For the 19th time, I’ve put together my annual top 10 and bottom 10 films of the year! You can check out all my previous lists by clicking here. I went through the list on 612ABC Brisbane a week or so ago and we took a few calls from listeners. You can listen to the podcast here.
I saw a total of 202 movies in 2014 (excluding unreleased stuff from film festivals) so let's quickly get the junk out of the way…
Worst 10 Films Of 2014
They tried to be truly awful but films that were just outside my worst 10 list included Need For Speed, Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, Tammy, I Frankenstein, A Castle In Italy, The Face Of Love, That Awkward Moment, Endless Love, Noah and Transcendence.
10. Step Up All In (Sep 11) brings together characters from the previous Step Up flicks for more elaborate dance sequences. Fans will probably enjoy but there's no appeal for anyone else. It's the same old stuff.
9. A Million Ways To Die In The West (May 29) is a spoof western that uses the same jokes again and again and again. Did we need 4 fart jokes in the opening 30 minutes? Seth MacFarlane can't carry this film. I quickly grew tired of his politically incorrect humour (which is not witty).
8. Blended (Jun 12) is not very good (to put it politely). It's the story of two single parents (Adam Sandler & Drew Barrymore) who meet on a blind date and end up taking their respective children on an African adventure. There's no wit, no charm to any of the jokes. It's not even risqué.
7. Fat Pizza Vs. Housos (Nov 27) is a one-note, morally bankrupt comedy that highlights all the people that make Australia so great - prison rapists, corrupt officials, slutty women, dole bludgers, drug dealers, arsonists, thieves and "retards". Just don't see the point of this.
6. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (Jan 16) is the first big failure of 2014. It's stunningly awful. The plot of Austin Powers had more credibility than this US-Russia terrorist thriller. The story is rushed, the dialogue is cringe-worthy, and the villains are pathetic.
5. Annie (Dec 18) is a mess. The songs have been overproduced and the writers have failed miserably in their attempts to take this classic tale, which was originally set in the Great Depression, and adapt it to a current day setting. You'll need thick rose-coloured glasses if you're to like any of these characters.
4. Mrs Brown's Boys D'movie (Jul 24) is a film spin-off from the popular TV series and follows a cigarette-loving, foul-mouthed grandmother trying to save her small business from a money hungry property developer. Making some odd style choices (the film is bizarrely self aware of itself), this is a comedy absent of laughs.
3. The Volcano (Jun 26) is a torturous French comedy about a divorced couple forced to go on a 2,000km road trip to get to their daughter's wedding in Greece. You couldn't find two more irritating, insensitive characters. Their actions are moronic. Really found it hard to laugh.
2. The Captive (Dec 4) is a pathetic thriller about a father trying to track down his abducted daughter. The film's fragmented timeline appears to only serve one purpose - to try to hide the many plot holes. Why are the abductor's plans so elaborate? Why are the police so incompetent? Why are the issues of rape and torture skirted around?
1. Winter's Tale (Feb 13) is an incoherent mess set in a fantasy world that is never explained. The music is overdone, the casting is wrong and the narration only adds to the confusion.
Top 10 Films Of 2014
It’s always tricky coming up with a final top 10 list year. Honourable mentions go to Force Majeure, Chef, Saving Mr Banks, Inside Llewyn Davis, Wadjda, Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Lego Movie and The Grand Budapest Hotel. Unfortunately, I couldn’t quite squeeze them into my list.
But here are my top 10 in reverse order…
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10. The Wolf Of Wall Street (out Jan 23) is the true story of Jordan Belfort - a man who epitomised greed and created one of the world's largest stockbroking firms. Some might argue about the perverse content, the excessive coarse language, the frequent drug use, the workplace sex, the orgies, the nudity, the misogyny, the discrimination… but it’s hard to fault the performance of Leonardo DiCaprio. Plenty to think about.
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9. The Maze Runner (out Sep 18) can be enjoyed for two reasons. Firstly, it's a cool, intriguing mystery about some teenagers trapped in a giant maze. Who built it? Why are they there? Secondly, there's an interesting dynamic between the characters. Not all get along and it's very Lord Of The Flies-esque. Shot for just $30m, this film held my attention all the way through.
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8. Whiplash (out Oct 23) is a terrific character study about a jazz drummer trying to succeed and his sadistic teacher who keeps pushing him beyond his physical and emotional limits. Winner of the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, this is a powerful film headlined by two passionate performances from Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons.
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7. The Raid 2 (out Mar 27) is incredible. A 150 minute bloodbath that creatively uses visuals, sound and music. The story isn't bad either - a police officer goes undercover to expose the massive corruption within the force. The action genre doesn't get much better. We warned though - it's VIOLENT.
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6. A Most Wanted Man (out Jul 31) is a cracking spy thriller that stars an overweight, chain-smoking Philip Seymour Hoffman in his final leading role. It doesn't succumb to silly Hollywood twists. Like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, it's a sharp, intelligent, insightful film that shows how difficult life can be as top spy.
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5. Edge Of Tomorrow (out Jun 5) is the duck's nuts. It's a sensational action flick from director Doug Liman (Go) that follows a not-so-flash soldier stuck in a Groundhog Day like scenario who is trying to save the world from an alien invasion. It's a creative premise, there's plenty of humour, the aliens are freaky, and the editing over the overlapping timelines is perfect. This is as good as the action genre gets.
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4. Nebraska (out Feb 20) is the story of an old man, suffering from the early stages of dementia, who incorrectly believes he won a $1 million sweepstakes prize. This is another wonderful feature film from director Alexander Payne (Election, Sideways, The Descendants) where dialogue has been used sparingly. Bruce Dern heads the superb cast.
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3. 12 Years A Slave (out Jan 30) is based on the autobiographical novel from Solomon Northup - an African-American who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery. Dialogue is kept to minimum (a feature of other Steve McQueen films) and the performances are exemplary. It’s a heavy, depressing film but it’s also one that’s hard to discredit.
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2. Still Life (out Jul 24) follows a middle-aged council employee charged with the responsibility of organising funerals when a person has died with no friends or family. This is an immensely warm-hearted drama that is dripping with poignant moments. Eddie Marsan is fantastic is the leading role. There aren’t many films that have reduced me to tears but Still Life can now be added to that short list.
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1. Boyhood (out Sep 4) is masterpiece that chronicles the process of “growing up” through the eyes of an introverted kid named Mason. Director Richard Linklater shot this fictional tale over 12 years using the same actors! It seamlessly jumps between time frames and the character interaction feels amazingly natural. Sure to release the valve on your own childhood memories, this is about as good as cinema can get.