Here are some critically lauded movies that will not be in the Top Ten so get them out of your head now!
Gravity: Visually stunning, but dramatically unsatisfying
American Hustle: A good movie, but too frenetic and jumbled for me to appreciate it for more than that.
12 Years a Slave: Meh
Inside Llewyn Davis: Didn't see it
Nebraska: Didn't see it
Drumroll Please!.........no?......okay, then.
Honorable Mentions: Much Ado About Nothing, Man of Steel, Blue Jasmine, The Wolverine, The Spectacular Now, Iron Man 3
10. Captain Phillips
One of the most gripping and suspenseful movies I have seen in a long time. Captain Phillips managed to literally keep me on the edge of my seat for 90% of its total running time. A lot of credit has to be given to Paul Greengrass for creating tight and claustrophobic environments for his actors to sweat in, increasing the tension in every scene. Knowing the ending to the story before I sat down did absolutely nothing to ease my anxiety throughout the film, and that's pretty impressive. Anchored (Ha!) by great performances from both Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi, this movie was a true gem and one that I waited way too long to see.
9. Her
In the hands of another filmmaker, Her easily could have been a disaster. Its premise, a man falling in love with a computer program, is laughable on paper, and to make it into a concise and serious film is a daunting task. Luckily, Spike Jonze not only delivers a fantastic film with a haunting and reflective message, he also gives us one of the most beautifully honest love stories ever put to celluloid. Joaquin Phoenix's performance alone makes the movie worth gushing over, but its Jonze's script that lets this one take the cake. Jonze's writing has the ability to convey powerful emotions with simplistic dialogue and almost magical-realist universes that hold a funhouse mirror to our own existence. Let's hope he keeps getting more chances to entertain and enlighten us in the years to come.
8. Escape From Tomorrow
Filming a full-length psychological horror film film in Disney World? With handheld cameras? Without Disney employees knowing? Impossible, you say? Well, that's what I would have thought before I saw what was both the most terrifying and fascinating movie I saw all year. The film follows a recently unemployed father of two on his last day of a family trip to Disney World. Slowly, the constant barrage of cartoon faces and existential angst cause him to slowly lose his sanity, turning "The Happiest Place on Earth" into a nightmarish hellscape which he cannot escape from. Most of this film's appeal lies in its concept, that being, a movie shot entirely in secret in one of the most heavily surveillanced places in the country. That's what piqued my interest, however I was not expecting the film to be such an effective mindfuck. It's David Lynch-esque cinematography and it's deviously understated black and white color palette heighten the film's overall impishly disturbing tone. This movie will change the way you look at the idealized concept of Disneyworld, and family vacations in general, in a way that you never imagined, if only for a short while. An under the radar film that is truly chilling and fascinating, if nothing else.
7. Philomena
Heartwarming, to say the least. One of my favorite actors, Steve Coogan delivers both a hilariously understated performance as well as one of the year's best screenplays. Coogan plays a disgraced British journalist who decides to help an elderly Irish woman find her long-lost son. What could have been a sappy, manipulative tear-jerker turns out to be more like a classic "road movie". Both charming and surprisingly thought-provoking, Philomena was one of the most pleasant surprises of this year that doesn't seem to be going unnoticed, which is fantastic. Judi Dench gives my favorite performance of her long and distinguished career as Philomena Lee; A seemingly happy-go-lucky woman who is unfettered by modern social mores and has more than a few demons on her back. Dench is normally known for playing stern and focused authoritative figures, at least in the past few years of her career. Philomena Lee is anything but, she is fun loving, forgiving, and possibly the most likable character from any film this year.
6. Wolf of Wall Street
Martin Scorsese pulls no punches in this three-hour epic chronicling the career of convicted crooked stockbroker, Jordan Belfort. The movie feels less like a biopic and more like an epic historical saga. Everything about the film is excessive and unapologetic, and all of that is done for effect, despite what several fratboys you know might believe. The dialogue is filthy. The drugs and alcohol are free-flowing, and the nudity is........plentiful. Scorsese has a track record of showcasing morally questionable and even reprahensible characters without judging them. A good deal of people have taken the movie to task for seemingly celebrating greed, misogyny, and overall recklessness, but I believe that this is exactly why the movie works. By allowing the cast to truly live to their full raucous potential, the movie turns into a fascinating character study, rather than a fable of any sort. Leonardo DiCaprio delivers what I believe to be his greatest performance in this brilliant piece of cinema.
5. Fruitvale Station
Not an easy viewing experience at all. Fruitvale Station was a very transformative film for me, and one that I frankly needed to see. It changed the way that I viewed the Oscar Grant shooting of 2009. It changed the way I looked at police brutality in general. It changed me. Plain and simple. No movie in recent memory has hit me as hard as this one did. It is really a shame that this film went ignored by the Oscars as it is not only an impressive first feature effort from Ryan Coogler, but also has one of the most touching performances of the year from Michael B. Jordan as Oscar Grant, a young reformed convict with a heart of gold, but who is not without his flaws. It would have been really easy for Coogler to paint Oscar as a martyr, but instead he chooses to show his inherent flaws, in order for us to truly understand him as a man, rather than painting him as a complete saint in order to simply spark outrage during the film's climax. An essential film for anyone who remembers the anger and confusion that followed after that fateful New Year's Eve
4. Pacific Rim
Guierllmo Del Toro is one of the few true artists working in film today. A true creative behemoth, Del Toro never fails to disappoint in terms of creating fascinating new worlds and some of the coolest set and character designs around. This movie was not the most moving or thought-provoking film of the year. Not by a long shot. It was, however, the most fun I had at the movies all year. That counts for a lot in my book. I go to the movies, essentially, to be entertained. If I get enlightened or learn something along the way, that is awesome, but sometimes you just want to sit back, relax, and watch giant robots punch giants monsters in the face. Also, Ron Perlman's involvement in any project almost guarantees it a spot in my top 10.
3. Side Effects
It's a shame that Side Effects may very well be Steven Soderbergh's last theatrically released film, as it shows him at the top of his game. Side Effects is a taut and well-constructed thriller with a great cast and a surprisingly well-thought out script. A fascinating examination of the pharmaceutical industry and mental illness in general. I can't really say much more about it without giving too much away, but this movie is outstanding. It also got me to finally embrace Jude Law as a good actor, which is an uphill battle that went on for far too long.
2. Dallas Buyers Club
Perhaps the most important film to come out this year, Dallas Buyers Club is a brilliant story about intolerance and survival in the early years of the AIDS epidemic. This film does not pull any punches an to be honest, the first 45 minutes were so bleak and disheartening that I almost wanted to leave the theatre. Thankfully, I held back the sobs and watched the movie unfold into one of the greatest stories told on film in the past decade. You can't talk about this movie without mentioning the full-on acting clinic that McConaughey puts on as Ron Woodruff, a hard-drinking Texas degenerate who is told he has 30 days to live. McConaughey disappears into his role, an impressive feat given that for the better part of his career so far he basically played the same character in a string of half-hearted and forgettable rom-coms. He plays Woodruff with a pitch-perfect cocktail of gruffness and sensibility that I have not seen from him, or any other actor for that matter, in a long time. The movie rests squarely on his shoulders and he carries the shit out of it. This film is brutal and can be hard to sit through, but damn it all if It wasn't excellent
1. Kings of Summer
What can I say about this movie that I haven't said already. It's uproariously funny, genuinely heartfelt, and visually stunning. One of the best coming-of-age stories in recent memories. The film takes the simple storyline of three young men deciding to run away from home and building a house in the wilderness and turns it into so much more. This movie, rather than focusing on the freedom and carefree nature of being a teenager, decides to focus more on the selfishness and frustration of adolescent years. This approach turns what could have been a sappy and over sentimental fable into an honest story of what it means to truly grow up. Some of the finest young actors working today give enthralling and hilarious performances, and prove to the world that we should be seeing a lot more of them in the future. Not only the best film of the year, but one of my favorite movies of all time.
8. Escape From Tomorrow
Filming a full-length psychological horror film film in Disney World? With handheld cameras? Without Disney employees knowing? Impossible, you say? Well, that's what I would have thought before I saw what was both the most terrifying and fascinating movie I saw all year. The film follows a recently unemployed father of two on his last day of a family trip to Disney World. Slowly, the constant barrage of cartoon faces and existential angst cause him to slowly lose his sanity, turning "The Happiest Place on Earth" into a nightmarish hellscape which he cannot escape from. Most of this film's appeal lies in its concept, that being, a movie shot entirely in secret in one of the most heavily surveillanced places in the country. That's what piqued my interest, however I was not expecting the film to be such an effective mindfuck. It's David Lynch-esque cinematography and it's deviously understated black and white color palette heighten the film's overall impishly disturbing tone. This movie will change the way you look at the idealized concept of Disneyworld, and family vacations in general, in a way that you never imagined, if only for a short while. An under the radar film that is truly chilling and fascinating, if nothing else.
7. Philomena
Heartwarming, to say the least. One of my favorite actors, Steve Coogan delivers both a hilariously understated performance as well as one of the year's best screenplays. Coogan plays a disgraced British journalist who decides to help an elderly Irish woman find her long-lost son. What could have been a sappy, manipulative tear-jerker turns out to be more like a classic "road movie". Both charming and surprisingly thought-provoking, Philomena was one of the most pleasant surprises of this year that doesn't seem to be going unnoticed, which is fantastic. Judi Dench gives my favorite performance of her long and distinguished career as Philomena Lee; A seemingly happy-go-lucky woman who is unfettered by modern social mores and has more than a few demons on her back. Dench is normally known for playing stern and focused authoritative figures, at least in the past few years of her career. Philomena Lee is anything but, she is fun loving, forgiving, and possibly the most likable character from any film this year.
6. Wolf of Wall Street
Martin Scorsese pulls no punches in this three-hour epic chronicling the career of convicted crooked stockbroker, Jordan Belfort. The movie feels less like a biopic and more like an epic historical saga. Everything about the film is excessive and unapologetic, and all of that is done for effect, despite what several fratboys you know might believe. The dialogue is filthy. The drugs and alcohol are free-flowing, and the nudity is........plentiful. Scorsese has a track record of showcasing morally questionable and even reprahensible characters without judging them. A good deal of people have taken the movie to task for seemingly celebrating greed, misogyny, and overall recklessness, but I believe that this is exactly why the movie works. By allowing the cast to truly live to their full raucous potential, the movie turns into a fascinating character study, rather than a fable of any sort. Leonardo DiCaprio delivers what I believe to be his greatest performance in this brilliant piece of cinema.
5. Fruitvale Station
Not an easy viewing experience at all. Fruitvale Station was a very transformative film for me, and one that I frankly needed to see. It changed the way that I viewed the Oscar Grant shooting of 2009. It changed the way I looked at police brutality in general. It changed me. Plain and simple. No movie in recent memory has hit me as hard as this one did. It is really a shame that this film went ignored by the Oscars as it is not only an impressive first feature effort from Ryan Coogler, but also has one of the most touching performances of the year from Michael B. Jordan as Oscar Grant, a young reformed convict with a heart of gold, but who is not without his flaws. It would have been really easy for Coogler to paint Oscar as a martyr, but instead he chooses to show his inherent flaws, in order for us to truly understand him as a man, rather than painting him as a complete saint in order to simply spark outrage during the film's climax. An essential film for anyone who remembers the anger and confusion that followed after that fateful New Year's Eve
4. Pacific Rim
Guierllmo Del Toro is one of the few true artists working in film today. A true creative behemoth, Del Toro never fails to disappoint in terms of creating fascinating new worlds and some of the coolest set and character designs around. This movie was not the most moving or thought-provoking film of the year. Not by a long shot. It was, however, the most fun I had at the movies all year. That counts for a lot in my book. I go to the movies, essentially, to be entertained. If I get enlightened or learn something along the way, that is awesome, but sometimes you just want to sit back, relax, and watch giant robots punch giants monsters in the face. Also, Ron Perlman's involvement in any project almost guarantees it a spot in my top 10.
3. Side Effects
It's a shame that Side Effects may very well be Steven Soderbergh's last theatrically released film, as it shows him at the top of his game. Side Effects is a taut and well-constructed thriller with a great cast and a surprisingly well-thought out script. A fascinating examination of the pharmaceutical industry and mental illness in general. I can't really say much more about it without giving too much away, but this movie is outstanding. It also got me to finally embrace Jude Law as a good actor, which is an uphill battle that went on for far too long.
2. Dallas Buyers Club
Perhaps the most important film to come out this year, Dallas Buyers Club is a brilliant story about intolerance and survival in the early years of the AIDS epidemic. This film does not pull any punches an to be honest, the first 45 minutes were so bleak and disheartening that I almost wanted to leave the theatre. Thankfully, I held back the sobs and watched the movie unfold into one of the greatest stories told on film in the past decade. You can't talk about this movie without mentioning the full-on acting clinic that McConaughey puts on as Ron Woodruff, a hard-drinking Texas degenerate who is told he has 30 days to live. McConaughey disappears into his role, an impressive feat given that for the better part of his career so far he basically played the same character in a string of half-hearted and forgettable rom-coms. He plays Woodruff with a pitch-perfect cocktail of gruffness and sensibility that I have not seen from him, or any other actor for that matter, in a long time. The movie rests squarely on his shoulders and he carries the shit out of it. This film is brutal and can be hard to sit through, but damn it all if It wasn't excellent
1. Kings of Summer
What can I say about this movie that I haven't said already. It's uproariously funny, genuinely heartfelt, and visually stunning. One of the best coming-of-age stories in recent memories. The film takes the simple storyline of three young men deciding to run away from home and building a house in the wilderness and turns it into so much more. This movie, rather than focusing on the freedom and carefree nature of being a teenager, decides to focus more on the selfishness and frustration of adolescent years. This approach turns what could have been a sappy and over sentimental fable into an honest story of what it means to truly grow up. Some of the finest young actors working today give enthralling and hilarious performances, and prove to the world that we should be seeing a lot more of them in the future. Not only the best film of the year, but one of my favorite movies of all time.
