Whip It (2009)

Part comic girl-power flick and part alternative sports movie, Whip It features Ellen Page (from Juno) as a snarky teenager who rebels against her mother’s pageants by joining a roller derby team in secret. An underground sport, it involves all-girl teams speeding around a velodrome-like track with the added novelty of being able to freely trip, block or punch members of the opposing team à la Basketbrawl. The soundtrack's not bad and the sport's obscurity helps to keep the film interesting. However, the film lacks a sense of purpose and it warrants only one round of attention in a lifetime.

   

7/10

2009's Silver Screen Champions (Top 10)

10. Glee:  This number is not for everyone: if you’re allergic to clichés and stereotypes, over-the-top goofy humour and/or American Idol-esque covers then insert How I Met Your Mother - a funny look at the twenty-something generation of today - here instead. But if you want to see some interesting takes on both new and old songs alike then grab a vodka-based RTD and sing along.

9. Chuck:  Chuck is the epitome of TV genre mish-mash. You get a little bit of 24-lite spy action, some long-lost family drama akin to Brothers & Sisters, a Grey’s Anatomy-worthy soundtrack (albeit more random) all topped off with some geeky Big Bang Theory comic relief. At times, it's the strangest thing to see transpire on TV but, occassionally, Chuck surprises you with fun little episodes such as the one centred around a 90's high school reunion. This one mixes best with melting pot drinks: Long Island Iced Tea.

8. Friday Night Lights:  Still the best family drama that you’ve never given a chance, FNL suffers from the Battlestar Galactica complex: being easily pigeon-holed (and avoided) because of what it looks like when it is in fact a rich and finely-acted portrayal of life in general. At times, the Taylor family seem so realistic that you really feel like you just wandered into their living room and, once you do, you’ll never want to leave. Beer may seem like the natural choice for a show that’s 10% American Football but there’s something much richer going on here, like maybe a Jager(meister) Bomb.

7. True Blood: True Blood took what was essentially in-bred vampire porn in the first season and expanded it into a deliciously dark universe with a slew of well-orchestrated episode cliff-hangers. A host of new characters (i.e. creatures) and plot directions kept us guessing Maryann’s diabolical intentions and in True Blood style, it didn’t pull any punches. It was even bold enough to suggest that true evil may lie with the religious zealots and not the creatures of the night. Enjoy with a spicy Bloody Mary – isn’t it obvious?

6. Dexter: The reason you watch Dexter is not really for the plot: can a serial-murderer maintain a normal life and family despite his other ‘distraction’. You watch Dexter to determine your moral compass: is the murderer who only kills other ‘active’ murderers (before they strike again) a good guy or a bad guy? You either condone murder when it saves the innocent or you take the high road, condemning Dexter while his targets continue to kill the innocent. Such questions are best deliberated over a thinking drink: Gin and Tonic.

5. 24: Action, as a whole, has fallen to the wayside in TV land. Only the guaranteed success of 24’s Jack Bauer remains to represent this dying genre in a world full of crime and hospital procedurals. Last season considered what would happen if we continued to ignore genocide and warfare in the third world and if it then overflowed - with disastrous implications - upon the West. The new season (8) is deftly balancing several stories at once ranging from political assassination attempts to bitter ex-boyfriends bent on revenge. 24 is a truly unique experience best served with a Single-malt Scotch whether you watch it for all the gadgets, fight scenes or political scandals.

4. Battlestar Galactica: The sci-fi that grew wings and became 
a gritty drama about humanity, survival and all things Asimov
finally filled in all the blanks and gave us closure. Novel in that the crew are attempting to find a mythical Eden known as planet Earth, it asked what really constitutes being human: is it merely our DNA? Is it defined by our actions? Or the way we think? And of course: can a robot achieve any of these aspects of humanity? BSG is definitely deserving of something robust and ship-worthy like Rum.

3. Kings: Set in a mythological city, this intelligent drama considered what it would be like if we were still ruled by religiously-ordained monarchs with near-absolute power – only in today’s time of cell phones and computers. Infused with aspects of the Bible’s David and Goliath story its fantastic script was unfortunately neglected by most of the American public as it approached the taboos of both religion and non-democratic politics. Red wine in a goblet is a must.

2. The Big Bang Theory: Mixing geeks and comedy is hardly a new idea but TBBT takes the formula and makes it universally funny. Sheldon is a laugh a minute as the super serious physics nerd who is continually breaking the world down into scientific descriptions to the horror of Penny: the ‘normal’ waitress living next door. Ethanol levels in your choice of drink are irrelevant when you’re laughing this much (although a mere Spritzer would likely be sufficient for Raj).

1. Grey’s Anatomy: Outgrowing its hyper-realistic first series and its over-sexed second, Grey’s had a pitch-perfect start to its sixth season. It took the highly strung finale of last season and the loss of a major character and infused the next ten episodes with so much emotion and drama that GA could easily keep you sobbing on the edge of your seat. Every. Episode. It just resumed the 2nd half of the season a few days ago so it's definitely time to catch up with the aid of some sharply-matching tequila shots.

TV trumps the Movies

The messy birth of a brand new year has finally passed as we shift into calmer, solstice months. And what better way to enjoy your lazy days than to reconsider the silver screen over-achievers that reigned over that familiar territory also known as 2009. This is especially aimed at people who continue to rebuff television, as a whole, based on a few glances at the reality TV heavyweights that continue to pollute our primetime slots.

If you look hard enough and invest the time to get to know a great show's characters you'll find that TV shows can easily outperform the past year's big-league movies.

Whereas movies are like short stories:

• shorter
• super-polished
• simplified around an important event

TV shows are like novels:

• longer
• less 'perfected'
• more complex

Of course, this assumption relies on consistent writing throughout the fifteen or so hours of a season. Yup, that's seven times the screen time to flesh out characters and storylines.

So this summer (or winter) put down your easy-come-easy-go films and commit to a brilliant TV show. Next time I'll post my top 10 of 2009.