My top ten films of 2014

1. Honorable Mentions(InAlphabetical Order): 22Jump Street,Calvary,Edgeof Tomorrow,Godzilla,
Guardiansof the Galaxy,InherentVice,Interstellar,John Wick,The Lego Movie, The OneI Love, The Raid
2, Underthe Skin,X-Men Daysof FuturePast
10. The Guest– Anyof my honorable mentionscouldhave made theirwayintomynumber10 slot,butI
endedupchoosingAdamWingard’shugelysatisfyingthriller, TheGuest. It’s a storyabout a naïve family
whoopenup theirhome toa total stranger,onlytodiscoverthatthisman is notas innocentas he
seems.Like Wingard’spastefforts,it’snothingmore thanagenre exercise,butit’sone thatfeels
uniquelyfreshandentertaining.Withgreatperformances,slickactionandanawesome soundtrack, The
Guest feelslikeathrowbacktosome of the more ridiculousactionfilmsof the 80s,while alsomanaging
to mix initsown modernsensibilities.
9. Locke – Locke is85 minutesof Tom Hardy drivingacar and talkingona phone.That’sit.
Writer/directorStevenKnighthassomehowtakenagimmickypremise andusedittoprovide awholly
realizedportraitof manwhois simplytryingtomake the rightdecisions inhislife.The characterof
Locke is forcedto deal withthe complicationsof aconcrete pour,while alsorecoveringfromthe
confessionof hisinfidelitytohiswife.Attemptingtosuperviseaconcrete pouroverthe phone maynot
soundexcitingandwhenthe movie firstbegins,itisn’t.Butaswe begintolearnmore aboutwho Locke
isand whyhe’schoosingto make these decisions,everyaspectof hislife becomesmore andmore
fascinating.Thisisreallyafilmthatgetsbetterandbetteras the filmprogressesandit’sall because of
the slowdevelopmentof Locke’scharacterand Tom Hardy’sincredibleperformance. Lockeisasimple
story,toldin a unique anddaringfashion.
8. Fury – A profile of five menoperatingatankin the EuropeanTheaterof WWII, Fury isthoroughly
grippingfromstart tofinish.The actionsequencesare intense,well-directedandmanage toseparate
themselvesfromthe packof otherWWII movieswiththeirfocusontankwarfare.The film isbloody,
brutal and none of the characters everfeel safe fromthe onslaughtof enemyfire. A sequence thatpits
fourAmericantanksagainsta superiorGermantank isshockingandexciting,asisthe climacticstandoff
where oursquadmust battle anentire battalionof SSNazi soldiers.Butthe actionisworthlessif you
don’tcare aboutthe characters,so directorDavidAyermakessure thateach tank memberhasa
distinctive personality.A highlightof the filmisanextendedsequence where BradPittandLogan
Lerman’scharacters play house withtwoyoungGermanwomen.It’sabreak inthe action,but itgoesto
show howdesperate these men are toreceive some semblance of normalcywithinthe consistentchaos
that they’re exposedtodayafterday. By makingthe war seemlegitimatelyscary, Fury earnsitsplace
alongside all the greatWWIImovies.
7. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Love himor hate him, it’simpossible todenythatWesAnderson has
developedastyle that’suniquely hisown.With TheGrand BudapestHotel,he’scraftedhismost
beautiful lookingfilm.Thankstoincrediblesetdirectionandproductiondesign,practicallyeveryframe
of the filmisa visual wonder.Youcouldwatchitwiththe soundoff and still be entertained,butthen
youwouldbe missing outonthe engagingstoryandsharp dialogue thataddanotherlayerof beautyto
the film.Aidedbyagreat cast, Andersonhascrafteda hugelyentertainingtale thatworksasa

2. remembrance forpasseddownstoriesandanaffinityfordaysgone by.Viewers willingtocheckintothis
filmare sure to enjoytheirstay.
6. Enemy – A surreal andprovocative mindbenderthat’sasfrighteningasanyhorror filmreleasedthis
year, Enemy is an intricatelyplottedthrillerthatdemandsmultipleviewings. Fromthe openingshotto
the final frame,it’safilmthat will holditsviewers inanearconstantstate of suspense. DirectorDenis
Villeneuve’s follow-uptolastyear’s Prisoners provesthathe’sa masterat holdingviewersonthe edge.
Jake Gyllenhaal deliversagreattwo-sidedperformanceandthe grimcinematographyfrom Nicolas
Bolduceffectivelyprovides the feelingthatsomethingjustisn’tquiterightinthisworld. Speakingof
thingsnotbeingquite right,the endingisareal shockerthat ranksup there with the bestof thisyear.
Viewersaccustomedto havingeveryplotdetail spoon fedtothemshouldlookelsewhere;thisisafilm
that will leadtoquestions,interpretationsandconversations.Sometimes,that’sthe bestkindof
cinema.
5. Boyhood - Shot intermittentlyfromMay2002 to October2013, Boyhood chroniclesthe lifeof a
youngboynamedMason from ages6 to 18. It’san incredibleproductionstory,butthe filmtranscends
thispotential gimmickwith fullyrealizedcharacters,heartfeltmomentsandinterestingthemesthat
mostcomingof age filmsdon’tevenattempttotackle. Neverbefore hasafilmsoexpertlycaptured
whatit’slike tolive inthe 21st century.Everythingfromthe clothes,tothe hairstyles,tothe vernacular
feelsauthenticwiththe time periodbecause eachscene wasfilmedinitsrespective year.Decadesfrom
now,people willlookbackonthisfilmasan authenticsnapshotof life inthe early21st century. The
amountof thingsthatcouldhave gone wrong with directorRichard Linklater’sambitiousprojectare
endless,butsomehoweverythingcame togethertocreate atrue piece of art that isas beautiful and
movingasany motionpicture can be.Linklater’snaturalisticdirectionkeepsthingspoeticallysimple and
elevenyearsof footage leadstoan endingthatisbreathtakinginhow itsaysso much bysayingso little.
Thisis surelyone of the mostrealisticfilmsevermade,butit’salsoone of the mostmagical.I’ve never
seenanythingquite like Boyhood.
4. Gone Girl – AdapatedfromGillianFlynn’sentertainingpage-turnerof the same name, GoneGirl is a
harrowingmysterythat’sengrossingfromstarttofinish.Fansof the source material will be pleasedat
the faithfulnessof thisadaptation,whilenew viewers willbe absolutelyflooredbysome of the twists
and turnsthat thismovie takes. Notonlyisita greatthriller,butit’salsoa greatsatire of modern
relationshipsandmarriages.The extreme,heightenedscenariothatthese characters are placedinmay
be rare, but the actionsthat theytake while inthisstrange scenarioare simplyexaggerationsof what
manypeople dowhile inamarriage.Coupleslie toeachother,pretendtobe someone else andstruggle
for power. These charactersare writtenashyperbolicexaggerationsforareason.DirectorDavidFincher
once again provesthathe’sa masterbehindthe camera,craftinga filmthatneverletsupthroughoutits
extendedruntime.Notonlydoesitrankrightup there withhisbestwork,butit’salsoone of the most
whollysatisfyingthrillerstocome outinyears.
3. Nightcrawler – A brilliantsatire of modernnewsandthe cutthroatbusinessworld, Nightcrawlerisa
startlinglyaccomplisheddirectorial debutfromDanGilroy.Jake Gyllenhaal deliversthe best
performance of 2013 and crafts a totallyunique andinterestingcharacterinthe process.Gyllenhaal’s

3. LouisBloomisa total sociopath,willingtoputanybodyintodangeraslongas it will gethimfurther
ahead. He wantsto achieve successandhe absolutelydoesnot care how he getsthere. Gyllenhaal
reportedlylost20 poundsforthe role and Bloom’sgauntphysique andlonghaironlyaddto his
uncomfortable persona. The scriptbyGilroyalsooffersplentyof darkhumorthat maycatch some
viewersoff guard. Gyllenhaal’scharacterissoloathsome thatyoualmosthave to laughat all of the
horrible actshe’swillingtocommit.All of these actsculminate inafantasticallydirectedfinal action
sequence,one thatcontinuestoshockevenafteryouthinkitcouldgono further. It’sa filmthat’sfull of
surprisesandfeelslikeabreathof freshair inthe occasionallymundane cinematiclandscape.
2. Foxcatcher – If you’re lookingfora feel-goodfilmtoboostyourspiritsandmorale,thenImust warn
youto stay far, far awayfromFoxcatcher.Here isa sports filmwithall of the happinesssuckedoutof it,
whichisthenreplacedbyan evermountingsense of dreadandscenariossodisturbingthatthey’re
borderline horrormovie territory. Butwhatmakesthisfilmscarierthanmostisthat it’scompletelytrue.
In hisbestfilmtodate, directorBennettMillerhascrafteda true-life tale that’sashauntingasa quiet
nightmare. Millerisaidedbyafascinatingscriptandthree transformative performancesfromChanning
Tatum, Steve Carell andMarkRuffalo. Aidedbysome extensive makeupwork, Carell’sperformanceas
the wealthyJohnduPont is a true standoutand the character that he embodieslingerslongafterthe
filmhasended. It’sathematicallyrichfilmabouttragedy,loneliness,the obsessiontoachieve greatness,
and the ideathat the wealthiestpeople inAmericacanuse theirmoneytobuy whateverkindof lifethey
desire. Injusthisfourthfeature film, BennettMillerhascreatedatrue work of art that isnothingshort
of astounding.
1. Whiplash– Sometimesthe bestthingaboutmoviesistheirabilitytosurprise you.Before Isaw
Whiplash,I wouldhave neverimaginedthatitwouldendupbeingmyfavorite filmof 2014. Now,over
twomonthssince I originallysawit,mylove forthe filmhasonlycontinuedtogrow. Thistale of a
maniacal jazzconductor andthe youngstudentthathe choosesto inflicthiswrathuponisintense and
undeniablypowerful. Thisisn’taheartfeltstoryof a teacherencouraging astudenttodo hisbest;it’sa
storyof a harmful relationshipbetweenanabuserandan abusee. DirectorDamien Chazelle’sdirecting
istight andspot-on,while hisscriptsmartlyexploresthe idea of wantingtoachieve something
regardlessof the cost. MilesTellerdeliversanextremelyphysical performance aswe watchhimbangon
the drum setuntil hishandsare bloody,while J.K.Simmonscreates one of the mostvicious,ruthless,
disturbinganddownrightevilcharacterstoappearin a movie inquite some time. Allof thisbuildstoa
final sequence thatisequal partsshockingandexhilarating.Justasthe filmappearstoveertowardsa
fairlyobviousending,the rugispulledoutfromunderneathuswithatrulysurprisingreveal.Chazelle
managesto findanendingthatis neithercompletelyupliftingnorcompletelyupsettingandentirely
avoidsthe schmaltzthatis typicallyassociatedwithsimilarfilms. It’smore frighteningthatanyhorror
filmI’ve seeninyearsandone of the most uncomfortable viewingexperiences thatI’ve everhad.With
taut direction,amazingperformancesandaninfectiouslytoe-tappingjazzsoundtrack,thisissure to
blow awayyour expectations,justlikeitdidmine. Whiplash is,withoutadoubt,the bestfilmof the
year.