Some people look back on past years with newspapers, photographs, Super Bowls, trophies, and bank statements. But songs are my memories; and this best-of playlist is how I will refer to 2008 (minus all those Katy Perry hits...). It was a dreadful time to make money off selling music, but a profoundly exciting time to be a fan of music. Look around, there are lots of lights shining if you look down the right alleyways. Here are 100 signs of proof, all of which I am particularly sure will glow on in my head for years more to come. If these songs are any indication, the future is a bright one. Hope you got sunglasses for it.

1. The Gaslight Anthem - '59 Sound
2. Ben Sollee - A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke cover)
3. The Fireman - Sing The Changes
4. Bon Iver - Flume (Daytrotter Sessions version)
5. Radiohead - Reckoner
6. AC/DC - Runaway Train
7. Death Cab For Cutie - Grapevine Fires
8. Coldplay - Lost!
9. Bob Dylan - Someday Baby (Alt version from Bootleg Series Vol. 8)
10. M83 - Kim & Jessie
11. JJ Grey & Mofro - Everything Good Is Bad
12. Glassjaw - You Think You're F!cking John Lennon
13. Sam Sparro - Black & Gold
14. Republic Tigers - Buildings & Mountains
15. My Morning Jacket - Touch Me Or I'm Going To Scream Part II
16. Oasis - Shock of the Lightning
17. Kings of Leon - Sex On Fire
18. Dustin Kensrue - Fairytale of New York (The Pogues cover)
19. Wilco & Fleet Foxes - I Shall Be Released (The Band cover, live performance)
20. John Mayer - Freefallin' (Tom Petty cover, live acoustic performance)
21. Bon Iver - Re: Stacks
22. Weezer - Pork & Beans
23. Conor Oberst - Moab
24. Guns 'N Roses - If The World
25. Fleet Foxes - Oliver James
26. Kanye West - Love Lockdown
27. Ryan Adams - Times Like These (Foo Fighters cover, live acoustic performance)
28. Thrice - Come All You Weary
29. The Heavy - Dignity
30. Kaiser Chiefs - Never Miss A Beat
31. The Roots feat. Wale & Chrisette Michele - Rising Up
32. Rise Against - Hero Of War
33. Good Old War - Tell Me
34. Pop Levi - Dita Dimone
35. Northstar - Chesterfield King (Jawbreaker cover)
36. One Day As A Lion - One Day As A Lion
37. Colour Revolt - What Will Come Of Us
38. Ben Sollee & Jim James - Only A Song
39. Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue
40. Beyonce - Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
41. Cold War Kids - Something Is Not Right With Me
42. David Byrne & Brian Eno - I Feel My Stuff
43. The Decemberists - Raincoat Song
44. Dead Confederates - The Rat
45. Sun Kil Moon - Lost Verses
46. Nada Surf - Beautiful Beat
47. Butch Walker - Going Back/Going Home
48. Blitzen Trapper - Furr
49. Cat Power - It Ain't Fair (Aretha Franklin cover)
50. The Airbourne Toxic Event - Sometime Around Midnight
51. The Killers - This Is Your Life
52. She & Him - You Really Got A Hold On Me (The Miracles cover)
53. Kings Of Leon - Cold Desert
54. The Raconteurs - Salute Your Salution
55. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Cobwebs
56. LCD Soundsystem - Big Ideas
57. Busta Rhymes - Don't Touch Me (Throw Da Water On 'Em)
58. Magnetic Fields - Drive On, Driver
59. Mugison - Jesus Is A Good Name To Moan
60. War On Drugs - Arms Like Boulders
61. Coldplay - Death Will Never Conquer (Live from Brixton Academy)
62. The Academy Is... - About A Girl
63. Miniature Tigers - Cannibal Queen
64. Mobius Band - I'll Keep It With Mine (Bob Dylan cover)
65. Monahans - I Run To You
66. Fratellis - A Heady Tale
67. Vampire Weekend - A-Punk
68. Santogold - L.E.S. Artist
69. Otis Redding - I've Been Loving You Too Long (Live in Paris)
70. The Black Keys - Lies
71. The Postelles - Stella
72. Santogold & Diplo - Icarus
73. Colour Revolt - Moses of the South (Daytrotter Session)
74. Cat Power - New York (cover)
75. John Mayer - Gravity (Live from Where The Light Is)
76. Rihanna - Disturbia
77. The Raveonettes - Aly, Walk With Me
78. Mercury Rev - Senses On Fire
79. The Rapture - No Sex For Ben
80. Twin Cats - The River
81. Tom Gabel - Random Hearts
82. Ben Folds - The Bitch Went Nuts (fake leak version)
83. Black Diamond Heavies - Smoothe It Out
84. Elliott Brood - Miss You Now
85. Fall Out Boy - What A Catch, Donnie
86. United Nations - Say Goodbye To General Figment Of The USS Imagination
87. Jenny Lewis - The Next Messiah
88. Estelle feat. Kanye West - American Boy
89. Jakob Dylan - Evil Is Alive And Well
90. Panic At The Disco - Nine In The Afternoon
91. Air Traffic - Come On
92. REM - Living Well Is The Best Revenge
93. Murder By Death - Fuego!
94. The Subways - Alright
95. The Ting Tings - Shut Up And Let Me Go
96. Story Of The Year - Welcome to Our New War
97. The Kooks - One Last Time
98. Minus The Bear - Ice Monster (acoustic)
99. InnerPartySystem - Last Night In Brooklyn
100. Shiny Toy Guns - Richochet

You can find many of these songs for sampling or purchasing at:
Hype Machine / eMusic / Amazon

Remember the days when video killed the radio star? Well 2008 was the year that Real World killed the video star. The last place to catch music videos on MTV was TRL, which, oops got canceled this year. And then earlier this month, the music video grave was further cemented (lol! i love the headline of the link's story) over when MTV announced that it would adding even MORE reality television programming to it's already unwatchable listings. Time's is tough!

However, music videos are fighting to live long and prosper via YouTube and quite a few slick ones turned up this year. (MTV, you are the weakest link...goodbye!) So here's some of the best music videos from 2008. But first, let's bow our heads in remembrance for MTV and all the great years of music television it gave us, because that MTV is long since dead (tho, I am a regular frequenter and enjoyer of MTV.com and it's blogs for entertainment blabble). Fire up some popcorn, sit back, and enjoy.

Radiohead - House of Cards
Last year, Radiohead released a record called "In Rainbows" without rules or a record label. This year, they made a music video without using video cameras for one of the most haunting, tormented love songs from that album. I love this band.

Weezer - Pork & Beans

A music video for the YouTubers? One of 2008's more brilliant shimmers of light.

Arcade Fire - Black Mirror
These guys & gals gave up on MTV a good while ago (oddly enough, I didn't discover this band until I caught a video of their's on MTV2 a few years back when I was in college), and did something totally nuts for their Black Mirror video. They made it a hypnotic and interactive flash website where you are in charge of how the song sounds while the video plays. Your move, Radiohead.

Vampire Weekend - A-Punk

This is another one of those fun single shot camera timing-trick flicks that are always, ALWAYS a blast to watch. Especially with the Vamps spinning around, moving like robots, changing their bright wardrobes over and over, and all kinds of other fun little tricks. Dig when the guy on the keys spins around in the fake snow round the one minute mark! Electrifying!

M83 - Kim & Jessie

Sure, I was obviously won over by that steamy, sultry half minute mark. But it helps that the rest of the video is ridiculously playful, and the song itself is one of the greatest things 2008 is responsible for.

All American Rejects - Gives You Hell
I grew tired of the 'Jects 3 minutes into what I thought was their 5 minutes of fame (I gotta hand it to them for still ticking on after all this time), and this song hasn't changed my opinion. BUT! This video rules! I can't wait for summer to roll around again so that I can get up on the lawn tractor and rock out like that. Simply brilliant.

Miniature Tigers - Cannibal Queen

This is like the Vampire Weekend video, but with a cinematic story going on too! In which a dude cuts off his limbs to make a lover out of scratch who then cheats on him with a guy who looks like Jesse Ventura that she meets on the internet. Lost? Who cares? It's sick! And speaking of sick, dig the Jesse Ventura dude shredding up the barb-wire on that guitar solo! Nasty! And what's a miniature tiger anyway? A kitten???

All in all, not a bad year for movies, was it? Whether you were digging for some monster summer blockbusters, some fresh comedy, some surprising (and incredible) acting performances, or even some snappy underground art-house flicks no one else heard of, you were bound to find something to fall in love with this year. Of course, there were reel (sic!) duds too (COUGH! crystal skulls COUGH! speed racer COUGH! day the earth stood still COUGH! prince caspian COUGH!), which provided just as much film-going fodder for us all to gather round and snark about.

So what was the best of the best of it all? You've come to the right place, because we don't discriminate here at S&H. We like pulpy underground noir. We like theater-packing, block- busting, money-raking franchise sequels (that measure up anyway). We like explosions, we like monsters, we like laughing so hard we barf our Snocaps into our popcorn. It doesn't matter what kind of movie or what kind of reviews it's getting, as long as it's a film with real, undiscriminating soul. Here at S&H, a good movie is a good movie.

And so, to join me for Scene & Heard's Best of 2008 in Film is the Ebert to my Roeper; The Mercury's own Kim Toth, who is renowned 'round these parts for her TV blog, On The Set, where she rakes her claws through the world of television, movies, and everything in between.

Lights, camera, action!

Kim Toth's Top 5 Flicks of 2008

5. WALL-E:

When I first saw the preview for this one, I thought it looked like all those cute, animated kids’ movies and immediately put it in the "rental" category. It wasn’t until it started making all the critics end-of-year lists that I finally sat down, watched it, and totally loved it! The story of a lonely Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class (WALL-E), who’s only friend is a cockroach, left behind to clean up the Earth after the humans packed up and left their wasted planet, is compelling and very well done. Appealing to both children and adults alike.

4. Cloverfield:

Yes, I’m prepared to take the heat for this choice. You either love or hate this monster flick from last January. And I loved it! I loved it so much that after watching it for free on the Internet, I actually paid with a bunch of coworkers to see it in the theater. Shot with a hand-held camera, a la Blair Witch Project, this film followed four friends trying to escape New York City after some sort of monster attack. Think 2000’s Godzilla, only much, much better! It was edge-of-your-seat entertainment from beginning to end.

3. Tropic Thunder:

In a word, Hilarious! I saw the preview ahead of Iron Man back in May and couldn’t wait for August to arrive so I could see the rest of the film. And it didn’t disappoint. Depicting the behind-the-scenes making of a "true story" of Vietnam soldiers, Tropic Thunder was by far the funniest flick of the year. Any film that puts Robert Downey Jr. in black-face and Tom Cruise in a skull cap and fat suit is OK with me. Not to mention the hilarious fake movie trailers at the beginning … I’m still hoping they make full versions of Satan’s Alley, The Fatties: Fart 2, Scorcher I-VI and, of course, Simple Jack!

2. Iron Man:

I had never heard of Tony Stark before seeing this fine flick, but the trailer was enough to hook me. The first bonafide hit of the summer, Iron Man brought back to life the career on one of my all-time fave actors. Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of Tony Stark/Iron Man along with Jon Favreau’s directing was enough to rocket this film to the top of the box office in early May. Needlesstosay I was very impressed. I highly recommend it!

1. The Dark Knight:

While this film has made just about every critic’s Best Of list, none of them have the nerve to make it No. 1, opting instead for the obligatory serious films, i.e. Slumdog Millionaire, Gran Torino or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (all of which, to be fair, I haven’t seen yet). But in the words of this flick’s villain The Joker, I ask, "Why So Serious?" The second of director Chris Nolan’s Batman movies, The Dark Knight was more than just a comic book film. It was easily the most anticipated movie of the year and featured a great story, spot on special effects and some of the best performances of the year. It’s made nearly a billion dollars worldwide and tops the Box Office for 2008, with barely any competition. And, of course, it features what is possibly the best performance of the late Heath Ledger’s career. I would never have thought that anyone could best Jack Nicholson’s Joker in Tim Burton’s Batman, but he more than managed. If you see one film this year, make it The Dark Knight.

And the Best of the Worst:
Speed Racer! I was sooo looking forward to this film, being a huge fan of the popular TV cartoon. And I was sooooo disappointed!! Wachowski Bros, what happened? How could you take such a great premise and turn it into an explosion of purple and pink computer generated effects, ruining my cherished memories of Speed, Trixie, Spridle, Chim Chim and Pops. Not to mention giving Sparky the Queer Eye! Awful, just awful! Be warned …

Chris March's Top 5 Films of 2008

5. Wall-E

I have to echo Kim's sentiments on this Disney/Pixar number. Could I be as so bold as to say this movie is the greatest love story of the 21st century? It is. Not only does our little metal trash compacting hero win over the heart of fellow robot EVE, but also the hearts of the humans he encounters stranded in space, and the hearts of us watching at home, in a truly captivating way. This little lovable pixelated robot is undoubtedly the most inspiring character of 2008, urging everyone to get back to where they once belonged. It's as political as it is comedic as it entertaining as it is brilliant as it is original.

4. Iron Man

Funny how we can sit here in this decrepit state of American economy and say that 2008 was the year for billionaire superheros, and that we spent a lot of cash on films about them. The Dark Knight's Bruce Wayne easily took the upper hand at the box office, but Downey Jr.'s entertaining turn as Tony Stark instantly made him one of our favorite new characters to cheer on in one of the year's funnest films to watch. Batman may have won this round, but if the end of Iron Man is any indication, Stark hasn't even rolled his sleeves up yet, and the future of Marvel films (Iron Man 2, Captain America, Thor, The Avengers) is brighter than it is 'dark'.

3. Be Kind, Rewind

I'll admit, it was a little weird to watch a movie about a VHS tape rental store in 2008. But this cute little Michel Gondry comedy is more than just an ode to analog culture (and some great films from the 80s and 90s like Ghostbusters, Back To The Future, etc); it's a reminder that any ol' body can do any ol' thing. It's also a sharp thumbing of the nose to the many people out there who are full of crap, armed with contracts, guidelines, and laws who will tell you that you can't do something. My kind of movie.

2. Zack & Miri Make A Porno

The reason Kevin Smith movies (particularly ones that include a word like "porno" in the title) get a bad rep, is because people generally have trouble looking past the skin and bones (pun soooo intended here) of what he's doing. On the surface, this romantic comedy is a romping raunch-fest of smut that reaaaaaally pushes the bounds of what a "R" rating stands for these days. While I haven't laughed so hard (or seen THAT many naughty parts) in a movie in a long time, it's also the sweetest movie I may have ever seen. And this is very typical of Smith's direction with his movies, not all that far from the George Carlin vein. He envelopes the greatest love stories this side of The Notebook with guys and gals who talk dirtier than your drunk uncle on Christmas. It is the perfect balance of OMGZROFLWTF! and awwwww! While Smith ditches his regular Jay & Silent Bob franchise characters, a handful of his regular actors and actresses are still here (including our fav Jason Mewes) to trade the same blend of dirty small-talk banter we're used to. Kevin Smith fans will feel right at home, and everyone else will be absolutely appalled that someone could think of crap this sick and twisted. But if you look around, the real world and it's love stories are hardly ever pretty. And with the way the economy is these days, maybe you should start thinking about making your own porno to make ends meet too. Kevin Smith's best yet, and the romantic comedy of the year (in the worst way).

1. The Dark Knight

You're fooling yourself if you think this movie is the number 2 grossing film of all time for just a reason or two. It's not just a movie, it's a symphony. There is so much meat packed into this thing, that there is just too much for anyone to devour in one sitting. You can read into the philosophy and real-world political undertones of terrorism, corruption, and politics; you can ogle at some of the slickest and sickest action sequences ever shot; or you can sit back and watch the unfolding of some of this year's most mesmerizing performances. The late Ledger's Joker is the obvious heavy-weight, but Aaron Eckhart's maddening descent from Harvey Dent into Two-Face is the central lynch pin that holds this entire movie together, in plot and performance. And thanks to the sharp writing and execution of these performances, realism in a fantasy movie doesn't get more menacing than this. A movie this intricate and bloated could EASILY go completely down the toilet. But in the visionary hands of director Christopher Nolan, it is undoubtedly the definitive movie, not just of 2008, but of the times we live in. Watch Dent's press conference when he promises "the dawn is coming." In these somewhat dark times where we all have something negative to say about the world around us, Dent's words are more than the promise of hope that we need, but the hope we deserve.

Honorable Mention: Cloverfield, The Incredible Hulk, In Bruges, Tropic Thunder.

The Movies That Look Like They Could Stand A Shot At This List If I Had Seen Them, But I Didn't
That title should be explanatory enough.

Choke--The gloriously twisted novel by Chuck Palahniuk was fantastic, so why wouldn't a movie adaption starring Sam Rockwell be awesome?
The Wrestler--Mickey Rourke as a washed up wrestler still holding onto his lifelong dream of becoming a star? I am SO sold. I was close to putting it on the best of list without even seeing it.
Cadillac Records--Well, you know me and music movies. Plus Mos Def as Chuck Berry? Oh, that's glorious.
Gran Torino--When Clint Eastwood plays a car-loving badass, it usually makes for an instant classic. So really, it's just simple math. When he says "Get off my lawn" holding a shotgun in the trailer, a chill shoots right up my little ol' spine.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button--Well the premise is pretty sweet. David Fincher directs a Forest Gump-like film about a man who ages backwards. Actually, I was supposed to see this last night, but our car sprung a flat on the way, so fate kept this from making or not making the best of 2008 list.