The Best Movies of 2015 Part II: The Top 25 Acting Performances of 2015

“Speak a little truth and people lose their minds.” ~O’Shea Jackson, Jr in Straight Outta Compton

Thought one:  Last year when I created the list of top acting performances of 2014, I wrote the following statement:  “I think it is fair to say that 2014 was the year of the actor, but unfortunately not the year of the actress.”  I thought that I would once again repeat this sentiment, because, I noticed, as I finished my list there were many more men than women on it.  However, after a closer examination I came to the conclusion that every year is the year of the actress, you just need to know where to look.  For instance, in the realm of television, there are plenty of strong female centric roles being filled by the likes of Kerry Washington, Tea Leoni, Viola Davis, and Taraj P Henson.  These are brilliant actresses filling brilliantly constructed roles, but even in a show like Scandal, too much of Washington’s character is dependent on male power.  For the truly great gems you have to look deeper, search into show’s like UnReal on Lifetime, yes that Lifetime, with actors like Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer.   In the world of film, the same can be said.  Don’t just catch onto names like Jennifer Lawrence who, in Joy, gives one of the most joyless performances that I’ve ever seen.  Instead look at Elizabeth Banks in Love & Mercy.  

Thought two:  Stop awarding talented actors and start awarding talented actors in talented roles.  For instance, Matt Damon won a golden globe this year for Best Actor in a Comedy/Musical (The Martian has a few good lines, but a comedy it is not) for playing an astronaut stranded on Mars.  The Martian was certainly an entertaining film, shot well, and acted well, particularly by Matt Damon, but Damon isn’t playing a character.  He’s just playing Matt Damon stuck on Mars.  It’s a rescue movie to save Matt Damon, now where have a heard that before.  Oh, perhaps it was in Saving Private Ryan or in Courage Under Fire or in Interstellar or in Syriana or in Green Zone or in Titan A.E.  Seem a little redundant?  Please Academy, start watching the films that you award nominations to, instead of seeing a flashing name and putting it in an envelope.  

With those thoughts in mind, I present my list of Top Performances of 2015.  

25.  Rachel McAdams in Spotlight - Good, solid performance from an actress who rarely makes it out of a romantic film.  McAdams proves that there’s more than meets the eye with her career.

24.  Mark Rylance in Bridge of Spies - Last year I described Bill Nighy in Pride as “taciturn shyness,” which could be an apt description for Rylance in the role of Soviet Spy, Rudolf Abel.  Also, it is difficult to star in a movie with Tom Hanks and to out act him in two person scenes.  Rylance succeeds in accomplishing this feat.  If you like his performance check him out in Wolf Hall as Thomas Crownwell.

23.  Abraham Atta in Beasts of No Nation - A difficult role in a very difficult film.  The majority of No Nation is shot from Atta’s perspective and the fifteen year old Ghanaian actor shines in telling a much needed story.

22.  Alicia Vikander in Ex Machina - Although nominated for The Danish Girl, this was Vikander’s standout performance of the year.  In just a few lines, it was Vikander’s job not just to seduce Domhnall Gleeson, but the audience into yearning for her own humanity.  I look forward to her 2016 performances in Tom Stoppard’s Tulip Fever and potential Oscar nominee The Light Between Oceans.

21.   Elizabeth Banks in Love & Mercy - A great performance in a very underrated film.  Love & Mercy looks at Brian Wilson (Lead singer of the Beach Boys) in two separate time periods, one with Paul Dano and the other with the diseased version played by John Cusack.  Cusack is ultimately saved by the cunning, intellectual performance of Banks.  Quite the resurgence from Banks, who last year won a Razzie award.

20.  Tom Hardy in The Revenant - Hardy had quite the year with his double-shot performances in Legend, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Child 44.  For the man who would be James Bond, Hardy continues to dazzle audiences with characters that never fit the same mold twice.  In The Revenant, Hardy shines, although he arguably should be subtitled whenever he speaks.

19.  Michael B Jordan in Creed - A great rebound after the disaster of Fantastic Four.  Jordan brings justice and honor, both as an actor and as a character, to the name of Creed.

18.  Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road - A more apt name for the movie would’ve been Mad Max: Furiousa’s Road, for Theron steals this movie away from Hardy.  She proves that it is possible to have a strong female lead in an action movie that kicks ass.

17.   Michael Fassbender in Steve Jobs - Fassbender excellently executes the flawed brilliance of the character of Steve Jobs.  Many have criticized the film for not doing Jobs justice, but anyone familiar with Apple and with Fassbender’s work know that he most certainly played the best representation of Jobs available on film today.

16.  Lily Tomlin in Grandma - Flawed, funny, and fierce, Lily Tomlin soars in this quick jaunt of a movie.  Playing a serious, but equally witty version of her character from Grace and Frankie, Tomlin continues to prove that talent only gets better with age.

15.   Kate Winslet in Steve Jobs - I wish I could accurately describe how and why I liked Winslet in this role. Perhaps it was the quiet confidence that only an actress the caliber of Winslet could pull off, but I’m really not sure.  It could be as simple as I like people who can pull off Aaron Sorkin’s writing.

14.  Benecio Del Toro in Sicario - I hated Sicario, because I thought it’s screenplay was poorly written.  However the movie did leave two very real impacts on me.  The first is that I will watch whatever movie the director, Denis Villeneuve, directs (looking forward to Story of Your Life).  The second is that Benecio Del Toro has still got it; so much so that they are looking into a sequel to the film entirely about Del Toro’s character.  Every second he is on screen you cannot take your eyes off of him.  This performance goes into the pantheon of must see performances alongside Traffic and Che.  

13.  Idris Elba in Beasts of No Nation - At first, Elba plays the rebel leader of children off like he always does.  Stern confidence with a little glimmer of kindness, but it isn’t until Elba begins to lose his power that we witness what this actor can really accomplish.  When a director allows Elba to act, the man can turn in a performance unlike the majority of his fellow actors.  Don’t believe me, watch the TV series Luther and talk to me afterwards.

12.   Sylvester Stallone in Creed - Stallone turns in the performance of his career, save only the first Rocky.  Thank goodness, Ryan Coogler managed to persuade him to do the role.

11.  Bryan Cranston in Trumbo - As I said in the review for the film, a Capra-esque performance of Dalton Trumbo.  Cranston never wavers, playing honesty over cheese, humility over ego.  For such a slow-burn of a movie, Cranston manages to capture the light in every scene he touches.  I liked him on Breaking Bad.  I loved him in Trumbo. 

10.   Cate Blanchett in Carol  -  It is officially time to call up Meryl Streep and ask for the crown.  The woman that was Elizabeth I has finally taken it from her.  Blanchett can play just about any part, in any time period.  The only way a movie like Carol can exist is if two actors of equal caliber create enough tension to last the length of the film.  She is absolutely mesmerizing and once the movie reaches its turn, she takes her character in a direction that few actors could achieve, subtle fury with despair and still hopefulness.  I think I misjudged her in Blue Jasmine.

9.  Brie Larson in Room - My favorite young actress who I lauded over two years ago with her performance in Short Term 12 is about to get her due.  It would be an absolute shock if someone beat her out for Best Actress.  Although she would not be my choice for Best Actress, it is easy to see why she will win.  In order to play the character “Ma” in Room, an actress must create a mindset that for the audience is next to impossible to imagine.  Much like a victim of torture, “Ma” is repeatedly violated physically, morally, and emotionally.  My hats off to Larson who certainly has come a long way from her days of being Jonah Hill’s love interest in 21 Jump Street.

8.  Jacob Tremblay in Room - For those who have yet to see Room, while Larson shines, it is Tremblay, the nine year old boy wonder, who is the true star of the film.  Horrifying and inspiring, Tremblay narrates the harrowing tale of a boy confined to a world of make-believe, that turns out to be much more real than he imagined.

7.   Mark Ruffalo in Spotlight - Although even too far left wing for me in real life (believes in the 9/11 conspiracy theory), Ruffalo continues to prove that he might be the best supporting actor in Hollywood.  Whether as the sperm donor dad in The Kids are All Right or the brother to a wrestling star in Foxcatcher or Beat detective in Zodiac, Ruffalo continues to put his 13 Going on 30 days far in the past.  In Spotlight, he plays a reporter a bit too enthusiastic and unhinged for the rest of the team, he doesn’t quite fit, which is the exact reason why they need him.  Although Stallone will most likely take home the reward, it is only a matter of time before Ruffalo finally is honored the way he should be.

Will someone get this man some Chapstick?

6.  Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant - I am unsure, but I believe that DiCaprio has even less lines of dialogue in The Revenant than the number Tom Hardy has in Mad Max: Fury Road.  DiCaprio’s role can be summed up in one line repeated multiple times throughout the film, “As long as you can still grab a breath, you fight.  You breathe... keep breathing.”  The film could’ve been renamed either “So You Think You’ve Had a Bad Day,” or “Leonardo DiCaprio will literally do anything to win an Oscar.”  Whether it is the best acting performance of the year or not, it certainly was the hardest to do.  DiCaprio plays a more depressing version of Tom Hanks in Cast Away.  We want him to find revenge, if only because it will end his suffering, or our own.  Even though he may never escape his own baby face, DiCaprio will continue to prove that he’s one of the best film actors to ever live and one of the most generous celebrities currently on the planet.

5.  Johnny Depp in Black Mass - Don’t care much for the critics, Depp proves that he’s not just a one trick pony.  I waited over ten years, since Finding Neverland, through multiple interpretations of Jack Sparrow, for a role like this to come along.  Depp is absolutely terrifying and yet, somehow charismatic as Whitey Bulger.  Please, Johnny, please do more roles like this one and leave the Sparrow costume for kid’s birthday parties.

4.  Michael Keaton in Spotlight - The third and final member of the Spotlight ensemble to make the list.  For those of you who were saddened that the journeyman Keaton lost last year’s Academy Award, this year’s snubbing should be equally depressing.  In Spotlight, Keaton is just acting.  Not a character, but a real person.  Every source I have read said the same thing that Walter Robinson is exactly how Michael Keaton portrayed him.  It’s a very subtle performance, but that shouldn’t take away from it’s brilliance.  Especially when Keaton begins to face facts that perhaps his own hands have blood on them.  Spotlight is a masterpiece and a movie can only be as good as its lead actor.

3.   Corey Hawkins/Jason Mitchell/O’Shea Jackson, Jr. in Straight Outta Compton - As in the case of Spotlight, I divided the actors up individually, but even though each character goes off on their own in Compton, it would do the film a disservice to list them separately.  The trinity of all three actors in Straight Outta Compton create a breathing tapestry of a time and place that most people cannot even begin to dream about.  Lead, in my opinion, by Corey Hawkins as Dr. Dre, each actor lights up the screen by being as honest as possible with the very real life moments of the movie.

2.  Rooney Mara in Carol -  Cate Blanchett may be up for Best Actress and as I said, she may be the best leading lady on the planet, but this movie is about Rooney Mara.  To describe her performance as anything less than absolute perfection would be a crime.  Mara’s naivety transforms into power into strength and finally into understanding.  It is hard to describe the emotional power of this film.  A love story so convincingly acting, so desperately needed, so tender, and yet so agonizing.

1.  Sarah Snook in Predestination - Normally reaching the top name on my list I would go on a long diatribe about her performance, but unfortunately I can’t.  Predestination is just one of those films that by describing any of it, might ruin it for the potential viewer.  Here’s what I can say: Sarah Snook is a name to be remembered.  She had a small part in Steve Jobs as well, but it is her work in this film that would make average actresses blush.  Snook is a star in the making and if she can replicate what she accomplishes in Predestination then we are looking at a long line of Oscar trophies to come.  Go see Predestination.  

The Best Films of 2015 Pt. I

“The idea behind each one was we took a film that we like and made the title stupider.  And then made a new film to reflect the new stupid title.  It’s a formula that only produces horrible films, but for some reason we kept using it.” ~Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl.  

The 2015 year in film has finally been put to rest and I say that as the calendar turns into late February.  As one of the many lessons that the film industry gave me this year it was the fact that it has become increasingly harder to watch 2015 movies in 2015.  In the calendar year I watched a total of 33 new movies (including Star Wars five times), but in the last 45 days, I’ve needed to watch another 35 films just to catch up.  This leaves me both tired and irritated.  In the past, I would’ve loved a bingefest movie marathon, but if the last few months have taught me anything they have taught me to enjoy experiences, which makes it difficult to relish a film when you have four more to go in a day.  I have found that the movie going experience is equally as important as the movie itself and I prefer to watch any movie, every movie on the big screen.  I think in 2016, the number of films I will watch will significantly decline.  Quality up, quantity down.  

That being said, 2015 was a marvelous year in the movie business.  By November, I thought I would be writing a much different kind of year in review, but then in the past three months all the good films have come out of the woodworks.  Either that is because this year the industry rewarded more innovation or because my taste in film has become much more select.  I was surprised when I finished the list to find that only three of my top 12 were nominated for Best Picture.  In either case, I am happy once again to give my list of the Best Films of 2015.  In previous blog posts I have droned on endlessly on these films to, at best, a very small audience.  Another lesson I’ve learned as of late:  brevity helps everything (feel free to skip over the longer reviews).   Also my new movie podcast, “I Challenge You!” due out later this month is much more detail oriented.  With that in mind I give you my list:  The Top Films of 2015.  

Two Caveats:  One, I didn’t see Brooklyn (due to time), didn’t see any foreign films, other than docs (It’s hard in Iowa), and wasn’t a huge fan of The Danish Girl and Ex Machina (like so many of my friends).  The second is that I have never been a big fan of animated movies.  I believe Inside Out was a good film, just not my cup of tea.  

THE TOP FILMS OF 2015 

25.  Furious 7  24.  Ex Machina  23.  Tig  22.  The Big Short  21.  Inside Out.  

20.  The Martian - Fun film with great work from Matt Damon, but not the hilarious comedy the Globes claimed or the Ridley Scott Masterpiece the Academy claimed it to be.  

19.  Black Mass - Understandably a problematic film (Cumberbatch’s laughable Boston Accent), but a great performance from Johnny Depp made this a really fun film to watch.  

18.  Bridge of Spies - Solid Spielberg/Hanks Combo film.  A slow burn Cold War Spy movie that proves the Coen Brothers can write about pretty much any topic.  

17.  What We Do in the Shadows - A New Zealand made mockumentary about a house of vampires from the people behind Flight of the Concords.  Very funny, very well put together.  

16.  Mistress America - Not a fan of the Baumbach/Gerwig combo?  Then you’ll hate this movie.  With a good performance from relatively newcomer Lola Kirke this was a great fast talking comedy that made the 80 minute run time fly by.  

15.  Spy - Surprised even myself that this McCarthy vehicle was funny, but it has some truly hilarious beats and should’ve taken home the Globe for Best Comedy of the year.  (Thanks Brandon for forcing me to watch this film).

14.  Beasts of No Nation - Don’t let the Netflix brand fool you, this is a hard hitting looking at child soldiers in the Congo.  With an Oscar worthy performance by Idris Elba, it is worth a watch even though it is incredibly depressing.  

13.  Steve Jobs - I love Aaron Sorkin and walk and talks.  Don’t listen to the controversy around the film, although Jobs is not portrayed as a hero, it would be wrong to say he comes off as a villain.  If you love the West Wing, then you are going to love this movie.  

12.  The Revenant - A good film that let a little too much directing get in the way from it being great.  DiCaprio is brilliant and will win an Oscar for it (deservedly so) and the first ten minutes of the movie might be the best opening of a film that I’ve ever seen.  

11.  Room - Deeply disturbing and almost ruined by the trailers, this is a tense, claustrophobic film that takes the viewer to a place that is unfathomable to imagine.  Bolstered by an Academy worthy performance from my favorite young actress, Brie Larson, and a remarkable performance by nine year old Jacob Tremblay, this is an indie film that needs a viewing.  

TOP TEN

10.  Trumbo - Stars Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, & Michael Stuhlbarg

I’m shocked by how much I liked this movie.  When my friend Amy came home from Thanksgiving, she told me that this was a must watch film.  I laughed and figured that Cranston was good, but the film was mediocre.  Perhaps in reality, the film really is mediocre, but it struck a chord in me and had me riveted even through a slow paced biography.  Cranston is sublime, capturing the almost Capra-esque features of Dalton Trumbo.  In a year where Adam McKay is getting all the coverage for a comedy director taking on a much larger film, I credit Jay Roach (and the next director on my list) for subtly choosing topics with less buzz, but more nuance.  This may not be a film for the ages, but I appreciate the telling of a story that is much needed in our current climate.  

9.  Grandma - Stars Lily Tomlin 

Simply put: if you like Lily Tomlin then you are going to love this film.  Not a single frame is wasted in its 80 minute run time.  Written/Directed by Paul Weitz, this movie is a character study of an aging lesbian who doesn’t give two shits for the hypocrisy she sees left in the world.  People who liked Obvious Child will enjoy this dramedy centering around a bull-shit free view of “a reasonably priced abortion.”  A very funny drive along film with surprisingly deep and sobering moments like the scene between Sam Elliott (doing his best work in years) and Tomlin. For the young at heart in all of us, Tomlin at 75 proved there is always plenty left in the tank.  

8.  Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

When it comes to Oscar Documentaries most people are clambering towards Amy about Amy Winehouse (which I saw and liked), but they are missing out if they haven’t seen Netflix’s Winter on Fire.  Other than a brief introduction in English, this is a foreign language film and it had me riveted the entire way through.  Other than Son of Saul (which I admit I haven’t seen), this is perhaps the most important movie to see this year.  It unfolds like a real-life Les Miserables following the student led rebellion leading up to the Ukrainian Revolution. Director Evgeny Afineevsky doesn’t sugar coat anything and doesn’t tell you how to feel, rather he allows the bloodshed to unfold of its own accord.  A truly brilliant, important film that will make you think twice about situations such as Crimea.  

7.  Straight Outta Compton -  Stars: Corey Hawkins, O’Shea Jackson Jr, Jason Mitchell

Among the many outrageous snubs from this year’s white Oscars was the film Straight Outta Compton.  While it isn’t an unbiased film (since Ice Cube, Easy-E’s widow, and Dr. Dre helped produce it), it does give a relatively accurate depiction of the events surrounding the creation of N.W.A. and the subsequent years of the group members.  Although the film could have used some editing for length, I found it to be an engrossing look at a part of history that many white people, myself included, know very little about.  Combined with a great screenplay and fantastic casting (Ice Cube’s son looks just like young Ice Cube) this biographical film is another example of a must watch in our current social and political climate.  

6.  Creed - Stars - Michael B Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, and a whole lot of boxing. 

The fact that Director Ryan Coogler wasn’t nominated for this film is a mystery to me.  One of the best shot films of the year and by far the best shot boxing movie every made, Creed proves that you can reinvent a movie franchise without losing its original heart (take notes Jurassic World).  Michael B Jordan proves that Fantastic Four had nothing to do with him and Stallone gives his best performance, aside from Rocky I, or his life.  

5.  Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Stars - Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Harrison Ford, Adam Driver.

Do I really need to write anything?  The movie has made over 2 billion dollars worldwide.  Although in many ways it is a remake composite of the original trilogy it manages to do something very few blockbusters ever do, which is to create complete character arcs for all four main characters.  For the kid inside of me, for the Return of the Jedi lunchbox on my shelf, and for the force, which calls to all of us, thank you JJ Abrams for making us proud to be Star Wars fans again.  

4.  Predestination - Stars - Ethan Hawke and Sarah Snook

In the US, Star Wars has made nearly a billion dollars, Predestination has made $68,000.  Based on the 1958 Robert A, Heinlein short Story, All You Zombies, Predestination is a time-travel movie that gets right everything, I think, Interstellar gets wrong.  Rarely can a movie surprise me, but I was so shocked by the twist that I never even imagined the second twist coming.  For those who haven’t seen it (It should still be in a redbox), I won’t say anything about the film other than it is about time travel and that Sarah Snook gives a career defining performance.  I loved this movie.  

3.  Carol - Stars - Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett

As we come down to the final three, any one of these films could’ve taken the number one slot.  The first film is Carol about a 1950’s lesbian love affair.  For some, I’m sure this was a boring movie, because very little actually happens.  Much like last year’s Boyhood, if you were captured by its charm then it’s a masterpiece, but if you weren’t, it sucked.  I was enthralled,  Directed brilliantly by Todd Haynes, who rightfully decided to shoot this on film, the tension of the film kept me on the edge of my seat, breath caught in my throat, for the entire two hours.  Just give Rooney Mara the Oscar now and Cate Blanchett proves that Meryl Streep better move over because there’s a new sheriff in town.  

2.  Mad Max: Fury Road - Stars - Charlize Theron, Tom Hardy, and iOta aka the Guitarist.  

“Oh what a day, what a lovely day.”  Fury Road is a goddamn Masterpiece.  George Miller proves that 70 is the new 30, when it comes to the vision of a director.  If there is a film God, Miller should win an Oscar for his directorial vision.  Over 80% of the film is all practical, which only enhances its brilliance.  This was the most fun I’ve had at the theater in over a decade (I can really only compare it to how I felt about Independence Day and when I first saw Star Wars).  To describe this film in one sentence:  A gasoline-guzzling heroin trip that will leave you shaking from excitement.  Forget the fact that it’s called Mad Max but really about Charlize Theron, forget the fact that the plot consists of a gigantic chase, forget the fact that there are probably a hundred lines of dialogue throughout the film, this is what innovation looks like.  As an artist, Fury Road is what we should all aspire to be.  

1.  Spotlight - Stars - Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, and a whole lot more. 

It would take something pretty extraordinary to beat Mad Max.  For years the gold standard in journalism based film was All the President’s Men, about the Watergate scandal.  That standard has now changed.  Spotlight is a masterpiece.  It is a sobering look at power in Religious America.  It has the best cast (with a remarkable performance by Mark Ruffalo), one of the best directors (second to George Miller), a terrific screenplay, and tells a very important story.  I was raised on the morality of print media journalism.  My mother worked for the local town newspaper, I worked for the local town newspaper, and now one of my best friend’s is a member of the Print media (he and I saw this film together).  If you like print media, then this is the film for you.  If you like uncovering the truth, then this is a movie for you.  If you like movies, then this is a movie for you.  I applaud director Tom McCarthy’s levelheaded vision and egoless style allowing actors to just act.  This is a film for the ages.

Undecided

In the 2004 Election Cycle, Samantha Bee of the Daily Show did a quick segment on undecided voters.  By the end of the piece, she was yelling at them because none of them could make up their minds.  I laughed, because I knew there was no way I could ever be an undecided voter.  In an election cycle that plays out on TV and online you can find out a candidates opinion on anything and everything with a click of the button.  There's NO WAY anyone can be an undecided voter in 2016.  

I’m an undecided voter.  

About a month ago I went to hear Bernie Sanders speak.  I enjoyed what he had to say and then two weeks ago I went online an endorsed him for President.  I say endorsed, but it’s not like I have any power, so ‘endorsed’ really is I just said my opinion on social media.  I did it for two reasons.  The first was that I had bought in to Bernie Sander’s future and thought that he can accomplish a lot of what he says he’ll do.  The second was to get people off my back.  Since I am an Iowan, now more than ever, people care about who I’m caucusing for on Monday.  I said, “I’m feeling the Bern,” and moved on with things of importance like laundry.  However today, I am once again undecided.  

In a way I was always undecided because even when I said I would support Bernie, I didn’t even mean that I would support him first.  You see, I’m planning on caucusing for Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts Senator, who I adore.  If you’re wondering is she on the ballot?  Nope.  I figured I would walk into the caucus, say my peace, have no one agree with me, and then go over to the Sanders camp.  I take the caucus very seriously, in fact, it is my favorite part about being an Iowan.  I believe a person should vote for the candidate that best represents the America that they believe in whether they have a chance at winning or not.  I like certain aspects of all the candidates, but Warren, I believe, is the best combination of them both, and since she won’t garner enough attention, there is little harm in caucusing for her and then moving on to another candidate.  The only change is that I don’t know if that candidate will be Bernie Sanders.  

My problem with Bernie Sanders is the same problem I’ve always had with him.  The majority of what he says represents empty rhetoric.  It feels like very little of what he says could actually ever be accomplished.  His ideas feel too “pie in the sky” for modern America.  And I know that Bernie proponents will quote his line on wall street or talk about how as Mayor he worked well with Republicans or his VA bill with John McCain shows real bi-partisian leadership, but none of those situations involves the United States Congress.  A congress that in the last few years has made it abundantly clear that being on opposite sides of the party line is evil.  Bernie’s America reminds me of President Santos in the West Wing and while my heart years for his future, my brain knows better.  

My problem with Hillary is that she’s packaged, bought, and payed for.  She is a true politician that runs with hypocrisy lining many of her campaign promises.  She’s no longer the Hillary Clinton of 1993 (Who I loved).  She’s become like a Nascar vehicle, with hands in too many money jars, but still part of a pastime.  I like Hillary Clinton, but my eighteen year old idealist self would’ve loved Sanders.  

My recent return to the undecided column stems from two very important endorsements.  The first was in October and was made by Howard Dean.  I love Howard Dean.  To this day I still claim that if Dean had won the ’04 nomination, he would’ve beat Bush in a landslide.  Dean’s endorsement carries a lot of weight in my mind.  The second came today with the endorsement by Gabrielle Giffords.  Those who know me don’t need me to tell you how much sway Giffords opinions have over me.  Besides the fact that she was once my boss, she still represents what I believe is the perfect American Candidate.  Giffords ran as a moderate Democrat in a red state and put personality before politics.  Her opinion matters to me a lot.  

As Democrats this election comes down to a decision between our hearts and our minds.  Our hearts believe in Sanders, but our minds know that Clinton has the best chance to beat the Republicans come November.  For me, the decision comes down to issues like Gun Control, where Clinton leads the pack and Sanders has a less than stellar background (Don’t tell me you have a D from the NRA, I think the NRA is insane so why would I listen to their grading system).  Issues like campaign finance, where Sanders is far in front and Clinton is somewhere in the PAC in the back.  And issues like education reform, where I think both Clinton and Sanders don’t know what they’re talking about and O’Malley has the only logically sound plan (my opinion).  

This is why I'm an undecided voter for the first time in my life.  I can honestly tell you that I have no idea who I will caucus for on Monday night.  For the first time in my life, I’m just the voter being laughed at by Samantha Bee, but I think I’m ok with that because whoever I decide to caucus for, I know will be the hardest political decision I’ve ever made.  And I’m proud that I take something as “silly” as one, individual vote so seriously.  

Can’t we just Draft Warren?  

God Hates the Green Bay Packers & Won't Stop the Next Mass Shooting

At the end of the Packers epic revenge victory over the dreaded Seattle Seahawks, Quarterback Aaron Rodgers was asked about the game and responded by saying, “I think God was a Packer fan tonight so he was taking care of us.”  However, unfortunately for diehard Packer backers such as myself, the Packers were humiliated this past Sunday by their old nemesis the Denver Broncos leading me to one logical conclusion:  God Hates the Green Bay Packers.

I, myself, am not religious.  I find organized religion to be inherently political, dangerous, and only somewhat truly faith-based.  However, I do have a very strong faith in a power greater than myself and have zero problem calling that power “God”, although a much different interpretation than many who go to church on Sunday.  Nevertheless, my faith is something that has helped me through many a rough patch in the past few years and through prayer and meditation I have found solace in both my higher power and the world around me.  With this faith in mind and the previous knowledge I have from years of higher learning I feel comfortable making a declarative statement.  God doesn’t hate the Green Bay Packers, because God isn’t a football fan.  And I will raise that statement with one more, this one directly from God’s Lips (perhaps not verbatim), “Stop praying on social media”  

Prayer is a beautiful, selfless, powerful, and sometimes healing thing.  Prayer on Facebook is hypocritical, stupid, self-centered, and worthless.  Every time there is a tragedy in this country, such as a school shooting, you rarely find out about it from the news.  Instead you find out because your news feed becomes filled with “I’m praying for the victims of _______ High School.”  That prayer is worthless and in many ways apathetic towards the actual pain and suffering of the victims.  Let me clarify that if you sit at home and pray to God for the victims that is not necessarily worthless (again dependent on your beliefs), but most important it is by no means harmful.  However, the second you post on social media that you pray for the victims, you are no longer praying, but bragging.  You no longer care foremost for the victims, but rather care foremost that others know that you think you care foremost for the victims.  Praying on social media is entirely founded on the “look at me” principle.  Prayer on social media is equivalent to the girl interviewed by CNN after a school shooting because she once knew a friend whose sister was friend’s with one of the victims.  It screams for attention and asks the public to make sure that while this terrible thing is going on elsewhere, please keep in mind how I’m dealing with this.  For those of you who are guilty of this crime (which is the majority of you and at one point or another, I’m sure myself included), don’t worry this doesn’t make you a bad person.  Sometimes in an age where most thoughts are turned into statuses saying that you pray for the victims just feels like the right thing to do.  Like when you find out your friend’s mother died and say “I’m sorry.”  Being sorry doesn’t matter, but it feels like the polite thing to do.  

The problem with this prayer status reaction is that it can lead to inaction.  We all say our thoughts and prayers and then go about our regular lives and wait for the next terrible atrocity.  When given the opportunity to “Facebook pray,” we must instead turn to action.  I had written this post weeks ago and was about to post it online when the France attacks occurred.  If the aftermath of that terrible tragedy I was afraid that I would receive backlash for my writing (because of course I expect everyone to read this and not just the regular 50 +/- that actually do).  I was wrong and now I’ll even go a step further. One, God is not a football fan and two, God will not stop a mass shooting.  If God wanted to stop atrocities, he/she/it would’ve ended the Holocaust.  God will not take the guns out of a mass murderers hand.  It’s our job.  

There have been 355 mass shootings this year in America, there have been 336 days.  Do you have enough time to say thoughts and prayers for each one?  DO SOMETHING. If changing gun laws can save ONE life, just one, and the only ways it can affect you is by making you wait a little longer for purchase and certain extremely dangerous weapons won’t be able to be purchased, then I am all for it.  You should too, because it's part of the American credo.  We are the United States of America, not the Isolated people who only care about their own liberties of America.  It's the people who hide their ignorance behind the second amendment who make me ashamed of this country.  My biggest reason for shame is that those of you who hide behind the amendment, I can guarantee pick and choose which other amendments to follow by the letter of the law.  Many of you are also the same people who say we must follow the Bible directly, but pick and choose which parts to live by.    

Stop praying on Facebook for the victims.  Call your Congressman/woman.  Start a petition.  Join a Political Organization (I am a member of the Americans for Responsible Solutions run by my former boss and friend Gabrielle Giffords).  Do something rather than bragging about your feelings.  God doesn’t care if my Green Bay Packers win the Superbowl and God won’t stop the next shooting or the one after that.  Maybe we can.  

If you are wondering where I got my information for this blog, just go to the bible.  Matthew 6:5-6: “And when thou praise, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men...when though praise, enter into thy closet and when thou has shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret..."

Bold Predictions: The Time for Unbridled Optimism

September: Tis the season for unbridled optimism.  September is the time for a new semester, for new loves, for new chances, for new opportunities to break into the administration building to plant a pirate flag (surely not personal experience).  For sports fans, September is the beginning of football season, both college and professional, and for baseball fans it represents the final push for the playoffs.  The lazy dog days are over and its back to work.  For me, September represents two things I have almost never been witness to before.  The first, for someone who is not in school and not employed, September looks a lot like August (I hate it) and second, the Chicago Cubs are in contention and are, in fact, good.  The first needs to be fixed, but the second is a godsend.  Finally we have a good team.  Despite injuries, the Packers look good.  The Irish may be in contention for the College Football playoff.  The Hawkeyes look mediocre, but I still have hope..  Plus, I’ve got enough projects planned that I might be unemployed, but soon I’ll be busy again.  So in the week that I have before my unbridled optimism fads, I present my Bold Predictions for Fall 2015, the year, and beyond:

Sports:  Football

College:  The Iowa Hawkeyes will go 8-4, Kirk Ferentz will keep his job, they will play in a bowl game on January 1 in Florida, they’ll play an SEC team and probably lose, and if Jeb Bush is still in the race, he will magically put on a Hawkeyes hat and say he’s always been a fan.  The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will finish the season 11-1, make the playoff, and Malik Zaire will be a Heisman finalist.  The College Football Playoff will include Ohio State, Alabama, TCU, and Notre Dame (In that order).  The Heisman Award finalists will include Trevone Boykin (TCU), JT Barrett (OSU), Malik Zaire (ND), Leonard Fournette (LSU), and Cody Kessley (USC).  The National Championship will be won by Notre Dame, but when my magical world doesn’t happen, TCU will win the National Championship behind their Heisman Winner Trevone Boykin.  

Professional:  Fantasy Football I will win at least two of my leagues and Agents of Sam Shields will be secretly thought of as a clever name in my league.  AFC Division winners:  Patriots, Bengals (Don’t let me down), Colts, Broncos, Chiefs (WC), Dolphins (WC).  Dolphins top Bengals, Patriots top Chiefs, Broncos top Dolphins, Colts beat Patriots, Peyton Manning comes up short again, Indianapolis Colts win the AFC.  NFC Division Winners:  Cowboys, Packers, Panthers (God the NFC South Sucks), Seahawks, Eagles (WC), Giants (WC).  Wild Card Rules Eagles beat Cowboys, Panthers get destroyed by Giants, Packers beat Giants, Seahawks beat Eagles, Packers beat Seahawks in Lambeau, Green Bay Packers represent the NFC.  Packers win the Superbowl (I’m a Packers fan, so if this doesn’t happen Colts win the Superbowl).  League MVP:  Andrew Luck.   

Extras:  Roger Goodell makes another error when handling a disciplinary action, he keeps his job, but announces he’ll be stepping down in 2018.  After nine teams make valid arguments for the College Playoff in March 2016, the NCAA announces the Eight team playoff.  Peyton Manning gets injured in the latter half of the season, which ends up costing him the AFC Championship.  A Manatee will accurately pick 9 out of the 12 playoff teams and make the news for two weeks.

Baseball:  MLB

American League:  The Blue Jays win the division and millions of people in Montreal claim they liked the Toronto team all along, Royals, and Astros also take their divisions with the Yankees and Rangers playing in the Wild Card Playoff.  Royals dispatch the Yankees in four,  Astros upset the Blue Jays in five, Royals take the Pennant in Six. National League:  In a massive miracle, the imploding Nationals turn their season around and beat the Mets for the division.  The Cardinals and Dodgers win with the Pirates and Cubs playing for the Wild Card Playoff.  Cubs Win and play the Nationals destroying them in four, Cardinals take out the dodgers in four.  Cardinals play the Cubs and all of my dreams come true, the CUBS win the Pennant and take out the Royals…Or it turns out their isn’t magic and the Cardinals win the Pennant in five.  World Series:  The Cubs win…Or the Missouri World Series goes Seven Games and the Royals upset the Cardinals.  Royals win.  Joe Maddon wins Manager of the year.  AL MVP:  Josh Donaldson (Blue Jays) and NL MVP:  Bryce Harper (Nationals).  

This predictions thing is fun so I’ll keep going…

Politics:  

The Republican Nominee will not by Donald Trump and his running mate will not be Sarah Palin, although he will win more than one primary/caucus.  The Republican Nominee will be Marco Rubio and he will choose John Kasich as his running mate.  Bernie Sanders will win one caucus/primary but will not be the nominee.  Joe Biden will enter the race (And I will caucus for him), but unfortunately will not garner enough support to beat Hillary Clinton.  Clinton will suffer another two months of email problems, but then get on track after New Hampshire.  The election will be Rubio/Kasich vs. Clinton/Patrick (Deval Patrick of Massachusetts).  

Movies:

Best Picture: Ten movies will be nominated for best picture including one overwhelming crowd favorite: Inside Out, Steve Jobs, The Hateful Eight, Joy, The Revenant, Suffragette, Trumbo, The Danish Girl, Spotlight, Brooklyn, and Bridge of Spies.  In the weeks leading up to the Oscar nominations people will hold out hope for crowd favorite Mad Max, but alas it won’t happen.  No Idea who will win, but I predict I will love Spotlight.  Best Actor:  Michael Fassbender(Steve Jobs), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl), Johnny Depp (Black Mass), Michael Caine (Youth).  I will hold out hope that Joseph Gordon Levitt gets the final nom for either Snowden or The Walk.  Michael Fassbender will win Best Actor. Best Actress:  Cate Blanchett (Carol), Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn), Lily Tomlin (Grandma), Carey Mulligan (Suffragette), and Charlize Theron (Mad Max).  Lily Tomlin will win best actress.  Best Supporting Actor:  Someone from The Hateful Eight, Jason Segel (The End of the Tour), Benicio Del Toro (Sicario), Someone from Spotlight, Tom Hardy (The Revenant).  Best Supporting Actress:  Rooney Mara (Carol), Julie Walters (Brooklyn), Meryl Streep (Suffragette), Lara Linney (Genius), Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs).  Rooney Mara Will win.  

Bonus:  Jon Hamm will finally win an Emmy.  His speech will be cute and funny.  I love Jon Hamm.   

Hand in Hand

I am proud of the country that I live in, but I am also equally scared by it.  We live in a country that could possibly see Donald Trump as its Republican Nominee for President.  A country that celebrates Women’s Equality Day while only giving women 77 cents on the dollar compared to men, a country where police beat and kill black men and women, a country that has the highest rate of gun deaths, and a country where its leaders can barely agree on a lunch order let alone a budget.  This being said, we are still an amazing country and we have come a long way since our beginnings.  We are a country based on sacrifice, pride, hope, and dreams.  Our foundations are built on the core principles of liberty and freedom, but are also built on the backs of people we owned.  America as a whole is great, extremely flawed, but great.  We can never forget where we come from, both good and bad, because if we do we immediately forget where we are going. 

One of our biggest problems as a country is race relations, which is really just a catch all that white people (like I am doing now) use because we can’t think of anything else to say.  The most recent attacks on black Americans by white police officers has sparked a whole new round of anger and thank God it did.  The internet has brought some terrible things (Josh Duggar had it coming), but one of the best things it has created is a forum for discussion that our parents couldn’t have even dreamed of.  Where people from across the country can argue and debate topics that hid away in southern textbooks and behind words like “pride” and “American right”.  Today, we are still an incredibly unequal society, but we can never forget where we came from.  One of my mentors was eating lunch with me back in February and the topic of “race relations” came up.  My mentor, an African American man 30 or so years removed from his childhood in the slums said to me, “I understand all of these protests, but anyone born today needs to remember that they aren’t lynching my family anymore.”  Now I know that a lot of people would say that we have replaced a rope noose with a policeman’s barrel, but the point he was trying to make was that even with our major problems today, they aren’t as bad as they were yesterday.  Within our own parent’s lifetimes the mass population went to segregated schools, there was no equal rights act, and black kids were met with water hoses just for sitting in a cafe.  We have come a long way, but we still have an awfully long hill ahead.  We can’t climb it alone.  

I have seen a lot of people talk about the #blacklivesmatter movement and fight back with things like #policelivesmatter.  I have seen the students for life campaign #CallhimEmmett trying to compare the brutal assassination (and yes it was an assassination, not just a murder) of Emmett Til for hitting on a white woman to modern day abortion.  I have also seen arguments from both sides of the debate (I hate that people in the media still call it a debate) that see the opposite position as demons.  This type of narrative doesn’t help anyone.  Yes, police lives do matter, but #blacklivesmatter doesn’t negate that.  The purpose of the movement is to shine light on a massive issue.  Police lives do matter and when an officer is gunned down in the line it is a tragedy.  But the movement is trying to make a point of the disenfranchised, of the people who are being innocently murdered by the dozen.  I saw a great meme the other day (I cannot believe I just wrote that), it is the picture on your left.  I think it is an apt stereotype representation of some of our current perception issues, but I would add another picture.  One of a police officer murdering a black teenager and the other of an officer working the beat, protecting and serving.  One is how many of us see them, the other is how they actually are (again I understand this goes against the purpose of the meme but I am just trying to prove a point).  On the left we see the small population and on the right we should see regular people going about their lives.  We need to fix this meme.  However fixing the meme will take a lot more work than just an hour on photoshop.  It will take all that this great nation has to offer.  It will be hard and it won’t come easy.  It cannot be done by a hashtag on twitter.  It must be done by the black teenager and by the white police officer.  We must join hands to fix this problem together.  It sounds like a difficult road.  It sounds like a dream.  

On this date, fifty-two years ago, Dr King was right when he told us of his dream.  When he said “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character,” he was speaking about the very fight that stands in front of us today.  “I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists…one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers”  Take out the words “Alabama” and replace them with Ferguson.  Take out little black boys and black girls and put in Black American Citizens and take out little white boys and white girls and put in the police department.  It sounds incredibly hard, but that’s why it's a dream.  I still have hope; perhaps you do as well.  So on this day of memory let us look back on yesterday and salute those who have paved the road from which we must continue their struggle.  “Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.  And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream.  It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.”  

Americans are Stupid

I woke up this morning to use the bathroom and I threw up.  I actually threw up because of something I watched on the news.  Today a reporter and her photographer were shot dead on morning television while doing a puff piece on a local waterpark.  The reporter, Alison Parker was 24 and the photographer, Adam Ward was 27.  This morning I was reminded of another shooting that happened four years ago when a gunman shot Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords & thirteen others, some of them my friends.  It also reminded me of a night in Aurora, a morning in Newtown, a college in Santa Monica, a mall in Iowa, a family in Virginia…..THIS doesn’t happen other places.  Could all of these events have been avoided if we had stricter gun control laws?  No of course not, but what about a few of them?  I am physically sickened.  When a soldier goes into battle, he walks in knowing the risk that his life could end at any moment.  This is evil, but this is necessary evil, not that our American soldiers die, but that they understand the parameters and risks of their jobs (this is also why every time you meet a service person you should thank them).  I am a teacher and on no comparative scale to a soldier, the risk of my job is poorly educating young, impressionable minds; playing educational roulette with a student’s well being.  I know my risk.  Do I really live in a country where a reporter or a Congresswoman or a first grader should understand that they have the same career risk as a soldier?  That is the America I currently live in.  Why?  Because people think gun control is the same as gun abolishment.  Because people believe so blindly in the second amendment that they have no problem forgetting about the first, the fourth, the fifth, the sixth, or the majority of them when it comes to issues like immigration or terrorism or religion.  Because it took until 1865 to abolish slavery and until 1920 to allow women the right to vote.  Because people think that #blacklivesmatters means #killthepolice.  Because Donald Trump is winning in the polls.  Because the American public as a whole is incredibly stupid.  They all have to do with each other.  

I have a good friend of mine.  He is a hardcore conservative, likes Scott Walker, and disagrees with me on almost every issue.  Right now he is going ballistic, and rightfully so, that his party is supporting Donald Trump.  His complete disbelief that his party could be endorsing Donald Trump is the exact same one that I have when I think about his opposition to gun control.  This friend is smart, kind, and has a gigantic heart, and despite his political leanings I still love him, but I am sickened by some of his views.  I am sickened by so many of my friends views such as my friend, who in response to the Confederate flag issue held a “protest” and watched re-runs of The Dukes of Hazard, saluting whenever the car drove in.  Or my friend who “threw up” when she learned that SCOTUS had made Gay marriage legal.  Or the fact that my alma mater sees nothing wrong with printing “Straight Outta Richmond” shirts.  

Donald Trump held what was essentially a white power rally in Alabama.  30,000 people came.  He throws a reporter out of a press conference.  People cheer.  He answers a debate question about misogyny with MORE misogyny.  People laugh.  The majority of his views are racist, bigoted, show a lack of common sense, and are morally ambiguous at best.  He leads in all the polls.  People are stupid.  

Atlanta has the same gun homicide rate as South Africa.  People vote to lower gun restrictions.  There are over 300 million civilian guns.  People vote to lower gun restrictions.  Over 10,000 Americans die every year because of guns.  People vote to lower gun restrictions. People are stupid.  

Adam Ward was my age and he was in love.  Guns don’t kill people, Americans do.  

End of rant.