Now that I’ve finally had a chance to properly recover from post holiday reality, I thought I’d run over some of my top picks for films I’m really excited about this year. Here are a couple of my potential favourites that promise to be interesting.

5. Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie.

Let’s face it. It may not be the most intelligent movie you’ll ever see, but it’s probably a safe bet to say you won’t see something similar to it ever again (unless they make a sequel). Tim & Eric have had their own show for awhile now and judging from the trailer, the film will reflect the same uncomfortably weird and sometimes surreal humour from the show. Also look out for a great bunch of cameos including Zach Galifianakis, Will Ferrell and Jeff Goldblum.

4. Moonrise Kingdom.

Directed by Wes Anderson and featuring an awesome cast including Edward Norton, Bruce Willis and Bill Murray. The premise of the film set in the 1960s in a New England town is about two young lovers that runaway together with Sheriff Bruce Willis in charge of finding them. Gold!

3. Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory.

This HBO produced documentary is a sequel to the films Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations. If you haven’t seen the previous films, see them today. They are both 2 of my favourite docs of all time and tell the tale of the West Memphis 3; the true story of 3 boys falsely accused of murder and subsequently jailed for years without a shred of physical evidence. The third movie promises to reveal new footage and evidence of this highly compelling case. If you can’t view the trailer below, click here to see it.

2. John Dies at the End.

This intriguing new movie is based on a webserial comedy horror novel written by David Wong, a writer for Cracked. It’s about someone experimenting with a drug called Soy Sauce and having subsequent repercussions that make him question what is real and what isn’t. The book was wildly popular and there’s a huge internet fanbase for it. The trailer promises something wildly dark and riveting stuff with Paul Giamatti producing and starring.

1. Prometheus.

Director Ridley Scott revisits his Alien roots in this classic sci-fi series. I caught the trailer last week and it absolutely blew me away. I subsequently re-watched all 4 Alien movies in preparation for this movie. It promises to reveal some background on the original series and stars Charlize Theron and Guy Pearse. I can’t wait for it!

BONUS. Wrong.

Remember a movie called Rubber last year about a tire that kills people? Yeah, that one. Well this is Director Quentin Depieux‘s followup film that looks, well… really strange and wonderful involving a lost puppy premise.

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Portandia is a new comedy series that takes place in Portand, Oregon and stars SNL‘s Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein. It’s old school sketch comedy with the occasional musical number that pokes fun at hipsters, cyclists and various pockets of generation Y segments. Check out a clip below of a painfully over the top eco-conscious couple ordering chicken in a restaurant.

IFC is also running a new show called The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, starring the multi-talented David Cross. (Yes, Tobias Fünke from Arrested Development!) And while Portandia is clever and amusing, Todd Margaret is laugh out loud hysterical. After falling into a new job promotion by his boss played by Will Arnett, Todd (a hopelessly pathological liar) moves to England to sell questionably safe energy drinks. Watch a clip below of him pretending to be deaf. Hilarious! It’s great to see that some networks are still putting out some edgy, intelligent comedy out there.

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Tons of sites are voluntarily shutting down today in protest of a crazy bill that the US is trying to pass. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) are pieces of legislation that threaten to put a stop to a free and vibrant Internet. To find out more go here.

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Last Sunday was the annual No Pants Subway Ride. Spawned by the good people down at Improv Everywhere, it’s since blossomed into a global phenomenon, touching down in 59 cities in 27 countries around the world. Check out the official video featuring the event in New York – as always the fun part is seeing other passengers reactions expressions ranging from disdain to laughter. Awesome!

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Just last week we were treated to UK illustrator Stephen Wildish‘s tribute to 80s films. Lucky for us, he’s just put out a new poster for 90s movie sweetness. Scroll below for the answers.

Austin Powers, The Bodyguard, Cool Runnings, Dumb And Dumber, Edward Scissorhands, Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, Ghost, Home Alone, Interview with the Vampire, Junior, Kingpin, Look Who’s Talking, Men In Black, Nutty Professor, Outbreak, Pulp Fiction, Quiz Show, Rocketeer, Speed, Trainspotting, Usual Suspects, Very Bad Things, Wayne’s World, X-Files, You’ve Got Mail, Zorro.

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It’s that time of year when everyone goes over the year in review of significant events. But how about going over an entire decade instead? And just focus on movies? And what if it was the eighties, and we only use minimal illustrations to hint at the movie? Awesometown! Population Us! Stephen Wildish is an Artist, Designer and Illustrator based in the UK. Check out his site here and his tumblr here, some really cool illustrations. Scroll down for the complete list of movies.

Airplane, Back To The Future, Coming To America, Dirty Dancing, E.T., Flight of the Navigator, Ghostbusters, Honey I Shrank The Kids, Indiana Jones, Jumpin’ Jack Flash, Karate Kid, Labyrinth, Mannequin , Nightmare on Elm Street, Octopussy, Princess Bride, Q, Rambo, Short Circuit, Teen Wolf, Untouchables, Vice Versa, Weird Science, Xanadu, Youngblood, Zelig.

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Skrillex just released a new album yesterday called Bangarang. The Dubstep Electro messiah left a message on facebook telling people to pirate the album if they can’t cough up the coin for it – (doin’ it right!). The album is more than decent, I’ve heard many of the tracks and they’re bangin’ tunes (listen/buy here). But here’s the real kicker – some of the music was done in collaboration with members of The Doors. Yes, you read that right. Like, Come on baby light my fire, The Doors. It’s all to do with this amazing new film coming out called Re:Generation which follows the collaboration of electronic musicians with more traditional styles of music. Artists include DJ Premier, Mark Ronson, Skrillex, Pretty Lights and The Crystal Method with genres including classical by the the Berklee Symphony Orchestra to the bayou jams of New Orleans jazz. Check out some of the tracks off Bangarang below, along with the trailer for Re:Generation. KAAAAAAPOOOOOOWWWWWW. That was the sound of my head exploding. Or was that yours? Merry Christmas bitches.

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Just like Shit My Dad says, it all started as a simple twitter based premise, with Toronto based Graydon Sheppard and the help of his partner Kyle Humphrey. Graydon stars in the subsequent web episodes as the cross dressing epitome of vapid one liners that is so simple but dead on in it’s portrayal of first world teenage self absorption, it really reminded me of vintage Kids In the Hall goodness. Like. OMG. I totally LOL’d. The first episode features a cameo by Juliette Lewis.

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Adde Adesokan AKA theblackstar is a photographer and Creative Director based out of Hamburg, Germany. His project called Triptychs of Strangers is a series of pictures shot on the street of random people shot in a series of triptychs – that is, his photos are divided into 3 sections. The details of the photos provide a startling glimpse into someone’s life. It’s amazing what one can learn and imagine from the outward image we project into the world. Visit his official site here and his flickr stream here.

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I was lucky enough to be around Q from the very beginning. If you haven’t heard of it, Q is the arts based radio show heard each weekday on CBC radio one skillfully hosted by Jian Ghomeshi and recently profiled in an article by the LA Times. At the time of it’s inception I was working as a delivery driver all over downtown. The show and CBC itself kept me sane while negotiating city streets, narrowly avoiding bike couriers, parking cops and cabbies, but most importantly other radio stations with their cheesy on air banter and top 40 bubblegum pop. In no particular order, here are some of the interviews which stood out for me over the last couple of years.

15. Brian Wilson
Simply a fascinating interview with iconic and normally reclusive musical legend Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. It’s just a brutally honest and often touching interview.

14. Bjork
Icelandic musical sensation Bjork talks about the concept for her new album Biophilia, and how the electronic musicians in the 80s and 90s were the rebels forging new ground. It’s worth a listen even just to hear her delicate voice roll her “R”s.

Click here to listen to the interview.

13. Moby
The multi-talented Moby discusses his initial career as an underground punk and electronica artist and the introduction of success and commercialization.

12. Werner Herzog
The incomparable German art house film director discusses his film Bad Lieutenant; Port of Call New Orleans.

11. Douglas Coupland
The always thoughtful Canadian icon Douglas Coupland discusses his hit cultural zeitgeist book Generation X and the followup sequel Generation A.

10. Coldplay
Reflective, humble and occasionally dry witted Coldplay members Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland give a great interview while promoting their amazing new album Mylo Xyloto.

Click here to listen to the interview.

9. Stephen Dorff
Hollywood actor Stephen Dorff talks about his earlier eclectic career and his latest film Somewhere, directed by Sofia Coppola and what led him to that particular role.

8. Massive Attack
Robert “3D” Del Naja and Grant “Daddy G” Marshall sit down and talk about their new album Heligoland, their original album blue lines, how they defied the narrow confines of electronic music, the origins of the Bristol sound and the link between punk and hip hop culture.

7. M.I.A
Talks about her new album Maya, her controversial new video and her theory on the ownership of the internet, commercialism and censorship.

6. Terry Gilliam
Legendary Director of Brazil chats about his new film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, the untimely death of his star Heath Ledger, the importance of imagination, and his hatred of Hollywood executives.

5. Michael Moore
Veteran documentary filmmaker Moore hypes up his latest film Capitalism: A Love Story.

4. GZA
Wu-Tang Clan founder discusses the early days of his rapping career and the importance of hip hop as a form of self-expression to his latest album Pro Tools.

3. Billy Bob Thorton
The infamous interview that ended up with the cancellation of the tour he was attempting to promote.

2. Tricky
I have yet to read, see or hear an interview from Trip Hop legend Tricky that doesn’t inspire, provoke and fascinate. This one doesn’t disappoint either.

1. John Waters
Right up there with Tricky in my books, one of my favourite interviewees John Waters, cult film director never fails to shock with delight while promoting his latest book; Role Models.