10.) Mr. Turner [1/29/2015]

An incredibly slow, almost book-like biography of the British painter who could be considered the grandfather of the Impressionists; the film, unfortunately for me, expected I know a lot about art, history, and late 19th Century Britain, thus making it, at times, impenetrable.

9.) Cake [1/26/2015]

Cake was a bit plodding at times (down right painfully slow at others), and not without its narrative flaws, but, in the end, the (overly) ambitious film was alright; the role was a departure for Jennifer Aniston (one which people have been trumpeting for months now), and she was good enough that I hope it leads to other, maybe better, roles.

8.) The Wedding Ringer [1/24/2015]

Like Hitch but for bros, and lacking a good chunk of the charm; that said, if you are looking to rent an incredibly simple comedy, one could do worse.

7.) Black Hat [1/22/2015]

Do you remember in Live Free or Die Hard when Justin Long's character, Matt Farrell, "hacked the internet" on his T-Mobile SideKick, and the collective audience groaned at the writer's perceived lack of understanding when it came to the internet; this was that, but without the advantage of a car being driven into a flying helicopter, which is to say it was dumb without redemption.

6.) American Sniper [1/21/2015 - IMAX]

Leaving aside some of the personal information about Chris Kyle that has floated to the surface since the release of this movie and the book before it, this was a really moving film about the effects of trauma, and the impossibility of normality once a war (or the soldiers time in it) is up; Bradley Cooper provides a depth to both the character and the story which may not have existed in his real life, but was needed to tell this story.

5.) Into the Woods [1/20/2015]

At times clever, Into the Woods would probably be rated pretty highly by people who like musicals, but I'm not that person; I did find Chris Pine to be surprisingly nuanced, and I am now convinced that Emily Blunt can do anything. 

4.) Selma [1/9/2015]

2014 was full of excellent bio-pics (Theory of Everything, The Imitation Game, Wild, even Unbroken was fairly good), and Selma continued that trend; it was carried by an excellent performance by David Oyelowo and great direction by Ava DuVernay.

3.) Top Five [1/6/2015]

Birdman:Michael Keaton :: Top Five:Chris Rock, re: art imitating life; a surprisingly entertaining and genuinely funny film.

2.) The Gambler [1/6/2015]

Someone wrote the most Sam Rockwellian of Sam Rockwell characters for a deeply philosophical movie exploring ideas of identity, existentialism, and valuation (while drastically misunderstanding the life and pay scale of a tenured faculty member of an English Department); then, Mark Wahlberg was cast instead of Sam Rockwell and the wheels fell off what could have been an amazing film.

1.) Big Eyes [1/2/2015]

As much as a story about how Americans consume art as it was about the bizarre relationship between Walter Keane his wife, Margaret; at times, this highly stylized film could have used more subtlety, which is not in Tim Burton's toolkit, but it was an enjoyable film with great performances from Amy Adams and Cristoph Waltz.