Hi All, I know it’s been a while since we have done a post over in our little corner of the internet, but with the end of 2014 and beginning of 2015 Mike, Macca and I thought we would do our top 10 movies list again. Last year it was a well received set of posts and sparked some discussion at work and at play, and we hope we can direct you to a couple of movies you otherwise would have missed.
And so, without further ado, here are my top 10 picks for favourite movies throughout 2014:
10. The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies
If you know me, then you know I am well biased towards this kind of thing. In fact I am sad to think that my Christmas tradition of going to the movies and being transported to Middle Earth has finally, after six years, come to an end. This movie is far from perfect, but as a pure fun piece of entertainment I loved it. Peter Jackson can do battles like no one else, and the huge scale of the fight scenes, whilst completely pointless, were thoroughly entertaining. The final minute of the film brought out goosebumps and an insane desire to start Fellowship of the Ring right away, and maybe keep my own tradition going after all.
9. Under The Skin
When I first saw this movie I did not like it at all. I had heard so many good things about it, but it was just ... weird. But then I read about it, listened to podcasts about it, and to be honest haven't stopped thinking about it. That is the sign of a great movie. I haven't sat down to watch it again yet, but I will. It’s a deep and hard movie to get, but with a little knowledge it becomes something more than just a movie. It’s a commentary on what it’s like to be a woman, in a woman’s body, to be human, to love and so much more.
8. Begin Again
This is a little guilty pleasure of mine. It stars Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo and is set in New York around music. Many of these things are my favourites and so again I may be biased, but this movie is genuinely unique. It’s not quite a love story, not quite a redemption movie, not quite a comedy, not quite a drama, but it is beautiful and happy and fills you with enthusiasm for life. The best feel good movie of the year for me by far, and quirky and different enough to make this list at the same time.
7. LEGO Movie
When I heard that there was going to be a LEGO movie I thought I might have to end it all. The sheer idea of pure marketing/money making/corporatism/consumerism that would drive a company to make a movie about a bunch of plastic blocks made me angry. Deeply angry. Then I saw the movie. Oops, my cynicism and pessimism was far too quick to the mark on this one. The tone of this movie and its subversive story of control underlying such a fun and totally enjoyable ride make this one of the smartest, funnest, kids movies ever.
6. Edge of Tomorrow
Tom cruise in another sci-fi, with robots, saving the world. Meh, right? Wrong! This is the type of smart, fun, hilarious sci-fi that I hope every year I will get to see. Tom Cruise played it down and Emily Blunt went all out to be my favourite bad-ass of the year. The story was told perfectly, the humour was refreshing and the action was really enjoyable. It is such a great movie that Im really saddened they marketed it all around Tom when its so much more than him.
5. Nightcrawler
Jake Gyllenhal will most likely win an Oscar for this performance. The film itself will most likely pickup a couple of others too. But for the story really struck a chord. It's a dark look at the American Dream done with a fresh take on the evilness of the media of today, with a twinge of horror. This movie will shock you, enthral you and make you angry that everyone seems to be waking up to these problems but no one is changing them.
4. Gone Girl
David Fincher is one of my most heralded directors and again he blew me away with this movie. I have not read the book and did not know the plot going in, which added to the thrill of this experience. There is a shift in the middle of this movie equal to A Beautiful Mind that I was not expecting, and did not pick. When it happened my mouth hit the floor and stayed there to the end. Once again he directs a clear message with no side taken, prompting inevitable thinking of issues such as personal image, the media, gender issues all whilst being wrapped up in an energetic and tight thriller. Fincher is the man.
3. Guardians of the Galaxy
The first Marvel movie I have ever truly loved. This is the Star Wars of this generation: a group of misfits get together to save the universe from an evil lord, travel through space, tease each other and a giant mute beast wins over our hearts. It still follows that Marvel formula and no one is every really in danger, but for once I just didn’t care. I was having way too much fun with the Racoon, the Tree, the Starlord and the Green Chick careening through the galaxy quipping at each other, stopping the bad guys and having a great time doing it. Bring on the sequel.
2. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
I went to the movies on a whim, and on my own for this one. Something reached out to me from the trailer so that I had to go and see it in the cinema. For the first time this year I was sitting in a cinema feeling like I was witnessing the next thing. A truly transformative experience was taking place in front of my eyes and I had goosebumps. The next week I was back at the cinema with Mike to watch it again. I've seen it twice on Blu Ray since then too. This movie is sheer perfection of the big blockbuster. It’s ballsy, interesting and different and I have no idea how the team that made it got it approved. The first 15minutes is Apes using sign language ... "I need 100 million dollars to make my next movie please. Oh, and Apes are going to be signing for the first 15minutes before you see a human." Awesome.
1. Boyhood
Feeling smug that I had a clear winner in the previous movie for best movie all year, I heard about Boyhood in Sept/Oct of 2014. Filmed over 12 years (yes, twelve years!) it stars the same cast growing with each other as a family in real time as the movie progresses. What a bat-shit crazy idea, I thought. How did Richard Linklater pull this off? I had to see it. It is as astounding as it sounds. There is nothing else like this movie in the world. It does have pacing problems and some story issues, but it was filmed over twelve frickin years!!!! How can it not? To succeed at doing this, to show a boy growing up before your eyes, to convey the feelings and emotions and change in real time with a single person is breathtaking. It makes you see the turn of time. It makes you wonder about your own childhood. It makes you relive what it was like to go through so much change so quickly. It is quite simply the greatest accomplishment in cinema ever.
Some disclaimers here are that I am yet to see a few possible contenders for this list, namely: Birdman, Whiplash, Tusk, Grand Budapest Hotel and What We Do In The Shadows
