Anthony T's Top 10 Films of 2015

Happy New Year everyone. Before I can start 2016, I have to look back at the best of 2015. It was one of those years where my viewing habits were mostly the Hollywood fare and horror films. On this list are films that I enjoyed a lot and had a great time whether at home or at the movie theater.

Before I start, here are my honorable mentions that missed my list. Felt, Minions, Headless, Digging Up the Marrow, Ten and Ant-Man.

Without any more suspense, here are my top 10 films of 2015.

10. What We Do In the Shadows

What happens when you have vampires in a mockumentary film, you get an entertaining and funny film from start to finish. That was the case with “What We Do in the Shadows”. One of things that I like about this film is the ability that it blends the horror and comedy genres into one film. Whether it was the funny dialogue to the entertaining performances, it felt like a fun time. The film has very good performances from Jemaine Clament and Taiki Waititi as they both made their characters engaging and entertaining. Check this film out, if you’re a fan of horror comedies. You will love this film.

9. Crimson Peak

I know there have been some people that don’t like this film, but I thought that this was a very good film from Gulliermo Del Toro. One of things that makes this very good was the film’s dark tone and its special effects. It helped conveyed some of the dark and gothic images that’s needed for the story to succeed. The film also has great performances from its three leads Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain which really made this very good. Hopefully, this film will find an audience on DVD & Blu-Ray.

This was the year of sequels as there are major three sequels on my list.

8. Jurassic World

After the disaster of “Jurassic Park 3”, I wasn’t in the mood to see this film until its killer opening weekend at the box office and the reviews that I heard about It also helped that it starred Chris Pratt from “Guardian of the Galaxy”. This was an entertaining entry in the series as director Colin Trevorrow does a very good job making sure that the film is entertaining and had the magic that the original “Jurassic Park” had. It also helped that this had a good screenplay that developed the characters to go with the action sequences.

7. Spring

This is a film that should’ve gotten more eyeballs from horror fans during the year than it did. “Spring” felt like a cross between a monster film and a Richard Linklater / Alejandro González Iñárritu film. What makes this great was the way that directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead did a great job directing their two main actors (Lou Taylor Pucci and Nadia Hilker) as both of the actor develop a very good job chemistry with each other. It helped make this dark love story work so well. It also has some very good effects and great cinematography from Moorehead.

6. The Martian

Going into “The Martian, I wasn’t really interested in seeing this film as this looked like “Cast Away in Space”. But when my father wanted me to go as company and see this film, I did that. Man, was I wrong about first opinions on this film as this is one of Ridley Scott and Matt Damon’s best films to date. “The Martian” does a great job developing the main situation through its various characters both in space and back on earth. It made the story interesting to watch as it helped move the pace of the film along. It helped shed away the “Cast Away” image that I had going into this film.

It was a good year for the quality of horror films. Number five and Four are two horror films that were very good that horror fans should be watching if they haven't yet.

5. We Are Still Here

If there was a film that shocked me to my core this this year, it would be this film. Whether it’s the writing and directing of Ted Geoghegan or the great lead (Barabra Crampton, Andrew Sensenig) and supporting performances (Larry Fessenden, Lisa Marie, and Monte Markham), it was a shocking gorefest from start to finish. It’s easily the best ensemble cast of the year. If “It Follows” wasn’t the best horror film of the year, this would’ve been easily it. This is a film that you check if you’re a horror fan as I can’t wait for Geoghegan’s next film.

4. It Follows

This is one of those films that you feel like you’ve walked out of theater and knew that this might be a classic film ten or fifteen years down the line. From everything from the screenplay to the directing, to the actor and to the score everything had that certain ingredient that makes for a perfect horror film. Director David Robert Mitchell does a great job making the screenplay and the direction feel very dark and suspenseful. It made some of the film’s intense moments keep you on the edge of your seat. This film is also helped with very good performance from Maika Monroe and Keir Gilchrist. This is a must for horror fans who haven’t seen this film yet, as it’s a great film.

It's amazing that a post-apocalyptic film and two sci-fi films make up my top 3.

3. Star Wars: The Force Awakens

If in the beginning of the year you thought this film would be on my best of list, you would have been crazy but this felt like the perfect film. One of the things makes this Star Wars entry great was JJ Abrams directing. Whether it’s the way that he handles the action scenes to how he directs his cast, it had the level of intensity that made this a great film like the original. It’s amazing how he has been able to resurrect the most popular sci-fi franchises of all time with this and his first “Star Trek” film. Can’t wait for Rouge One next year and Episode VIII in 2017.

2. Mad Max: Fury Road

This is the most surprising film of the year given the rumored stories that took place behind the scenes. I had no faith that this would be that great, as this is one of the best action films ever made. “Mad Max: Fury Road” is the fourth film in the Mad Max series and is up there with the original as the best film in the series. Director George Miller does an excellent job making sure this film moves at an intense pace through his direction. Whether it’s the way the action scenes were directed to the way John Seale handles the cinematography, it’s so attention grabbing that it kept my interest in the story and the action. The acting is also very good, as both Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron were very good in this film despite the problems they had on set. There’s never a dull moment in this action packed film as this film makes up for the lackluster “Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome” that Miller directed back thirty years ago.

1. Ex-Machina

Whar This was an easy year determining my top film of 2015. I was very curious about “Ex Machina” because this was the directorial debut for writer Alex Garland, the man behind the screenplays for “28 Days Later” and “Dread”. Thankfully, I saw this film this in theaters as this was a great film from both a screenplay and acting standpoint. What I liked about the screenplay was that it had a 2001 Space Odessey vibe to go along with a suspenseful thriller feel to it. It makes all the action work and made the characters and story interesting throughout. The acting here is superb here. I thought the film’s stars Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander and Oscar Isaac were great in their roles. It’s the best acted film of the year and wished it had some Oscar consideration. I guess when you release a film in April, it gets lost easily lost in the shuffle. Hopefully, the film is finding an audience on DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD.

"It Follows" Blu-Ray Review - Written by Anthony T

“It Follows” is a film that I’ve heard a lot of great things about. I became interested in seeing this film, after hearing about it during this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Since then, the film has been gaining a level of buzz that hasn’t been seen in a horror release since “Paranormal Activity” back in 2007. The film is the latest from writer/director David Robert Mitchel, whose last film was back in 2010 when he directed “The Myth of the American Sleepover” and stars Maika Monroe from “Labor Day” and Adam Wingard’s excellent film “The Guest”.

The film is about Jay (Maika Monroe), a young nineteen year old girl who falls in love with a man. After having a sexual encounter with the man, she begins to start seeing strange things and people and feels like something is following her at every moment. Now she and her friends look to find out what is happening to her and stop it before it takes her for good. The film also costars Keir Gilchrist (It’s Kind of a Funny Story, “United States of Tara”), Daniel Zovatto (Beneath, Innocence, Laggies) and Jake Weary (Altitude, Fred).

There was a chance going in that this would be a total dud. Thankfully, I was very happy this film lived up to expectations as this might be the best original supernatural film released in a while.

One of the things that makes this film great was its directing from writer/director David Robert Mitchell. He does a great job making sure the look of the film had an old school horror feel. Whether it was the way he and his cinematographer gave the film its bleak look to how Mitchell approaches his scenes, everything had a very eerie feel to it. This allows the scares to be enhanced and made those suspense moments feel intense. The other thing that Mitchell does very well is the way that he directs his cast. He makes sure that the acting aspects help the tone of the film. He doesn’t allow them to fall into the usual traps that other horror films have like the overacting or having them stand out from one another. Instead, it had more of a tone that you’d see in other independent films, which made it work as there were no annoying performances to worry about.

Another thing that I liked about the acting was the fact that it had a strong lead performance from Maika Monroe. She does a great making her character feel like any average teenager. She makes her character lifelike that makes both the horror and dramatic elements in her performance work. If that performance isn’t there then this becomes a boring film quickly.

The film also has an excellent score from artist Disasterpiece. I liked, the way that he goes for more of a John Carpenter/Goblin vibe with the film’s soundtrack. It amplifies all of the scenes in the film, which helps grab your attention especially in the action sequences. This is easily the best scored film that I’ve heard this year. If you love the score, then check out the interview with the artist on this disc.

The screenplay written by Mitchell was very good, as this is one of the best horror screenplays of the year. What makes this screenplay good was the fact the story was different. In an era where remakes and formulaic film dominate the horror genre, it was very nice to see a horror film that has an original story. The characters didn’t feel like the typical characters that you would see in other horror films and the way that he had the characters acted on the page when faced with a situation felt very different. It’s very nice to see a story that has original qualities for once in a horror film. The other thing that I liked about this was the way that it develops the main character. Mitchell makes sure that the character changes during the course of the film as the situation get worse. It makes the character interesting and helps make you interested in the story.

The special features start off with the critic’s commentary track. This track is hosted by Nerdist’s Scott Weinberg and featuring Eric D. Snider (MovieBS), Britt Hayes (Screencrush), Samuel D. Zimmerman (Shock Till You Drop), Alison Nastasi (Flavorwire) and Eric Vespe (Ain't It Cool News). I liked, the fact that the track felt like revolving door as you get different thoughts to why each of the critics like this film so much. It was different from other tracks that I've listen to. The only problem I had with this was the fact you had one person in studio and all the critics come in during various parts of the film via phone. I liked the idea of it but wished it just had two or three of them in studio dissecting every scene but still this was a good track.

The next featurette is “A Conversation with Film Composer Disasterpeace”. This is basically an interview with Disasterpeace, the film’s composer. The interview goes into how he came aboard on the project and how he approached creating the score. It was a good and interesting look at the film’s score that you should check if you love the score for this film.

After that the disc wraps up with a poster gallery and trailer for the film.

I wished there was something on the production of the film from the director and/or cast. It would’ve been nice to have that aspect featured on the Blu-ray.

I wished this Blu-ray had more features and insight from the cast and direction, but still it’s worth a purchase for the film alone. I highly recommend you check this film out, as this is supernatural horror at its best. With its direction, score and lead performance, “It Follows” is one of the best films I’ve seen this year.

Review Rating: Five Stars

Extras: Two Stars

Critically Acclaimed "It Follows" Moves Its Way to DVD & Blu-Ray

Radius-Dimension Films recently release information for the upcoming DVD and Blu-Ray release of "It Follows". The film is directed by  avid Robert Mitchell (The Myth of the American Sleepover), and stars Maika Monroe (upcoming Independence Day 2, The Guest), Keir Gilchrist (It’s Kind of a Funny Story, “United States of Tara”), Daniel Zovatto (Beneath, Innocence, Laggies) and Jake Weary (Altitude, Fred).

Special features on the DVD and Blu-Ray include  a critics’ commentary hosted by Nerdist’s Scott Weinberg and featuring Eric D. Snider (MovieBS), Britt Hayes (Screencrush), Samuel D. Zimmerman (Shock Till You Drop), Alison Nastasi (Flavorwire) and Eric Vespe (Ain't It Cool News); the featurette “A Conversation with Film Composer Disasterpeace” and a Poster Art Gallery.

"It Follows" hit retail on July 14th.

Press Release:

The critically acclaimed breakout movie of the year, It Follows arrives on Blu-ray™ and DVD July 14th from Anchor Bay Entertainment, RADiUS and DIMENSION. Dubbed “the best horror film in over a decade”*, It Follows is directed by David Robert Mitchell (The Myth of the American Sleepover), and stars Maika Monroe (upcoming Independence Day 2, The Guest), Keir Gilchrist (It’s Kind of a Funny Story, “United States of Tara”), Daniel Zovatto (Beneath, Innocence, Laggies) and Jake Weary (Altitude, Fred).

One of the highest grossing independent films of the year so far, It Follows is credited with ushering in a new era of indie film success, appealing to horror genre fans, art house cinema aficionados and the general movie-going audience. With spectacular cinematography and a powerful score, the film is destined to become a cult classic.

For 19-year-old Jay, fall should be about school, boys and weekends out at the lake. But after a seemingly innocent sexual encounter, she finds herself plagued by strange visions and the inescapable sense that someone, or something, is following her. Jay and her teenage friends must now find a way to escape the horrors that seem to be only a few steps behind in this chiller that Bloody Disgusting calls “the scariest movie of 2015.”

The many special features on the Blu-ray™ and DVD include a critics’ commentary hosted by Nerdist’s Scott Weinberg and featuring Eric D. Snider (MovieBS), Britt Hayes (Screencrush), Samuel D. Zimmerman (Shock Till You Drop), Alison Nastasi (Flavorwire) and Eric Vespe (Ain't It Cool News); the featurette “A Conversation with Film Composer Disasterpeace” and a Poster Art Gallery.

It Follows is available and on Blu-ray™ and DVD from Anchor Bay Entertainment on July 14 for the suggested retail price of $29.99 and $26.98, respectively, and also available On Demand. The title will be available early in Digital HD on July 3 from Starz Digital.

"It Follows" Review - Written by Tim Hellman

'IT FOLLOWS': Five Stars (Out of Five)

Critically acclaimed indie horror flick about a young woman who's constantly followed by a mysterious unknown entity, which is trying to kill her. It was written and directed by David Robert Mitchell and filmed on a budget of just $2 million. The film stars Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Lili Sepe, Daniel Zovatto, Jake Weary and Olivia Luccardi. It's a classic horror film, in every way, and it definitely lives up to all of it's hype!

Jay (Monroe) is a nineteen-year-old college student with a crush on a 21-year-old guy, named Hugh (Weary), she just met. The two go out on a couple of dates and then have sex together, in Hugh's car. Hugh then knocks her out, with chloroform. When Jay wakes up, Hugh informs her that he's transferred a curse to her, by sleeping with her, and she'll now be followed by a mysterious unknown force, that will constantly try to kill her. He explains that the only way she can get rid of the curse is to sleep with someone else, as he did with her. Jay spends the rest of the film frantically trying to elude the deadly entity, that's now following her, with the help of her friends.

The film appears to be set in the 70s or 80s, most of the time, but the characters also use cell phones and other modern devices, at other times. Still it has that classic 70s, or 80s, horror movie feel to it; and the timelessness of the film's setting is part of it's magical charm (Monroe also starred in the retro 80's action flick 'THE GUEST', just last year). The score, by the electronic musician known as Disasterpeace, is strikingly haunting and very reminiscent of the popular slasher flicks of yesteryear. The whole movie just has that classic horror genre movie feel to it; like those directed by John Carpenter or George A. Romero. It feels a lot like a very haunting, and quite disturbing, nightmare; which is what Mitchell says he based the premise for the movie on (his own recurring bad dreams, about something constantly following him). There's of course a lot of unexplained mystery to it, and several aspects of the story that don't seem to always make sense, at all, but that's part of the movie's charm as well. I think 'IT FOLLOWS' will go down in history, as one of the truly great horror movie classics; just like all the ones that seem to have inspired it!

Alamo Drafthouse Sets Advance Screening for the Upcoming Horror Film "It Follows"

The Alamo Drafthouse recently added the upcoming Radius-TWC release "It Follows" to its Drafthouse Recommends program. To celebrate this they will have an advance screening of the film of Feburary 28th in Austin,TX with director David Robert Mitchell there for the screening. Showtime is at 7PM.

"It Follows" hits theaters in limited release on March 27th. 

The Alamo Drafthouse is excited to announce David Robert Mitchell's IT FOLLOWS as the latest Drafthouse Recommends title. Drafthouse Recommends spotlights first-run films with the Alamo stamp of approval, indicating, simply, that we love it and want everyone to go see it. The goal is to highlight groundbreaking, innovative and intelligent films we believe deserve to be seen by as many people as possible.

Director Mitchell's follow up to his widely acclaimed 2010 debut, THE MYTH OF THE AMERICAN SLEEPOVER, IT FOLLOWS takes some of choicest genre influences -- Spielberg's JAWS, Carpenter's HALLOWEEN, Nakata's RINGU, Cronenberg's THEY CAME FROM WITHIN, to name a few - and builds something entirely new. The result is an assured, pulse-pounding second outing for the director that easily stands alongside its influences and is sure to leave horror fans buzzing.

Video of Tim League talking about IT FOLLOWS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gzH-cdokaw

To kick off this Drafthouse Recommends selection, Alamo is presenting a special advance screening in Austin of IT FOLLOWS on Saturday, Feb 28, with director David Robert Mitchell in person.