Best Films of 2014
The Films of 2014 that will live-on beyond the year, demand multiple viewings and that stand-out as great achievements in the medium that is the marriage between moving pictures and sound.
*NOTE: Some films are listed as 2013 but were not given a theatrical release until 2014.
*NOTE: Some films are listed as 2013 but were not given a theatrical release until 2014.
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- DirectorJonathan GlazerStarsScarlett JohanssonJeremy McWilliamsLynsey Taylor MackayA mysterious young woman seduces lonely men in the evening hours in Scotland. However, events lead her to begin a process of self-discovery.Brilliant! Under the Skin is a one-of-a-kind, transcendental experience. It's frightening, disturbing, haunting, yet meditative and beautiful. This isn't just the best films of 2014, this is one of the greatest experiences in film history.
- DirectorAlejandro G. IñárrituStarsMichael KeatonZach GalifianakisEdward NortonA washed-up superhero actor attempts to revive his fading career by writing, directing, and starring in a Broadway production.Funny, chaotic and insane. Forces it's audience into the shoes of a character that would be impossible to relate to in any other situation or period of his life. A delusional washed-up celebrity trying to prove he is a relevant artist during the lowest point of his life and career. It's sad but far from sentimental. It's hilarious without taking away from it's very real emotional core. Every character is interesting in their own way. One of those rare films you don't want to end. An unpredictable masterpiece.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsBen AffleckRosamund PikeNeil Patrick HarrisWith his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.This is one of those films where the less you know the better it will be. It's a thriller with some very shocking, yet strangely satisfying, twists and turns. It's also quite humorous in the darkest of ways. Easily David Fincher's best film since Fight Club. The film will linger with you long after the credits begin to roll.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsJake GyllenhaalMélanie LaurentSarah GadonA man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie.Enemy may have the scariest and most bewildering ending any piece of art has ever dared. It's the best horror art film to-date. The pacing is slow, the music hints that nothing is as it seems and something is lurking around the corner. Only audiences who stay to witness the ending will get to see what it is. Like a nightmare put to screen, this one you'll have to figure out for yourself.
- DirectorDamien ChazelleStarsMiles TellerJ.K. SimmonsMelissa BenoistA promising young drummer enrolls at a cut-throat music conservatory where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing to realize a student's potential.On the surface, Whiplash is about an aspiring jazz musician who will endure anything to succeed. Underneath, the tension just keeps rising and rising to levels modern thrillers and horror films never succeed to rise to. Whiplash does what the first act of Full Metal Jacket does using musicians and drums instead of soldiers and guns.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsRalph FiennesF. Murray AbrahamMathieu AmalricA writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge.A story within a story within a story, Wes Anderson's Grand Budapest Hotel is an adventure, a comedy, a murder mystery, a period piece, a caper, a love story, a character study and a tragedy all-in-one. His most ambitious film yet and he succeeds with wonderful results.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsJoaquin PhoenixJosh BrolinOwen WilsonIn 1970, drug-fueled Los Angeles private investigator Larry "Doc" Sportello investigates the disappearance of a former girlfriend.An over-load to the senses. A stoner's wet dream, Inherent Vice is sexy, hilarious, mysterious and intriguing. Sometimes all-at-once. This fun, epic trip demands multiple viewings and has one of the best soundtracks ever put to film.
- DirectorDan GilroyStarsJake GyllenhaalRene RussoBill PaxtonWhen Louis Bloom, a con man desperate for work, muscles into the world of L.A. crime journalism, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story.Jake Gyllenhaal plays Lou, the embodiment of ambition. Lou will stop at nothing to get what he wants. In the film's final act, we find ourselves locked in the passenger seat while Lou drives too fast and goes too far. There's a feeling of helplessness as the story speeds towards it's climax, which will have you at the edge of your seat.
- DirectorLenny AbrahamsonStarsMichael FassbenderDomhnall GleesonMaggie GyllenhaalJon, a young wanna-be musician, discovers he's bitten off more than he can chew when he joins an eccentric pop band led by the mysterious and enigmatic Frank.Frank is a musical dark comedy that shows how far musicians will go to make a great album while also shedding light on creative minds struggling with mental illness. It finds a perfect balance between being tragic and hilarious.
- DirectorJames GunnStarsChris PrattVin DieselBradley CooperA group of intergalactic criminals must pull together to stop a fanatical warrior with plans to purge the universe.The most entertaining film of 2014. It's filled with action, driven by a rock n' roll soundtrack and genuine laugh-out-loud moments, all while maintaining a very sincere emotional core. It's hard not to love these characters.
- DirectorRichard AyoadeStarsJesse EisenbergMia WasikowskaWallace ShawnThe unenviable life of a government-agency clerk takes a horrific turn with the arrival of a new co-worker who is both his exact physical double and his opposite otherwise--he's a confident, charismatic ladies' man.The Double takes quite a lot from Terry Gilliam's Brazil, with a dash of David Lynch's Eraserhead. However, this is one art film that doesn't allow it's artistic merit to over-shadow the fact that it is a comedy. As frustrating and uncomfortable as things get, it never becomes too unbearable to enjoy.
- DirectorJean-Pierre DardenneLuc DardenneStarsMarion CotillardFabrizio RongioneCatherine SaléeLiège, Belgium. Sandra is a factory worker who discovers that her workmates have opted for a EUR1,000 bonus in exchange for her dismissal. She has only a weekend to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses in order to keep her job.What begins as a very simple, foreign drama becomes more complex and effective as it moves forward. We follow Sandra, played by Marion Cotillard, as she struggles to save her job over a weekend. It's as emotionally rich as films get.
- DirectorAnthony RussoJoe RussoStarsChris EvansSamuel L. JacksonScarlett JohanssonAs Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world, he teams up with a fellow Avenger and S.H.I.E.L.D agent, Black Widow, to battle a new threat from history: an assassin known as the Winter Soldier.Serious actions films have long since died. Super-hero movies have started to over-stay their welcome. Marvel hasn't been able to top Iron Man, which is 6 years old now. Captain America is everyone's least favorite super-hero. Somehow directors Anthony and Joe Russo were able to change all that with this unpredictable, explosive sequel.
- DirectorCraig JohnsonStarsKristen WiigBill HaderLuke WilsonHaving both coincidentally cheated death on the same day, estranged twins reunite with the possibility of mending their relationship.During a time when we are being over-dosed with over-dramatic indie films disgusted as comedies, The Skeleton Twins rises above the rest. It's as sad as it is funny but what really steals the show are the characters and performances. Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig are the two funniest stars of their generation and here they get to prove they can play serious just as well as comical.
- DirectorBryan SingerStarsPatrick StewartIan McKellenHugh JackmanThe X-Men send Wolverine to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.
- DirectorDoug LimanStarsTom CruiseEmily BluntBill PaxtonA soldier fighting aliens gets to relive the same day over and over again, the day restarting every time he dies.
- DirectorChad StahelskiStarsKeanu ReevesMichael NyqvistAlfie AllenAn ex-hitman comes out of retirement to track down the gangsters who killed his dog and stole his car.
- DirectorNicholas StollerStarsSeth RogenRose ByrneZac EfronAfter they are forced to live next to a fraternity house, a couple with a newborn baby do whatever they can to take them down.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsChris EvansJamie BellTilda SwintonIn a future where a failed climate change experiment has killed all life except for the survivors who boarded the Snowpiercer (a train that travels around the globe), a new class system emerges.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsScarlett JohanssonMorgan FreemanChoi Min-sikA woman, accidentally caught in a dark deal, turns the tables on her captors and transforms into a merciless warrior evolved beyond human logic.