Top Ten of 2014

It's that time again; you saw how I found most of my looked forward to titles turned out, now let's look at my favourite movies I saw this year.  Once again, that's my favourites, of the ones I've seen; there is a good chance this list might be different when quite a few things I missed this year finally get watched, but these are my feelings right now.  So this is sort of provisional before I catch up with Her, Boyhood, Nightcrawler, Gone Girl, Pride and/or The Babadook (I'm really kicking myself for missing that one).  Also, this is about favourites, I'm not saying of these are objectively the best, just the ones I got the most from.  It's been a tough one this year, because there was quite a lot of good stuff out, more than I was really ready for!


So first of all, a few honourable mentions...

Now, the top ten itself, starting with...

10. Guardians of the Galaxy

Phew, you know you've got one hell of a list when something like this only just makes it!  There were a lot of great blockbusters out this year (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Edge of Tomorrow despite Tom Cruise, Lucy...), so it was incredibly hard to call.  But in the end, I went with Marvel again.  While Captain America again carried on that smart trend, this is a list of favourites, so I'm going to have to give the spot to Guardians.  Several reasons why this takes the spot; James Gunn, finally really getting his dues.  Awesome Mix No. 1.  Marvel showing it's flexibility again by going very far off superhero formula.  The utter revelation of Dave Bautista as an acting talent.  Peter Serafinowicz turning up.  But above everything else is just how much fun it is.  It's a glorious escape across the stars, utterly unapologetic about what it is, making sure we're all along for the ride and knowing how best to craft its humour.  Not much more to say other than... I AM GROOT!

9. Only Lovers Left Alive

Apart from zombies, vampires are the monster that has by far oversaturated the movies in recent years.  Jim Jarmusch's take on them still manages to be really fresh, less perhaps in plot specifics, but definitely in style.  While this is very hip and modern, it's still a capital V-vampire movie at heart, with all the rules intact.  Here the focus is on the burden of immortality and the accompanying thirst (made especially complicated in ages of social media and the rise of various new infections).  Tilda Swinton (who's been quite a lot of good stuff this year) and Tom Hiddleston are perfect as the utterly timeless main characters, who for once in one of these stores have a fairly healthy relationship.  They are ably aided by a great supporting cast including Mia Wasikowska, Anton Yelchin, and John Hurt as a vampiric Christopher Marlowe.  It's all shot well in Tangiers and Detroit, leading to a fairly unique aesthetic.  This might be my new favourite take on more "romantic" vampire fare in recent years.

8. The Guest

2014 was a rich year for thrillers, with an interesting trend being ones borrowing a lot of style and tropes from the horror genre, with John Carpenter being an obvious influence.  We've had Blue Ruin, Cold in July, '71, and then there's this one from director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barrett, the same mad geniuses that gave us You're Next last year. Dan Stevens is amazing in the lead, in a story that points out one of the unspoken truths of many a classic action movie; that there's not a whole lot separating the one man army action leads like in Commando , from utter psychopaths.  The whole first half of the film is wondering where this is all going, what does he want from the family he has inveigled his way into, building tension while showing relatively little.  The finale is a stylish flurry of violence and action, one of the most fun climaxes to a thriller in ages.  The extra touch of having the Halloween setting just adds that extra little charm to proceedings, I can see this becoming a seasonal favourite in years to come.

7. The LEGO Movie

Phil Lord and Chris Miller, from Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, to 21 Jump Street, to this, have become the go-to guys for really surprising film projects.  Who'd have thought that a movie that by all rights should have been an hour-and-a-half long advert would have ended up being a film all about encouraging kids' imaginations to run wild and not follow any of the rules?  It pokes fun at the way stuff that's meant to be for all ages, especially kids to enjoy, has been taken over by adults who insist on making them srz bznz, demonstrated with the best Batman in years, Will Arnett.  Above all, again, it's just incredibly infectious FUN!  This is the second Chris Pratt film on here;, if next year's Jurassic World lives up to the trailer's final shot of him with velociraptors, then everything will be AWESOME!!! (Oh, and how smart is the way that song changes it's meaning entirely depending on when precisely it's played in the film?  Answer: VERY!)

6. Tim's Vermeer

Yeah, an art documentary on here, going all cultured!  This documentary by Teller (of Penn &... fame) is a story that helps show that the development of science and art are a lot closer linked than we like to admit.  Tim Jeninson, one of the main minds behind New Tek imaging, is in a good position to know that, even before this task of recreating Johannes Vermeer's The Music Lesson, without any formal artistic training at all.  It's a great look at a pretty extraordinary experiment, which doesn't necessarily retcon art history, does strongly suggest there are still a lot of secrets to it.  It's just lovely to sit back and watch too, just like admiring a landscape.

5. The Grand Budapest Hotel

With this film, I finally get Wes Anderson.  Here he delivers not just his usual brand of quirkiness, but an incredibly funny farce, a well paced adventure story, a balanced ensemble piece, and a nostalgic throwback to different ages of storytelling.  The cast here is phenomenal, with the surprises being how hysterically funny Ralph Fiennes can be, and how well newcomer Tony Revolori can stand amongst such talent.  It's interesting that this is a film that actually worked it's way up the charts to number one at the UK box office; that almost never happens these days!  Also, me being me, I can't help but geek out over a film made mostly in 4:3 aspect ratio being that successful.

4. The Raid 2

I've been hyped about it ever since I saw the original, I was double hyped when I saw the preview at FrightFest 2013 and this didn’t disappoint.  Gareth Evans expands on the original by taking it out of the claustrophobic apartment block, and onto the streets of Jakarta in a sprawling crime epic.  This film offers the best action direction of the year, even beating Winter Soldier, and not just in terms of the martial arts combat of before, but with blistering car chases too.  As for the martial arts though, the new characters introduced lead to dynamic characterisation through combat, with even henchpeople simply named Hammer Girl and Baseball Bat Man being pretty damn memorable.  The real standout though is still Iko Uwais; it’s amazing watching his performance to think that before teaming up with Evans, he wasn’t a professional actor, as his character really runs the gauntlet of emotions here… as well as kicking all kinds of arse!  What’s more to say, action movie of the year!

3. Calvary

It's like the most tragic episode of Father Ted ever.  Brendan Gleeson has been one the most dependable character actors around for a while now, and teaming up again with The Guard director John Michael McDonagh, he delivers a career best performance.  As a priest facing his own potential murder with dignity, in a town that doesn't seem to want him, it's like a very laid back High Noon almost.  There's still plenty of humour in here, but it's fascinating seeing performers like Chris O'Dowd and Dylan Moran, better known for sitcom work, bringing out some excellent dramatic chops too.  It's melancholy in the extreme, but oddly comforting in a weird way too.

2. Frank

A wonderfully offbeat tribute from writer Jon Ronson to Chris Sievey, aka Frank Sidebottom, it's one of the year’s best comedies… or is it a drama that just happens to have a lot that’s funny about it.  It’s a bold move by Ronson having his own insertion character within the story (Domhall Gleeson, son of Brendon) being someone who has no idea how horrible he is.  He represents exactly the wrong reason to get into the creative arts; dreams of money and success, so having him end up in the outcast band Soronpfrbs is perfect for conflict.  Indeed, there’s plenty of marvellous clashing of personalities to be had, especially with Clara played by Maggie Gyllenhall in a virtuoso performance.  But of course it’s Michael Fassbender as Frank that’s the heart of the whole thing.  Name anyone else that can act this well while wearing almost all the way through something that takes away all facial expression, making for an entirely physical and vocal performance.  The main reason to love this film though is being perhaps one of the truest takes on the difficult topics of mental illness in film; for the way it handles at least one character’s issues, I could hug the film for that.  Oh, and the music is great too.

And my number one movie of 2014 is... The Congress

I wasn’t quite certain what to expect when I went to see this one, but what I got blasted me out of the cinema into a truly unique place.  Ari Folman has pulled off one hell of a hattrick with this one.  It’s a pitch perfect satire on Hollywood and the media, and an especially timely one with the changes in technology and issues of intellectual rights.  It’s a gorgeously done animated work, with styles both nostalgic and groundbreaking at the same time.  It's a mindbending adaptation of Stanislaw Lem, a very experimental classic sci-fi writer (he's also the mind behind Solaris).  It has a message that almost literalises Karl Marx's turn of phrase "Opiate of the People" (only replacing religion with the media).  And it's an amazing acting showcase, not just for lead Robin Wright, but the excellent supporting cast too, including a powerhouse monologue from Harvey Keitel in one key scene.  It may go in some weird directions, a bit narratively vague at points, but when it's this gorgeous to immerse yourself in, it scarcely matters.  Folman has said that for his next project, he'd like to animate Alejandro Jodorowsky's unmade version of Dune.  After this, I definitely say that project would be in the best hands; good luck to you Ari with that!

So those were my favourites of the year!  But what I am looking forward to in 2015?  Tomorrow, I'll reveal the new list of titles I just can't wait to be sat with my popcorn watching...