I knew absolutely nothing about The Guest before seeing it in 2014.  Noticing it towards the top of a Grantland (RIP) writer’s year-end film list, I randomly decided to VOD it without any further research.  Being a trailer averse weirdo, I think this is the best way to go into any movie (to a certain extent, obviously most would want to know whether they are seeing The Rock punch bad guys or Carey Mulligan play a British housekeeper with a secret).  This especially rings true in The Guest’s case.  Some of the developments throughout the movie come so far out of left field that I legitimately cackled in delight.

So I won’t divulge much about the plot of this movie, but I will say the ambiance carries a perfect blend of Drive, Halloween, and The Terminator.  It features a great synthpop soundtrack, which is a device I’ve noticed many filmmakers using to “retro-up” their films and it almost always resonates with me.  Dan Stevens serves as the star, who I had never heard of before but apparently he’s an alum of “Downton Abbey,” or as I like to call it “The Show that Ruined Christmas” (long story).  Usually when I come across a movie that I’ve never even heard of it’s a bad sign, but The Guest was a clear exception, becoming my second favorite movie of 2014.  Streaming on Netflix.

Armageddon to Room’s Deep Impact.  10 Cloverfield Lane is a pseudo-sequel to J.J. Abram’s 2008 found footage cult classic “Cloverfield.” I only say pseudo because they are very different movies and one doesn’t have much to do with the other (you may even be better off seeing this without having ever seen “Cloverfield,” as it will create added suspense of what the hell is going on). In an era where movies are announced years in advance (especially sequels), it’s impressive that they were able to keep this movie under wraps for as long as they did, but I guess it’s an easier feat to pull off with such a small cast (John Goodman, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Gallagher Jr.).  I have a feeling the director of this movie grew up on Spielberg and the writer was heavily influenced by MacGyver reruns.   Tier 3

For those that did not receive it, here is my 2015 list of movies that was emailed over the New Year.  Brief comments on some of the less talked about movies below:

Creed:  I guess director Ryan Coogler and star Michael B Jordan will have to settle for MTV Movie Award nominations.  Out of all sports, boxing seems to translate the best to cinema and this is my favorite boxing movie ever.  There’s a long take (a sequence filmed in one take without any editing) of a boxing round that blew my mind.

Digging For Fire:  Joe Swanberg’s movies aren’t for everyone but I’m a fan.  He gravitates towards dramedies about people in their 30’s trying to get their shit together (not sure what this says about me). Streaming on Amazon

Sicario: This is going to age GREAT on cable over the next decade.

Whiplash: Favorite movie I saw in 2015

The Judge: Not sure if I can justify this ranking, I guess I was feeling extra sappy.

Southpaw:  Great boxing scenes, silly plot

The Gambler:  Soundtracking a sequence to an M83 song is a cheat code to my emotions.

The Night Before:  Had no idea Michael Shannon was funny.

Creep:  If you can get past the extremely uncomfortable first 30 minutes or so, this pays off.  Streaming on Netflix

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Midnight:  Sundance deemed this the “First Iranian Vampire Western.”  Beautifully shot in black and white with a cool soundtrack.  If it hasn’t happened already, a studio will announce they’re making an American remake within the year. Streaming on Netflix

Entourage:  I can’t justify this.  I watched this while packing for a boys weekend trip and I think this mentality affected my judgement.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl:  Could you have used less Me and a lot more Earl.

We Are Your Friends:  Tom Cruise’s Cocktail for Millenials.  Sometimes you just want to watch Ballers instead of Olive Kitteridge.

Aloha:  Only because it’s such a trainwreck.  Our children’s history textbooks will point to this Cameron Crowe movie as the root cause of Hawaii seceding from the US.

Birdman:  Yes, I enjoyed We Are Your Friends and Entourage more than the 2015 Academy Award winner for Best Picture.

Starred Up:  Note to self, don’t try to watch a prison movie on a plane.  Way too much male nudity.

 

 

This is based solely on how entertaining I thought the movie was, prestige kicked to the curb.  As I see more movies throughout the year, groups are subject to change.  Concise, spoiler-free blurbs on each of these films lie in the posts below.