Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Top 12 Best Movies of 2014

Now that we’ve gotten the list of top worst movies out of the way, let’s reminisce the best movies from 2014. Especially seeing how we are now in the middle of Oscar season. So without further a due here are my picks for the top 12 best movies of 2014.

12) Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier

So far during the second phase of the Marvel Cinematic universe leading up to the next Avengers movie, we’ve been seeing what some of the characters have been up to since the first Avengers movie. This movie comes close to a little more of side-story follow up to “The Avengers” as Captain America continues to fight for what’s right while still adjusting to modern times in the real world along with help from Black Widow, Nick Fury and Falcon. This had to be the best out of the sequels in Phase 2 of the Marvel Universe, nothing against “Iron Man 3” and “Thor 2” but this sequel takes the cake. Not to mention I can’t wait to see what’s in store for upcoming Avengers sequel this summer!


11) Foxcatcher

This haunting crime drama is based off true events from 1984 surrounding multimillionaire John du Pont. John du Pont was a wrestling enthusiast who established a wrestling farm to train a US wrestling team for the 1988 Olympics. Steve Carrell is totally unrecognizable in the role of John du Pont and does a great job at making him look kind of creepy too. This movie is very dark and intense as we experience the subsequent events and consequences.

10) Begin Again

I really loved this movie! This was a great music drama that gives you that feel good vibe. The script is well written with a likeable cast and it also keeps balance with drama and romance without going overboard and getting too sentimental. The movie has a great soundtrack and I highly recommend it! The movie also seems to give a positive message about starting over and pursuing dreams and making them happen.

9) Whiplash

This was an intense movie about a young jazz drummer (played by Miles Teller) who has the ambition of becoming one of the best drummers ever. He is pushed beyond his limits by a fearsome maestro (played by character actor JK Simmons). We get a lot of intense moments of Teller’s character bringing out the best of his skills while he fights the harassment of Simmons’ character. This has to be JK Simmons’ best performance in his career and a likely choice for the Best Supporting Actor award at the Oscars.

8) Nightcrawler


Jake Gyllenhaal plays the man of late night in this neo-noir thriller as a freelanced video photographer. This has to be one of Gyllenhaal’s best performances as he comes off as a total psychopath and I almost felt like he was channeling some Robert DeNiro’s acting chops from “Taxi Driver.” The movie is very sharp and well written both in plot and dialogue. The only flaws in this movie were the ending was kind of vague and it doesn’t really accurately portray some of the facts of broadcast business, but never the less, Gyllenhaal has taken acting to the next level.

7) The Theory of Everything

This is well-made and very well acted biopic about Stephen Hawking and his success on the theory of physics as he struggled the rest of his life with motor neuron disease. Up and comer Eddie Redmayne does very well taking on his first leading role as Stephen Hawking. The movie was not only based on Hawking’s life but this based on his wife’s memoir, which focuses on the romance and marriage of Stephen and Jane. Only minor flaw is they maybe focused a little too much on the love story as opposed to Hawking and his study of physics, but other than that it was still a great movie.

6) American Sniper

Bradley Cooper does it again receiving his third straight Oscar nomination this time as Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle. Clint Eastwood does a great job directing this war biography on the hotshot sniper who had 255 kills. Eastwood also does a great job in making the battle sequences extended as opposed to a “Zero Dark Thirty” where it’s all about politics and strategy. This movie also seems to show that we should continue to show our appreciation to the troops with more than just a thank you.


5) Wild

This has to be one of those movies where it’s good but watch only once kind of like “127 Hours” minus a few factors. Reese Witherspoon gives her second best performance since she won her first Oscar with “Walk the Line” back in 2005. This is a solo survival journey was based off the memoir of Cheryl Strayed as she embarked on a 1100 mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail to find herself. The only flaw about this movie was the quick cut flash backs occurred too much as we go through the journey.ond best performance since she won her first Oscar with “Walk the Line” back in 2005. This is a solo survival journey was based off the memoir of Cheryl Strayed as she embarked on a 1100 mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail to find herself. The only flaw about this movie was the quick cut flash backs occurred too much as we go through the journey.


4) Birdman 

Michael Keaton plays a washed up actor who is trying to revive his career through a Broadway production. The funny coincidence about this movie is Keaton’s character was an actor that played a superhero where Keaton in real life played Batman, coincidence? I think so. The only flaw I thought was odd was the Birdman voice that Keaton kept hearing (it kind of seemed like a pale imitation of Christian Bale as Batman), which was the only weird part about the movie. Other than that the movie was well-acted especially with Edward Norton playing a supporting role as a talented but egotistical actor. I really hope Keaton and Norton receive Oscar nominations and both of them win!

3) Kill the Messenger

Not only does this movie make my list for the best movies but it also makes my list for movies that got snubbed by the Academy Awards. Jeremy Renner puts on another Oscar worthy performance as journalist Gary Webb as he plays anti-hero to dig deeper into an investigative story involving the CIA and the Mexican drug cartel. The plot takes its twists and turns as we go through the details within the plot as well as Gary Webb dealing with the rewards and punishments within investigating the story. This movie didn’t get the recognition it deserved. It deserved a wider audience and Jeremy Renner should have gotten an Oscar nomination for this role.

2) The Grand Budapest Hotel

Most of the time I’m not too crazy about a lot of Wes Anderson’s movies but this one I think is his best movie to date. This quirky off beat “dramedy” is about a legendary concierge (played by Ralph Fienes) running the Republic of Zubrowka hotel during the first and second World Wars. He befriends a lobby boy as they embark on various situations and exploits. I salute the Academy for recognizing this movie despite coming out so early in the year where most movies around that time tend to get lost in the mix. It’s smart, funny, visually appealing and very well-acted with a strong cast and some cameos. Great movie!

1)Boyhood

This had to be the best movie of the year by far! This movie was shot in 39 days over 12 years with the same cast. Normally when a movie takes that long to make no one ever lives to brag about it but for this movie it makes sense as it shows the phases of life we see these characters go through in this coming of age drama. There were many things that could’ve gone wrong but Richard Linklater definitely pulled it off. Also it’s totally refreshing to see Ethan Hawke go back to serious acting roots for a change. This movie will definitely win the Best Picture award at the Oscars.


Honorable Mentions:


Guardians of the Galaxy

I ran out of room to include this movie on the top 12 but I figure I would give it an honorable mention. Guardians of the Galaxy had to be the biggest wild card movie of 2014. This movie was based off a lesser-known superhero team from Marvel Comics. The comic wasn’t exactly a household name like “The Avengers”, “X-Men” and “Spider-Man” but that was the one advantage the directors used to introduce this team to mainstream audiences. Not to mention they did use some jokes by making fun of themselves on how nobody has heard of these characters. I look to forward to more adventures with these characters in the near future as well as a potential “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Avengers” crossover.

St. Vincent


Bill Murray gives one of the best performances of his career as he plays a grouchy old man who forms an unlikely friendship with his neighbor’s son. The movie is heartwarming, funny and sentimental.


Those are my top 12 picks and I look forward to what this movie year has in store. See ya at the movies!

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