My Favorite Movies of 2014

GOTG-posterI love movies, and I saw about 50 of them for the first time in 2014. Here’s my top 10 list for this year:

10. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: While this sequel didn’t quite hold up to the original for me, it was still pretty remarkable. There are some tender, beautiful moments mixed in with great action, and never for a second do you think you’re watching CGI creatures.

9. We’re the Millers (review): In a down year for comedy, We’re the Millers was a delightful surprise for me. I laughed out loud more than any other movie this year.

8. Don Jon: This movie made me think more than any other film this year. In fact, I wrote a whole blog entry about it. Even though I think the pornography could have been completely removed from the film, making it more accessible, the movie had a lot of important things to say about men, culture, and relationships.

7. The One I Love: I saw this just two weeks ago, and wow…it blew my mind. It’s a small film about a middle-aged couple trying to fix their relationship when a weekend retreat forces them to face each other in a new light. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I will say that the movie starts out a little scary/foreboding, but it’s not at all a scary movie.

6. Short Term 12: This is probably the smallest, most “indie” film I saw and loved this year, and I really, really loved it. It’s a rare character-driven film that is heartwarming, heartwrenching, and funny. Just writing this paragraph makes me want to watch it again.

5. The Wolf of Wall Street: I actually feel a little guilty about liking this movie as much as I do. Despite its sheer lack of taste, I had a blast watching it. I think I love antiheroes in books and movies.

4. Her: I saw Her almost a year ago today, so it’s the furthest from my memory, but it’s an excellent film. To me, it’s all about relationships (even though one of the main characters is a computer program). It’s another heartbreaking/heartwarming film.

3. Edge of Tomorrow (review): An original sci-fi movie that’s actually good? Yes please. This movie is intense. The plot moves forward with abandon, and I love how the stakes are raised in the final 20 minutes. I look forward to watching this again.

2. The Theory of Everything (review): This went from a movie I had no interest in seeing to a film that I had the highest of expectations for after seeing the trailer…and it lived up to them. Eddie Redmayne offers one of the best acting performances ever. If you like a good cry every now and then when watching a movie, go seee this one.

1. Guardians of the Galaxy (review): It simply doesn’t get better than this. Guardians of the Galaxy makes me extremely happy. It’s the only movie out of the ones on this list that I watched more than once, and I enjoyed it the second time just as much as the first. I love the tongue-in-cheek humor, the weird characters, the unique planets, the action scenes, the little moments and the big ones. There were so many ways this movie could have gone wrong, yet it works on every level. I can’t wait for the sequel.

What were a few of your favorite movies from 2014? Here’s last year’s list if you’re curious.

2 thoughts on “My Favorite Movies of 2014”

Leave a Reply

Discover more from jameystegmaier.com

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue Reading