Jessica's Top Ten Movies of 2018!

Okay, this is super late. But, hey, I made a Top Ten list!

The list:
1. Roma
Lots has been written about this beautiful tribute by Alfonso Cuaron to his childhood in Mexico. I'm not sure how to add to it. But there is something really special about watching a movie focused on the character who is normally relegated to the background. Yalitza Aparicio's Cleo is a marvel, showing every inch of her character's humanity. The movie is funny and tragic, joy-filled and heartbreaking. Its slow-pacing allows you to appreciate the beauty of Cuaron's visuals. It's just a really special movie.

2. Sorry to Bother You
I love this movie. So much. It is just weird and wonderful. I went in knowing nothing, and I'm so glad I did. It's hilarious, political, and surreal- satire at its finest. It features intense social commentary about capitalism and racism, and does it with a style both ridiculous and completely recognizable as our world. LaKeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, and Armie Hammer are all great (as, frankly, is David Cross, as Stanfield's "white voice" that makes him such a successful telemarketer). A movie experience unlike any other I had this year.

3. Three Identical Strangers
No movie has stuck with me over the course of this year more than this one. It's is one of those "if it wasn't real, we would call it unbelievable" stories. Bobby Shafran shows up for college, only to have everyone act like they know him calling him Eddy. Turns out, he has an identical twin brother he never knew about. But then the story gets printed as a feel-good piece in the local newspaper. And David Kellman sees a picture of two hims standing next to each other, and realizes he's the third. That's just the beginning of the movie (and what is laid out in the trailer, for those accusing me of spoilers (I'm looking at you, Cole)). The twists kept me on the edge of my seat, and the examination of nature versus nurture has kept me thinking about this movie months after I saw it.

4. Black Panther
What do I need to say about Black Panther? I mean, literally, there are 10,000-word think pieces written about it. I will just add that I loved the entire experience of seeing this movie, and it still gives me chills. The set design and costumes of Wakanda. The performances (especially Michael B. Jordan). The impact of a nearly all-black superhero cast. The "Tolkien white guys" (a joke that reveals my nerdom because I will never get tired of it). The power of seeing so many different versions of a "strong female character." The moral quandary of the plot. I just really love this movie.

5. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse
The newest entry into a very bloated world of Spider-Men basically revolutionized animation, but, more importantly, it's just a great movie. It's so cleverly done, fitting an entirely new story within the world(s) that have already been built. The cast is unreal, breathing so much life into the characters (also, Nic Cage). It's full of clever easter eggs and cameos, but what's most special about it is the story and Miles Morales. This was the escapism I needed this year.

6. The Favourite
Olivia Colman. Olivia Colman. Olivia Colman. God, I love her. She is just wonderful in this weird and fantastic movie. Ostensibly a period piece, featuring a dance scene with vogue-ing, and a strange, but effective use of fish-eye lenses. Rachel Weisz, Emma Stone, and Nicholas Hoult are all wonderful as well, but the movie is Colman's. Her confusion, pleasure, anger, joy, jealousy, humor, and heartbreak are all vividly portrayed. A wacky and wonderful movie.

7. A Quiet Place
I still have chills from this movie. This was one of those special theater experiences, when you realize how silent the room you're sitting in is, despite being filled with people. We were all transfixed, and scared to make a sound. Emily Blunt is so great in this movie, and John Krasinski gets extra points for writing, directing, and starring. The first ten minutes set up exactly what type of movie this is (I was not ready for that), and I'm not sure I moved in my seat after that point. Are there plot holes on a second viewing? Sure. But my first time viewing of this movie was special.

8. BlacKkKlansman
There are many things to love about Spike Lee's latest movie. But the part that sold me was the way it tied the events of the time to today's world. After a mostly humorous film (even though you still feel the terror of a black man and a jewish man together infiltrating the Klan), I was shocked to find myself sobbing at the end. Spike Lee is a master at directing people's emotions, and he played me like a fiddle. Once again, strong performances all around (John David Washington and Adam Driver are both especially great). And while he has made better movies (*cough cough* Do The Right Thing), it was really fantastic to see Spike Lee get a long-overdue nomination for Best Director (it's legitimately shocking that this is his first one).

9. Vice
Look, I'm sure Rami Malek is fantastic in Bohemian Rhapsody (I didn't see it, because I do my best to avoid giving my money to movies directed by pedophiles (a horrifyingly harder task than it should be)), but I just don't understand how anyone could give a better performance than Christian Bale did as Dick Cheney (and, yes, much could be said about Christian Bale's past- thus the challenge in trying to take a moral stance in what movies you see...). Bale just disappeared into this role. I get chills every time I see clips from it. But it's not just Bale- Amy Adams, Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, and the rest of the cast are amazing, too. Where it succeeds most as a movie, for me at least, is in tying everything Cheney did to where we are today in the political landscape (a theme this year it shares with BlacKkKlansman). It's not exactly a fun time at the movies (I compare my viewing experience most closely to Adam McKay's other recent political examination- The Big Short), but it is one that sticks with you.

10. (tie) A Star is Born and Annihilation
A Star is Born
Look, Lady Gaga was born to play this role. And you only remake this movie if you have Lady Gaga. It was meant to be. It's almost frustrating to watch someone so musically talented (which is completely on display here with a killer soundtrack that deserves every accolade it's been given) be so good as an actor, too. She's so great in this movie. As is Bradley Cooper, who mastered that voice and learned to be a rock star. Their chemistry is unreal (as further demonstrated by the Oscars). Sam Elliot is Sam Elliot- gruff and great. I didn't expect to love this movie, but boy do I.




Annihilation
The joys of watching a sci-fi movie featuring a mostly female cast. I didn't quite expect the impact watching these women warriors and scientists heading off into the unknown "Shimmer" would have on me, but it was strangely profound. Natalie Portman and Oscar Isaac are great, but the real star of this movie is the eerie visuals from inside this nonstop mutation- plants growing in the shape of humans, a bear that screams with a human voice, different species of flowers growing from the same branch. It gives the whole movie such a dreamy and surreal quality, while maintaining its extreme tension. The best I've seen of this genre in a long time.

Honorable Mentions:
Ant-Man and the Wasp, Avengers: Infinity War, Can You Ever Forgive Me, Crazy Rich Asians, Eighth Grade, If Beale Street Could Talk, Ocean's 8, The Hate U Give, To All the Boys I've Loved Before, Widows, Won't You Be My Neighbor

The Extras

Best Actor: Christian Bale, Vice
Runner-up: There is none. Christian Bale wins everything.

Best Actress: Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Runner-up: Yalitza Aparicio, Roma

Best Supporting Actor: Richard Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me
Runner-up: Nicholas Hoult, The Favorite

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, Vice
Runner-up: (tie) Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk and Elizabeth Debicki, Widows

Hardest Movie to Leave Off the Top Ten: Widows. Just a great and underrated movie.

Best Movie Based on a Book I Loved: Crazy Rich Asians. A fantastically entertaining movie, bringing back the romantic comedy and featuring an almost entirely Asian cast. Beautiful to look at and will make you so hungry.

Worst Movie Based on a Book I Loved: Ready Player One. This movie is just TERRIBLE. When I heard Spielberg would be directing it, I thought he might be one of the only people who could pull it off, because he could get the rights to all the other properties that are so critical in the book (which includes a man obsessed with 80's pop culture). But, wow, did I hate this movie.
Honorable Mention: Dumplin'. I didn't hate this movie, but it took away so many of the parts that I loved about the book, and made me angry at the erasure of characters and themes that the movie should theoretically be lifting up.

Best Movie About Ruth Bader Ginsburg: While On the Basis of Sex is totally enjoyable, gotta go with the documentary, RBG

Movie I Have a Love/Hate Relationship With: Eighth Grade. I really loved parts of this movie (which just so purely captures the experience of eighth grade). But I also hated it, because it just so purely captures the experience of eighth grade.

Don't call it a comeback- Jessica's Top Ten Movies of 2017!

Whew! Here we are. 2018 and two years since our last blog post. After more than ten years of making top ten lists, last year was the first one I didn't make. Essentially, Donald Trump ruined movies for me. With the world being as hard as it is, I looked to my movie, book, and TV consumption for escapism, which doesn't always equal quality. So 2016 got no list, and this year is based on a significantly smaller number of movies than I usually see. But I refuse to let Donald Trump take away another thing that I love, even if it is silly movie watching. You may not see any serious foreign movies or heavy documentaries on this list, but there was still plenty to enjoy. So here we go!

Jessica's Top Ten Movies of 2017

1. Get Out

Image credit: Francesco Francavillia and Jay Shaw

I mean, duh. There's really no contest. Get Out was the movie of the year, breaking genre expectations and providing the most scathing social commentary of any form of media, all while being damn entertaining and funny. The acting is great, particularly Daniel Kaluuya's subtle reaction shots to the numerous micro-aggressions he experiences. Let's be clear, I don't really like horror movies. I was so confused when I first saw the trailer ("wait, Jordan Peele, of Key and Peele hilarity, is now a horror film director??"). Of course, trying to fit it into a single genre like that shows the limitations of how we think about movies (and reminds us how great Get Out really is). Jordan Peele had the best response to the HFPA classifying it as a comedy for the Golden Globes:

‘Get Out’ is a documentary.

— Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) November 15, 2017

Required viewing.

2. The Big Sick
I wish I could just draw a gigantic heart around this movie. No other film this year ran me through quite the same emotional gamut. I'm really not sure if I've ever laughed so hard and cried so much in the same movie before. It's such a beautiful and personal story, and Kumail Nanjiani is, obviously, perfect in it (since he's, you know, playing himself). But Ray Romano and Holly Hunter as his (future) wife's parents are so fantastic as well. The hardest Oscar for me by far is Best Original Screenplay, where The Big Sick and Get Out are going head to head, because how do I choose between my loves?

3. Call Me By Your Name
This movie is just so beautiful. I want to live in it. I don't really know what else to say. Timothee Chalamet is a revelation. Every so often a young actor shows up that just does this whole "acting" thing better than anyone around him. The movie feels so intimate, with gorgeous locations and great performances all around. It even made me like Armie Hammer (kind of).

4. Lady Bird
No movie spoke more to 16 year-old Jessica than this one. Some "coming of age" stories are more personal than others, and this one took me right back to my formative years. Complicated characters, fantastic acting, and excellent direction by Greta Gerwig make this movie one of my favorites. Saoirse Ronan is perfect, and Laurie Metcalf is the standout as Lady Bird's mom. The scenes of the two of them together feel so real. Plus, bonus Timothee Chalamet!

5. Coco
Oh man, this movie. If you want to know what a room full of grown adults and small children all crying sounds like (joyful tears, sad tears, cathartic tears... they're all there), go see Coco before it leaves theaters. I want to hold this movie next to my heart and not let go. The animation is incredible, with some of the most gorgeously colorful scenes you can imagine, but ultimately the reason this movie is so wonderful is its story- about family, and love, and loss. Also, representation matters, and having a movie about a young Mexican boy, rooted in Mexican culture, and created by Mexican filmmakers is really important. Finally, I didn't think there was any way possible for a song to compete with the perfection that is Mystery of Love from Call Me By Your Name, but if Remember Me doesn't win Best Song I'm going to start throwing things. For those who have seen the movie and want to re-experience a good cry, here you go.

6. Wonder Woman
What was that about representation mattering? Oh yeah. Seeing Wonder Woman finally brought to the big screen was exciting enough, but seeing it done with such care and skill by women for women made me burst into tears during the film's most iconic action sequence. Gal Gadot is perfect as Wonder Woman, giving her strength, caring, and idealism without devolving to naivete. The best part of seeing it in the theater was seeing all the little girls dressed up in costume who get to grow up in a world of mainstream female superheroes. The second best part was hearing a little boy tell his mom that he's not sure any more if his favorite super hero is Captain America or Wonder Woman. The movie does lag a bit in the third act, but by that time it doesn't matter- I'm already entranced.

7. The LEGO Batman Movie
Yeah, you heard me. I freaking love this movie. There's no way it should possibly work, and yet it does. I adored the first LEGO Movie, and thought Will Arnett's Batman was hilarious, but I also thought there was no way they could keep that joke up for a full film. Particularly since part of what makes his Batman so hilarious is the complete lack of character depth. How do you make me care for that character? Turns out, the LEGO movie makers are way smarter than me, because this movie is hilarious and somehow touching as well. And, of all the movies on this list, it is the one I will ALWAYS stop on if it's on TV (yes, I still have cable, I should be in a museum).

8. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
I love Star Wars. I grew up on it. Princess Leia (or General Organa) has always been and is still a hero of mine, and part of that is because she was one of the only strong female characters I had to look up to. It sometimes overwhelms me to think that girls today get to grow up in a world where Star Wars heroes look like them. I loved this movie. I love the direction it took with Luke (even if whiny fanboys don't); I love the decision about Rey's parents (SPOILER: there is something so spectacular about having her not be from some special lineage. She's not powerful because of who her parents were; she's powerful because of who she is); and I LOVE that the main characters are all women and people of color. Read this, because it basically says everything I want to say about this movie better than I can.

9. I, Tonya
As I walked into this movie, I said to my friend, "I don't know how I feel about the fact that it's apparently changing everyone's perspective on Tonya Harding- I'm not sure I think our perspectives should change." Yeah, I know, that was a dumb thing to say. Especially since I walked out of this film with an entirely new viewpoint on figure skating and privilege. It's a fascinating mode of story telling- giving multiple perspectives without taking a position on which is true. Margot Robbie is fantastic as Harding, with a physicality in the role that is rarely seen. And Allison Janney is just wonderful as Harding's (truly terrible) mother.

10. Dunkirk
The last movie I saw in preparing for my top ten. I'm sad to say that I didn't watch it in a movie theater, because this seems like the type of film that is improved exponentially by a giant screen and dark theater. Even so, I still loved it. Classic Christopher Nolan direction style, jumping back and forth between multiple perspectives and timelines on a single battle. Strong performances and gripping tension throughout. Plus, Tom Hardy and Cillian Murphy. That's pretty much all I need in a movie.

Honorable Mentions:
Baby Driver, Battle of the Sexes, Gifted, Girls Trip, Logan, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women, Spider-Man: Homecoming, The Post, Thor: Ragnarok

Special 2017 Movie Note:
You will notice there are some conspicuous Oscar front-runners missing from this list. Some I simply never made it to (The Phantom Thread). Some I just wasn't particularly interested in (The Darkest Hour). And some are very intentional omissions. We'll get to Three Billboards in a minute, but I just really did not love The Shape of Water. It's a movie that should be made for me. I love Guillermo del Toro, Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, and Octavia Spencer. I'm all about romantic movies, and enjoy fantasy. But I mostly just left this feeling confused. I truly never felt like there was a romantic relationship, at least from the amphibious man's perspective. And (SPOILER ALERT) I can't really get behind our main character having sex with a creature ten minutes after it ate a pet cat, which was explained away as "he's a wild animal." Finally (and others have said this better than me), if you have issues with the age difference in Call Me By Your Name but are enamored by this cross-species relationship, I do not understand you. 

The Actors

Best Actor: Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name. He wins this in a walk, with both hands tied behind his back. I'd frankly give him the award for just the long cut of him that plays over the credits of the movie.
Runner-up: Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out

Best Actress: Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird. Wow, I loved this movie. And it only works if you believe her.
Runner-up: Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actor: Ray Romano, The Big Sick

Best Supporting Actress: (tie) Allison Janney, I, Tonya and Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird.
I refuse to choose between the complicated mothers this year.

The Extras

Dude Who Had A Really Good Year: Michael Stuhlbarg. As a critical part of Call Me By Your Name, The Shape of Water, and The Post, Stuhlbarg (who is one of those actors that you always know but sometimes forget about) really killed it in 2017. He's wonderful in Call Me By Your Name, and was frankly my favorite part about The Shape of Water. I could easily give this award to Timothee Chalamet, given Call Me By Your Name and Lady Bird, but at some point praising him just feels redundant.

Genre of the Year: Movies about superheroes. Notice the wording there. I've given this award to superhero movies in the past, and with Wonder Woman, Logan, Thor: Ragnarok, and Spider-Man: Homecoming all being good times at the theater (the last two simply being incredibly entertaining, and the first two having lasting impact on the genre), it certainly could go that way again. But "movies about superheroes" allows me to lump Professor Marston and the Wonder Women in here with them (a fascinating movie about the creator of Wonder Woman and the two women who inspired her, told through their polyamorous love story) which takes the genre to the top of my list this year. (And, hey, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was also enjoyable, if completely forgettable).

Movie I Have the Most Complicated Relationship With: The Florida Project. I'm honestly still not sure what I think about this movie. I typed it under "Honorable Mentions" and deleted it three times before deciding to give it its own category.

The "Up in the Air" Award for Critically Acclaimed Movie That Can Suck It

And here's where we get to Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Oooh boy. Look, Sam Rockwell and Frances McDormand are great (as is Woody Harrelson for that matter). They're not my picks for Best Actress or Best Supporting Actor, but I don't find the fact that they're going to win to be particularly offensive. What I do find offensive is Three Billboards' incredibly flippant approach to issues of race, particularly around police brutality. I'm not really here for redemption stories about violent racists whose redemption in no way addresses their previous racism. I also am so confused by Peter Dinklage's role, which seems to just exist for the other characters to get to make jokes about people with dwarfism. I find it mind-boggling that this movie could win Best Picture. But, hey, Crash beat Brokeback, so it's not like this is new.
(By the way, I think this is the part of my Top Ten that will most surprise fellow 3pies4rolls-ers Nancy and Kim, because we thought Colossal had this one all sewn up earlier in the year).

That's it for another year! Here's to more movies in 2018!

Wait, we still have a blog? Jessica's Top Ten Movies of 2015!

So, yeah. The last post on here may have been from this very thing a year ago. Apparently, we became terrible at the whole "blog" thing. However, it is still an awesome place to post this tradition that refuses to die. Thank you to those who actually read this for indulging my movie watching obsession. Makes sitting in dark rooms even on sunny weekends in Seattle feel almost worth it. :) Time for my Top Ten Movies of 2015!

The List

1. Spotlight
For some reason, this was the hardest one of these reviews for me to write. My feelings for this movie kind of echo the movie itself- they're subtle, but powerful. All of the acting in this movie is top-notch, but it's also quiet and unflashy. Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Mark Ruffalo, Stanley Tucci, Liev Schreiber... all are fantastic. However, I was most moved by some of the side characters - a now-adult victim reflecting on his experience, one of the reporters' Catholic grandmothers coming to terms with the revelations - small roles, but powerful performances. And the story is such a reminder of the need for a free press. It makes you cringe a bit in today's world of 24-hour news cycles and "too long, didn't read" attention spans- it's extremely rare that newspapers devote resources to this kind of deep, investigative journalism anymore (though, to be fair, there are a lot more potential forums than just newspapers these days). It's a reflection on responsibility and complacency- Stanley Tucci, as a lawyer to the victims, presents the movie's thesis: "If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse one."

2. The Revenant
Wow, was I reluctant to see this movie. Two and a half hours of watching Leo get tortured (answering the age-old question- exactly what will Leonardo DiCaprio do for an Oscar?), directed by the man who brought us Birdman (a movie I did not exactly love)? It took a lot of internal convincing to make myself buy a ticket. And man, was I wrong. It's incredible. Visually stunning, fantastically acted (Leo steals the show by far, but Tom Hardy is also wonderful, as usual), completely engrossing- I couldn't look away. The locations they found to shoot this movie are just unreal, and some of director Alejandro González Iñárritu's long, uncut shots are phenomenal. For all that I don't really care about the Oscars anymore, I'm glad that Leo should finally get his (and, despite some other amazing performances this year, if he doesn't it's just a joke). I did not expect to love this movie, but, man, did I.

3. Room
God, this movie. I can't stop thinking about it. It's the story of a woman held captive for seven years (five with her son) in a 10x10 garden shed, and what happens when they escape. In order to protect him, she raises her son believing that the entire world exists within those four walls, and this movie really makes you feel the impact of the sensory overload when he's finally out in the world for the first time (this is not a spoiler if you have seen the trailer or read anything about this movie- I'm looking at you, Cole). Brie Larson is incredible as the mother, and Jacob Tremblay gives one of the most stellar child actor performances I've ever seen. The brilliance of this movie is that it doesn't stop at the "happy ending" of escaping the room, and instead dives deep into how you move forward after such a trauma. (For the record, in the interest of your own survival, never do a double feature of this movie and The Look of Silence (see #6). I go through these trials so you don't have to. You're welcome.)

4. Inside Out
Phew, something fun! Those first three movies are not exactly light-hearted romps, so here is your palate cleanser! I love me a well-done animated film, and Pixar rarely disappoints. However, they managed to take it to new levels with this incredibly charming coming-of-age story. When I saw the trailer, I honestly had no idea how they would pull this concept off in a full-length film. I'm so happy they proved me wrong. What I love most about this movie is that it is almost a therapy tool for helping kids deal with emotions- pointing out that not only is Sadness not a bad thing, but in fact is necessary and good. Phyllis Smith is the breakout as Sadness, and gets the best lines ("Crying lets me slow down and obsess over the weight of life's problems"). The emotions were all perfectly cast, and some of the site gags that could have felt cheesy ended up being hilarious (see: boy's brain). Also *sob* Bing Bong.

5. The Martian
Such an unexpectedly great time at the movies. I can't quite agree with the Golden Globes calling it a "comedy," but it was so much more fun than it had any right to be. One wouldn't expect the story of an astronaut stranded alone on Mars to be hilarious, but the writing is great and Matt Damon is perfect. To be fair, I have not read the book, and I have heard from several who have that they found the movie disappointing. But my experience was so different. This movie sat in my number one spot for quite some time, because I simply just found it so entertaining. It has also led to the great nerdy research on how much public money has been spent saving Matt Damon, bringing together several of my favorite things (obsessive movie watchers and nerdy statistics), so thank you, Internet.

6. The Look of Silence
Two years ago, I sat down and watched The Act of Killing. I can honestly say I had never seen a movie like it, and it has stuck with me more than probably any other movie over that time period (number 2 on that year's Top Ten List, I described it then as "simply the most surreal experience I may have ever had watching a movie," and that still feels like the best description). So when I heard that director Joshua Oppenheimer had a follow-up documentary, again looking back on the Indonesian genocide of the 1960s, I was all in. This time, he follows the brother of one of the victims, as he confronts the leaders of the death squads (most of whom are still in some sort of power), seeking some degree of remorse. Most can't understand why he would want to bring this up- the past is past, time to move on. This movie is much more straightforward than The Act of Killing and lacked the same sense of surreality, but still hits hard with an emotional punch and eye-opening historical amnesia. It also once again emphasizes the point that why would someone who has never been punished for such acts (and, in fact, has only ever gained from them), see any cause for remorse?
(reminder, I cannot emphasize this enough, DO NOT do a double feature of this movie and Room. The end.)

7. Dope
The story of a young black man from Inglewood who loves 90's culture and punk music, and is a self-proclaimed nerd who wants more than anything to go to Harvard. He goes to a drug dealer's birthday party to see a girl, and after that his life spins quickly out of his control from one "adventure" to the next. This movie veers from hilarious to dramatically insightful and back, without missing a beat. It also presents such a different picture of being young and black than is normally shown in movies relying on stereotypes (if they feature black characters at all- hello #Oscarssowhite). Surprising and refreshingly different from anything I've seen in a long time.

8. The Big Short
This movie is hard to watch. It's smart, entertaining, well-acted, and educational, but there's also an underlying sense of dread in knowing the real-life ending and its repercussions to this day. The best movie equivalent I could come up with was watching "Recount," the HBO movie about the Bush/Gore election. But it's also just so well done. All of the acting is fantastic (especially Christian Bale and Steve Carell), and its clever use of breaking the fourth wall to explain some of the more complicated topics makes it one of the more informative films I've seen in a long time.

9. Mad Max: Fury Road
All hail Imperator Furiosa (and George Miller). Seriously, what a great and awesome reboot of the action film genre in general. I'm not sure I took a breath in the whole movie- it's just nonstop action. And the fact that it passes the Bechdel Test with flying colors makes it unique among action movies (about half the movies on this list don't). The whole thing is visually stunning, with minimal plot but enough to keep you entertained the whole time. And it finally gives us the flame-spewing guitarist we've always dreamed of.


10. Straight Outta Compton
This movie was just really well done. The use of NWA's music throughout (as well as the solo work of its members) is pitch perfect, and the acting is great. Watching Ice Cube's son portray him is just surreal (seriously, he looks SO MUCH like his father. Sometimes you could forget you were watching a movie). It definitely chooses to omit certain less-than-savory pieces from the time (as all historical biopics do, even ones not produced by the main characters). Overall, it just manages to transport you to a different time and place (though with disturbingly similar images of police brutality).

Honorable Mentions:
Beasts of No Nation; Creed; Magic Mike XXL; Sicario; Spy; Star Wars: The Force Awakens; Steve Jobs; Trainwreck; Trumbo; Vessel

The Actors

Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Runner-up: Abraham Attah, Beasts of No Nation

Best Actress: Brie Larson, Room
Runner-up: Charlize Theron, Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Supporting Actor: Jacob Tremblay, Room
Runner-up: Tom Hardy, The Revenant & Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation

Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Runner-up: Rachel McAdams, Spotlight

The Extras

Special Acting Award Shout-Out: To the child actors this year. Holy crap. Abraham Attah (Beasts of No Nation) and Jacob Tremblay (Room) gave two of the best performances of the year in movies that were completely reliant on their ability to be believable. And boy were they.

Best Acting by a Professional Basketball Player: Lebron James, Trainwreck
He kinda steals the show.

Best Time at the Movies: Spy
It broke my heart a bit to not be able to include this on my Top Ten list (though a good sign that there were just too many other good movies!), but this was the most fun I had watching movies this year. God, Melissa McCarthy is hilarious. And her porn name (your first pet and the street you grew up on) of Meatloaf Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd might just be my favorite joke of the year.

The Star Wars award for Star Wars-ness: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Look, if I'm going to give Kingdom of the Crystal Skull the Indiana Jones Award for Indiana Jones-ness (and yes, I did that), then you can damn well expect an actual quality reboot of one of my childhood obsessions to get a special award. Star Wars just missed being on my top ten for sheer enjoyable experience at the movies. It was not perfect, and was referential of the original to the point of nearly being a copy, but guess what? I loved the original! So I'll take that over whatever fiasco occurred with the prequels. I'm also so excited to have little girls get to grow up with a character like Rey to look up to. While her treatment in the marketing of the movie is shocking (don't even get me started on this rant), the impact of having the main character in the biggest movie ever (an action movie, no less) be a strong woman, who is also not defined by her femininity, is frankly revolutionary. This article puts it nicely.

Movie That is Equal Parts Infuriating, Inspiring, and Educational: Vessel
Seriously, if you have a chance to see this movie about Women on Waves, an international nonprofit organization that helps women in countries where abortion is illegal access needed care, please do. It's incredible, and will make you feel everything listed above. Perhaps the most important piece of the movie, however, is getting information about the abortion pill into the hands of those who need it, giving them a way to act for themselves.

The "Up in the Air" Award for Critically Acclaimed Movie That Can Suck It:
Perhaps most surprising this year, there is no winner for this award! Now, maybe that says more about the number of movies I saw this year (slightly below average), but it's nice for once to not feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

That's it for another year! Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think! Frozen junior mints for all of you.

Hello, Top Ten, my old friend...

Well friends, another year has passed. Time for that age-old tradition of making my Top Ten list! My total number of movies seen this year was a little lower than the past, for two very clear reasons. One is spending as much time as possible with this little guy (being an aunt is the best):

and the other is spending as much time as possible with these guys (yes, fellow nerds, my cred is no longer in question, I am officially addicted to Doctor Who, and it fully cut into my movie watching time. Alas...)

Through purity of spirit and strength of will I managed to overcome these alluring gentlemen and still see tons of movies, simply so I could report back to you all. What can I say, I'm a giver. Without further ado, Jessica's Top Ten Movies of 2014!

The List

1. Whiplash 
This movie. Whew, this movie. First of all, it just needs to be said that both J.K. Simmons and Miles Teller are amazing. Unless something crazy happens, Simmons will be taking home an Oscar next weekend. But the movie deserves extra kudos for going beyond the abusive mentor trope as it examines the concept of genius, and what it takes to be truly great. I don't know if I agree with Simmons' character's philosophy that there are no two words in the English language more harmful than "good job" (see #8 on this list for a different take on that), but it starts a fascinating conversation on what we are willing to forgive in the name of greatness.

2. Boyhood
I really tried to resist this movie. When it first came out, and people were proclaiming it a transformative movie going experience, I was a little turned off. I mean, it can't be THAT good, right? And while I wouldn't call it the best film of the past 10 years, as others have (obviously, since it's not even number 1 on this list), wow, did I love this movie. It could have felt gimmicky, with filming taking place over 12 years to allow the characters to age realistically, and it definitely could have not worked (what if your 5 year old actor decides he wants no part of this come age 16?), but somehow it avoided both, and was instead just a lovely, realistic look at growing up. The focus on the small moments that make us who we are felt intimate and personal. It's really nice to find movies that can still surprise you.

3. Selma
Just a really powerful and visceral experience at the movies. The acting, directing, and writing are all top-notch. There's been plenty written about its snub at the Oscars (receiving a best picture nod, but being left out of the acting and directing categories), so I won't go there (except with the reminder that the Academy is primarily made up of old, white men, so it's not surprising they don't speak for my (and MANY others') tastes). I will simply give credit to the remarkable snapshot put together by director Ava DuVernay (who wisely focuses on just one chapter of MLK's life, rather than trying to fit the whole story into a single two hour movie), and the performances all around, particularly David Oyelowo as MLK. The story feels frighteningly relevant, given the current state of the country.

4. Obvious Child
Man, I LOVED this movie. Films tend to be afraid to touch the topic of abortion with a 10 foot pole. Even ones that feature an unplanned pregnancy seldom use the word. Obvious Child not only embraces it, but helps to normalize abortion as well (let us not forget that this is something that nearly 1 in 3 women will experience in her lifetime). It's a very realistic portrayal, from emotions to logistics (e.g. finding a way to pay for the procedure- the only way I could have loved the movie more is if it directly called out abortion funds like The CAIR Project (shameless shout-out)). And it does all this while being a hilarious and touching romantic comedy. Jenny Slate is my hero.

5. The LEGO Movie
Even just writing about this movie gets the theme song stuck in my head. "Everything is Awesome" indeed (with the exception, of course, of the Academy's mind-boggling omission of the movie from the "Best Animated Film" category... but whatever, again, the Oscars are dumb). By far the most creative animated film I've seen in years. This could have been one giant commercial for Legos, but it's surprisingly funny and heartfelt (and yes, it also made me want to go out and buy Legos, so I guess the commercial thing worked, too). As the credits rolled, it felt like waking up from a dream in which I was 10 years old. The all-star cast is hilarious (seriously, Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Will Ferrell, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman, Allison Brie, Charlie Day... and that's not even mentioning the cameo voices), and the clever ways that the Lego world is interwoven with the real world continuously crack me up (I will never stop laughing at the Cloak of Band-ai-id).

6. Snowpiercer
Again, talk about creative. This movie was simply different from anything I've ever seen. And Captain America himself, Chris Evans, was fantastic in it. Setting the post-apocalyptic class warfare story aboard a train traveling nonstop around the world gives the film a breakneck pace. Some parts of this movie are so weird that they shouldn't work (Tilda Swinton's character referred to as "Sir" anyone?), but feel completely right in the world that director Bong Joon-ho created. A fascinating blend of sci-fi apocalyptic prison-break movie.

7. The Imitation Game
A truly well-made story that needed to be told. Cumberbatch is fantastic as Alan Turing, both as he's working to crack the Enigma code during WWII, and especially following his arrest for "gross indecency" (homosexuality) after the war. Yes, the filmmakers took creative license with history, as is pretty much always the case with historical movies. But the heart is in the true story, and the actors who bring it convincingly to life.

8. Keep On Keepin' On
Okay, go watch Whiplash. Ponder that film for a bit. Then come back for Keep On Keepin' On, the documentary following the friendship between jazz-legend Clark Terry and Justin Kaufln, a 23-year-old blind piano prodigy. The relationships between mentor and student portrayed in these two films could not be more different (and only one of them is a documentary, so feel a little better about the world for that), but I think they're fascinating to consider together. Keep On Keepin' On filled my heart to the brim- I watched the movie with pretty much constant tears in my eyes (if you don't know me, I'm a sucker for an inspirational story). Just a lovely movie.

9. Wild
I was surprised by how personal this movie felt for me. The points of reference weren't obvious, but the emotional connection was undeniable. Its a powerful tale of individual growth, and Reese Witherspoon just nailed it. Beautifully shot and with a great soundtrack.

10. Birdman (or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
I really wanted to love this movie. Everything I'd read made it sound like my perfect film. But, I'll be honest, it was hit or miss for me. Even with that, it was good enough to make this list, which tells you that the hits were pretty darn good. I was not entirely taken with the magical realism of the movie, but the acting and directing were so excellent that it was hard not to include here. Edward Norton and Emma Stone were the standouts for me, and Alejandro González Iñárritu wins for Best Director as far as I'm concerned.

Honorable Mentions:
American Sniper, Belle, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Edge of Tomorrow, Feast, Foxcatcher, Gone Girl, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Guardians of the Galaxy, How to Train Your Dragon 2, Locke, The Theory of Everything, Top Five, Veronica Mars

The Actors
Best Actor: Miles Teller, Whiplash
Runners-up: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything and Tom Hardy, Locke

Best Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Runner-up: Reese Witherspoon, Wild

Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
Runner-up: Edward Norton, Birdman

Best Supporting Actress: Emma Stone, Birdman
Runner-up: Emily Blunt, The Edge of Tomorrow

The Extras


Dude I Fell in Love with this Year: As much as I want to say Chris Pratt for the killer year he had, let's be honest, I've been in love with Andy Dwyer since the beginning of Parks & Rec. So let's give it to his Super Bowl bet opponent, Chris Evans, for his stellar work in Snowpiercer and solid followup of Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Gal I Fell in Love with this Year: Once again, Jenny Slate is my hero. I had always loved Marcel the Shell, but man is she wonderful in Obvious Child.

Genre of the Year: Biopics of questionable historical accuracy. The Imitation Game, American Sniper, Selma, Foxcatcher, and The Theory of Everything all received some criticism for historical inaccuracies, but all were interesting and entertaining movies (some more powerful than others). Let's just all stop pretending that "Based on a true story" means "100% historically accurate" and we'll all be a lot happier.

The Up in the Air Award for Critically Acclaimed Movie That Can Suck It: A Most Wanted Man. Apparently, I just don't really like John Le Carre adaptations.

The Voice of Reason: Gaby Hoffman. As the best friend helping the main character make it through her challenges in Obvious Child and Wild, Gaby Hoffman deserves a large glass of wine and a hug. Even her obsessive fan character in Veronica Mars helped our protagonist learn more. I guess what I'm saying is, if Gaby Hoffman gives you advice, listen.

The Veronica Mars Award for Veronica Mars-ness: Sigh, I loved this TV show. And was immediately on board to financially support it being made into a movie (thank you, Kickstarter!). I'm not sure if it's a great movie for those who didn't watch/love the show, but for me it felt like a love letter to the fans. It didn't hurt that I got to attend the premiere with some of my favorite people as we hobnobbed with our favorite characters. Nothing is going to beat that experience.

Thanks for reading! On to 2015!

Celebrities impersonating celebrities

What's not to like?

 
The Ultimate Celebrities Impersonating... by worldwideinterweb

Top Ten Methodology

For those wondering how we arrive at our Top Ten lists, it's kinda like this:

via The Onion

Get ready for some Oscar fashion!

As your hors d'oeuvre for this weekends red carpet bonanza, check out every Best Actress gown since 1929! (click to enlarge)

via Mediarun Digital