If you spend the entirety of your Internet time on this blog, then you might have the idea that my pop culture opinions are the only ones that exist. Well, guess what?! It turns out that there other people out there who also have things to say about movies, TV, and music. With that in mind, here is a guest post from Alex Bailey, who owns Movies in Order, a website that attempts to list every movie trilogy in order by release date:
2014 had its fair share of movie flops, but thankfully there are plenty more flicks to go see, all awesome in their own right. This is not a categorical list of the “best” movies in each genre, but rather ones that deserve to be watched simply because they are that good (or interesting). So without further ado, here are 6 genre movies to go see this year!
1. Action/Adventure – Edge of Tomorrow
After the disappointment of 2013’s Oblivion, Tom Cruise is back for a fresh start in his latest action flick Edge of Tomorrow. Cruise gives a spectacular performance playing Major Cage, battling an alien invasion of Earth. He does what he does best in his action roles, which is look progressively more and more awesome as the plot moves forward. The premise? Cruise keeps waking up after being killed in combat, a victim of alien time warping technology. The problem? He’s getting better at fighting back. Definitely one of the top action movies to see this year.
2. Sci-Fi – X-Men: Days of Future Past
Being a huge fan of basically all comic books and the X-men movie series, I was excited when we finally got an X-Men movie with Sentinels as the primary antagonists. Hugh Jackman is back in his never-ending quest to prove he is the best Wolverine in any standalone or X-Men movie, and he delivers on that front. The premise? Giant robotic Sentinels are a serious threat to the mutants, seemingly having the ability to evolve and adapt to any mutant superpower. So Professor Charles Xavier decides to send someone back in time to prevent the Sentinels from ever being made with that ability, and he chooses Wolverine. The problem? Going back in time hurts. A lot. Thankfully, Wolverine’s healing factor should be enough to keep him safe enough in the past to complete his mission. Or will it?
3. Comedy – The Lego Movie
Too many movies with product placement these days care more about money than the movie itself. Not so with The Lego Movie! The Lego Movie is nothing short of fantastic in every aspect of its 100-minute runtime, and with a PG rating is suitable for basically all audiences. The premise? A random Lego construction worker is the key to saving the city (somehow) from the evil machinations of Lord Business, and he joins up with Batman, Wonder Woman, and Lego reincarnations of famous characters to stop him. The problem? Lord Business got his hands on a nifty new superweapon. This movie is filled to the brim with humor and dialogue so absorbing, you’ll forget they’re made out of Legos.
4. Thriller – Lucy
I was hesitant to put Lucy under the thriller category since it’s an action movie in it’s own right, but the premise of Lucy is sci fi at it’s very core. The premise? A woman becomes the unfortunate victim of drug smugglers who unceremoniously stuff her stomach full of a new experimental drug, only to have the bag rupture and flood her body with the drug. The problem? The drug causes Lucy’s brain to start operating at higher percentages granting her superhuman abilities and an increasingly higher IQ(that is, until her brain reaches 100% of it’s capacity). Lucy absolutely is a bloody, action-packed Sci Fi flick, and highly recommended as such.
5. Horror – 13 Sins
13 Sins is not one of the best horror movies ever made, nor is it the best one of 2014. It is however a refreshing insight into how to psychologically break a man with nothing more than a telephone and access to a bank account. The premise? A financially burdened salesman named Elliot (played by Mark Webber) receives a mysterious phone call ordering him to perform 13 different sins, in reward for cash money. The problem? The sins get progressively more disturbing, and we see just how far a man is willing to go to secure his future. Webber does a great job convincing us he is slowly losing his mind in 13 Sins.
6. Drama – The Judge
Proving once and for all that Robert Downey Jr. is an incredibly talented actor in his own right and capable of playing any role, The Judge is simultaneously a heart-filling father/son story and a cold murder case thriller. The premise? Downey Jr. plays a truly morally bankrupt attorney who will defend anyone, at anytime. The problem? Family issues aside, his father is suddenly accused of murder. While The Judge has a bit of a long running time clocking in at 141 minutes, it is well worth a watch and definitely one of the more intruguing courtroom family dramas to come out this year.
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