This time of year is known for lots of traditions, from holiday office parties to Christmas trees and menorahs to last-minute dashes to the mall. A favorite tradition among the media is the Year in Review feature.
Who were the emerging stars, the movers and shakers, the has-beens and wanna-bes? What were the highlights, lowlights and trends? How will the year be remembered? All worthy questions ... and CityBeat offers our own answers.
YEAR IN FILM AND MUSIC
• Jason Gargano and his team of film junkies fend off the "subjective nature of Top 10 lists" and let us in on the best flicks of the year.
• Jason Gargano looks at "an intriguing, often frustrating and sometimes thrilling year at the movies."
• Mike Breen takes a "look back at the best of the year in local recordings."
• Mike Breen and his unstable stable of music writers "get all list-y on 2009's ass."
• Steven Rosen discusses how "film distribution got a shake-up via video-on-demand."
• Phil Morehart offers "a discerning list of 2009's best DVD releases."
And just because we had extra time on our hands, here are two stories offering a Decade in Review perspective:
• Mike Breen's ode to local original music: "50 reasons why real music fans were lucky to live in Cincinnati in the '00s."
• TT Stern-Enzi puts together a Top 10 list of movies of the decade: "How the decade with no name stacks up in the rearview."
YEAR IN THE ARTS
• Artist, critic and all-round creative guru Matt Morris takes "a look back at the year in alternative art spaces and exhibitions."
• Theater critic Rick Pender take us through "the ups and downs of the year in Cincinnati theater."
• Steven Rosen says that local "art museums drew crowds and big shows in ’09."
YEAR IN CINCINNATI
• Our food critic Anne Mitchell tells us the "shape of food to come" and reviews the trends of the last decade.
• Newshound Kevin Osborne tells us why "the decade’s final year in local news was nothing to celebrate."
• Columnist Larry Gross reminisces on delivering his "always excellent, often brilliant columns just about every other week in 2009."
