top 50 films for the half decade; Kalo's list begins! (pg. 45)

[DAJK]

#27

Frozen

 

 

Frozen has become so insanely popular that it's hard to remember that before Let it Go was all over the place, and before it made a billion freaking dollars, most people though Frozen was a great film! In the same case with TFIOS (which I'll get to in a minute), the hype surrounding the film has become so great that it's sort of become one of those films that is "cool to hate." Whenever people at school dis Frozen or TFIOS I tell them "guys, come on. It wasn't a bad movie, it's just really overhyped." And they agree. The movie is beautifully animated, features a killer soundtrack, and its characters have become classics; that doesn't just happen for no reason.

 

For whoever reads this, if Frozen 2 were announced, how big do you think the OW would be? Say it came out Thanksgiving like last time, would anyone think 150 million 5-day is possible? 160+?

[DAJK]

#26

How to Train Your Dragon

 

 

​How to Train Your Dragon is a film I appreciated more the second and third viewings. We're really getting into the heavy hitters now with the A's and A+'s (we are about to leave the A-'s after one or two more films). I think though one thing that hurt the film when I first saw it in theatres had nothing to do with the movie itself. I saw it with my cousin and my auntie. Back then, Star Wars was like GOD to me (I may be a fan now, but back then was ridiculous) and my cousin always told me she hated Star Wars (what can you expect from 14 year old girls?). Anyways (SPOILER) at the end of the film when Hiccup stands up and we see he lost part of his leg, my cousin looks over at me and said "ohmygod that's so sad!" I looked back at her and said "yea, well when Anakin Skywalker lost BOTH arms and legs in Star Wars, then caught on fire, you didn't think that was sad!" Her answer was "Star Wars isn't real!"

 

So after that, I went around saying "she thinks some stupid animated movie is more real that Star Wars!" I never actually appreciated the heart and beauty that this film presents; and when I watched it a few years later, I realized what I was missing. Not only does the film fully develop themes regarding friendship, but it also covers first love, acceptance, and prejudice. The flying and action scenes are amazing, and the animation is breathtaking. This is really an awesome film!

Edited February 2, 2015 by DAJK

[DAJK]

#25

The Fault in Our Stars

 

 

I don't think I'm going to get any love for this choice; Ethan and Baumer might tell me it is way too low, and everyone else will say it's too high. But I think it's right where it should be. The Fault in Our Stars makes its way into the top half of my list for a reason; it is a well acted, smart love drama. Since when do you get those with Nicholas Sparks? Never! That's why I prefer John Green   

 

I was kind of late on the Fault in Our Stars train. I had seen VlogBrothers and CrashCourse, but I never actually pieced it together that HE was the writer of this book everyone was talking about! I was planning on reading the book, but when the trailer came out, I thought I might want to see the movie first, considering I luckily still didn't know what happened in the end. Theeeeeennnnn the very next day my friend spoiled a major death in the novel (isn't it going to be so sad when ********* dies?) Knowing that my hopes of walking into this movie blind were spoiled, I read the book; and I'm glad I did.

With most cases, I still prefer the book to the movie. However, the movie has it's qualities; mainly with its two leads. We all know that Shaliene Woodley is a great actress; and I think that if Ansel Elgort with be able to break free of the "teen girls and Ethan are obsessed with him and no one else knows who he is" phase of his career, he could end up being a major Hollywood actor.

[Ethan Hunt]

I'm just going to take the time to.appreciate that TFIOS and Frozen are on this list ( though obviously I have both higher) and ignore that lackluster film in between them

[Kalo]

 

#30

Man of Steel

 

 

Another choice that may be controversial, as it certainly divided fans; Man of Steel is THE DEFINITION of "blockbuster" in my opinion. The action spectacle is breathtaking, despite going on a bit too long. There was a touch of cheesiness, which didn't hurt the film, there was quite a bit of drama surrounding the main character as well. The one thing that bumped Man of Steel this high on the list was its ability to actually humanize Superman, someone who is basically a god. It brilliantly showed the struggles of growing up knowing you're different, and having to hide who you are. Unlike the previous Superman movies, I was actually thinking "man, I actually feel bad for Superman."

 

But the product placement. OH the product placement! I am okay when you see Superman fly past a Sears, because it makes the movie seem more real than if he flew past "general store". Even the iHop didn't bother me, but that Nikon placement was awful, something a Transformers 4 movie would do (at least I think it was Nikon, correct me if I'm wrong). When Lois is climbing through those ice caves, and she places her camera over the ledge so that we get a full on shot of nothing but a Nikon camera for a full three seconds is so blatant that it took me out of the movie for a bit. Anyways, that's my opinion on that   .

 

I am divided against myself on this film. I think it may be one of the most unsteady ratings of films I've ever given. 

[Kalo]

Also I think I'll do my films of 2014. first (which I will probably start shortly after I see Birdman on Wednesday! yay!) so I think I may wait till after I see Whiplash (comes out Feb 24th)  to actually start my countdown of top films of the 2010s. so I'm not in a super rush.

[Ethan Hunt]

Also I think I'll do my films of 2014. first (which I will probably start shortly after I see Birdman on Wednesday! yay!) so I think I may wait till after I see Whiplash (comes out Feb 24th) to actually start my countdown of top films of the 2010s. so I'm not in a super rush.

Excited to see yours

[Fancyarcher]

Good list so far DAJK. I especially applaud you for Monsters University being at #28. It was a really fun and entertaining prequel from Pixar. 

[DAJK]

Good list so far DAJK. I especially applaud you for Monsters University being at #28. It was a really fun and entertaining prequel from Pixar.

Thanks fancyarcher! It's such a good film! Doing this list, I realize how great the past few years have been, with something as good as Monsters U being "only" 28, and I still haven't seen a few movies that would have ended up on this list.

Have you been planning to do a list at all?

[Kalo]

Thanks fancyarcher! It's such a good film! Doing this list, I realize how great the past few years have been, with something as good as Monsters U being "only" 28, and I still haven't seen a few movies that would have ended up on this list.

Have you been planning to do a list at all?

Monsters U was really good, but I'm not even sure it would end up in my top 100 of the 10s.. which is really saying something. *Checks Letterbox* oh I guess it does.. 

Edited February 3, 2015 by Kalo

[Fancyarcher]

Thanks fancyarcher! It's such a good film! Doing this list, I realize how great the past few years have been, with something as good as Monsters U being "only" 28, and I still haven't seen a few movies that would have ended up on this list.

Have you been planning to do a list at all?

 

Maybe, depends if I can put all my favorites in a particular order. It's kinda difficult for me to do a best of list, especially one that is one of the best films of a half decade, but I might try eventually. 

[Kalo]

Wish Empire would make a list.. his taste are quite similar to mine, yet slightly different. it would be interesting.  *hint hint* 

[DAJK]

Maybe, depends if I can put all my favorites in a particular order. It's kinda difficult for me to do a best of list, especially one that is one of the best films of a half decade, but I might try eventually.

What I'm looking forward to is in 2020 I do a "top of full decade" list and see how many of the top 50 are from the first half and how many from the second half.

[Empire]

Wish Empire would make a list.. his taste are quite similar to mine, yet slightly different. it would be interesting.  *hint hint*

I am not a big fan of doing right ups, so I might just throw a list up at some point.

[Fancyarcher]

What I'm looking forward to is in 2020 I do a "top of full decade" list and see how many of the top 50 are from the first half and how many from the second half.

 

I imagine half if not less of the films from your best films of the half-decade will be on it. 

[DAJK]

#24

Despicable Me

 

 

While I saw Despicable Me 2 as a bit of a letdown, that doesn't take away from the magic, fun and originality of the first film. Not only was it an animated film from a new studio that was an original property that still grossed almost 260million domestically, but it started a craze with the Minions. I remember loving the film when I first saw it; it was extremely funny, and witty and charming as well. The story of Gru and the girls didn't bore me at all, which is not something I can say for the sequel, but everything in this film works. The Minions are genius (not the Minions themselves of course, but the concept of Minions), and the fact that the film centered around a villain was a refreshing twist. I have high hopes for Minions, as Despicable Me has become one of those films that I know that when I have kids, I'm gonna make sure they watch it.

[DAJK]

#23

Fury

 

 

I was hoping that Fury would become a surprise awards contender, but sadly it did not. The acting is superb; (Logan Lerman is on his way to becoming an A-list star if he keeps this up) and Shia LaBoeuf proved that he isn't just a weird guy, but he can act, and he can act well. The directing is masterful; portraying a world that looks bleak in its execution, but also hopeful. Despite what other people might think, I do not think Fury glorifies war at all, but rather it shows the true horrors of what human beings are capable of doing to each other. I found its themes to be not only intriguing, but also thought-provoking: what happens to individual humanity during adversity? And what redemption can be brought upon oneself by that loss? Fury is one of those films, love it or hate it, you won't be forgetting it.

[DAJK]

#22

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

 

 

​I had originally thought this movie was going to end up much higher on this list (I was expecting at least #15), but after some shuffling around, this is where it ended up. Whether or not it deserves higher is up for debate (as there are a few films that are higher than it that people may not agree with ***Pacific Rim...). Nevertheless, Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol not only elevated the franchise from cheesy blockbusters to cool spy thrillers (I know the third actually sort of started that trend but alas I still have not seen the whole thing) but it also proved that Brad Bird can direct live action as well as animation. If this movie sucked, I would be as excited for Tomorrowland as I am now.

 

That scene where Tom Cruise is scaling the Burj Khalifa is one of the memorable scenes from a movie in the past... well EVER! Honestly, that scene is great, and I highly regret not seeing the movie in theatres. And to anyone who has seen Paddington, did you catch that reference?   I didn't care much for the Mission Impossible franchise before this movie, other than they were mindless escapism, but now, MI5 is one of the more anticipated films of 2015 for me.

Edited February 3, 2015 by DAJK

[DAJK]

TIED #21

The Imitation Game

 

 

Okay okay, it's not really tied. But I didn't add Imitation Game to this list until after I had started it... so now I have a little problem to fix. Call this spot 21.5 if you want. Anyways, this is a fantastic movie, that tells a criminally untertold story. I knew nothing about Alan Turing before this; I had never even heard of the guy. But this movie shows that we was one of the greatest war heroes of the 20th Century, and how do we repay him? Well, watch the movie! Or the trailer... it gives it away in the trailer...

 

Benedict Cumberbatch was my favourite to win the Oscar before I saw Redmayne in Theory of Everything; but now that he's my second favourite, it doesn't take anything away from his performance, which was nothing short of outstanding! The movie also made me like Keira Knightley, whom I'm normally not a big fan of. However, what this film really has going for it that most movies don't is its ability to trigger a complete emotional reversal in a matter of seconds. One moment you feel over-joy'd (however you spell that) for the characters, and the next second you feel their desperation, anger and sadness. Simply a fantastic movie that I wish I had paid more attention to when building my list.

[DAJK]

ALSO TIED #21

Kick Ass

 

 

Man this movie is freaking awesome! I had just turned 11 when it first came out, and my original exposure to the film was the "movie that my cousins all love that mom wont let me watch." I eventually watched it of course and I'm glad I did. I love Chloe Grace Moretz, and it isn't creepy for me to say so   . Nick Cage is awesome in this movie (since when have we said that?) and Matthew Vaughn went all out with the ultra-violence and campy fun. (for the record, while it is a step down, I also liked Wadlow's sequel) This is the movie that I'm hoping Kingsman will be, as it is just pure fun; nothing really profound or anything of course!