My Favorite Things: April
My Favorite Things is a monthly segment where I share my personal and current favorites in seasonal products, health & beauty, food, decor, movies, TV, and more. I hope you enjoy these personal picks!
Movies
Held Up
While they’re on holiday in the US Southwest, Rae finds out her man Michael spent their house money on a classic car. She promptly dumps him and hitches a ride to Vegas for a flight home. A young thug then steals Michael’s car, leaving him at the `Zip and Sip’, a convenience store, just as three bumbling robbers stage a hold up. Two take off with the cash, stranding the third with a mysterious crate just as the police arrive.
I haven’t laughed this hard while watching a movie in a while. Watching Held Up made me long for comedy of the 90/2000s in this buddy comedy-style fim. It’s very silly and uses a lot of tropes, adding the tounge-in-cheek humor in much of the dialogue and action scenes. If you’re looking for a film that is lighthearted and not serious at all I would give this movie a watch.
Sinners
Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their Mississippi hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.
There is so many layers to this film from the cinematography, metaphors, and dialogue. While I was firmly glued to the screen in the theater along with the rest of the crowd, this is a film you can re-watch and still catch smaller details you may have missed the first watch. Sinners is one of my top movies of 2025 and I think Coogler did a fantastic job of encapsulating so much in this piece. I enjoyed the action-packed scenes, supernatural effects, and the commentary on race and cultural diaspora. The film as its been described by critics is a solid blend of Horror and Historical Realism. A recommended must watch!
TV
I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss
When her engagement to the prince ends unceremoniously, details of the young noblewoman Aileen’s past life come rushing back and help her realize she’s living inside the world of one of her favorite otome games—as the heroine’s greatest rival! However, her memory has more plot holes than bad fan fiction… and the only certainty is that if she doesn’t do something quick, her death is all but assured. The hero/main-love-interest can’t be relied on, so why not see what the last boss has to say?
Though a short anime, I’m taking my time weaving through the episodes of this show because its just a fun time! It feels like a mixture of a isekai anime and otome game come to life. While I don’t think it brings anything new to this sub-genre of anime, I recommend it for those who like more lighthearted, fantasy shows. Aileen makes for a hilarious villaness and it’s been interesting to watch her character growth over the course of the story.
YouTube
The Price of Admission
This news story tries to answer the question of “Why are concert tickets so expensive and so frustratingly hard to get?” Brook Silva-Braga spent a year talking to artists, fans, scalpers, and executives from Ticketmaster and StubHub in search of answers and what he found was eye-opening. It was so disgusting to hear these scalpers be interviewed and try to rationalize that everyone still has a fair shot at getting concert tickets when they clearly have a major advantage.
Music
Coffee by A!ka
I discovered this light, fun pop song through social media. It’s a catchy song with lyrics of falling in love. I love that social platforms keep introducing me artists like A!ka, who is a rookie artist.
L.I.S.A. by Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes
I’ve been busy creating my own playlists on Spotify and one I’ve been invested is based on Women in Hip-Hop. Lisa was not only a creative driving force and integral part of TLC , but also stood out as an artist on her own. I’ve been enjoying this track from her album, Eye Legacy, which was released in 2009.
What are some of your favorite things from April? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.
