Matt Donato
1) The Lego Movie
While every movie I’ve seen this year hasn’t exactly been “awesome,” Phil Lord and Chris Miller are surely doing everything they can to atone for 2014’s lesser movies. While 22 Jump Street didn’t exactly strike me the same way it turned other critics into cackling hyenas, The Lego Movie won me over from the very first explosive second. We’ve come to expect more from children’s animated movies thanks to studios like Pixar, but this story about Master Builders and unlikely heroes re-defines our expectations yet again, besting recent favorites such as – dare I say – Toy Story 3?
Based on visual merits alone, The Lego Movie‘s animators deserve gold medals for re-creating the glossy feeling of America’s favorite building blocks while also creating a sleek, vibrant, seamless transition to 3D technology. Every tiny detail is calculated and adapted into the imaginative Lego world, leaving me dumbfounded by superior craftsmanship.
A dynamite voice cast only enhances the aesthetic beauty that Lord and Miller oversee, as talents like Chris Pratt, Will Arnett, Morgan Freeman, Elizabeth Banks, and Liam Neeson lend their voices to our pint-sized heroes and villains. Pratt of course is privileged enough to play Emmet, an everyday citizen who wants to be something special – which is where our heartwarming story picks up. Brimming with social commentary and positive messages, the script’s more challenging material makes younger audiences think and builds them up instead of spoon-feeding them rainbows and marshmallows – while also keeping older viewers in stitches.
Plus, has there ever been a better Batman than Will Arnett’s version?
2) The Raid 2
As a follow up to The Raid, Gareth Evans does everything necessary to ensure sequel success for The Raid 2. His violent universe is expanded upon, characters become more vibrant, more outlandish freedoms are taken, and the intensity is heightened by a handful of even more expertly choreographed fight-sequences that at times make Iko Uwais’ original badassery seem like child’s play. Have you ever tried fighting a twenty-person prison gang while stuck in a bathroom stall? Wish I had those skills while I was stuck in high school…
To quote myself (out of nothing but sheer laziness), The Raid 2 is a “beautifully brutal ballet” – like Swan Lake but with a lot more broken bones and crushed craniums. Each fight sequence is like an intricate dance, favoring grace and fluidity over bodyslams and haymakers. There’s a calculated science to the way Iko goes from henchman to henchman, incapacitating them with a flurry of fists and kicks – as Evans captures each scene with equally graceful editing. I dare you to locate a single errant cut throughout The Raid 2.
Evans goes bigger, badder, and more explosive, making me wonder how in the hell his next sequel, and the end of this Raid trilogy, will possibly top the magnificent work established thus far.
3) Godzilla
I understand wholeheartedly my love for Godzilla isn’t globally matched, but I absolutely loved what Gareth Edwards was able to accomplish by rebooting one of the most famous creature franchises in cinematic history. Long gone are the memories of Roland Emmerich’s atrocious Matthew Broderick vessel, as Edwards ushers in a new era of the mean green machine that once again portrays Godzilla as the monstrous brawler he deserves to be. In this corner, weighing god knows how many tons and shooting blue fire out of his mouth, the “Stomper of Cities” himself…
Honestly, I get where people were turned off. I do. Bryan Cranston’s curious character arc, Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s every-white-male leading character, not enough Godzilla (although that complaint doesn’t sit well with me), Elizabeth Olsen and Ken Watanabe’s uselessness – but Edwards told the Godzilla story that NEEDED to be told. This movie is starting yet another franchise, and we had to go all the way back to square one. You can’t just jump into Godzilla throwing down with the M.U.T.O beasts – there had to be a gradual lead-in to the epic conclusion where Godzilla turns into a WWE wrestler.
Listen, if we’re to believe Edwards’ future plans, we’ll be dealing with the Monster Island soon enough, and Godzilla will be the action hero everyone wants him to be – but for all intents and purposes, this year’s Godzilla was a damn near perfect re-introduction of such an iconic behemoth. Bravo.
4) Chef
Jon Favreau built his reputation on being a phenomenal indie filmmaker before being given the keys to Marvel infamy, but after playing the blockbuster game with Iron Man and Cowboys & Aliens, he finally decided to return to his roots. Chef is a delicious return to form for the five-star director, using the world of culinary wonders as a direct vehicle for his own road to big budget stardom and consequential want for independent freedom once again. It’s a rather brilliant pairing, filmmaking and cooking, as the two creative arts share so many of the business aspects and original beauty – making for one of the years best feel-good stories so far.
The whole cast does a phenomenal job of grounding their characters, with John Leguizamo and Bobby Cannavale providing the comedic relief, but it’s child actor Emjay Anthony who really surprises the most as one of the stand-out stars. Playing off of Favreau’s father figure character, the two have a dynamically sweet relationship that builds a compassionate side to battle the distressed feelings of a suffocated food connoisseur, heightening human elements to decadent levels. Oh, and the display of mouthwatering food prepared throughout Chef is thanks to the tutelage of actual chef Roy Choi, who will leave your stomach crying for a Cuban sandwich when it’s all said and done.
Much like a bite of the most tender, succulent bite of steak, Chef does nothing but leave a gigantic grin on your face thanks to a medley of flavors working to form a robust, tantalizing harmony.
5) Afflicted
Surprise, surprise – Mr. Horror Guy sneaking a horror movie into his Top 5. While some might argue this is only because of my outrageous genre love, please understand that Afflicted DESERVES to grasp such a spot. It’s the best horror movie I’ve seen in 2014 so far, and I’m fairly confident it won’t be outdone by the time I write my end-of-the-year horror recap because of how revolutionary it is. A lot of lost faith was restored by Derek Lee and Clif Prowse thanks to their indie horror darling, atoning for the sins of so many similar genre movies that came before.
I’m going to remain fairly vague, as I have any other time this movie has been brought up, but Afflicted is a movie that NEEDS to be seen with absolutely no reveals at all. Just imagine this – Chronicle with some type of infection, and much meander baddies later on. Yes, one of our characters gets souped up and starts toying with his new form, but past that is when the true horror kicks in. Lee and Prowse also star in the film, and it’s Lee’s performance that harkens back to some true body horror chills accomplished in old-school movies – a nostalgic touch when mixed with *ENJOYABLE* found footage filming methods.
No annoying shaky cam, crisp shots, and technological prowess are the icing on the cake that is Afflicted, a true horror treat in every sense of the word.