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from E! Online (US) - Top Stories https://ift.tt/3rITwrs
You might have forgotten, but 1996 was a really, really good year for movies! With the 25th anniversary of the year's biggest hits coming up soon, we're taking a look back at the year in film, and as it turns out, a surprising number of classics came out that year. The first installments in what became several massive franchises came in 1996, as well as a few individual movies that we're still watching over and over again, even a quarter of a century later.
The '90s were truly an iconic time in pop culture. To celebrate all these major anniversaries, we've ranked some of the best movies that are turning 25 in 2021. Keep reading for our complete list, leading up to what we think was the most iconic movie of the year!
Michelle Obama gave Barack Obama an unforgettable Christmas gift this year. On Wednesday, the former president shared a peek at the priceless present from his wife on Instagram. Michelle commissioned an artist named Valentino Dixon to draw a massive piece for Barack, of the 12th hole at Augusta National in Georgia. For Barack, "it's an incredible piece, but the story behind it is even better."
Valentino was wrongfully convicted of a crime at age 21, and sentenced to serve 38 and a half years to life in prison. During this time, he reconnected with his love for art and began drawing for six to 10 hours every day. Despite never having set foot on a golf course, a warden asked Valentino to draw the 12th hole of the legendary Augusta National Golf Club. He used magazines as inspiration and created golf pieces during his two decades behind bars.
Valentino's art was recognized by golf publications, and through magazine profiles (and his family's efforts) his case garnered more attention. However, it wasn't until 2018 when three Georgetown undergraduate students uncovered evidence proving Valentino's innocence that he was exonerated. He was wrongfully imprisoned for 27 years.
Although Valentino's incarceration could've left him incredibly angry and jaded, he has devoted the last few years to advocacy and public speaking. He speaks out in favor of prison reform and uses his story in the hopes of making a positive change to the criminal justice system. Valentino also continued drawing, eventually connecting with Michelle when she purchased the piece for Barack. "Thankfully, for me and for so many others, he continues to draw," Barack wrote. "I'm so proud to have one of his works to display."
Just when we thought Taylor Swift's Reputation days were long gone, a fan made a song mashup of "I Did Something Bad" and Evermore's "No Body, No Crime" that sounds like something straight out of a superhero movie. The four-minute mashup perfectly merges the old Taylor with the new Taylor, resulting in what sounds like the backtrack to a badass protagonist stomping away from an explosion in slow motion. So, when's the movie premiere?
Like a mini murder mystery, the mix takes on a narrative of its own, adding a wonderfully villainous feel to the original tracks and weaving an intricate storyline that has us hooked through to the very end. Give the mashup a listen for yourself above, and check out our Evermore album theories here.