My Top Ten Films of 2015

Hello again you lovely, lovely, gorgeous lot It is the beginning of the new year so I again bring you a list of my top films of the past year. You are again most welcome. Please remember these are my personal Top Ten films from those I have seen. So if you think I have missed a great film out, then either I haven't had a chance to see it, or you are wrong. Message me and I will let you know which one it is. Also please be aware that this post will probably contain spoilers

Notable mentions

These are the films which I really enjoyed and were the closest to being in my Top Ten:

Creed – A couple of years ago we had the much underrated Rocky Balboa come out, and we thought that was that was it for perennial underdog Rocky. However he is back. Not fighting in the ring himself this time, but taking on the role of mentor for Adonis Creed, the son of his friend (Guess which one). Like the first Rocky and the aforementioned Rocky Balboa, Creed is more of a character piece with both Micheal B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone in excellent form.

Danny Collins – This is one of those films which you might have missed. However you should catch it if you can, as it is full of fantastic performances from brilliant actors. Al Pacino plays the titular Danny Collins, an aging hard living rocker, who upon receiving a letter sent to him from John Lennon, about 40 years after it was sent, starts to take stock of his life and what could and maybe should have been. 

Mission Impossible V: Rogue Nation – Almost on par with the previous film in the series Ghost Protocol (the best of the bunch in my not so humble opinion). There's not much I can say about this one. Tom Cruise and his gang are back. Tom Cruise is charming, Simon Pegg is very funny, Rebecca Ferguson is mysterious, and Sean Harris is menacing as fuck. Everyone is fantastic in their roles. Lots of action and lots of fun.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Yes I can almost hear the audible gasp and feel the exasperation in the air from certain quarters, at this particular film not being in my top ten. Let me just say I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to what happens next with the new characters, all of whom were great. However if I am honest with myself and I usually am, there were a few things in the film that didn't sit well with me. It was a great way to kick off a new trilogy though. 

Tomorrowland – OK I know that this film was seen as somewhat of a failure and not a lot of people may have seen it. I don't care! I liked it and the positive optimistic message it sent out. I liked all the actors in it and I really loved the retro-future look of Tomorrowland. Not everything needs to be dark and brooding People, and that's me saying that, I'm the Prince of Dark and Brooding, with Batman being the King obviously.

The Top Ten

10) Ex Machina
Domhnall Gleeson has had a fantastic year as an actor, there were his great performances as General Hux in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and as the honourable but out of his depth Captain Andrew Henry in the Revenant (more on that later). He still has his awesome red hair, and then there was his performance in Ex Machina. Gleeson plays Caleb Smith a programmer set the task, (by his enigmatic boss) of testing a new A.I. to see if it can pass the Turning test. Arguably the stand out of the film is Alicia Vikander as said A.I. Ava. However I see it as more of a two-hander with Oscar Issac's Nathans presence ever looming in the background.

9) American Ultra
OK straight off let me mention, that I am aware that there is a lot of negativity and ill feeling towards Kristen Stewart out there. Whether she deserves it or not I have no idea. I have only seen her in two films (I think) and in both she has been very good. Also in both this one and Adventureland she has acted along side Jesse Eisenberg (coincidence? who knows). Anyway this was a really fun film, filled with comic book violence, with Eisenberg playing a lovable loser, who secretly unbeknownst to himself is a highly trained CIA operative. It's Clerks meets the Bourne Identity in the best way possible, and I love both of those films.

8) Bridge of Spies
Now lets get a few things out of the way, first of all Steven Spielberg is a true master of his craft, who with the exception of a certain film involving Crystal Skulls rarely puts a foot wrong. Second Tom Hanks is an amazing actor who I could watch in almost any role. So when you put these two story telling maestros together to the tell a compelling tale (based on true events ) involving the Cold War, Spies and a good man stuck in the middle, you have something that is worth watching. 

7) Inside Out
Another unbelievably good film from Pixar studios. This one takes us in to the mind and emotional control room (run by avatars of her emotions Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust) of a young girl from her birth to an emotionally turbulent time in her life at the age of 11, when she and her family relocate to a new city, leaving the only life she has known behind. All the voice talent are amazing especially the avatars. And like all the films from Pixar this one has something for all age groups. 

6) The Martian
Based on the best selling book, this is film has been heralded as something of a return to form for Ridley Scott after a number of lets say false steps. The film tells the story of astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon), who is left behind on Mars on his own, when the rest of his crew think he has perished, during an emergency evacuation. He must in the words of the character "science the shit out of this" to survive until a rescue mission can come pick him up (in 4 years time). The other parts of the story are back on Earth at NASA as they discover that Watney is alive and then attempt to help him, and a smaller part on the ship bringing Watneys crew back. A great cast but Damon is the stand out. 

5) Spy
This was without a doubt in my mind the funniest film I saw last year. Melissa McCarthy plays Susan Cooper, a CIA agent, who usually stays back at the office to help guide and support her partner Bradley Fine (Jude Law) while he does the usual spy James Bond thing. Susan is however thrust into the field when Fine is killed and the names of the other agents are made known to the illegal arms dealer Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne). Armed with various aliases each more ridiculous then the last. Susan must try and retrieve a portable nuclear weapon that Rayna is trying to sell before it falls into the wrong hands. McCarthy is as funny as usually, however the real hilarity is bought about by Rose Byrne and Jason Statham as the super extreme spy Rick Ford

4) Ant-Man
Ant-Man is a film that was in production a very long time. Marvel hired Edgar Wright in 2006 to write and direct an Ant-Man, with the plan being that it would be part of Phase one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 9 years later we finally got an Ant-Man film. However it was not the Ant-Man we might originally have thought we would get. Those of you familiar with the comic books will know that traditionally Hank Pym is the alter ego most associated with Ant-Man, however the character of Hank Pym comes with a whole lot of issues in the comic. Those of course could have been retconned for the film, however instead they decided to make Scott Lang (the second Ant-Man) the main focus of this film. Paul Rudd as Scott Lang is his usual, charming, funny self, the rest of the cast are all great, especially Michael Douglas as the now older Hank Pym and Michael Pena as Scott Langs ex-cellmate. The film as a whole is great fun with some imaginative actions sequences.

3) Mad Max: Fury Road
OK I have to admit this film is not very heavy on plot, but for non stop balls to the wall action and great effects work I don't think you will find a better film from 2015. Tom Hardy takes over the role of Max Rockatansky originally portrayed by Mel Gibson in the previous 3 films, and though he does a great job in the part, the films anchor is Charlize Therons awesomely named Imperator Furiosa. She is the heart of the film as well as the catalyst for the action, Max is just along for the ride. This film has been criticized in some quarters (I won't name them as they don't deserve it) for pushing the feminist agenda and trying to destroy manliness or some other bullshit. To them I say stop being dickheads and also Mad Max is not an American Icon he's Australian.

2) The Revenant

I was discussing this with a friend of mine earlier today, if Leonardo DiCaprio isn't given his overdue academy award for this film, then there is some sort of conspiracy against the poor man. I mean what does the man have to do. Completely shot in natural light with apparently little to no CGI, this is a gorgeously looking film. Full of great performance all through the cast. It is the story of hunter Hugh Glass (DiCaprio) in 1823, who after a disastrous  expedition, where his hunting party is attacked by the native Arikaras, is mauled by a bear. Then left for dead by a fellow hunter (Tom Hardy) who also kills Glass's half Pawnee son. This is a classic if slow chase film, as Glass pulls himself out of his shallow grave and goes after the man that did him wrong. There will be a reckoning.

1) Kingsmen: The Secret Service 
Kingsmen: The Secret Service came along very early in the year so many of you might have forgotten all about it. Colin Firth plays Harry Hart a secret agent of the independent security agency The Kingsmen. Smart, Suave and deadly the agents are all code-named after the knights of the round table, under the supervision of their leader Arthur (of course) played by Sir Michael Caine. When one of their number (Lancelot) is killed in action, the agents all have to submit a possible recruit to replace him. Harry (code-named Galahad) picks a young man from the wrong side of the tracks (Taron Egerton). All this as a new threat to the world arises. This is a great comedy action spy film. The scene in the Southern hate-mongering church was just magnificent, why has no one put Colin Firth in an action movie before? Over the top fun, definitely worth a watch.

And my worst film of the year for 2015 is.........

Fantastic Four
OK this year has been a pretty good year for films for me, so I haven't really seen that many bad films in 2015. The Fantastic Four reboot wins? lets say claims the dubious honour of being my worst film for the year, just for the fact that it wasted a very talented cast, and also the fact that this is a comic book film without any fun and very little action. And it made me miss the Tim Story, Fantastic Four films from about a decade ago.