The Divine Comedy - Dante Alighieri (circa 1321) [Literature: Poetry]9.8/10 to 10/10
Sistine Chapel Ceiling and The Last Judgment - Michelangelo Buonarroti (1508 - 1512; 1535 - 1541) / Sistine Chapel, Vatican City, Rome, Italy [Painting]10/10 to 9.9/10
Never SERIOUSLY thought this would happen until the possibility came into view as I started more consciously considering this a couple years ago while revisiting The Divine Comedy for the first time in years...
But here we are...
Obviously this isn't some monumental event outside of I guess my own mind, but if you understand how long I've held Michelangelo's Sistine as the absolute pinnacle of Art (and this hasn't actually changed! It still is no less incredible and impossible than before!)... This will be even more improbable to anyone that has really, REALLY invested a lot of study and evaluation in Michelangelo's Sistine, because if you have like I have, you are more likely to agree with me that there is no way another work has ever topped it or ever could (it's way more profound than most realize and in so many ways I've never mentioned here, or at best vaguely alluded to, because they tend to require more prep and explanation to just start discussing out of no where).
A few things...
1. This isn't necessarily "final". Either work is so incredible that I might still change my mind back again...
2. However, I also wouldn't make this choice lightly, and I've made it with more confidence than not (though, barely above 50/50...)
3. I am, and may forever be, more knowledgeable of the Sistine and Michelangelo as an artist, so there is a percentage of this decision that remains an "estimate" even if that seems counter-intuitive to my own criteria/ratings scale. I just don't know if it's truly possible, besides being the artists themselves, to fully "get" either. They are "beyond" us one could say, tapping into something almost no one has in any skill, medium, craft... (though even the most "difficult" aspects can still be "sensed" even where not wholly grasped). This doesn't mean the journey and effort shouldn't be made. On the contrary, one stares face to face with the highest possible artistic genius ever conceived, in either case, and this alone holds an awe where each seems "impossible", an emotional conviction, investment, depth, profundity that is deeply sensed and felt, explainable to a certain degree, but surpasses comprehension, "beyond or above the principles of evaluation" (elements that any "10" should have).
4. Don't ask me to explain the ratings, the specific qualitative difference, between them. I can't really tell you, especially when it comes to a 9.8+ work. It's hard to explain in words as one is dealing with increasingly "ineffable" phenomena and qualitative properties "above stable or finite qualitative parameters" the closer one gets to the very top, but the best or simplest way I can say is that after revisiting the Divine Comedy more recently it just seems like the slightly better choice while seeming to be also completely flawless (or as close as a human can achieve) which makes it slightly more unmistakable as the absolute top-most selection. _________________ Best Classical Best Films Best Paintings
Recent revisits of...
Brazil (upgrade 8.9 to 9.0)
Napoleon Dynamite (6.5 still seems more or less accurate, probably)
Naked Gun 2 1/2 (which I hadn't watched in at least 15 years, and will be upgraded from its prior "tentative" 6.0 rating)
Idiocracy (listed at 5.8, may change some, still under consideration...)
Wanting to add some newer ones too, plus there are just tons of entries on there that are listed as "tentative" -- mostly because of how long it's been since I watched them -- at least some of which I should get back around to...
Also wouldn't mind seeing some more of whatever the best comedies of this decade are that I just haven't got around to yet...
Taking a moment to shine a spotlight on Bruegel's "Hunters in the Snow" (among his "Six Seasons Series") with a very good introductory analysis from the great channel, "Great Art Explained":
Just came across this video explanation posted on youtube a day ago, that shows similar points I've mentioned or pointed out that are central to the more layered meanings of Pulp Fiction. Maybe this is unnecessary because past explanations were enough? But renewed focus on Comedy films and all...
Recent revisits of...
Brazil (upgrade 8.9 to 9.0)
Napoleon Dynamite (6.5 still seems more or less accurate, probably)
Naked Gun 2 1/2 (which I hadn't watched in at least 15 years, and will be upgraded from its prior "tentative" 6.0 rating)
Idiocracy (listed at 5.8, may change some, still under consideration...)
Wanting to add some newer ones too, plus there are just tons of entries on there that are listed as "tentative" -- mostly because of how long it's been since I watched them -- at least some of which I should get back around to...
Also wouldn't mind seeing some more of whatever the best comedies of this decade are that I just haven't got around to yet...
Recs welcome as always
An obvious rec would be One Battle After Another. Since you got around to The Naked Gun 2 1/2, The Naked Gun 33 1/3 and the 2025 film too; plus, Top Secret!
Not totally sure, probably further revisit of Hamlet next. Then, we'll see...
You?
What would your selections be, ratings (if you can), for "best/favorite literature" ?
I should get around to making a list soon. Was revisiting Bohumil Hrabal's Too Loud a Solitude (++ for Scaruffi; 8/10 for me) and some of Moliere's plays (in the translations of Richard Wilbur and Donald Frame) in the last couple of weeks:
The Misanthrope, 9/10 (Scaruffi ++)
Tartuffe, 8.5/10 (Scaruffi ++)
The School for Wives, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
Don Juan, 8/10
The Doctor in Spite of Himself, 7.5/10
The Miser, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
The Would-Be Gentleman, 8/10
The Imaginary Invalid, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
The Learned Ladies, unrated but maybe 7.5 or even 8
When I get around to making a full list finally, everything with +++ from Scaruffi would definitely be in the 9+/10 range, some ++ either in the same range (Chekhov, Beckett, Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, etc) or at least 8+/10.
Recent revisits of...
Brazil (upgrade 8.9 to 9.0)
Napoleon Dynamite (6.5 still seems more or less accurate, probably)
Naked Gun 2 1/2 (which I hadn't watched in at least 15 years, and will be upgraded from its prior "tentative" 6.0 rating)
Idiocracy (listed at 5.8, may change some, still under consideration...)
Wanting to add some newer ones too, plus there are just tons of entries on there that are listed as "tentative" -- mostly because of how long it's been since I watched them -- at least some of which I should get back around to...
Also wouldn't mind seeing some more of whatever the best comedies of this decade are that I just haven't got around to yet...
Recs welcome as always
An obvious rec would be One Battle After Another. Since you got around to The Naked Gun 2 1/2, The Naked Gun 33 1/3 and the 2025 film too; plus, Top Secret!
Thanks - still haven't seen One Battle but probably will check that out -- didn't actually realize it was also a comedy so this is good timing. And yes, I do plan to revisit 33 1/3 and think I completely forgot about Top Secret -- good catch. _________________ Best Classical Best Films Best Paintings
Not totally sure, probably further revisit of Hamlet next. Then, we'll see...
You?
What would your selections be, ratings (if you can), for "best/favorite literature" ?
I should get around to making a list soon. Was revisiting Bohumil Hrabal's Too Loud a Solitude (++ for Scaruffi; 8/10 for me) and some of Moliere's plays (in the translations of Richard Wilbur and Donald Frame) in the last couple of weeks:
The Misanthrope, 9/10 (Scaruffi ++)
Tartuffe, 8.5/10 (Scaruffi ++)
The School for Wives, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
Don Juan, 8/10
The Doctor in Spite of Himself, 7.5/10
The Miser, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
The Would-Be Gentleman, 8/10
The Imaginary Invalid, 8/10 (Scaruffi +)
The Learned Ladies, unrated but maybe 7.5 or even 8
When I get around to making a full list finally, everything with +++ from Scaruffi would definitely be in the 9+/10 range, some ++ either in the same range (Chekhov, Beckett, Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, etc) or at least 8+/10.
Thanks - not at all familiar with any of those but that's a hell of a list of accomplishments with those ratings
Pretty much agree with you about his +++ listings that I've read and similar view of the ++ ones I know too
Bold = Newly added
Bold + Italics = Was already listed but recently upgraded/downgraded
Top 10+ Music, Movies, and Visual Art of the Week(s): 12-8-25 - 12-31-25
Naked Gun 2 1/2 - David Zucker (1991)
Double Concerto for Violin and Cello in A Minor - Johannes Brahms (1887)
Symphony No. 5 in E Minor - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1888)
Top 10+ Albums/Movies/Visual Art for the Week(s) - Rated 6.7/10 or Below
Top 10+ SONGS/TRACKS for the Week(s)
FAMILIAR ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RE-RATED:
NEWLY LISTENED - ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RATED:
NEWLY LISTENED - CLASSICAL WORKS - RATED:
FAMILIAR CLASSICAL WORKS - RE-RATED: SEE RECENT RATINGS UPDATES FOR BEETHOVEN HERE: SEE RECENT RATINGS UPDATES FOR OTHERS HERE:
FAMILIAR SONGS/TRACKS/MOVEMENTS - RE-RATED:
NEWLY LISTENED - SONGS/TRACKS/MOVEMENTS - RATED:
FAMILIAR FILMS - RE-RATED:
Everything Everywhere All at Once - Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (2022) 6.9/10 to 7.0/10
Naked Gun 2 1/2 - David Zucker (1991) Not Rated or "tentative 6.0" to 7.0/10
Idiocracy - Mike Judge (2006) 5.8/10 to 5.3/10
NEWLY WATCHED FILMS - RATED:
FAMILIAR PAINTINGS/VISUAL ART - RE-RATED:
NEWLY VIEWED PAINTINGS/VISUAL ART - RATED:
FAMILIAR LITERATURE - RE-RATED:
NEWLY READ LITERATURE - RATED:
Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10 Not Rated to /10
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TOP 50 WORKS OF ART OF THE YEAR (2024 and 2025) The Divine Comedy - Dante Alighieri (circa 1321) [Poetry]
Sistine Chapel: Ceiling and The Last Judgment - Michelangelo Buonarroti (1512; 1541)
Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor - Ludwig van Beethoven (1822)
Symphonie Fantastique - Hector Berlioz (1830)
St. Peter's Basilica - Principal Architects: Donato Bramante (Original design and began construction of central Greek Cross plan: 1503 - 1514); Michelangelo Buonarroti (Revised plan and construction with updated Greek Cross design heavily informing the final result less the later addition of Maderno's Nave and Facade; revision and main design of the central Dome: 1546 - 1564); Carlo Maderno (Revised to Latin Cross plan with addition of central Nave; addition of Facade: 1603 - 1629); Gian Lorenzo Bernini (Revision of St. Peter's Square, addition of Colonnade: 1656 - 1667) (Building completed and opened by 1626; various additions thereafter) / Vatican City, Rome, Italy [Architecture and Structural Sculpture]
Brazil - Terry Gilliam (1985) [The Final Cut, 142 minutes]
Rock Bottom - Robert Wyatt (1974)
Piano Sonata No. 21 in B-flat Major - Franz Schubert (1828)
Pauline Chapel: The Conversion of Saul and The Crucifixion of St. Peter - Michelangelo Buonarroti (1545; 1550)
The Velvet Underground and Nico - The Velvet Underground (1966)
Symphony No. 9 in D Minor "Choral" - Ludwig van Beethoven (1824)
The Doors - The Doors (1966)
A Love Supreme - John Coltrane (1964)
Winterreise - Franz Schubert (1827)
Symphony No. 5 in C Minor - Ludwig van Beethoven (1808)
Symphony No. 3 in F Major - Johannes Brahms (1883)
Angkor Wat - Started by Suryavarman II; Completed by Jayavarman VII (circa 1122 - 1150; Note: there are various anomalies that may suggest an earlier date of construction -- perhaps even much earlier) [Architecture]
Piano Sonata No. 23 in F Minor "Appassionata" - Ludwig van Beethoven (1805)
Guernica - Pablo Picasso (1937)
Hagia Sophia - Directed by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I; Designed by Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles (Current Main Structure: 532 - 537; various changes, additions thereafter) [Architecture, including Mosaics]
Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey - William of Volpiano (1060-1523) / Manche, Normandy, France [Architecture]
Symphony No. 2 in D Major - Johannes Brahms (1877)
Symphony No. 1 in C Minor - Johannes Brahms (1876)
Symphony No. 4 in E Minor - Johannes Brahms (1885)
Symphony No. 4 in F Minor - Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky (1878)
Piano Sonata No. 30 in E Major - Ludwig van Beethoven (1820)
Piano Trio No. 7 in B-flat Major "Archduke" - Ludwig van Beethoven (1811)
Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major "Kreutzer" - Ludwig van Beethoven (1803)
Symphony No. 6 in B Minor "Pathetique" - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1893)
Symphony No. 9 in E Minor "From the New World" - Antonin Dvorak (1893)
Violin Concerto in D Major - Johannes Brahms (1878)
Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor - Dmitri Shostakovich (1944)
Chartres Cathedral - Master of Chartres (Anonymous French Architect) (Mostly constructed 1194-1220; Completed 1252; Various modifications and additions thereafter) / Chartres, France [Architecture, including Stained Glass and Structural Sculpture]
Symphony No. 5 in E Minor - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1888)[/b]
Alhambra - Muhammad I Ibn al-Ahmar; later additions overseen by Yusuf I and Muhammad V (initial structure: 1250; several alterations thereafter through the 1600s) / Granada, Spain [Architecture, including Mosaics, Stained Glass, Structural Sculpture and Landscape Architecture]
Taj Mahal - Ustad Ahmad Lahauri (1631 - 1653) / Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India [Architecture, including Landscape Architecture]
Sagrada Família - Antoni Gaudí (Gaudi: 1883 - 1926, unfinished; Still under construction) / Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain [Architecture, including Stained Glass and Structural Sculpture]
Notre-Dame de Paris - Main construction principally directed under Bishop Maurice de Sully (1163 - 1260, main construction; various additions, updates, restorations thereafter; reconstruction of fleche and roof from fire damages: 2019 - 2024) / Parvis Notre-Dame – Place Jean-Paul-II, Paris, France [Architecture, including Stained Glass and Structural Sculpture]
Batalha Monastery - Afonso Domingues (1388 - 1402); Huguet (1402 - 1438 in which several Flamboyant Gothic elements were added; changed architects posthumously, continued construction, revisions, additions through completion circa 1517) / Batalha, Portugal [Architecture, including Stained Glass and Structural Sculpture]
Milan Cathedral - Begun by Simone da Orsenigo; Several architects thereafter (Originally: 1386; several developments through 1965) [Architecture and Sculpture][/b]
Cologne Cathedral - Master Gerhard of Ryle (1248 - 1560, construction led by various architects after 1271; construction halted in 1560; resumed and completed 1842 - 1880) / Cologne, Germany [Architecture, including Stained Glass and Structural Sculpture]
Are You Experienced? - Jimi Hendrix (1967)
Desertshore - Nico (1970)
Spiderland - Slint (1991)
Vertigo - Alfred Hitchcock (1958)
Kailasa Temple - King Krishna I (circa 773) [Architecture and Sculpture]
Piano Sonata No. 20 in A Major - Franz Schubert (1828)
Pieta - Michelangelo Buonarroti (1499) [Sculpture]
La Fabrica - Ricardo Bofill (1973 - 2022) / Sant Just Desvern, Catalonia, Spain [Architecture]
Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1875) _________________ Best Classical Best Films Best Paintings
Last edited by AfterHours on 12/15/2025 18:56; edited 3 times in total
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