Top Movies of January-May 2015

New Feature!

Because I watch so many movies, I thought it would be handy to have a summary at the end of the month of my top movies of that month.  These are movies I watched during the month that I feel are worth watching, for a variety of reasons. Just like my viewing patterns, movies will be both first-run and from the back catalog. I will include a total of movies* watched in the month and a sentence or two explaining why I’m recommending this movie to you.  After this catch-up post, this will be a monthly feature.

*For our purposes “movies” will include both films and the DVDs of TV show seasons.

January:
(6 total movies watched)
dear_white_people_ver2   skeleton_twins   zero_motivation_ver2

Dear White People
Come for the peek into college campus life via Black characters, stay for Lionel, the nerd.

Skeleton Twins
Hollywood is littered with the broken careers of post-Saturday Night Live actors.  Watch this for two alumni, attempting/succeeding at serious drama.

Zero Motivation 
You will probably have to work to find this comedy, an Israeli Army female version of Office Space, but it will be worth it.


 

February:
(2 total movies watched)
tremes1

Treme Season 1
Travel back to just after Katrina and watch a multi-racial cast attempt to put their lives back together.


 

March:
(11 total movies watched)
cinderella
Cinderella (2015)
Marvel at how well Disney translates an animated classic into a live-action movie.  Become verklempt during the ballroom scene and gasp just how well the dress works.


 

April:
(9 total movies watched)
twelve_years_a_slave      short_term_twelve   furious_seven_ver2

12 Years a Slave
Watch it because the acting is first rate and the subject matter is important.

Short Term 12
Recommended for its heart (it’s so much better than those movies designed to inspire you) and for its female-centered plot.

Furious 7
Only watch this after you have enjoyed numbers 1, 4, 5, & 6 of the series and marvel at how well they sent off Paul Walker


 

May:
(12 total movies watched)

ex_machina now voyager      me_and_orson_welles    while_were_young    mikey-and-nicky-movie-poster-1976-1010724664   like_crazy

Ex Machina
A great movie for post-viewing conversation and spellbinding to watch.

Now, Voyager
Female centered 1950s drama (not the sci-fi film I thought it was) about a woman of a certain age finding her path

Me and Orson Welles
A very good backstage drama of Wells’s 1937 production of Julius Caesar.

Like Crazy
Quietly acted and improvised realistic love story.

While We’re Young
Smart and funny and a good time capsule of current life for 20- and 40-somethings.

Mikey & Nicky
Look to Elaine May for a different kind of gangster film.


 

2 thoughts on “Top Movies of January-May 2015”

  1. Oh hey! I’m out of order for my comments – but I just saw the first end of the month post and was impressed. This is the perfect update/catch-up post for this new type of post. Nicely done!

  2. Skeleton Twins, Zero Motivation, and Short Term 12 are all currently in my Netflix queue. I was super surprised when ZM popped up in the “new movies” section the other day. I only added it because I remembered how much you loved it. I started to watch Skeleton Twins the other night but then Dan came in the room and I knew he wouldn’t want to watch it, so I turned it off. Soon.

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