I have to come back and say, having already voted; Furious 7 could battle Magic Mike XXL and lose, I'm wildly torn. Both are unadulterated delight.
Zach S - 9 years ago
THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY ALL THE WAY!!
Jacob - Pittsburgh - 9 years ago
Andrew Bujalski's Results is my favorite film of the year so far but Jurassic World was the best time I had in a crowded theater. Sad to see it dismissed by my favorite critics but at least its made a little money.
Will - 9 years ago
It's the one movie no one seems to be talking about. The one film that, despite its high rating on metacritic and letterboxd, it has gotten little buzz. My favorite film of 2015 so far is Gett, The Trial of Viviane Amsalem. Imagine if A SEPARATION took place all in a courthouse and was directed by Luis Bunuel. It's a brutal meditation on the distinction between the public and private lives of husband and wife while forcing you to consider and re-examine marriage as a government sanctioned institution. Surprisingly, there's a bit of humor in the piece as well but underneath any levity is a biting commentary on identity and relationships. A near-masterpiece and, I hope, a potential Golden brick nominee and winner.
I have lain in bed for many sleepless nights since the poll question was posted. Do I choose the innovative and emotional Inside Out, the wildly entertaining Mad Max: Fury Road, or the haunting and thought provoking It Follows. Alas, after hours of meditation, I was granted a vision, in which I was told to choose It Follows. The excellent camerawork, great lead performances, and gripping atmosphere make It Follows the best movie of the year so far for me.
Brian Finch (from Tampa) - 9 years ago
Not sure what your criteria for the "best movie so far." But my criteria I am using is which movie did I immediately want to see again after viewing it, and that is Mad Max: Fury Road. While I certainly enjoyed the other films, I do not see myself revisiting anyone of them anytime soon. However, I will absolutely see Mad Max again before it leaves theatres.
Side Bar: You guys were wrong about Jurrasic World...it was wonderful and Chris Pratt was fantastic, even if just for the great one-liner, " I was in the Navy not the Navajo."
Side, Side Bar: I am a bit curious about Josh's red pants Adam mentioned. Having never owned a pair of red pants, it has capture my imagination. Are the pants crimson red, or a deep-muted red, or race car red? And the material...denim, or leather. The thought of Josh recording the show in cherry-red leather pants fills my heart with joy.
Great show keep up the work, but I have to go and write some slash-fiction involving Josh's red leather pants.
I often struggle trying to determine what my favorite film of the year is so far. However, Bill Pohlad's Love & Mercy has made this an easy decision. Working at a movie theater has allowed me to see MANY movies this year. However, none of them have given me the emotional experience I had with Love & Mercy. Not only does this film avoid the typical biopic cliches that plague many others, but it truly lets you experience the world as Brian Wilson and examine one of the greatest musical minds of the 21st century. All four of the central performances are incredible, Paul Dano's performance in particular, giving us insight into the music in Wilson's head with the aid of Atticus Ross' score. It is my pick for best of the year so far, despite also being blown away by the action-packed Mad Max: Fury Road, the emotional journey that is Inside Out, and the Kubrick-esque Ex Machina.
Jeffrey Post - 9 years ago
Ex Machina.
It has:
My favorite character of the year with Oscar Issac's supremely confident portrayal of an intellectual genius with an alpha male inferiority complex.
The closest portrayal of an alien in a strange land I've seen since Under the Skin.
The best house ever.
The best dance scene of the year (full disclosure I haven't seen Magic Mike)
The best ending of the year. That ending wiped the floor with my inner-critics butt. I think I just love a good tragedy.
Mad Max, It Follows and Inside Out were absolutely awesome. But great sci-fi rings my bell.
Alex O - 9 years ago
Mad Max: Fury Road has got to be the best film of the year. Not only is it a "get your heart pumping" action film, it is simply great movie making. Director Miller not only dares comparisons to the earlier Mad Max films, he also finds a creative way to use the seeming limitations of the extended car chase to reveal more characters and narrative detail as it barrels down the road,
Nathaniel - 9 years ago
From South Shields (near Newcastle), United Kingdom.
For me, Slow West is the best of the year. It's so goddamn beautiful, the entire film. Sure, the characters and themes aren't exactly revolutionary, but for me, it doesn't exactly seem a carbon-copy of any one film either.
Second is probably Adam Curtis' brilliant documentary Bitter Lake. Hauntingly beautiful in parts, it flitters between informational segments with Curtis narrating, and simple, non-narrative segments of documentary footage being played without context and with amazing music.
As for the choices, I haven't seen Inside Out, and I don't consider It Follows a 2015 movie, so those two are out immediately.
Mad Max is probably a close third though and Ex Machina a close fourth.
Bennett - 9 years ago
Gotta be either The Russian Woodpecker (one of the best docs I've seen in a long time) or The Duke of Burgundy (the best film about relationships since Her)
Kristen - 9 years ago
from Ottawa, Ontario
It's a tough choice between Mad Max and Inside Out. I think they're both particularly important right now when so many women in front of and behind the camera are speaking out about the treatment of women in the industry and on screen. The fact that both films are chiefly about women, are two of the best-reviewed (and Mad Max is currently in the top ten highest-grossing of the year), AND are already in conversations for awards season is a major contrast to last year's male-dominated Best of the Year lists and award-winners. Inside Out could have easily been about the emotions of a young boy, but Pixar chose to make Riley a girl, thus creating a positive role model for young girls everywhere to show that it's okay to be in touch with all of your emotions, that changes are hard and growing up can sometimes be the greatest challenge of all. It was beautiful, charming, moving, and well-cast, with Phyllis Smith being the particular standout.
But -- the idea that a film called Mad Max ended up being about a no-nonsense, tough, strong woman named Imperator Furiosa was a huge surprise. Stunning practical effects and stunts, a glorious heavy metal score, non-stop action from top to bottom. I can hardly wait to see it again, and it's my vote for Best of 2015 so far.
Danah - 9 years ago
I just saw "Me, Earl and the Dying Girl" and I would like to say it is the best movie I have seen in a very long time if not ever. I felt all the emotions while watching it and was completely immersed in the story. The high school fears of fitting in felt very real to me. I loved the quirky qualities.
There is so much that I loved about this film.
If i were to second vote from a choice on the list: Ex Machina
Zak - Queens, NY - 9 years ago
I voted for "Ex Machina"... although Mad Max: Fury Road pulls up a close second.
However, since it hasn't really been talked about the podcast, I want to fully recommend and sing the praises of "Paddington". It's a wonderfully cute film that manages to bridge the sensibilities of the source material with the more "entertain me" demands of today's youth. It's emotional and intensely cinematic (incorporating surreal stylistic touches similarly seen in Paul King's "Bunny and the Bull") to a point of intense delight. The performances are pitch perfect to the whimsically humorous tone, especially Sally Hawkins who is an absolute treat.
Felix Kortsch - 9 years ago
Well this is kind of unfair since I'm in germany and many movies make it hear about 2 months after they launch in the US. So I don't have acces to inside out and Fury Road only hit a few weeks ago and I didn't have time to see it yet (damn work).
But going over this so far I'm propably most surprised of all people (discounting Nightcrawler which i saw this year but it's a 2014 movie) to find 2 actionmovies "Kingsmen" and "Furious 7" batteling for teh title in my head. Maybe it was because they both stood out so much by airing close to the terribly underwhelming Avengers II but those two really stuck most in my fond memory.
I'm sure as teh year goes on and I catch up on everything they will eventually be dethroned by something more soffisticated but for now it's a tossup betwen Kingsmen and Furious 7. Who would have thought ^.^
Franco - 9 years ago
Y'all need TIMBUKTU in your lives
Nicole, San Francisco - 9 years ago
Vhat? No love for What We Do in the Shadows? Maybe it technically came out in 2014 or something, but Wakie-wakie, everybody! I loved Mad Max, too, and I have yet to catch up with Ex Machina, but I cannot think of the last time I laughed out loud nonstop in the theater, and remember so many quotable lines months after viewing. Remember, We are werewolves, not swearwolves. This, my favorite of 2015.
ECharles - 9 years ago
More love for Kingsman. Church scene was epic.
Amanda - 9 years ago
My ranking would go:
Mad Max
Ex Machina
Kingsman
Shout out to Far From The Madding Crowd. Not a masterpiece, but the most enjoyable period piece I've seen in a while. Carey Mulligan and Matthias Schoenaerts had amazing chemistry.
Kate, Tampa - 9 years ago
Yes, Ex Machina was exquisitely crafted and left me really creeped out by Siri (and strengthened my convictions that I just witnessed early performances by future screen legends Oscar Isaac and Alicia Vikander), and Mad Max was a technical marvel and one of the best action movies I've ever seen--but at the end of the day, I've cried at four (now five) films in my life, and never sobbed more loudly than Amy Poehler screaming "who's your friend who loves to play? BING-BONG, BING-BONG!".
(I'd also like to echo others who have already given a shoutout to Kingsman--it felt like it slipped under the radar, at least in more "serious" movie corners of the internet. But it was an excellent February surprise against the headache-inducing 50 Shades, an incredible amount of fun laced with some really effective humor and pathos, and should put newcomer Taron Edgerton on everyone's radar for when he's opposite Tom Hardy this fall.)
Thomas Dargent - Lisbon, Portugal - 9 years ago
Let me bring this whole website's IQ down a couple of notches for a brief moment.
Ex Machina was an outstanding toughtpiece that I will probably always remember as one of the most inspired sci-fi movies of my life. It was beautiful, utterly well acted and terribly clever. Mad Max : Fury Road on the other hand is the most successful action movie of recent years from a plethora of point of views. It is artistic and manages to convey meaning and message without ever letting the action fall beneath the «quite intense» mark. It is actually the most relentless movie of recent years. And don't get me started on the fantastic action.
But none of that matters. The best movie of the year so far is Avengers : Age of Ultron. No, it's not the most artistic, the cleverest, the most beautiful or the best directed one ; and who cares ? It was the most enjoyable experience I had at a movie theater in a long while. It was funny. the action was great, the villain was (mostly) compelling and I could bask in the warm glow of beloved characters for two hours plus. I'll always remember Ex Machina and MMFF but 2015 will remain the year of Age of Ultron for ever.
Or it would if not for a certain lightsaber-related release.
Yay.
Frank - 9 years ago
Let me offer some love for Testament of Youth. No film yet produced has better captured the many conflicting aspects of The Great War. For sure, sentiment sneaks in, but given what's at stake, it's appropriate and informs what life was like for those alive 100 years ago.
Frank R. – Martinez, CA
To include It Follows on this poll basically invalidates it but I'm going to vote anyway. It Follows was interesting and effective for the first two-thirds, but it's hardly the best HORROR movie of the year let alone best MOVIE of the year.
Fury Road kicked enough ass to bully itself into competition, and Inside Out was thoroughly entertaining with a strong emotional core like we've come to expect from Pixar.
But hands down, the best movie on this list was Ex Machina, a film that rewards the viewer emotionally and intellectually, and gets better with each subsequent rewatch. And the way Alex Garland plays with our dread and expectations the whole movie is masterful.
Joseph Grantham from Dublin, CA - 9 years ago
My mom keeps asking me what my favorite film of the year is so far, and while I thought Inside Out was a return to form for Pixar, thought Oscar Isaac carried Ex Machina, and was stunned and enthralled by the stylistic and thematic thrills of It Follows, the film I keep returning to is Heaven Knows What. I decided to see the film on a whim, the trailer looked bizarre and I tend to like bizarre, and I'd seen great praise for the film, and when I left the theater after the screening in Berkeley, CA I had the feeling of being punched in the gut, the wind knocked out of me, and the deep desire to talk about the experience. Because that's just what the film is. It's an immersive experience. It's simultaneously sickening, terrifying, heartbreaking, and has enough style and indescribable humor to not leave you feeling dead after it's all over. The film is about a group of homeless individuals, most (if not all) are drug-addicted, and these are people you might see (and probably do see) in any city, at any moment. These are people who you might want to look away from in the street, out of fear or a sense of shame, thinking "I wish I could help," or, "how does someone end up there?" but this film gives you a chance to not look away, but rather to confront these very real lives, to live them for a moment, and that counts for a whole lot. It doesn't make a spectacle out of these characters' troubling stories. Heaven Knows What isn't Trainspotting or Requiem For a Dream, it's something much more. As for Mad Max: Fury Road, I'm in the minority. For some reason, I couldn't stand that film.
Jeff - 9 years ago
I've only seen 9 movies so far this year and none but Fury Road are on this list, despite wanting to see them all. Still, Fury Road is #1 on my list right now for too many reasons to list here. Let's just say it has far more to offer than explosions and re-hashing an old franchise.
I'm once I see the others they will make it to my top 5.
Manhattan, KS
Sorry for the second comment, but I forgot a couple things.
While I can understand leaving Clouds of Sils Maria off the poll due to technicalities, I don't understand how you left off movies like Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars, Andrew Bujalski's Results, What We Do in the Shadows, and pre-season #1 Pitch Perfect 2.
It's the internet, just give us a poll with 50-60 possible answers. It's what the people want.
I want to show some love to Clouds of Sils Maria. Perhaps you decided to leave this movie off your list because of its convoluted release schedule, but, because it wasn't released in the US until 2015, I'm going to count it as a 2015 movie.
Clouds of Sils Maria not only features a terrific performance from one of our greatest actresses in Juliete Binoche, but also a surprisingly great performance from Kristen Stewart (who manages to keep her hands away from her hair for a full 2 hours). Featuring some of the best cinematography of the year so far, by Only Lovers Left Alive cinematographer Yorick Le Saux, Clouds of Sils Maria is beautiful, complex, and honest.
It comments on the state of film-making, art, and Hollywood in a way that Inarittu could only dream of while also maintaining touching and very human stories for all three of its main characters. Even though anyone who watched it because they loved Kristen Stewart in Twilight probably walked out of the theater, it was one of the most beautiful and profound experiences I've had at the movies this year.
Ultimately, though, I had to go with Mad Max because explosions are cool.
Jack Song - 9 years ago
From Atlanta, GA
It's tough to pick the best movie of year. Each of the movies listed in the poll are great in their respective genre and story that they are conveying. When I think the best film, it will influence future film makers for many decades to come. "It follows" feels like a John Carpenter throwback than a new visionary take, Mad Max shows a director who succeeds where Speilberg, Lucas, Romero, Nolan, and other directors have failed when returning to their own franchise, Inside Out stands as an emotion power house like supper echelon of Pixar films, and Ex Machina stands out more for it's ideas than it's execution. So I'll have to still think about it. Abstain.
JM Bossy - 9 years ago
From Vancouver, Canada
Only because A Most Violent Year technically released late last year, my vote is going to Faults; Riley Stearns feature debut starring Leland Orser and Stearns' wife Mary Elizabeth Winstead. The film is a small scale thriller following Ansel Roth (Orser), an academic and author who focuses on cults and the ways in which they spread their ideologies. Roth meet two concerned parents who hire him to kidnap their indoctrinated daughter and "deprogram" her by isolating her in a motel room.
The film is feverishly enigmatic, constantly second guessing the rules which apply to the world, and building a pervasive dread. All of which, as aided by the solid performances and Stearns naturally adept first time direction, add to the story's themes of control and belief in structure. Stearns and his DP frame every shot perfectly, and most commendable is the great editing which coheres all of these potentially disparate ideas into something truly worth note.
It really is an outstanding debut for Stearns and a great showcase for its co-leads. It needs to be seen by more people.
David from Bonn, Germany - 9 years ago
While I have yet to see three of the four movies in the poll (all except Fury Road, which I liked well enough but didn't find quite as exceptional and outstanding as everyone else seems to do), I very much doubt that I'll end up liking any of them more than Sebastian Schipper's Victoria. All I knew about this one going in: Spanish girl meets a couple of German guys late at night in Berlin. And if the friend that I was going to see it with hadn't told me ten minutes before showtime that the whole thing was shot in one single 140 minute take, I'm not sure I would have even noticed it until maybe 10 or 15 minutes in - that's how absorbed I was by the story unfolding before me from the very first moment. From the amazing (largely improvised) lead performances by Laia Costa and Frederick Lau (as well as the rest of the small cast) to the beautiful handheld cinematography (Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, who deserves to win every cinematography award out there for his work on this movie) - everything just falls right into place in this movie. Sure, the plot here is really simple and straightforward and some of it might stretch creduility to a certain point, given that the movie is almost documentarian in style and tone, but this is more than made up for by the sheer sense of excitement and joy and immediacy that this movie conveys. To me, Victoria is what truly innovative and visionary cinema looks like in 2015. And as far as the 140-minutes-without-a-single-cut gimmick is concerned: Miraculously, it doesn't distract from the experience even if you're trying to pay attention to it. It really just goes to show the level of commitment to this project of pretty much everyone involved and makes the viewing experience that much more thrilling and immediate. And I can only (or rather: I absolutely cannot) imagine the amount of planning and rehearsing that must have gone into the making of this spectacular film, and I cannot possibly recommend it strongly enough. I left the theater in awe and can hardly imagine that, in the foreseeable future, any other (new) movie will sweep me off my feet quite the way Victoria did. I hope you guys will get a chance to see (and maybe review?) it some time soon. I'd be really curious to find out what you'd have to say about it.
SJ Yeocero - 9 years ago
Update: Yes, and It Follows. There are four film listed above. It Follows is #4 (maybe #3) for me.
It's strange (well, not really), I thought there'd be more good films released, so far, this year. But reviewing IMdB (at least the films I've seen) and these three really are the best of the year so far.
I really enjoyed Kingsmen and Jurassic World (for what is was), but I can't really think of another movie that would rival the three listed above. I'm sure there are others, but they're likely smaller films that I just don't know about or haven't gotten around to seeing yet, but will later on Netflix or otherwise.
Anyway, for what's it worth (not much), my listing of the best so far would be:
Mad Max;
Ex Machina;
Inside Out;
Kingsmen
Matthieu Corpet - 9 years ago
While Ex Machina and Mad Max : Fury Road sit at N°2 and 3 for this year so far for me, I had t vote "Other" for Jafar Panahi's new film : "Taxi". I don't know if this is out in the US yet, but it's a wonderful blend of comedy, social commentary and heartwarming humanity. It features a revolving cast of characters coming in and out of Jafar Panahi's taxi, giving snapshots of Teheran, the highlight of which is Panahi's niece, who struggles with the limitations put on her by school for a film she has to do as an assignment, obviously reflecting Panahi's own struggles with the Iranian government.
It also features my favorite closing shot of the year, nothing flashy but a very fitting closing note. I now certainly need to watch Panahi's previously acclaimed works.
Austin - 9 years ago
While I was blown away by Mad Max, and mentally tickled by Inside Out, my vote has to go to Don Hertzfeldt's 'World of Tomorrow', an animated short film that featured more sci-fi ideas and melancholy introspection in a slither of its 16 minute running time than most films do in their entirety. With his crude stick-figure drawings, Hertzfeldt acts as a weary soothsayer, showing us a future wherein technology has consumed man, and we long for intimacy in a world of systematic interaction.
Chris - 9 years ago
Mad Max got my vote for the best movie of the year so far. And I'd definitely fill out my top 5 with the rest of this list. My 5th spot would go to a toss up between The Tribe (which I saw in 2015) and Kingsman: The Secret Service, which is about as much fun as I've had in a movie theater in a long time. Kingsman was an unexpected joy full of so many surprises. What amazed me so much was how it was able to plant its tongue so deeply in it's cheek while still taking itself so seriously. That balance was incredible and such a pleasure to watch.
Eric P - 9 years ago
I really liked all of the films in the pool I have seen.. but Fury Road I have seen 3 times and think it's easily the best thing I have seen not just this year but in the last several years....
Blake Mullin - 9 years ago
This has got to be between Mad Max and Ex Machina, but who could complain either way! In the end my vote fell on Ex Machina. When weighing the two, the soundtracks sprung to mind. Who could call any part of Mad Max a "let down", but I've often said that the rather generic score was a little disappointing after that stunning trailer. Meanwhile the tense electronics of Ex Machina felt as important to the film as any of it's other wildly successful components, so I've decided to let that tip the scale here.
Setting aside my festival viewing of The Look of Silence for now (which is every bit as great as The Act of Killing,) I have to go with Furious 7. Insane, exhilarating, and hilarious, there are few films about family I love more. Rest in peace, Pablo.
Setting aside my festival viewing of The Look of Silence for now (which is every bit as great as The Act of Killing,) I have to go with Furious 7. Insane, exhilarating, and hilarious, there are few films about family I love more. Rest in peace, Pablo.
Don Hertzfeldt's World of Tomorrow: Where stick figures say more about life and living within the confines of 17 minutes than most films suggest over the course of a feature.
Laura Ellis - 9 years ago
I know that Mad Max: Fury Road will come out on top. It was exciting and fast paced, but ultimately was just a bit of testosterone-driven fluff. Inside Out was at least more thoughtful and intelligent, very novel in it's concept and execution. My vote, though, goes to Ex-Machina, which, too, was thoughtful and intelligent, and dealt with mature subjects in adult ways. Max was inventive, but so were all the others. I go with Ex-Machina.
Jacob S - 9 years ago
This was a tough question, because 2 of the films on this poll are in my top 3 of the year so far. But ultimately, I had to go with "other", because I liked Slow West just slightly more than It Follows and Ex Machina (which are my number 2 and 3 respectively). It might be due to me seeing Slow West the most recently, but I was blown away with the visuals from that film. Absolutely stunning cinematography.
I have to come back and say, having already voted; Furious 7 could battle Magic Mike XXL and lose, I'm wildly torn. Both are unadulterated delight.
THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY ALL THE WAY!!
Andrew Bujalski's Results is my favorite film of the year so far but Jurassic World was the best time I had in a crowded theater. Sad to see it dismissed by my favorite critics but at least its made a little money.
It's the one movie no one seems to be talking about. The one film that, despite its high rating on metacritic and letterboxd, it has gotten little buzz. My favorite film of 2015 so far is Gett, The Trial of Viviane Amsalem. Imagine if A SEPARATION took place all in a courthouse and was directed by Luis Bunuel. It's a brutal meditation on the distinction between the public and private lives of husband and wife while forcing you to consider and re-examine marriage as a government sanctioned institution. Surprisingly, there's a bit of humor in the piece as well but underneath any levity is a biting commentary on identity and relationships. A near-masterpiece and, I hope, a potential Golden brick nominee and winner.
I have lain in bed for many sleepless nights since the poll question was posted. Do I choose the innovative and emotional Inside Out, the wildly entertaining Mad Max: Fury Road, or the haunting and thought provoking It Follows. Alas, after hours of meditation, I was granted a vision, in which I was told to choose It Follows. The excellent camerawork, great lead performances, and gripping atmosphere make It Follows the best movie of the year so far for me.
Not sure what your criteria for the "best movie so far." But my criteria I am using is which movie did I immediately want to see again after viewing it, and that is Mad Max: Fury Road. While I certainly enjoyed the other films, I do not see myself revisiting anyone of them anytime soon. However, I will absolutely see Mad Max again before it leaves theatres.
Side Bar: You guys were wrong about Jurrasic World...it was wonderful and Chris Pratt was fantastic, even if just for the great one-liner, " I was in the Navy not the Navajo."
Side, Side Bar: I am a bit curious about Josh's red pants Adam mentioned. Having never owned a pair of red pants, it has capture my imagination. Are the pants crimson red, or a deep-muted red, or race car red? And the material...denim, or leather. The thought of Josh recording the show in cherry-red leather pants fills my heart with joy.
Great show keep up the work, but I have to go and write some slash-fiction involving Josh's red leather pants.
I often struggle trying to determine what my favorite film of the year is so far. However, Bill Pohlad's Love & Mercy has made this an easy decision. Working at a movie theater has allowed me to see MANY movies this year. However, none of them have given me the emotional experience I had with Love & Mercy. Not only does this film avoid the typical biopic cliches that plague many others, but it truly lets you experience the world as Brian Wilson and examine one of the greatest musical minds of the 21st century. All four of the central performances are incredible, Paul Dano's performance in particular, giving us insight into the music in Wilson's head with the aid of Atticus Ross' score. It is my pick for best of the year so far, despite also being blown away by the action-packed Mad Max: Fury Road, the emotional journey that is Inside Out, and the Kubrick-esque Ex Machina.
Ex Machina.
It has:
My favorite character of the year with Oscar Issac's supremely confident portrayal of an intellectual genius with an alpha male inferiority complex.
The closest portrayal of an alien in a strange land I've seen since Under the Skin.
The best house ever.
The best dance scene of the year (full disclosure I haven't seen Magic Mike)
The best ending of the year. That ending wiped the floor with my inner-critics butt. I think I just love a good tragedy.
Mad Max, It Follows and Inside Out were absolutely awesome. But great sci-fi rings my bell.
Mad Max: Fury Road has got to be the best film of the year. Not only is it a "get your heart pumping" action film, it is simply great movie making. Director Miller not only dares comparisons to the earlier Mad Max films, he also finds a creative way to use the seeming limitations of the extended car chase to reveal more characters and narrative detail as it barrels down the road,
From South Shields (near Newcastle), United Kingdom.
For me, Slow West is the best of the year. It's so goddamn beautiful, the entire film. Sure, the characters and themes aren't exactly revolutionary, but for me, it doesn't exactly seem a carbon-copy of any one film either.
Second is probably Adam Curtis' brilliant documentary Bitter Lake. Hauntingly beautiful in parts, it flitters between informational segments with Curtis narrating, and simple, non-narrative segments of documentary footage being played without context and with amazing music.
As for the choices, I haven't seen Inside Out, and I don't consider It Follows a 2015 movie, so those two are out immediately.
Mad Max is probably a close third though and Ex Machina a close fourth.
Gotta be either The Russian Woodpecker (one of the best docs I've seen in a long time) or The Duke of Burgundy (the best film about relationships since Her)
from Ottawa, Ontario
It's a tough choice between Mad Max and Inside Out. I think they're both particularly important right now when so many women in front of and behind the camera are speaking out about the treatment of women in the industry and on screen. The fact that both films are chiefly about women, are two of the best-reviewed (and Mad Max is currently in the top ten highest-grossing of the year), AND are already in conversations for awards season is a major contrast to last year's male-dominated Best of the Year lists and award-winners. Inside Out could have easily been about the emotions of a young boy, but Pixar chose to make Riley a girl, thus creating a positive role model for young girls everywhere to show that it's okay to be in touch with all of your emotions, that changes are hard and growing up can sometimes be the greatest challenge of all. It was beautiful, charming, moving, and well-cast, with Phyllis Smith being the particular standout.
But -- the idea that a film called Mad Max ended up being about a no-nonsense, tough, strong woman named Imperator Furiosa was a huge surprise. Stunning practical effects and stunts, a glorious heavy metal score, non-stop action from top to bottom. I can hardly wait to see it again, and it's my vote for Best of 2015 so far.
I just saw "Me, Earl and the Dying Girl" and I would like to say it is the best movie I have seen in a very long time if not ever. I felt all the emotions while watching it and was completely immersed in the story. The high school fears of fitting in felt very real to me. I loved the quirky qualities.
There is so much that I loved about this film.
If i were to second vote from a choice on the list: Ex Machina
I voted for "Ex Machina"... although Mad Max: Fury Road pulls up a close second.
However, since it hasn't really been talked about the podcast, I want to fully recommend and sing the praises of "Paddington". It's a wonderfully cute film that manages to bridge the sensibilities of the source material with the more "entertain me" demands of today's youth. It's emotional and intensely cinematic (incorporating surreal stylistic touches similarly seen in Paul King's "Bunny and the Bull") to a point of intense delight. The performances are pitch perfect to the whimsically humorous tone, especially Sally Hawkins who is an absolute treat.
Well this is kind of unfair since I'm in germany and many movies make it hear about 2 months after they launch in the US. So I don't have acces to inside out and Fury Road only hit a few weeks ago and I didn't have time to see it yet (damn work).
But going over this so far I'm propably most surprised of all people (discounting Nightcrawler which i saw this year but it's a 2014 movie) to find 2 actionmovies "Kingsmen" and "Furious 7" batteling for teh title in my head. Maybe it was because they both stood out so much by airing close to the terribly underwhelming Avengers II but those two really stuck most in my fond memory.
I'm sure as teh year goes on and I catch up on everything they will eventually be dethroned by something more soffisticated but for now it's a tossup betwen Kingsmen and Furious 7. Who would have thought ^.^
Y'all need TIMBUKTU in your lives
Vhat? No love for What We Do in the Shadows? Maybe it technically came out in 2014 or something, but Wakie-wakie, everybody! I loved Mad Max, too, and I have yet to catch up with Ex Machina, but I cannot think of the last time I laughed out loud nonstop in the theater, and remember so many quotable lines months after viewing. Remember, We are werewolves, not swearwolves. This, my favorite of 2015.
More love for Kingsman. Church scene was epic.
My ranking would go:
Mad Max
Ex Machina
Kingsman
Shout out to Far From The Madding Crowd. Not a masterpiece, but the most enjoyable period piece I've seen in a while. Carey Mulligan and Matthias Schoenaerts had amazing chemistry.
Yes, Ex Machina was exquisitely crafted and left me really creeped out by Siri (and strengthened my convictions that I just witnessed early performances by future screen legends Oscar Isaac and Alicia Vikander), and Mad Max was a technical marvel and one of the best action movies I've ever seen--but at the end of the day, I've cried at four (now five) films in my life, and never sobbed more loudly than Amy Poehler screaming "who's your friend who loves to play? BING-BONG, BING-BONG!".
(I'd also like to echo others who have already given a shoutout to Kingsman--it felt like it slipped under the radar, at least in more "serious" movie corners of the internet. But it was an excellent February surprise against the headache-inducing 50 Shades, an incredible amount of fun laced with some really effective humor and pathos, and should put newcomer Taron Edgerton on everyone's radar for when he's opposite Tom Hardy this fall.)
Let me bring this whole website's IQ down a couple of notches for a brief moment.
Ex Machina was an outstanding toughtpiece that I will probably always remember as one of the most inspired sci-fi movies of my life. It was beautiful, utterly well acted and terribly clever. Mad Max : Fury Road on the other hand is the most successful action movie of recent years from a plethora of point of views. It is artistic and manages to convey meaning and message without ever letting the action fall beneath the «quite intense» mark. It is actually the most relentless movie of recent years. And don't get me started on the fantastic action.
But none of that matters. The best movie of the year so far is Avengers : Age of Ultron. No, it's not the most artistic, the cleverest, the most beautiful or the best directed one ; and who cares ? It was the most enjoyable experience I had at a movie theater in a long while. It was funny. the action was great, the villain was (mostly) compelling and I could bask in the warm glow of beloved characters for two hours plus. I'll always remember Ex Machina and MMFF but 2015 will remain the year of Age of Ultron for ever.
Or it would if not for a certain lightsaber-related release.
Yay.
Let me offer some love for Testament of Youth. No film yet produced has better captured the many conflicting aspects of The Great War. For sure, sentiment sneaks in, but given what's at stake, it's appropriate and informs what life was like for those alive 100 years ago.
Frank R. – Martinez, CA
To include It Follows on this poll basically invalidates it but I'm going to vote anyway. It Follows was interesting and effective for the first two-thirds, but it's hardly the best HORROR movie of the year let alone best MOVIE of the year.
Fury Road kicked enough ass to bully itself into competition, and Inside Out was thoroughly entertaining with a strong emotional core like we've come to expect from Pixar.
But hands down, the best movie on this list was Ex Machina, a film that rewards the viewer emotionally and intellectually, and gets better with each subsequent rewatch. And the way Alex Garland plays with our dread and expectations the whole movie is masterful.
My mom keeps asking me what my favorite film of the year is so far, and while I thought Inside Out was a return to form for Pixar, thought Oscar Isaac carried Ex Machina, and was stunned and enthralled by the stylistic and thematic thrills of It Follows, the film I keep returning to is Heaven Knows What. I decided to see the film on a whim, the trailer looked bizarre and I tend to like bizarre, and I'd seen great praise for the film, and when I left the theater after the screening in Berkeley, CA I had the feeling of being punched in the gut, the wind knocked out of me, and the deep desire to talk about the experience. Because that's just what the film is. It's an immersive experience. It's simultaneously sickening, terrifying, heartbreaking, and has enough style and indescribable humor to not leave you feeling dead after it's all over. The film is about a group of homeless individuals, most (if not all) are drug-addicted, and these are people you might see (and probably do see) in any city, at any moment. These are people who you might want to look away from in the street, out of fear or a sense of shame, thinking "I wish I could help," or, "how does someone end up there?" but this film gives you a chance to not look away, but rather to confront these very real lives, to live them for a moment, and that counts for a whole lot. It doesn't make a spectacle out of these characters' troubling stories. Heaven Knows What isn't Trainspotting or Requiem For a Dream, it's something much more. As for Mad Max: Fury Road, I'm in the minority. For some reason, I couldn't stand that film.
I've only seen 9 movies so far this year and none but Fury Road are on this list, despite wanting to see them all. Still, Fury Road is #1 on my list right now for too many reasons to list here. Let's just say it has far more to offer than explosions and re-hashing an old franchise.
I'm once I see the others they will make it to my top 5.
Manhattan, KS
Sorry for the second comment, but I forgot a couple things.
While I can understand leaving Clouds of Sils Maria off the poll due to technicalities, I don't understand how you left off movies like Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars, Andrew Bujalski's Results, What We Do in the Shadows, and pre-season #1 Pitch Perfect 2.
It's the internet, just give us a poll with 50-60 possible answers. It's what the people want.
I want to show some love to Clouds of Sils Maria. Perhaps you decided to leave this movie off your list because of its convoluted release schedule, but, because it wasn't released in the US until 2015, I'm going to count it as a 2015 movie.
Clouds of Sils Maria not only features a terrific performance from one of our greatest actresses in Juliete Binoche, but also a surprisingly great performance from Kristen Stewart (who manages to keep her hands away from her hair for a full 2 hours). Featuring some of the best cinematography of the year so far, by Only Lovers Left Alive cinematographer Yorick Le Saux, Clouds of Sils Maria is beautiful, complex, and honest.
It comments on the state of film-making, art, and Hollywood in a way that Inarittu could only dream of while also maintaining touching and very human stories for all three of its main characters. Even though anyone who watched it because they loved Kristen Stewart in Twilight probably walked out of the theater, it was one of the most beautiful and profound experiences I've had at the movies this year.
Ultimately, though, I had to go with Mad Max because explosions are cool.
From Atlanta, GA
It's tough to pick the best movie of year. Each of the movies listed in the poll are great in their respective genre and story that they are conveying. When I think the best film, it will influence future film makers for many decades to come. "It follows" feels like a John Carpenter throwback than a new visionary take, Mad Max shows a director who succeeds where Speilberg, Lucas, Romero, Nolan, and other directors have failed when returning to their own franchise, Inside Out stands as an emotion power house like supper echelon of Pixar films, and Ex Machina stands out more for it's ideas than it's execution. So I'll have to still think about it. Abstain.
From Vancouver, Canada
Only because A Most Violent Year technically released late last year, my vote is going to Faults; Riley Stearns feature debut starring Leland Orser and Stearns' wife Mary Elizabeth Winstead. The film is a small scale thriller following Ansel Roth (Orser), an academic and author who focuses on cults and the ways in which they spread their ideologies. Roth meet two concerned parents who hire him to kidnap their indoctrinated daughter and "deprogram" her by isolating her in a motel room.
The film is feverishly enigmatic, constantly second guessing the rules which apply to the world, and building a pervasive dread. All of which, as aided by the solid performances and Stearns naturally adept first time direction, add to the story's themes of control and belief in structure. Stearns and his DP frame every shot perfectly, and most commendable is the great editing which coheres all of these potentially disparate ideas into something truly worth note.
It really is an outstanding debut for Stearns and a great showcase for its co-leads. It needs to be seen by more people.
While I have yet to see three of the four movies in the poll (all except Fury Road, which I liked well enough but didn't find quite as exceptional and outstanding as everyone else seems to do), I very much doubt that I'll end up liking any of them more than Sebastian Schipper's Victoria. All I knew about this one going in: Spanish girl meets a couple of German guys late at night in Berlin. And if the friend that I was going to see it with hadn't told me ten minutes before showtime that the whole thing was shot in one single 140 minute take, I'm not sure I would have even noticed it until maybe 10 or 15 minutes in - that's how absorbed I was by the story unfolding before me from the very first moment. From the amazing (largely improvised) lead performances by Laia Costa and Frederick Lau (as well as the rest of the small cast) to the beautiful handheld cinematography (Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, who deserves to win every cinematography award out there for his work on this movie) - everything just falls right into place in this movie. Sure, the plot here is really simple and straightforward and some of it might stretch creduility to a certain point, given that the movie is almost documentarian in style and tone, but this is more than made up for by the sheer sense of excitement and joy and immediacy that this movie conveys. To me, Victoria is what truly innovative and visionary cinema looks like in 2015. And as far as the 140-minutes-without-a-single-cut gimmick is concerned: Miraculously, it doesn't distract from the experience even if you're trying to pay attention to it. It really just goes to show the level of commitment to this project of pretty much everyone involved and makes the viewing experience that much more thrilling and immediate. And I can only (or rather: I absolutely cannot) imagine the amount of planning and rehearsing that must have gone into the making of this spectacular film, and I cannot possibly recommend it strongly enough. I left the theater in awe and can hardly imagine that, in the foreseeable future, any other (new) movie will sweep me off my feet quite the way Victoria did. I hope you guys will get a chance to see (and maybe review?) it some time soon. I'd be really curious to find out what you'd have to say about it.
Update: Yes, and It Follows. There are four film listed above. It Follows is #4 (maybe #3) for me.
It's strange (well, not really), I thought there'd be more good films released, so far, this year. But reviewing IMdB (at least the films I've seen) and these three really are the best of the year so far.
I really enjoyed Kingsmen and Jurassic World (for what is was), but I can't really think of another movie that would rival the three listed above. I'm sure there are others, but they're likely smaller films that I just don't know about or haven't gotten around to seeing yet, but will later on Netflix or otherwise.
Anyway, for what's it worth (not much), my listing of the best so far would be:
Mad Max;
Ex Machina;
Inside Out;
Kingsmen
While Ex Machina and Mad Max : Fury Road sit at N°2 and 3 for this year so far for me, I had t vote "Other" for Jafar Panahi's new film : "Taxi". I don't know if this is out in the US yet, but it's a wonderful blend of comedy, social commentary and heartwarming humanity. It features a revolving cast of characters coming in and out of Jafar Panahi's taxi, giving snapshots of Teheran, the highlight of which is Panahi's niece, who struggles with the limitations put on her by school for a film she has to do as an assignment, obviously reflecting Panahi's own struggles with the Iranian government.
It also features my favorite closing shot of the year, nothing flashy but a very fitting closing note. I now certainly need to watch Panahi's previously acclaimed works.
While I was blown away by Mad Max, and mentally tickled by Inside Out, my vote has to go to Don Hertzfeldt's 'World of Tomorrow', an animated short film that featured more sci-fi ideas and melancholy introspection in a slither of its 16 minute running time than most films do in their entirety. With his crude stick-figure drawings, Hertzfeldt acts as a weary soothsayer, showing us a future wherein technology has consumed man, and we long for intimacy in a world of systematic interaction.
Mad Max got my vote for the best movie of the year so far. And I'd definitely fill out my top 5 with the rest of this list. My 5th spot would go to a toss up between The Tribe (which I saw in 2015) and Kingsman: The Secret Service, which is about as much fun as I've had in a movie theater in a long time. Kingsman was an unexpected joy full of so many surprises. What amazed me so much was how it was able to plant its tongue so deeply in it's cheek while still taking itself so seriously. That balance was incredible and such a pleasure to watch.
I really liked all of the films in the pool I have seen.. but Fury Road I have seen 3 times and think it's easily the best thing I have seen not just this year but in the last several years....
This has got to be between Mad Max and Ex Machina, but who could complain either way! In the end my vote fell on Ex Machina. When weighing the two, the soundtracks sprung to mind. Who could call any part of Mad Max a "let down", but I've often said that the rather generic score was a little disappointing after that stunning trailer. Meanwhile the tense electronics of Ex Machina felt as important to the film as any of it's other wildly successful components, so I've decided to let that tip the scale here.
Setting aside my festival viewing of The Look of Silence for now (which is every bit as great as The Act of Killing,) I have to go with Furious 7. Insane, exhilarating, and hilarious, there are few films about family I love more. Rest in peace, Pablo.
Setting aside my festival viewing of The Look of Silence for now (which is every bit as great as The Act of Killing,) I have to go with Furious 7. Insane, exhilarating, and hilarious, there are few films about family I love more. Rest in peace, Pablo.
Don Hertzfeldt's World of Tomorrow: Where stick figures say more about life and living within the confines of 17 minutes than most films suggest over the course of a feature.
I know that Mad Max: Fury Road will come out on top. It was exciting and fast paced, but ultimately was just a bit of testosterone-driven fluff. Inside Out was at least more thoughtful and intelligent, very novel in it's concept and execution. My vote, though, goes to Ex-Machina, which, too, was thoughtful and intelligent, and dealt with mature subjects in adult ways. Max was inventive, but so were all the others. I go with Ex-Machina.
This was a tough question, because 2 of the films on this poll are in my top 3 of the year so far. But ultimately, I had to go with "other", because I liked Slow West just slightly more than It Follows and Ex Machina (which are my number 2 and 3 respectively). It might be due to me seeing Slow West the most recently, but I was blown away with the visuals from that film. Absolutely stunning cinematography.