Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

So much fun, though the special effects didn’t really work on the small screen. I felt like I was watching a cartoon rather than live action.

B+

The Judge (2014)

This would have been almost laughable if I hadn’t wasted more than two hours of my life on it. It was just so lazy: almost all of it annoyed me, but the rain man brother was a particular problem. He was both super literal ("What line were we in when they were handing out testicles?") and able to understand subtext ("He didn’t mean that"). I don’t think the screenwriter has ever actually been in the same room with a person who processes information differently than most.

Also, the judge presiding over the big trial seemed to go to the Law & Order school for judges, letting, you know, WHATEVER go on when witnesses were in the box.

D-

Foxcatcher (2014)

Carell lets his prosthetic nose and teeth do his acting for him while Tatum relied on an underbite, a scowl, and a waddle. Ruffalo was fine, but he can’t pull off an entire movie alone.

There were pacing & storytelling problems, but it was the factual inaccuracies that were unforgivable. Changing the time frame of events? Sure, I get that. Obfuscating the violence and schizophrenia of a murderer in order to go in a more salacious and sexual direction? Why? Is "straight-up nuts" not interesting enough any more?

D

Grudge Match (2013)

Watchable, but only just. The story is lazy, a lot of the acting poor (Basinger has an OSCAR; go ahead and ponder that for a second), and the dialogue is quite messy. Most of the time it seemed like the actors were remembering the gist of the scene and improvising the actual words.

But, every so often, a spark of charm would blaze out of nowhere making it impossible to downright hate.

C-

Selma (2014)

A solid movie with great performances, but it never really ascended to the heights it should have. Too many faces we see again and again are treated as just faces in the crowd, when it’s clear that they weren’t. Even those in King’s advisory circle barely had names as far as I know. It made me merely interested in the events rather than devastated by them.

B

American Sniper (2014)

I think Hurt Locker does a better job with the juxtaposition of being a good soldier in the field and at home, but this is still a fine movie. Because it’s also a based on a true story, it’s hard to fault it for its “square” telling. In the end, I was inspired -- it just felt like well-trod territory.

Note: I knew nothing about Chris Kyle going into the film so the above is not a commentary on the validity of what I saw.

B

Inherent Vice (2014)

I think it wanted to be L.A. Confidential, Big Lebowski and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang all rolled into one, but instead it was just convoluted with a new name introduced every 5 minutes (rarely with a face to hang it on) and boring.

It was on track to get an “F” rating, but one of the never-ending scenes had its insufferable words coming out of a face that was attached to some unclad (and quite pretty) breasts. So at least that scene worked. Well, "worked."

D-

Wild (2014)

Makes a compelling case for forced solitude as therapy. Witherspoon does an amazing job of holding the screen, often while silent. Although I couldn't really identify with Cheryl as a person, I understood what I was being shown and felt that everything rang true. Well, everything but the "magical fox."

B+

Boyhood (2014)

This was probably my biggest movie letdown since Snowpiercer. Yes, it was ambitious, but I'm not really sure that matters when the result is rather limp. If this was made in the normal way -- with a standard shooting schedule rather than a decade-plus one, utilizing aging makeup and different actors for the kids -- would this be a compelling story? No. It’d be a poorly-acted slog.

The only point of interest was seeing these actors age before our eyes. But, given a choice, I’d prefer to be entertained rather than to witness an experiment which amounts to nothing more than snapshots of several different people. I have no quibble with Arquette and Hawke being nominated for their acting, however.

C

The Homesman (2014)

Tons of people are in this, but I don’t get why. Was it a fantastic book? Did it get butchered during the editing process? Did Tommy Lee Jones threaten their families? Oh, it was dreadful and boring and nonsensical and offensive.

In a nutshell: three women are too fragile to hang in the west and go feral/crazy/catatonic. Uh, OK? And then the one strong woman kills herself because, well, I think because she can’t find a man? What the hell is going ON in this story?

Not only was the story bonkers, the film couldn’t find its tone. The theater I was in, which was literally packed with senior citizens, often tittered uncertainly whenever Tommy Lee Jones mugged. It was never funny.

D

Drinking Buddies (2013)

First: I couldn’t stand any of these people. Second: there was an unpredictability about it, but so what? There’s an unpredictability to improv speeches, too. That doesn’t make them any good.

D+

Wit (2001)

Emma Thompson plays Vivian Bearing, a poetry professor who took a no-nonsense approach to her professional life and chooses to do the same when diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer.

This is, truly, just about perfect. There's a lot of speaking straight to the camera -- there's no attempt to hide the stage origin of the script -- but it works beautifully. She comments on what's going on now and shares memories in gorgeous flashbacks of her childhood, college, and teaching years.

I saw it for the first time more than a dozen years ago and it has stayed with me. It was surprising to find that I'd remembered it so precisely -- I guess that's what happens when one's so strongly affected by art: it takes up residence in your soul.

A+

The Den (2014)

Truly frightening cyber-stalking horror movie, though it winds up being a bit of a letdown when you find out what’s actually going on. Also, throughout, I had that constant “How can they be so STUPID” voice in my head. Could’ve easily stepped up its game a bit and been a fun treat. Instead you're left feeling like you got a talking-to if you were at all entertained.

C+

The Babadook (2014)

I kind of went back and forth on this movie when considering how to grade it. On the one hand, it was effective and looked great. I could feel the mother’s exhaustion, isolation, and frustration.

But on this hand, the climactic night just felt familiar and unsatisfying. I was happier with my mental explanation: grieving widow with a demanding child goes nuts and takes her kid with her. That’s horrifying and feels supernatural without actually BEING supernatural.

C+

The One I Love (2014)

A couple trying to save their marriage go on a getaway arranged by their therapist and things get real weird.

This is a bona fide original. It was so unusual that I wasn't sure whether the surreality of the situation was funny or terrifying, but I loved every minute.

A-

Unbroken (2014)

Overlong and repetitive. The acting was wooden, the direction clunky, and the whole package came off as square. There's obviously an amazing story here, but it was told without gusto.

C