2014 overall was a pretty solid year for film. When looked back on I think 2014 will be a year that people look at to see when the indie film industry struck back against the mainstream. Just look at the Best Picture nominations and you can see that the indie/art-house really hit hard this year. This is my top 10 list and admittedly there are some movies that I missed. Boyhood, Birdman, Selma and Whiplash were movies that earned high praise and that I wanted to see but unfortunately I was unable to see these films.
Before we get to the best of list, I wanted to a quick shout out, or in this case a dishonorable mention. What I mean by this is that I want to tell you my least favorite movie of 2014.
Annabelle. Seriously this movie is awful. It took everything about the original film (The Conjuring) that was good and threw it all out the window and made a by the numbers horror movie that wasn't scary in the least nor was it in interesting. For these reasons, Annabelle is my worst film of 2014.
...and now, the real list, my top 10 films of 2014, enjoy!
10. Unbroken – I reviewed this a few weeks back and I loved it. It’s a well-executed movie that is powerful and moving, all that being said, it’s not a movie you watch many times; it’s near 3 hours and incredibly draining just from the magnitude of the story. It’s well acted and looks gorgeous and I really think Angelina Jolie should’ve been nominated for Best Director.
9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – 2014 was a hell of a year for Marvel movies and the Captain America sequel kicked it off. The movie straight up kicks ass and is my favorite phase 2 movies of the characters from The Avengers. This movie stepped up the intensity and the magnitude of the stand-alone Marvel movies and is all the better for it.
8. Fury – I didn’t get a chance to review this after I saw it but it was a great movie that was one of the most intense movies out there. Certain scenes in the tank were not only fun to watch but seriously raised my blood pressure. I would consider this to be the Saving Private Ryan of this decade, it’s gritty, gruesome and takes all of the romanticization out of war; plus Brad Pitt kicks ass.
7. As Above, So Below – The only horror movie to crack my top ten in one of the worst year for horror movies in recent memory. There really were only a few good horror movies this year and this was the best of the best. The movie is not only scary but it challenges your mind and goes in directions you wouldn’t think it ever would. It’s definitely a movie that makes you say/think “WTF” quite a few times and somehow, the ending does the whole movie justice.
6. Big Hero 6 – This was the last movie to make the list as it was the last movie I saw. While not a Marvel movie, it’s a Disney-made movie based off of a Marvel comic. This was not only the best family movie of the year it’s the best animated movie of the year (sorry The Lego Movie). This film has great animation and voice work but more importantly, it’s hysterical and has a lot of heart. This is a movie that I actually hope they make a sequel or two because as long as they keep the original cast and hopefully director, this could become a very good series; but as it sits now, it’s a fantastic stand-alone film.
5. 22 Jump Street – Speaking of sequels. Rarely does a sequel do its predecessor justice and even more rare does that happen with sequels. 22 Jump Street somehow manages to capture what was so great about the first movie and capitalizes on it and even surpasses the original. It’s the funniest movie of the year by far partially because it’s a very self-aware movie that knows what it is and doesn’t try to hide it at all.
4. X-Men: Days of Future Past - As said earlier, 2014 was a huge year for Marvel, X-Men, while not under the Marvel license a fantastic movie that attempted to combine the two timelines of X-Men movies we have through time travel while being able to erase the wretched third installment in the original trilogy, X-Men: The Last Stand. This movie was incredibly good and for a little while was able to hold down my pick for best movie of the year.
3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Good god is this movie good. I wasn't sure they'd be able to top Rise of the Planet of the Apes especially with the departure of star James Franco but I was proven wrong. This film focuses much more on the apes, especially the political relationship and struggle between Caesar and and Koba. The movie was a fantastic sequel that surpassed the original film and really excites you for the third and possibly final installment in the Planet of the Apes reboot.
2. Interstellar - This movie. This movie is near 3 hours and the entire time in the theater I was not only on the edge of my seat but I was so beyond interested in the film and where it was going, it was crazy. As a kid I always loved outer space and the universe so to see a movie take what we know about outer space and push through the limits of it was the perfect film for me, especially since it was directed by Christopher Nolan who, if his next movie is just as good as the rest of his resume, may start to creep into my favorite director conversation along with Scorsese and Tarantino. What's truly great about this movie is that in channels your inner child and wonder yet still seems to be grounded in reality which is an incredibly thin line to walk.
1. Guardians of the Galaxy - Like you thought it'd be anything else. This film marks Marvel's fourth appearance on this list which may seem like a lot but this truly was one of their best years in a long time. Guardians was their most ambitious film yet as they chose a comic that not many people read that lacked name recognition with most people. This is also incredibly different from any other Marvel film out there, it's hysterical and most importantly it doesn't take itself too seriously and that's part of what makes this movie great. Another part is that the film really distinguishes itself from every other Marvel movie and brings a freshness to the cinematic universe which is very welcome. If you know me personally, this being my favorite movie of the year should come as no surprise as I couldn't stop talking about it.
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