Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Riske Business: My 10 Favorite Movies of 2014

by Adam Riske
Without further ado, here’s my list…

10. (Tie) Begin Again & Edge of Tomorrow – The heart wants what the heart wants. I’m doubling down on liking Begin Again! I find it very charming. The chemistry between the wonderful Keira Knightley and the equally talented Mark Ruffalo works and the music is sensational (I’ve listened to the soundtrack pretty consistently throughout the last six months). Is Begin Again a great movie? No, but it makes me happy and that’s good enough. I also couldn’t bear to leave Edge of Tomorrow off of this list either. It’s the surprise of the year for me, something I was expecting little from that ended up entertaining me as much (or more) than any other movie this year. Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt are crazy charismatic, the action is exciting and the movie has a terrific sense of humor. Simply a great time at the movies.
9. Enemy – A very good puzzle movie and I usually hate puzzle movies. I’m not sure I understand all of Enemy, but it almost doesn’t matter because it has grown on me more and more throughout the course of the year. It’s mysterious, moody and sad with a great score, excellent photography and assured direction from Denis Villeneuve. I’d also be remiss not to mention that Enemy contains two of three terrific performances this year from my favorite actor at the moment, Jake Gyllenhaal. I change my mind about what’s happening and what everything means in Enemy about every 15 minutes of the film, but what never changes is that I am completely absorbed by the entire experience.

8. Snowpiercer – Dark and imaginative science fiction that kicks all kinds of ass. I was a fan of Joon-ho Bong’s The Host from a few years ago, but with Snowpiercer the director takes it to another level. The themes explored related to class warfare are fascinating, culminating in a last few moments that still astound me in what it is suggesting. It’s pretty ballsy. On top of that, Snowpiercer is an exciting thriller with solid performances all the way around, with a talented cast including Chris Evans, Kang-ho Song and Ah-sung Ko. We’re so lucky to have this movie. It was almost cut to shreds by The Weinstein Company, but luckily cooler heads prevailed and what we have is a masterpiece of the genre.
7. Nightcrawler – A great, suspenseful character study and a darkly funny satire of small/private business by writer-director Dan Gilroy. The movie is gritty, seedy and always fascinating as it takes you right into the weeds of a sociopath literally at work. But the real reason for the film’s success is the extraordinary, possessed performance by Jake Gyllenhaal as the amoral and meticulous Louis Bloom. His portrayal of the calm and emaciated “hero” of this story is my favorite performance of the year. Gyllenhaal is a joy to watch, an actor (with a wide range) who takes on risky projects and turns in interesting work time and time again. Nightcrawler also features strong supporting turns from Rene Russo, Riz Ahmed and Bill Paxton. Terrific screenplay and dialogue.

6. Boyhood – The genius of Boyhood is that it’s a movie that proves any life (or in this case, childhood) is ripe with drama and interest. I think it’s a great move by writer-director Richard Linklater to portray the Ellar Coltrane character as just a normal kid. He’s not supremely talented or a “chosen one” in any way, and that makes his journey more endearing and relatable. Few times have I cared about the life trajectory of a movie character as much as I did Mason in Boyhood. The movie also contains some great writing, particularly in the scenes with Ethan Hawke, who is the movie’s MVP and its true heart. This is as much his story as it is his on-screen son’s.
5. The Raid 2 – A masterpiece of action that pushes the boundaries of the genre and continues to top itself throughout its runtime. The brutal and thrilling sequel to the remarkable The Raid: Redemption ups the ante in terms of ambition, taking on the form of a crime epic full of double crosses. Even more so than in the original, writer-editor-director-genius Gareth Evans renders a beautifully shot film with clean, fluid action directing that allows you to marvel at its jaw dropping choreography. The cast is sensational, led by a powerhouse physical performance by Iko Uwais, a great villain turn by Arifin Putra and a bounty of colorful supporting characters each with their own inspired gimmick (e.g. bat boy, hammer girl etc.). This movie blows my mind.

4. The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson nails it with the sad and funny (especially visually) story of a one-of-a-kind hotel that represents a society’s last vestige of civility and propriety. The Grand Budapest Hotel is superlative in many ways, from the art direction and production design to the score, the screenplay and especially the performances. Ralph Fiennes (as a regal ninny with a penchant for hilarious cursing) and Tony Revolori (who is essentially his straight man) make for a terrific comedic duo. The movie is adept at juggling tones – at one moment playful and silly and then melancholy, often within the same scene. No one else could have made this movie as well as Wes Anderson, who is evolving into one of his generation’s most enduring and important filmmakers.
3. Under the Skin – Kicking off with an arresting opening sequence, Under the Skin is a hypnotic and unique experience filled with lots of style, trippy imagery and interesting themes (especially about gender and sexuality). Scarlett Johansson had quite the hot streak at the movies in 2014, but my favorite performance of hers came in Under the Skin. Here she shows that she is capable of holding the screen with little more than just her expressive features and body language. Director Jonathan Glazer directs this sad, mysterious and creepy movie as if being guided by the ghost of Stanley Kubrick, with the film working as a composition as much as a narrative. Also featuring a shrieking and unnerving score by Mica Levi, which I feel is one of the all-time greats.

2. Life Itself – Isn’t it wonderful that a man who spent his life loving great movies is, in the end, the subject of one himself? Steve James’ funny and moving documentary encompassing the life and death of film critic Roger Ebert beautifully captures the spirit of Ebert’s personable and enlightening blog posts, columns and reviews. Life Itself could have very easily been a puff piece, but instead it’s a beautiful movie about love and friendship when confronting death and the virtues of a life lived well. Roger Ebert called the movies “a machine that generates empathy,” and by the end of Life Itself you will no doubt feel as if you understand Ebert, the man and the celebrity. A fantastic screen biography.
1. Whiplash – My favorite movie of the year. No other movie in 2014 made me more emotionally invested than writer-director Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash. I once was in a fraternity where I got my ass hazed off and also had a full-time job where my managers were Nazis and, as a result, this movie really hit home for me. It could be about any toxic mentor-protégé relationship; it doesn’t have to be music. The performances in this film are superb, from the extremely talented Miles Teller (who is not getting enough credit for his performance – no one is mentioning how well he drums!) to a startling performance from J.K. Simmons as a total monster and psychological terrorist. The supporting performances coming from Paul Reiser and Melissa Benoist are sweet, sincere and also worth noting. But what gives Whiplash its power is its themes (the subjective nature of what constitutes great art, the value of having a “killer instinct,” does the end justify the means?). This is a rich movie that is just as intellectually satisfying as it is involving. The final scene, which I will not spoil, is a masterwork – an epic head-to-head showdown that is uplifting until you realize the darker undertones it is implicating. Amazing editing to match the characters frantic POV, terrific music...Whiplash is awesome.

23 comments:

  1. Man, nothing makes me sadder than having missed Whiplash when it was playing around me. It would most certainly crack my top 10 (regrettably bumping off something else). I can see it being my number 3 at least if it hits me in the way I'm thinking it will when I finally see it. I love music, I am a sucker for mentor/student relationship movies, and from the clips I've seen, the performances look amazing. Whiplash can't get in front of my eyes soon enough.

    Awesome list all around, too! I appreciate your taste and comments, Adam! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Also, your Begin Again is my The Fault in Our Stars. In my case, yes it's a sappy cry fest, but it's a well-acted one that I appreciate and connect to, dangit! Props to you for sticking with your guns on a movie that you liked.

      Delete
    2. Thanks John! Have a great new years!

      Delete
  2. Adam, thanks for all of your contributions this year! Been a lot of fun reading your articles. Happy New Year!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great list Adam. I have not seen Whiplash. Strange how it does not appear on the other 3 previous lists. Just like Boyhood does not appear on Patricks list but is at the top of JB and Dougs. It shows how films are polarizing. I need to see Boyhood And Whiplash. All the other films are very similar to my choices. I need to do a list. Its very tough to put them in order and I need to see some films I missed. I think Guardians of the Galaxy and Babadook might make my list. And Housebound, Im struggling already
    Happy new year Adam

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great write up. I am mid OZ right now, so Simmons as a monster doesn't seem that far off base :) I am looking forward to seeing Whiplash very much. I also agree with you about Jake...that dude is amazing. I haven't seen Enemy yet, but I definitely will. I sometimes really wonder just how much choosing the right project can impact a career versus pure talent. It seems like he would have to be so self aware to make such amazing and accurate choices.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's a great question probably worthy of a whole column to explore it but overall I tend to agree with you that it has more to do with opportunity than talent.

      Delete
  5. Thanks for the list, Adam. I haven't seen five of the movies in your top ten, so that gives me a good direction for titles to seek out on disc.

    Aside: Seeing the photos from Enemy and Nightcrawler above, I would be interested in a doppelganger movie where the production took a few months off for the actor to change physically before shooting the second character on green screen. Jake Gyllenhaal, meet Lou Bloom.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome. I hope you enjoy the last five you haven't seen yet. I want to see Multiplicity remade starring Jake Gyllenhaal. But don't recast Andie McDowell. And make it a thriller instead of a comedy.

      Delete
  6. Dude I love the whiplash love! It's my number 1 and I haven't had a range of emotions go through me the way I had with that movie. There were moments where i almost couldn't look at what was happening on screen. I was listening to another film critic talk about it and he said its one of the most misunderstood movies of the year and I totally agree with that. Some people walk out of it going meh and I just want to shake them and go really??? That was a masterpiece and one that showed me things I've never seen on film before. I even heard someone compare it to the karate kid and I was like whoa you're totally missing the point here. It's a really great movie and one that has stuck with me since I saw it. I'm also glad to see the raid 2 so high on your list it's probably my number 3 or 4 at the moment. As always i love reading your stuff mr riske, thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Good for you championing Begin Again. I didn't like it as much as you did, but I thought there were a lot of likable parts to the movie. I think our main difference is the music didn't work as much for me. The person I saw it with LOVED it though; she really loved the music.

    Good job on the list, bro-face! I really need to see Enemy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BEGIN AGAIN is so good it made me forget that I don't like Adam Levine. Happy New Year bro-face!

      Delete
  8. If you've missed "Begin Again" and have cable CNN is showing it this Sunday night at 9PM ET (8PM CT), so set your DVR.

    Great list, Adam. Seen 9 of the 10 movies, all except "Nightcrawler" (which I'm watching Friday morning). Let's just say that of the 9 I've seen 4 are in my Top 10 list. "Whiplash" is a strong little movie which had the best trailer I saw last year. If you've seen the trailer you've seen the movie, though the last 15 min. threw me for a loop because I honestly didn't see any of it coming. I don't know what's more visually impressive, Miles' drumming or J.K's forearms (talk about ripped!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LIFE ITSELF! CNN is showing "Life Itself" Sunday night, not "Begin Again." Fucking New Year's hangover! :-P

      Delete
    2. Thanks J.M. I wish BEGIN AGAIN was playing on CNN!

      Delete
  9. Cool list Adam - I'm right there with you on a bunch of these and very much look forward to the few I haven't seen - especially Whiplash.

    And man, Under the Skin is a weird and wonderful movie - just watched it yesterday - on the face of it there's not a whole lot "happening" but I feel like I'll have to watch it several more times to really take it all in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sol! Hope you're having a great new year bud :-)

      Delete