Summer Millennial Movies to Watch

Despite the gorgeous weather that’s soon to come (hopefully!), the movie theater will still be a second home to us all. There’s a reason the summer season is commonly referred to as Blockbuster season. So prepare to be informed about some of the movies you should be watching. Of course, they’ll all include the lives of millennials… because that’s what I do!

Allow me to be your millennial movie spiritual guide:

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (May 20th)

I’m crossing my fingers that this follow-up will be even better than the first! I’m a sucker for an inappropriate comedy about wild college kids (i.e. me last year) starring toned babe, Zac Efron and Chloe Grace Moretz. Two amazing millennial hotties doing just about anything for laughs sounds right up our alley! Check out the Seth Rogen-Rose Byrne comedy for some nasty fun (P.S. Selena Gomez is in on the action, too).

Me Before You (June 3rd)

Starring the ultra gorgeous pair of Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games franchise) and Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones‘ resident dragon mother), the film adaptation of Jojo Moyes’ tearjerking British romance will have us all swooning. Filled with inspirational notes about following your heart, never settling and tackling every day with vigor, Me Before You is set to become a romantic classic.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (July 8th)

Yes, I’ve included Zac Efron on this short list twice, because we need him in our lives! Plus we get a huge helping of Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect), Aubrey Plaza (the genius of Parks and Recreation‘s April is still on my brain) and Workaholics‘ Adam DeVine. I can’t wait for this raunchy comedy full of 20-somethings behaving as badly as we’d all like to. Is it bad that I hope to score some tips for the next wedding I attend?

Cafe Society (July 29th)

Woody Allen’s latest brings together a smattering of the millennial stars to watch: Kristen Stewart, Blake Lively and Jesse Eisenberg. Although I’m never quite sure what I think of Jesse Eisenberg, he plays a 20-something attempting to make it in Hollywood during the 1930s. Perhaps we’ll get some advice about our own attempts to climb the perilous employment ladder. They’ve always told us that we must learn from history or be doomed to repeat it….

Rachel Bloom is the Millennial Idol We Need

Rachel Bloom, the genius behind the whimsical, musical and delightfully uncomfortable Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, is and should be a hero to us all.

Originally developed for Showtime, Bloom’s manic and wonderful musical comedy found a surprising home at the CW. As a solid programming partner for Golden Globe winner, Jane the Virgin, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend has found a small but vocal fan base, that includes many TV critics (the show has a 96% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes):

“The CW has made exactly the right kind of show—nichey, meta, aware that it can’t please everyone—for our TV-over-saturated age.” – Slate

“This is a ridiculously high level of difficulty for any new show, which makes it all the more miraculous that Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, like its heroine, has such eccentric, slow-build charisma.” – New Yorker‘s Pulitzer Prize winner Emily Nussbaum

“This is a show about willing yourself, even past reason, to hope. Amid an overly cautious fall crop of network series, it could just be crazy enough to work.” – The New York Times

Although Bloom won a Golden Globe for depicting Rebecca Bunch—the musically inclined West Covina, California transplant, the comedy has had trouble finding viewers. I personally don’t understand why so few people are watching Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, as it’s easily the most inventive and original show on network television. But in spite of the low ratings, it scored a second season renewal.  

Now that we have some background, let’s explore why Rachel Bloom is the millennial icon we need. But first, watch this video she made in 2010:

Bloom is 29—prime millennial age. Her character Rebecca is nearly the same age and has unfortunately learned that succeeding in a career—which is what millennials are told to do—isn’t enough to find happiness. Rebecca works at a fancy New York law firm, makes more money than she needs and is helplessly miserable. She latches onto the idea of moving to West Covina, California after a chance encounter with her high school sweetheart, the glorious Josh Chan.

Somewhat following in the footsteps of Girls‘ Lena Dunham and Broad City‘s Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer, Bloom is fearlessly body positive and insanely hilarious. Whether in a creepy, nonsensical or self-deprecating way, Rachel Bloom/Rebecca Bunch is unapologetically herself. She’s also sex positive (there’s a song about UTIs) with a hint of neuroticism exactly like the best of us:

Rachel is overeducated (like all of us), has aspirations of stardom that she knows she’ll never attain (“reach for the stars” isn’t realistic) and she finds comfort in friendship when her familial bonds let her down.

Pretty much the woman is a superhero. Plus she’s been working toward this for years. Bloom has created insanely wonderful and ridiculous YouTube music videos that need to be consumed immediately.

So please allow this to be a reminder to catch up on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend at your earliest convenience and to revel in the success of our millennial counterparts!

Oops! Millennials Ruined Something, Again

This just in: the stereotypical millennial traveler is causing a hotel room transformation.

According to Mashable, who snatched it from the Associated Press, hotels are redesigning hotel rooms in accordance with the minimalism seemingly preferred by millennials. With 20-something businessmen actively avoiding their hotel rooms, expensive room service and basic cable, hotels are reportedly investing in less furniture for each room.

“Younger travelers, hotels note, just want a clean and efficient space to stay. They spend less time in rooms and like to socialize and work in vibrant lobbies with a sense of community,” writes Mashable via the AP.

Sounds about right. Despite any claim that young people are disconnected, millennials tend to locate bars (for alcohol) and restaurants (for food) nearby rather than lounge around a dull hotel room.

 

Seasoned or older travelers aren’t as enthusiastic about the hotel changes which include Marriott’s desk removal, Best Western Vib’s headboard that doubles as a desk and Hilton Tru’s lack of closets. The traditional hotel room is no longer the comforting home away from home, but a spacious hole with hooks for clothes and showers instead of baths.

Instead of millennial blame, Mashable sneakily adds that hotels are cutting costs by taking those design shortcuts. I think the cheaper cost might be the cause but it’s a bit easier for hotel spokespeople to link their nonsense to the oft-bemoaned millennial.

Thoughts?

Images via GIPHY

 

The Millennial Revolution is Coming

It shouldn’t come as a shock that the coming election is making an appearance on iWhatever. As a disclaimer, I’ll admit that I’m not as informed as others or, perhaps, as I should be about the election and all the madness surrounding it. But it’s time to address the incessant articles and chatter about the millennial vote and how it will impact the candidates.

It doesn’t take a genius or the consensus of media outlets to conclude that millennials, as an entire generation, lean heavily toward the democratic candidates. The discussion is now focused on whether the stereotypical 20-something will vote for Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders.

According to Derek Thompson of The Atlantic, the Liberal Millennial Revolution is coming November 2016. It will mark the first election where Generation Y (i.e. millennials, iWhatever, etc.) will have relatively the same amount of voters as the Baby Boomers. So what will our generation do with its newfound power?

Keeping that question in mind, Thompson also asks, “Why are young people so liberal; what’s behind their revolutionary spirit; and how close are they to ushering in a true liberal political revolution?”

He claims there are three reasons for our liberal tendencies:

1. We are young, and young people tend to be leftist.
2. Our generation is more diverse and historically, minorities lean left.
3. We are more liberal than our parents, especially when it concerns gay rights, immigration and marijuana.

Thompson also smartly added that the Great Recession affected millennials more than any other group, and that we have been taught that jobs are waiting for those with college degrees, which couldn’t be farther from the truth.

So are millennials about to revolutionize the election and create some social change? Ultimately that has yet to be proven. Thompson and The Atlantic‘s primary argument is that young voters tend to avoid the voting booths and our liberal stance might not mean anything if we don’t show up to cast our votes for the future leader of the U.S.

What you should take away from that lengthy article and my dissection of it, is that millennials have the opportunity to make our presence known and our voices heard in November and at the primaries. So why wouldn’t we show up?

Let this be your reminder to vote and make your supposedly extremely liberal stance known!

Read the entire Atlantic article.

Images via GIPPHY

Do We All Have “Microships?”

Any conversation about millennial media must include Elite Daily. The site was created for the exact purpose to give millennials a website full of opinions, condensed news and over-sharing sex stories. Honestly, that’s their philosophy:

Elite Daily is millennials’ preferred platform for today’s hot issues and trending topics, from politics to dating and everything in between. We’re committed to meeting the ever-evolving needs of Generation-Y, whether that be a source of information, a good laugh, a shoulder to cry on or a place to have their voices heard.

So in honor of all the relationships we supposedly have or don’t have—depending on your sexual philosophy—let’s embrace Elite Daily‘s video about breaking up with people you aren’t actually dating. I guess they’re called “microships,” because they’re so short, unimportant and only a blip on your dating radar.

But how do we actually end one of those brief flings? That’s definitely when the unfortunate ghosting incidents occur. So I’m immensely proud of those who have an actual conversation. Thanks, Elite Daily. Good lookin’ out.

Images via GIPHY

Feb. 16: Young & Dumb

Living in New York City is an absurd cocktail of frustration, amazement and confusion. Real alone time isn’t feasible when you’re sharing an apartment with virtual strangers, but with the right song you can disconnect and get lost.

Revel in being young and capable of anything with this short playlist you never knew you needed:

Images via GIPHY

We Are All Winos

We’re a generation of wine-bingers. Grape guzzlers. Winos.

Or at least that’s what was recently unearthed by the Wine Market Council—a nonprofit group comprised of everyone involved with the wine business: growers, sellers, importers, etc.—in new research about wine consumption habits.

WMC found that there has been a millennial based surge in high frequency wine drinkers—those who drink wine multiple times a week. It estimated that those wine drinkers consume 3.1 glasses per sitting. WMC’s studies also found that millennials represent 30 percent of high frequency drinkers and that women, especially educated professionals, are more likely than men to indulge in the fermented grape.

Wine Spectator added that more than half of millennial wine drinkers mentioned the alcoholic grape juice on Facebook and used social media for “wine-sharing purposes.”

I can’t say I’m terribly surprised by any of these findings. Once the bottle is open, it’s hard to say no. Wine goes bad if you don’t drink it immediately, right?

Images via GIPHY

Millennial Shows You HAVE to Watch

20-somethings have been the subject of movies for decades and decades. That isn’t new. It isn’t an original concept to see hot 20-somethings gallivant across the screen while acting self-important, because that’s how we’ve always been written.

But recently, TV shows have begun to tackle the issues associated with being a 20-something in the tragic 2010s. I’m not sure if we’re calling it a “decade” quite yet, but it’s already 2016. I’m really liking the sound of the tragic 2010s.

These shows are for/about millennials and highlight the pressures hoisted on our generation. From a publishing assistant pretending to be a millennial to Lena Dunham’s slightly existential take on being a 20-something, all of these shows need your eyes.

Make your calendar reminders accordingly:

Broad City (Season 3) / February 17 (Comedy Central)

So much commentary, so little time. I, along with every other person in the world (slight exaggeration, maybe) wants to be Abbi and Ilana. This terrible twosome creates comedy gold from all the millennial weirdness that perpetually clouds our minds.

Love (Series Premiere) / February 19 (Netflix)

Love is awful. Couple that with millennial ennui and you’ve got a Judd Apatow comedy that’s sure to be poignant and hilarious (i.e. Trainwreck).

Girls (Season 5) / February 21 (HBO)

I will not argue that this once incredible show has slightly fallen off the rails, but the problems seem a bit more realistic this time around. Can you run away from your problems? Will we all wake up one day and wonder where our lives went? Maybe Lena Dunham does know the answer.

 Younger (Season 2) / Currently airing 10 p.m. (TV Land)

Sutton Foster is the definition of goals, and in Younger, Foster embodies Liza who is pretending to be a millennial in order to score a job. Seems counterintuitive, but alas it’s true and works perfectly. Back for season two, Younger also stars Hilary Duff and will focus on Liza’s unraveling lie.

Master of None (RENEWED) / 2017 (Netflix)

This hilarious showcase for Aziz Ansari isn’t premiering soon, but it did just receive a second season renewal which is reason enough to celebrate by binge watching the first season. Master of None is perfect and Ansari is a millennial god.

Tattoos with your Almond Milk?

Did you know that millennials are the most coveted consumer? You didn’t?

To cement that thought, Whole Foods and their new venture, 365, are hoping to capitalize by marketing  to the generation of bargain hunters and wannabe foodies.

Whole Foods Co-CEO Walter Robb spoke to Bloomberg Business about his enlightened new tactic of luring in independent businesses and product distributors to become a “Friend of 365.” Some friends 365 is courting include body product sellers, tattoo shops and record stores. See for yourself:

“Friends of 365 may be any type of business — from food and drinks to fashion, body care products, services, and more. (Record shop? Tattoo parlor? Maybe!) And each 365 store may have a different mix of friends. The more variety, the merrier!”

Ideally 365 by Whole Foods—which opens its first store in May in Los Angeles—will offer sentimental quote tattoos and vintage records alongside free-range eggs and half gallons of almond milk. It’s like Walmart but classier, am I right?

After Los Angeles, the marketplace concept will open locations in Oregon and Washington. Seems fitting that the millennial pegged idea would blossom in the West. I’ve heard everyone’s a bit freer and hipper out there…

As of now, there are no plans to expand to New York or to the city where we must anxiously wait in store-length lines at Trader Joe’s for a decently priced tomato.

Images via GIPHY

Millennials Have Values

The millennial generation might not be as focused on materialism and accumulating wealth as some might assume. According to a recent study conducted by OppenheimerFunds and Campden Research, millennials value education, gender equality and basic humans rights more than frivolous endeavors and material goods.

Can’t say I’m surprised. We’ve got all the smarts that come with too much education (grad school, anyone?):

But Forbes’ Neale Godfrey isn’t surprised either.