100 Movies of the Decade: 2014.

If you’re new to this thread, you should know I’ll be compiling a list of 100 movies through this decade, but breaking it down to 10 movies per year. If you haven’t seen 2010,  2011, 2012 and 2013, feel free to check it out.

In 2014, we finished O Levels, only to be smacked in the face with AS Subject selections, my sister graduated high school and started college, and I took up photography as a hobby (but also as an excuse to leave the house more often). I can kind of remember this year because it was not that long ago, but everything is school-related and I was pretty much a walking stress ball so there’s no need to get into that.

2014 was also the year Seth Rollins betrayed the Shield and joined the Authority (wrestling fans will know), and I was mad at him for an entire year. During this time, my love for Roman Reigns was growing stronger as he began finding his footing after the Shield broke up. In terms of pop culture, this was the year we had the iconic Oscar selfie, Frozen’s “Let It Go” rose to an irritating state of popularity, Kim and Kanye got married, How I Met Your Mother had the worst possible ending, Solange attacked Jay Z in an elevator, and people dumped ice on themselves to raise awareness for ALS.

Some really great movies came out this year, some are listed below, some didn’t make the cut, but it was a great year for cinema. Listed below are my top 10 for 2014, in no particular order.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier.	This Is Where I Leave You
Kingsman: The Secret Service	Theory of Everything
22 Jump Street	Walk of Shame
Infinitely	The Judge
The Grand Budapest Hotel	Guardians of the Galaxy

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

When Steve Rogers realizes that SHIELD may not be what he thinks it is, there’s an attempt on the Director, Nick Fury’s life. While trying to uncover the secrets of the organization, he realizes that his best friend of 70 years is now a brainwashed assassin who is working for Hydra. With the help of Natasha (Black Widow) and Sam (The Falcon), the trio tries to decode Hydra’s plans and save the world in the process of it.

This movie was such a pleasure to watch because there are so many epic scenes that you can never get tired of seeing. The elevator brawl is still one of the best fight scenes in the MCU; Natasha nonchalantly kicking off Hydra agents off the roof; Bucky quite literally strutting through some wreckage to wreak more havoc, it’s all brilliant. It’s exhilarating, funny, and so incredible. Also, Sebastian Stan’s acting when Bucky was being restored literally broke my heart. I may want to fight the Russo’s for what the did to Tony Stark, but this was some of their best work.

Kingsman: The Secret Service  (dir. Matthew Vaughn)

The Kingsman are an elite force of secret gentlemen spies. Harry recruits Eggsy, a troublesome youth to be a part of the training that will eventually lead to becoming a Kingsman. The chosen ones are taken to a remote location where they need to complete tasks until there’s only one of them left. While this happens, the world population is at risk of being destroyed by a cellphone company that plays radioactive frequencies to cause people to become violent and attack each other. The movie follows the Kingsman having to come up with ways to stop this.

I literally cannot (and will not) stop watching this movie because it was so good. Brilliant screenplay, exceptional acting, fantastic cinematography, and to wrap it all up, an exciting soundtrack. The church scene where Harry gets affected by the frequencies is so well shot and portrayed that I literally feel bad for liking it so much. The last scene in which everything blows up is also quite spectacular, to loosely quote Merlin. We have a brief cameo by my dad, Mark Hamill in this, and other notable mentions include Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Samuel L. Jackson, and Michael Caine.

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

Jenko and Schmidt are back undercover, but this time they’re going to college. This movie has a similar skeleton to its predecessor, in which they have to infiltrate the dealer and find the supplier while making sure the drugs are contained in that one school. With some of our favorites from the first one making a comeback, this is a sequel you don’t want to miss.

The amount of times I’ve quoted this movie completely unsolicited and out of context is too much. My friends can confirm. The movie starts strong and continues getting better all the way to the end; even the closing credits are fun and filled with cameos. I still remember the first time I watched this, I had to take my little sister with me and literally 10 seconds before the movie started, she made me go get her a hotdog. I was infuriated, but I don’t think we missed anything and even if it we did, I’ve watched it so many times after that it doesn’t really matter. Click here to see the best scene in the movie (hint: it’s about the captain’s daughter).

Infinitely Polar Bear (dir. Maya Forbes)

Cameron is diagnosed with bipolar disorder and throughout his life he goes through several psychotic breaks. During this time he meets Maggie, and they fall in love and start a family. Since he cannot hold a job, Maggie has to find something to support him and their two children, but she knows she can’t do it without a degree so she applies to business school. When she gets accepted, she tells Cameron that he must look after the kids for a few months until she gets settled, but he’s worried he isn’t good enough.

It’s a beautiful story about growth and support systems, which breaks down the stigma around mental illnesses. Mark Ruffalo’s performance in this movie hits you where it hurts. The screenplay is so well written and it’s sad, funny, and so raw. There are a ton adorable scenes where Cameron are trying to look out for the kids but they all wear each other down so it usually ends in screaming, but they always make up. It’s a meaningful movie and one of my actual favorites.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (dir. Wes Anderson)

A concierge and a lobby boy go on a thrilling adventure dodging trouble and facing obstacles in order to prove their innocence regarding a murder that took place at the eponymous hotel. The unexpected humor, the adrenaline of the chase, and eccentric characters make this movie an absolute delight. It’s honestly one of the best movies I’ve ever seen but don’t just take my word for it, listen to the Academy. With four Oscars, one Golden Globe, and over 12 nominations, this was easily one of the most intriguing films of the year.

I know Wes Anderson has an unprecedented reputation, and this has been the only movie I’ve seen of his and he 100% lived up to the hype. Grand Budapest hotel was so aesthetically pleasing to watch with the colors and the wide shots and symmetrical angles. This fast-paced comedy has one of the strongest ensembles of the year and exceeded all my expectations. If you haven’t seen it yet, add it to the list.

This Is Where I Leave You (dir. Shawn Levy)

On top of finding out his wife was sleeping with his boss, quitting his job, and hitting an all-time low, Judd Altman gets a call that says his dad died. Coming from a Jewish background, his final wish was for his four children to be under the same roof and sit shiva, a week-long mourning period. This movie centers around this dysfunctional family and how each member has struggles of their own.

I love this movie because of how well-rounded and represented all the characters are. It’s such a good experience that I was left wanting more, and I did some digging to find out it was based on a book, which I promptly read. The stories somewhat differed and the names were changed on the movie adaptation but it was a compelling read. This exceptional cinematic journey is realistic, sweet, and sad at the same time, which is generally a good combination.

Theory of Everything (dir. James Marsh)

Based on Stephen Hawking’s life, this movie takes us through his college years, him falling in love with Jane Wilde, researching on black holes, developing his motor neuron disease, and other significant milestones. It was insightful, charming and oddly funny, which I didn’t expect. Eddie Redmayne was incredible in this role and rightfully won Best Actor at the BAFTAs, Golden Globes, and The Academy Awards. Legends only.

Not entirely sure what led me to watch this because I didn’t know anyone from the cast at the time and I mostly watch movies based on who I know of like from it. I think I saw the DVD lying around and watched it by chance. I thought I’d be confused throughout the movie because I know little to nothing about astrophysics or science, but I pleasantly proved wrong. It played out more like a romantic drama, with hints of history, I guess?

Walk of Shame (dir. Steven Brill)

Elizabeth Banks plays Meghan, a news anchor who recently gets dumped by her long term boyfriend. Her friends take her out and she leaves the club with a cute bartender. After her first one night stand, she tries to sneak out in the middle of the night but realizes her car is towed, and she has no phone, money, or any form of identification. Throughout the course of the movie, she faces some hilariously unusual obstacles like being mistaken for a prostitute, getting involved in a drug ring, and grand theft auto.

You’d assume that this was a romantic comedy but I feel like it goes more along the lines of an adventure comedy. The scenarios she faces while trying to make her way to the tow place is so funny, and all the little happenings around her make the movie a whole lot better. While she’s trying to get out of the hood, her friends think the bartender kidnapped her and go to interrogate him. It’s about 95 minutes of pure fun, and I loved every bit of it.

The Judge (dir. David Dobkin)

After the death of his mother, Hank Palmer visits home, where he finds out that his father, a well known and respected Judge of 42 years, is accused of murder. Their relationship was estranged, to begin with, but watching his father hire an amateur to represent him, while his own son, a successful city lawyer is right there didn’t sit well with him and he decides to stick around to help. Despite the evidence pointing in his dad’s direction, he believes in his innocence and the movie follows him discovering the truth while also reconnecting with his family.

This was an interesting watch because the audience doesn’t know if the father is actually guilty or not, and the secrets we uncover through the movie involves us in the process of finding the answers. As with all his other roles, Robert Downey Jr. gives this a hundred percent, and his acting in this hit me right in the feels. If you love drama, crime, and RDJ, this is a good suggestion.

Guardians of the Galaxy (dir. James Gunn)

With the greatest soundtrack in the history of cinema, this movie accompanies 5 outlaws who break out of a maximum-security prison in order to keep some planet-destroying technology off the wrong hands. It’s filled with adventure, humor, epic fight scenes, and obviously, brilliant music. Let me know if any movie soundtrack has ever come close to topping this. I literally didn’t know what good music was until I watched this movie, and I thank the universe for it every day for bringing it to me.

I loved this movie because it was unlike any previous Marvel movie I’d ever seen. Yes, both Thor and The Dark World dealt with space, but Guardians of the Galaxy took it to a whole other level. I was bound to love this whether it was a part of the MCU or not because it had Park and Recreation’s Andy Dwyer, aka Chris Pratt; as well as six-time world wrestling champion Dave Bautista. It was also Vin Diesel’s highest-grossing movie at the time and he only spoke one sentence, two if you count the gut-wrenching, “We are Groot.”.

---

These movies have a few things in common and that is:

• Samuel L. Jackson is present in two movies (The Winter Soldier, and Kingsman).
• Zoe Saldana is in both Infinitely Polar Bear and Guardians of the Galaxy.
• Parks and Recreation alumnus Chris Pratt (Andy Dwyer) and Ben Schwartz (Jean Ralphio) star in movies this year (Guardians and This Is Where I Leave You).
• There’s a minor Harry Potter connection with Ralph Fiennes (Grand Budapest Hotel) and Eddie Redmayne (Theory of Everything), who play Lord Voldemort and Newt Scamander.
• The Box Office Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and his partner John Watson (Jude Law) are also in movies this year (The Judge and The Grand Budapest Hotel).
• The Judge, This Is Where I Leave You, and Infinitely Polar Bear are family-centered movies.
• Both 22 Jump Street and the Winter Soldier are sequels.

For more movies that came out in 2014, click here.

Image from Letterboxd.