MY TOP TEN MOVIES OF 2015

TOP TEN MOVIES OF THE YEAR - 2015 EDITION

By about mid-November, I wasn’t sure I was actually going to end up making a list like this, even though I wanted to. That was because, by that time, I’d only seen a handful of 2015 releases that, to my mind, registered as even above average movies. I mean, you rarely see anything before the summer that’s of much note, the summer movies this year weren’t great, and most of the “awards contenders” released in October and even November (Black Mass, for instance) seemed to me solid but unspectacular. At one point, my “Top Ten” list for the year consisted of “The Martian and…..The Avengers, maybe?”

Happily, since the beginning of December, I’ve either shored up my opinion of some of the year’s earlier movies by re-watching them, or seen new releases in theaters or via Redbox, and it’s yielded one great movie-watching experience after another. The Top Ten List for 2015 went from an exercise in futility to an embarrassment of riches. The process of making the list went from convincing myself to do it for fun to days and days of hand-wringing and hair-pulling from being so torn about whether to put one movie ahead of another or another and so on. This list went from one of the weakest ones I’d ever done to maybe one of the best—so good that I kept re-watching movies and wanting to bump them up, with the result that I re-shuffled the list you’ll see below about 20 times in the past week-and-a-half. No joke.

Putting movies of different genres, lengths, themes, tones, and stories in order of quality is obviously a pretty subjective and arbitrary exercise. Something that may seem stale and uninvolving at one point can seem exciting and worthwhile at another. A movie that nearly puts you to sleep in the theater can seem accessible and captivating at home when you can pause for pee breaks and eat snacks at your every whim to enhance the experience. Something full of subtle nuances can come alive in your mind after you watch it, and prove full of talking points and seem twice as rewarding at a second or even third watch.

Basically, the randomness and unpredictability of comparing movies and putting them in order will be easy to note if you read my blog regularly, or look back over my reviews from 2015. The following rankings may not always follow what my original grade suggested—two movies to which I originally gave a grade of “B+” have hurdled over several movies to which I gave a grade of “A-“ or even “A”. A couple movies I labeled with an “A-“ didn’t even make the Top Ten! Basically, I could make a solid case for any of these movies and would watch any one of them again.  I’ve tried to watch as many as I could more than once to give myself a more balanced, thorough impression, and then, like I said, I’ve wrung my hands and lost sleep and made Pros/Cons lists. It’s been quite the ordeal.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

This was tough, because four movies I thought quite highly of landed here. There was the very entertaining pseudo-Bond flick Kingsman: The Secret Service, which boasted a great cast, some amazing action, and some fun stunts. Jurassic World grew on me with every viewing—somehow, I enjoyed its high drama and epic action even more at home. Creed brilliantly continued/rebooted the Rocky saga, bringing on some new blood (and some amazing camerawork) even as it paid tribute to Sly Stallone’s iconic character and Bill Conti’s signature “Gonna Fly Now” theme music. And The Netflix Movie, Cary Joji Fukunaga’s Beasts of No Nation, was a gorgeously-filmed, effectively-jarring and hauntingly-nuanced film about child soldiers in Africa.

 THE TOP TEN

10. TIE between

ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL    

&

SICARIO

I know it’s cheating—for the second year in a row, I squeezed an extra movie into the Top Ten. What’s the point of making it a Top Ten list then, huh? Why not make it a Top Eleven? I don’t know. What I do know is, once I’d seen all the movies I wanted to, I had one spot to give and two movies vying for it, one the memory of which had started to fade but which I just couldn’t shake off, and the other an under-the-radar emotional favorite I couldn’t bear to leave out. I’ll let you decide which is which. Sicario was a dark, brooding film with an ominous score and terrific cinematography, loaded with dark themes about the pointlessness of fighting the war on drugs and the depravity of mankind. Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, and Benicio del Toro all gave great performances in a movie packing a couple of the most unshakably-powerful scenes of the year. Meanwhile, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl was a quirky little indie about an oddball teen befriending a cancer-stricken classmate and creating a "doomed" but life-changing friendship. Its likable cast and tongue-in-cheek narration made for some big laughs and some fun moments—also some relevant and effective emotional themes; it could’ve been higher on this list if not for being a little too quirky.

9. THE MARTIAN

It’s kind of hard for me to believe this movie ended up this far down the list. It had a great, likable ensemble cast, a killer central premise, an endearingly-light-hearted tone despite some serious subject matter, and a tears-of-joy-type climax. What’s not to like? Well, after seeing The Martian twice, I can tell you that, while I loved Matt Damon’s lead performance (not many actors are likable enough to pull that role off single-handed), liked the big supporting cast, thought the movie was technically-impeccable and thought the movie very interesting, it just didn’t quite have enough oomph. To use an apt metaphor, this movie was all-systems-go and everything was humming, but the rockets didn’t have quite enough of a boost. No scene or moment quite made me go “wow, what a great movie”. But, overall, it was very solid, and I know it’ll be a great rental on Redbox.

8. Ex MACHINA

When I first watched Ex Machina—a well-reviewed sci-fi venture I for some reason hadn’t been psyched to see in theaters—it blew my mind at the end and I walked around saying “WOW” to myself over and over for five minutes. This three-character story of a breakthrough in artificial intelligence has some fine acting, some sterling visual effects, and good, intelligent writing, but you may forget all that once you get to the third act and the curveballs start coming. That might be why it’s so far down this list—it doesn’t necessarily make for great repeated viewings, because nothing beats the “oh my gosh, OH MY GOSH” knee-jerk reactions you have the first time to the big plot twists that come on late. That being said, this is a smart, sensitive, effective movie that leaves a fine impression.

7. STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

Yeah, I’m probably gonna get crap for this. I saw Star Wars opening night, saw it again two days later, and saw it a third time after Christmas. As we speak, it’s still in theaters making tons and tons of money. In keeping with the Star Wars brand, The Force Awakens is visually-gorgeous and emotionally-irresistible. New director J.J. Abrams combined the old with the new in a colorful, exciting, sometimes-gripping cocktail that goes down easy….or does it? Try as I might, I just can’t shake my nagging little nitpicks about the movie. I’m not one of those people dismissing as a flat-out remake of A New Hope (though just how fresh and original this new part of the saga ends up being depends largely on the next movie), but there were plenty of really familiar elements, not to mention a few underwritten characters and scenes that could’ve used more explaining. That being said, I think Kylo Ren was a great character, I like Rey, Poe, and BB-8, and I’m very excited for the next installment. As I wrote in my full review, even if it’s not perfect, it’s freaking Star Wars—there’s no question I’ll get this movie on Blu-Ray and probably end up watching it far more times than any other movie on this list, ranking be damned.

6. CINDERELLA

I know, I know: you’re thinking I’ve gone crazy. That, or you’re ready to take my man card. Or both. Probably both. But darn it, I have an undeniable affection for this movie that refuses to go away. In an age of cynical cash-grab sequels, remakes and reboots, of movies trying to be so hip or cool or sexy or quirky, an age of obnoxious “kids” movies that are way too smart for their own good, March’s Cinderella reminded me of how wonderful a movie can be when it doesn’t try to be anything other than what it is. And what it is, as directed by Kenneth Branagh, is a luminous, well-acted, brightly-colored, entirely-sincere recreation of one of the most well-known stories of all time. Here’s a movie for the whole family that doesn’t insult its audience with crass bodily humor, unnecessary pop-culture references or innuendos for the adults, meaningless action sequences or added snark for the boys, or over-the-top musical numbers aiming for 100 million views on Youtube. It’s only—in my opinion—the feel-good movie of the year, one with some laughs, lots of smiles, and a hug-yourself ending.

5. THE REVENANT

We’re getting down to the nitty-gritty here, where every one of these movies has brilliant, memorable sequences that represent some of the best and brightest movies have to offer. With The Revenant, where do you wanna start? The staggeringly-directed/shot/choreographed Indian attack scene at the beginning? The grizzly bear attack that will make your eyes pop? The quietly-devastating scene where Leonardo DiCaprio’s haggard, badly-injured frontiersman crawled over and laid down next to the body of a dead loved one as if ready to die with him? Or the scary-intense knife, tooth and tomahawk final showdown between DiCaprio and Tom Hardy’s charismatic antagonist who he’s been seeking revenge against the entire movie? The Revenant is probably twenty minutes longer than it needs to be, and there are some slow moments, but Oscar-winning director Alejandro Inarritu and legendary cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki have crafted a gorgeous film that harkens back to outdoor epics of decades past.

 

4. SPOTLIGHT

Chronicling the real-life events in which The Boston Globe’s “Spotlight” investigative team unearthed a widespread child abuse scandal within the Catholic Church, Spotlight defines what it ameans to be a well-made movie. Without any action or romance (or any graphic flashbacks or depictions of molestation), the movie manages to be funny, intense, and incredibly-involving. The year’s best ensemble cast does terrific work, bringing to life a brilliant screenplay that will reward those who pay attention.

3. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD

It took me a couple viewings to really buy into Mad Max, probably the year’s most talked-about movie this side of Star Wars, but I’m ultimately forced to accept that no movie was as vividly, clearly, and effectively directed, set up, and shot, than this wild post-apocalyptic romp through a weird, brutal, scary future. Yeah, it’s a little short on plot, but it makes up for that with outstanding visuals (there’s nary a wasted frame in the entire movie), wild-comic humor, impressively-effective nonverbal acting, and, of course, some of the most spectacularly-choreographed and filmed action ever seen in a movie.

2. INSIDE OUT

I’m a sucker for a good animated movie (aren’t we all suckers for Pixar?)—so much so that I almost considered leaving Inside Out off this list by default, because how could a film top it in terms of impact and emotional complexity? Well, for a tangible answer, keep reading. But, ultimately, I knew a list of the most memorable, brilliant, imaginative, and affecting movies of the year wouldn’t be complete without this instant addition to the upper echelon of Pixar's works. The animation is gorgeous, of course. The voice actors (especially Amy Poehler and Phyllis Smith) are pitch-perfect. The characters are unforgettable (Bing Bong, anyone?). But what really sets Inside Out apart is the incredibly-imaginative screenplay, which dissects a human mind in a colorful series of involving set pieces including trains of thought, imaginary friends, abstract thought, imagination, dreams, nightmares, memories, key personality components, and the crucial need for connection and love. It’s just a wonderful movie.

1. ROOM

Please don’t confuse this title with the crappy 2003 flick The Room. Almost nothing could do Director Lenny Abrahamson’s adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s novel a bigger disservice. Room has a startling central premise—a young woman kidnapped by a strange man and held in captivity for years raises the young son of her captor until both are freed—and it uses it as a springboard for a bold, searing, deeply-affecting movie about love, freedom, selfishness, and survival. You don’t think a movie starring an 8-year-old playing a 5-year-old can be all that good? As I said in my review, Room has probably five of the year’s 10 or 15 most can’t-look-away-gripping scenes of the year. Phenomenal lead performances by Brie Larson and little Jacob Tremblay help unpack the fascinating and devastating psychological ramifications of captivity and re-introduction to the outside world. It’s not an easy movie to watch (I’ve called it “a psychology major’s dream subject matter and a mother’s worst nightmare” and I stand by that), but it’s a hugely-rewarding, wonderfully-made, unforgettable flick that, for me, almost immediately resonated as the year’s best.

**Thank you for reading if you’ve made it this far. If you’re curious (or offended) about this numbered order, please believe me when I say that, while I almost immediately deemed Room my #1 after watching it (and Inside Out was always a safe bet to be right there at the top, too), the next 6 were in flux in my head for the last 10 days. Shoot, I had a freaking hard time deciding which out of Mad Max and Spotlight would end up my top movie besides those two, and everything besides. Where to put Star Wars—knowing it would probably disappoint many of my readers—was a wrench, and where to put a light, feel-good flick like Cinderella amidst a tide of heavy but rewarding dramas was equally-difficult. Ultimately, this was a terrific bunch of movies, and at this point I own one (Mad Max) and have deemed at least five others capable of buying on Blu-Ray. It was a great year for movies.

Speaking of which, I’m dying for Thursday morning’s Academy Award nominations. This is a year with no bonafide front-runner in even most of the highest-profile category, so seeing the actual contenders and hearing the early analysis will be fascinating.