It’s time again for my second annual awards. Eligible films are those released in the UK for the first time in 2014. Thanks to some time off work, I saw more films in 2014 than any year for well over a decade, so there are a total of 132 eligible movies. As always those there are omissions from my list of seen films, with the notable ones being Obvious Child, the 100 Foot Journey, A Walk Among the Tombstones, What we Did on our Holiday, Leviathan, In Order of Disappearance, Magic in the Moonlight, Still the Enemy Within, and Unbroken…
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT
One of the features of this cinema year has been highly praised films that I have completely failed to enjoy and four of these fall into that category. The winner is the best film in this list but I was expecting so much more from it.
Honourable Mentions:
Hector and the Search for Happiness, Only Lovers Left Alive, Her
Runners Up:
Under the Skin.
Winner:
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
MOST OVERLOOKED
There were two films in particular that I loved that seemed to arrive and disappear again without anyone else noticing:
Honourable Mention:
Hello Carter
Runner Up:
Draft Day
Winner:
Before the Winter Chill
MOST UNDERRATED
Critics unfairly gave these a rough ride, with the winner suffering because it was an all time classic like Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy…
Honourable Mentions:
The Monuments Men, Non-Stop
Runner Up:
God’s Pocket
Winner:
A Most Wanted Man
MOST OVERRATED
Honourable Mentions:
Her, Guardians of the Galaxy
Runner Up:
Under the Skin
Winner:
The Lego Movie
SHOULD HAVE BEEN SHORTER AWARD
A common feeling when sitting in the cinema, so a lot of candidates…
Honourable Mentions:
Under the Skin, The Homesman, 20000 Days on Earth, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Runner Up:
The Wolf of Wall Street
Winner:
Interstellar
SHOULD HAVE BEEN LONGER AWARD
As usual, this list is very short:
Winner:
The Monuments Men
BEST POPCORN MOVIE
The annual award for the best put your brain in neutral and enjoy the ride film…
Honourable Mentions:
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Edge of Tomorrow, Into the Storm
Runner Up:
Godzilla
Winner:
Non-Stop
BEST INSTRUMENTAL SCORE
Honourable Mentions:
Mica Levi (Under the Skin), Gabriel Yared (Tom at the Funeral), ROB (Grand Central), Thom Kellar & Sam Petty (The Rover), Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (Gone Girl), James Jandrisch (Reasonable Doubt), James Newton Howard (Nightcrawler), Jim Jarmusch, Carter Logan, Shane Stoneback & Jozef van Wissem (Only Lovers Left Alive)
Runner Up:
Hans Zimmer (Interstellar)
Winner:
Dickon Hinchliffe (Locke and Out of the Furnace)
BEST SOUNDTRACK
Award for a soundtrack predominately featuring songs rather than a traditional score
Runner Up:
The Guest
Winner:
Begin Again
WORST SCORE
A bad score may not ruin a film, as the winner shows, but it can really stand out even more than a good one…
Runner Up:
William Butler and Owen Pallet (Her)
Winner:
Hans Zimmer (12 Years a Slave)
BEST DOCUMENTARY
A year for a lot of soild docs but not really an outstanding one
Honourable Mentions: Seve, Mistaken for Strangers, The Unknown Known, The Armstrong Lie, Filmed in Supermarionation, Next Goal Wins, 20 Feet From Stardom and Possibilities are Endless
Runner Up:
The Unknown Known
Winner:
Pantani: The Accidental Death of a Cyclist
BAD PERFORMANCE IN A GOOD MOVIE
The film is good enough not to ruin your enjoyment but the bad acting still bugs you…
Honourable Mentions:
Adam Levine (Begin Again), Will Forte (A Life of Crime), Dakota Fanning (Night Moves)
Runner Up:
Robert Pattinson (The Rover)
Winner:
Naomi Watts (St Vincent)
GOOD PERFORMANCE IN A POOR OR BAD MOVIE
Just as much of a stand out, but this time in a good way…
Honourable Mentions:
Tilda Swinton (Only Lovers Left Alive), Mia Wasikowska (Only Lovers Left Alive), Josh Brolin (Labor Day), Lindsay Lohan (The Canyons), Sam Kelly (Common People), Bradley Cooper (Guardians of the Galaxy)
Runner Up:
Abigail Breslin (August Ossage County)
Winner:
Julianne Nicholson (August Ossage County)
BEST SINGLE SCENE / SEQUENCE
It seems to have been a year of outstanding scenes, sometimes in otherwise disappointing movies…
Honourable Mentions:
Sydney and Richie dancing in American Hustle
Belfort’s lunch with Mark Hanna in Wolf of Wall Street
The montage at the end of Calvary
The city attack in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Docking the damaged spacecraft in Interstellar
Belfort’s overdose at the country club in Wolf of Wall Street
The wedding in Grand Central
Aunt Marianne’s driving lessons in Under the Rainbow
Tom’s escape in Tom at the Farm
Blowing up the dam in Night Moves
The car chase in Nightcrawler
Joint 3rd:
Mason bonding with his Dad whilst camping in Boyhood
The end march in Pride
Runner Up:
Performing ‘Tell Me if You Wanna Go Home’ in Begin Again
Winner:
Solomon’s botched hanging in 12 Years a Slave
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
It was very nearly a best actress / supporting actress double…
Honourable Mentions:
Anne Metzler (Before the Winter Chill), Elenore Bernheim (Bright Days Ahead), Patricia Arquette (Boyhood), Carey Mulligan (Inside Llewyn Davis), Katherine Watrerston (Night Moves), Faye Marsay (Pride), Kim Dickens (Gone Girl), Carrie Coon (Gone Girl)
5th:
Jodie Whittaker (Hello Carter)
4th:
Aisling Faranciosi (Jimmy’s Hall)
3rd:
Agate Kulesza (Ida)
Runner Up:
Mia Wasikowska (Maps to the Stars, the Double and Only Lovers Left Alive)
Winner:
Hailee Steinfeld (Begin Again, The Homesman and Three Days to Kill)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Really hard to separate the contenders as all outstanding…
Honourable Mentions:
Devin Rattray (Blue Ruin), Woody Allen (Fading Gigolo), Gary Poulter (Joe), Eddie Marsan (God’s Pocket), Philip Seymour Hoffman (God’s Pocket), Terence Stamp (The Art of the Steal) Fares Fares (Keeper of Lost Causes), Paddy Considine (Pride), Bill Nighy (Pride), Tyler Perry (Gone Girl), Ben Mendlesohn (Starred Up), Bill Paxton (Nightcrawler)
5th:
Matthew McConaughey (Wolf of Wall Street)
4th:
Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave)
3rd:
Sean Harris (’71)
Runner Up:
Andrew Scott (Jimmy’s Hall, Pride and The Stag)
Winner:
Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)
BEST ACTRESS
Overall a weakfish year for actress performances though the winner would have been high on the list in any year
Honourable Mentions:
Amy Adams (American Hustle), Robin Weigert (Concussion), Kristin Scott Thomas (Before the Winter Chill), Fanny Ardant (Bright Days Ahead), Maxine Peake (Keeping Rosy), Angeli Bayani (Ilo Ilo),
5th:
Rene Russo (Nightcrawler)
4th:
Mira Barkhammer (We Are the Best)
3rd:
Marion Cotillard (2 Days 1 Night)
Runner Up:
Julianne Moore (Maps to the Stars)
Winner:
Mia Wasikowska (Tracks)
BEST ACTOR
The notable feature of 2014 was the quality of lead actor performances. Any of the top 5 might have won in a lesser year…
Honourable Mentions:
Jack O’Connell (’71 and Starred Up), Kevin Costner (Draft Day), John Cusack (Maps to the Stars), Ali Mosaffa (The Past), Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club and Interstellar), Chewitel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Jean-Pierre Bacri (Under the Rainbow), Daniel Auteil (Before the Winter Chill), Nicolas Cage (Joe), Macon Blair (Blue Ruin)
5th:
Brendan Gleeson (Calvary)
4th:
Philip Seymour Hoffman (A Most Wanted Man)
3rd:
Tom Hardy (Locke and The Drop)
Runner Up:
Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler)
Winner:
Timothy Spall (Mr Turner)
BEST DIRECTOR
Spoilers for the best film contenders…!?
Honourable Mentions:
David O Russell (American Hustle), Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave), Joel & Ethan Coen (Inside Llewyn Davis), Yann Demange (’71), David Fincher (Gone Girl), Kelly Reichardt (Night Moves), Ken Loach (Jimmy’s Hall)
5th:
Mike Leigh (Mr Turner)
4th:
John Michael McDonagh (Calvary)
3rd:
Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler)
Runner Up:
Steven Knight (Locke)
Winner:
Richard Linklater (Boyhood)
WORST FILM
Some real stinkers and I though Exhibition was going to be the winner until very late in the year when a new level of dreadfulness was achieved…
Dishonourable Mentions:
Common People, I Frankenstein, Noah, The Amazing Spider Man 2, In Your Eyes
Runner Up:
Exhibition
Winner:
A New York Winter’s Tale
BEST FILM
A pretty solid top 20 and particularly top 13. The top 4 were a little way ahead of the others with 2,3 and 4 particularly hard to separate. The winner was clear from the moment I saw it though…
20:
Fruitvale Station
19:
Begin Again
18:
Gone Girl
17:
‘71
16:
Jimmy’s Hall
15:
American Hustle
14:
Inside Llewyn Davis
13:
Mr Turner
12:
The Drop
11:
A Most Wanted Man
10:
Draft Day
9:
Before the Winter Chill
8:
Joe
7:
12 Years a Slave
6:
The Imitation Game
5:
Nightcrawler
4:
Calvary
3:
Pride
Runner Up:
Locke
Winner:
Boyhood