Note: This list consists of the best movies I've seen so far this year, so any movie I have missed could not be included. Remember, this is my personal opinion.
The western genre is one that has been sorely misrepresented over the past few years. While there have been some great western’s recently such as the "True Grit" remake and "Django Unchained," but great western’s are few and far between; that's what makes "Slow West" so refreshing. The story revolves around a young man from Scotland named Jay who has traveled to America to find his beloved and her father, along the way he meets a bounty hunter named Silas who agrees to act as a guide and protect him; little does the Jay know his beloved and her father have a bounty on them, and Silas is just using Jay to find them. "Slow West" first made waves at this year's Sundance Film Festival, with many calling it one of the best westerns in years. While the movie may slow to a crawl at times, the strong acting, smart screenplay and gorgeous cinematography makes "Slow West" worth the watch.
One of the best ways to learn of upcoming independent gems is to pay attention to the recent film festivals. You'll often hear from critics and audiences in attendance what upcoming movies are worth your attention. From this year’s Sundance one movie that everyone was talking about was "Dope." A coming of age comedy-drama, the story follows a high school student from the hood named Malcolm. Incredibly smart with near perfect grades, Malcolm hopes on attending Harvard when done with high school; but his plans have to adapt after he gets involved with a drug dealer, and has to sell a few pounds molly or he and his friends will be killed. "Dope" will certainly be one of the stand-out independent films of the year. Filled with strong performances from the young cast and some very funny dialog, "Dope" is an interesting look at how far someone will go to defy the status quo and better themselves.
As I said when talking about "Dope," the best place to find out about the upcoming independent films are at film festivals; and at this year's Sundance film festival the definite standout had to be "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl." Based off the hit book of the same name, the movie follows the story of a high school senior named Greg and his best friend Earl who become close with a fellow classmate named Ashley that was recently diagnosed with cancer; while reluctant at first, Greg accepts the situation and becomes a huge part of Ashley's life and vice versa. What this movie does best is that it finds a perfect combination of funny dialog and heart wrenching moments. I did not read the book this movie was based off of, so I'm not sure how it holds up; all I know is that this movie is great. It has been a long time since I've come so close to crying in a movie. With such likable characters you can't help but hope for the best, so when things don't go their way it gets pretty emotional. For the entire run time I loved this movie, it is quirky, unique, and an all around great film; and one that everyone would enjoy.
When you think of great animation studios you think of Disney Animation, Dreamworks Animation, and Studio Ghibli; but above all others you think of Pixar. Since 1995 they have been the have been the most successful and acclaimed animation studio in the world. But over the past few years they have been in a slump, with their last few movies being rather lackluster. That put a lot of pressure on their new movie "Inside Out," a unique film regarding how our emotions control our actions and memories make up our personalities. Fortunately though, "Inside out" isn't just their best movie of the past few years, it is simply one of the best movies in their already impressive filmography. Brilliant writing, perfect casting with great voice acting, and complex themes with abstract thoughts; this is a great movie for audiences of all ages, and one of my personal favorites of the year thus far.
For the past few years I have found that is the small movies that come out of nowhere that impresses you the most, and "Ex Machina" is one of those movies. The story revolves around a young computer programmer who is brought into a secret project by a computer genius; he wants the young programmer to perform a Turing Test on what he believes to be the first true artificial intelligence. This movie flew under a lot of peoples' radars, it wasn't until it received a limited release that it started to garner very well deserved critical acclaim. Noted for its strong performances, well written screenplay, and beautiful cinematography, "Ex Machina" is poised to be listed among the best movies of the year. Hopefully it will receive the recognition it deserves when this year's award season rolls around.
In 1979, the Australian film "Mad Max" from director George Miller came out and took the work by storm. A unique revenge film taking place in a possible post-apocalyptic world made for a great ride. And the film's sequel, "The Road Warrior," managed to top the original and go down in history as one of the all time greatest action movies. So when I heard that another film in the series was set to come out this year I was hopeful, but nervous. But upon its release, movie goers were greeted with a truly marvelous cinematic feast. As far as action movies go, "Fury Road" is near perfect. Filled with astonishing action sequences, great practical effects, unique characters, and truly phenomenal directing from the series creator George Miller might have made "Fury Road" one of the break out hits of the year. At the end of the day all I can say is that this is one of the most insane, over-the-top, and thoroughly enjoyable movies I have ever seen.
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road)
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina)
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road), Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina)
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Olivia Cooke (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl)
Best Animated Feature: Inside Out
Best Cinematography: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Costume Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Director: George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road)
Best Documentary Feature: Going Clear
Best Film Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Original Score: Ex Machina
Best Original Song: Bundle of Joy (Inside Out)
Best Picture: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Short Film: Kung Fury
Best Sound Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Mixing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Visual Effects: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Adapted Screenplay: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Best Original Screenplay: Ex Machina
