Top 5 Films of 2014

Birdman (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) - directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu

Birdman has everything. It's the one film from 2014 that has all the 'best of the year' bases covered. Great performances from an all star cast, tons of laughs, some dark introspective drama, suspense, a unique and infectious musical score, uncanny cinematography and technical wizardry, there's even random bouts of CGI rendered superhero carnage. By all accounts, this movie should appeal to everyone. It's also one of the most original and refreshingly bizarre films I've seen. Who would have thought that a flick about a washed up movie star trying to make it big on Broadway would prove so damn entertaining? I sure as hell didn't...but love being surprised now and again.

Nightcrawler - directed by Dan Gilroy

Jake Gyllenhaal was robbed. The all knowing Academy might have snubbed him in the best actor category but Gyllenhaal's work in Nightcrawler goes beyond all the best of the year stuff, it's one for the ages. In fact the only other performance that comes close to matching Gyllenhaal's manically intense portrayal of Louis Bloom, is Gyllenhaal's other scene stealing turn in Enemy where he plays two characters. The man's only real competition is himself! Nightcrawler is a dark and morose little movie that manages to titillate and horrify at the same time. Dan Gilroy's script and Robert Elswitt's gorgeous camera work, coupled with Gyllenhaal's performance of a lifetime, make's Nightcrawler one of the best, and most underrated films of the year.

Boyhood - directed by Richard Linklater

Richard Linklater knows how to get you. He perfected the art time lapse cinema with his Before trilogy, seducing audiences into an epic love/romance saga twenty years in the making. Turns out, Linklater was just warming up. He spent the past decade plus secretly working on Boyhood, the definitive millennial coming of age story that films it's young star growing from age six to eighteen. It may seem like a novelty, but Boyhood is really a remarkable, spellbinding piece of cinema that should be seen by everyone at least once in their lives.

Inherent Vice - directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

Joaquin Phoenix is Paul Thomas Anderson's new de facto partner in hi-jinx and I love it. Although the film's setting and comedic tone are light years removed from their previous collaboration, like The Master, Inherent Vice is a hazy, meandering slab of celluloid that focuses more on feelz and atmosphere than plot. There's more dick jokes in Inherent Vice though, that's for sure. Yes, I wish the film was a bit more streamlined and coherent at times [of course that's more a slight at Pynchon's source material than anything] but with Robert Elswitt's dream like visuals [two awesome DP jobs this year and the Academy snubs him why?!] and Josh Brolin's sublimely hammed up performance as Big Foot, I really didn't care that much and just went along with the ride.

Whiplash - directed by Damien Chazelle

Drum sex, the movie. If you have more than a passing interest in music or film then you should try your hardest to see Whiplash in theaters. If you have a deep rooted passion for both, then Damien Chazelle's firebrand debut film is required viewing! As both a drumming and movie geek, I was on the edge of my seat throughout Whiplash. I might have loathed Miles Teller in The Spectacular Now, but he's nothing short of amazing in this one. Then there's J.K. Simmons' terrifyingly brilliant work as the band leader from hell. Simmons' delivery of Chazelle's rapid fire dialogue, is genius plain and simple. There's no doubt that Whiplash is a Rocky or Reservoir Dogs caliber debut film that will be talked about for years to come.


*HONORABLE MENTIONS*

Lots of good flicks came out this past year. I should have posted a top 10 list for all the great stuff I saw, but for the sake of continuity, kept the top 5 tradition going. Anyways, here are the rest of my favorite films from 2014:


Palo Alto
Gia Coppola's debut film is a dreamy ode to the wistless days of high school. The visuals and the soundtrack are intoxicating.

Snowpiercer
Wild and wacky sci-fi that doesn't blatantly insult your intelligence, Snowpiercer is a head scratching thrill ride that makes you think and squirm at the same time.

Gone Girl
The first act drags a bit but once Fincher rolls up his sleeves in the middle, Gone Girl becomes a brilliant thriller.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Marvel turned lame ass Captain America into the coolest Bourne/Bond/Batman crushing badass around. It's a miracle.

John Wick
He's back. John Wi...er, Keanu Reeves is back in the greatest 80's action film since the Reagan administration. The film's body count and classic one liners are phenomenal.

Check my Letterboxd profile for all things film related and reviews of my entire top ten.

Movie Review: Birdman

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) is the wildest, most dazzling piece of cinema you'll see all year. Director Alejandro G. Inarritu's film about a washed-up Hollywood star trying to forge a comeback on Broadway is equal parts hilarious, gripping, and for movie nerds, flat out exhilarating.

Michael Keaton stars as Riggan Thomson, a has-been celebrity who once ruled the box office as Birdman, the first true super hero blockbuster of the modern era. He's spent the past two decades living in the shadow of his past glories and is ready to kick start the next phase of his career, only this time he pines for validation and legitimacy as a serious stage actor. Of course things go awry shortly before Riggan's play is set to open and the madness that is Birdman starts to unfold. 

Inarritu's choice of casting is the first, obvious stroke of genius with his new film. Michael Keaton of Batman acclaim, starring as the once mighty Birdman? Check. Edward "Marvel's arch nemesis" Norton playing a notoriously eccentric and difficult actor? Check. Zach Galifianakis, Emma Stone, Andrea Riseborough and Naomi Watts, they're all brilliant. The film's commentary on modern society's notions of fame, viral internet culture and critique of what truly constitutes "art" are done masterfully. Riggan may be a delusional old narcissistic hack, but as the film's extended title hints, there's something strangely likeable about that. Writing, directing and starring in his first Broadway show, the man is either overtly ambitious, or insane. When he's levitating and having existential shouting matches with his repressed Birdman alter ego, you assume it's the latter, but in Inarritu's dazzling cinematic magic carpet ride, you never can tell.

All the buzz behind Birdman stems from the film's manic energy. Inarritu and cinematographer/magician Emmanuel Lubezki [Gravity, Tree of Life, Children of Men] shot Birdman so that the entire film resembles one gargantuan extended take. This creates an unwavering sense of urgency that, coupled with the film's amazing jazz percussion score, gives the impression that the movie will fly off the rails at any moment...then of course, you know, it actually does. The way the camera maneuvers through the tight hallways and huge expanses of the theater's stage and captures the cast's unbroken diatribes in real time, it's like Christmas for film geeks, bored to death of the CGI crap fests we're subjected too every summer. Keaton's performance is so visceral and frenetic, while Inarritu's grip on the reigns is lax enough to feel both entertaining, and unnerving. When Riggan's dark alter ego starts to rear his head, when the percussive back beat transforms into a ticking time bomb, when the camera spins and reveals explosions littering the sky, I half expected Beetljuice to leap onscreen and shout, "C'mon!" like it was 1988 allover again. That's how wildly surreal and intense things get.

Go see Birdman if you're a fan of movies. Period. They'll be talking about and dissecting this one for years to come.

The Fall 2014 Moive Guide

FALL 2014 Movie Guide

Hey Bloggers. It's been a while huh? This two month lapse in posting has been my longest absence...ever. I've been kinda busy this year, trying my hand at legit music journalism, writing for New Noise Magazine and recently, joining up with Metal Injection as well.

I've also added a link to my not so fancy tumblr profile, where ya'll can keep tabs on the concert photography (and other random stuff) I've been shooting lately.

This blog will still be my primary outlet for digesting films and ranting about entertainment, political and lolz-y stuff.  Things have been quiet around here mostly because there hasn't been any decent movies out lately. Of course it's Fall now, which means all the "good" movies are about to flood the theaters just in time for Oscar season. Here's a rundown on the flicks I'm the most hyped about for the end 2014. Some Oscar bait melodramas, some lowbrow action/comedies, and the usual weird stuff I love so much. Enjoy.