Eh, keep yer IMAX 3D Ultra Panavision 70 Dine-While-You-Watch Reserved Seating hoo-ha; I don’t need gimmicks to get excited about the movies. (Plus, I feel like a real jagoff if I spend $23 for a ticket and it’s still crummy.) Here are the films from last year that I thought were the best. Of the ones I saw, anyway. Because I didn’t go to every freaking movie, OK? Sorry, didn’t mean to snap at you.
10) Bridge of Spies Script revised by the Coen brothers, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Tom Hanks? Sign me up for this dream team! And Bridge of Spies did not disappoint. Inspired by pilot Francis Gary Powers and the Cold War-era U-2 spy plane incident, this story has clear ramifications in the post-9/11 world, regarding treatment of foreign prisoners. And it’s the rare thriller based on tense negotiations instead of gunplay.
9) Brooklyn On the surface, this is a sweet romance starring Saoirse Ronan (yes, I’m a fan) as an Irish immigrant figuring out life in early 1950s New York. As the story develops, though, Brooklyn gains substance while focusing on the tug-of-war between the life expected of us versus the draw of self-determination. Ronan plays the lead role with restraint and class, emotion always ready to seep through. And Nick Hornby’s script keeps things from getting too sappy.
8) The Forbidden Room Insane Canadian genius Guy Maddin returns with a movie that didn’t make a whole lot of sense, yet I could not turn my eyes away. Stories are nested within stories within stories within stories, in Maddin’s trademark old-timey woozy dream state. And of course, his screwy sense of humor is prominently on display. Wild!
7) Mad Max: Fury Road Cars, girls, guns, rock ‘n roll — director George Miller returns to his Mad Max series by stripping everything down to the basics. It’s visceral filmmaking, a breathless nonstop rush of dust-covered action. Raising the quality up another couple of notches are strong performances from Tom Hardy as Max (once he gets the metal thing off his face, anyway) and Charlize Theron, kicking butt all across the desert with a hint of vulnerability.
6) Ex Machina The first of two movies in this countdown starring both Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson. The story is set just a little bit in the future, based on our real fear of search engines and artificial intelligence getting too… intelligent. It plays out like a cool, creepy Twilight Zone episode with an ominous soundtrack, with the hook being a sexy, sexy robot (Alicia Vikander). Sexy robots will be the downfall of us all.
5) Freeheld There’s a whole lot of heart in this true story of Laurel Hester, New Jersey police detective who simply wanted fair treatment. In her case, it meant pension benefits going to her same-sex domestic partner — still a really tough sell in the early 2000s. Julianne Moore turns in a powerhouse performance as Hester, capturing her dignity, no-nonsense decency, and inherent Jerseyness. Ellen Page matches Moore with a terrific, humanity-filled portrayal of Hester’s girlfriend. And the reliably great Michael Shannon, as Hester’s police partner, represented to me our ability to change.
4) Star Wars: The Force Awakens We now arrive at the second Oscar Isaac/Domhnall Gleeson entry on our list. In addition to the Force, this movie also awakened the 8-year-old Star Wars fanatic in me. Sure, there are several elements that are derivative of the earlier films, but that did not detract one bit from my enjoyment. So great to see Han Solo, Chewbacca, Leia, etc., but what really has me excited for future installments are the new characters. John Boyega is great as former-Stormtrooper Finn, and how awesome was breakout star Daisy Ridley as Rey? Tough, smart, caring. Bring on Episode VIII!
3) Spotlight Remember when newspapers were important? Spotlight does. The film not only takes on the Catholic-priests sex scandal, but also the old-boy network, fear and distrust of outsiders, the early-millennium encroach of the Internet into news coverage, and the always compelling fishbowl that is Boston. It’s all viewed through the prism of shirt-sleeves-rolled-up investigative journalism, in danger of becoming a thing of the past. This is yet another terrific film from Tom McCarthy, led by knockout performances from Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo.
2) A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence I’d never heard of Swedish director Roy Andersson until my friend Cat posted the trailer for this on Facebook. Seeing the full film, I was transfixed. Though somewhat reminiscent of Wes Anderson (a slightly skewed reality, both in content and style) and Monty Python’s Flying Circus (skits, absurdity, and a vague sense that it’s always 1972 despite being set in the present day), A Pigeon… is like nothing I’d ever seen before. Many, many short sketches, often laugh-out-loud funny, but also dark, smart, twisted, and sad. It’s a grey world full of grey people, and Andersson uncovers its pain and beauty.
1) Room My cousin Nancy texted me that this was the best movie of the year, and whaddaya know, she was right. This tale of a woman and her 5-year-old son, product of rape by her abductor, is an emotional whirlwind, by turns harrowing and achingly lovely. Brie Larson is simply remarkable as the woman, showing strength, weakness, fear, despair, resolve, survival instincts, and — more than anything — caring, so much caring. (Trivia: Ms. Larson played a supporting character in my No. 1 film of 2013, The Spectacular Now.) Jacob Tremblay as the son absolutely holds his own — a realistic kid, that rarest of things in the movies. Kudos also to director Lenny Abrahamson and novelist/screenwriter Emma Donoghue — Room is stark, unflinching, and a wonderful achievement.
Honorable mentions: Black Souls, Love & Mercy, Phoenix, Irrational Man, The Wrecking Crew!, and My Secret World: The Story of Sarah Records
Worst movie: Vacation
New releases I saw in a theater this year: 37 (including three 2014 releases)
My best-of lists from: 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, and 2009
You can check out all my movie reviews by clicking: here and here
I saw Brooklyn. I’m still waiting for something to happen.