Top 10 Movies of 2015

I have finally finished my Top 10 Movies of 2015.  This was a tough, tough list to make.  So many good movies could have made the cut, I could have made a Top 30.  But, I unfortunately had to cut a few out and make 10.  Before I reveal my Top 10, here are 5 Honorable Mentions that just barely missed the cut.

 

HONORABLE MENTIONS 

• ROOM – An emotionally stirring film that features two great performances from soon to be Oscar winner Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay, who gives one of the best performances from a child actor ever.

• SICARIO – A tough, relentless look at the drug war between the US and Mexico features a shocking ending, perfect cinematography by Roger Deakins and two fantastic performances by Emily Blunt and Benicio Del Toro.

• SON OF SAUL – This Hungarian Holocaust film is one of the most depressing and haunting movies of 2015.  This is a harrowing movie going experience and film that is absolutely brilliant, but one I never want to watch again.

• STEVE JOBS – Michael Fassbender gives the best performance of his career and Aaron Sorkin writes some his best dialog of his career in by far the best screenplay of 2015.  Sorkin’s dialog is as exciting and thrilling as any action movie of 2015.

• YOUTH – A sentimental look and aging, life and friendship is a beautiful movie to look at and features top notch performances by Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel, Rachel Weisz, Paul Dano, and Jane Fonda, who nearly steals the movie in just two scenes.

 

And now, my Top 10 Movies of 2015.

 

10 – THE REVENANT (Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu)

Inarritu follows up his 2014 Oscar winner Birdman with a brutal, unflinching, exhausting moviegoing experience.  Featuring an excellent physical performance by Leonardo DiCaprio and a layered performance by Tom Hardy, both are worthy of their Oscar nominations.  This is the most beautifully made film of 2015, with jaw-dropping cinematography and action sequences that rival any summer blockbuster, this movie will blow you away.  It might be a tough watch, but “The Revenant” is an awe-inspiring feat.

 

9 – BRIDGE OF SPIES (Steven Spielberg)

Bridge of Spies is filmmaking at its finest.  This movie somehow slid under the radar with audiences and I have no idea why.  Spielberg has crafted something that is just perfect.  Every shot, sound, word, and performance is perfect.  Tom Hanks is excellent, per usual, and Mark Rylance gives a stoic, darkly funny performance.  Like his last film, Lincoln (2012), this movie does not have a lot of action, but with Spielberg’s expertise, it is a tension fueled thriller.  This is a testament to Spielberg and his greatness and we need to recognize him.

 

8 – AMY (Asif Kapadia)

2015 was a great year for documentaries.  So many great stories were told and told impeccably.  For me, the best documentary by far was Amy, the in-depth look at the tragic life of the late Amy Winehouse.  This is such an intimate look at Winehouse’s life.  Using a combination of found-footage, interviews with friends, and pictures, Kapadia shows a young, talented, bright eyed Winehouse rise to the top of the pop charts and then fall into a spiral of drugs, alcohol, and depression.  It’s an emotionally raw movie and touching tribute to the late artist.

 

7 – JAMES WHITE (Josh Mond)

The best independent film of 2015 relies solely on the performance of its lead actor.   Christopher Abbot is a revelation as James.  This is a man who is a victim of his own self destruction.  He drinks too much, he parties too late, he is a permanent emotional roller coaster.  His life is thrown into more turmoil when his mother (a barebones Cynthia Nixon) is diagnosed with stage four cancer.  Abbot becomes White and we are thrown into his mind and feel everything he feels.  It is an outstanding performance and one I cannot wait to see again.

 

6 – MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (George Miller)

Having left the franchise for over 30 years, George Miller comes back to his near perfect franchises and gives us the best installment of them all.  Mad Max: Fury Road throws into a world only a genius could make, and that genius is Miller.  This is wild, ambitious, gritty fourth installment that pulses with a life not seen in any movie in 2015.  Tom Hardy is a worthy replacement to Mel Gibson’s Max, but it’s Charlize Theron as Furiosa who steals the movie.  She gives layers to a character not usually seen in an action movie.  Mad Max: Fury Road is a insane as it is brilliant.

5 – THE BIG SHORT (Adam McKay)

Adam McKay is known for making less intelligent comedies like Anchorman (2004), Step Brothers (2008), and The Other Guys (2010).  With The Big Short, he has written and directed one of the smartest and most entertaining movies of 2015.  Taking a look at the housing crises in 2008, McKay perfectly blends the drama of the moment with the insanity of the actual issue.  It is very talky with words that the usual viewer won’t understand, but McKay hilariously uses celebrities in a separate scene to dumb it down for us, which is a brilliant move.  Featuring an all-star cast of Christian Bale, Steve Carrell, Ryan Gosling, and Brad Pitt at the top of their games, The Big Short is the ballsy, darkly funny, financial horror film we needed.

4 – STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON (F. Gary Gray)

I was excited for this movie based on the fact that I love N.W.A.  This movie is so much more than just a basic musical biopic.  This is cinema at it’s biggest and best.  This is a gripping and epic look at the meteoric rise and fall of arguably hip-hop’s greatest group.  We get an in-depth look at these rappers’ lives that gives us a fuller image of who they are and why they did what they did.  The best ensemble of 2015 of relative unknowns brings these gigantic figures of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, and Ice Cube to life.  The concerts are thrilling, the drama is heavy, and the music is iconic.  Straight Outta Compton is the new standard for musical biopics.

 

3 – STAR WARS: EPISODE VII – THE FORCE AWAKENS (JJ Abrams)

The Force Awakens was my most anticipated movie of 2015 and boy, did it deliver.  This is the reason we go to the movies.  This is an exhilarating, magical, superb movie.  Abrams has made the perfect combination of the original Star Wars while also making it its own movie.  You feel like you’re watching the originals, which is something we did not get in the prequels.  The new cast members featuring the likes of Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac are perfect additions to the Star Wars universe and Harrison Ford and Carrie Fischer don’t miss a beat as their iconic Han Solo and Princess Leia.  This was the Star Wars sequel we always wanted and Abrams nailed it.

 

 

2 – SPOTLIGHT (Tom McCarthy)

Spotlight is this centuries All the President’s Men.  It is a classic procedural that relies on its expert acting and writing, and the subtlety of its directing and editing.  Following the Boston Globes investigation on priest molestation in the early 2000’s, writer/director Tom McCarthy doesn’t highlight these journalists as heroes.  This movie is about the issue at hand and art of journalism.  The stellar cast, featuring Rachel McAdams, Mark Ruffalo, Stanley Tucci, and Michael Keaton, all give some of the best performances of the year and their careers.  Spotlight is a slow-burning masterpiece that will keep you edge the entire film.

1 – CREED (Ryan Coogler) 

How in God’s green earth does the seventh installment of a nearly dead movie franchise make my number one spot?  When you have the combination of a young auteur like Ryan Coogler, one of the hottest rising stars in Hollywood in Michael B. Jordan, and the blessing of the original Rocky Sylvester Stallone, it is sure to happen.  Coogler has sparked a new life into the “Rocky” franchise.  He uses old Rocky tropes like montages and a similar story, but reinvents it and gives us a film that will stand on its own, but one Rocky fans will love.  Jordan is incredible inside and outside the ring, give Adonis the depth we want in our hero.  He’s confident in the ring, but outside, he’s a lost soul trying to find a home.  Sylvester Stallone gives the best performance of his career and one of the best of the year as the broken down Rocky who finds new life in Adonis.  In 2013, Ryan Coogler and Michael B. Jordan claimed the number one spot on my Best of 2013 list with Fruitvale Station.  Now, two years later, they claim it again and I am certain this will not be their last time.  Creed is a rousing, tenacious, poignant, expertly crafted film and the best movie of 2015.

There you have it.  My top ten movies of 2015.  Agree or disagree?  What movies did I miss?  Comment below or hit me up on Twitter @kevflix or on Facebook at Kevflix.