Young STAR's favorite movies, TV, books, and music of 2024

Thank you, Over October and Josh, for the reminder that John and his love for life and those he knew will live on. – Maia Marquez 

Eusexua by FKA twigs

2024 may have been a tumultuous year, but I gotta admit it also gave us some of the best music produced in this decade thus far—both in sonic caliber and cultural significance. I’m just as obsessed as the next folk with Charli xcx’s mainstream breakthrough brat, Chappel Roan’s rip-roaring pop anthems, and even BINI’s P-Pop-defining releases this year. But, I must say, FKA twigs’ new track Eusexua takes the cake for me.

A term twigs adapted from the Greek word “euphoria,” relating to a state of intense excitement and happiness, “eusexua” is the feeling of being alive in a way so visceral you just "never knew how to put the words to it,” the promotional teaser declares. “(It’s the) feeling right before an orgasm (that creates) something without using the generally available language—the thing that makes me feel alive.” The track renders the same effect, featuring twigs’ raspy vocals accentuating the life-giving dance-banger beats and synths that send one into an adrenaline rush. Not to mention that the ‘90s nostalgia-induced aesthetic of the music video—complete with twigs’ choreography—is a visual feast.

This year my life has felt like I was being pulled into thousands of directions all at once: dealing with pre-graduation jitters as a college senior, navigating my artistic practice, and moving to Tokyo and back to Manila. These have left my body exhausted physically, but as Eusexua shows us, our bodies can move, evolve, transform, and transcend if we dare to embrace our inner sensuality. I am deeply thankful to dance and let loose to this techno-banger. It’s not quite love. It’s eusexua. – AJ Raymundo 

who knows? by sci fye 

From unmarked CDs in paper sleeves given out at Mow's, I've watched sci fye transform their rough demos into rhinestones. I've had the privilege of witnessing their sound evolve—both as a friend and a fan.

Their EP who knows? dropped on Oct. 4 and quickly became the soundtrack to my daily rituals. Each song walks with me through the city: accompanying my journey home from school, matching train rhythms, and bouncing off shower walls. It's in the details where their ingenuity shines through: That cough-turned-snare in Magulang hits so hard it'll have you pulling a stank face. The music has woven itself into the fabric of my days, each song a familiar friend that never overstays its welcome. No filler—just pure gold that grows richer with every play.

Among this year's releases, local and international, this EP towers above all in my collection. There's magic captured here that exceeds its individual elements. Who knows where this journey leads, but this EP is the start of something extraordinary, and you need to be here for it. – Elisha Ruiz 

Movies

Alipato at Muog (dir. JL Burgos)

This powerful documentary by JL Burgos looks into the case of the filmmaker’s brother Jonas, an activist and peasant advocate, who was abducted by four suspected military men and a woman in 2017. More than a record of the Burgos family’s frustrating search for the activist marked by disobliging key officials, the film brings to the fore the sore hopelessness of the Philippine justice system and numerous other cases of enforced disappearances. What struck me the most about this film is that it bore witness to the aging of their mother, Edita, who, in the last 17 years, has longed for the return of her son. 

Previously censored and given the X rating by MTRCB, Alipato at Muog unravels the reverberating grief that haunts the loved ones in the aftermath of politically motivated disappearances. It’s a fitting must-watch as we witness the exasperating Senate inquiry on the war on drugs. – AJ Raymundo 

Shows 

Nobody Wants This 

A friend told me to get on this show because I'd love it for the banter. I watched the first few minutes of the pilot and was instantly hooked – because more than just the banter, I was drawn to how natural the story felt.

While I know it was based on a true story and the evolution of my love life doesn't have the same inter-religious differences involved, I still resonated with it because of its “second chance at love” narrative. Though it isn't explicitly said in the show, Joanne and Noah are portrayed to be a bit older than the typical student-aged or new-to-the-workforce couple we often see in film and TV.

The maturity seen in how they approach their situation, despite their differences, has made it evident to me that real love, no matter your differences, need not be as complicated or messy as I expected it to be. And while love had come to me a little later than I'd hoped, I'm assured that it came at the best time—when I was most open to and ready for it—and that overall, love can be easy. – Maia Marquez 

Culinary Class Wars 

I’m a sucker for competition shows, and South Korea does theirs on a whole other level. Culinary Class Wars is like Physical 100 but for cooking. They take 100 of their best chefs to battle it out and see who comes out on top. There’s an additional twist of having 80 of the chefs go by nicknames or aliases since they’re chefs who are still “making a name for themselves.” The other 20 chefs who go by their real names are considered veterans of the culinary world. 

The production and the scale are absolutely insane, with huge sets and even grander challenges. There’s a mix of team and solo missions that’ll keep you on your toes the whole series. Since there’s a big cast, you never run out of people to root for. Plus everyone has such distinct personalities that make them endearing and entertaining. 

The two main judges, Paik Jong-won and Anh Sung-jae, are both equally charismatic yet quirky in their own ways. Their expertise and experience really show in their judging. As a baby chef, I’ve also had fun trying to recreate some of the dishes they make on the show. Season 2, please! – Patricia Manarang 

Books

Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay 

Randy Ribay, author of Patron Saints of Nothing, returns with a moving and intricately woven intergenerational character study of a Filipino-American family. It’s easy to get lost in our own heads and live solitary lives, forgetting that we aren’t lone islands. Told through the alternating narratives of four generations of Maghabol boys, Everything We Never Had helps us understand how our past—both personal and collective— has shaped us into who we are today, and how we can never truly separate ourselves from our family. 

This book provided me with a sense of closure. I reflected on my own family and ancestry, on my great-grandparents who crossed an ocean because they believed the grass would be greener, on how they paved the way for the rest of our family, and on how I am who I am today because of them. We can’t simply put our family history behind us; it’s interwoven into who we are. Even if we learn from their experiences and try to diverge from the paths of our parents and grandparents, we would still remain as products of that wariness. Our existence is a continuation of those who came before us, try as we might to escape it. The past is the present is the future. – Kynesha Robles