Another year is in the books, and we here at Hush Comics couldn’t pass at the chance to rank our favorites of this year’s releases in all types of mediums. Some of the winners will surprise you; heck, some of the results surprised us. The results are completely subjective, and therefore were chosen with infallible logic. We would love to hear your opinions on what we have chosen, or if you thought we missed anything. This should be a fun review before we gear up for 2015.
Click on the link to take you to the “Best of 2014” homepage.
Best Independent Film
Chef
Grand Budapest Hotel
Hector and the Search for Happiness
Snowpiercer
Wish I Was Here
WINNER – Grand Budapest Hotel
Wes Anderson graced us with his genius this year, bringing audiences The Grand Budapest Hotel. A simple story about a hotel manager and a faithful lobby boy, this film warms the heart and makes you laugh throughout. All the quintessential Wes Anderson elements are present – the unique cinematography, the clever dialogue and narration, Bill f***ing Murray – it’s all there. What impressed me most about this film is how star-packed the cast is. Along with BFM we get Willem Dafoe, Adrien Brody, Jeff Goldblum, Jude Law, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton and others. It seems that with each passing Wes Anderson film more stars (and fans) want a piece of these great films. If you’re unfamiliar with Wes or his work The Grand Budapest Hotel is a great starting point. If you’re not smiling by the time credits role, then you may want to see your doctor about that. – Taylor
Second Place – Chef
Being your own man is a hard road to take. Head Chef Carl Casper, played by Jon Favreau, is being choked creatively by restaurant owner Riva (Dustin Hoffman, who gives Casper the ultimatum of leaving or doing things by the owner’s book. I can’t praise enough how inspiring this movie was, or how hungry it made me. Traveling the country with family, doing what you love and making money doing it can be more than just a dream. I also love how social media is portrayed as a useful tool for small businesses. And if this film had an actual soundtrack, I would have bought it; for now, I will settle for the New Orleans marching band rendition of “Sexual Healing.” Chef reminds us that the easiest way to touch people and make them feel a connection is through food. – Sherif
Third Place – Snowpiercer
I saw Snowpiercer. I was pretty well blown away by it. It starts off almost like a comet; very fast paced and filled with bizarre visuals. The action started off in an almost gonzo Middle Earth kind of way in which the sense of danger is muted being instead traded for a sense of adventure and exploration. Then the turn comes when they confront a hundred angry leathered men wielding axes in the confined dimensions of a box car as it passes through the dark of a train tunnel. At that moment the movie becomes brutal and brutal again as the surroundings get more and more bizarre, until the moment the movie is overcome with the bizarre and, literally, goes off the rails. – JH (an exerpt from his full analysis, which can be found here)
RUNNER UP – Wish I Was Here
Who has time to watch movies anymore? There’s so much to do, so many errands to run and meetings to attend and money to make and – just shut up. Turn everything off. Remember a time when you enjoyed your life, were passionate about something and dared to dream big. Being poor doesn’t hold a candle to running out of reasons to loving life. I can’t explain how much this movie means to me. It made me look at my career, my wife, and my family in ways that I have been neglecting to for years. Couple that with an insightful soundtrack and Zach Braff’s X-Factor, and you have yourself the most meaningful films to hit the theaters since The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. – Sherif
RUNNER UP – Hector and the Search for Happiness
This little indie film is based off a short book of the same name written by Francois Lelord and the film itself had a very limited release here in the U.S. despite the book being popular. The film itself stars an absolutely amazing cast with Simon Pegg (Star Trek, Shaun of the Dead) as Hector, Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl, Jack Reacher) as his loving but frustrated girlfriend; it also stars Christopher Plummer, and Jean Reno in memorable cameo/supporting roles. The film itself is about a psychiatrist who discovers he is unhappy and cannot help his patients and because of this he sets out on a worldwide trip to discover what makes people happy in every aspect around the world. Hector and… was an eye opener for me at a time in my life where I was really struggling with finding happiness myself and the reason this film was my favorite of the year is it gave me a push to work harder at the things I love, to love the things I love more, and be more passionate about the things that matter. I left feeling uplifted and good about a lot of bad aspects of my life that came to be this past year. Now the film itself is not some magnificent eye opener for everyone and if you go in expecting it to change your life it wont be what you are looking for but it was absolutely perfect for me, my sense of humor and the writing and acting made everything equal out to be the one film of the year I have recommended everyone to see. – Jacob
March is here and with it comes a few of the year’s most anticipated action films. There’s a little something for everybody: big money blockbusters, children’s flicks, intriguing independents and guilty pleasure films.
March 7 – 300: Rise of an Empire
Starring: Sullivan Stapleton, Eva Green, Lena Headey, Hans Matheson
Now that all those crappy Valentine’s Day movies are out of the way, it’s time for the manliest of manly movies. A prequel? A sequel? The answer is C, all of the above. Following the tale of the man-God named Xerxes from his “transformation” to the defeat of the Spartans and quest for domination against Greece. Meanwhile, Themistokles gathers the entire Grecian fleet to take down the Persians. Like 300 before it, Rise of an Empire will be directed by Zack Synder and based off of Frank Miller’s writing. Oddly enough, this film is based off Xerxes, which hasn’t even been published yet. I’m not sure how the story will play out, but all I really expect is big budget action and effects – anything more than that is just syrup on the pancake. – S
March 7 – Grand Piano
Starring: Elijah Wood, John Cusack
Stage fright? No worries, because Grand Piano has the solution. In this independent film, which debuted last September, a famous pianist (Wood) returns to the stage after infamously choking at his last performance. This time, though, the pianist has the added motivation in the form of a sniper, who threatens to shoot him if his fingers mess up a single note. It’s a bit of a crazy idea, but I think that’s what will really make this work. Everything seems dramatized in the trailer, insinuating that this will be a real thriller – not the cheap horror angle that is so easy to play off. I’m interested to see where this goes, but I’m not vested enough to see this in theaters – S
March 7 – Mr. Peabody and Sherman
Starring: Ty Burrell, Max Charles, Stephen Colbert, Allison Janney
Grab onto your butts and get ready to go on an adventure with everybody’s favorite dog genius. Originally a short in the Rocky & Bullwinkle show called “Peabody’s Improbable History” in the 1950’s and 1960’s, Mr. Peabody has been renewed in epic proportions. The original segment was purely educational, so it will be bittersweet to have the movie become such a spectacle. There are a lot of laughs in the trailer alone, but I really enjoyed learning about historical times and figures, and it feels like Dreamworks is cheapening the experience a little. Visiting Egypt, Italy and Greece will be fun for the whole family, I’m sure, so If nothing else, I look forward to the witty banter of Peabody and Sherman – just like old times. – S
It’s a funny cycle, this racing genre thing. When I was in high school, the Need for Speed games were really taking off – and it seems as though the Fast and the Furious films only only amplified it’s success. Heck, the downhill drifting scenes in Toyko Drift looked like they came straight out of Need for Speed: Carbon. Ten years later and the Fast and the Furious has solidified itself as a stable movie franchise, while Need for Speed‘s popularity has dwindled considerably, even after the addition of a story mode. Now Need for Speed has entered the realm of movies. There’s really only one selling point for me here, and its name is Aaron Paul (Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad). It might be too early to suggest replacing the late Paul Walker with Aaron Paul, but I’m seeing no reason for another street racing genre movie. – S
March 14 – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Ralph Fiennes, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Jeff Goldblum, Jason Schwartzman
Wes Anderson is a movie making genius. So thank goodness that his latest project is coming out this month – The Grand Budapest Hotel. The story follows Misuser Gustave H (Ralph Fiennes), the illustrious concierge of The Grand Budapest Hotel, and his various and most interesting adventures with his disciple lobby boy. While the main plot appears to revolve around the theft of a famous painting, the real allure are all the minute – and more often than not – hilarious details that can only be seen in a Wes Anderson movie. GBH (yes, I’m giving it an acronym cause it’ll be that cool) promises to be one of Anderson’s best. You can tell by the star studded lineup: Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jude Law, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton, Owen Wilson, and it wouldn’t be a Wes Anderson without Bill Fu**ing Murray. Not bad for an independent filmmaker. Anderson’s approach and style to filming is so creatively unique, it’s practically hypnotic. I’d dare to say that nobody out there makes a better “feel-good” movie than this guy. If you’ve never heard of Wes Anderson or seen one of his movies, Hush Comics highly recommends you find your nearest Indie-Cinema and add The Grand Budapest Hotel to your must see list for March. – T
March 14 – Veronica Mars
Starring: Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring, Krysten Ritter
I won’t lie, I have never seen Veronica Mars the TV show. Why would a girl my age not have seen it? Well, it came out around the time Buffy was ending and I was bitter that any other pretty blonde chick was trying to be a badass. Ten years later, I realize my mistake. Not only do I wanna veg on my couch and watch every ep of the show, I really want to see this movie. The trailer makes it obvious that in order to totally enjoy it, you would have had to have watched the television show. What is Veronica Mars you may be asking? Well its about a woman who is really good at investigating crimes in her hometown. The movie shows her ten years later as a successful lawyer who gets dragged back into the PI biz. Plus, who doesn’t love Kristen Bell? – A
Now if this isn’t the most adorable movie since Wall-e, I’m not sure what is. Ernest and Celestine follows the unlikely friendship formed between a bear and a mouse, both of whom are outcasted for their bond. E & C was originally a 2012 Belgian film that is being released as an American film; this version has some top-notch actors voicing it. I’m also in love with the animation style. I’m usually crazy about any earnest story about two unlikely friends that come together despite outside circumstances, and I will continue to be inspired until it becomes a non-issue in our world culture. – S
March 21 – Muppets Most Wanted
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Tina Fey, Ty Burrell, Ray Liotta, Kermit the Frog
Kermie!!!!! The Muppets franchise is always a must see for the whole family. In Muppets Most Wanted, Kermit is framed by Constatine, his evil twin. And Kermit’s friends must save him. What more do you need to know? A simple plot, but the laughs are sure to be constant. Not to mention that Tina Fey and Ricky Gervais are in it, so it is sure to be silly and amazing. – A
March 21 – Divergent
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet, Ansel Elgort
Divergent is yet another book-to-movie adaptation. And in the time of dystopias and apocalypses, it just seems like we have all seen this before. Yet, there is something about the premise that makes me want to read the book (nope, I haven’t read it, yet) in time for the movie. Honestly, I don’t think the movie looks that great, but the concept of people being broken up into factions is a fascinating metaphor for government control. Kate Winslet may be the only actor who is worth going to the theater for. But I will probably wait for the DVD. – A
March 28 – Bad Words
Starring: Jason Bateman, Kathryn Hahn, Rohan Chand
Is it bad the movie I want to see the most this March is about a 40 year old who joins a kids spelling bee, uses the worst kinds of cuss words and really self-centered? Well, I don’t think so. Mostly because Jason Bateman has usually played the guy with a head on his shoulders, ya know, like Michael Bluth. But in Bad Words, he is anything but, and I kinda like it. Bateman (who also directed and produced this film) plays Guy Trilby who is a high school dropout. He befriends a boy named Sriram at the spelling bee and learn about life from each other (or at least that’s my guess). It looks downright hilarious, but check for it in your local indie theater, it won’t be mainstream. – A
March 28 – Noah
Starring: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Anthony Hopkins, Emma Watson
Since The Passion of the Christ, Hollywood has been trying to make epic Bible flicks. Without going into religion, I don’t really like those types of movies. But Noah? It looks pretty darn good. Maybe its because the director of The Black Swan also is directing this. Maybe its because the actors are some of the best ever. Maybe its because the music makes it sound frickin’ epic. Or maybe, for me, its because my love of A Beautiful Mind proves that Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly should be 2gether 4ever, and were even in Biblical times. Oh, and voices talked to Crowe even then. Plus, isn’t Anthony Hopkins a modern day Methuselah? All jokes aside, I am looking forward to Noah. It seems less to be promoting religion and more so telling a story that is recognized around the world. – A
March 28 – Sabotage
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam Worthington, Terrence Howard, Josh Holloway
Raise your hand if you think Arnold Schwarzenegger should just call it quits already and step away from the camera? If you were to ask me that a few months ago, my hand would have been up high and waving. Ask me that now, and you’ll find me sitting on my hands. Actually, you’ll probably find my hands frantically working my smart phone to find a preview of Sabotage to lay aid to my newfound change of heart. While I agree with the notion that Arny needs to stay as far away from the Terminator franchise as California is long, I think The Governator is catching his second wind. He’s not the young action hero he used to be, but roles like the one he has been cast in for Sabotage are perfect for him today. The film follows a highly trained and effective DEA task force lead by John ‘Breacher’ Wharton (Schwarzenegger) that ends up on the wrong side of a cartel affair. Wharton and his fellow operatives along with their families are threatened by the drug lords and it’s up to Wharton to GET EVERYBODY TO DA CHOPPA… err… I mean save the day. Whereas Arnold’s most recent films have been overwhelmingly-cliché action flicks, Sabotage has a real gritty and realistic vibe. Though I’m sure the action will come in full force, I’m more anxious to see how well Arnold can carry a more serious role. I’ve got fairly high expectations for what I’m going to coin as the film where “Arnold Got His Groove Back.” – T
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