Hello my millions of fans around the world. I know how much my opinion means to you all, so I'm going to tell you which movies I liked the most from the past year. I'm gonna go ahead and let you know a few things beforehand. These are NOT my picks for best movies of 2014, but rather my personal favorites. The best list would look slightly different. So yeah, just want to set that straight. These were my personal favorite movies from the year. As you may know, I love movies. More than any other form of entertainment by far, and last year was an interesting year, so let's get to it.
Honorable Mention:
Enemy
10. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Don't you love it when sequels are even more awesome than the original? Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a very pleasant surprise considering it is a prequel to a movie that is 30 years old. We know that doesn't always work out well... (Phantom Menace). But Rise was a solid film, and it breathed new life into a legendary franchise. Dawn took the great parts from Rise and made them even better. For one thing, it focused much more heavily on the newly freed apes, whereas the former focused more on the humans as well as the relationship between Ceaser and James Franco. Now we get to see the kingdom that Ceaser built, and how advanced his civilization has become in the time since the events of Rise. There was fantastic character development from both the apes and humans, and there was real emotional drama that came from both sides as well. Add that with a gripping performance from the great Andy Serkis, and you have a very solid film. Next.
9. Guardians of the Galaxy
Not gonna spend a lot of time on this film, since I've talked about it before in various other areas of the site. Guardians of the Galaxy is my favorite MCU film, I think Iron Man is the best MCU film, but I like this one better. It was so much fun, and that's what it wanted to do from the start. It established early on that this is an action/comedy, and that those two themes will be the largest parts of the plot. Luckily, it was hilarious, and the action was nothing to frown about. A sh*tty villain and forced romance hurt the film a little, but a dope ass soundtrack made me happy enough to forgive them. Next.
8. The Lego Movie
SNUB CITY. HOW COULD THIS NOT EVEN BE NOMINATED FOR AN ANIMATED FILM OSCAR, LET ALONE WIN. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU AREEEEEEE.
Enough of that. I was obsessed with Legos when I was a kid, and I'll be honest I might tinker with them every once in a while to this day. It might have been a kids movie, but All ages will get a kick out of this one. Phenomenal voice acting from a great cast, Amazing SM style animation, and big laughs. I think we can all agree that Charlie Day's 1980's Spaceman is the greatest character in film history. But anyways, the story was really solid, and it was funny as hell. And it was surprisingly deep and heartfelt come the end. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend getting your inner child what it wants, and going to see this movie.
7. Nightcrawler
Jake Gyllenhaal is becoming one of the best young actors in Hollywood, and I'm not complaining. I think of him as possibly the next Christian Bale or Edward Norton. This film was sort of a hidden gem from 2014, but it deserves much more credit. The second biggest Oscar snub of the year (Lego Movie) was Jake not getting nominated for his role in this movie. Seriously, I think Jake's character of Lou Bloom was the BEST character from the entire year. I would recommend just watching the movie to see this character. He is so weird, and so awkward, but also so brilliant and so cunning. This film is really interesting for the large duration, but the real brilliance of the plot and the character culminates in the films final 15 minutes. It results in a fairly large twist, and one of the most curious character decisions of the year. Check it out. Next.
6. Godzilla
OK, here's a good example of a film that wasn't one of the best films of the year, but one of my favorites. I love Godzilla. He's one of my favorite fictional characters ever, and I've always wanted a good American film for him to come out. And we finally got it last year with Gareth Edward's brilliant take on the creature. Now yes, the human elements of the story were mostly crap, and Gojira was only on screen for a short period of time, but it was totally worth it. Godzilla is a monster movie, and the monsters were freakin' awesome. I was getting tired of seeing Jira wreck the military, so seeing him go head to head with not one, but TWO other giant monsters, was just a dream come true. The action was awesome, and I almost sh*t my pants during the tail whip and nuclear breath scenes. I know some people weren't huge fans, but idgaf. This movie rocked.
5. Whiplash
J.K. FREAKIN' Simmons ladies and gentlemen. What a performance. Whiplash is a fantastic film about a young drummer and his intense music teacher, starring Mr. Fantastic and J. Jonah Jameson. Character development at its best in this film here, and characters in general are what make this film great. You feel for Miles' character, and you hate J.K.'s, but you also love him at the same time. It's a weird relationship. It's just fascinating to watch play out, especially if you've ever had a teacher you've had any sort of relationship with. The ending... The ending was the best of the year. Seriously. The final 20 minutes or so were so. damn. amazing and intense. Anyways, go watch this. Next.
4. Interstellar
I waited so long for this movie... Chris Nolan is my favorite director, so needless to say I was there at midnight in iMAX for this film. Guess what? It was worth the wait. Deep complex as sh*t storytelling, paralleled mind blowing visuals, and gripping human drama. But a word of warning. If you're not that smart, you're not going to like this movie. It makes you think, and it doesn't give you any help along the way. This film will hopefully define the next era of science fiction, similar to that of 2001 back in the day. Of course, that comparison has been made dozens of times, but it's very true. This is obviously a scifi film at its surface, but I actually found this film to be MUCH more of a human drama. The relationship between Cooper and his kids... Cooper and Brand... I could go on. And the acting was superb from another great cast. You can always count on Chris to round up a great cast. Next.
3. Gone Girl
So Batman is accused of kidnapping/killing his wife. This movie had some amazing *gasp* moments. It's filled with twists and turns, moments that make you happy and moments that make you mad. We have the novel to thank for that, but David Fincher did an excellent job of adopting this to film, and it was just a fantastic ride. Rosamund Pike is definitely one of the most promising young actresses in Hollywood, and Ben Affleck continues to bolster his later career with great films and performances. The dynamic between the equally toxic personalities of the two is just brilliant, and you have no idea who you're supposed to feel bad for. They're both pretty sh*tty people... Anyways, one of the best of the year, go see it. Next.
2. The Grand Budapest Hotel
No exaggeration, this is the most fun I've ever had at a movie. Seriously. I went to see it with a bunch of friends in a little indie theatre, and it was one of the best decisions of my life. Wickedly funny, and ever so smart, it's in perfect Wes Anderson form. A knockout cast featuring Anderson regulars make every scene a delight, and the cinematography and set design is some of the best I've ever seen. You'll laugh your ass out, and care about the characters deeply along the way. Just go see it, and enjoy that storytelling from one of the industries best.
1. Birdman
I know this movie won best picture, but it absolutely deserved it. This is one of the most perfect films I've ever seen. it helps that it is RIGHT up my alley... Quirky and dickish dialogue, weird editing, ambiguity all throughout. That's my favorite type of film. The story at its core is both deep and layered, and a smart comment on the state of film/theatre/acting of the day. It's also possibly a real life take on the life of Michael Keaton. He played Batman and Beetlejuice, and then was associated with those two roles for the majority of his career (similar to Riggan and his Birdman role in the film). Riggan wants to prove to the world he's a real actor by putting on a sophisticated play (similar to how Keaton might want to prove his worth with a serious character piece film). I just find the parallels too similar to not mention. Anyway, Keaton is brilliant, and so is the supporting cast. He fights himself as he is his own biggest critic throughout the film, and we get a great look into that f*cked up brain of his. And I have to mention the editing... The entire movie looks like it was shot in one take... That's just amazing (considering it wasn't actually shot in one take). The ending may be confusing to some, but it should be. It's open ended and left up for interpretation for a reason, and you should take it as you please. I'll end there, but this film is a masterpiece.
So that's that. Any movies you would've put on this list?
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