Other Cultural Favourites of 2022

My blog is almost exclusively dedicated to books. However, other cultural forms have also taken centre stage on some occasions, be it when I wrote posts about my monthly favourites or, after the end of each year, when I revealed my other favourite stories (mostly TV and film) of the previous twelve months. Since I wanted to also start talking about music in my yearly favourites, I’ve rebranded the last type of posts as “other cultural favourites”.

This first instalment of my other cultural favourites includes a film, TV series and music albums only. In the future (I’m assuming I’ll continue to write this type of posts), they may also feature other categories, like exhibitions, theatre performances, etc., though. Bear in mind that the things I’m about to mention may not have been necessarily released last year. 2022 was the year I first watched or listened to them, nevertheless.

 

 

Suffragette

Last year, I had the intention of watching 100 new-to-me films. Did I? No! I think I only watched three or four… And none of them was released in 2022. I’m a bit behind with my movie watching. I loved Suffragette, though! Released in 2015 (yes, I’m that late!), it’s about the involvement of a young working mother in the movement to get the right to vote for women in the UK. The performances are just amazing! I spent most of the film enraged in a good way.

 

 

My Brilliant Friend – Season 3

Based on the books by Elena Ferrante, My Brilliant Friend has been impressing me more and more with each season, maybe because the actors have been growing into their roles as well. In season 3, we continue to follow the friendship of Elena and Lila, as well as the political and social tribulations in Italy.

 

The Great – Season 2

The Great is not the most historically accurate of TV series and it doesn’t aim to be. But it certainly is hilarious. It is very loosely based on the ascension to power of Catherine the Great in Russia. Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult give even better performances in the second season, which is also visually stunning.

 

Stranger Things – Season 4

I have to admit that I was growing a bit tired of Stranger Things. It was starting to feel too repetitive. Thus, I wasn’t particularly excited for its fourth season. After a lukewarm beginning, I loved the second half, since it connects past events with the present very well and the music choices are amazing. However, I think the creators missed a great opportunity to end the series on a high note.

 

 

Will of the People – Muse

Having hated (I’m not exaggerating) Simulation Theory, I was not particularly excited when I heard that Muse were releasing a new album, despite them having been my number one favourite band for years. The first singles they released were good, but I still didn’t allow my expectations to get high. I was pleasantly surprised when I finally listened to Will of the People! It’s firmly my fourth favourite album of theirs, after Absolution, Black Holes and Revelations and Origin of Symmetry. The highlights of the album for me are: “Will of the People”, “Won’t Stand Down”, “You Make Me Feel like It’s Halloween”, “Kill or Be Killed” and “Verona”.

 

Dance Fever – Florence + the Machine

I have to admit that when I listen to music I don’t tend to pay too much attention to the lyrics. I can memorise them easily, but I don’t always focus on their meaning. For some reason, I ended up doing that while listening to some of the songs on Dance Fever, though. Florence Welsh is not only an outstanding singer, but also a great lyricist. My favourite songs are “Choreomania”, “Dream Girl Evil”, “Cassandra”, “Daffodil” and “My Love”.

 

Living Room Bohemian Apocalypse – David Fonseca

The latest album of the Portuguese singer David Fonseca is rather short (it features only seven songs), and I wonder if that is one of the reasons why there is no duds. It sounds very cohesive, which is becoming uncommon nowadays. The songs I love the most are “Chasing the Light”, “Live It Up”, “In the Zone” and “Not You”.

 

Which are your favourite films, TV series and music from 2022? Tell me in the comments!

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