drive It Like You Stole It by Sing Street #82: Zombies by Childish Gambino #80: Someone That Loves You (ft. Izzy Bizu) by HONNE #78: Your Love by Cardiknox #76: Fight Song by Rachel Platten #74: Call You Up by Viola Beach #72:…

Online Film Critics Society Ballot 2016

2016/12/312020/03/31 Jared Mobarak

Below is my December 31st ballot for the 20th annual Online Film Critics Society Awards honoring movies released domestically in the United States during the 2016 calendar year. Group winners are highlighted in red. Best Picture #1 Moonlight . #2 Manchester by the Sea #3 Arrival . #4 Jackie . #5 The Witch . #6 Hell or High Water #7 La La Land . #8 O.J.: Made in America #9 The Handmaiden . #10 Paterson . Best Animated Film #1 Kubo and the Two Strings #2 Moana . #3 Finding…

Posterized Propaganda January 2017: The Top 10 Movie Posters of 2016

2016/12/292020/04/02 Jared Mobarak

“Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover” is a proverb whose simple existence proves the fact impressionable souls will do so without fail. This monthly column (with a special year-end retrospective today) focuses on the film industry’s willingness to capitalize on this truth, releasing one-sheets to serve as not representations of what audiences are to expect, but as propaganda to fill seats. Oftentimes they fail miserably. 2016 wasn’t just a great year for films — the posters advertising them were quite fantastic too. That’s not to say we weren’t inundated…