Top 10 films of 2015 so far







1.)  World of Tomorrow (short film) (Don Hertzfeldt)

This is a masterpiece, it blew me away. A hugely ambitious 17 minute short film by writer/director/animator Don Hertzfeldt. To think he almost single-handedly made it is mighty impressive! So full of ideas and quite moving as well. Looking at the present and the future of mankind. I think you have to see it multiple times to fathom all the details.







2.)   Far From the Madding Crowd (Thomas Vinterberg) (review)







3.) Inside Out (Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen) (review)







4.) Amy (documentary) (Asif Kapadia) (review)







5.) Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller)  (review)







6.) Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief (documentary) (Alex Gibney) (review)







7.)  Wild Tales (Damián Szifron) (review)








8.)  Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (Christopher McQuarrie) (review)







9.)  White God (Kornél Mundruczó)

Recommended to me by Pete from I Love That Film. Finally released on dvd. Hungarian drama, which won the Un Certain Regard Award at Cannes.
The world of dog fighting and dog steroids is difficult to watch, so the main character’s love for her dog is needed to give it balance. It’s rare to watch a film with such innocence juxtapositioned with such menace and ugliness. The ”acting” by the dogs is very impressive and realistic. It’s emphasized in the opening credits that the real life dogs were rescued from the streets and placed in care.
The music teacher puts up with Lili's audacious remarks (commenting he is heartless), but maybe he admires her honestly and sees talent in her? This is not explained further.
There is some social commentary, in how we treat our animals, and the story makes a point that animals have feelings as well, both good and bad. The other layers may have been lost on me, because I’m not familiar with the Hungarian way of life.
While the ending is memorable and thrilling, a few of the threads are not tied up, such as the future of the characters, so some viewers may leave unsatisfied. Apart from that, the story was exiting, emotionally involving, and different to most films you will see. 
Rating 8/10






10.)  A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (Roy Andersson) (review)

I only rated this film 7/10 upon first viewing. I think I was too harsh. I now consider it an 8/10. While the style isn't as groundbreaking as Andersson's previous films in the trilogy, A Pigeon does benefit from some imaginative ideas and amusing moments. The more I think about it, the more I appreciate it. With time, I may grow to love A Pigeon as much as Songs from the Second Floor (2000) and You The Living (2007).  I interpret it that characters may have dreamed other scenes in the movie, which explained why situations felt surreal/dream-like(i.e. the African slaves scene, the soldiers from another era in the bar). The trilogy makes us reflect on our own life and the (sometimes absurd) society we live in.








Honorable Mentions:




Clouds of Sils Maria (Olivier Assayas)

The scenery in the Swiss Alps is beautiful. An interesting and challenging intellectual exercise, real life imitating art, and the different perspectives of a younger and middle aged woman. Even though the dialogues seemed to meander, the story sustained interest for the duration, and would reveal more on a rewatch. The film won't hold everyone's attention, because it is slow paced, wordy and on the surface feels a bit pretentious, but if you stay with it, it's worth the effort. 
I didn’t understand why the two of them kept rehearsing the play if she had already pulled out? She probably just changed her mind off screen. 
Spoilers: You can interpret the story in various ways. The interpretation I prefer is that Maria (Juliette Binoche) did not value Valentine’s (Kristen Stewart) opinions. Near the end before she steps on to the stage, Maria began to see her own arrogance and started to truly listen to Jo-Ann Ellis’ (Chloë Grace Moretz) remarks about the play. So for me a film about a middle aged actress learning to appreciate the opinions of those she might initially perceive as young and immature. Obviously you can use that knowledge in your own life, to really listen to what others have to say and be respectful of their opinions. I'm sure Assayas put other components into the story, but that was the essence of it for me. However you could also perceive Valentine and Jo-Ann as big-headed and arrogant, so things may not be as clear-cut as I assume.
Favorite quotes: "Taste can get worn out, just like desire"
"To excel, and to know how to show it, is to excel twice"
Rating 8/10







                       Sinatra: All or Nothing at All (TV Mini-Series) (Alex Gibney) (review)







 Kung Fury (short film) (David Sandberg) (review)







Ex-Machina (Alex Garland) (review)







Cobain: Montage of Heck (documentary) (Brett Morgen) (review)










What missed my top 10? You can read my full ranking of 2015 here


For this list, I've decided to count short films and documentaries.  Have you seen any of these? Which are your favorites of 2015 so far?

22 comments:

  1. I've only seen Fury Road (and Ex Machina among your honorable mentions) so I can't really say what I would pick for best films so far. In checking Letterboxd I see I've only watched 17 2015 films so far, and 5 are TV movies (and 1 is a short).

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    1. @Chip Lary: When I say 2015 films I mean they were released this year. I’m including a few festival films which are labelled 2014 on IMDb.
      Hopefully you can use my list here as inspiration, and maybe we can compare notes in the future.

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  2. Great choices. A few I'm definitely going to have check out now, including your number one!

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    1. @Pete Turner: Thanks! You can rent World Of Tomorrow on demand for 30 days from vimeo, I loved it.
      Thanks again for pointing me towards White God and Wild Tales.

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  3. I'm way behind, as usual. I've only seen Ex Machina and really enjoyed it.

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    1. @Wendell: I liked Ex Machina as well, though I prefer other films from this year

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  4. Oh I've missed too many of these. I need to start correcting that!

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    1. @assholeswatchingmovies: Have fun with that!

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  5. Love this list! World of Tomorrow is astounding. Going Clear is my favorite of the year right now.

    I still want to see A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence.

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    1. @Luke: Thank you! World of Tomorrow is the most original film of 2015 for me. Going Clear is a doc that needed to be made.
      Hope you get to see A Pigeon, which is in the same vein as the two other films in the trilogy.

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  6. So glad to see both Amy and Cobain's documentaries on your list as I really enjoyed them both!! It's been a pretty slow year, but hopefully that turns around this fall.

    SO MUCH YES TO KUNG FURY!!!

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    1. @Courtney: Amy definitely was my favorite of the two. The Cobain doc was captivating, although I wasn’t too keen on segments with the fast editing when they revealed his diary and drawings(which is why Montage of Heck missed the top 10) Glad you are a fan of Kung Fury as well!

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  7. I've only seen a handful of these -- Mad Max, Going Clear, Kung Fury, and Ex Machina. Out of them, Mad Max is easily my favorite, though I quite enjoyed Kung Fury and Ex Machina. I thought Going Clear was good but a little disappointing. It felt a bit too by-the-numbers and didn't go as deep as it could have with the subject matter.

    Never heard of World of Tomorrow but now I'm going to have to seek it out.

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    1. Eric @ The Warning Sign: Mad Max had amazing action and impressed me with its comic book visual style. I hope they make a sequel and go further with fleshing out the characters.
      I need to check out Don Hertzfeldt's other work, World of Tomorrow is one of the best short films I've ever watched.
      Regarding Going Clear, another blogger, Luke, told me about the book the documentary is based on, which goes deeper:
      http://reflectionsonwire.blogspot.com/2015/05/going-clear-book-and-film.html

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  8. This list reveals the work I have ahead of myself. I have only seen Mad Max: Fury Road, and I am very happy to see it included.
    I have been interested in a few of these for a while, so I do plan to watch most of them very soon. I'll look out for World of Tomorrow after such an overwhelmingly positive review from you. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. @niels85: I hope you get to see some of the films from my top 10 in the near future.
      You're welcome!

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  9. Not seen World of Tomorrow, I have to check it out!
    Great choices otherwise! :)

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    1. @Lights Camera Reaction: World of Tomoorow is my favorite film of the year, and I doubt I’ll see anything better.
      Thank you! :)

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  10. Great list! We both have Amy, Fury Road, Inside Out, and Far from the Madding Crowd high on our lists. Love it! Still need to see World of Tomorrow, White God, and A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence.

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    1. @Josh: Thanks, great we have a few overlaps in our top 10s this year!

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  11. Woo hoo!! LOVE that you have Fury Road, MI5 and Inside Out, all are terrific. I love most of Far From the Madding Crowd, but the miscasting of Tom Sturridge as Sgt Troy nearly ruined the film for me, I just don't believe him in that character as someone Bathsheba would throw everything for. I was far more impressed w/ Vinterberg's The Hunt.

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  12. Thanks Ruth! Glad you loved those films you mention. The Hunt was very powerful and also disturbing.
    Far From the Madding Crowd won me over with story and characters. I was ok with Tom Sturridge. Maybe if I had seen other adaptations of the book I would feel differently about his performance. Was my first encounter with the story.

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