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Monday
Feb162015

2015 Films, Alphabetically (With Grades)

136 Films Screened | 123 Released 
Title (Director) Grade Review*
(or view by Grades
Last Update: 2/28/16

* grades are Nathaniel's. reviews sometimes read otherwise if written by another staff member

Creed proves to be a muscular and enjoyable crowd-pleaser

Theatrically Released

1001 Grams (Bent Hamer) C+ Review
45 Years
(Andrew Haigh) B+ Capsule
'71 
(Yann Demange) B+ Review 

Animals (Collin Schiffli) B+ Making of
Anomalisa (Charlie Kaufman) B First Thoughts
Ant-Man (Peyton Reed) C+ Review, Podcast 
Appropriate Behavior (Desiree Akhavan) B+ Review
Arabian Nights: Volume 2 - The Desolate One (Miguel Gomes) B- Review (Kino Lorber)
Assassin, The (Hou Hsaio-Hsien) B- Review
Avengers: Age of Ultron (Joss Whedon) B-³ Review and Podcast 

The Big Short (Adam McKay) C Review
Blackhat
(Michael Mann) C+ Review
Black Mass (Scott Cooper) C Reviewish
Boulevard (Dito Montiel) C Review 
Bridge of Spies (Steven Spielberg) B Review
Brooklyn (John Crowley) B+² Review, 15 Best of 15
By the Sea (Angelina Jolie) C+ Reviewish

Carol (Todd Haynes) A Reviewish15 Best of 15
Charlie's Country
 
(Rolf de Beer) C+ Review (festivals in 2014)
Chi-Raq (Spike Lee) B+ Podcast
Chocolate City
(Jean-Claude La Marre) D Review
Cinderella (Kenneth Branagh) B+ Review
Clouds of Sils Maria (Olivier Assayas) B+² Jason's ReviewMargaret's Take, Binoche's performance
Cooties (Jonathan Milott) C+ Glenn's Review (festivals in 2014)
Concussion
(Peter Landesman) C+ Review
Creed
(Ryan Coogler)  B+² Review , 15 Best of 15
Crimson Peak (Guillermo Del Toro) C+  

D Train, The (Jarrad Paul & Andrew Mogel) B- Review 
Danish Girl, The (Tom Hooper) B-² Interview Eddie
Diary of a Teenage Girl, The (Marielle Heller) B Michael's ReviewNathaniel's Take 
Do I Sound Gay? (David Thorpe) C- Interview
Dope (Rick Famuyiwa) B Capsule

Electric Slide (Tristan Patterson) C+ Review
Every Secret Thing (Amy Berg) C+ Review 
Ex Machina (Alex Garland) A² Review , 15 Best of 15

Fantastic Four (Josh Trank) F Review
Far From The Madding Crowd (Thomas Vinterberg) B Review
Farewell Party, The (Tali Granit & Sharon Maymon) B+ Review
Fifty Shades of Grey (Sam Taylor-Johnson) C- Review 
Flowers (Jon Garaño & Jose Mari Goenaga) C+ Interview
Freeheld
(Peter Sollett) C
Futuro Beach
 
(Karim Äinouz) B Review 

Gerontophilia (Bruce LaBruce) B Review
Girlhood (Celine Sciamma) B+
Going Clear
(Alex Gibney)
Good Dinosaur, The (Peter Sohn) C+ Review
Grandma 
(Paul Weitz) B+² Nathaniel's ReviewJoe's Review, Poster Blurb

Hateful Eight, The (Quentin Tarantino) D+
Hot Pursuit
(Anne Fletcher) C-  Review

I'll See You In My Dreams (Brett Haley) B+² Blythe's Performance 
In the Heart of the Sea (Ron Howard) D
Infinitely Polar Bear
 (Maya Forbes) C- Review 
Inside Out (Pete Docter & Ronaldo Del Carmen) A-² Podcast , 15 Best of 15
It Follows (David Robert Mitchell) B+ Review

James White (Josh Mond) B Review, 1st Impression
Joy
(David O. Russell) C+
Jupiter Ascending
(Andy & Lana Wachowski) C+ Podcast 
Jurassic World (Colin Trevorrow) C-

Labyrinth of Lies (Giulio Ricciarelli) B+ Review  (festivals in 2014)
Lady in the Van, The (Nicholas Hytner) B- Review
Last Five Years, The
 (Richard LaGravenese) B Review 
Learning to Drive (Isabel Coixet) B- 
Love (Gaspar Noe) C- Review
Love & Mercy (Bill Pohlad) B Podcast
Little Chaos, A (Alan Rickman) C+ Review 

Macbeth (Justin Kurzel) C-
Mad Max Fury Road
(George Miller) A³ Review, Best Shot15 Best of 15
Magic Mike XXL (Gregory Jacobs) B Review, Podcast 
Man From U.N.C.L.E., The (Guy Ritchie) B Review 
Martian, The (Ridley Scott) B² Podcast
Match (Stephen Belber) Review 
Max (Boaz Yakin) C- 
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Alfonso Gomez-Rejon) C- Michael's Review, Podcast 
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (Christopher McQuarrie) B Review 
Mistress America (Noah Baumbach) C
Mr Holmes (Bill Condon) C+
Mustang (Denis Gamze Erguven) B+ Interview, Review, 1st Impression

Nasty Baby (Sebastian Silva) B Capsule 
New Girlfriend, The (François Ozon) B- Review 

Of Horses & Men (Benedikt Erlingsson) B+ Capsule

Paddington (Paul King) B- Brief Comment & Jose's Take
Peanuts Movie, The (Steve Martino) B-
Phoenix
(Christian Petzold) B+ 15 Best of 15
Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, A
 (Roy Andersson) B+ Review , 15 Best of 15
Pitch Perfect 2 (Elizabeth Banks) B- Review
Princess of France (Matías Piñeiro) B CapsulePodcast

Red Army (Gabel Polsky) B
Revenant, The (Inaritu) B-
Ricki and the Flash (Jonathan Demme) B Review 
Room (Lenny Abrahamson) A² Premiere Notes , 15 Best of 15

Saint Laurent (Bertrand Bonello) B- Review 
Sand Dollars (Israel Cárdenas & Laura Amelia Guzmán) B- Review  
Second Mother, The (Anna Muylaert) B+
Seventh Son, The (Sergey Bodrov) C- Podcast 
Sicario (Denis Villeneuve) B+ Podcast , 15 Best of 15
Sisters (Jason Moore) C+ Review
Sleeping With Other People (Leslye Headland) B Review 
Son of Saul (Laszlo Nemes) B+ Review & Interview
Song One (Kate Barker-Froyland) B- Capsule 
Southpaw (Antoine Fuqua) B- Podcast 
Spotlight (Thomas McCarthy) B+² versus Truth 
Spy (Paul Feig) B+ Podcast
Stanford Prison Experiment, The (Kyle Patrick Alvarez)  Review
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (JJ Abrams) B+ Review
Steve Jobs (Danny Boyle) B+² Review
Stonewall (Roland Emmerich) D Review, Podcast, Interview
Straight Outta Compton (F Gary Gray) B-
Strangerland (Kim Farrant) C+ Nathaniel's Review & Glenn's Take
Suffragette (Sarah Gavron) B-² Review, on Carey Mulligan

Tab Hunter: Confidential (Jeffrey Schwarz) B  
Tangerine
 (Sean Baker) A-² Review, Podcast , 15 Best of 15
Terminator Genisys (Alan Taylor) D+ Review
Tomorrowland (Brad Bird) B- Review 
Tom at the Farm (Xavier Dolan) B+ Review (festivals in 2013)
Trainwreck (Judd Apatow) B Podcast
Trumbo (Jay Roach) C+
Truth (James Vanderbilt) B² versus Spotlight 

Victoria (Sebastian Schipper) B+ First Thoughts
Voices, The (Marjane Satrapi) D capsule 

Walk, The (Robert Zemeckis) C+ Review 
What We Do In The Shadows (Taiki Waititi & Jemaine Clement) B+
Woman in Gold (Simon Curtis) C- Thoughts I Had

Youth (Paolo Sorrentino) B² First Thoughts

Anomalisa

Distributors But No Release Dates
As I Open My Eyes
(Leyla Bouzid) B Capsule
Ixcanul (Jayro Bustamante) B Capsule

No Distributor
Bright Night (Florian Gottschick) C+
Eva Doesn't Sleep
(Pablo Agüero) WTF Capsule
Girls Lost
(Alexandra-Therese Keining) C+ Review
Granny's Dancing on the Table (Hanna Sköld) B- Review 
Here After, The (Magnus Von Horn) Review 
Homesick (Anne Sewitsky) B Review 
How to Win at Checkers (Every Time) (Josh Kim)
I Am Michael (Justin Kelly) C+ Review 
In the Grayscale (Claudio Marcone) B-
Invisible (Lawrence Fajardo) B Capsule
Strobe Edge (Ryuichi Hiroki) C-
Women He's Undressed (Gillian Armstrong) C+ Interview

Movies That Couldn't Pick an Official Year - Giving Me Grief!
Maps to the Stars 
(David Cronenberg) C+ Nathaniel's ReviewGlenn's Take 
Kumiko the Treasure Hunter (David Zellner) B+ Review 

By most accounts these last two received their theatrical releases in 2015 but the latter two were both nominated for major awards in 2014 (Globe & Indie Spirit respectively) so did they have "qualifying releases"? "Maps" at least kept changing its mind about whether it would receive an awards qualifying run, making tracking, categorization and awardage impossible for TFE. We like clear lines of demarcation between calendar years. 

Monday
Feb162015

2015 Films, By Grade

THEATRICALLY RELEASED FILMS ONLY
Title (Director)
Or View Alphabetically 
Last Updated 12/20/15 

A/A-
i.e. true favorites of the year

Brooklyn (John Crowley) Review
Carol 
(Todd Haynes) Reviewish
Ex Machina
 (Alex Garland) Review 
Inside Out (Pete Docter & Ronaldo Del Carmen)  Podcast
Mad Max Fury Road (George Miller) Review 
Room (Lenny Abrahamson)  Premiere Notes
Tangerine (Sean Baker)Review 

B+/B
also special

45 Years (Andrew Haigh) Capsule
'71 (Yann Demange) Review 
Animals  (Collin Schiffli) Making of
Appropriate Behavior (Desiree Akhavan) Review  
Cinderella (Kenneth Branagh) Review
Creed  (Ryan Coogler)
Clouds of Sils Maria²
 (Olivier Assayas) Jason's ReviewMargaret's Take
Grandma (Paul Weitz) Nathaniel's ReviewJoe's Review 
I'll See You In My Dreams (Brett Haley)  Blythe's Performance
It Follows (David Robert Mitchell)
The Martian
(Ridley Scott)
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (Christopher McQuarrie)  Review 
Mustang (Denis Gamze Erguven)
Of Horses and Men (Benedikt Erlingsson) 
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch... (Roy Andersson) Review 
Sicario (Denis Vileneuve)
Spy (Paul Feig)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens (JJ Abrams)
Steve Jobs (Danny Boyle) Review
Tom at the Farm (Xavier Dolan) Review 
Victoria (Sebastian Schipper)  First Thoughts
What We Do In The Shadows (Taiki Waititi & Jemaine Clement)

 

B
totally solid entertainments

Bridge of Spies (Steven Spielberg) Review
Dope 
(Rick Famuyiwa)  Capsule
Far From The Madding Crowd
 (Thomas Vinterberg) Review
Farewell Party, The
 (Tali Granit & Sharon Maymon) Review
Futuro Beach 
(Karim Äinouz) Review
Going Clear 
(Alex Gibney)
Labyrinth of Lies
 (Giulio Ricciarelli)  Review 
Man From U.N.C.L.E., The
 (Guy Ritchie) Review 
Red Army
 (Gabel Polsky)  
Ricki and the Flash
 (Jonathan Demme)  Review
Tab Hunter: Confidential
(Jeffrey Schwarz)
Youth
(Paolo Sorrentino) First Thoughts

B/B-
recommended with reservations

Assassin, The (Hou Hsaio-Hsien) Review
Avengers: Age of Ultron² (Joss Whedon)  Review and Podcast
Danish Girl, The (Tom Hooper) 
D Train, The (Jarrad Paul & Andrew Mogel) Review 
Diary of a Teenage Girl, The (Marielle Heller)  Michael's ReviewNathaniel's Take 
Gerontophilia (Bruce LaBruce) Review 
Last Five Years, The (Richard LaGravenese) Review  
Learning to Drive (Isabel Coixet) 
Love & Mercy (Bill Pohlad) Podcast
Magic Mike XXL (Gregory Jacobs)   ReviewPodcast 
Nasty Baby  (Sebastian Silva) Capsule 
Paddington (Paul King) Brief Comment & Jose's Take
Pitch Perfect 2 (Elizabeth Banks)  Review 
Princess of France (Matías Piñeiro)  CapsulePodcast
Sand Dollars (Israel Cárdenas & Laura Amelia Guzmán)  Review 
Saint Laurent (Bertrand Bonello) Review 
Southpaw (Antoine Fuqua) Podcast
Suffragette (Sarah Gavron) 
Stanford Prison Experiment, The
 (Kyle Patrick Alvarez)  Review  
Trainwreck (Judd Apatow) Podcast
Truth (James Vanderbilt) versus Spotlight

B-/C+
They have their moments

Ant-Man (Peyton Reed) ReviewPodcast
The Big Short
(Adam McKay) Review 
Blackhat
  (Michael Mann) Review
By the Sea (Angelina Jolie) 
Charlie's Country  (Rolf de Beer) Review
Concussion (Peter Landesman)
Flowers 
(Jon Garaño & Jose Mari Goenaga)
Good Dinosaur, The (Peter Sohn)
Mr Holmes  (Bill Condon) 
New Girlfriend, The (François Ozon) Review 
A Little Chaos  (Alan Rickman) Review 
Song One
 (Kate Barker-Froyland) Capsule  
Tomorrowland (Brad Bird) Review 
Walk, The (Robert Zemeckis)  

C+/C
ehhhh...

Black Mass  (Scott Cooper) Reviewish
Boulevard
 (Dito Montiel)  Review 
Cooties  (Jonathan Milott) Glenn's Review 
Do I Sound Gay?  (David Thorpe) 
Electric Slide
 (Tristan Patterson) review
Every Secret Thing (Amy Berg) Review 
Jupiter Ascending (Andy & Lana Wachowski)  Podcast  
Jurassic World (Colin Trevorrow)
Maps to the Stars (David Cronenberg) Nathaniel's ReviewGlenn's Take 
Strangerland (Kim Farrant)   Nathaniel's Review & Glenn's Take

C-/D+
No thank you

Fifty Shades of Grey (Sam Taylor-Johnson) Review
Hateful Eight, The (Quentin Tarantino)
Hot Pursuit (Anne Fletcher) Review
Infinitely Polar Bear (Maya Forbes) Review 
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Alfonso Gomez-Rejon) Michael's ReviewPodcast 
Mistress America  (Noah Baumbach) 
Seventh Son, The
 (Sergey Bodrov) Podcast 
Terminator Genisys (Alan Taylor) Review
Woman in Gold (Simon Curtis) Thoughts I Had  

D/D-/F
oh god. make it stop

Chocolate City (Jean-Claude LaMarre) Review 
Fantastic Four (Josh Trank) Review 
In the Heart of the Sea (Ron Howard) 
Match (Stephen Belber) Review  
Stonewall (Roland Emmerich) Review
Voices, The (Marjane Satrapi) Capsule  


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