My Top 30 Films of 2014: 20-11

Films 30-21 on the list can be found here.

20) Captain America: the Winter Soldier, dir. Anthony Russo & Joe Russo, USA

What I said: "[It's] is tonally very different to the rest of the Marvel Studios oeuvre to-date... this one is more of a conspiracy thriller and - without going all Nolan Batman and jettisoning fun and colour - it's a comparatively gritty and grounded affair. Much like the Ed Brubaker run in the comics, which introduced this film's antagonist the Winter Soldier, it does a neat job of including lots of outlandish and far-fetched comic book elements - from the winged exploits of Anthony Mackie's Falcon to the newly computer-bound consciousness of Toby Jones' Arnim Zola - with something altogether more grounded and grave... The action is hard-hitting, well choreographed and visceral, whilst the main players exhibit the sort of good chemistry needed to make all the bits in between fun. Especially Chris Evans in the starring role - an actor who imbues the title character with as much subtle depth as he does obvious decency."

The increasing confidence of Marvel Studios was demonstrated earlier this year - even before they released a wacky sci-fi comedy about a wise-cracking racoon - as the Disney-owned comic book moguls proved how versatile their superhero properties can be whilst remaining in a shared cinematic universe. 'Winter Soldier' is a sequel to both the nostalgic, World War II-set Joe Johnston movie 'The First Avenger' as well as Joss Whedon's mega-blockbuster 'The Avengers', two very distinct superhero movies with vastly different tones, and it succeeds in following both whilst again being completely different: in this case a 70s-style espionage thriller. It's a very good one, even if it has to go headlong into an explosion-fest for the final 20 minutes, with a tense atmosphere and - in Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson - two terrific lead actors.

19) Two Days, One Night, dir. Jean-Pierre Dardenne & Luc Dardenne, BEL/ITA/FRA

What I said: "Subsisting on the sort of tight concept I tend to love, the Dardenne brother's latest stars the always-excellent Marion Cotillard as Sandra: a severely depressed woman who is ready to return to work only to discover that her colleagues have voted her out of a job [after] her bosses decide to cut costs by making staff choose between Sandra and their annual bonus payment... When Sandra convinces them to recall another vote after the weekend she has the titular timeframe to convince each individual to back her over personal financial gain... It's an interesting moral question which the film explores in all its complexity as Sandra visits each person in turn and makes the same basic argument with mixed results... Perhaps the film treats an attempted suicide too casually and Sandra's apparent defeat of bed-ridden depression by the credits is a little too sudden, but this is a complex and original film which deserves to be seen. Especially as the Dardenne's again display an impressive knack for marrying social realism with something more hopeful and optimistic than that term usually suggests."

One of the best ideas for a movie this year, there's not a lot to dislike about this small-scale, entirely humanist drama which essentially features a dozen versions of the same conversation all playing out differently. It could easily be a little slight but instead Marion Cotillard helps imbue the whole thing with a consistent and palpable edge of emotional turmoil that prevents it from getting stale.

18) Her, dir. Spike Jonze, USA

What I said: "You meet somebody for the first time and instantly hit it off. As feelings develop, you nervously pursue a romantic relationship. The early days of that relationship are filled with laughter and a spirit of adventure - you never want to be apart from that person, who now occupies all your waking thoughts. Months go by and you settle into a bit of a muted groove. You get a phone call from that person whilst at work, and they can tell you don't want to talk. It's become slightly awkward all of a sudden, or at least there's a strange distance developing between two supposedly intimate people. Eventually it ends, possibly when one of you has outgrown the other. In Spike Jonze's 'Her', Jaoquin Phoenix's Theodore Twombly experiences something exactly like this with Samantha (portrayed by Scarlett Johansson) - the difference being that Samantha is a sophisticated OS (operating system) rather than a traditional human partner. But the rhythms and patterns and core experience of the relationship seem to be exactly the same in Jonze's non-judgmental and highly plausible account of the not too distant future."

A movie released last year in the US and included in the Oscars last March, so it feels ancient at this point, but (with the exception of 'Snowpiercer' which has still not been released here theatrically) I base my list on UK release dates, so here it is! 'Her' is like a schmaltzy episode of Black Mirror, which I mean in a good way. There's shades of grey and room for debate about how healthy or real Joaquin Phoenix's romance with a Scarlet Johansson voiced AI is, but mostly it's an uncommon story of optimism about technology and the future. It's non-judgemental and sweet whilst still being smart.

17) The Wind Rises, dir. Hayao Miyazaki, JAP

What I said: "In almost every Miyazaki film to date his passion for machines, engines and, especially, aircraft has loomed large... so in many ways, though it is less fantastical and magical (and it does still have those qualities stylistically), 'The Wind Rises' does have the air of a great passion project and represents an extremely personal sign-off. In the dream sequences, which are many, Miyazaki indulges his childish imagination, creating wondrous and impossible aircraft and contriving to have two of his heroes converse in what is ultimately aviation hobbyist fan fiction... Miyazaki's obsessions enter the film in other ways too, with Jiro's drive and single-minded dedication to pursuing his chosen profession, perhaps at the expense of his personal life, another recurring theme... At its core it's a film about choosing to pursue your creative dream even if it might be appropriated for nefarious purposes. Some have criticised the director for not going far enough to address the fact that Horikoshi ultimately designed efficient engines of war and destruction which were quickly put to devastating purpose in expanding the Empire of Imperial Japan... That said, given some of that negative reaction I was surprised how much the oncoming war underpins the entire film from its opening dream sequence (interrupted by bombs and destruction) to it's bittersweet final moments as Jiro finally perfects his plane only to be suddenly overwhelmed by the reality of what it will be use for next."

It's not Miyazaki's best film (in fairness it faces tough competition for that title) but he's never made anything so obviously personal. Nominally it's an animated biopic, about a controversial aviator no less, but it isn't hard to see parallels between the loosely adapted life of Jiro Horikoshi and Miyazaki's own - with it very easy to substitute famed aircraft inventor with famed animation director. Seeing as fictionalised regrets about his personal life take centre stage near the end, perhaps this has more to say about the filmmaker's own reflection on a life lived in obsessive pursuit of dreams. Being the legendary filmmaker's final work before retirement (though he said that a decade ago) it seems fitting that it's his most reflective and melancholic. Special mention must go to the film's understated and quietly terrifying depiction of the Great Kanto Earthquake, which stands out as one of the finest sequences Miyazaki ever devised.

16) American Hustle, dir. David O. Russell, USA

What I said: "It's been trailed like a derivative, Scorsese-influenced crime film, but David O. Russell's 70s-set 'American Hustle' is best viewed as a black comedy. Every brilliant performance, every hackneyed line, every haircut, every sequence is a little warped, a little odd - from Jennifer Lawrence doing the housework whilst miming along to Live and Let Die to Christian Bale's pot-bellied, comb-over sporting conman seducing Amy Adams in the lost property room of his dry cleaning establishment. That doesn't mean to say it isn't a decent and occasionally tense crime film, with its share interesting twists and turns in the plot, but it reminded me more of the Coen Brothers than 'Goodfellas', being about a group of variously flawed, morality bereft shysters who are often as pathetic and incompetent as they are resolutely unlikable. It's saying something that Jeremy Renner's charismatic local mayor is the only one of the bunch with any integrity and he's the victim at the centre of the big con."

As with 'Her' this is another one of those movies from the last Oscars that just about slips onto this year's list with it's early 2014 UK release date. Viewed as this year's answer to 'Goodfellas' it's a little overblown and trivial-seeming, but seen as (I think intended) as a black-comedy populated by uniformly messed-up, unlikable characters I think it works brilliantly. It is operatic and over the top but Jennifer Lawrence's housekeeping scene, not to mention everything to do with the "science oven", is amazing. It's also great to see a movie that isn't completely cynical about politicians and their intentions, which is a real rarity in popular culture at large. Jeremy Renner is corrupt as the flashy, local mayor, but he is also the nearest thing the film has to a good guy. He might get his hands dirty but he's doing it with solid gold intentions. It's easily the most interesting part he's had since 'The Hurt Locker' made him a star.

15) X-Men: Days of Future Past, dir. Bryan Singer, USA

What I said: "They have fixed the X-Men movie franchise and in a classy way that makes it possible to make new movies with the 'First Class' cast without fear of bumping into any of the old baggage that once lay in the way. It's a smart movie that celebrates the past, but definitively makes way for the future. It's a rare sequel/prequel that actually elevates everything that came before and makes it all seem, finally, like it all sort of makes a certain fuzzy kind of sense. I like problem movies, which is to say movies which seem to have set themselves a problem and solved it... this movie seems to have been conceived as a way to address continuity mistakes and to help rejuvenate and reboot the franchise. It's a placeholder movie, paving the way for new stories with a couple of hours of energetic rebuilding work, basically. Yet it also works on its own terms somehow, and is fast-paced, fun and contains terrific fight scenes not matched by any X-Men movie and, possibly, by any superhero movie to date. For the first time I'm excited to see a new X-Men movie... It's not often movie number seven is the best in the franchise, but Fox's X-Men just got really good and it only took about 15 years to get there."

This probably benefited from sub zero expectations on my part. I've never been overly enthusiastic about Fox's X-Men franchise - with its drab, leather-clad versions of colourful comic book heroes and Wolverine-centric narrative - even disliking the widely praised 'First Class'. Yet Bryan Singer's return to the franchise he launched over a decade ago (and without which there might never have been a Marvel Studios or Sony Spider-Man franchise) has proven hugely beneficial, with the director using a time travel story as the vehicle to strip away almost everything terrible that happened in the previous movies (most notably the events of 'X-Men: the Last Stand') and leave the whole thing in a place where I'm actually excited to see what they do next. Also, between the slowed-down Quicksilver (Evan Peters) set-piece and the imaginatively implemented portal-opening powers of the obscure Blink (Fan Bingbing) this movie had the stand-out action moments of 2014. At least outside of 'The Raid 2' (if you're curious: it didn't make my list on account of being way too long and not interesting at all outside of the punching scenes).

14) Under the Skin, dir. Jonathan Glazer, UK/USA/SWI

What I said: "A masterclass in editing and sound design, Jonathan Glazer's 'Under the Skin' stars Scarlett Johansson as an alien who takes on the form of a human female and uses this guise to seduce lonely, socially isolated men, who she then traps and harvests for... some reason probably much clearer to those who've read the Michel Faber novel. Though I'd argue the question of why she captures these men and what exactly becomes of them is a secondary concern in a film that works primarily on the level of visceral, sensory experience. In lieu of much specificity or explanation, this is simply the story of an outsider assimilating and attempting to fit in (albeit with nefarious intent), learning a certain degree of compassion for humanity and gradually becoming more unsettled by and attached to her newly acquired body...Moments of intense body horror and a heart-pounding finale combine with this playful casting and Glazer's technical mastery to create something truly memorable - potentially even destined for cult status."

Strange, unsettling, almost unknowable. I haven't read the book but I suspect, like a Kubrick movie, the novel might have been more of a loose jumping off point than the basis of a strict adaptation. I might be wrong, but this movie is '2001' levels of oblique in a way I can't imagine the book being. Nothing is really explained and it's not certain at times what is literally taking place, though that doesn't make the imagery any less haunting or powerful. The scene on the beach, with the baby left on its own, is easily one of the most shocking of the year. Meanwhile, Scarlett Johansson disappears so convincingly into her role as an alien that whole sequences appear to have been shot with the mega-famous actress blending in entirely amongst an unsuspecting public. It's also responsible for some of the year's best moments of horror, even though it isn't really a horror movie, with lots of nightmarish stuff happening with bodies.

13) The Past, dir. Asghar Farhadi, FRA/ITA/IRN

What I said: "In a style familiar to fans of his earlier films, such as 'A Separation' and 'About Elly', director Asghar Farhadi's maiden effort outside of Iranian cinema is still a tightly wound and faultlessly humane drama, peppered with extraordinary revelations and populated by nuanced and fully-formed characters who are lead by circumstance to ponder profound ethical questions... After a half-dozen twists and turns we come to understand the various conflicting points of view all involved in the unfolding crisis, which this time revolves around the theme of forgiveness and moving on from what has happened before - of leaving an old life behind as you head into another. Something which none of the characters can quite face doing, at least without difficulty and heartache. Nobody in contemporary cinema (at least that I know of) is quite as brilliant as Farhadi when it comes to creating ensemble casts in which every character is so complex and well drawn. As with his other films, the four central characters here - along with another three or four supporting cast members - are each worthy of audience investment and sympathy, portrayed and written with great compassion."

Filmmaker Asghar Farhadi ventured outside his native Iran to make this French-set drama, but all of his hallmarks and concerns are still palpable with trademark focus on multifaceted, complex characters struggling with questions of morality. It's not quite got the gut-punching hook of his masterpieces 'About Elly' and 'A Separation' but it's still top-tier drama with faultless performances from its ensemble cast. I'll take a minor Farhadi movie over the best work of a lot of other filmmakers every single time.

12) The Grand Budapest Hotel, dir. Wes Anderson, USA/GER

What I said: "If the move from 'Bottle Rocket' to 'Rushmore' onto 'The Royal Tenenbaums' marked a gentle progression of his style, Wes Anderson's subsequent films - 'The Life Aquatic', 'The Darjeeling Limited' and even the animated 'The Fantastic Mr. Fox' - took the recognised tropes of that style and crystallised it into something that often flirted with self-parody. Then 'Moonrise Kingdom' came along and seemed to indicate a maturation of his by now well established visual motifs, storytelling themes and even the highly stylised performances drawn from his familiar band of recurring actors. It was a refreshing change of pace... At a first glance his latest, 'The Grand Budapest Hotel', superficially resembles a return to the larger-scale, ensemble-driven fare that directly preceded 'Moonrise Kingdom', though it's actually a subtle synthesis of the two being expansive, broad, imaginative and, well, grand, whilst also being restrained, focused and tightly wound... Even as its focus remains on character detail and small-scale interactions, it's easily the most traditionally plot-heavy of Anderson's films - helping again to separate it from what's come before - and, even if death and grief play a part in all but one of his other movies, it's also one of the saddest - with an overriding feeling of entropy and a sense of sadness at the passing of time."

As a long-time fan of Wes Anderson his films have always touched me on an emotional level that I gather they just don't for a lot of people. I get that: they could easily seem cold and detached. Yet the emotional stuff is usually in the details, like Anthony agreeing to wear a yellow jumpsuit in 'Bottle Rocket' when he sees the guileless and enthusiastic Dignan faced with the unbearable cynicism of Futureman. Or Steve Zissou throwing away his earring petulantly when he overhears somebody laughing at it, only to sheepishly pick it back up again moments later. Or all of 'Moonrise Kingdom'. But the emotional stuff is much more evidently to the foreground in 'The Grand Budapest Hotel', which has a consistent elegiac tone and features more than one death. Told from what might be a fourth person perspective, coming decades after the events of the narrative, in a world in which the titular hotel is crumbling into the ground, the whole thing is really very sad indeed. Something punctuated by Ralph Fiennes extremely funny and charismatic central performance as the last of a dying order.

11) Guardians of the Galaxy, dir. James Gunn, USA

What I said: "When the film was announced a couple of years back, it was regarded as a make or break movie for Marvel's growing cinematic universe: can the studio that started with the (relatively) gritty and grounded 'Iron Man' convince us of a talking raccoon and tree double-act? There was no going back and I'm sure the spectre of Jar Jar Binks must have loomed over the project, at least for nervous studio executives. Well they've more than gotten away with it and, after this, you'd have to wonder if there's too much in the company's comic book continuity they couldn't now bring to the screen with well-placed confidence."

In terms of pure enjoyment at the movies this year, 'Guardians of the Galaxy' would be right at the top of the list. That's not to say, with a note of condescension, that James Gunn's Marvel blockbuster is merely 'enjoyable' rather than 'good' - it is a very good film all ways around (great comic performances, entertaining action, a whip-smart script, stand-out soundtrack) - just that on balance the immediate thrills and (multitude of) laughs have been eclipsed by a bunch of films which gave me a lot more to think about and talk about after the credits. That's not to denigrate 'Guardians' though. It's definitely a contender for the best Marvel comics adaptation to-date, my teary-eyed love of 'Captain America: the First Avenger' notwithstanding, and given the consistently high quality of those movies I mean that as high praise indeed.

Come back soon for the top 10.

Review Round-up: 2014 Catch-up

I've not written anything on here in a long while since I've moved to Spain and missed a lot of movies. However on returning to the UK for Christmas I've been on a catch-up binge. Here's some brief thoughts on what I've seen.

'Lucy' - Dir. Luc Besson (15)

The last half-hour is probably a little too action-y - with a full-blown gunfight between an Asian criminal gang and French police which is a lot less fun than everything that precedes it - but Luc Besson's 'Lucy' is otherwise a terrifically paced and entertaining slice of brainless nonsense. In fact it's a rare thing in this age of overblown, bloated Hollywood fare: a zippy little 90 minute movie that manages to wrap up long before it's worn out its welcome. Scarlett Johansson makes a very strong case for that elusive Black Widow solo movie as she kicks the asses of all present as an American tourist who stumbles into the wrong place and winds up overdosing on a new drug that unlocks the untapped potential of the human brain, granting her powerful abilities but also making her seem cold, alien and inhuman. It's a bit like watching her character from Under the Skin parading around with superpowers, which is pretty great.

'The Boxtrolls' - Dir. Anthony Stacchi & Graham Annable (PG)

Not in the same league as 'Coraline' or 'ParaNorman' (the best animated film of this decade so far), but Laika's latest stop-frame animation is still very polished and endearing, with its heart very firmly in the right place. But intention isn't everything, of course, and a cross-dressing villain has perhaps rightly invited criticism that the film is transphobic, which I can't rebuff with any force even if my own view on it more closely aligns with this defense.

This is made all the more unfortunate by the way it undermines the film's great message of tolerance and not being afraid of those who are different from you. This is the studio that presented audiences with an openly gay high school jock character in 'ParaNorman' (revealed in a line which can be dismissed as throwaway, but is actually deeply embedded in that film's message) and 'The Boxtrolls' attempts to be similarly right-on as it tells another story where the great evil is basically intolerance which drives people to scapegoat those who are different to them as the cause of society's ills (something for which there is no shortage of real world parallels). Though as with the recent Batgirl comic controversy, it seems serious errors in judgement have been made here.

'Hercules' - Dir. Brett Ratner (12A)

Could have been fun. The Rock as Hercules! He throws a horse! But it's ultimately just very boring, especially as Brett Ratner's film half-heartedly tries to walk away from presenting Hercules as the literal son of Zeus with the apparent aim of grounding the stories and explaining away their fantastical elements as exaggeration. Yet it neither commits fully to playing it straight or to making a big, brash, campy film about a demigod, existing somewhere unsatisfying between those two points.

'Snowpiercer' - Dir. Bong Joon-ho (TBC)

*SPOILERS*
The first half of 'Snowpiercer, 'The Host' and 'Mother' director Bong Joon-ho's maiden English-language effort, is one of the best things I've seen all year. Smart, funny, with inventive action set-pieces and an oddball sense of humour, the highlight being an inspired supporting turn from Tilda Swinton. However the second half of the film is one of the worst movies I've seen this year, from Ed Harris' 'Matrix Reloaded' style clunky, cod philosophy explanation of how his train-based society works to the film's spectacularly misjudged "I know what babies taste like" monologue (which star Chris Evans does his best to sell but it's not happening).

This isn't helped by a final scene which makes no sense (they get eaten by that polar bear, right?), following a truly superfluous action sequence which sees some sort of fancy dress party revellers attacking Song Kang-ho's character with seemingly no objective in sight. With a premise this convoluted and insane (the last surviving humans all live on a train around the world built conveniently by a mad industrialist before the apocalypse hit) the first half works because it seems self-aware and broadly satirical, but the more po-faced it becomes - the more melodramatic it gets - the harder it is to enjoy.

'Jodorowsky’s Dune' - Dir. Frank Pavich (TBC)

An entertaining if slightly shallow look at one of the great unmade movies, which doesn't lack charm and enthusiasm even if it principally consists of talking heads making grand ("it would have been better than 2001 and Star Wars") statements. Most frustrating the the continual insistence of all involved that this Dune adaptation would have been so powerful in terms of its ideological content that it would change humanity. Indeed Nicholas Winding Refn, of 'Drive' fame, suggests the reason this massively expensive, potentially 8-hour long arthouse film wasn't made by Hollywood studios was a fear of said epoch-bending ideas. Yet all we get in this doc, really, is a lot of (really awesome) concept art, with these nebulous 'ideas' never really explained. An enjoyable watch but I personally didn't fully buy into the cult of this unmade film, which would certainly have been interesting but, on this evidence, I'm not sure would have been good.

'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' - Dir. Jonathan Liebesman (12A)

Ugly, over-detailed CGI characters in a loud and cynical blockbuster re-working of a late-80s cartoon/toy nostalgia property featuring Megan Fox, brought to the screen by Michael Bay. This latest attempt to reboot the 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' for today's kids invites obvious comparison to the risible 'Transformers' franchise. It's not quite as bad as all that though and, with Bay only acting as a producer and Jonathan Liebesman directing, it never gets nearly as offensive. It doesn't quite have the leery male gaze to the same extent as 'Transformers' and thankfully ditches the broad racist caricatures and militaristic politics too, though if you want to go there it's probably guilty cultural appropriation perhaps inherent to the franchise.

So it isn't 'Transformers' level bad, but that's not to say it's good though or that it succeeds on any level. Like their robots in disguise counterparts, the turtle redesigns are overly busy and extremely unappealing and their voices never feel like they fit, whilst the usually excellent Tony Shalhoub is an odd choice to voice their sensei Splinter. Most puzzling is the wholesale lifting of plot points and sometimes specific action beats from 2012's 'The Amazing Spider-Man' (itself not a great movie). There's the convoluted way William Fichtner's villain, Fox's reporter and the turtles are all connected by coincidence, and more directly a scene on a rooftop in which the baddie is thwarted from releasing some chemical McGuffin into the city, ultimately climaxing in a television tower falling down.

'Interstellar' - Dir. Christopher Nolan (12A)

*SPOILERS*
If something takes itself seriously enough people will take it seriously in return. That's what 'Interstellar', and the broader Christopher Nolan canon, has taught me based on the reactions of movie fans. Yes, this is cerebral sci-fi. Intelligent cinema. A thinking person's blockbuster. We know that because of the tone, the cinematography and the music. It screams "take me seriously!" Like 'Inception' and the Batman (sorry "Dark Knight") trilogy before it this is something silly dressed up so that people who take themselves very seriously can still enjoy it and not feel too juvenile. Like the bit in 'Batman Begins' where Michael Caine explains how he mail orders Batman's ears in bulk to avoid suspicion, 'Interstellar' follows the proud Nolanverse tradition of explaining and explaining and explaining everything presumably out of a paranoid, insecure fear that somebody in the audience might think the whole thing is stupid. "It's not stupid!", cries 'Interstellar', "it all makes sense! The robot explained how it all worked!"

'Interstellar' is the story of a small-town farmer who breaks into a military installation, is tasered and held prisoner and then refuses to answer any questions or co-operate at all and is then told "we can only answer your questions if you agree to fly this spaceship for us". Because that makes sense. Yes, Cooper (Mathew McConaughey) used to be a pilot before the film's post-apocalypse scenario occurred but that's still an enormous logical stretch. Not that it would matter most of the time: I enjoy films with wonkier premises and crazier logical leaps than that, but they don't tend to take themselves so seriously to such an oppressive degree. Similarly, and I'm going all-out spoilers here, we are asked to believe a man who regrets abandoning his daughter for decades will leave her on her deathbed without argument after about 2 minutes of conversation because she says "you shouldn't have to see this" and he's like "ok then, dying daughter" before rushing off to win Anne Hathaway in spite of the fact there was no romance plot between them in the entire movie. But her never-seen boyfriend has died off-camera so she's his by default now, I guess. Because movies. Oh and he also never asks about his son once when he gets back.

The music is always telling you how to feel in the most overbearing, melodramatic way possible and the dialogue explains everything to the point where there is little room for existential discussion a la '2001' (so much dialogue in the bookcase scene detailing where Cooper is, why he is there, what it means - Nolan would have just explained the obelisk and the bedroom scene at the end of Kubrick's masterpiece would have included a monologue). There's even a moment when you see a spaceship smash into a frozen cloud and before I could finish saying "frozen clouds are a cool idea" in my mind a character on-screen had said "frozen clouds". Again, there's a paranoia there about somebody not understanding exactly what that was and a terrified Nolan had to have somebody explain lest anyone have to think about it too long.

The space stuff is amazing, in terms of the scale of what is rendered on screen and the way it plays with the idea of what time relativity would mean for astronauts, which is pretty mind-blowing. I have no idea if it's accurate (I presume it is based on the latest knowledge of how these things work) but the depictions of a black hole and a wormhole, as well as the planets visited, are pure cinema. It's technically very well made, as you would expect, and as such is not a bad film or a bore even though it is overlong. There's a lot to like about it but not so much that I could ever hope to like it as much as it so transparently likes itself.

'Ida' - Dir. Pawel Pawlikowski (12A)

'Ida' is a European arthouse film du jour. To the extent where you'd only have to modify it very slightly to make it an amazing, pitch-perfect parody of what a festival favourite, black and white Polish film would be. It's 80 minutes long, supposedly, but it must be pulling some of that 'Interstellar' time relativity stuff because it's 80 minutes that feels like two hours. Everybody loves it though so I am probably missing something deep and profound. However I have decided - somewhat facetiously - that positive reviews by critics are akin to the oft-derided spin of estate agents, where "cosy" means "small".

In its round-up of the year's best movies, The Guardian wrote of it: "Pawlikowski never dwells on the social or political points: the aunt is a compromised Stalinist lawyer; Poland is in the grip of cold-war communism; and Ida herself is forced into existential self-doubt. Yet these things lie lightly over the film – nothing is hammered home, or pointed up."

To me this translates as "none of the interesting themes and historical, socio-political context are explored at all". Similarly the claim that the film is "so delicate you are afraid [it] will collapse in the first puff of wind" may mean "it's insubstantial and its premise is stretched thinly over the running time".

I have to admit, for me it's this year's example of that annual film that comes out that makes me feel like I just don't understand cinema - the film everybody else says is amazing and I can't see what they are talking about. It's not that I hated 'Ida' or found nothing of merit in it, just that it didn't personally speak to me or move me very much. I'll say this for it: I liked the off-centre framing of a lot of it, with the characters pushed to the margins. I also thought the idea (spoiler warning) of a nun having a few days of sex, booze and rock 'n roll before returning to the convent was potentially interesting. Is the idea that she is in a better place to make her vow now that she knows what she's giving up? Does that make her vow more meaningful than those of her fellow nuns who have never indulged? Interesting ideas and set at a fascinating time in Polish history, with the second world war and its atrocities a living memory and the socialist government in full swing - I just wish there was more to it.

'Boyhood' - Dir. Richard Linklater (15)

Richard Linklater's 'Boyhood' generated a lot of buzz due to the curiosity of its production: shot over 45 days spanning an eleven-year period, the film dramatises adolescence as we follow Mason (Ellar Coltrane) - who starts the film as a small boy of six and ends it a college student. Not only do we see the young actor who plays him go through physical changes almost from scene to scene, but naturally we also see those changes in the actors around him (like his parents played by Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke). Being a sprawling epic about one boy's childhood there isn't really an overarching plot, but rather it's a series of small developments and micro-plots held together by an emphasis on character development. And it works really well.

As well as the thrill of seeing these characters age and change in such a unique way, the film presents a look at attitudes and lifestyle in Southern Texas - with events likes the invasion of Iraq and election of Barack Obama in the background, as well as obligatory changes to cell phones and video games - as the family move around the Lone Star State. If there's an ongoing plot it's in seeing Mason constantly pressured into not being himself by a succession of douchey stepdads, shortening his hair against his will and taking an interest in sports. You get a sense of what it must be like to be an introverted, creative kid in Linklater's home state and so, in some sense, this might even serve as a semi-biographical film about its director. Incidentally his daughter Lorelei plays Mason's older sister and she steals every scene she's in with natural screen presence.

Not just one of the best films I've seen in 2014, but a genuine contender for a place among the best of the decade so far.

'Two Days, One Night' - Dir. Luc Dardenne and Jean-Pierre Dardenne (15)

Subsisting on the sort of tight concept I tend to love, the Dardenne brother's latest stars the always-excellent Marion Cotillard as Sandra: a severely depressed woman who is ready to return to work only to discover that her colleagues have voted her out of a job. Having learnt they can manage without her on payroll, her bosses decide to cut costs by making staff choose between Sandra and their annual bonus payment. In her absence they overwhelmingly voted for the money, but when Sandra convinces them to recall another vote after the weekend she has the titular timeframe to convince each individual to back her over personal financial gain.

It's an interesting moral question which the film explores in all its complexity as Sandra visits each person in turn and makes the same basic argument with mixed results. Some are outright hostile, some can't look her in the eye, many are sympathetic but insist they need the money, whilst others agree to back her for reasons ranging from solidarity to shame. Perhaps the film treats an attempted suicide too casually and Sandra's apparent defeat of bed-ridden depression by the credits is a little too sudden, but this is a complex and original film which deserves to be seen. Especially as the Dardenne's again display an impressive knack for marrying social realism with something more hopeful and optimistic than that term usually suggests.

'Nightcrawler' - Dir. Dan Gilroy (15)

'Network' for the modern age, 'Nightcrawler' is a darkly comic and very disturbing thriller which casts Jake Gyllenhaal in a potentially career redefining role as Louis Bloom - a sociopath who, lacking in empathy or anything approaching a moral code, is perfectly suited to filming grisly accidents for an unscrupulous TV news network. Riz Ahmed is almost equally impressive as the glassy eyed, vulnerable young intern he manipulates and Rene Russo is perfectly cast as the news director he threatens and simultaneously covets - without hint of warmth or desire - as a sexual outlet. Bill Paxton also makes for an interesting foil as a cocky, alpha male rival in his quest for accident and murder footage, but there's no doubt this is Gyllenhaal's show.

It's pretty grim and though not physically violent (with one notable exception in the opening scene) Bloom is a menacing, unsettling presence who seems to threaten an aggressive outburst during every encounter. It speaks to writer-director Dan Gilroy's skill that he never releases that pressure valve. To allow that outburst would grant the character a level of interest in other people and a degree of emotion that he just doesn't have. Much scarier is how coldly and calculatedly he seems to regard everybody in his orbit. There's something of Patrick Bateman in him and maybe a slice of Travis Bickle too. The film itself invites that company not only with its lead character but with its complexity and quality.

'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1' - Dir. Francis Lawrence (12A)

The theoretically difficult "part one" literary adaptation is by now almost its own sub-genre. As studios seek to eek every bit of profitable life out of popular franchises with limited lifespans (this is based on the third of a trilogy of books) conventional wisdom says the 'Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part One's of this world are all set-up and no pay-off - at their worst they could be considered extended trailers for their concluding sequel. However, as with the aforementioned penultimate Potter (the only other film of this trend I have personally seen), I found 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1' to benefit greatly from the sort of extended character development and patient build-up stuff this practice lends itself to, whatever its cynical intentions at boardroom level. What we have is a movie that doesn't have to hurtle along towards the action climax but which instead can spend a bit of time (like Potter) moping about in the woods and giving screentime (and still too little) to the film's incredible supporting cast.

Julianne Moore enters the series here, as the president of the rebel organisation that rescued Jennifer Lawrence's Katniss at the end of the second film, whilst Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Jeffrey Wright and Stanley Tucci make welcome returns in eye-catching character roles. As does the late Philip Seymour Hoffman who gives presence and integrity to an understated and uncharacteristically calm part as one of Moore's advisors. Then we have Natalie Dormer as a ridiculously cool propaganda filmmaker, with this year's best on-screen haircut. The weak links remain the two love interests: hunky bore-fest Gale (Liam Hemsworth) and wet-blanket bore-fest Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). Neither is the fault of the actor but rather the characters themselves, who are equally boring in the novels. (Sam Clafin's Finnick Odair is far more charismatic and interesting.)

It's not as exciting as the second movie or as focussed as the first, but this is the one where the hitherto wobbly political themes start to actually get interesting and take on added weight. In that sense it's the cleverest so far. It's also refreshing to get moving on the wider plot across Panem - outside of the titular games (this film has none) - which finally takes centre stage after being glimpsed at the margins of the previous films. All in all a satisfying run-up to the final chapter that even manages to craft a decent ending out of the arbitrary half-way point as hewn from the source novel.

'Gone Girl' - Dir. David Fincher (18)

It goes without saying that 'Gone Girl' is technically excellent, gripping, peerlessly made stuff. It's a Fincher movie, for God's sake. The guy knows his craft. The casting is excellent across the board, with some surprising choices (like Neil Patrick Harris as a slightly sinister stalker and Tyler Perry as a slick lawyer with a shit-eating grin). It's all top-level stuff. Only I really didn't like it very much. I've argued with people about whether or not it's outright misogynistic (there are a lot of good arguments that it is and a lot of strong evidence in that direction) but ultimately I come down on the side of this being a black-hearted film that just hates all humans equally. People suck and are bad for each other and are inclined to bring out the worst in each other, it seems to say.

Rosamund Pike's character - the "abducted" wife - is perhaps the most obviously 'evil', but Affleck's husband is almost equally manipulative and not somebody you'd ever want to meet or be friends with. Arguably the only two characters who aren't completely hateful are female, in the form of Affleck's sister (Carrie Coon) and Kim Dickens' detective. Yet these could easily be written off as "some of my best friends are women" plants to support Affleck's consistent mistrust and dislike of (most of) the women in his life (from his wife's mother to the shrill lady on the TV), seeing as they mostly ally with him throughout.

You can discuss the ins and outs of the film's sexual politics all day and never come to an agreement. I'll probably leave it at "they are troubling" for now and just say it wasn't ultimately my cup of tea. I've really grown to like Fincher's output in recent years as he moved away from what I considered the nihilism and nastiness of films like 'Seven' and 'Fight Club' towards films like 'Zodiac' and 'The Social Network' - which were equally grim, disturbing and dark but had more of a human dimension. For me 'Gone Girl' is a step back towards that older stuff. I know a lot of people would rate 'Seven' and 'Fight Club' as his best work, so maybe for those folks 'Gone Girl' is possibly a return to form. Personally, for all its technical prowess I found nothing to like here.

'Mr. Turner' - Dir. Mike Leigh (12A)

A lot to admire, not least of all Timothy Spall's deservedly lauded performance, but Mike Leigh's biopic of the late life and career of famed landscape painter William Turner left me oddly cold. There are plenty of interesting character moments and colourful period details and it's also a rare period piece that doesn't glamourise the past, painting London as very modern, lived-in place, but still (unlike the vast body of Leigh's work) didn't make me feel any way in particular. Perhaps that's born of a lack of investment in the subject matter, I don't know. It's possibly down to the fact that Turner, as portrayed by Spall, is a gruff, grunting, mumbling figure who often seems apathetic towards everything except boats and landscapes. There's something deeper going on with this man who denies the existence of his children and treats his housemaid so callously, but who is depicted as falling deeply in love in his twilight years and who weeps over the loss of his old dad. A nuanced, interesting character study, but lacking something I can't quite identify.