Around this time last year, I was looking back at 2013 with abject despondency. I had seen so few movies, and the ones I had experienced were hardly worthy to fill a top ten list. What was I going to round it out with, Man of Steel? The thought repulses me.
Now 2015 has rolled around and I find myself in the polar opposite predicament. Instead of waiting until December of the following year to scrounge up enough films for a worthy top ten, it is February and I already have too many! Despite having only seen twenty-eight movies, I couldn't deny myself the indulgence--this year's list will be a top fifteen.
Even that was difficult to pare down! There are films in my Honorable Mentions that I will rave about for years to come. There are even films featured in my Untoward Awards that I quite liked (Sorry The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1). All told, 2014 may have been a bad year for culture in general, but it was an excellent year for film. I feel confident stating as much even having missed the following potential gems (in order from most to least interesting for me):
Under the Skin, Boyhood, Force Majeure, Locke, Only Lovers Left Alive, A Most Violent Year, The Guest, Jodorowsky's Dune, Neighbors, Rosewater, The Rover, The Imitation Game, The Theory of Everything, Foxcatcher
There's too much to talk about. This is gonna be long. So let's get started.
