Last week on my youtube channel JOProductions77 I did a Mid-Year Wrap Up of the movies I have seen so far this year (53 in cinemas and various on VOD and home video).
You can watch it here: Mid-Year Wrap Up video
But I thought I'd do a quick write up of it for those of you who read my Blog.
Now for my wrap up I'll briefly be talking about my 10 favourite films of the 2014 so far and my 5 least favourite. I will not be including movies that had a 2013 theatrical release but only came to Australia in 2014 e.g. Her, Inside llewyn Davis and 12 Year A Slave.
Here we go:
Favourite movies of the year so far:
1. How to Train Your Dragon 2 - Beautiful both on a visual and storytelling level with excitement, adventure, depth and a whole lot of heart. HTTYD2 also boldly goes to places that animated films tend to avoid and it's all the better for it. 4 1/2 Stars
2. The Lego Movie - Phil Lord and Chris Miller took a very risky project and knocked it out of the park. No film recently has made me feel like a kid again the way this film did and the animation and voice cast are fantastic. 4 1/2 Stars
3. Noah - Polarising to most but as a Christian, film-maker, critic and audience member I loved auteur Darren Aronofsky's ambitious vision. Even though it didn't always come together the theme of redemption was fantastically executed. 4 Stars
4. Under the Skin - Not just a film but an experience unlike any I've had all year. A truly unique film that delves into the good and bad of what makes us human. 4 Stars
Note: My number 3 and 4 are interchangeable.
5. 22 Jump Street - Incredibly fun, witty, ADHD and heartfelt; Phil Lord and Chris Miller have done it again in the same year! 4 Stars
6. Edge of Tomorrow - The surprise of the year for me; I really wasn't expecting much from this film but it completely surprised me with it's smarts, fun and heart. 4 Stars
7. X-men: Days of Future Past - I grew up on X-men comics and this film was everything I wanted from an X-men movie (though I do still want a proper portrayal of Cyclops). 4 Stars
8. The Grand Budapest Hotel - Wes Anderson being his most Wes Andersoney (yes I know it's not a real word). A hilarious film anchored by a fantastic cast and Ralph Fiennes funniest role since In Bruges. 4 Stars
9. The Two Faces of January - No film in recent memory has channelled Alfred Hitchcock the way this film has. It felt like I was watching a lost film from the master of suspense himself. 4 Stars
10. The Raid 2: Berandal - This film may just have some of the greatest action sequences of all time, along with that you have fantastic filmmaking and a pretty thrilling story. 4 Stars
Runners up - Godzilla, Bad Neighbours, Calvary, The Rover, Frank.
Least favourite movies of the year so far:
1. Transformers: Age of Extinction - It's everything I don't aspire to be as a film-maker and some how it still makes money...why oh WHY?!?!? 1 Star (for Stanley Tucci and the VFX artisits)
2. Maleficent - Such a promising film that squandered it all with a terrible script that has no love for any character whose name isn't in the title. 1 1/2 Stars
3. Winter's Tale - This movie is absolutely insane and really has to be seen to believe; it's actually a bad movie I would recommend seeing just as a right of passage. 1 1/2 Stars
4. Pompeii - Paul W.S. Anderson...nuff said. 2 Stars
5. Need For Speed - There's suspension of disbelief and then there's the illogical idiocy that is Need for Speed...good cinematography though. 2 Stars
Runners up - That Awkward Moment, Better Living Through Chemistry, The Monuments Men, 3 Days to kill.
Note: I did not see Blended, The Other Woman, I Frankenstein, Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones and films that are yet to reach Australian shores.
Unfortunately I am yet to see film that I would give five stars to but we still have half a year left of 2014 and it's been pretty good year so far!
Please let me know your favourite and least favourite films of the year so far in the comments below.
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