Best Films of the Year

1. Birdman. I don’t even like this director.  And the drum solos were too loud and obnoxious.  And I’m no fan of Michael Keaton.  However, Birdman is filmmaking of the highest order.  An extremely smart and funny script, high-octane acting from a magnificent cast, and utterly epic cinematography make this the film of the year.
2. Boyhood. Yeah, it’s a gimmick.  But maybe the greatest gimmick in the history of fiction film.  Writer/director Richard Linklater actually filmed for a week every year for twelve years to create this tapestry of a very normal Texas boy growing up.  There’s really no other movie like it.
3. The Grand Budapest Hotel. Director Wes Anderson’s latest puppet-show-with-real-actors-movie is probably his best.  It’s a deliriously entertaining contraption, full of humor, humanity and sadness.  The craftsmanship is of the highest order, particularly in the acting, design, and score.  The fact that the production designers got to show us the hotel in three different time periods really pushes this one over the top.
4. The Congress. It’s not just weird, it’s out of its mind.  And that’s why I loved it.  Robin Wright playing herself and selling her image to be used to make movies is the least weird thing that happens in this deliriously inventive fantasy.
5. Selma. A smart and disturbing look at the Civil Rights Movement.
6. Whiplash. An off-the-chain meditation on the artistic impulse.
7. Nightcrawler. One of the better LA movies in a great while, anchored by a stunning lead performance by Jake Gyllenhaal.
8. The Drop. Down and dirty crime drama, Brooklyn-style.
9. Wild Tales.  A spectacular collection of hilarious and horrifying revenge stories from Argentina.
10. Pride. The most fun you have at a movie about a wrenching coal miners’ strike.
11. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. The only blockbuster on the list. It gets extra credit for not being a comic book superhero movie.

Honorable Mention:  Snowpiercer, Calvary

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