2015 Movie Year in Review
I saw 44 movies in 2015, down 12 from 2014. 10 were at the 39th CIFF. Excluding the CIFF, the most movies I saw in a month was 7 in January.
As with last week's summary of 2014, I'm going to highlight films from 2015 that I really enjoyed or that I found otherwise notable in the hopes that if you never saw them you're inspired to check them out. I'll try to highlight films that are less mainstream or mainstream ones that were less critically acclaimed or successful, but I do not guarantee any kind of consistency on that point.
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness - Essential for Miyazaki fans, this film covers the day to day operations of Studio Ghibli.
Annie - This remake largely got panned, but I honestly found it to be more enjoyable than the original film, and certainly less problematic.
Whiplash - We're going to ignore the wrongheaded view of jazz (a problem director Damien Chazelle repeated in La La Land) and concentrate on how great J.K. Simmons is in this film.
A Most Violent Year - This is a really good mafia film, and so far has been Oscar Isaac's finest hour. Jessica Chastain is also very good.
Song of the Sea - Cartoon Saloon apparently is trying to prove that beautiful animated films can be made by hand without the Disney formula. It's a little jarring to me how off that sometimes feels, but you might try this on your favorite eight-year-old.
Spring - A young American in Italy meets a beautiful woman... and things get weird very quick. A very enjoyable low budget scifi film. Some people apparently think it's a horror film, which I didn't see at all.
In Order of Disappearance - Stellan Skarsgard proves that he can handle dishing out the violence. His son has been killed, and he goes looking for the killers in this Norwegian dark comedy.
Who Am I: No System is Safe - A German thriller following a band of hackers. I really enjoyed the focus on social hacks and direct access to the hardware, instead of the usual Hollywood hand waving of the tech.
Mad Max: Fury Road - It's got to be kind of rare for a reboot to be so much better than any of the original. And it's beautiful, to boot.
Ex Machina - Oscar Isaac is really good in this film as the genius inventor whose robot needs to be Turing Tested. This is one of the best scifi films of recent years.
Spy - I don't typically like mainstream comedy, but this film was hilarious. Everyone in the cast turns in an A+ performance, with Jason Statham stealing scenes from Melissa McCarthy in brief appearances.
Nothing Lasts Forever - This may be the weirdest film to come out of SNL. It's so weird that it was never officially released. Bill Murray and Dan Akroyd play supporting roles in this futuristic dystopia where the Port Authority has taken over NYC. It's ok, the moon is secretly a tourist destination. Ask any panhandler and they'll tell you.
Trainwreck - Amy Schumer is probably the weakest link in this film. LeBron James is the rare athlete who can actually act.
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey - Alfred Hitchcock helped write this film, which served as the official British documentary of the Nazi concentration camps. It was shelved for years for probably political reasons. If Shoah is all horrified emotion, this film is horrified clinical documentation. Essential.
Jafar Panahi's Taxi - Panahi is an Iranian film director who was banned from making films. He made this one using a dashboard cam. It won the Golden Bear.
Red Beard - One day I will run out of Kurosawa films that I have not seen. Not yet!
The Hateful Eight - I've never been bored watching a Tarantino film. I saw this one in 70mm(!). So good, although I wish that Tarantino would get over his obsession with cartoonish violence.
Italics indicate a movie I particularly enjoyed or found memorable
Movies 2015 = 44 = 34 + 10
January - 7
February - 2
March - 2 + 10
April - 1
May - 4
June - 3
July - 4
August - 1
September - 0
October - 5
November - 2
December - 4
Goodfellas - CL, S 1/03
Into the Woods - RR, Su 1/04
Chaplin Shorts: The Pawnshop, The Adventurer, The Cure w/The New River Ensemble - C, Su 1/11
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness - C, Su 1/11
Annie - WL, R 1/15
The Imitation Game - WL, R 1/22
Keep On Keepin' On - C, Su 1/25
Whiplash - CL, Su 2/08
A Most Violent Year - VV, T 2/17
Kingsman: The Secret Service - RR, F 3/06
Song of the Sea - C, S 3/14
39th Cleveland International Film Festival - Tower City Cinemas - 10 films
Spring - F 3/20
Angel Azul - S 3/21
In Order of Disappearance - S 3/21
Beatles - Su 3/22
Hardkor Disko - T 3/24
Ohio Shorts Program 3 - R 3/26
Frame by Frame - F 3/27
Who Am I: No System is Safe - F 3/27
Alleluia - F 3/27
An Honest Liar - S 3/28 (with the Amazing Randi in person)
Cinderella - RR, S 4/11
Avengers: Age of Ultron - RR, Su 5/03
Mad Max: Fury Road - RH, M 5/25
Tomorrowland - RR, F 5/29
Ex Machina - VV, Su 5/31
Spy - W, S 6/06
Nothing Lasts Forever - C, F 6/19
Jurassic World - CPT, M 6/22
Inside Out - EGK, F 7/03
Trainwreck - WL, Su 7/19
Ant-Man - WL, Su 7/26
The Last Picture Show- C, R 7/30 (last at old Cinematheque)
Listen to Me Marlon - CN, S 8/01(new Cinematheque / Lumiere)
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey - CN, Su 10/04
Ghostbusters (original) - F 10/09 - Aut-O-Rama
Jafar Panahi's Taxi - CN, F 10/16
The Martian - VV, S 10/17
Red Beard - CN, S 10/24
Spectre - Loew's NYC - M 11/23
Rififi - CN, S 11/28
In the Heart of the Sea - WL, F 12/11
Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens - RHH, T 12/21
The Hateful Eight (70mm road show) - VV, R 12/24
The Good Dinosaur - RH, F 12/25
As with last week's summary of 2014, I'm going to highlight films from 2015 that I really enjoyed or that I found otherwise notable in the hopes that if you never saw them you're inspired to check them out. I'll try to highlight films that are less mainstream or mainstream ones that were less critically acclaimed or successful, but I do not guarantee any kind of consistency on that point.
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness - Essential for Miyazaki fans, this film covers the day to day operations of Studio Ghibli.
Annie - This remake largely got panned, but I honestly found it to be more enjoyable than the original film, and certainly less problematic.
Whiplash - We're going to ignore the wrongheaded view of jazz (a problem director Damien Chazelle repeated in La La Land) and concentrate on how great J.K. Simmons is in this film.
A Most Violent Year - This is a really good mafia film, and so far has been Oscar Isaac's finest hour. Jessica Chastain is also very good.
Song of the Sea - Cartoon Saloon apparently is trying to prove that beautiful animated films can be made by hand without the Disney formula. It's a little jarring to me how off that sometimes feels, but you might try this on your favorite eight-year-old.
Spring - A young American in Italy meets a beautiful woman... and things get weird very quick. A very enjoyable low budget scifi film. Some people apparently think it's a horror film, which I didn't see at all.
In Order of Disappearance - Stellan Skarsgard proves that he can handle dishing out the violence. His son has been killed, and he goes looking for the killers in this Norwegian dark comedy.
Who Am I: No System is Safe - A German thriller following a band of hackers. I really enjoyed the focus on social hacks and direct access to the hardware, instead of the usual Hollywood hand waving of the tech.
Mad Max: Fury Road - It's got to be kind of rare for a reboot to be so much better than any of the original. And it's beautiful, to boot.
Ex Machina - Oscar Isaac is really good in this film as the genius inventor whose robot needs to be Turing Tested. This is one of the best scifi films of recent years.
Spy - I don't typically like mainstream comedy, but this film was hilarious. Everyone in the cast turns in an A+ performance, with Jason Statham stealing scenes from Melissa McCarthy in brief appearances.
Nothing Lasts Forever - This may be the weirdest film to come out of SNL. It's so weird that it was never officially released. Bill Murray and Dan Akroyd play supporting roles in this futuristic dystopia where the Port Authority has taken over NYC. It's ok, the moon is secretly a tourist destination. Ask any panhandler and they'll tell you.
Trainwreck - Amy Schumer is probably the weakest link in this film. LeBron James is the rare athlete who can actually act.
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey - Alfred Hitchcock helped write this film, which served as the official British documentary of the Nazi concentration camps. It was shelved for years for probably political reasons. If Shoah is all horrified emotion, this film is horrified clinical documentation. Essential.
Jafar Panahi's Taxi - Panahi is an Iranian film director who was banned from making films. He made this one using a dashboard cam. It won the Golden Bear.
Red Beard - One day I will run out of Kurosawa films that I have not seen. Not yet!
The Hateful Eight - I've never been bored watching a Tarantino film. I saw this one in 70mm(!). So good, although I wish that Tarantino would get over his obsession with cartoonish violence.
Italics indicate a movie I particularly enjoyed or found memorable
Movies 2015 = 44 = 34 + 10
January - 7
February - 2
March - 2 + 10
April - 1
May - 4
June - 3
July - 4
August - 1
September - 0
October - 5
November - 2
December - 4
Goodfellas - CL, S 1/03
Into the Woods - RR, Su 1/04
Chaplin Shorts: The Pawnshop, The Adventurer, The Cure w/The New River Ensemble - C, Su 1/11
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness - C, Su 1/11
Annie - WL, R 1/15
The Imitation Game - WL, R 1/22
Keep On Keepin' On - C, Su 1/25
Whiplash - CL, Su 2/08
A Most Violent Year - VV, T 2/17
Kingsman: The Secret Service - RR, F 3/06
Song of the Sea - C, S 3/14
39th Cleveland International Film Festival - Tower City Cinemas - 10 films
Spring - F 3/20
Angel Azul - S 3/21
In Order of Disappearance - S 3/21
Beatles - Su 3/22
Hardkor Disko - T 3/24
Ohio Shorts Program 3 - R 3/26
Frame by Frame - F 3/27
Who Am I: No System is Safe - F 3/27
Alleluia - F 3/27
An Honest Liar - S 3/28 (with the Amazing Randi in person)
Cinderella - RR, S 4/11
Avengers: Age of Ultron - RR, Su 5/03
Mad Max: Fury Road - RH, M 5/25
Tomorrowland - RR, F 5/29
Ex Machina - VV, Su 5/31
Spy - W, S 6/06
Nothing Lasts Forever - C, F 6/19
Jurassic World - CPT, M 6/22
Inside Out - EGK, F 7/03
Trainwreck - WL, Su 7/19
Ant-Man - WL, Su 7/26
The Last Picture Show- C, R 7/30 (last at old Cinematheque)
Listen to Me Marlon - CN, S 8/01(new Cinematheque / Lumiere)
German Concentration Camps Factual Survey - CN, Su 10/04
Ghostbusters (original) - F 10/09 - Aut-O-Rama
Jafar Panahi's Taxi - CN, F 10/16
The Martian - VV, S 10/17
Red Beard - CN, S 10/24
Spectre - Loew's NYC - M 11/23
Rififi - CN, S 11/28
In the Heart of the Sea - WL, F 12/11
Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens - RHH, T 12/21
The Hateful Eight (70mm road show) - VV, R 12/24
The Good Dinosaur - RH, F 12/25