The Best Movies of 2014 Pt. II

Thank you to all the readers who made it through Part I.  Welcome to Part II where we count down the best acting performances of the year.  I think it is fair to say that 2014 was the year of the actor, but unfortunately not the year of the actress.  Although there are amazing female actresses in Hollywood, screenwriters just don't write as many interesting female leads as they write male leads.  Hopefully this trend can change, because actresses like Shailene Woodley, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Marion Cotillard, Carie Coon, and Rosamund Pike prove that all good female parts don't go to Meryl Streep.  We have a lot of great actresses some which made this list and others such as Elizabeth Moss, Jenny Slate, Laura Dern, and Reese Witherspoon who did not.  

As for the men, this was one of the hottest contested best actor debates in recent memory.  Beyond the controversy of who actually won the award there were about 10 actors who deserved to be nominated.  In my list I bring up performances such as Miles Teller and Jack O'Connell and leave off names like Benedict Cumberbatch.  

Extra note:  I have not seen Wild, Still Alice, Two Days One Night, and Mr. Turner.  So to the talented actors like Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Julianne Moore, and Timothy Spahl, I apologize.  Here is the list starting with Number 30.

Bill Nighy in Pride

30.  Bill Nighy in Pride

One reviewer called Bill Nighy's performance "taciturn shyness," which I believe is very apt.  Nighy turns in the most subtle performance on his career by playing his most human character.  He manages to be funny and naive while still maintaining the gravitas that goes along with his career. Nighy Interview

29.  Essie Davis in The Babadook

I am not a huge fan of horror films but to deny Essie Davis accolades would be a travesty.  Davis plays a mother dealing an erratic son who is preoccupied by an imaginary monster.  After reading a terrifying storybook, Mister Babadook, the monster is anything but imaginary.  Davis manages to transcend regular horror cliches to deliver an honest mother stuck in extraordinary circumstances.  

28.  Steve Carell in Foxcatcher 

In Foxcatcher, Steve Carell proves that he isn't a one trick pony by playing the psychotic schizophrenic John Du Pont.  Beyond his nose, which goes along to distinguish the once boss of The Office, Carell excels in the moments of genuine terror by emphasizing the minute.  He is one scary, crazy SOB in this film.  

27.  Agata Trzebuchowska in Ida

Although I did not fall head over heals for this movie, I was struck by a performance similar to that of Macon Blair in Blue Ruin and the lead of Copenhagen.  Trzebuchowska plays the timid lead and she succeeds in her attempts to be small and yet likable.  She holds the screen audience captive as she creates a story of love, despair, and grief all in the face of belief.  This is enough to give her a space on the list, but more that this talent is the fact that she isn't an actress.  She was spotted in a cafe by the producer and hired on look alone.  Ida Trailer

26.  Tom Hardy in The Drop

R.I.P. James Gandolfini

Most people would put Hardy on this list for his performance in Locke this year, but I wasn't impacted the same way the critics were.  I, instead, found him delightful in the final James Gandolfini film, The Drop.  Hardy plays a barkeep, a quiet loner searching for companionship and for trust.  Hardy shows that he is more than a bulky villain by playing a weakling with a hidden dark side.  

25.  Brendan Gleeson in Calvary

My friend Alex Doser told me to watch both Calvary & The Babadook this year and while I wasn't blown away by the films, I was enthralled by both films lead character.  Gleeson plays an Irish priest who watches his livelihood and his morality slip away after receiving a death threat.  Gleeson's measured performance allows a slow moving movie to have depth and turns an ordinary script into a morality play dealing with one man's life.  

24.  Jack O'Connell in Starred Up

O'Connell made waves this year by starring in the blockbuster Unbroken, but he shows his considerable acting talent in two other british films '71 and here in Starred Up.  The entire movie takes place within a UK prison and deals with O'Connell who has recently been moved to the prison.  The film is difficult to watch and realistically violent, but O'Connell shows that he isn't just another pretty face.  I would hate to meet this character on the street.  Starred Up Trailer

23.  Shailene Woodley in The Fault in Our Stars

Woodley is perhaps the best young actress in Hollywood today.  In Stars, she captures screen magic by holding an implausible, by engrossing script together.  Both Woodley and her screen counterpart Elgort shine in a sentimental piece with real heart.  As one reviewer wrote, "She is a fully realized young woman who's more than just the sum of her symptoms."  

22.  Frederikke Dahl Hansen in Copenhagen 

I love this performance and it took me hours to figure out why.  I believe that it comes from her wise yet tremendously vulnerable portrayal of a 14-year-old searching for life and love.  There are shades of Scarlett Johansson in Lost in Translation and in one very affective and provocative karaoke scene, Hansen masks her inhibitions by being extremely open and awkward (in the best of ways).   Karaoke Scene

21.  Ethan Hawke in Boyhood

Much like the rest of the cast, although Boyhood only took a few weeks a year, it still shows great strength to play the same character for over a decade, but Hawke excels much in the same way he does in the Before Sunset trilogy.  At one point in the film, Hawke says to his son "life doesn't have bumpers," and neither do the characters in this film, they have rough edges and awkward character traits which make them uneasy protagonists, but Hawke takes these edges and uses sandpaper of the soul to produce am entirely honest and human performance.  

20.  Mark Ruffalo in Foxcatcher

Who would have ever thought that the love interest in 13 Going On 30 would be a hollywood heartthrob and more importantly an incredibly talented actor ten years later?  We saw a brief glimpse of talent in the film The Last Castle and then again in Zodiac, but it wasn't until recently that Mark Ruffalo took his spot in the sunshine.  In Foxcatcher both he and Channing Tatum play brothers convincingly, but it isn't their love for each other that makes them a force on the screen.  it is Ruffalo's collected and reserved order that makes the pairing work.  Alongside the cute indie music film Begin Again, this was a good year to be Mark Ruffalo.  

19.  Miles Teller in Whiplash

As part of the second leg of my favorite young actors trio (Shailene Woodley and Brie Larson) Teller shines once again when he is given actual material to work with.  This year also gave us The Awkward Moment and Two Night Stand, but more importantly it gave us Teller as the lead in Whiplash.  He is superb as the young wannabe jazz drummer.  Teller supplies the other half of a whirlwind performance duo with JK Simmons as he pounds the drums as if his life depended on it.  

18.  Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Beyond the Lights/Belle

After ten years of bouncing around british drama, Mbatha-Raw had a very nice coming out party here in america.  Not only was she captivating in the Victorian race drama Belle, but even more so in the music love story Beyond the Lights.  Although both films were small on the national scale that doesn't diminish the acting potential that Raw shows.  In her best moments on screen Raw excels ironically as her last name suggests with raw emotion.  Although stuck in two strict worlds, victorian England and a rigid "artistic" music scene, she gives the screen graceful eloquence without falling into the cliche. The Power of Belle

17.  Macon Blair in Blue Ruin  

If I said Macon Blair and you said, "who," I would completely understand.  His ten year career boasts not a single film you've ever heard of, unless you saw 2007's Murder Party (also directed by Jeremy Saulnier director of Blue Ruin aka his best friend).  Blair is perfect in the lead role of Dwight.  He is emblematic of the "everyman" assassin, the character trait of a regular guy going to extreme lengths, but where Blair differs is in his skiddish, scared, timid reaction to his own atrocities.  Blair doesn't blend in with the stereotype, he stands out in such a way that we can never really cheer for his acts of vengeance all the way completely understanding his thought process.  "I Killed Him" Scene

16.  Edward Norton in Birdman

Norton shines in Birdman as he plays, well, Edward Norton.  The part, similar to the role given to his counterpart Michael Keaton, posits all the worst forms of the stereotypes generally associated with Edward Norton.  But he truly shines in his moments on a broadway balcony with Emma Stone.  It is here that we see the guttural truths hidden behind both the character he plays and perhaps the man he is in actuality.  Even though Keaton walks through times square in his underpants, he isn't the only actor in the film who is naked.  

15.  Marion Cotillard in The Immigrant

Nominated by the Academy for Two Days, One Night, I am sure she shines, but the movie I saw her in was the tossed away gem of the year, The Immigrant.  Supported on both sides by a really genuine version of Joaquin Phoenix and a passable Jeremy Renner, Cotillard plays Ewa, a Polish immigrant thrust into prostitution in 20's Manhattan while trying to get back to her sister stuck in detention on Ellis Island.  As usual, Cotillard steals scenes with a tenacity only marred by a sharp fragility.  She takes what is a simple pretty film and turns it into something beautiful.    

14.  Andy Serkis in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes isn't an action film.  Actually it's a film about sign language until it later turns into an action movie.  One of these days the Academy will wise up and create a motion capture Oscar so Andy Serkis can sweep up.  No one does this better and what Serkis brings to Dawn is humanity so eagerly missing in many of his human counterparts.  I don't like Planet of the Apes movies, but I really liked this one and it is entirely due to Serkis.  The Making of...

13.  Rene Russo in Nightcrawler

If you were wondering if Rene Russo still has "it" look no further than a night out with Jake Gyllenhaal at a mexican restaurant in Nightcrawler.  After a self imposed exile for the past eight years (other than a small part in the Thor films) she returns in Nightcrawler with the same dry wit, the same cool as a cucumber persona, but here she is turned into a reluctant accomplice of sorts.  She succeeds so well in this role because she doesn't steer towards stereotype when that is easily on her horizon.  Instead she portrays the media with dark necessity, like a lioness who hasn't eaten in days.  

12.  Carrie Coon in Gone Girl

Other than the actors in the best actor category this was by far the biggest snub of 2014.  The newcomer to the screen (having appeared on broadway for years) is captivating as Ben Affleck's sister in Gone Girl.  She is loving, supportive, hilarious, and smart.  She reacts with spitfire precision and quick, but foundational observations.  Although she may not be the "girl" everyone talks about when they see Gone Girl she is hardly stuck in the background.  Move over Meryl Streep, you know you were bad in Into the Woods, give up your spot to someone with real talent…at least this year.  

11.  Patricia Arquette in Boyhood

I could copy and paste what I said about Ethan Hawke here because Patricia Arquette does it the same, only she out performs her male counterpart.  Arquette is a driving force in my movie of the year who not only let's us in on the tumultuous ups and downs of the characters life, but let's us watch her age on screen, a faux pas for the majority of females in film.  Thank you Patricia Arquette for your grace and for your honesty.  

10.  Tilda Swinton in Only Lovers Left Alive/Snowpiercer

It is disturbing to know that Tilda Swinton has only ever been nominated for one Academy Award (thank goodness she won) for Michael Clayton.  Swinton is the epitome of eloquent reverence for a time forgotten, almost like she's gone back in time and taken back all the good male roles that could've gone to women.  I would go so far as to say move over Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton is the modern version of a Hepburn.  In Snowpiercer, she was hysterical, owning every second of screen time she was given, but it was in Only Lovers Left Alive where she plays a centuries old vampire that she truly shines (forgive the double entendre).  Swinton, who plays Eve sells romance with commonplace understanding as if we all should understand the necessity for everlasting love, but she does so in a trance-like state, like a jazz song that inhabits your whole body when you listen to it.  I wait on baited breathe for the 2016 Hail, Caesar which will combine Clooney with Swinton once more.  Tilda Swinton Interview

9.  Kiera Knightley in The Imitation Game

I'm as shocked as anyone else to find Knightley as far up on my list as she happens to be.  I was also shocked to learn that she can sing (although her fake playing the guitar in Begin Again is super distracting).  However getting her out of victorian period clothing and sticking her into WWII drab suits her really well.  I did not fall in love with either Benny Cumbo or the film as a whole, but I was ensorcelled by Knightley's performance.  She play's Joan Clarke with quite confidence and honest frivolity creating a character who matches her wits with her kind personality.  I was very impressed. 

8.  David Oyelowo in Selma

David Oyelowo should have been nominated for best actor.  There I said it, strike me down if you must.  Oyelowo does the impossible in Selma, a british actor playing one of the most important men of the 21st century and he cannot fall into an impression or else be marked as uncaring and irrelevant.  The latter description does not come close to describing Oyelowo.  Instead he brings voice to a new generation in such a need for the words of Dr. King, but without an understanding of it.  Not only does Oyelowo do an impeccable job of matching Dr. King's tempo and ferocity, but dives deeper to find his compassion and his suffering.  Selma will live long after this year of films, but not because of a director or a controversy or a song or a speech, but because a new generation has heard Dr. King's essence again and longs to hear it more.  

7.  Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything 

"I thought Felicity Jones was me," said Jane Hawking after watching the actress portray her on film.  That pretty much sums up the accomplishment that Felicity Jones has been able to produce.  I did not think I was going to like The Theory of Everything as much as I did and while Eddie Redmayne stands out for his performance, Felicity Jones is right there behind him.  Jones portrays a confident resilience to whatever obstacle thrown in her way and what makes her even more intriguing to watch is that she never stops being a crowd pleaser.  As an affair begins in the film (one which subsequently ends due to Hawking's restraint) we cheer for Jones and yet feel her subtle attempts to hold her family together.  A superb performance of the portrayal of an outstanding woman.  Felicity and Jane

6.  Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything

Beyond the charisma and the kindness that Redmayne lends to Stephen Hawking, his ability to hold an audience even while he loses the ability to speak; speaks volumes to his level of commitment to the part.  In the same way that Andy Serkis molds his body to perform his characters, Redmayne takes it one step further to portray the humanity of a man who is losing his physical characteristics to act like a man.  It is simply astounding and while I would not have given him the Oscar for Best Actor, I cannot argue with the choice.  

5.  Michael Keaton in Birdman

God it must take balls to do that.  Tabitha: "He's a Hollywood clown in a lycra bird suit."  Mike: "Yes, he is, but he's going out on that stage and risking everything."  To call Birdman ambitious or to call Michael Keaton brave for playing himself would be the understatements of the year.  Keaton is brave for playing himself, but he isn't at the same time, because Riggan Thomson may follow a similar path to that of Keaton, but he is certainly a different man.  Keaton is spectacular as Thompson and exposes a side of himself that we have never seen before.  In the past he was funny or he was wise or he was mature, but here he is anything but (we do laugh, but it is at him usually rather than with him).  As the sports radio host Tony Kornheiser said, "When he walks through times square in his underwear, that's the moment, the moment when you realize that not everyone can be an actor."  My hat is off to you Mr. Keaton.  You have exposed the raw underbelly of the tortured soul of an actor.  It was painful, but it was also a joy to witness.  

4.  Bradley Cooper in American Sniper

Damn that fake baby.  Bradley Cooper is simply stellar as Chris Kyle in American Sniper, and in a way he is hardly recognizable.  A long distance has certainly passed between The Hangover goofball and the Wedding Crashers jackass.  He carries this film on his back.  It is tense, gripping, and vivid to see the war through his eyes.  I don't care if you like the film, you cannot deny the performance of Cooper.  As he goes through his battles, both professional and private, he does so with such a sense of broken human morality that we can both hate him, love him, idolize him, and weep for him all at the same time.

3.  Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl

The final three performances on this list are three of the creepiest, most disturbing characters that I've seen on film since Ralph Fiennes played Amon Goeth in Schindler's List.  We start off with Rosamund Pike who makes batshit crazy look so beautiful.  She's dazzling, deadly, depraved, and downright deranged.  This is a performance that we will talk about for years and I sincerely believe if AFI redid their best villains list, she would be on it.  She has versatility, whether she's is subtle, innocent, and sweet or psychopathic, detached, and unmoved.  Of any recent villain, she is one of the most strategic we have ever seen wielding emotion like an iron fist.  And for those who loved the work that went into Charlize Theron playing the lead in Monster, Pike did the same thing, only she put on the weight and lost it again in a matter of ten days.  Pike produces a role that will be used as a standard bearer for years for actresses trying to play pure evil.  Oscars Interview

2.  JK Simmons in Whiplash

Beyond the fact that I love JK Simmons the man, this wasn't one of those Oscars that goes to a seasoned veteran because of his service.  It goes to someone who gives a tour de force performance as a jazz instructor searching for art as any means necessary.  Every performance is usually based in a single scene that can exemplify everything that goes into putting the character together.  Look no further than "not quite my tempo" to find Simmons at his best, only for Simmons he than uses that foundational moment as the beginning of his crescendo which lasts the rest of the movie.  The reason Simmons gives such a brilliant performance comes at the end of the night when you leave the theatre and say, "wow that guy is horrible and insane…but he was right, wasn't he?"  Simmons takes over Fletcher and believes meticulously every second of his mantra. "There are no two words in the English language more harmful that good job."  Well.  Great Job then Mr. Simmons.   Not Quite My Tempo

1.  Jake Gyllenhaal in Nightcrawler

If you had told me at the beginning of the year that I was going to praise Jake Gyllenhaal for a performance I would have told you, "you're insane."  A handsome actor in his own right other than a few glimpses in Brokeback Mountain and Zodiac, I never thought of Gyllenhaal as a good actor.  I was wrong.  In Nightcrawler, Gyllenhaal takes his few moments from Zodiac and in essence becomes the killer.  I have never walked out of a theatre and been more terrified of a protagonist than I did with Nightcrawler.  As I said with Rene Russo, look at the scene where he takes her out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant and you'll get what I mean.  Gyllenhaal is three parts De Niro in this film, with Taxi Driver, The King of Comedy, and The Fan all wrapped up into one tightly wound ball ready to explode.  He plays one of the best sociopaths we have ever seen on film using regurgitations of website entrepreneurial bullshit to sell his web of lies over the course of two hours.  He is tactical, precise, and exactly the type of guy you never want to meet at any point, ever.  With his weight loss, which makes his eyes sick into his skull, and his brilliant performance it is beautiful to watch an actor so perfectly set in the driver's seat.  Nightcrawler Trailer

The Best Movies of 2014, Part I

…And the Oscar goes to Birdman {Cue applause}.  Yes the Oscars came and went last Sunday without a scandal, other than some of Neil Patrick Harris's poorly timed jokes. I mean really NPH hire a few writers, but still very little commotion.  The Grand Budapest Hotel took home its fair share of early awards and then Birdman came in to sweep up a large portion of the rest, although Michael Keaton will have to wait for another career defining opportunity to take home the prize.  All in all, it was a simple show, which makes sense considering this was a relatively simple year in cinema and while there were plenty of films that people adored, there wasn't the same kind of love that lived in films of years past.  That doesn't mean there weren't a few great films, even a few masterpieces, just that the year didn't boast as many high caliber films as in past competitions.  Nevertheless now that the Academy has announced their favorites it is time for the list that I know you all crave (and by crave I mean you all are nice enough to placate me by reading).  As in years past, this list will be in three parts:  Best Films, Best Performances, and Miscellaneous.  Today we will cover the Best Films of 2014.

As I attempt to do each year, this list comes from watching enough films that I can have a fair assessment of good and bad.  Two films that I did not see this year were Still Alice and Wild, which I doubt would have had any impact on the best film category, but might have had an impact on best performances.  Last year I managed to make it through 85 films by January 20th, this year with a thesis to write and perform, I only managed 75 with an extra month, but still a fine number of films.  There were movies that I really enjoyed such as Chef, X-Men, Captain America 2, A Walk Among the Tombstones, Top Five, Dear White People, & 22 Jump Street.  Many of these films I will watch again, especially 22 Jump Street, which I found hilarious, but none of these made the list.  There were really innovative films like The Lego Movie (Which got screwed by the Oscars), Obvious Child, Edge of Tomorrow, The Babadook, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Only Lovers Left Alive, but like the other category, they also narrowly missed the list.  Last year I had 13, this year I have 15, which while of lower quality from the films I saw last year, were still quite splendid.  Let us begin.

15.  Copenhagen  Stars: Gethin Anthony & Frederikke Dahl Hansen.  

Copenhagen

As with the first movie of the 2013 list, It's a Disaster, most likely none of you have seen this film.  It is a small film that had a very limited opening in October of 2014.  It follows party boy William played by Gethin Anthony (Renly Baratheon on Game of Thrones) as he sleeps his way through Europe ending up in Copenhagen, Denmark.  There he meets Effy played incredibly well by Hansen who helps him as he tries to find his long lost grandfather who turns out to be a former Nazi.  The movie is a typical love story and if it weren't for the idiotic things that William does we would cheer for it all the way through, well both the idiotic nature of William and the fact that Effy is fourteen.  William is 28.  The film is uncomfortable to say the least and makes you question who really is the oldest and the youngest on the sliding scale of maturity.  It is a small film in terms of budget and in terms of directing choices, but a thought provoking take on love without necessarily going into the boundaries of illegal love.  Currently on Netflix.

14.  The Fault in Our Stars  Stars: Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, and Laura Dern.

I really didn't want to see this movie and if my favorite young actress, Shailene Woodley hadn't been in it, I wouldn't have seen it.  Also if friends hadn't introduced me to this weird invention called Redbox.  I thoroughly enjoyed this film and while it remains solidly within the structure of a filmed young adult novel the screenplay allows its actors to explore rather than be confined.  Elgort and Woodley were also in Divergent, which makes my list of worst films in 2014, but those performances are miles away from this film.  Stars proves that you can do soapy sentimentality with heart and by heart I don't mean the type you find in a Hallmark card.  This film's core is built with honesty, which makes some of its cliches ring true, if only for a moment.  If anything, this is a film to showcase once again just how powerful Shailene Woodley can be no matter how many shitty Divergent films she might eventually star in.  

13.  The Theory of Everything  Stars:  Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, and David Thewlis.  

There are three essentials dealing with The Theory of Everything that cannot be denied: Both Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones are outstanding and carry the movie, Stephen Hawking is an absolute genius, and Jane Wilde represents what is best about humanity.  Unfortunately for the film, these are the only essentials that I can classify it with.  As a whole, I found the writing to be scatterbrained and without measure.  It is a beautiful story, which is why I did thoroughly enjoy it, but a lot of the film walked in similar step with another amazing story told in 2014 in Unbroken.  What saves Everything and makes it Oscar worthy is its director James Marsh who took the skills he learned from directing the masterpiece documentary Man on Wire and excelled in working with his two brilliant actors.  

12.  Pride  Stars:  Ben Schnetzer, Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, and Andrew Scott.

Pride is a little UK film that tells the true story of an unlikely alliance between London Gay activists in the 1980s and a small community of Welsh miners on strike.  This is a cast movie if there has ever been one that gives each of its characters individual moments to shine.  Bill Nighy is outstanding in the film because unlike almost every Bill Nighy character which is fun, frivolous, and huge in Pride he plays a mousy, timid, old man.  The movie is fun, kind, and uplifting if not a tad bit too sentimental.  For such a small film, Pride packs a big punch and doesn't fail to deliver.  This is a crowd pleaser type of film and it certainly did the job amongst myself and my friends who watched it.  

11.  American Sniper  Stars:  Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, and a fake baby.  

The next two movies on my list fell victim to media coverage.  In American Sniper, a mixture of Seth Rogan, Michael Moore, and Bill Maher along with reviews like 'American Sniper' Is Almost Too Dumb to Criticize by Rolling Stone left the movie with a less than stellar chance at an Oscar.  This is too bad, because although I agree that the movie has a lot of issues, none more glaring that Bradley Cooper with a fake baby I entirely disagree with the many editorials written by some of the Hollywood elite.  I did not find this movie as a shrine to the life of Chris Kyle, I also did not find it to be a disgraceful telling of the Iraq War told by a Republican Jingoistic director.  Although I do not like the politics of Clint Eastwood I definitely think the man knows how to shoot war scenes.  In both Letters from Iwo Jima and Flags of Our Fathers, Eastwood executed the atrocities of war with the same reverence that he did in Sniper.  The difference?  Sniper isn't a war movie.  It is a biopic of a soldier.  A flawed, human, killing machine of a soldier.  As I said when I left the theatre, "I think Chris Kyle may have been an American Hero, but thank god I never met him, because he's terrifying."  Much in the same light as The Wolf of Wall Street what can we expect when a biopic is based on a book written by the subject.  Of course there will be lies and half truths, but that doesn't take away from the story or from a career defining performance given by Bradley Cooper.  This is a good movie that neither praises nor condemns war and does an adequate (not great), but adequate job of showing how PTSD can destroy a man.  

10.  Selma  Stars:  David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson  

In the same vein as American Sniper, Selma fell prey to media problems dealing with the movie's attempts to portray the relationship between Dr. King and President Johnson.  However, unlike in the case of American Sniper I do agree with the media.  Selma is a good movie led by an extraordinary performance given by David Oyelowo who manages to capture the sincerity, the heart, and the demeanor of Dr. King without making him into a caricature.  The movie tells a story that is incredibly important to our modern world and can be best summed up by Common (who is actually a good actor) after winning the Golden Globe for Best Song, "I am the hopeful black woman who was denied the right to vote, I am the caring white supporter killed on the front lines of freedom, I am the unarmed black kid who maybe needed a hand but instead was given a bullet, I am the two fallen police officers murdered in the line of duty, Selma has awakened my humanity."  With this being said, I do believe the movie falls prey to two major issues.  The first comes from the director and the second from the script.  The director deals with a strong historical subject with maturity but runs into the issue of directing each line like it is "the most important line ever given," this is problematic for an audience because it doesn't allow them time for a catharsis.  The other issue is the media one with the script.  Normally I don't have a problem when a script decides to change history (because they do all the time), but in this case it was so unnecessary.  Why did the writer feel it was important to turn LBJ into the opposition, the villain.  There was already a villain.  The South led by bigoted racist George Wallace.  Director Ava DuVernay responded to this hubbub by saying, "Bottom line is folks should interrogate history," which I couldn't agree more.  This is why I still really liked Selma, but the sections where LBJ is depicted as a racist, calling Dr. King the N-word, were hardly needed to tell the story.  

9.  CitizenFour  Stars:  Edward Snowden.

Despite a year packed with many interesting documentaries including The Overnighters, Virunga, Happy Valley, My Life in Dirty Pictures, and Finding Vivian Maier once I watched Citizen Four it was clear which film would win the Oscar.  CitizenFour isn't really a documentary, because it isn't really a movie.  The bulk of the film takes place in a hotel room and is an interview between Glenn Greenwald of The Guardian and Edward Snowden.  Although the film doesn't technically take sides it is very apparent whose side director Laura Poitras is on.  She would say she is on the side of the people, the government would probably say something different.  One thing is clear.  This is a film that every American needs to see.  It is fascinating, horrifying, and sobering.  As Rotten Tomatoes says, "Citizenfour transcends ideology to offer riveting, must-see cinema."  I couldn't agree more.  

8.  Blue Ruin  Stars:  Macon Blair and Devin Ratray

If I say that I loved this movie, would that mean there is something wrong with me?  Is it a perfect film?  Definitely not.  But for a movie that takes over 20 minutes for the lead character to say a word, for that to be incredibly thrilling is a feat within itself.  Make no bones about it, this is a revenge thriller and the hero definitely isn't heroic.  The movie is like a modern Hitchcock film mixed in with what we would classify as modern noir.  Macon Blair is mesmerizing and terrifying.  If you walked up to him on the street you might think he was a little cooky, but never would you think he would be capable of something like this.  By using a main character who is nebbish instead of brash, the film lends the horrific nature of his crimes to the human nature of understanding why he commits them.  This is a must see.  

7.  Snowpiercer  Stars:  Chris Evans, John Hurt, and Tilda Swinton.  

In a year defined by innovative films it only makes sense that Snowpiercer would be so high on my list.  This excerpt is taken from the review I wrote earlier this year, "Snowpiercer is one of the weirdest movies of the year, if not the decade. It is either brilliant or problematic or both. The plot is genuinely compelling and it is shot rather well considering it had a smaller budget (39 Mil). There are a lot of things happening in this movie, some of which has little to do with the actors and the story."  Of the movies on my list both this one and the next were the films that I re-watched the most times.  This film has moments of absolute brilliance highlighted by Tilda Swinton who could have only been funnier if she had been in more of the movie.  The film is audacious in creating a completely mesmerizing world to play within.  Although the contrivance of the plot could be seen by some to be unnecessary it allows for a fully developed script while still having subplots in the scifi, comedy, dramedy, and cult film genres.  Snowpiercer manages to mix thought provoking insight with thought provoking dark comedy and it creates a cult classic in the process.  

6.  Guardians of the Galaxy  Stars:  Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, and six words of Vin Diesel

Just Brilliant

Many different year end movie lists steered clear of having a Marvel Comic book movie on their reviews, but I question if this was 1980 would The Empire Strikes Back have made a few lists.  I use this reference because Guardians is more than a fun comic book movie it is a genre defining film.  Guardians proves that just because it is a comic book movie, doesn't mean it has to be classified as one.  It is equal parts Star Wars, comic book, and western.  It is funny and sentimental.  At first I kind of liked this film.  After my sixth viewing it was clear my first opinion was wrong.  This is one of the few comic books that I have read and I was pleased with how James Gunn managed to pack in the irrelevant nature of the crew without misplacing any of the characters.  Chris Pratt is a big time star and Bradley Cooper is quite a funny voice actor.  Guardians was a roller coaster ride and I enjoyed it enough to stay in my seat and go again.  Also it doesn't hurt that the clip at the end, not the dancing Groot, but all the way at the end was one of the funniest references that has ever been put in a movie.

5.  Nightcrawler  Stars:  Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo

I have watched horror movies that were less disturbing than Jake Gyllenhaal was in this movie.  In terms of a lead performance, in a year with great performances, this one might be the standout.  You would think a movie about freelance night crawlers wouldn't be that disturbing, which is exactly how I felt when I walked into the theatre.  I was wrong.  The character of Lou Bloom is on par with (this may be sacrilegious to say) Annie Wilkes in Misery, only in Nightcrawler Lou is the hero.  The writer director Dan Gilroy does a great job of creating a grimy movie, while still keeping a slick fast moving thriller.  Unfortunately it's ending is its downfall and if the LA police were based on real people then the LA cops would be the dumbest law enforcement agency on the planet.  However, Gyllenhaal and to a lesser extent Russo do a fine job of keeping us interested through the far fetched ending.  

4.  Whiplash  Stars:  Miles Teller and JK Simmons

Who would have thought that one of the most intense movies of the year would be about jazz drumming, but with a drum roll so powerful that it leaves stains of blood on its head, Whiplash is most definitely that film.  However to call Whiplash a film about drumming is to say that Equus is about horsemanship or My Fair Lady is about Cockney English.  It certainly plays a part, but it is only the drum beat, not the crescendo.  The movie is as much about theatre as it is about music.  What is true art?  Can a true artist be a good person?  Does the end of the art itself justify the means it took to get it there?  Notice I said the art itself and not the artist.  Simmons, who has redefined what it takes to be a career actor has outdone all that have come before him with this role.  He is simply exhilarating to watch.  As he repeats, "not my tempo," to Miles Teller (Who gives another brilliant performance much like The Spectacular Now last year) he is doing more than speaking in drumming terms.  He is telling the audience that their pulses must meet his tempo.  And he succeeds.  Simmons, as the demonic Terence Fletcher describes his teaching in a poignant moment to Teller, "I don't think people understood what it was I was doing at Shaffer.  I wasn't there to conduct.  Any fucking moron can wave his arms and keep people in tempo.  I was there to pouch people beyond what's expected of them.  I believe that is…an absolute necessity."  He might be the worst teacher to ever set foot on screen, but can you argue with the results of his art?

3.  Birdman  Stars:  Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, and Zach Galifianakis

The Oscar goes to Birdman and it was certainly well deserved.  It is by far the best looking film of the year.  The cinematography is fantastic merging the worlds of fantasy and real life without breaking the stride of a single roving shot.  Keaton leads a great cast with fantastic performances by Emma Stone, Edward Norton, and in the surprise of the year, Zach Galifianakis who plays it straight.  In Due Date, he showed The Hangover wasn't all he could do and he shines in Birdman.  Although the number two movie on this list will most likely not be remembered for any where near the length of this film, unlike the millions of adoring fans and Oscar voters, I was left a little cold.  There are many things that I enjoyed about the film and I cannot deny that it is funny and sad and misbegotten and dark, but I felt that it could have gone even further.  We get a few glimpses into Keaton's broken psyche throughout the film before his drunken stupor breakdown.  I wish that the film had done a Coffee and Cigarettes, where we lost the cigarettes in the end.  Nit picky I know, but I'm a tough critic.  

better job at ramping up to this moment.  I also loved the extra characters in the film, but wished that we could have tied up their stories.  It felt at times like

2.  Gone Girl  Stars:  Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Carrie Coon, Neil Patrick Harris, and Tyler Perry  

On first viewing, this was my favorite night out at the movies of the year.  Perhaps it is my love for David Fincher or for Trent Reznor's score or for Rosamund Pike as a psychotic genius or it could even have been for the first movie in years if not ever that Tyler Perry finally shows that he is in fact an actor.  Any one of these reasons helped take an interesting B thriller into a Fincher masterpiece.  To love a David Fincher movie is similar in loving a David Lynch movie, you sound like a sycophant when you do it.  I was this way with Christopher Nolan until the mistake of the year, Interstellar.  David Fincher has now taken over Nolan's position.  Many of his movies are similar in beat and in plot twist, but where Gone Girl stands out comes from the twist, because unlike a standard twist centered movie, Fincher interweaves the twist with the plot so when it comes out, while shocking, it doesn't wait for the viewer to catch their breath.  The film just continues like it is a standard thriller storyline.  This gives us two story lines that interweave and lead to a conclusion which is as mesmerizing as it is inevitable.  Ben Affleck holds his own, but this is a female driven movie and both Rosamund Pike and newcomer to the big screen Carrie Coon (Married to Tracey Letts) take hold of the plot and never let go.  This was a compelling movie that I fell totally enthralled with and while it may not hold up in a second and third viewing, its first attempt will live with me for a long time to come.  And isn't that what a great movie should do?

1.  Boyhood  Stars:  Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, & Ethan Hawke

I hate picking an Oscar movie as my favorite film, but this couldn't be avoided.  Boyhood is a bonafide masterpiece and with any masterpiece most audiences will either love it or hate it.  I loved it.  As an artist I was drawn to the mere attempt at doing it by Richard Linklater.  A 12 year project is a feat within itself, but what kept me watching the screen was a truly human story, one that reminded me of my own boyhood without the movie touching on almost any part of my own story.  Rotten Tomatoes says, "Epic in technical scale but breathlessly intimate in narrative scope, Boyhood is a sprawling investigation of the human condition."  A sprawling investigation of the human condition, I could not have put it better myself.  Earlier in the films I said that Pride is a cast driven movie, Boyhood is even more than that.  Many have said that this is a plotless movie, that while interesting, doesn't lead anywhere.  I couldn't disagree more.  As a cast driven film we not only watch as the story progresses on the timelines of these characters, but we watch as the timelines of these actor's real lives progress.  Boyhood is an experiment in documenting human truth and even though the story is written from Linklater's mind, we still manage to find real truth in the character's portrayal of fiction.  It is like through the telling of fiction these actors have portrayed fact.  Boyhood is a movie that every dreamer should watch, some for the filmmaking feat, some for the story, some for the lives that were lived through the filming.  In the end, this movie summed up for it's critics in the final line given by Patricia Arquette, "You know what I'm realizing?  My life is just going to go.  Like that.  This series of milestones.  Getting married, having kids, getting divorced.  The time we thought you were dyslexic.  When I taught you how to ride a bike.  Getting divorced…again.  Getting my masters degree, finally getting the job I wanted, sending Samantha off to college.  Sending you off to college.  You know what's next?  Huh?  It's my fucking funeral…I just thought there would be more."  Critics would say that pretty much says it all, "I just thought there would be more," but then again critics of this movie are missing the point.  The story isn't in where we are going, but in the journey that we took to get there and usually we wish there would be more in the big picture, but when we sit down and really think about it life is about the times we wanted more and the times we were given more.  It's about the truth realized only after time has passed.  Boyhood let's us discover this truth in the lives of its characters and if we listened close enough in the lives of ourselves.  It's ok that we lament the ending, the movie is only echoing our own restlessness for life.  Truly a masterpiece.  

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