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Best Movies of 2014

sirkickyass

sirkickyass

Moderator Emeritus
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Obviously I haven't seen them all (no one has) but this is my short list of the movies I liked best that came out in 2014. The prime examples of things that are going to get omitted because I haven't seen them are Inherent Vice (I don't live in New York or LA so I haven't had a shot) and Boyhood (just missed the boat, it happens). I'm interested in what other people have to say as well, mostly so I can argue with you and tell you that you're wrong. ;)

#1. The One I Love
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Incredibly minimalist with essentially only three actors, a semi-improvised script, and an intriguing premise. The movie is wonderful. There's even a stealth dig on Kobe and Vanessa Bryant if you're looking closely.

#2. The Grand Budapest Hotel
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It's a Wes Anderson movie at his most blissfully, perfectly symmetrical, Wes Andersoniest. Even if you haven't seen it, you probably have an opinion and already know if it's for you.

#3. Snowpiercer
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If you've seen it, you know. If you haven't, it has the most ridiculous premise for an action movie you can imagine with all of humanity confined to a gigantic supertrain. IT's also absurdly awesome. It's on Netflix Streaming and is absurdly highly recommended.

#4. Guardians of the Galaxy
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Lots of movies over the last few years have shown us how comics can be good. And they just roll in dough making what are essentially action films with a different skin. Guardians of the Galaxy showed why comics are actually fun and people trek out to a store imbued with nerd stank every Wednesday to shell out $4 a copy for books they'll read in under 15 minutes. It also may singlehandedy alter how comic movie properties are selected for the benefit of everyone involved. It is boring to pick the biggest blockbuster of the year as one of the best, but I felt that way.

#5. Top Five
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You've probably forgotten how much you like Chris Rock since he doesn't show up in many things. I know I certainly did. This is a very worthy foray into the full writing/directing of fiction chair for him. It has some riotously funny scenes and if you get the opportunity to see it in a majority black neighborhood, do so.

Honorable mention: The Edge of Tomorrow

Worst place: Skeleton Twins.

Second worst place: The Book of Life.
 
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I nervously took my, almost three-year-old, to the movies for the first to see, Book of Life. He sat on the edge of his seat the entire time and months later keeps asking to see it.
 
Archie Moses said:
Good movies that are targeted towards his demographic?

To be fair, on both critical and viewer opinions in regards to the film, you're in the minority.

3-year-old 1 - Kicky 0.
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I had a very toxic reaction to The Book of Life. Not the least of which was Ice Cube's character telling the audience "It Was a Good Day ... of the Dead." That line by itself was basically murdering things that I hold dear. I went and found my initial reaction to the film that I put on facebook. I stand by it.

Kicky of Christmas Past said:
If you are a parent, do not take your children to see the Book of Life. This isn't some kind of obscene content warning, this is a good taste warning. You want to expose your children to things that are of high quality. There is virtually no production decision in the Book of Life that can be remotely classified as defensible from any standpoint. There is virtually no quality control on the product. It engages in token feminist stances while still stranding its primary female character as an object to be fought over, defended, and won, and engages in incredibly jarring composition flaws that destroy the notion of it championing any sense of Latin or Mexican identity.

To be clear, this is a movie that features Mariachis bluntly expressing their feelings through the music of Mumford and Sons, Radiohead, and Biz Markee. Those are all fine musical acts (nobody beats the Biz!) but considering the incredibly small number of films that have the opportunity to deeply engage Latin folklore, they represent an incredible waste of what could have been. Let your kid watch the Iron Giant or the Incredibles for the 100th time. They will get more out of that than a single viewing of Book of Life.
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I think people grade kids movies on a curve. I get it, sometimes it's important to just get a few hours where the kid is happy and finer points get glossed over. But this one actually had some real ambitions, swung, and missed wildly. I also think that it got a lot of bonus points in some corners due to its unique visual style which I was not the audience for.

I thought this year's crop of kids films were very disappointing. Even my very favorite of the year, Boxtrolls, didn't quite get there.
 
The edge of tomorrow was pretty cool. Especially since they did not conclude an entire conceptual fictionazation with the power of sweet love like interstellar. Expectations going into a movie is your worst enemy without doubt.
 
It's not The Hobbit: The Battle of The Five Armies. What a massacre that was.
 
Holy cow, that's your list, Kick? I mean, I haven't seen any of those other than EOT (which was so mediocre they decided to rename it after their tagline) but you haven't seen anything of note like Foxcatcher? Birdman? Interstellar? And yes, I know most of those were well-critiqued. They're just not your top 10 fare by most.
 
Dying to see Foxcatcher and American Sniper, the latter on which I threw down 50 to win 1,000 for it to win BP at the AA's...
 
I liked guardions if the galaxy alot and my wife did too.
There is your winner
 
We talking US release dates?

My favorites I have seen this year, in no particular order, are probably:
Whiplash
Boyhood
Birdman
Teh Lego Movie
Ida

I liked moonrise kingdom better than the grand budapest hotel tbh and insterstellar was like the stillborn twin of Gravity. Foxcatcher just isn't my style. Don't really care for the superhero/comic book movies much, so I never watched Guardians of the Galaxy.
 
Sirkickyass said:
I had a very toxic reaction to The Book of Life. Not the least of which was Ice Cube's character telling the audience "It Was a Good Day ... of the Dead." That line by itself was basically murdering things that I hold dear. I went and found my initial reaction to the film that I put on facebook. I stand by it.



I think people grade kids movies on a curve. I get it, sometimes it's important to just get a few hours where the kid is happy and finer points get glossed over. But this one actually had some real ambitions, swung, and missed wildly. I also think that it got a lot of bonus points in some corners due to its unique visual style which I was not the audience for.

I thought this year's crop of kids films were very disappointing. Even my very favorite of the year, Boxtrolls, didn't quite get there.
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You warned parents against taking kids to a movie based on reasons no kid would ever think or understand? Hmm. Your kids are gonna have an awesome upbringing if you over think things that way.

This reminds me of the critic who slammed, Freebirds, because of its historical accuracies based on Thanksgiving. What a killjoy.

I didn't love the movie, but I loved that my kid did and it was an experience I'm never gonna forget. ☺
 
LazyD said:
We talking US release dates?

My favorites I have seen this year, in no particular order, are probably:
Whiplash
Boyhood
Birdman
Teh Lego Movie
Ida

I liked moonrise kingdom better than the grand budapest hotel tbh and insterstellar was like the stillborn twin of Gravity. Foxcatcher just isn't my style. Don't really care for the superhero/comic book movies much, so I never watched Guardians of the Galaxy.
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All good movies (except for Interstellar). Moonrise Kingdom isn't 2014, but it is really amazing. Easily my favorite Wes Anderson movie. Have you actually watched Foxcatcher? I didn't think I'd enjoy it because the make-up work on the poster looked ridiculous, but the movie was actually pretty good.
 
Not sure how anyone wouldn't want to see Foxcatcher. This is the guy who did Capote and Moneyball, the trailers looked strong, and the early word out of Cannes (and elsewhere) was that it was excellent.

Maybe it's just me. I love true stories and remember when this happened.
 
addictionary said:
The edge of tomorrow was pretty cool. Especially since they did not conclude an entire conceptual fictionazation with the power of sweet love like interstellar. Expectations going into a movie is your worst enemy without doubt.
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Very clever idea. Unfortunately, the movie is made in the most conventionally cliche'd Hollywood style possible. They went for what they considered the safe route, and it lost them a lot of money. Had they taken a chance and made a more unique movie, it could have been great.
 
Siro said:
Very clever idea. Unfortunately, the movie is made in the most conventionally cliche'd Hollywood style possible. They went for what they considered the safe route, and it lost them a lot of money. Had they taken a chance and made a more unique movie, it could have been a great movie.
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This. The third act was God awful.
 
LazyD said:
We talking US release dates?

My favorites I have seen this year, in no particular order, are probably:
Whiplash
Boyhood
Birdman
Teh Lego Movie
Ida

I liked moonrise kingdom better than the grand budapest hotel tbh and insterstellar was like the stillborn twin of Gravity. Foxcatcher just isn't my style. Don't really care for the superhero/comic book movies much, so I never watched Guardians of the Galaxy.
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Forgot about gravity.
LOVED IT on imax in 3d. Probably my favorite
 
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