by Chris Feil
Happy Thanksgiving, readers! I'm reaching into the walls of The Film Experience and feeling my heart beat with nothing but gratitude. Whether it's talking about music in movies on my column Soundtracking or dishing RuPaul's Drag Race, I truly love being a part of this marvelous team and engaging with all of you lovely readers even when my sink isn't braced yet.
This year I am especially thankful for:
• My first TIFF experience. Truly a dream come true!
• Breakthrough starlets Tiffany Haddish, Daniela Vega, and Beanie Feldstein.
• Perfect line readings of snacks (see Tracy Letts's "Doritos" in Lady Bird and Michelle Pfeiffer's mother! "Lemonade!"
• Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 and Faces Places for reminding me that compassion and connection are the most transformative forces for healing.
• Colin Farrell's beard.
• Mike White for writing 2017's best line of dialogue in Beatriz at Dinner: "Try healing something. That is hard."
• Raw, Staying Vertical, and mother! for reminding me that movies can still shock me.
• Armie Hammer's dance moves. Michael Stuhlbarg's grace.
• Coco's "Remember Me".
• Oh honey Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamolodchikova honey. Hoooonnnnnneeeeyyyyy.
• Debut female filmmakers like The Lure's Agnieszka Smoczynska, Novitiate's Margaret Betts, and Raw's Julia Ducournau
• Podcasts You Must Remember This, S-Town, and Throwing Shade.
• Sally Hawkins for making me cry, Octavia Spencer for making me laugh, and Guillermo del Toro for reminding us that no one is unlovable.
• Betty Gabriel for reinventing the word "no" in Get Out.
Chris Feil lives in Columbus, Ohio. You can easily beetlejuice him into your conversations by talking about soundtracks, RuPaul's Drag Race, and WALL•E. He is remembering to notice the collateral beauty around him. Chris has also written for Paste and Decider, and sometimes also writes at filmmixtape. Follow him on Twitter!
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