Best Films of 2015

Its been one hell of a year for films. Box office records have been broken, sequels to much beloved franchises have been released and through it all, we have been amazed, excited and overwhelmed by what we've seen this year. It truly has been a great year for films even if we still getting films we don't want, but we get anyway. So in no particular order, I'm going to list all the films I've seen this year while also doing small reviews of those I haven't reviewed yet which have come out this year and I liked and it won't just be films released in theatres but also those that are direct to home media amongst other things as well. So let's get to it:

Mad Max: Fury Road

So one of these franchises that gets itself a long overdue entry, is Mad Max. This film got me into watching the original three films and I found enjoyment out of them and this film despite not having Mel Gibson in it, just goes to show that when done right, a balance between practical and CGI effects can work as this film was more of the former than the latter and it was freakin' awesome. Who thought that a bunch of post-apocalyptic style cars racing in what seems to be a vehicle war could look so cool and awesome, not to mention epic and visually stunning. Plus its also a film where you don't need lots of dialogue to make it good. Its a great film and one that has been highly regarded as one of the greatest action films ever made in recent times.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

I will say that an Avengers sequel was something that I personally was looking forward to, but when I saw it, I just felt that it didn't have the spark that the original film had. I mean yeah you've got all the guys doing things along with some new members being introduced, but it didn't feel very action packed like the original. But on a positive note, at least we got to see Hulk at a more emotional level and Hawkeye has turned from being a boring character into someone more interesting than you think. The subtitle isn't quiet accurate as the film felt like watching a week or a few days of Ultron because when you think of age, you think of it as a whole millennia, not just a short period of time. Not one of Joss Whedon's finest, but its still an alright flick which sets the stage for Civil War and other Marvel films to follow.

Jurassic World

I remember first seeing Jurassic Park on the TV and got interested in what would come of the series. Two sequels which both felt very mediocre and both left the series into question of what is to come. Fortunately, after a long wait, we finally got the 4th film and just by the sheer presence of Chris Pratt, means that it would be successful and it was. It broke box office records, earned over $1 billion dollars at the box office and was one of 3 films by Universal to do so this year, and it was a very enjoyable film, even if it did have a CGI overkill (though this wasn't too much of a big deal in my opinion). And yes, we finally get a fully functional park, something of which the other films teased us at and now we finally got it. But regardless of what dinosaurs they throw at us, to me, T-rex will always be king whatever people think.

Inside Out

As I said in my original review, Inside Out is the film that got Pixar back into making great films, something of which they were lacking following the release of Cars 2. This time, they play with our emotions and show us that emotions are the things that get us moving in life. Looking at it now, I find that there should've been a balance in the emotions seen in the film in that we should really have some positive emotions as well as negative, but here its more negative than positive. But despite this, it is a fine animated film that is heartwarming, beautifully animated and is literally, very emotional too. Pixar's best film in recent years.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

I wasn't very sure if this gamble Disney made, would pay off. But now that I've seen the film, I can say without a doubt that this is a great film in the Star Wars saga which despite bearing similarities to the very first film (no not the Phantom Meance), is well acted, visually stunning and is certainly a film that knows where its going in the world and just tells me that Disney made a good decision in putting LucasFilm into their list of assets alongside Pixar (whom of which originally started out at LucasFilm), Marvel and many others. May the force be with you, now go and watch it. You won't regret it.

Fast & Furious 7

You know, the amount of times I hear Vin Deisal say "One Last Ride" in these films and then find out that this is Universal's biggest franchise, it tells me that the series thinks its ending, but next minute it doesn't when you find that there is another film in the works. Now with the 7th film, we've reached the present and have now properly passed Tokyo Drift and so the series can finally move forward. This film is a sendoff to the late Paul Walker who sadly passed away due to a car accident and the way they retire his character is the way it should be done and its done well. At times, I felt this film was bending the laws of physics at how impossible it is with the things the characters are doing that isn't humanly possible like running on the side of a coach falling down a cliff or driving a car through 3 tall buildings on one of the higher floors. Its mad and over the top, but its still pretty good and hilarious too. Wherever the series goes from here, let's hope Universal doesn't milk it too much. And yes, this is the second film of Universals' to get over $1 billion at the box office.

Spectre

You know, it feels like its only been a year or two since Skyfall and here we are, talking about Daniel Craig's 4th outing as 007 and this one is the one that tries to tie all his films together which to a certain extent, is done well. And we get to see the titular organisation in all their glory, the first time since Diamonds are Forever apparently. I will say that while this isn't the worst Bond film, its not the best one either. But it is packed with a lot of action sequences, suspense, twists and turns and a whole pile of other things too. Bond fans will enjoy this and general movie goers will find enjoyment in this too, even if the theme song at the beginning doesn't live up to Adele's song in the previous film.

Minions

So when I initially did my review of this film, I later found out that most critics and film goers had very mixed opinions about it which is surprising because everyone loves the Minions in the Despicable Me films so this should've worked out well. All I can say is that it is good. It's pretty much what you'd expect from a film about some yellow things who talk gibberish and I enjoyed the historical and pop culture references that they throwed in, it was a nice touch (and yes people, conventions are a thing. Look it up). I'd say the only thing that may have let it down, is the human characters. Now to begin with, I was kind of expecting a film with just the Minions on their own on their way to Gru. But that's not what we get in the end. I'm not saying that the human characters are bad. I'm just saying that they weren't necessary in the end. But whatever you think, its a good film which will certainly put a smile on your face if anything.

Mission Impossible: Rouge Nation

I think its fair to say that since the third film, all of the films in the Mission Impossible series have been great. This one I found to look a little bit like James Bond in that there are many moments that feel like a Bond moment and then there are parts which do genuinely feel like Mission Impossible. It may not be like the original TV show, but its certainly a fine entry in the film series. I mean the dive into what looked like a portal really just got to me on how insane and over the top that sounded and the scenes where they are in Congress, that's pretty much how I'd expected it to play out. A great film for fans and film goers alike.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2

I will be honest, I've really hated the way film makers go about making film adaptations of books in that for the most part, they are just following what Harry Potter did in that they make one film for each book and split the last book into 2 parts in order to make sure everything is covered and given closure. Its not a bad way to go about it, but when its been done a dozen times, you kind of get sick of it and its just not creative and creativity is a must in films these days. But despite this, I found the Hunger Games to actually be surprisingly good, especially when it got going in Catching Fire. The films themselves are all about survival and up to this point, its been a 3 way battle between this, Maze Runner and Divergent. I haven't seen Maze Runner yet but I know that after one film, the series name starts to get misleading. I've seen the first Divergent film and I got to be honest, I just got bored instantly and that has nothing to do with Jai Courtney being the film who seems to have a knack at making films he's in bad. So on that, The Hunger Games is a much stronger series in that it takes survival well and makes us feel part of action as it happens. And just like with Harry Potter, the films have a number of very talented actors combined with some fresh blood as well. The last film I have to say was great, action packed, full of twists and turns and very emotional too. A well made film and a well made film series too.

Shaun the Sheep Movie

A lot of critics and film goers went nuts over this film and I got to be honest, I know I was quite positive about it in my initial review, but I just don't get it. OK yes it has little to no dialogue and the animation is quite good, but would I call it a great film. No I wouldn't. It just didn't feel like a film to me. It felt more like watching a very long made for TV episode of the show of which this film came from and it just felt boring at times which is surprising as I'm always wide awake for Aardman films. All I can say is that if you're a fan of Shaun the Sheep, then you'll enjoy this. But for everyone else, it just all depends on your taste in films. Personally I think Chicken Run and Wallace and Gromit are better Aardman films than this one, but that's just me. Its enjoyable, but I wouldn't go as far as calling it a great film.

Cinderella

And this film is another one of those films where the critics go nuts as to how good it is. All I can say is that, its OK. Not bad, not great, just OK. I know this film does have the parents killed off early on, but it just feels too happy for my liking and I'd much rather have a film with a bit of drama and serious moments. But this film was just too happy. That's all I can say on that. Its just too happy and maybe too happy to know that its too happy. But if you love the tale of Cinderella, then maybe you'll like this film. But for me, its just too happy.

Tomorrowland

Ever since Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney have made a number of films based on their rides and attractions at their theme parks and pretty much every single one since Pirates came around, have not done well. But with Tomorrowland, you'd think it would work with Brad Bird at the helm. Unfortunately, it kind of didn't. The visuals are great and the many references to all things futuristic are great, but its really the acting, the goofy moments and some other things that let this film down. I was actually looking forward to this film the minute it was announced as I remember going into this part of a Disney theme park looking very intrigued. But when I saw it, it wasn't bad as such, but it wasn't entirely great either. Like I said, visuals are great and the references to futuristic things are good, its just everything else. Not a bad film mind you, but just one that you can probably give a miss unless you're into films like this, but I'll leave that up to you.

The Good Dinosaur

So Pixar this year decided to release two films which is a first for them, but not a first for some of Disney's other assets such as Marvel who practically release 2 films a year. This film was a box office failure, but its still considered a good film, despite the idea and premise to not be very original. It does in a way, shed new light on the Pixar theory that many fans seem to think about a lot. A alternate world where the meteorite misses Earth and the dinosaurs still live in harmony on it and have adapted to become things like farmers, herders and other things too, but not in the way you'd expect a premise like that to go so well done to Pixar for taking a done to death idea and make something creative out of it. Its not a film that lives up to the standards of Pixar's other films, but its enough to be considered a good film which despite its rating on Rotten Tomatoes, is better than Cars any day so I will give the film that.

Spy

There's no question about it. Paul Feig and Mellisa McCarthy seem to have a knack for making films in a genre that is typically considered to not be very good. Their chick flick Bridesmaids was great for males and females, their buddy cop film The Heat was very good compared to similar films and now we come to their take on the whole parody of espionage. Something of which has had a very mixed response to over the years with some being good, some being bad and some being just OK. In this case, it was good. But I will admit, it does have those typical traits that I absolutely hate in a film where the villain has that "I'm better than you" thing going on as well as the betrayal and the main protagonist being criticized for what she is doing on the field compared to what she does on a desk. But for some reason, it works here in a way that actually makes it less problematic for me so yeah. Check it out when you can.

Ant-Man

So there seems to be a pattern that Marvel are following in that they release 2 cinematic universe films and use the shows they have which exist in the same universe on TV and Netflix to fill up the gaps between films. And they leave Fox to do what they want with the Marvel licenses they have which to date are just X-Men, Fantastic Four and any characters that come from those franchises such as Wolverine and Deadpool. So with the 2 films, we obviously get an Avengers film (solo or otherwise) which serves as the film that makes an impact in the cinematic universe like in Winter Solider with the whole S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra conspiracy and Age of Ultron where the team expands. Then for their second film, they introduce a team or just one hero into the universe which is the case for Ant-Man. This is a visually stunning film in that it really takes advantage of the whole being small thing and makes good use out of it and makes seeing it in 3D totally worth it. And just like with Guardians of the Galaxy, its not entirely serious as there are many humorous and fun moments to be had here and we can almost certainly see Ant-Man become an Avenger in the future so that's something to look forward too. Another good year for Marvel, even if Age of Ultron didn't live to expectations.

Smosh: The Movie

I'm gonna be honest, after I saw Fred the Movie about this YouTube celebrity who's known for his high pitch voice, I then thought "How would any YouTube film after this would work?". Somehow the Smosh guys found a way to make a good film which does look like those terrible British films we've been getting recently (Keith Lemon and Harry Hill to name but a few). As you would expect, it does have some cameos from a number of YouTube stars and in many ways, this film should have those cheesy moments in high school films, but it doesn't. Its not a bad film, but I wouldn't go to the cinema to see it as I found it to be more like those direct to home media films that you get every now and again (which was a big deal for Disney back in the day). But it is very good and certianly worth a watch if you like YouTube in general or Smosh. 8/10

Everest

Most people who saw this called it the Gravity (as in the film starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock) of 2015 and they are right. I saw this in 3D and while it is based on a true story, its a well acted film full of suspense and edge of your seat moments. I went into this fully aware of such moments and I have to say, it was a great film and all the actors put on very convincing New Zealand accents (with the exceptions of some cast members, but that's for all the right reasons). If you're after a heart pounding film, this is a good one for that.

Batman VS Robin

So in 2016, we'll be getting a film where the Man of Steel battles the Dark Knight and while I had my doubts, I'd say its shaping up to be a great film. But if you want something to watch in the meantime while you wait, this should pull you over. Everyone knows about how it works with Batman and Robin and as such, we have a film where Robin (the Damien Wayne version) goes on a journey to find out who he is while tensions rise with Batman and the Court of Owls. One wants him to fight for justice while the other would rather have the criminals killed than given to the authorities which as we all know, breaks the one rule Batman tends to have (well most of the time anyway). It is a good film which shows us that there is more that meets the eye when it comes to Robin.

And to finish off, let us remember those who have passed away this year:

Leonard Nimoy - Better known as Spock from Star Trek. Live long and prosper my friend.

Christopher Lee - One of the greatest actors of all time known for Count Dooku in Star Wars, Sauroman in LOTR and Hobbit and one of many actors who portrayed Dracula among many other roles.

James Horner - A great composer who did the music for Titanic and Avatar among others.

Wes Craven - A great director of films and the one who created Nightmare on Elm Street.

And to others who have passed away this year, you will be missed a great deal.