Here Are the St. Louis Film Critics Nominations!

Posted on December 11, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Golden Globes weren’t the only precursors to be announced today! Here are the St. Louis Film Critics Nominations. One thing that I like about the St. Louis Film Critics is that they give out an award for “best scene.” Personally, I would vote for the prison break from Guardians of the Galaxy.

Here are the nominees:

(h/t to awards circuit)

BEST PICTURE
Birdman
Boyhood
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
The Imitation Game

BEST DIRECTOR
Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
David Fincher, “Gone Girl”
Alejandro Inarritu, “Birdman”
Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
Morten Tyldum, “The Imitation Game”

BEST ACTOR
Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Imitation Game”
Jake Gyllenhaal, “Nightcrawler”
Tom Hardy, “Locke”
Michael Keaton, “Birdman”
Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory of Everything”

BEST ACTRESS
Marion Cotillard, “Two Days, One Night”
Felicity Jones, “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike, “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon, “Wild”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Josh Brolin, “Inherent Vice”
Ethan Hawke, “Boyhood”
Edward Norton, “Birdman”
Tony Revolori, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Mark Ruffalo, “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
Jessica Chastain, “A Most Violent Year”
Carrie Coon, “Gone Girl”
Mackenzie Foy, “Interstellar”
Kiera Knightley, “The Imitation Game”
Emma Stone, “Birdman”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Birdman
Boyhood
Locke
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Nightcrawler
Whiplash

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Gone Girl
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Imitation Game
The Theory of Everything
Unbroken

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Birdman
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Interstellar
Nightcrawler
Unbroken

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Birdman
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy
Interstellar
Noah

BEST ART DIRECTION
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Mr. Turner
Nightcrawler
Snowpiercer
Under the Skin

BEST MUSIC SCORE
Birdman
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Inherent Vice
Interstellar
Under the Skin

BEST MUSIC SOUNDTRACK
Begin Again
Boyhood
Get On Up
Guardians of the Galaxy
Into the Woods
Whiplash

BEST FOREIGN FILM
Force Majeure
Gloria
Human Capital
Ida
Two Days, One Night

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Big Hero 6
The Book of Life
The Boxtrolls
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Lego Movie
Penguins of Madagascar

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Citizenfour
Finding Vivian Maier
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Life Itself
Red Army
Rich Hill

BEST COMEDY
22 Jump Street
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians of the Galaxy
Obvious Child
St. Vincent

BEST ARTHOUSE
Boyhood
Calvary
Frank
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Locke
Whiplash

BEST SCENE
22 Jump Street – End Credits
Birdman – Times Square
The Guardians of the Galaxy – Prison Break
Selma – Church Bombing
Whiplash – Finale drum solo
X-Men: Days of Future Past – Quicksilver Pentagon Escape

Here Are The Online Film Critics Society Nominations!

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Online Film Critics Society announced their nominees for the best of 2014 earlier today and what can I say other than the fact that I love them! Seriously, it’s such a wonderful mix of the expected (Boyhood, Selma) and the unexpected (Ida, Mommy).

If the Oscar nominations look anything like the OFCS nominations, then it will be a very interesting night. (Unfortunately, they probably won’t…)

(h/t to awardwatch)

Best Picture
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Ida
The Lego Movie
Mommy
Nightcrawler
Selma
Two Days, One Night
Whiplash
Under the Skin

Best Animated Feature
Big Hero 6
The Boxtrolls
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Lego Movie
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

Best Film Not in the English Language
Ida
The Missing Picture
Mommy
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya
Two Days, One Night

Best Documentary
Citizenfour
Life Itself
The Missing Picture
National Gallery
The Overnighters

Best Director
Wes Anderson – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Jean-Pierre Dardenne & Luc Dardenne – Two Days, One Night
Ava DuVernay – Selma
Jonathan Glazer – Under the Skin
Richard Linklater – Boyhood

Best Actor
Ralph Fiennes – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Brendan Gleeson – Calvary
Jake Gyllenhaal – Nightcrawler
Michael Keaton – Birdman
Timothy Spall – Mr. Turner

Best Actress
Marion Cotillard – Two Days, One Night
Essie Davis – The Babadook
Anne Dorval – Mommy
Julianne Moore – Still Alice
Rosamund Pike – Gone Girl

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin – Inherent Vice
Ethan Hawke – Boyhood
Edward Norton – Birdman
Mark Ruffalo – Foxcatcher
J.K. Simmons – Whiplash

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette – Boyhood
Jessica Chastain – A Most Violent Year
Suzanne Clément – Mommy
Agata Kulesza – Ida
Tilda Swinton – Snowpiercer

Best Original Screenplay
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Selma
Two Days, One Night
Whiplash

Best Adapted Screenplay
Gone Girl
Inherent Vice
Snowpiercer
Under the Skin
We Are the Best!

Best Editing
Birdman
Boyhood
Gone Girl
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Whiplash

Best Cinematography
Birdman
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Ida
Mr. Turner
Under the Skin

Best Non-U.S. Release (non-competitive category)
’71 ,
10,000 km ,
Entre Nós ,
Han Gong-ju ,
Hard to Be a God ,
The Look of Silence ,
The Salt of the Earth ,
What We Do in the Shadows ,
Timbuktu ,
The Tribe

The Washington D.C. Film Critics Honor Boyhood!

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Washington D.C. Film Critics announced their picks for the best of 2014 today and, much like almost every other critics group in America, they named Boyhood best picture!

You can revisit the Washington D.C. nominations here. And you can find the winners below!

(h/t to Awards Circuit)

Best Film
“Boyhood”

Best Director
Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”

Best Actor
Michael Keaton, “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”

Best Actress
Julianne Moore,”Still Alice”

Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”

Best Acting Ensemble
“Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”

Best Youth Performance
Ellar Coltrane, “Boyhood”

Best Adapted Screenplay
“Gone Girl”

Best Original Screenplay
“Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”

Best Animated Feature
“The LEGO Movie”

Best Documentary
“Life Itself”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Force Majeure”

Best Art Direction
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Cinematography
“Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”

Best Editing
“Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)”

Best Original Score
“Under the Skin”

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, DC
“Captain America: The Winter Soldier”

The New York Film Critics Online Have Spoken!

Posted on December 7, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Earlier today, the New York Film Critics Online also announced their picks for the best of 2014! Check out the winners below:

(h/t to Award Circuit)

Best Picture — Boyhood

Best Ensemble — Birdman

Best Animated Feature Film — The LEGO Movie

Best Documentary Feature — Life Itself

Best Foreign Language Film — Two Days, One Night

Best Actor — Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything

Best Actress — Marion Cotillard in Two Days, One Night

Best Director — Richard Linklater for Boyhood

Best Debut Director — Dan Gilroy for Nightcrawler

Best Use of Music In A Film — Get On Up

Best Cinematography — Birdman

Best Screenplay — Birdman

Best Supporting Actor — J.K. Simmons in Whiplash

Best Supporting Actress — Patricia Arquette in Boyhood

Breakthrough performance — Jack O’Connell in Unbroken

New York Film Critics Online Top 10

Birdman

Boyhood

Guardians of the Galaxy

Imitation Game

Most Violent Year

Mr. Turner

Selma

Theory of Everything

Under the Skin

Whiplash

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Embrace Tom Hardy and Boyhood!

Posted on December 7, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association also announced their picks for the best of 2014 earlier today and, as typically seems to happen with the LAFCA, it’s an interesting list. (Let’s not forget that last year, the LAFCA shocked everyone by naming both Her and Gravity as being the best film of 2013, along with giving James Franco a much-deserved award for Best Supporting Actor.)

This year, the LAFCA named Boyhood best picture, which wasn’t much of a shock. Far more surprising was their pick for best actor (Tom Hardy for Locke, which I am now kicking myself for not seeing when I had the chance) and best actress (Patricia Arquette for Boyhood, a role that many of us believe will get Arquette a nomination for supporting actress as opposed to lead actress).

Here are the LAFCA winners!

(h/t to awardswatch)

Best Film
Winner: Boyhood
Runner-up: The Grand Budapest Hotel

Best Director
Winner: Richard Linklater, BOYHOOD
Runner-up: Wes Anderson, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Best Actor
Winner: Tom Hardy, LOCKE
Runner-up: Michael Keaton, BIRDMAN

Best Actress
Winner: Patricia Arquette, BOYHOOD
Runner-up: Julianne Moore, STILL ALICE

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: J.K. Simmons, WHIPLASH
Runner-up: Edward Norton, BIRDMAN

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Agata Kulesza, IDA
Runner-up: Rene Russo, NIGHTCRAWLER

Best Screenplay
Winner: Wes Anderson, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
Runner-up: BIRDMAN

Best Cinematography
Winner: Emmanuel Lubezki, BIRDMAN
Runner-up: Dick Pope, MR. TURNER

Best Production Design
Winner: Adam Stockhausen, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
Runner-up: Ondrej Nekvasil, SNOWPIERCER

Best Editing
Winner: Sandra Adair, BOYHOOD
Runner-up: Barney Pilling, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Best Music Score
Winner: Jonny Greenwood, INHERENT VICE and Mica Levi, UNDER THE SKIN (tie)

Best Foreign-Language Film
Winner: IDA
Runner-up: WINTER SLEEP

Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film
Winner: CITIZENFOUR
Runner-up: LIFE ITSELF

Best Animation
Winner: THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA
Runner-up: THE LEGO MOVIE

Here are The Washington D.C. Film Critics Picks For The Best of 2014!

Posted on December 6, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

I like the Washington D.C. Film Critics because they don’t just give out awards. Instead, they nominate multiple films and leave everyone in suspense until they get around to giving out their awards. Just like the Oscars!

Anyway, here are their nominees for 2014!

Best Film:
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
Boyhood
Gone Girl
Selma
Whiplash

Best Director:
Damien Chazelle (Whiplash)
Ava DuVernay (Selma)
David Fincher (Gone Girl)
Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Richard Linklater (Boyhood)

Best Actor:
Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game)
Oscar Isaac (A Most Violent Year)
Michael Keaton (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
David Oyelowo (Selma)
Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)

Best Actress:
Scarlett Johansson (Under the Skin)
Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything)
Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl)
Reese Witherspoon (Wild)

Best Supporting Actor:
Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)
Edward Norton (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher)
Andy Serkis (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes)
J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)

Best Supporting Actress:
Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)
Jessica Chastain (A Most Violent Year)
Laura Dern (Wild)
Emma Stone (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Tilda Swinton (Snowpiercer)

Best Acting Ensemble:
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Into the Woods
Selma

Best Youth Performance:
Ellar Coltrane (Boyhood)
Mackenzie Foy (Interstellar)
Jaeden Lieberher (St. Vincent)
Tony Revolori (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Noah Wiseman (The Babadook)

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl)
Graham Moore (The Imitation Game)
Paul Thomas Anderson (Inherent Vice)
Anthony McCarten (The Theory of Everything)
Nick Hornby (Wild)

Best Original Screenplay:
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Richard Linklater (Boyhood)
Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Phil Lord & Christopher Miller (The LEGO Movie)
Damien Chazelle (Whiplash)

Best Animated Feature:
Big Hero 6
The Book of Life
The Boxtrolls
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The LEGO Movie

Best Documentary:
Citizenfour
Jodorowsky’s Dune
Last Days in Vietnam
Life Itself
The Overnighters

Best Foreign Language Film:
Force Majeure
Ida
Mommy
Two Days, One Night
Wild Tales

Best Art Direction:
Production Designer: Kevin Thompson, Set Decorator: George DeTitta Jr., SDSA (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Production Designer: Adam Stockhausen, Set Decorator: Anna Pinnock (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Production Designer: Nathan Crowley, Set Decorator: Gary Fettis (Interstellar)
Production Designer: Dennis Gassner, Set Decorator: Anna Pinnock (Into the Woods)
Production Designer: Ondrej Nekvasil, Set Decorator: Beatrice Brentnerova (Snowpiercer)

Best Cinematography:
Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Robert Yeoman, ASC (The Grand Budapest Hotel)
Hoyte Van Hoytema, FSF, NSC (Interstellar)
Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC (Unbroken)
Daniel Landin, BSC (Under the Skin)

Best Editing:
Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione, ACE (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Sandra Adair, ACE (Boyhood)
Kirk Baxter, ACE (Gone Girl)
Lee Smith, ACE (Interstellar)
Tom Cross (Whiplash)

Best Original Score:
Antonio Sanchez (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance))
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross (Gone Girl)
Hans Zimmer (Interstellar)
Jóhann Jóhannsson (The Theory of Everything)
Mica Levi (Under the Skin)

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, DC:
Anita
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Kill the Messenger
Selma
X-Men: Days of Future Past

The Boston Online Film Critics Go Their Own Way

Posted on December 6, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Boston Online Film Critics have announced their picks for the best of 2014!

(While I doubt that this will lead to Snowpiercer becoming a major player in the Oscar race, the Boston Online Film Critics do have excellent taste in film…)

BEST PICTURE:
SNOWPIERCER

BEST DIRECTOR:
Alejandro González Iñárritu, BIRDMAN

BEST ACTOR:
Brendan Gleeson, CALVARY

BEST ACTRESS:
Marion Cotillard, TWO DAYS ONE NIGHT

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Edward Norton, BIRDMAN

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Tilda Swinton, SNOWPIERCER

BEST SCREENPLAY:
John Michael McDonagh, CALVARY

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM:
TWO DAYS ONE NIGHT

BEST DOCUMENTARY:
LIFE ITSELF

BEST ANIMATED FILM:
THE LEGO MOVIE

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
BIRDMAN

BEST EDITING:
James Herbert & Laura Jennings, EDGE OF TOMORROW

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
Mica Levi, UNDER THE SKIN

THE TEN BEST FILMS OF THE YEAR:
1. SNOWPIERCER
2. UNDER THE SKIN
3. BOYHOOD
4. ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE
5. THE BABADOOK
6. TWO DAYS ONE NIGHT
7. BIRDMAN
8. CALVARY
9. INHERENT VICE
10. SELMA

Here Are The Gotham Nominations!

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Under the Skin

Here are the nominations for the Gotham Independent Film Awards! It’s debatable just how reliable the Gothams are as an Oscar precursor. For one thing, the majority of the big studio productions are not eligible for the Gothams. However, when you’re an indie film trying to win mainstream awards, any recognition is good recognition.

As far as the nominees go, Birdman and Boyhood are already Oscar front runners. However, the Gotham nominations will perhaps remind some people that The Grand Budapest Hotel is eligible for Oscar consideration as well.

Here are the Gotham nominations!

Best Feature

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) – Alejandro G. Iñárritu, director; Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, Arnon Milchan, James W. Skotchdopole, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Boyhood – Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Cathleen Sutherland, Jonathan Sehring, John Sloss, producers (IFC Films)
The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson, director; Wes Anderson, Scott Rudin, Steven Rales, Jeremy Dawson, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Love Is Strange – Ira Sachs, director; Lucas Joaquin, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Ira Sachs, Jayne Baron Sherman, producers (Sony Pictures Classics)
Under the Skin – Jonathan Glazer, director; Nick Wechsler, James Wilson, producers (A24 Films)

Best Documentary

Actress – Robert Greene, director; Douglas Tirola, Susan Bedusa, Robert Greene, producers (The Cinema Guild)
CITIZENFOUR – Laura Poitras, director; Laura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy, Dirk Wilutzky, producers (RADiUS, Participant Media, and HBO Documentary Films)
Life Itself – Steve James, director; Zak Piper, Steve James, Garrett Basch, producers (Magnolia Pictures and CNN Films)
Manakamana – Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez, directors; Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Véréna Paravel, producers (The Cinema Guild)
Point and Shoot – Marshall Curry, director; Marshall Curry, Elizabeth Martin, Matthew Van Dyke, producers (The Orchard and American Documentary / POV)

Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award

Ana Lily Amirpour for A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (Kino Lorber)
James Ward Byrkit for Coherence (Oscilloscope Laboratories)
Dan Gilroy for Nightcrawler (Open Road Films)
Eliza Hittman for It Felt Like Love (Variance Films)
Justin Simien for Dear White People (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)

Best Actor*

Bill Hader in The Skeleton Twins (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)
Ethan Hawke in Boyhood (IFC Films)
Oscar Isaac in A Most Violent Year (A24 Films)
Michael Keaton in Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Miles Teller in Whiplash (Sony Pictures Classics)

* The 2014 Best Actor nominating panel also voted to award a special Gotham Jury Award jointly to Steve Carell, Mark Ruffalo, and Channing Tatum for their ensemble performance in Foxcatcher (Sony Pictures Classics).

Best Actress

Patricia Arquette in Boyhood (IFC Films)
Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Beyond the Lights (Relativity Media)
Julianne Moore in Still Alice (Sony Pictures Classics)
Scarlett Johansson in Under the Skin (A24 Films)
Mia Wasikowska in Tracks (The Weinstein Company)

Breakthrough Actor

Riz Ahmed in Nightcrawler (Open Road Films)
Macon Blair in Blue Ruin (RADiUS)
Ellar Coltrane in Boyhood (IFC Films)
Joey King in Wish I Was Here (Focus Features)
Jenny Slate in Obvious Child (A24 Films)
Tessa Thompson in Dear White People (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)

Boyhood

Arleigh’s Top 9 Films of 2014 (Front End)

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Arleigh

We’re now past the halfway point for the film season of 2014. The year has seen it’s share of hits, bombs and surprises. Many look at the box-office numbers some that these films generate as a sign of their success. Others look at how the critics-at-large have graded these films as a way to determine whether they’ve been successful.

I know some people would list nothing but independent arthouse films as their best. They look at genre and big-budget films as not being worthy of being the best of the year, so far. It’s that sort of thinking that limits one’s appreciation of film, in general.

Does having a 150 million dollar budget mean that a film cannot be one of the best of the year. Past history will suggest that’s not the case. Yet, there are cinephiles out there who will dismiss such films because they consider it as being too Hollywood. The same goes for people who look down upon genre films like horror, scifi, westerns and many others that do not fit their slice-of-life drama study. They’re not existential enough for some.

I’ve come to look at all the films I’ve been fortunate enough to see through the first six months of 2014 and picked 9 of the best (I picked a random odd number since Lisa Marie already does the even numbers thing) no matter their genre, type of film and budget. I’ve picked a couple of scifi films, a documentary, an action-packed blockbuster sequel, a wonderfully made 3-D animated film (itself a sequel), a neo-noir Western, a brutal crime-thriller, an indie horror-thriller and one of the best comedies of the last couple years.

In no special order….

Noah (dir. by Darren Aronofsky)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (dir. by Anthony and Joe Russo)

Cold in July (dir. by Jim Mickle)

How To Train Your Dragon 2 (dir. by Dean DuBois)

Jodorowsky’s Dune (dir. by Frank Pavich)

The Raid 2: Berandal (dir. by Gareth Evans)

Snowpiercer (dir. by Bong Joon-ho)

Grand Piano (dir. by Eugenio Mira)

22 Jump Street (dir. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller)

My honorable mentions: All Cheerleaders Die, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Joe, Edge of Tomorrow, Lego: The Movie, Blue Ruin, Locke, Under the Skin, Only Lovers Left Alive, The Sacrament

Quick Reviews: ‘Ida’ (dir. Pawel Pawlikowski) & ‘We Are The Best!’ (dir. Lukas Moodysson)

Posted on June 23, 2014 by leonth3duke

“Ida”, the best looking film so far this year, is the bittersweet story of a young woman named Anna living in a convent in Poland, waiting for the day when she will take her vows. Before that can happen, a Nun asks her to visit her aunt, the only known relative she has. During that visit she learns that her parents were Jewish and died during the events of WWII. Anna wants to know where they are buried, and so goes on a road trip with her aunt to their old family home to find answers. The journey opens her eyes to the joys and also sorrows of the world as she struggles with coming to terms with the past, present and her future. She now must decide whether she should stick with her devotion to god and err on the side of tranquility and solitude; or to live the life her mother couldn’t, risking pain and loss but possibly finding love and freedom.

It is an already beautiful story made more so through gorgeous cinematography and imagery. The sort that says more in each frame than its dialogue could ever hope to say. It is also the sort of Bergman-esque, quiet and contemplative, European film that I can only imagine will be more rewarding on multiple viewings. The performances are also wonderfully reserved, especially Agata Trzebuchowska who played Anna and has possibly the most mesmerizing eyes I have ever seen. It all adds up to an incredibly rewarding experience. Go see it if you get the chance.

“We Are The Best!”, one of the best films I have seen so far this year, is a wonderful story of youth, rebellion and friendship that perfectly captures the ups and downs of adolescences.

The film revolves around three young girls in Sweden during 1982. They are fans of punk, though all their classmates make a habit of telling them it is dead. One winter, after playing around in their youth club’s rehearsal space, they decide to make their own punk band to spread their own message…mainly how much they hate sports.

Their conflicts throughout this process are rather inconsequential. One of their parents is divorced and focuses more on men than her daughter; another’s is overly religious and restrictive. They are also often picked on in school, question their looks, and have the usual boy trouble one would expect from a film about a group of thirteen-year-olds. What sets this apart from those other films is that these conflicts, as I mentioned, are shown as just minor bumps in the road for these three; it is their love of music and each other, love that could see them through anything, that shines through. Plus, it is all just a whole lot of fun.

It is that wonderful and relatable portrayal of friendship and youth that fills “We Are The Best!” to the brim with warmth and heart. Honestly, if you don’t walk out of the theater with a smile on your face then I can only hope your cold icy heart sees you through the hot summer ahead!!

————————————————-

So, with that said, now that June is almost over here is my list of favorite films so far in 2014 (with trailers!):

1) Boyhood