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Best of 2014: Part Two


GUY BENOIT

Best Movies: Blue Ruin, Jobriath AD, Jodorowsky’s Dune, Under The Skin, Alan Partridge:  Alpha Papa, Locke   
Best TV Shows:  Boardwalk Empire
Best Books (fiction): The Black-Eyed Blonde by Benjamin Black (aka John Banville)
Best Books (non-fiction): Clothes Clothes Clothes Music Music Music Boys Boys Boys by Viv Albertine, A Spy Among Friends by Ben Macintyre, Strange Harvest by Carl Hoffman, Stars and Strikes by Dan Epstein, Blood Will Out by Walter Kirn, The Invisible Bridge by Rick Perlstein
Best Albums: ‘Wasted Years’ by OFF!, ‘Honey & Tears’ by Richie Parsons, ‘Tied To A Star’ by J Mascis
Most overrated thing about 2014? Popular culture, in general. 
Most underrated thing about 2014? Shirley Jackson
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? Re-reading Shirley Jackson

Guy Benoit is a screenwriter and filmmaker.

TODD SOKOLOVE

Best Movies: Whiplash, American Sniper, The Dog, Snowpiercer, Only Lovers Left Alive, The LEGO Movie, Under The Skin
Best TV Shows: Fargo, True Detective
Best Video Game: Monument Valley
Best Songs: ‘Get Lost’ by L.A. Witch, ‘Beautiful You’ by Pains of Being Pure At Heart, ‘Careful You’ by TV On The Radio
Best Albums: ‘Time Is Over One Day Old’ by Bear In Heaven, ‘Morning Phase’ by Beck, ‘The Inevitable End’ by Röyksopp
Best Comic Books / Graphic Novels: Saga
Best Blu-ray/DVD Release: Anything from Scream Factory
Most overrated thing about 2014? Guardians of the Galaxy
Most underrated thing about 2014? Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? Godzilla
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014?  Godzilla
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? Star Wars Episode VII

CLAY N. FERNO
@claynferno | leaguepodcast.com

Best Movies: Guardians of The Galaxy, Chef, Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier, Edge of Tomorrow (Live Die Repeat), X-Men Days of Future Past, The LEGO Movie
Best TV Shows: True Detective, Arrow, Flash, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Newsroom, Orange is the New Black
Best Books (fiction):  Prince Lestat by Anne Rice 
Best Books (non-fiction): So Anyway by John Cleese
Best Video Game: The Last of Us Remastered
Best Songs: ‘All About That Bass’ by Meghan Trainor, ‘Yellow Flicker Beat’ by Lorde
Best Albums: ‘Sheezus’ by Lily Allen, ‘The Voyager’ by Jenny Lewis
Best Music Video: ‘Crime’ by Real Estate (directed by Tom Scharpling)
Best Comic Books / Graphic Novels: Death of Archie, Saga, Sex Criminals, The Flash, Leaving Megalopolis
Best Blu-ray/DVD Release: Guardians of the Galaxy iTunes HD, X-Men: Days of Future Past iTunes HD
Most overrated thing about 2014? Comic book convention coverage
Most underrated thing about 2014? Fargo (TV)
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? The Flash (TV)
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014? Racism
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? Fresh vibes, the end of Mad Men, Avengers: Age of Ultron and please another Flash/Arrow crossover episode.

Clay N Ferno writes the columns Cosmic Treadmill and Triple Shot for Forces of Geek.

KATE DAVIS

Best Movies: Guardians of the Galaxy
Best TV Shows: True Detective
Best Books (non-fiction): Smoke Gets in Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty
Best Songs: “Jealous” by Chromeo
Best Albums: Hozier (self titled)
Best Music Video: “Dangerous” by Big Data feat. Joywave
Best Blu-ray/DVD Release: Nightbreed and Ghostbusters 1 & 2
Most overrated thing about 2014? Ebola. Sorta.
Most underrated thing about 2014? Ebola. Kinda.
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? Writing for Forces of Geek! I’m biased, what of it.
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014? That the masses don’t appreciate the advancements we’ve made in science, medicine, and technology, but demand hoverboards.
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? What the future holds. I love when uncertainty is coupled with opportunity. Bring it on!

Kate Davis writes Robot Roll Call and 1, 2, 3…Gore! for Forces of Geek.



MIKE CALAHAN

Best Movies: They Came Together, Gone Girl, Guardians of the Galaxy, Veronica Mars
Best TV Shows:  Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Suits, Orphan Black, Psych, The Simpsons, Colbert Report, Mad Men, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, True Detective, Fargo
Best Books (fiction): The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas
Best Books (non-fiction): Yes Please by Amy Poehler,
Most overrated thing about 2014? Comic-Con, Academy Awards, the NRA, Miley Cyrus, Templeton Rye, Apple’s Yosemite, Ebola, the never-satisfied opinions of fanboys.
Most underrated thing about 2014? Bulletproof Coffee, discovery of Santa Maria
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? Listening to NPR’s Serial Podcast, Mad Men,
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014? Humanity’s lack of compassion for the planet and everything on it. Violence perpetrated by religious doctrine. Political stagnation in the US government. Robin Williams’ suicide.
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? Star Wars: Episode VII, Finale of Mad Men

Mike Calahan is a former columnist for Forces of Geek.

JERRY DENNIS
@Jerryd70 | moviegeeksunited.net

Best Movies: Chef, Nightcrawler, Guardians Of The Galaxy, Wild, Blue Ruin, The Rover, Snowpiercer, Selma, St. Vincent, Top Five, We Are The Best, Kill The Messenger, Dear White People, Boyhood, Obvious Child
Best TV Shows: True Detective, Veep, Silicon Valley, The Americans, House Of Cards, Game Of Thrones, Louie, Sonic Highways, New Girl
Best Books (fiction): Haruki Murakami’s Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage, Phillip Meyer’s The Son, but I read a lot of older fiction this year.  My favorite was John D. MacDonald’s The Deep Blue Good-By.
Best Books (non-fiction): Rick Perlstein’s The Invisible Bridge, Dave Itzkoff’s Mad As Hell: The Making Of Network and the Fateful Vision of the Angriest Man In Movies, Michael Lewis’ Flash Boys, Lawrence Wright’s Going Clear, Scott Anderson’s Lawrence In Arabia
Best Songs: Jenny Lewis, ‘Just One Of The Guys’
Best Albums: Jenny Lewis’ ‘The Voyager’, Foo Fighters ‘Sonic Highways’, The Guardians Of The Galaxy Soundtrack, The Black Keys ‘Turn Blue’, Tom Petty’s ‘Hypnotic Eye’, She And Him’s ‘Classics’
Most overrated thing about 2014? Lena Dunham!
Most underrated thing about 2014? Chef
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? Godzilla
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014? Me
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? The return of Star Wars and Mad Max!

Jerry Dennis is the co-host and co-creator of the podcast, Movie Geeks United.

SHARON KNOLLE

Best Movies: The Theory of Everything, Nightcrawler, Only Lovers Left Alive, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Whiplash, The Raid 2
Best TV Shows: True Detective, Broadchurch, Orphan Black, The Returned, Fargo
Best Books (fiction): Consumed by David Cronenberg
Best Books (non-fiction): As You Wish by Cary Elwes
Best Songs: ‘Rainy Taxi’ by Spoon, ‘To Be Alone’ by Hozier, ‘I Just Might’ by Ryan Adams, ‘Flesh War’ by Total Control, ‘Dangerous’ by Big Data, ‘It’s Up To You Now’ by The Black Keys
Best Albums: Spoon, ‘They Want My Soul’ by Spoon, Hozier (self titled), Ryan Adams (self titled), ‘Morning Phase’ by Beck, ‘Turn Blue’ by The Black Keys 
Best Music Video:  New Pornographers, ‘War on the West Coast
Best Blu-ray/DVD Release: Vincent Price Collection
Most overrated thing about 2014?  Boyhood, Foxcatcher, The Lego Movie, Under the Skin
Most underrated thing about 2014? Edge of Tomorrow, Rob the Mob, Horns, Magic in the Moonlight
Thing that you were most excited about in 2014? Soundgarden/Nine Inch Nails concert
Thing that disappointed you most in 2014? The movie Lucy. ScarJo kicking ass, that’s all we wanted!
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015?Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mad Max: Fury Road

Sharon Knolle writes the column, Monitoring the Airwaves for Forces of Geek.

ALEX C. TELANDER
@bookbanterBookbanter

Best TV Shows: Orange is the New Black, Orphan Black, Key & Peele, Brooklyn Nine Nine
Best Books (fiction): The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss, Pines by Blake Crouch, S. by J. J. Abrams, The Martian by Andy Weir
Best Books (non-fiction): The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert
Best Albums: ‘The Endless River’ by Pink Floyd
Best Comic Books / Graphic Novels: Saga Volume 3 by Brian K. Vaughan, The Wake by Scott Snyder, In Real Life by Cory Doctorow

Alex C. Telander writes the column, Book Report, for Forces of Geek.

PHIL HEALY

Best Movies: Cold In July, Guardians of the Galaxy, Gone Girl, The Signal, Nightcrawler, My Name Is Jonah (shameless plug)
Best TV Shows: Bob’s Burgers, The Eric Andre Show, Charlie Rose, Tavis Smiley
Best Books (non-fiction): The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made by Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell
Best Video Game: Hearthstone (PC), Lords of the Fallen (Xbox One)
Best Songs: ‘Humans Are Such Easy Prey’ by Peturbator
Best Albums: ‘Dangerous Days’ by Perturbator
Best Music Videos:G.I. Jane‘ by Jackson and His Computer Band; ‘She Is Young, She Is Beautiful…‘  by Perturbator
Best Comic Books / Graphic Novels: Morning Glories, Holy F*ck by Nick Marin, What Am I Going To Do Without You by Patt Kelley, Nowhere Men (whenever it comes out), Silver Surfer (Mike Allred & Dan Slott)
Best Blu-ray/DVD Release: Cowboy Beebop (The entire series), The Evil Dead Anthology, Samurai Cop
Thing that you’re most looking forward to in 2015? There are a couple things coming around the bend in 2015 that look like great cinematic experiences. Chiefly among them, I have to say, are Avengers 2: Age of Ultron and Mad Max: Fury Road.

Phil Healy runs the Boston Open Screen and is the co-writer/co-director of My Name Is Jonah

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