Television

As you’ve probably surmised from the headline graphic, my pick for television series of the year is Torchwood: Children of Earth. This was a five part miniseries that featured the characters of the BBC’s Torchwood doing what they do best: protecting the Earth from alien and time traveling invasion/exploitation.

Where Children of Earth differed was in its approach. In most alien invasion films, the director opts for the grotesque, placing it on par with a cheap horror film. Then there are those that  go for the cheese–think Independence Day or the latest iteration of War of the Worlds. Children of Earth finds a happy medium, and muddies the waters with a moral quandary of such unthinkable proportions that you can’t help but simultaneously sympathize with the people involved and be revolted by the bad decisions they make in order to “save” humanity.

The lesson, of course, is that we cannot make some decisions, no matter how terrible. To do so robs us of the very thing that we’re trying to protect. I won’t discuss more details, because to do so would give too many spoilers. If you’re looking for something to put on your Netflix list, give this a chance.

Film

I’m reluctantly giving the nod to Avatar for film of the year. No, I don’t like the politics of the movie, and no, Cameron isn’t a modern-day Shakespeare, but in no other movie have I felt the same sense of awe. He’s recaptured the feeling I had when watching Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings, only this time, he sustained it for two and a half hours and made me forgive his terribly transparent attempts to indict the former Bush administration.

The first viewing of this film was mind-numbing in it’s awesomeness; I’m waiting a bit for a second viewing to see if it holds up as well.

I also have to give credit to Sam Worthington, the actor who plays Jake Sully. I felt that Sam Worthington was the only reason why the recent Terminator: Salvation was any good, and his performance here elevates the ham-handed lines probably more than they deserve. Hollywood may very well have found their next big action star. He’s likable, charismatic, and he’s not such a pretty boy that action movie junkies are turned off by him.

Just to get it on the record, I’m calling several surprise Oscar nods for the film. You heard it here first.

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