The Age of Adaline (2015)

Pleasantly surprised by its IMDb rating of 7.3, I can’t say I felt the same for the film’s plot. The story played out pretty much exactly as I’d expected but then again I don’t think it really pretends to be the movie that Inceptions you or pulls a Shawshank Redemption at the very end.

I personally love movies that remind us of the preciousness of time – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Click, About Time (one of my all-time favourite time travel movies). What I liked in particular about this one was the way in which they brought that message home – reminding us of our inevitable doom by showing us the complete opposite – Adaline Bowman, the girl who lived (and lived, and lived..)

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) *spoilers*

“If I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die historic on a fury road!”

Kudos to George Miller for some of the most creative action sequences in recent years (how many times have you seen the term “car chase” and “original” in the same sentence). Although Miller makes a real attempt to balance the gritty violence and harsh landscape with emotional ‘softness’ from the characters, the audience is given so little context that it takes half the film just to figure out what is going on let alone form connections with the characters, while the strange ending seemed to leave more questions than answers.

‘Interstellar’: Finally a Nolan film worth the hype. *Spoilers*

This film really blew my mind. It was so much better than the ‘Dark Knight’ films and much better executed than ‘Inception’ (2010). There were definitely elements of ‘Inception’ scattered throughout the film but with Interstellar, Nolan seemed to have redefined those elements from being a cinematic novelty few have seen before to an interesting concept that fits seamlessly into the story line yet still stands out as a defining feature.

‘John Wick’: All the things wrong with modern-day action flicks in 101 minutes

I did not have high expectations going in to see one of the least-anticipated movies of the year. Nevertheless I told myself I would be content with the slightest ounce of originality or believability (asking for both is a bit much). Needless to say, it fell short of even my lowest of low expectations and hence the result in the list below to summarize the issues that constantly pop up in these kinds of movies in recent times and why John Wick was no different and really did not even try to be.

‘The One I Love’: A must-see of 2014

If you haven’t watched ‘The One I Love’ then do it. This is one movie that you really do have to see for yourself.

Highly imaginative and quirky, the film seems to be a weird mixing pot of genres from Drama to Comedy, to Romance with a hint of Mystery. And because it doesn’t appear to belong to any clear-cut genre you really have no clue what Director, Charlie McDowell, is going to throw at you next.

It’s no ordinary feat these days for a film to completely capture the audience’s attention, and perhaps more impressive is that this film maintains that level of intrigue right up until the rolling of the film credits. … But how?

Enemy (2014) – explaining the ending *spoilers*

“Chaos is order yet undeciphered.”

Without a doubt one of the most shocking movie endings you will never see coming. This is one of the few films that left me completely clueless and feeling as though I were a 6-year-old whose parents had unknowingly taken to see a horror movie at the cinema.

History professor Adam Bell (Gyllenhaal) stumbles across his doppleganger, actor Anthony Clair (also Gyllenhaal) whilst watching a movie and becomes obsessed with finding him. Interesting concept, but believe me when I say this is just the beginning of the mind-boogling ride that is Enemy.

If you’re looking for an easy breezy feel-good movie, then Enemy is probably not the movie for you.

The Zero Theorem (2013)

Are you here alone?

We are generally everywhere alone. 

Quite an intriguing film that has just managed to slip under the radar despite having such a high profile cast of Christoph Waltz, Matt Damon, Tilda Swinton and David Thewlis (Lupin from the Harry Potter series).

Boyhood (2014) – Bold in spirit but somewhat lacking in heart

When you first hear that Boyhood was 12 years in the making, it seems only natural that people (critics included) would be raving about this movie. Jen and I both came into this with quite high expectations and while it had its moments, I found it a little lacking in the emotional department.

Boyhood is a true coming-of-age story that follows Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from the age of 5 to 18. Through him we also come to meet his sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater), his divorced parents (Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke) and various other family and friends.

Snowpiercer *spoilers* – One of the most underrated films of 2013?

Set in the not-too-distant dystopian future where humanity’s efforts to ‘solve’ global warming resulted in a second ice age of sorts. This resulted in all of earth’s inhabitants being frozen in popsicles with the sole survivors on board a train with a self-sustaining engine and no destination. The train is divided into distinct classes which are physically separated by their respective carriages. The lowest class (the ‘tail end’) live in squalid poverty and a diet of ‘protein’ bars that resemble blocks of blood jelly while the first class enjoy a life of luxury and excess with a night club, sauna and sushi bar.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

*Disclaimer: I know very little about the original comic so please don’t expect any references to or comparisons with the comic or you will be bitterly disappointed. You have been warned.*

This movie was not a highly-anticipated movie of mine because simply-put I didn’t see how a film with a group of misfits including a talking Raccoon and a Vin Diesel-voiced tree thing could have any appeal to anyone but children and comic geeks (and I say that with the utmost affection as I have many friends in both categories).

I know this kind of alluded to a but-boy-was-I-wrong opening for the next paragraph but it would only half tick that box. Most of the movie was as expected including a very simple plot and a few warm fuzzy moments of camaraderie and belonging. I did enjoy the back stories to each of the characters although only Quill’s (Chris Pratt) was really fleshed out which was a shame but also understandable due to the risk of deviation from the main plot. Also, the relationship between Quill and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) was very shallowly developed and there wasn’t enough basis in my opinion why Quill would risk his life to save hers after sharing only very brief moments with her.