Movies I've Seen in 2015

[shadowfireflame]

A guide for me to keep track of everything. Please ask if you’re interested in any of them! :)

Previous years: 2013, 2014

::: Animation :::

• The Book of Life (about Dia de los Muertos)
• The Good Dinosaur (did not enjoy the awkward psuedo-Western style)
• Inside Out (sweet but could have been more well-thought-out)
• Minions (dull)

::: Documentaries :::

• A Brief History of Humankind with Dr. Yuval Noah Harari (a brilliant free online course)
• Antarctica: A Year on Ice
• Chai Jing’s Review: Under the Dome-Investigating China’s Smog
• Cowspiracy (about how intensive animal farming is the #1 cause of global warming-really!)
• Danny (about Newfoundland Premiere Danny Williams)
• Generation Earth (about global technology)
• Generation Like (about social media)
• Gideon’s Army (about public defenders)
• Gimme Shelter (about the state of animals in shelters)
• Happy Valley (about Jerry Sandusky, Joe Paterno, and the Penn State child sexual abuse scandal)
• Her War: Women vs. Isis (about the inspiring female division of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units fighting ISIS in Syria)
• The House I Live In (about the “war on drugs” and how many lives it’s ruined)
• The Imposter (documentary with shocking twist)
• India’s Daughter (about a brutal rape/murder and its impact on India)
• Inside Hurricane Katrina (National Geographic)
• Inside North Korea (National Geographic)
• Ivory Tower (about higher education in the U.S.)
• League of Denial: The NFL’s Concussion Crisis
• Living on One Dollar (about extreme poverty in Guatemala)
• Lost Garden: the Life and Cinema of Alice Guy-Blaché
• Ocean Giants
• Particle Fever (about the large hadron collider)
• The Search for General Tso (about Chinese immigrants in America)
• Secrets of China (BBC documentary with Billie JD Porter)
• Secret State of North Korea (Frontline report)
• Sharks of the Mediterranean
• A State of Mind (about two gymnasts in North Korea preparing for the Mass Games)
• Steve Jobs: the Man in the Machine
• Stop Cutting Our Girls (about female genital mutilation)
• Tell Me and I Will Forget (about violence and paramedics in South Africa)
• To Catch a Trader (about insider trading)
• Virunga (about the national conservation park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo)
• The Waiting Room (one day in a public hospital)
• Walking With Dinosaurs (Sea Monsters, Land of Giants, The Giant Claw)
• Women Aren’t Funny (about female comedians with Bonnie McFarlane)
• The Wonderful World of Cats (with Joanna Lumley)

::: In-Theater Movies :::

• Ant-Man (I still got a train wreck, just not the one I was expecting)
• Avengers: Age of Ultron (lackluster for me)
• The Big Short (a movie that will make you even angrier at those who caused the 2008 recession)
• Black Mass (with Johnny Depp and Benedict Cumberbatch!)
• Crimson Peak (the acting and special effects were great, but I felt the writing was pretty lazy)
• The Danish Girl (very moving and should get acting awards)
• Ex Machina (very creepy)
• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 (enjoyed!)
• Insurgent (part 2 of Divergent, many plot holes but I enjoyed it. Some very good female characters in particular, which is great to see in a Young Adult film)
• Jupiter Ascending (great ideas, but so much wasted potential)
• Jurassic World (so much fun!)
• Mad Max: Fury Road (wonderful world-building)
• The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (lots of fun)
• The Martian (very well done)
• Mr. Holmes (with Ian McKellan)
• Selma (about Martin Luther King, Jr.)
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens (a step in the right direction for the franchise but still pretty dumb)
• Terminator: Genisys (I liked the family drama but not much else)
• Tomorrowland (very inspirational message)
• Trainwreck (Amy Schumer is hysterical)
• The Walk (mmm, vertigo)

::: Other Films :::

• American Sniper (more subversive than I think people are giving it credit for)
• American Ultra
• Beasts of No Nation
• Bridge of Spies (with Tom Hanks)
• Bring It On (fun 2000 movie)
• Chef (with John Favreau)
• The DUFF (didn't enjoy)
• Fifty Shades of Grey (I…didn’t hate it and thought it was intriguing?)
• The Gamechangers (with Daniel Radcliffe about the Grand Theft Auto videogames; very muddled production)
• Get Hard (with Kevin Hart and Will Ferrell)
• The Grand Seduction
• Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas (cute, and Aubrey Plaza is funny)
• Hercules (2014, with Dwayne Johnson)
• It Follows (brilliant horror)
• John Wick (very good action movie; the doggie made me cry though)
• Love and Mercy (moving film about Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys)
• Mad Max (1979; ummmm, avoid)
• McFarlane, USA (with Kevin Costner; actually decent)
• Magic Mike XXL (couldn’t get into this despite liking the first one)
• Malcolm X (1992, with Denzel Washington)
• Margin Call (about the 2008 financial collapse with a fantastic ensemble cast)
• The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (the first one was much better)
• Paddington (unsettlingly creepy animation)
• Pitch Perfect 2 (unnecessary but fun)
• Rhymes for Young Ghouls (about the horror of residential schools on Native American reservations in Canada)
• Rosewater (directed by Jon Stewart, about journalist Maziar Bahari’s imprisonment in Iran)
• Saving Mr. Banks (very touching movie about Mary Poppins)
• Speed Racer (very strange; great cast, including Roger Allam! But Rain steals the show)
• Spotlight (about the Catholic sexual abuse scandal in Boston)
• Spy (with Melissa McCarthy; I liked how it subverted the spy genre)
• The Theory of Everything (moving, but I preferred the more limited scope of Hawking)
• The Triangle (a twist that leaves you thinking for days)
• True Story (with James Franco and Jonah Hill)
• Under the Skin (creepy movie with Scarlett Johansson)
• The Wedding Ringer (hysterical movie with Kevin Hart)
• Wet Hot American Summer
• What If / The F Word (middling romantic drama with Daniel Radcliffe)
• What We Do in the Shadows (hysterical vampire mockumentary)
• Whiplash (fascinating)

::: Film (Non-English) :::

• Audition (Japan, horror that leaves you thinking for days)
• Battle Royale (Japan, basically The Hunger Games before that was a thing)
• Mongol (Kazakhstan)
• Monster Hunt (China; adorable mpreg and gender norm subversion-really!)
• Ringu (Japan; I preferred the U.S. version)
• A Tale of Two Sisters (superbly creepy film from South Korea)

::: TV / Drama :::

• 12 Monkeys (drama based on the excellent movie)
• The Ambassadors (with David Mitchell and Robert Webb)
• Brooklyn 99 (amusing but drags a bit)
• Casual Vacancy (actually fixes most of the problems in the book!)
• The Daily Show with Jon Stewart/Trevor Noah (where I get my news; I miss Jon Stewart so much!!)
• Empire (fantastic music record company show)
• Fresh Off the Boat (amusing comedy)
• House of Cards
• How to Get Away With Murder
• Inside Amy Schumer
• Jessica Jones (excellent!)
• Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell (took me forever to recognize Sebastian from Sherlock as Strange!)
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (brilliance)
• Mad Men (final season *cries*)
• Marco Polo (review here)
• Must Love Cats (Animal Planet)
• The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore (eventually gave up on this one)
• The Wiz! Live (I like the casting but the new music wasn't that good)