Admittedly, I always approach the end of the year with a little fear and trepidation. After seeing over 200 movies, you begin to wonder, now what did I see? And with so many movies thrown at critics at year end, it become a bit of a frenzy with awards season upon us. 2015 was a solid year for film with some stellar offerings at the end of the year. Last year at this time, it was already shaping up a two-way race between "Boyhood" and the eventual winner, "Birdman" but at this point, it can go anyway. "The Revenant," "Spotlight" and "The Martian" (along with others) all have a strong case to make it go their way.
After reviewing my reviews, here is my best and worst for 2015. I list my top film for the year, followed by the complete top 10 (in no order), honorable mention and the 5 worst films of the year. This first part is the year's best. Part II, in a separate blog post, will cover the worst films of the year.
My favorite film of the year is (drumroll please):
The Martian
This brilliant, breathtaking space film is the
year's best and smartest science fiction film and a terrific return to
form for director Ridley Scott, who is long overdue for a Best Director Oscar. Based on Andy Weir's excellent 2011
novel, the fascinating, engaging story is about an astronaut (Matt Damon, who grounds the film
well) in the near future stuck on Mars and finding his way home. Part
survival and part action, it did what last year's "Interstellar" failed
to do: make science-fiction both believable and thrilling. If you
haven't seen this compelling, often exhilarating movie, make your plans
to do so now.
Here's the rest of my top 10:
The Revenant - Director Alejandro González Iñárritu, who won the Best Director and Picture in 2014 for "Birdman," does it again, really outdoing himself. The dark, character-driven epic Western is brutal and bloody and in many a better film than his thought-provoking "Birdman" and features the year's single most electrifying scene, a startling gruesome bear attack (not rape as you may have heard). Leonardo Di Caprio, in full method actor mode, is certain to win the Oscar, and while I'm not necessarily among his biggest fans, he's overdue for the award, give it to him and get it over with, please. If there's one film you have to see year-end, it's this one and it will be up for Best Picture, Director and Actor Oscars for sure.
Son of Saul - This unique, affecting and harrowing Hungarian film about one man's (Hungarian poet Géza Röhrig) survival in a World War II concentration camp and his quest to bury his deceased son will haunt you and stay with you long after you leave the theater. Expanding nationwide in January, this film is brilliantly directed by Lazlo Nemes in a very auspicious debut as feature film director (not to mention Rohrig's acting debut). The opening scene, featuring a long tracking shot following the main character into the camp, is startlingly unforgettable, not to mention the rest of the film, including the heartbreaking finale. A shoo-in for this year's Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. My full review of "Son of Saul" will be posted closer to the film's opening in January.
Brooklyn - One of the year's most tender, well-acted films, this sweet love story is exquisitely acted by "Atonement's" Sairose Ronan in the lead role in her most mature role to date. Based on Colm Toibin's novel of the same name, it's about an Irish girl who immigrates to 1950s New York City in search of a new life and finds the true meaning of love and family. "Brooklyn" is filled with many compelling, sensitive moments that reminds of classics like "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn."
Spotlight - One of the year's most powerful, relevant films. Directed and written by "The Visitor's" Tom McCarthy, this fact-based drama is about corruption and abuse in the Catholic church in Boston, is also superbly acted by a strong ensemble cast including Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams and Liev Schreiber. It certainly has the qualities of a Best Picture winner, but with middling box-office, we'll see how much momentum it has going into the awards season. Still, an excellent film reminding of the power of another shocking investigation, "All the President's Men."
Room - Based on Emma Donoghue's best-selling novel of the same name, this low-budget independent film directed by "Frank's" Lenny Abrahamson is likely the year's most powerful, superbly acted and often heartbreaking film. About a young mother and her son held hostage, it's part survival, part escape and part adjustment to a new world. As the young mother and her young son, Brie Larson and especially 10-year old Jacob Tremblay give brilliant, moving performances that will garner some attention. Put this one on your list to see.
Beasts of No Nation - This brutal, harrowing tale of a young boy survival a bloody civil war in his native African homeland is one of the year's most powerful, but also difficult to watch. Newcomer Abraham Attah is wonderful, as is Idris Elba as his brutal commandant and father figure, and it's no surprise he's already garnering awards notice (SAGs and Golden Globes) and expect much more. It's still streaming on Netflix if you didn't catch its brief theatrical run.
Steve Jobs - One of the year's most fascinating, superbly acted bio drama's, about Apple founder Jobs, it's unfortunate that director Danny Boyle's and writer Aaron Sorkin's fine film didn't find much of an audience at the box office. This gem features a finely tuned, pitch-perfect performance from Michael Fassbender, who looks nothing like Jobs but remarkably captures his spirit, as well as a solid supporting turn from Oscar-winner Kate Winslet as his trusted assistant. Sorkin's mesmerizing dialogue keeps this flowing, and mid-film it has one of the year's most exhilarating scenes, a back-and-forth debate between Fassbender's Jobs and one of Apple's CEO, played by Jeff Daniels.
Inside Out - Pixar strikes again in one of its most inventive and colorful animated films yet, about the inner emotions that drive us all. Richly voiced by Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Mindy Kaling, Phyllis Smith and Lewis Black, you'll experience the gamut of emotions in this wholly original, funny and pensive film from the creative Dream Team at Pixar. It's a shoo-in for the Best Animated Oscar, but it's not too late to catch on DVD before the Oscars.
The Big Short - This dramedy is one of the year's most mesmerizing, powerful looks at the financial collapse of 2008, as told by the people who saw it coming and were able to legally profit from it. Smartly directed by the unlikely Adam McKay (Will Ferrell's frequent collaborator and former "SNL" writer) and featuring a strong ensemble cast, including Steve Carrell and Christian Bale, who could easily see Oscar-nominations for it as well as Ryan Gosling and Brad Pitt. Pertinent, colorful and quickly paced, it's definitely worth your time.
A few more to mention:
Carol, It Follows, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Black Mass, Sicario, Mad Max: Fury Road, Amy, Love & Mercy, Ex Machina, The Danish Girl, Cartel Land, 45 Years, Straight Outta Compton, Creed, Trainwreck, Bridge of Spies, He Named Me Malala.
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