2014The Best & Worst of 2014

Ten Best Films of 2014 listed in alphabetical order
Compiled by Marie Asner

 

American Sniper (rated R)---What it takes to make a soldier, a lifetime job. Stars an unrecognizable Bradley Cooper.

 

amostwantedmanA Most Wanted Man (rated R)---Adapted from the John Le Carre novel, Philip Seymour Hoffman, in one of his last roles, takes the role of a spy and runs with it.

 

 

 

 

Birdman (rated R)---Michael Keaton has done it, in an innovative way, and given his film career another star.

 

Boyhood (rated R)---Filming the same subject for twelve years and giving the audience an eyeful of life. Directed by Richard Linklater.

 

Gone Girl (rated R)---Who really knows what goes on in the mind of a woman? Stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike.

 

how2trainyourdragon2How To Train Your Dragon 2 (PG)---A sequel better than the first animated film and with a symphony orchestra soundtrack to boot.

 

 

 

 

The Imitation Game (rated PG 13)---Story of Alan Turing who put together the first computer to out-maneuver the Nazi regime. Stars Benedict Cumberbatch.

 

theoryofeverythingThe Theory of Everything (rated PG 13)---Stephen Hawking’s life has been anything but ordinary and this scientist probes the universe for answers. Stars Eddie Redmayne.

 

 

 

 

Unbroken (rated PG 13)---This is the year of the personal experience as we have seen in “American Sniper,” “Boyhood,” “The Imitation Game” and now, from Olympic champion to war prisoner. The title says it all. Directed by Angelina Jolie and stars Jack O'Connell.

 

whiplashWhiplash (rated R)---This title refers to a composition a music student (drummer) must learn and with that, how to stand up to life on the stage. Stars Miles Teller.

 

 

 

 

 Also Ran:

 Grand Budapest Hotel (rated R)---A wry, eschewed taste of life during wartime and in a hotel filled with eccentric people. Directed by Wes Anderson

 

Locke (rated R)---a tour-de-force for Tom Hardy and telephone voices as he travels through the night in his car making decisions about his life

 

boxtrolls The Box Trolls (rated PG)---A quality stop-motion film involving creatures living in boxes. Wonder what happens in your attic at night?

 

 

 

 

The Hobbit (2014) (rated PG 13)---the last Peter Jackson-directed Hobbit film and fans will be left without a "Hobbit" movie for years to come

 

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Ten Worst Films of 2014
Compiled by Marie Asner

Horns/Tusk/The Pyramid/Ouija (horror films) (rated R)---just a sampling of the horror/supernatural films of the week in 2014...sigh

 

Dumb & Dumber 2 (rated R)---why was it made? Dumb decision. Stars Jim Carrey.

 

Horrible Bosses 2 (rated R)---a sequel in search of a script and stars Jason Bateman

 

I Origins (rated R)---quaint premise about studying eyes and getting unusual results but script lacks direction. Stars Brit Marling and Michael Pitt.    

 

Laggies (rated R)---another in a line of films about girls and their fathers not understanding each other. Stars Chloe Grace Moretz.

 

Left Behind (rated PG 13)---Nicholas Cage needs a different agent

 

pompeiiPompeii (rated PG 13)---Kiefer Sutherland on vacation from “24”

 

 

 

 

 

Ten Million Ways to Die in the West (rated R)--Seth MacFarlane’s film is an example of too much time on your hands

 

Transcendence (rated R)---Johnny Depp in a computer with no where to go

 

22 Jump Street (rated R)---Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill also with too much time on their hands so they repeat a story.

 

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