DVD IS DEAD's Top 10 Films of 2014
Every year I do my best to see as many new films as possible, whether it be in the cinema or from the comfort of my couch (my bottom imprint is well and truly been made) and even sometimes in bed. Trying to fit in every new release is practically impossible but like everyone else there are going to be new films that I simply don't appeal to me. I'm not a huge fan of the horror genre, particularly the new wave of low budget “house horror” films, so don't expect to see any on my list but these films are big business at the moment and a lot of people are flocking to see them unfortunately its just not my cup of tea. On the flip side 2014 was a great year for the comic book enthusiast, with more than a handful gracing the big screen. No matter your preference the great thing about cinema is there will always be something that appeals to you, regardless of how mainstream or niche your tastes are.
I had a great year both at home and away of cinema and due to my wide stretching taste in film managed to watch just over 100 new releases not including the mandatory re-watches of old films and the films I missed in 2013 (which would almost warrant a list in themselves, but I won't further bore you with that). Of those 100+ new releases we had films involving everything from talking to apes to a talking raccoon, time travel, Lego, dragons, aliens, government collapses and even a film that almost caused World War III. As always the following films are a personal selection of my favourite films of 2014 so agree or disagree to your hearts content.
Honourable Mentions: X-Men: Days of Future Past, Begin Again, Chef, The Lego Movie, How to Train Your Dragon, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Tracks, Calvary, 22 Jump Street, The Guest, The Interview, Wish You Were Here, Predestination and Edge of Tomorrow.
Interstellar – Dir. Christopher Nolan
There aren't many directors that can make a 3 hour space opera with a purposely vague plot and get people running to the cinema to see it (unless your name's George Lucas). Thanks partly due to the success of 2013's Oscar winning film Gravity and an all-star cast, the general public and critics accepted Nolan's Interstellar with open arms. Gaining almost universal acclaim and a solid placing in IMDb's top 250 films of all time, who could possibly say a bad word about Interstellar? Well me for a start. Now hear me out. Obviously I thought it was a good enough film to make my top 10 but is it a great film? No. The sad truth is that Interstellar is a fairly standard film by a more than accomplished director, its too long, some of the dialogue is clunky and unnecessarily complicated, characters aren't fully developed and the ending just doesn't deliver the pay off I had expected. Take away some of the running time and a careful bit of editing and what your left with is a brilliant 90+ minutes of cinema. Choosing to keep CGI and special effects to a minimum where possible and instead relying on actual physical locations and props make for breathtaking viewing. Where special effects have been used, space exploration has never been more beautiful than some of the scenes found within Interstellar. Throw in an unlikely bad guy cameo and a further addition to the robot hall of fame, you will find yourself really enjoying the ride.
9. Under The Skin – Dir. Jonathan Glazer
You would think a film involving one of Hollywood's most beautiful and talented actresses, Scarlett Johansson, in a sci-fi tale about a woman travelling through Scotland at night seducing men would be an easy sell. Well you would be very wrong and did I also mention that she also spends a significant amount of the film either partially clothed or nude? No. Well she does and its glorious. So why such a hard sell despite that alluring synopsis? The problem with Under The Skin is that not only is it gloriously weird and strange but probably not what people envision upon first glance. It's a far cry from the traditional Hollywood sci-fi films that most people are used to and instead more of an experience. Days after watching I was still thinking about the film and what it was trying to say and put some of the pieces together. That for me is a sign of a memorable film...along with the sight of Scarlett standing starkers in front of a mirror. If you are after something a bit different and most certainly “out there” you will be hard pressed to find a better British sci-fi film than Under The Skin.
8. Snowpiercer – Dir. Joon-ho Bong
Unless you were anywhere other than the UK last year you probably haven't seen or heard much about this film. Unfortunately the only way to currently see Snowpiercer is via the Internet or an over priced import as the UK have yet to secure either a theatrical or video release. Thankfully I managed to secure a copy of the film earlier last year and absolutely loved it. Snowpiercer is a brilliant tale of a war between two rival class systems, the poor and the rich, set aboard a train perpetually travelling around the globe in a post apocalyptic future where climate change has ravaged the world. Visually exciting and devilishly witty, Snowpiercer dazzles as a rare mash up of futuristic action and foreign art film with its international cast. You'll find yourself both enjoying the intelligently built set up and then relishing in the brutally executed fight scenes. Snowpiercer is one train ride, you don't want to miss.
7. Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Dir. Anthony Russo & Joe Russo
The first of two Marvel films to make my list this year, The Winter Soldier is a solid addition to the already juggernaut success story that is the Marvel cinematic universe. Following Steve Rogers as he struggles to embrace his role in the modern world, Captain America is faced with a new threat, that of the Winter Soldier. I have always been honest about my disliking of the first Captain film, I found it boring and felt it didn't sit well with the rest of the universe so I was sceptical at the thought of a second solo outing, thankfully The Winter Soldier is a huge improvement on the first film and an outright great film. Not only does it serve to elaborate on the already established universe but also works as a stand alone film that most people could drop in and not be thrown around to much. People are quick to critique a superhero film but what they will find is a film filled with gratifying action set pieces, a bad guy that is worthy of his title and also some actual dramatic tension. Not many summer blockbusters can say that and involve a government conspiracy about a hidden army of Nazis.
6. Gone Girl – Dir. David Fincher
It was the year 2012 and I guarantee if you were sat on the train, the bus, on a plane or even sat in a coffee shop somebody was reading Gone Girl. It was everywhere and therefore inevitable it would be snapped up and made into a film. Fast forward a mere 2 years and it has already made it to the big screen starring Ben Affleck and directed by genre god David Fincher. When Ben Affleck's wife goes missing and becomes the focus of a media event, the spotlight quickly turns to him when its suspected he may not be innocent. On first glance not the most original of ideas but wait there is much more. I was a little late to the party and picked up Gone Girl early in 2013, read it within a week or so and absolutely loved it. Its dark, funny and full of suspense that I hadn't really found in other books before. For most people it was the unreliable narrative that people enjoyed the most, as initially you didn't know what was the truth and what was make believe. Adapting books to film is done often and at various levels of skill, fortunately Gone Girl makes the transition effortlessly and doesn't lose an ounce of the book's delightfully dark humour and unexpected violence. Even going in knowing all the twists and turns you'll leave smiling that they didn't fuck up your new favourite book. This is definitely not a film for the squeamish and very much film for adults who like something with a bit more bite than their usual cinema trip. Furthermore, ladies if you pause the film at the right moment you may get a glimpse of Affleck's member.
5. Nightcrawler – Dir. Dan Gilroy
For a film so expertly put together you'd think that director Dan Gilroy had finally got round to making his finest film to date but believe it or not this is his debut, and what a way to start a career. When Lou Bloom, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, desperate for work happens upon a car accident and the news team covering it he decides to start doing it for himself. Soon he finds himself blurring the line between observer and participant. What unravels is a darkly twisted tale of modern day journalism with Jake Gyllenhaal completing stealing the show as cinemas newest sociopath. Beautifully shot by Robert Elswit (Boogie Nights, Magnolia) Los Angeles plays out almost like a secondary character and despite never visiting I feel Elswit has perfectly encapsulated what the real L.A. is like. Further supported by seasoned veterans Rene Russo and Bill Paxton and several awesome set pieces, Nightcrawler is a the bleakest satire of 2014 and despite what the title suggests this film does anything but crawl.
4. Boyhood – Dir. Richard Linklater
It's not uncommon for films to have long production periods, The Lego Movie took about 4 years to make it to the big screen and likewise David Lynch's eerie debut took around 5 years, but what about a 12 year production. Director Richard Linklater wanted to capture the process of growing up in the most realistic manner possible, so over a period of 12 years he brought together a group of actors for a week every year to chart the life of Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from age 6 to 18. The result of this long and painstaking process has resulted in one of the most beautiful and astonishing achievements of modern day cinema. After such a extended production it would be a crime to not get as much of that footage to the big screen as possible but even at a lengthy 3 hours it never loses momentum. Boyhood's greatest accomplishment and more precisely Linklater's achievement is how he has turned a decidedly unremarkable story into a remarkable story of growing up. Boyhood is full of heart, humour, wit and a clear message that at times growing up sucks but what an unforgettable journey.
3. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Dir. Wes Anderson
From the very moment I watched the trailer for Budapest I knew I was going to love Wes Anderson's latest big screen offering. Those unfamiliar with Anderson (Royal Tenenbaums, Life Aquatic & Rushmore) need to understand that he is anything but a traditional film maker, his films are endlessly quirky and odd ball but always brilliantly written and shot. The Grand Budapest Hotel is probably his most ambitious and thankfully best film to date. Budapest charts the adventures of Gustave H, the concierge of the hotel in the fictional republic of Zubrowka some time between World War I and II. Accompanying him is his loyal lobby boy Zero. What follows is the theft of a famous renaissance painting and the battle for a large family fortune. The originality of the picture really shines through as does every single beautifully constructed scene using a blend of colour, black/white and animation. This is quintessential Anderson and a testament to his craft and imagination all the while being supported by an enormous cast of Anderson regulars (Willem Dafoe, Adrian Brody, Bill Murray, Jason Schwarztman) and new faces (Ralph Fiennes, Jeff Goldblum, Edward Norton). If you don't find yourself smiling during the entirety of this film, I think you may need to check into another hotel.
2. The Raid 2 – Dir. Gareth Evans
Picking up shortly after the events of The Raid, Rama goes undercover with the thugs of the Jakarta gang in an effort to bring down the syndicate and uncover the corruption within the police force. The next 150 minutes is some of the craziest, brutal and carefully choreographed martial art set pieces to probably ever make it to the big screen. After watching The Raid a few years back I was blown away by its simplicity and brutal execution, think Die Hard but with martial arts and more bone breaking. Fast forward a few years and not only has director Evans not only upped the stakes considerably but also managed to construct a solid crime drama. The Raid may have been light on story but the sequel more than makes up for that. Initially conceived long before the first film but due to a lack of budget and studio backing the events of The Raid 2 were saved until after the success of the leaner and cheaper first film. Everything about the follow up is bigger, including a perfectly staged car chase that feels crazily real (because most of it was) and a completely mind boggling 15 minute fight scene staged within a white kitchen. The previously mentioned fight took a reported 8 days to film and from a viewers perspective is totally worth it. I would argue that not only is it the best martial arts film I have ever seen but also the best action film of the last 20 years.
1. Guardians of the Galaxy – Dir. James Gunn
At this point it seems that Marvel really can do no wrong, ten films and $7.1 billion at the worldwide box office and even if the films sucked it would still be a phenomenon success story. Luckily for us the quality keeps improving and the money keeps on rolling into Disneys back account. For those not familiar with Guardians (where the hell have you been), we join a group of criminal misfits led by the charismatic human Star Lord and accompanied by warrior princess Gamora, tough guy Drax, crazed raccoon Rocket and his bodyguard Groot (a verbally challenged living tree) forced together to stop a crazed warlord from taking over the universe. After stealing a mysterious orb, Star Lord, is now the main target of a manhunt led by the villain known as Ronan the Accusser. Together they must get past there desires to either sell the orb or kill each other and save the universe from inevitable destruction, together they are the Guardians of the Galaxy! Guardians was one of the lesser known Marvel comics so when it was first announced, like many others, I rushed to find out what it was all about. To my surprise I find out it is essentially the Avengers but set in space and with a talking tree instead of a Hulk. Being the sceptic I am, I was unsure how well a talking raccoon would translate to film but at the end of the day its science fiction and Marvel so why should I have been so worried? Well the answer is, I shouldn't have. Guardians is by far the most enjoyable and oddly accessible entry so far of the Marvel universe. It's endlessly charming and unashamedly silly but bloody hell is it good fun. For a big budget studio release its really refreshing to see a film that has been made solely for the enjoyment of the viewer while not scaling back on the zaniest that may of turned many people off. Add on some delightful pop culture references and a soundtrack you'll be singing in the car the next day you have the right amount of everything to create the best feature film of 2014. Enough with my praise, just go watch it (again) already.
Thanks for reading and enjoy another year of fantastic cinema.
