Decade Rewind: The Best Movies of 2014

Posted on by Kevin Wozniak

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As the 2010’s have officially come to an end, I will be looking back at each cinematic year to give a personal decade retrospective of the best movies and performances of each year.  I will break down my Top 10 movies of each year, along with my favorite performances from that year.  I will also be listing my favorite’s from each genre, like Best Animated Movie and Best Action Movie, as well as best of the technical aspects, like Best Cinematography and Best Screenplay.  This will all culminate into my picks for the best movies and performances of the decade.

*Rankings of movies and performances are numbered from 1-5, with 1 being the best movie/performance.

*Gifs for each category are not specifically of the “winners” of each category, just one of the nominees.

 

 

 

 

THE YEAR: 2014

2014 was a great year for movies and for myself. With my mini, one sentence reviews becoming relatively popular, I decided to start a Facebook page specifically for them called One Sentence Reviews. It got pretty popular and was the beginning of me making top five lists, talking movies, and, of course, writing reviews.

As for the movies themselves, I loved going to the movies in 2014. This was such an exciting year for movies which didn’t feature a ton of older directors, but really solidified some directors, like Wes Anderson, Bennett Miller, and Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu as true masters of the craft, while shining new light on voices like Damien Chazelle. It was also an extraordinary year for acting. Actors like Michael Keaton, Keanu Reeves had career resurgences, Shailene Woodley, Channing Tatum, Miles Teller, and Bill Hader surprised ya with impressive dramatic turns, and character actors like JK Simmons, Ralph Fiennes, and Rosamund Pike got there moments to shine. Here are my picks for the best movies and performances of 2014.

 

 

 

BEST PICTURE

  1. WHIPLASH (Damien Chazelle)
  2. INTERSTELLAR (Christopher Nolan)
  3. GONE GIRL (David Fincher)
  4. THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL (Wes Anderson)
  5. BIRDMAN OR (THE UNEXPECTED VIRTUE OF IGNORANCE) (Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu)
  6. THE SKELTON TWINS (Craig Johnson)
  7. BOYHOOD (Richard Linklater)
  8. THE LEGO MOVIE (Phil Lord and Christopher Miller)
  9. JOHN WICK (Chad Stahelski, David Leitch)
  10. FOXCATCHER (Bennett Miller)

 

 

BEST DIRECTOR

  1. Christopher Nolan, Interstellar
  2. Damien Chazelle, Whiplash
  3. David Fincher, Gone Girl
  4. Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
  5. Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, Birdman Or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

 

 

BEST ACTOR

  1. Channing Tatum, Foxcatcher
  2. Michael Keaton, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) 
  3. Ralph Fiennes, The Grand Budapest Hotel
  4. Bill Hader, The Skeleton Twins
  5. Miles Teller, Whiplash

 

 

BEST ACTRESS

  1. Shailene Woodley, The Fault in Our Stars
  2. Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl 
  3. Scarlett Johansson, Under the Skin
  4. Kristen Wiig, The Skeleton Twins 
  5. Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Beyond the Lights

 

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

  1. JK Simmons, Whiplash
  2. Edward Norton, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
  3. Josh Brolin, Inherent Vice
  4. Ethan Hawke, Boyhood
  5. John Goodman, The Gambler 

 

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

  1. Jessica Chastain, A Most Violent Year
  2. Emma Stone, Birdman of (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
  3. Carrie Coon, Gone Girl
  4. Patricia Arquette, Boyhood 
  5. Genesis Rodriguez, Tusk

 

 

 

 

OTHER BESTS OF 2014

 

BEST ANIMATED MOVIE – THE LEGO MOVIE

  • Runner Up – How to Train Your Dragon 2

BEST ACTION MOVIE – JOHN WICK

  • Runner Up – The Edge of Tomorrow

BEST COMEDY – THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

  • Runner Up – Top Five

BEST HORROR MOVIE – CREEP 

  • Runner Up – The Babadook

BEST COMIC BOOK MOVIE – GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

  • Runner Up – X-Men: Days of Future Past 

BEST DOCUMENTARY – LIFE ITSELF 

  • Runner Up – CitizenFour  

BEST MOVIE NOBODY SAW – THE SKELETON TWINS 

  • Runner Up – Killers 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL  

  • Runner Up – Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

BEST EDITING – WHIPLASH 

  • Runner Up – Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) 

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS – INTERSTELLAR

  • Runner Up – Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

BEST SCORE – THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

  • Runner Up – Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

  • Runner Up – Boyhood 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – GONE GIRL

  • Runner Up – Whiplash 

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned for 2015!

 

 

 

Check out the best of 2010 right HERE.

Check out the best of 2011 right HERE.

Check out the best of 2012 right HERE.

Check out the best of 2013 right HERE.

 

 

 

 

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