The Joy of Listing

I just love making lists and ranking stuff.

Category: Lists (ranked)

  • Top 10 TV shows I want more people to know about

    1. Flight of the Conchords (2007-2009)
      One of my favorite shows ever. It’s a musical comedy about two guy friends from New-Zealand who live together in NYC and are in a band together. The show features the real band’s music and it is so good and funny, that I also listen to it (a lot) completely detached from the show.
    2. Strangers with Candy (1999-2000)
      Up front: Very crude and dark humor. So if that’s not your thing, you probably won’t like it. I looove it. Amy Sedaris plays the lead: Jerri Blank, a 46-year-old former sex worker and drug addict who goes back to high school and living with her parents to get her GED.
    3. Documentary Now! (2015-2022)
      I tried multiple times to get people hooked on this show but so far I haven’t found anyone who loves it even close to as much as me. Every episode is a parody of a specific documentary or a genre of documentary (mostly it’s based on specific documentaries) and the creators/writers/main cast are all favorite former SNL cast members and writers of mine.
    4. Party Down (2009-2010, 2023)
      A very good sitcom about a catering company. Most of the main cast are people that got cast in other, more well-known shows later on. Seriously, this cast is ridiculously stacked. Every episode is centered on a different event they’re catering and the protagonist is a depressed, defeated (relatable) former actor played by Adam Scott. I love this show so so much.
    5. The Mighty Boosh (2004-2007)
      Very surreal/eccentric british comedy show about a zoo and the zookeepers and animals. The two protagonists are Howard Moon and Vince Noir. One very low-key guy played by Julian Barratt and one extremely over-the-top fashion icon sex symbol (at least for me) played by Noel Fielding. There’s also very good music in it that I still get random ear worms of despite not having seen it in many years. But keep in mind: it’s a 2000s show and not all jokes aged that well.
    6. Freaks and Geeks (1999-2000)
      One of my favorite teen shows, which says a lot because I’ve probably seen most of the genre. The cast consists mostly of people who got famous for different stuff later on (which I always love) and the show is endlessly quotable, hilarious and relatable. It’s about two cliques/subcultures of outcasts in school. The freaks (slackers/stoners) and the geeks.
    7. Portlandia (2011-2018)
      Sketch show that makes fun of hipster subcultures in general, but more specificly in Portland. Made by and starring Fred Armisen (former SNL cast member) and Carrie Brownstein (member of Sleater-Kinney). Amazing cast and guest stars and lots of music nerd references and cameos. Also one of my all-time favorite shows.
    8. Bored to Death (2009-2011)
      Great show made by Jonathan Ames (writer and more importantly Fiona Apple’s ex bf) about an alcoholic stoner, named after Jonathan Ames himself, who solves crimes and mysteries as an unlicensed private detective. Great cast also!
    9. PEN15 (2019-2021)
      Teen comedy show by Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle, who play themselves when they were 13. But the other 13-year-olds get played by actual kids which makes for a very bizarre and funny show. Some find it cringe, I find it relatable and wholesome. It’s kind of like if Broad City were about teens.
    10. My so-called Life (1994-1995)
      Coming-of-Age drama that has a peak 90s depressed grunge teen vibe (love!!!). A 14/15(?) year old Claire Danes plays the lead and it’s basically about how shitty/difficult it is to be a teenage girl.

    Honorable Mentions:

    • Lady Dynamite (2016-2017)
      By the creator of Arrested Development and starring one of my favorite stand up comedians Maria Bamford as herself. Very weird, too weird for a mainstream audience unfortunately (like a lot on this list).
    • Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015-2019)
      Musical comedy-drama show about a mentally-ill woman moving to a new city because she meets an old crush.
    • My Mad Fat Diary (2013-2015)
      British Coming-of-Age show set in the 90s about a teenage girl who gets released from a mental hospital at the beginning of the show. Great (and sadly very rare) mental health AND fat girl representation. If you liked Skins you might like this, too.
    • United States of Tara (2009-2011)
      A Show by my fav Diablo Cody (Juno, Jennifer’s Body, etc.) about a mother of two who has DID. Toni Collette plays the lead (very well, as usual) and Aidan from SATC plays her husband. She’s really flexing her acting skills in this one.
    • Sugar Rush (2005-2006)
      British teen show about a closeted lesbian who’s in love with her straight best friend (we’ve all been there). It’s about her family struggles, coming out as queer and just being a fucked up teenager. It’s also set in Brighton, which I like.
      Also very similar vibe to Skins.
    • Girls 5 eva (2021-2024)
      Musical comedy series about former members of a 90s girl group who reunite in their 30s/40s. Good cast, vibes and music. Sadly got cancelled last year. 😭


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  • My Top 10 favorite “chick flicks”

    Chick flicks are movies that are marketed towards women, mostly romantic comedies or sappy love stories.
    They’re often (falsely) regarded as lowbrow entertainment.
    I grew up loving the whole genre and had a huge collection, first on VHS then DVD. But when I was a teenager I started feeling insecure about how much I loved them. I wanted to be seen by others as a respectable cinephile with impeccable taste, so I started hiding all of my DVDs that I thought were embarrassing or uncool inside of a secret drawer and a few years later I just gave all of them away. 🥲
    In recent years I’ve started buying all the same ones I used to have again whenever I see them at thrift stores and I’m happy to say my collection is slowly growing back to its original size. \o/

    For me teen movies are a separate genre so I’ve excluded them on this list. I’ve also excluded Jane Austen adaptations. There are just so many that I love and I didn’t want them to take up all the space.

    1. The First Wives Club (1996)
    2. 13 going on 30 (2004)
    3. Heartbreakers (2001)
    4. Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001)
    5. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
    6. Ever After (1998)
    7. 500 Days of Summer (2009)
    8. Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997)
    9. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
    10. Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

    Honorable Mentions: Moonstruck (1987), Joe Versus the Volcano (1990), Jumping Jack Flash (1986), My Best Friend’s Wedding (1997), Legally Blonde (2001),
    Uptown Girls (2003), What Women Want (2000)

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  • My Top 10 Favorite One-Time Directors

    Movies I liked/loved by people who for some reason only ever made one feature film.

    I don’t count movies like “Sorry to bother you” or “Aftersun”, because they came out not that long ago and I’m pretty sure the directors are going to end up making some more films.

    The idea for this list came from my friend Katja (shoutout!)

    1. Gen Sekiguchi – Survive Style 5+ (2004)

      This is one of my all time favorite movies and I’m so sad that the director never made another one. It is complete perfection in my opinion and I recommend it a lot to friends because it’s relatively obscure and I want more people to know about it.
      Aesthetically incredible beautiful and artsy, very original, sweet, sad at times, funny!!! This movie has it all.
    2. David Byrne – True Stories (1986)

      David Byrne is not only a musical genius but also a really great director and I find it very unfortunate that he never got back into filmmaking. The movie is very very pretty, well written, funny, original. You can really see how detail-oriented this guy is because every little thing in it is just perfect.
      Highly recommend!
    3. Matthew Ryan Hoge – United States of Leland (2003)

      Also one of my favorite movies and my favorite performance of Ryan Gosling, who plays the lead.
      The movie is underrated in my opinion (3.3 average on Letterboxd) and also not really well-known despite having an absurdly stacked cast (Kevin Spacey, Don Cheadle, Jena Malone, Martin Donovan, Michelle Williams).
      I really related to the movie when I was a teen and it still touched me very deeply when I recently rewatched it.
      But TW: the premise is that a teen boy kills a disabled kid and no one knows his motive. And the film empathises with the killer and doesn’t straight up frame him as an evil monster.
    4. Bo Burnham – Eighth Grade (2018)

      This movie was made during Bo Burnham’s hiatus from stand up in between “Make Happy” and “Inside”. His anxiety had gotten really bad and he felt unable to perform in front of an audience. The idea behind the movie was him channeling all that anxiety into a story about a teenage girl who’s also anxious constantly and that idea really paid off. I’ve watched it multiple times now and I’m still stunned every time that this movie was made by an adult man. It feels so authentic.
      There is one scene in it (I won’t spoil it) that I think every guy should watch to truly get how fucking scary it is to be a girl.
    5. Yoshifumi Kondo – Whisper of the Heart (1995)

      This is one of my favorite Studio Ghibli movies and I only just recently found out that the director was set out to be next star director for the studio, but sadly passed away only a few years after making the movie. He had worked on many Ghibli movies before but this was his first time directing.
    6. Jessica Sharzer – Speak (2004)

      A really great film adaptation of an amazing young adult novel. When I first watched the film I was so taken with it that I had to read the book right after, which for me always is the most obvious sign of a successful adaptation.
      It features a teenaged Kristen Stewart as the lead and her acting in this is incredible. Probably my favorite role of hers.
      The story is about sexual trauma (so big trigger warning!), but you don’t really know what exactly happened for most of it. It deals with the subject by showing the effects, the feelings and behavior of someone who went through trauma and is overwhelmed with having to deal with the aftermath.
      One of the best movies about this subject in my opinion.
    7. John Swayback – The Big Kahuna (1999)

      This film is based on a play whose writer also wrote the screenplay. It’s a chamber play (small cast, set in one place during a small time frame) which I looove in movies.
      The 3 important characters are played by Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito and Peter Facinelli (the vampire dad in Twilight).
      It’s basically just long philosophical discussions about life and work between two older, very jaded guys and one young guy who’s very naive and optimistic. I really like this movie.
    8. Chris Blum – Big Time (1988)

      Great concert movie from the 80s about Tom Waits.
      It’s one of the best concert movies I’ve seen and there’s a lot of effort put in for it to be original and interesting.
      And the sets are really cool looking.
      Would recommend to any fans of Tom Waits’ music.
    9. Nicholas Jasenovec – Paper Heart (2009)

      This is not the best movie ever, but it’s really cute and romantic and features cool animation throughout.
      It’s a mockumentary about the comedian/actor Lo Mutuc, who also wrote the script (You might know them by a different name. They are out as genderfluid now but the movie came out before) searching for love and interviewing random people about their relationships and experiences with finding love. They end up meeting Michael Cera (also playing himself) and they like each other and start dating. Mutuc and Cera play fictionalised versions of themselves and the director is played by Jake Johnson (Nick from New Girl) which is very random, but the interviews about love are all real afaik.
    10. Drew Barrymore – Whip it (2009)

      Cute coming of age movie about a roller derby team featuring Elliot Page in the main role. It’s also not the best in my opinion but worth a watch if you like Elliot Page, roller derby or the aesthetics of 2000s coming-of-age indie movies.

    Honorable Mention: Gabriel Sunday – Hi, How Are You Daniel Johnston? (2015)

    I unfortunately couldn’t put it on the list because it’s a short film but it’s probably my favorite short film ever made.
    It’s about and starring Daniel Johnston, one of my favorite musicians and artists, who sadly passed away since it came out.
    It is really really well done and features the singer Soko in a small role. There is also a beautiful cover of “Some things last a long time” sung by Lana Del Rey in it, that was recorded just for the movie.
    Both Mac Miller and her contributed a lot of money to the kickstarter campaign that funded the movie.
    It’s only 15 minutes and you can find it on YouTube.

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  • Top 10 most impressive directorial debuts

    I only count feature films. Most directors make short films early in their careers but they don’t really count as their debut to me.

    Also I didn’t rank the films only on how much I like them but on how impressive of a feat it is in my opinion to have a movie that is that well crafted in all regards and that has such universal appeal to be your first movie. (so some movies that are a more acquired taste are ranked lower even though I love them the most)

    It is crazy to me that all of these movies were someone’s first try at making feature films. The first 10 are obvious 10/10s to me.

    1. Past Lives (Celine Song, 2023)
    2. Get Out (Jordan Peele, 2017)
    3. American Beauty (Sam Mendes, 1999)
    4. The Virgin Suicides (Sofia Coppola, 1999)
    5. Aftersun (Charlotte Wells, 2022)
    6. Whiplash (Damien Chazelle, 2014)
    7. Blood Simple (Coen Brothers, 1984)
    8. Pride and Prejudice (Joe Wright, 2005)
    9. Me and You and Everyone We Know (Miranda July, 2005)
    10. Go Fish (Rose Troche, 1994)

    Honorable Mentions:

    Hard Eight (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1996)
    Garden State (Zach Braff, 2004)
    Brick (Rian Johnson, 2005)
    Sorry to bother you (Boots Riley, 2018)
    Lady Bird (Greta Gerwig, 2017)
    Shiva Baby (Emma Seligman, 2020)
    Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (Tim Burton, 1985)

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  • Top 10 lists I’m currently working on

    Contrary to popular belief (jk) I actually work on my lists most days but most of them have like 3 things on them because I could only think of those 3 in the moment and then forgot about the list or abandoned it for a newer one that was easier to write. Or it’s a movie ranking list but I haven’t rewatched some of the films in so long that I feel like I need a fresh rewatch to make sure they are actually as good as I remember them to be.
    Or the list has a sad subject and I feel like posting too many of the sad ones would make me look too weird and off-putting or it feels too vulnerable and revealing, so I just don’t do it.

    So I have dozens of lists in the drafts that I will get around to finishing/posting some day. If you like a particular idea especially please tell me. Maybe it’ll help motivate me to finish and/or post it.

    1. Top 10 90s teen movies (drama/horror edition)
    2. Rating and Ranking all the popsicles + ready-made ice cream cones and sandwiches I’ve eaten recently
    3. Anna’s HOT TAKES: Top 10 Underrated Movies I love
    4. Top 10 guilty pleasure/so bad they’re good movies
    5. Top 10 best TV shows of the 2020s (so far)
    6. Sad Songs about Parties and Celebrations
    7. Top 10 movies that are just people having deep talks
    8. Top 10 movies about mentally ill people finding love
    9. Top 10 celebrity relationships I am obsessed with
    10. Top 10 masturbation scenes in movies

    Honorable Mentions:

    Top 10 movie soundtracks
    Top 10 favorite proms in movies
    Top 10 heartbreak songs
    Top 10 favorite Miniseries
    My Ranking of the spider man movies
    Top 10 makeover scenes in movies

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  • My Top 10 favorite and least favorite housewives from the Real Housewives franchise

    I’ve seen almost all episodes of RHOBH, RHOC, RHONY and multiple seasons each of RHOA, RHONJ and RHOSLC. So if there are amazing or terrible housewives in other shows of the franchise or later seasons they are not intentionally excluded, I just don’t know them enough.

    Some choices might seem a bit random.
    My favs are mostly ranked on how entertaining they are without being so evil that I completely hate them as people. (obviously they’re all kind of terrible people and behave extremely mean in their respective shows, but I still like their personalities)

    My least favorites are all either so evil/mean that I’ve lost all sympathy (Tamra) or unlikeable/pretentious/pick mes in a way that’s infuriating to me (Carole) or just so boring that they made their seasons worse imo (Teddi+Eileen).

    TOP 10 favorite:

    1. Sonja Morgan (RHONY seasons 3-13)
    2. Lisa Rinna (RHOBH season 5-12)
    3. Kathy Hilton (friend of the Housewives, RHOBH seasons 11+12)
    4. Dorinda Medley (RHONY seasons 7-12)
    5. Erika Girardi a.k.a. Erika Jayne (RHOBH seasons 6-14)
    6. Nene Leakes (RHOA seasons 1-7, 10-12)
    7. Kim Richards (RHOBH seasons 1-5)
    8. Bethenny Frankel (RHONY seasons 1-3, 7-11)
    9. Brandi Glanville (RHOBH seasons 3-5)
    10. Gretchen Rossi (RHOC seasons 4-8)

    TOP 10 least favorite:

    1. Tamra Judge (RHOC seasons 3-14, 17-19)
    2. Teddi Mellencamp (RHOBH seasons 8-10)
    3. Carole Radziwell (RHONY seasons 5-10)
    4. Adrienne Maloof (RHOBH seasons 1-3)
    5. Kelly Bensimon (RHONY seasons 2-4)
    6. Eileen Davidson (RHOBH seasons 5-7)
    7. Kyle Richards (RHOBH seasons 1-14)
    8. Leah McSweeney (RHONY seasons 12-13)
    9. Dorit Kempsley (RHOBH seasons 7-14)
    10. Lisa Vanderpump (seasons 1-9)

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  • Top 10 Most Perfect Songs according to me

    Okay, so I know my choices might seem a bit random at first. But if you’d listen to them you’d find that they all have a certain vibe that is very…me. This is what perfect music is supposed to be (for me). The songs all hit just the right spot between melancholy and sweetness without being too depressing to enjoy while in a good mood, they all have amazing lyrics and at least 3 are featured on movie soundtracks that I love (which gives them a bonus positive association for me at least). Can anyone guess the movies? 👀
    They are songs that I never get tired of despite having listened to most of them hundreds of times since I was a teenager.
    Also I truly believe that most of them are just objectively amazing and that I could show them to random people (with good taste) and they’d all have a Zach Braff in Garden State moment.

    Also, full transparency: this is not really a new list, it’s based on a spotify playlist I made 1 1/2 years ago. I just picked my 10 favs and ranked them. Here’s the link if you wanna see the rest:
    https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2Ow5COoIaBfc9gBUGSOyAV

    1. Still Beating by Mac DeMarco
    2. Paper Bag by Fiona Apple
    3. Drivin’ on 9 by The Breeders
    4. Death of a Disco Dancer by The Smiths
    5. Ich mach meinen Frieden mit euch by Tocotronic
    6. These Days by Nico
    7. The Time is Now by Moloko
    8. The Moon Song by Karen O
    9. Always See Your Face by Love
    10. Dirty Mouth by Alice Phoebe Lou

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  • My Top 10 Favorite (savory) Dishes

    1. Vegetarian Schinkenfleckerl
    2. Homemade extra spicy Tteokbokki with soft boiled eggs and pickled radish
    3. Jjajangmyeon (Noodles in blackbean sauce)
    4. Christmas dinner (vegan duck or ham, potato dumplings, gravy, brussel sprouts, cranberry sauce, etc.)
    5. Grilled ham and cheese with lots of cheese and lots of ketchup (like too much kind of)
    6. Spinach lasagna
    7. Neapolitan pizza
    8. Kimchi scallion udon noodles with egg yolks
    9. Kraft Instant Mac and Cheese (don’t judge!!)
    10. “Der Held” burger from Peter Pane (veggie chicken burger with guac and mango salsa) and their mushroom fries with extra truffle mayo

    Honorable Mentions: most korean food and most pasta dishes, also most kinds of dumplings.

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  • Top 10 loser girl representation in movies

    If you know of more (good) movies that fit the description please tell me. It’s like one of my favorite genres. I love loser girls. They make me feel seen. <3

    The main girl(s) needs to be really unpopular/bullied and socially awkward in a school setting or grown up and a real fuck-up who can’t get their shit together resulting in their life falling apart.
    Bonus if they still live with their parents and have max. 1 friend and fail to date anyone (successfully).

    1. Muriels Wedding
    2.Welcome to the Dollhouse
    3. May
    4. Frances Ha.
    5. Ghost World
    6. Young Adult
    7. Eighth Grade
    8. Shiva Baby
    9. Drop Dead Fred
    10. Bottoms


    Honorable Mentions: Fleabag (if you count the pro-shot of the play as a movie), Booksmart, Dinner in America and Ingrid goes West.

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  • My Top 10 Favorite 90s teen movies (fun)

    I have decided to make 2 separate lists for 90s teen movies, one fun and one serious, because I just love them all so much I couldn’t fit them into one.

    1. Rushmore (1998)
    2. 10 things I hate about you (1999)
    3. But I’m a Cheerleader (1999)
    4. Dazed and Confused (1993)
    5. The Doom Generation (1995)
    6. Election (1999)
    7. Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999)
    8. She’s all that (1999)
    9. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
    10. Jawbreaker (1999)

    Honorable Mentions: Clueless (1995), Can’t Hardly Wait (1998), Dick (1999), The Opposite of Sex (1998), American Pie (1999)

    (Most of the honorable mentions are guilty pleasures because of how problematic and/or stupid they are, so please don’t judge me too harshly for how much I love them)

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