The Best Films of 2015 - so far...

       After six months of cinematic gold, gunk, and everything in between, it is time to reflect upon what the cinema has brought to us up until this point. The first half of 2015 did quite well in providing quality as compared to other years - notoriously 2014 - so I'm excited about what the rest of the year has to offer. As it stands today, here are the best films of 2015:


10. Kingsman: The Secret Service (dir. Matthew Vaughn)

Taron Egerton and Colin Firth in "Kingsman: The Secret Service"

Kingsman: The Secret Service was the first movie of the year that had everyone talking -- mostly about how much they loved it. The movie is not fantastic, but it delivers hand-to-hand action set pieces in a way that is fresh, amusing and entertaining. The spy genre is one that comes with many expectations and plot beats, and Kingsman manages to hit all those beats while throwing in some new tunes to sing along to as well. It's a exuberant picture with energy, style, and panache that features an exhilarating villain sidekick with blades for feet who isn't afraid to use them. It's a great fun popcorn movie if there ever was one.


9. Tomorrowland (dir. Brad Bird)

George Clooney in Disney's "Tomorrowland"

Tomorrowland is a film based on a theme park from the mind of the imaginative and gifted Brad Bird who gave us "The Incredibles" and "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol". While we can expect visual expertise and splendor, what is really surprising about this film is that none of its visuals and awe-factor make it special. In fact, it might be the case that there's just nothing special about it's visuals and action set pieces that Mr. Bird has become known for. Why this movie succeeds is because of the characters and how they are captured and represented by the actors portraying them. Never before has Britt Robertson done such convincing work playing a science nerd who is interested in moral and adventurous behavior from different scientific agencies. George Clooney's performance is light and heavy at once, combining elements of humor and seriousness that I can't say he's done before. Although Robertson and Clooney do excellent work, the real star of the movie is Raffey Cassidy who plays a robot that is programmed to recruit people to Tomorrowland. There isn't an ounce of visual effects to aid her performance and I didn't doubt her robotic interior for a second. The movie does get bogged down in a sloppy message that isn't well thought out but these actors do a terrific job in creating a sense of a real place, time, and urgency.


8. It Follows (dir. David Robert Mitchell)

Maika Monroe in "It Follows"

What makes It Follows stand out above other horror films is that it succeeds in being terribly creepy while consistently amazing on many different technical levels. There are superbly crafted shots in this film beginning with the very first one when we see our main character -- played by Maika Monroe --being chased around her suburban neighborhood by seemingly nothing. The lighting choices and camera work throughout help to establish the film's eerie tone and contribute to the creepiness of this mysterious force that only seems to follow. The score is one of the year's very best (if not the best) and it is used sparingly where it can be most effective. The images in this film will haunt you for days, weeks, or months in my case because the attention to detail which is being used to frighten the audience pays off so well. It's inventive, quirky, timeless, and horrifying.


7. Spy (dir. Paul Feig)

Melissa McCarthy in "Spy"

Who knew this film would be such a winner? I certainly didn't walking into the movie with low expectations but leaving out with an ache in my side from the laughter. Director and Screenwriter Paul Feig packs laughs on top on laughs when he executes a story about a woman who is extremely gifted at her job but whom no one will take seriously -- not even herself. Melissa McCarthy is at the top of her game but no one was funnier in this film than Jason Statham who's comedic abilities should no longer be in question after his turn in this film. Rose Byrne who plays the film's villain is hilarious, menacing and sexy all at the same time and is an excellent compliment to Ms. McCarthy. The scenes they have together are hilarious. What brings this movie above your average comedy is that it doesn't just use the spy movie genre for jokes, but it is as legitimately a spy movie as Kingsman: The Secret Service, therefore the thrills and the jokes are coming at you from all angles at the same time. It's a blast.


6. Chappie (dir. Neil Blomkamp)

Chappie under the influence of gangsters in "Chappie"

What I admire most about Neil Blomkamp is his vision and his affinity for his home. We get both in Chappie -- a story about a child-like robot with full conscience capabilities. Blomkamp is a master of dirt and grime so every frame of Chappie is unpolished in a deliberate way in order for the teeth of the story and setting can sink into our skin. Sharlto Copley's performance as the titular character in the film is the best male performance put on screen so far this year. It's charming, beautiful, and heartfelt as Chappie has to navigate the murky waters of a couple of street gangsters who want to use him to their advantage while trying to please his maker played by Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel. The movie takes many surprising and revelatory turns during its final stretch that catch you completely off guard but completely work. It attempts to answer the question of "What is consciousness?' by giving us an answer that is unlike anything I've seen in similar movies. For that, I say Blomkamp has won.


5. While We're Young (dir. Noah Baumbach)

Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts in "While We're Young"

Noah Baumbach brings us another stingingly truthful portrait of modern American life for young adults and the young adults at heart with his original comedy While We're Young. In subject, it's a movie about the lives of documentary filmmakers as their paths cross by chance or perhaps not by chance. Baumbach's humor is very understated and lifelike; something to be admired in the age of Apatow-itis. On top of being a poignant commentary on young adulthood in modern America, it speaks on ambition and the idea of fearing that you're not actually all that you try to tell yourself that you are. Artistic integrity vs. commercial success is addressed here, among other hilarious issues that stretch from sea to shining sea. Despite being a straightforward comedy-drama, the places where the narrative takes the audience is definitely uncharted territory, but a confident captain like Baumbach can steer this cinematic ship to heartbreaking safety, which he does with casual elegance. The year's best dialogue so far, as well as one the best male performances of the year by Stiller give While We're Young it's charm.  Truly a special film.


4. Mad Max: Fury Road (dir. George Miller)

Tom Hardy in "Mad Max: Fury Road"

You will never see anything like Mad Max: Fury Road. A explosive extravaganza from start to finish, about a 2 hour long car chase which isn't anything short of the most visually expressive movie in recent memory. George Miller's love for his work is leaking all over this piece of cinema, for he has put his heart and soul in delivering a work that thrills from A to Z. Tom Hardy does his job to perfection as Max, a pure survivalist that turns into a revivalist over the course of his interaction with Charlize Theron's character Furiosa who has stolen the king's property -- a car full of beautiful women that the King uses to breed with. It's thrill after thrill when the king decides to chase Furiosa and Max through the desert and back again in order to reattain his "property". What the films lacks in character development it makes up for big time in action and splendor that would leave even the most anti-action movie-goers amazed. An exhilarating ride.


3. Unfriended (dir. Levan Gabriadze)

Shelley Hennig in "Unfriended" 

In what is the most surprising film of the year thus far, Unfriended shows us the power of a well-executed screenplay. The idea is rather ambitious: To tell the story of a young girl who committed suicide due to bullying that returns as a cyber ghost that stalks the main characters as they are online video chatting. The entire film from start to finish is told from the perspective of Blaire Lily's computer screen played by Shelley Henning. What is brilliant about the film is it's ability to capitalize on every single click, every window opened or minimized, in order to reveal something about the characters or move the story forward. It is a successful blend of horror and comedy being really funny in one moment and completely terrifying in another. It is the only film this year to have really scared me to the point of not wanting to go online for hours. When a horror film does that, you know it has been successful. It is crazily cleaver and the most inventive horror film I've seen in many years. A fresh addition to the found footage genre that has been souring as of late. If you're one to not be affected by horror movies, this movie will get to you. Trust me. I remember walking out of the theater having known that I've just seen something really special.


2. Ex Machina (dir. Alex Garland)

Alicia Vikander as Ava in "Ex Machina"

Ex Machina is a film that grabs you by the eyeballs and dares you to look away. It's a film that you're constantly trying to figure out. Who's playing who? What's everyone's motive? Is there more to a character than meets the eye? It's a film that will take you places you had no idea you were going at the outset. It's a film that is unpredictable. First time filmmaker Alex Garland splashes onto the scene with this original tale of a software designer played by Oscar Issac who invites one of his employees to his estate to test out what he thinks is a piece of robotic innovation. Her name is Ava, and she might be the world's first conscience robot. It is up to young programmer Caleb played by Domhnall Gleeson to decide if his experience with her makes him believe that she is really alive. If she passes then she will be shown to the world, lauded, praised, and admired. But if she fails? I'll let the movie answer that. The screenwriting here is so tight and structured, leaving just the right amount in the shadows until the appropriate moment of revelation. Alicia Vikander's performance as Ava is one of the year's best so far and this small story with only three characters packs one the hugest punches in its finale that's sure to inspire hours of conversation afterward. An enticing film from start to finish.


1. Inside Out (dir. Pete Docter)

Amy Poehler as the voice of Joy in "Inside Out"

Disney/Pixar's Inside Out is the best film of 2015 so far, and I highly doubt that another film this year will even come close to dethroning this exuberant masterpiece of cinematic art. What makes Inside Out so special is that watching it makes you feel like a child again, it brings back not only personal memories, but memories about being a kid and going to the movies and seeing something that really connects with you on a visceral, emotional, and even physical level. The story takes place inside the mind of an eleven-year-old girl named Riley Anderson as she is uprooted from her home in Minnesota and is placed in a new city on the other side of the country called San Francisco; while her emotions -- Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust -- battle over the right way to control the new circumstances. With Joy and Sadness being launched out of "headquarters" where the emotions operate their duties, the emotions must figure out the appropriate way to return Riley back to normal. It's incredibly inventive and creative with every aspect of the mind fleshed out in a way that not only seem plausible, but accessible and truthful. The attention-to-detail is impeccable with every corner of every frame being planned and thought out to represent Riley's mind. The way the characters move and interact demonstrates once again that Pixar animation is miles ahead of the competition with their animation; not to mention the film is absolutely gorgeous, heartfelt and moving in a real relatable way that few films that are this conceptually complex are. Michael Giacchino's score is something of real beauty and it is the soul of the movie if the characters are the brain. Pete Docter's screenplay is executed in the best way a concept like this could with the comedic timing of a professional, offering some of Pixar's best laughs. Amy Poehler and Phyllis Smith really stand out as they do Academy Award-worthy work as the voices of Joy and Sadness respectfully. This film is one for the history books, standing as one of Pixar's greatest achievements, if not their greatest ever. I still haven't been able to get it out of my head. A true masterpiece if there ever was one. Inside Out is the reason I go to the movies.