The Worst Movie to Watch With Your Grandma Award: Nymphomaniac pt. 1 and 2
The Child from Hell Award: Noah Wiseman in The Babadook
The Funniest Use of a Banana Award: Inherent Vice
The Only Ever Use of the Pearl the Landlord Video in Cinema Award: Boyhood
The This is Why I Don't Go Hiking Award: Wild
The John Stamos Best Hair Award: Oscar Isaac in A Most Violent Year
In All Seriousness:
20. Wild (Directed by Jean-Marc Vallee)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, Gaby Hoffman
Reese Witherspoon leads this based-on-a-true-story drama, about a woman who goes on an 1,100 mile hike after a tragic event effects her life. Witherspoon's portrayal of this damaged woman is the highlight of the film. Laura Dern's performance is also wonderful. The scenes of her on the hike were my favorites of the film. They show the struggle and emotion that make Witherspoon's performance memorable. The flashback scenes seemed more Hollywood and less real, which is why they felt weaker to me. Overall a solid, entertaining film.
19. Selma (Directed by Ava Duvernay)
Starring: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Roth, Oprah Winfrey
Biopics and historical true story films can be very bland and play as a sort of just a retelling of a famous person's life or an event. On the other hand, they can also be very interesting, cinematic takes on someone's life or an event. Selma I would put closer to the latter half. David Oyelowo seems to really embody the look and sound of Martin Luther King Jr. He shows a great, complex personality to a person who I've really only seen in his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. I'd also like to point out my admiration for the editing and filming of the first scene on the bridge.
18. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (Directed by Matt Reeves)
Starring: Jason Clarke, Keri Russell, Gary Oldman, Andy Serkis, Kodi Smit-Mcphee
I love it when films like this can prove to me that there are still summer blockbusters that are still really well made and entertaining as hell. Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which came out a few years ago was decent. I didn't love it, but it interested me enough to be excited for this sequel. Dawn is a great addition to this franchise which has had some hits and some serious misses since the original Planet of the Apes in 1968. The acting is fine, but the cinematography and blocking of the action scenes are what make this film really great.
17. The Imitation Game (Directed by Morten Tyldum)
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Mark Strong, Charles Dance
Like Selma, The Imitation Game is more towards the interesting side of the Biopic genre. It doesn't break any ground in the genre, it kind of just hit all of the marks that you find in a movie like this, but this movie really connected with me for some reason. I think this is because the story is something I really admired, and Cumberbatch's performance is great. It's one of the films that I don't necessarily want to win the Oscar categories it'll inevitably be nominated in, but I wouldn't be annoyed if it does win.
16. Blue Ruin (Directed by Jeremy Saulnier)
Starring: Macon Blair, Devin Ratray, Amy Hargreaves
Blue Ruin was a wonderful surprise. You might have passed over this film several times on Netflix Instant, well it's time to finally hit play on it. Blue Ruin is a great revenge film, about a homeless man who decides to avenge his parents by hunting down their murder. This starts a huge conflict with the family of the murderer. The film is a short and sweet 90 minutes, and has a great leading performance from Macon Blair, an actor who I hope to see a lot more of in the future.
15. The Babadook (Directed by Jennifer Kent)
Starring: Essie Davis, Noah Wiseman, Daniel Henshall
The Babadook is a film I've been recommending to all of my friends who are into the horror genre. It's a truly horrifying film, and the first film in a while that has genuinely scared me. Essie Davis and Noah Wiseman work really well together as the mother and son combo. The film does a great job of displaying the difficulties of motherhood, and struggle of being a single parent. Horrific in a real sense as well as an otherworldly sense.
14. Birdman (Directed by Alejandro G. Inarritu)
Starring: Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, Zach Galifanakis, Naomi Watts, Amy Ryan
Birdman is a great cinematic achievement. The cinematography from the always incredible Emmanuel Lubezki, does a great job of filming Birdman in a way that matches the chaos of the story. The long-shots are mapped out very well, and the cast does a fantastic job of plowing through the pages of dialogue in each long scene. Birdman is a movie filled with great moments. I wouldn't be upset to see Michael Keaton take home some Oscar gold.
13. Nymphomaniac pt. 1 and 2 (Directed by Lars Von Trier)
Starring: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stellan Skaarsgard, Stacy Martin, Shia LaBeouf, Christian Slater, Uma Thurman, Jamie Bell, Willem Dafoe
I included both parts of this 4-hour long (as a whole), explicitly sexual and violent story of Joe, a self-proclaimed nymphomaniac's sexual history leading up to being beaten in an alley and taken care of by a man, Seligman, for this list. While being a very dangerous and at times hard to watch film, Nymphomaniac displays great performances and storytelling. For several days after watching it I found myself thinking about it. Not for everyone, but if you're looking for a unique cinematic experience, give it a try. Also for the record I liked Pt. 1 slightly more than Pt. 2.
12. Force Majeure (Directed by Ruben Ostlund)
Starring: Johannes Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli
Unfortunately this is the only foreign film on my list this year, and one of maybe only 4 or 5 foreign films that I managed to see from 2014. Usually I like to get more foreign films onto the list so I can make known some that I'd like other people to see, but none were as good as this Swedish film from director Ruben Ostlund. The family dynamic is great, and the cinematography of the snowy locations are awesome to look at. This film can be really funny at times, but also super intense. Which is kind of strange for a family drama, but it works.
11. Life Itself (Directed by Steve James)
Starring: Roger Ebert, Chaz Ebert
For anyone who doesn't know, this is the Roger Ebert documentary that came out this past year. It shows the last few months of Ebert's life, as well as a portrait of Ebert's long career and life. Any film fan who has read reviews of his or at least heard of him should really enjoy this. In a movie that is obviously filled with sadness, it's really nice to see how many people really loved him, including the filmmakers who's films he has reviewed (both positively and negatively).
10. Obvious Child (Directed by Gillian Robespierre)
Starring: Jenny Slate, Jake Lacy, Gaby Hoffman, Richard Kind, Polly Draper
Obvious Child is up there with Blue Ruin as one of my favorite surprises of the past year. I had heard some good things, but didn't expect much from an abortion comedy starring Jean-Ralphio's sister. Well it turned out that Obvious Child is both a touching story, and very hilarious. Jenny Slate made my Top Performances of the year, so definitely don't miss out on this one.
9. Guardians of the Galaxy (Directed by James Gunn)
Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel
From the first trailer I knew Guardians of the Galaxy was going to be a movie I'd be into. The cast, the 70's soundtrack, the goofy and comedic elements, in a Marvel film. It took the reasons why I loved the first Iron Man film, and really built on it, and made it my favorite Marvel Universe film to date so far. Hopefully the Marvel directors take a note and work off of the success of GotG's positives traits.
8. Nightcrawler (Directed by Dan Gilroy)
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Bill Paxton, Riz Ahmed
Dan Gilroy's directorial debut is the awesome Nightcrawler. It takes shots at the media and news outlets that stop at nothing to to cover the most horrible things that happen to people in everyday life. The brilliant Robert Elswit's nighttime photography is beautiful, and Gyllenhaal's performance as the creepy Lou Bloom is probably among his Top 5 performances so far.
7. A Most Violent Year (Directed by J.C. Chandor)
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, Albert Brooks, David Oyelowo
Chandor's last film All Is Lost didn't really do it for me. His follow up to that, A Most Violent Year, is a great crime drama set in one of the most violent years in New York's history. The cast is filled with rising stars Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, and David Oyelowo, all of which give performances unlike most of their other work. The interesting script and intense pacing of the film makes it one of the best dramas of the year in my opinion.
6. The Lego Movie (Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller)
Starring: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Alison Brie, Morgan Freeman, Will Ferrell
In my opinion, the best animated films are the ones that kids will like a lot, but the adults that watch it can also really appreciate it. The Lego Movie is just that, a film that is cute and childish enough for kids to eat it up, but also filled with adult humor. The Lego Movie includes great vocal performances from Christ Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, and Will Arnett who does excellent work as Batman.
5. Boyhood (Directed by Richard Linklater)
Starring: Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke
Earlier I said Birdman was a great cinematic achievement. Boyhood is an even greater cinematic achievement. Linklater's exploration of a boy going through life from age 5 to age 18 is a wonderful film to experience. Arquette and Hawke give especially good performances as the separated parents of the boy. There really isn't anything I can say about this film that hasn't already been said by so many other people who are smarter than me, so just watch it when you get the chance.
4. The Grand Budapest Hotel (Directed by Wes Anderson)
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori F. Murray Abraham, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray, and every other actor or actress ever.
This film is probably the most Wes Anderson that a Wes Anderson film has been. As a big fan of him however, that's not a bad thing at all. I think this is Anderson's most clever script, being the film of his that I laughed out loud at the most. Ralph Fiennes is hilarious and completely becomes his role. To read more thoughts about this film you can read my review of it here.
3. Gone Girl (Directed by David Fincher)
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens
A really great adaptation of a book I enjoyed quite a bit. Gone Girl still works really well despite knowing all of it's twists and turns, I think it would have been cool to see it without knowing everything. But despite that it was a great experience, Fincher's third collaboration in a row with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross delivers another score that works perfectly with the film. Ben Affleck is good, so are Tyler Perry and Carrie Coon, NPH seems a little out of his element, but it's Rosamund Pike (#2 in my Top 20 performances list) who gives the best performance of the film, and my favorite female performance of the year.
2. Whiplash (Directed by Damien Chazelle)
Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Melissa Benoist, Paul Reiser
Whiplash really blew my mind when I saw it. It was one of those film-watching moments where I finished it and immediately wanted to watch it again. This would be a good double feature with my #2 film of 2013, Inside Llewyn Davis. Both films I loved, and both are about musicians trying to make a name for themselves. Despite similar ideas, they are both so different in so many ways. As an aspiring artist, films like this really connect with me, as they most likely would with other artists trying to find success. Lastly if you want to hear my thoughts on Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons's great performances, you can check out my Top 20 performances post that I made a few days ago.
1. Inherent Vice (Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson)
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Katherine Waterston, Owen Wilson, Joanna Newsom, Martin Short, and a bunch of other people.
A lead performance from Joaquin Phoenix is the way to my heart apparently, with this being the third film in a row starring Phoenix to make my number 1 spot of the year, (also The Master and Her in the past 2 years). Vice is funny, complex, and warrants several viewings. It did help to understand the complicated story, having read the book. But you don't really need to understand the story to appreciate the films wonderfully adapted characters, and hilarious moments. It was extremely likely that Vice would be my number 1, considering my favorite director wrote and directed it. I'm glad it didn't disappoint, and in fact exceeded my expectations. For more in depth thoughts on this film check out my full review here.
-Ryan Moncrief
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