Well, we’ve finally got our wishes. For the first time in 5 years or so, the Oscars race seems fairly unpredictable. It’s been interesting to watch the so-called “front-runners” change throughout the year, starting with Carol earning strong buzz from Cannes and melting all the critics hearts. But when Tom McCarthy‘s Spotlight hit Telluride and Toronto festivals, the tidal shifted to a new standout. It wasn’t until very end of the year that another serious contender emerged, last year’s Oscar winner Alejandro G. Inarritu for The Revenant. And while the hands on favorite to win Best Picture this year is The Revenant (after wins from the Golden Globes, BAFTA, and DGA), it’s by no means a lock. There’s even been a slight surge from Adam McKay‘s housing market collapse film The Big Short, which shakes up the competition even more. Aside from a few categories, this year’s Oscar winners are difficult to predict and because of it should be entertaining to see who walks away with a golden statue.

Watch the 88th Academy Awards on Feb. 28th live at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PST on ABC.

2016 Oscar Predictions

Best Picture:

The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

Best Director

Adam McKay, The Big Short
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Alejandro G. Inarritu, The Revenant
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight

Best Actress in a Leading Role

Cate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

Best Actor in a Leading Role

Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Matt Damon, The Martian
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

Actress in a Supporting Role

Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara, Carol
Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

Actor in a Supporting Role

Christian Bale, The Big Short
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Sylvester Stallone, Creed

Best Originial Screenplay

Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room

Best Animated Feature

Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out
Shaun The Sheep
When Marnie Was There

Best Foreign Language Film

Embrace of the Serpent
Mustang
Son of Saul
Theeb
A War

Best Documentary

Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

Best Cinematography

Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Hateful Eight
The Revenant
Sicario

Visual Effects

Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Film Editing

The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Production Design

Bridge of Spies
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant

Best Costume Design

Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

Best Original Score

Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Original Song

“Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey
“Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction
“Simple Song No. 3” from Youth
“Til It Happens To You” from The Hunting Ground
“Writing’s on the Wall” from Spectre

Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling

Mad Max Fury Road
The 100-Year Old Men Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared
The Revenant

Achievement in Sound Mixing

Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Achievement in Sound Editing

Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Live Action Short Film

Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
Shok
Stutterer

Best Documentary Short Subject

Body Team 12
Chau, Beyond the Lines
Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Last Day of Freedom

Best Animated Short Film

Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay’s Super Team
We Can’t Live Without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow

In a week where the Golden Globes proved once again how much of a navel gazing joke and an obvious excuse for televised drunkenness it is, one has to look at this morning’s freshly announced Academy Award nominations and hope Academy voters will renew a little faith in the practice of picking out the best and brightest of the year in cinema.

The Revenant and Mad Max: Fury Road—both a bit more action-oriented than we’re used to seeing in Oscar forerunners—were the favorites with 12 and 10 nominations given to the two films respectively. And if suffering for your art earns you an Oscar these days, Leonardo DiCaprio might just finally take home a little gold dude. Fifth time’s the charm, Leo!

This year we have eight films vying for Best Picture and not a single person of color nominated in a lead or supporting role, which likely has more to do with the lack of diverse films being greenlit and less to do with biased voters, but still an unfortunate truth. Those who so dutifully championed Tangerine this past year are likely feeling the sting of rejection.

Despite nabbing Lead and Supporting nominations, Carol was shut out of the Best Picture and Best Director categories. Ridley Scott was also noticeably absent from the Best Director list for The Martian (which, in case there’s been confusion, is NOT a comedy). Quentin Tarantino might also be feeling a bit overlooked this morning, with only three nominations for The Hateful Eight, but, at least, one is for cinematography, supporting Tarantino’s decision to shoot on 70mm. Star Wars: The Force Awakens asserts itself plenty in technical categories, another unsurprising feat for this box office behemoth.

All in all, it’s not an especially unpredictable list of nominations, but the real fun comes in guessing the winners. The 88th Academy Awards will be held on Feb. 28th and will air at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PST on ABC. Check back for our continued 2016 Academy Awards coverage and read on for the full list of nominees.

List of 2016 Oscar Nominations

Best Picture
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Matt Damon, The Martian
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

Actress in a Supporting Role
Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara, Carol
Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

Actor in a Supporting Role
Christian Bale, The Big Short
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Sylvester Stallone, Creed

Best Director
Adam McKay, The Big Short
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
Alejandro G. Inarritu, The Revenant
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight

Visual Effects
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Foreign Language Film
Embrace of the Serpent, Colombia
Mustang, France
Son of Saul, Hungary
Theeb, Jordan
A War,Denmark

Best Animated Feature
Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out
Shaun The Sheep
When Marnie Was There

Best Screenplay
Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room

Best Documentary
Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

Editing
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Production Design
Bridge of Spies
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant

Best Original Score
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Original Song
“Earned It” from Fifty Shades of Grey
“Manta Ray” from Racing Extinction
“Simple Song No. 3” from Youth
“Til It Happens To You” from The Hunting Ground
“Writing’s on the Wall” from Spectre

Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling
Mad Max Fury Road
The 100-Year Old Men Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared
The Revenant

Best Cinematography
Carol
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Hateful Eight
The Revenant
Sicario

Achievement in Sound Mixing
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Achievement in Sound Editing
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Costume Design
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

Best Live Action Short Film
Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
Shok
Stutterer

Best Documentary Short Subject
Body Team 12
Chau, Beyond the Lines
Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Last Day of Freedom

Best Animated Short Film
Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay’s Super Team
We Can’t Live Without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow

It’s easy to look back over the past 12 months and try to find a common thread, a trend or recurring idea that can make sense of the mass of films unloaded for public viewing. Everyone loves a good narrative, and in a world where chaos reigns, it’s nice to see some order. Indeed, look at the list of our 20 films below and you can see similarities pop up all over: stories of struggles both internal and external, whether it’s fighting the patriarchy of the past, present and postapocalyptic future, facing down the most powerful institutions in the world or the narrative of history itself, escaping captors, making it through wars both sensical and nonsensical, trying to just pay the bills or unshackling oneself from the past. They all share a common bond of people trying their damnedest to succeed, overcome and survive.

But this theme doesn’t apply to every film here, nor does it apply to everything that came out in 2015. Our list also has films that melted our minds, dragged us through the mud, awed us with their grace, and entertained us with their pure, visceral delights. Summing up the year through a neatly packaged narrative is nice, but it’s also far from a true representation of what cinema brings. It’s a messy, chaotic world of movies, and when we put together a list like this the real unifying aspect is their high quality.

From the big, daunting universe of cinema in 2015, Way Too Indie is proud to present what we think are the 20 best films of the year.

Way Too Indie’s 20 Best Films of 2015

#20. Room

In Lenny Abrahamson’s Room, there are no limits to love. A film as simple as it is emotionally sweeping, there are few films released this year that evoked such a visceral emotional response from its audience. The film is an exhilarating thriller portraying a modern nightmare of captivity—a scenario that never ceases to grip the public’s attention when it pops up in the news—but is entirely focused on the will of the human spirit, and the ways we not only survive in such heinous situations but thrive. In the story of Ma (Brie Larson, a career-best performance), and the world she builds for her five-year-old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay, also mesmerizing) within the walls of a tiny room, we are given an example of the purest sort of love. One of sacrifice, fierceness, and audacity. By seeing the universe through the eyes of a small child—a universe at first only four walls wide and then suddenly much, much larger—it’s impossible not to form a renewed appreciation for the simple things in life. But more than that, it’s impossible to walk away from Room and not find oneself profoundly introspective about what it means to actively live and actively love. [Ananda]

#19. Steve Jobs

Somehow, Steve Jobs became persona non grata this fall. Between the box office performance, the fatigue surrounding the subject matter and the behind the scenes issues exposed by the Sony leak, nothing seemed to go quite right for the film. Do not be mistaken, though: Steve Jobs should not be missed. It’s a biopic with an utterly unique structure and breakneck pace. Aaron Sorkin’s script commands the spotlight even more than Michael Fassbender’s stirring performance. The three-day approach proves effective as Sorkin intelligently navigates the inherent limitations, managing to capture the essence and scope of one highly influential man’s life. His conversations are verbally balletic, never ceasing to surprise in their wit, but never stooping to overly showy, self-serving writerly panache. Steve Jobs is a whirlwind of a film, exploding with thunderous brio and making its piercing impact with the ink-dipped arrowhead of a skilled writer’s pen. Its imperfections don’t change the fact that it’s a landmark in biographical filmmaking. [Byron]

#18. Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem

In Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem, Ronit Elkabetz stars as the title character, a woman seeking a divorce from her husband. It sounds simple enough, but the Amsalems are Israeli, and in Israel there is no such thing as a civil marriage; all marriages are granted by Orthodox rabbis in a religious ceremony. Ergo, all marriages must be dissolved the same way. That means the husband give his full consent for a marriage to be dissolved. If he doesn’t want it, she doesn’t get it, and Viviane’s husband doesn’t want a divorce. This turns the film into a fascinating courtroom drama, but not in the traditional sense; rather, it becomes a drama that takes place almost entirely in a courtroom, with the occasional scene occurring in an adjacent waiting room. This gives the film contrasting feelings of intimacy and claustrophobia. Elkabetz is superb as Amsalem, conveying the frustration of a woman trapped in an unhappy marriage and finds herself trapped again, this time in a system that stacks the deck against women and all but ignores them in the process. [Michael]

#17. Hard to Be a God

Rarely have I seen a film’s atmosphere so gorgeously and meticulously realized to the extent of Aleksei German’s final masterwork. Hard to Be a God follows a civilization of men and their out-of-sorts, peculiarly human god. They represent man as a whole, embodying his struggle through the early stages of primality. When do we leave behind beasts and garner the right to call ourselves men? More pressingly, do we ever, or have we been kidding ourselves for the last few thousand years? Hard to Be a God works so well chiefly because it cements itself into a primal world, one dominated by sludge, blood, and shit, so unbelievably well. Furthermore, in lieu of the film’s obvious rejection of sentiment, it is intriguing how it integrates the idea of God into its narrative. It doesn’t suggest that he doesn’t exist or has neglected us, but that he is struggling alongside us and, even more frightening, that he’s just as helpless. German’s magnum opus is a rattling, maddening three-hour journey into the depths of man’s darkest sensibilities. [Cameron]

#16. The Assassin

The moving image is rarely as entrancing as it is in Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s The Assassin, the Taiwanese master’s first film in over seven years. Expensive in its design, methodical in its every graceful move, the film penetrates the mind as swiftly and silently as Shu Qi’s Nie Yinniang disposes of her first target in the picture’s opening moments. Shot on film by Ping Bin Lee and designed by Huang Wen-Yin, Hou’s regular collaborators, The Assassin has a mise-en-scene that’s second to none this year. The subtle phenomenons of nature play a vital supporting role, one in which animals and flora are treated as sharing the same atmosphere with humans. More than any other film of the year, The Assassin shines the brightest light on the unique and boundless nature of its artform. It is spellbinding in every sense of the word. [Nik]

#15. Son of Saul

Son of Saul is a wonderful debut film of filmmaker Laszlo Nemes, which tells the story of Saul (Geza Rohrig), a prisoner and Sonderkommando member at Auschwitz who his searching for a rabbi so he can give his son’s body a proper burial. The film is incredible, from Rohrig’s outstanding performance to Nemes’ fantastic direction (all the more impressive considering it’s his first feature film). But I want to pay special attention to the work of cinematographer Matyas Erdely and the team behind the sound design of the film. Erdely beautifully shoots the film in a tight 4:3 frame, often putting Saul at the center and keeping the eye focused on his actions with most of the settings around him hard to fully take in visually. This is where the sound design is key, as it forces us to imagine the horrors around Saul. Together these elements create a truly unique experience adding up to one of the most powerful films to be released this year. [Ryan]

#14. The Forbidden Room

Guy Maddin and Evan Johnson’s sensational hodgepodge of silent-movie storylines are maniacally cut up into dozens of threads, then re-assembled by two drunk, blindfolded men with a brilliant sense of humor. The Forbidden Room is unlike anything you’ll ever see. Ever, not just in 2015. Studded with stars from all over the world, from the well-known like Charlotte Rampling, Roy Dupuis, and Geraldine Chaplin, to more local faces like Louis Negin and Gregory Hlady, the film is full of greedy volcanos, aswang bananas, catchy musical numbers, delusional doctors, scorned lovers, men breathing oxygen through flapjacks, and mustaches with a life of their own. Relentless with its pacing and editing, it’s not something that’s easily recommended (it broke the record for walk-outs when it screened at Sundance earlier in the year). But, it’s on here for a reason: through the unique structure and absurdist tone lies one of the most heartfelt odes to the wonders of cinematic storytelling. [Nik]

#13. The Look of Silence

The Look of Silence is every bit the masterpiece its companion piece, The Act of Killing, was. Joshua Oppenheimer returns to the residual horror of the Indonesian genocide, this time through the eyes of a victim. An optometrist named Adi Rukun confronts his brother’s killers under the pretense of testing their failing vision, and through his careful questioning the remorseless thought process of a monster is slowly dismantled. If there is any surreal sensibility left over from Oppenheimer’s last film it is in the shadow of death that haunts an eerily quiet land teeming with ghosts crying out in vain. The “silence” of the title is all around, both in the insightfully observed environment and the empty murmurings of men submerged in denial. The capacity human beings have to rationalize and normalize wickedness is on full display, and it’s mesmerizing in a terribly morbid way. Powerful, sobering and absolutely essential. [Byron]

#12. Inside Out

Inside Out is a tearjerker, which comes as no surprise—Pixar has been making us cry like babies for two decades. That’s sort of their whole deal. What makes this particular movie so special is how impossibly elaborate it is, conceptually. To represent one cognitive experience, visually, is a feat in itself. What Pixar’s done here is visually represent dozens and dozens of cognitive experiences and made them work in concert. It’s a tender, inventive, entertaining study on human emotion that speaks to the heart despite being so brainy. It’s also unique in that someone can watch it at five years old and then again at forty and have two wildly different and yet equally profound experiences. Next year, Pixar’s engaging sequel mode again with Finding Dory, but they took a big risk with an out-there movie like Inside Out and proved that there’s no shortage of new ideas coming out of the trailblazing East Bay studio. [Bernard]

#11. Mommy

Young Canadian filmmaker Xavier Dolan came into filmic fruition when he was only nineteen with the release of I Killed My Mother. Almost seven years and five films later, one of the youngest directors in the industry has created one of the most moving films of the 21st century. Despite its 2014 premiere at Cannes, the film did not receive a proper US release until January of 2015, meaning most people didn’t get a chance to experience its profundity until this year. Mommy focuses its narrative on the widow Diane (or “Die,” for short) and her difficult son, newly discharged from a behavioral rehabilitation facility and potentially suffering from a number of psychological disorders that cause him to have angry, violent outbursts. It’s shot in the unique 1:1 aspect ratio, which at first may seem like a peculiar decision, but once you’ve fallen deep into the emotional abyss of this heartbreaking tale, you’ll understand how a stylistic choice can transform into an emotive choice within a matter of seconds. [Eli]

#10. Phoenix

Christian Petzold’s Phoenix is perhaps the best film since the post-war era that deals with the holocaust, even though it’s not as interested in dealing directly with the images and happenings of the holocaust as that statement suggests. Instead, it’s about the scars of tragedy, and how great tragedy has the terrifying power to rob individuals of their identity. The film follows Nelly, a Jew from Berlin, as she returns to her home and her husband after living through the concentration camps. We never see flashbacks of what she went through. She tells us all through the expression stained onto her reconstructed face. Floating through the frame like a ghost, Nelly attempts to piece together her past, and Phoenix is a harrowing testament to how emancipation from tragic circumstance doesn’t erase the psychological wounds said tragedy has inflicted. It also deals with the idea that friends of those affected have absolutely no idea how to respond. How does one respond to such an atrocity? Though not technically a ghost story, Phoenix registers as an emotionally draining portrait of a wandering soul knocking on the door of a world from which she’s been exiled. [Cameron]

#9. Buzzard

Accurately describing Joel Potrykus’ Buzzard is a difficult task. The film doesn’t really fit into a specific genre, and the loose storytelling structure only complicates things on that end. Still, there’s something undeniably captivating about the tale of a millennial burnout that decides to rebel against his routine life. It’s not that the film is particularly relatable—Marty, the protagonist, is the embodiment of the worst society has to offer—but Buzzard takes viewers on a journey that gets far too real at times. Marty’s frustrations with his dead-end job, the boring people around him, and his way of living have the ability to cut very, very deep. From the beginning, Potrykus views a mundane subject with a bizarre lens, and Buzzard only gets weirder and weirder as it progresses. By the conclusion, it’s apparent just how effective the film is, despite its relatively low-key nature. Unlike any film you’ve seen this year, Buzzard is strangely comedic, unexpectedly dark, and certainly worth checking out. [Blair]

#8. Beasts of No Nation

Beasts of No Nation is a special convergence of extra-textual information. Being the first major fiction feature release from streaming outfit Netflix is a big deal, especially since they clearly had aspirations for awards with its purchase. More fitting, it is the first feature film from writer-director Cary Joji Fukunaga following his incredible breakout success with the first season of True Detective. Those already following Fukunaga’s career, however, know just how talented of a storyteller he is. Beasts of No Nation is his highest effort production, an absolutely beautiful film with often intense subject matter. The film studies the rise of young boy Agu (Abraham Attah) through a rebel group of fighters in an unnamed, nondescript African country. Through the eyes of Agu their war is truly unknowable—and the film purposefully makes no effort to help the audience understand what this group is really fighting for. This can be frustrating at times, but Fukunaga is persistent in his focus on tone and the specific actions of its main character. This creates a more ethereal movement, which is all the more frightening given the film’s horrendous nature. Along with Attah, who gives a fantastic and difficult performance for a young and inexperienced actor, Idris Elba’s towering role as the rebel group’s Commandant is among the most complex characters of the year. [Aaron]

#7. The Duke of Burgundy

Love is love, and few films express that statement as strongly as Peter Strickland’s The Duke of Burgundy. Starting out as a cutesy homage to the European erotica films of the ’70s (Jess Franco fans need to run, not walk, to this movie), Strickland explores the BDSM relationship between Cynthia (Sidse Babett Knudsen) and Evelyn (Chiara D’Anna), two women whose “roles” in the relationship don’t exactly match their true selves. With cinematography, production design, and a mood that feels lifted straight out of a dark fairy tale, Strickland’s dreamlike elements work together to heighten the universal truths at his film’s center. Here is a film that understands the work and compromise that comes with a relationship, the constant push and pull between selfishness and selflessness that can threaten to tear people apart, and it’s all shown through a hazy realm that leans more on the side of fantasy than reality. Yet Strickland puts emotions at the forefront, and by doing so lets the strength of Cynthia and Evelyn’s undeniable feelings for each other overshadow the luscious world they reside in. Love stories this original and beautifully realized are so rare, we should feel lucky we even have the chance to see them. [C.J.]

#6. Sicario

After directing a slew of extraordinary films who would have thought cinematic genius Denis Villeneuve’s latest effort would be his strongest and most politically resonant film to date? Well, maybe some, but it’s going to be a daunting task for Villeneuve to keep his streak of brilliance up for much longer; if he does, he’ll be reaching the unspeakable heights of consistency only names like Kubrick and Kieslowski have attained. Sicario concentrates on an FBI agent (Emily Blunt, in a gorgeously realized performance) who pulls herself into quite the plight when she accompanies a government task force on an enigma of a mission along the United States/Mexico border. To say any more about the plot and the manner in which it unfolds would be a disservice to a film with such an airtight narrative structure and masterful pacing. It’s a socioculturally relevant thrill-ride that you’ll have to experience for yourself, but its shocking and increasingly tense nature may be too extreme for some viewers. [Eli]

#5. It Follows

What can be said about It Follows that hasn’t already been said a million times before? It’s one of the greatest horror films to come along in years and a movie that works on multiple levels, with a new discovery being made upon each new viewing. A sexually transmitted monster has all the potential in the world to come across as cheesy, tacky, and otherwise ineffective, but director David Robert Mitchell approaches the subject matter with such a level of genuineness that it’s impossible not to take seriously. Featuring excellent, naturalistic performances from its young, often inexperienced cast, there’s a subtle nature to almost everything about It Follows. From the romance to the horror and even the humor, it’s all downplayed, which makes it all the more effective in the end. Many horror movies fall apart because their characters aren’t relatable, but in the It Follows universe, teenagers behave like teenagers—not like horror movie characters—and the film is all the more impressive because of that. From top to bottom, it’s easy to see why It Follows has been so well-received by audiences and critics alike, and its theatrical success serves as a beacon of hope for the future of independent horror. [Blair]

#4. Carol

There are so many exquisitely composed elements to Todd Haynes’ achingly beautiful new movie Carol that it becomes difficult to single out the aspects that make it so great. There is Phyllis Nagy’s delicate script, adapted from the Patricia Highsmith novel The Price of Salt, which allows the film’s central romantic plot to unfold in a patient and deliberate way. There are the wonderfully ornate period sets and costumes, with bold red accents that jump off the screen thanks to Edward Lachman’s stunning cinematography. And, of course, there are the performances—not just from the always-excellent Cate Blanchett or Audrey Hepburn-esque Rooney Mara—but an earnest Sarah Paulson, a scorned Kyle Chandler, and a sleazy John Magaro, as well.

The first of Haynes’ six feature films in which he didn’t contribute to the script, Carol is the director’s most precise work to date—from its production details to the performances. While the filmmaker’s movies often focus on LGBT identity, the striking thing about the intimacy in Carol is its universality. Therese and Carol are more than women in a lesbian romance affected by the obstacles of a bygone era; they’re people stifled by the expectations placed on each of them.

As Blanchett stares across at Mara over a cocktail or a shop counter, you’ll want to lean in closer, too. The pair’s carefully chosen words tease out the affair. Watching them slowly go back-and-forth, with alluring smirks and guarded looks, is among the most entrancing pleasures in film this year, as is the sound of Cate Blanchett simply saying, “Therese.” [Zach]

#3. Ex Machina

The trio at the heart of filmmaker Alex Garland’s directorial debut, Ex Machina, represents an intricate blend of old and new. Invoking memories of past great fictional characters like Doctors Frankenstein and Moreau, Pinocchio’s creator Geppetto, and even Willie Wonka, is Nathan (Oscar Isaac), the inconceivably wealthy and immeasurably intelligent inventor of a fictional Google-like search engine. Representing the future is Ava (the spellbinding Alicia Vikander), an artificially intelligent robot created by Nathan. Caught between creator and creation is Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), a whiz of a programmer whom Nathan recruits to test Ava’s believability as an AI, but a simple man nonetheless and the pivotal completing part of this most bizarre of love triangles. As Caleb studies Ava and gradually becomes taken by her, so too does Ava study, and fall for, Caleb. Watching them both is Nathan, whose motives for recruiting Caleb become cloudier as the days pass. What first presents itself as a futuristic drama laced with themes of morality and anchored by a peculiar alpha-male (Isaac is terrific as the genius recluse), gradually becomes a riveting psychological thriller that keeps the viewer captivated and drives to a bold ending. Sci-fi noir is alive and well and is not to be missed with Ex Machina. [Michael]

#2. Spotlight

Tom McCarthy has done the unthinkable. Just one year after directing the horrific flop The Cobbler, McCarthy turns in a film that not just rinses the bad taste out of our mouths from his previous effort, it puts him in the conversation for one of the best films of the year. Spotlight is a gripping newsroom drama based on the Catholic Church’s sex abuse scandal uncovered by the Boston Globe. Though despite the grim subject matter, watching Spotlight unfold is utterly entertaining. That’s because the film keeps its foot on the acceleration for the whole ride, providing plenty of energy and tension without wasting a single moment.

Spotlight is a well-oiled machine firing on all cylinders. Not only does the electrifying pace carry the neatly arranged script, but the ensemble cast puts on a clinic on how to act as a team. It also doesn’t hurt that the cast is comprised of A-listers like Stanley Tucci, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Liev Schreiber, and Rachel McAdams, each performing at the top of their game. Any one of them could have stolen the show by flexing their acting muscles; instead, they show discipline by working together, creating incredible chemistry and making the entire film better in the process. Without being exploitative (which would have been easy given the subject), Spotlight exceeds by focusing on the teamwork of its investigative journalism case. The film doesn’t just do a few things right, it does everything right, which is why Spotlight is one of the best procedurals in years. [Dustin]

#1. Mad Max: Fury Road

There are many things I expected from George Miller’s long-awaited next installment/reboot of his Mad Max series. I knew there would be explosions. I knew there would be cars embellished with crazy apocalyptic garnishments. I knew there would be a lot of sand. And I figured there would be a fair amount of zooming vehicles flipping and being walked on as though the laws of physics don’t apply in this futuristic world. I did not expect there to be larger themes than your garden variety hero tale. And I certainly did not expect the hero to not be Mad Max. Waiting 30 years to create the next vision of his gasoline-fueled future, Miller proves he has ungodly amounts of patience. Patience to ensure that technology would catch up with his vision, and patience to ensure that when he told his next story it would be to an audience who could fathom that even in a world of chaos, the significance of equality is fundamental to our humanity and worth fighting like hell for. Not everyone has embraced the surprising themes of Fury Road, but those tickled by just how exciting, fun, and road raging this action film is can’t help but admit that what raises it to perfection are the kick ass ladies leading the charge and the deeper issues they face. Mad Max: Fury Road closes with a quote from the future: “Where must we go…we who wander this Wasteland in search of our better selves?” Miller pushes us to consider our place and responsibility, no matter the wasteland we call home. And like his War Boys, his mouth shiny and chrome, Miller presents his film as though to say “Witness me!” Turns out an action film can be a visual extravaganza and hold itself up with a stiff backbone of ethics and morality. Witness the bar being raised. [Ananda]

As everyone at Way Too Indie scrambles together to watch and rank as many films as they can before the end of the year, we decided to spend some time knocking down and propping up some of what 2015 had to offer. The fun part about having writers with such diverse tastes is that it’s hard to find a consensus, leading to many (friendly) disagreements and arguments between people. After doing our first overrated/underrated feature last year, we had such a fun time we decided to make it a yearly tradition here on Way Too Indie.

All of our writers were tasked to pick one overrated and one underrated film, along with an explanation for their choices. Read on below, and if you happen to disagree with any of our sentiments, we’ve included a link to most of our staff’s Twitter handles where you are invited to express your outrage or agreement or let us know what we’ve overlooked.

Way Too Indie’s Most Overrated And Underrated Films Of 2015

Aaron Pinkston

Inside Out is overrated

Pixar’s first offering of 2015 has become one of the studio’s most successful films—only behind Toy Story 3 in terms of box office and with a 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I’m not going to argue that Inside Out isn’t a good film, but it simply didn’t connect with me on a personal level as it has for the public and critical audiences. Many of the film’s relative problems come with the broad nature that allows it to connect with so many. This is mostly true of its humor, which often plays for easy stereotypes even as its emotional complexity is strong. The characters inside of Riley’s head are of course broad by design, but the core relationship between Joy and Sadness aside, this isn’t the height of Pixar. Some have forecasted a heated battle against Anomalisa for animated film of the year (and that even excludes When Marnie Was There, a fantastic film that’s also in this feature), but it seems like a relative shoo-in for Inside Out, especially with the film garnering Best Picture nomination predictions for the Oscars—the new model nod for cultural transcendence in animated film.

Focus is underrated

One of the great film trends of 2015 was the many great throw-back entertainments. While Focus may be a little flashier than Bridge of Spies and Spotlight, it too shows the pleasures of how solid a ’90s-era flick can be. The biggest appeal of the film is Will Smith, who again shows that he is a bonafide movie star in case you forgot. The actor’s natural charm is incredibly fun to watch, in full effect with terrific chemistry with co-star Margot Robbie—they are good enough together that it’s easy to forget the wide age gap between them. As for the film’s plot: the con man hijinks don’t do anything new, and some of the film’s twists aren’t too hard to see coming, but the pace is quick and there are a few excellent scenes. The anchor scene of the film, where Smith gets into a heated double-or-nothing battle with the great B.D. Wong at the Super Bowl, builds dynamically and stands on its own as one of the best scenes of the year. Like many of the ’90s films that it reminds me of, Focus will be a welcome addition to the cable movie cycle for years to come.

Ananda Dillon

Jurassic World is overrated

Immediately after viewing Jurassic World I turned to my viewing partner, a look of disgust forming on my face, to discover that she and almost everyone else in the theater were high on some sort of flashy, merchandised, nostalgia-pandered fairy dust. And apparently the rest of America (and the world) fell victim as well, as this film is the highest grossing of 2015. I admit I had hopes, not even high ones, of the film playing just the right amount on my love of the first film, on their being bigger and badder dinos, of Chris Pratt being the dinosaur-whisperer who’d steal my heart and Bryce Dallas Howard the badass chick who’d save the day. What I got was more Starbucks and Mercedes logos than my brain could even process, a chick inexplicably running through a tropical island in heels, and (the biggest offense in my mind) the sudden introduction of vindictive dinosaurs. The entire premise of the first film can be boiled down into man vs. nature (umm, life finds a way, duh) and now we’re supposed to swallow the notion of 22-years of fraternization with humans suddenly allowing for cognitive decision making on the part of these “animals”? It’s one thing for a raptor to hunt kids in a kitchen instinctually, another for them to follow Chris Pratt and crew around the park on some sort of mission. The other plot holes are so numerous I have no room to elaborate but I continue to be bewildered at how many people were so dazzled by the special effects and novelty of a new Jurassic Park film that they not only dismissed the absurdity happening in front of them but praised a film that pretty much spits on its source material. I guess Dr. Malcolm would call this the truest example of chaos theory.

Slow West is underrated

So it’s not going to make the top of anyone’s Best Westerns of 2015 list as this is surprisingly a heated year for the genre. Bone Tomahawk has gotten more buzz, The Hateful Eight is primed and ready to blow us all away (in 70 mm!), and The Revenant has star power and artistry out the wazoo. But as much as I know what to expect from those films, Slow West has to be the most surprising western of the year. Maybe it was a marketing problem or a release date mismatch but the film came and went with not nearly enough hullabaloo. Big-namer Fassbender just wasn’t enough to counter a relatively nobody director, John Maclean, and I for one had no idea just how charming the film would be or how much it would ooze eclectic humor. Watching it evoked a similar smugness as watching a Wes Anderson film with all the darkly surprising gristle of a Coen brothers film. It’s oddly romantic for a western, lost love being the driver of the action, and incredibly well performed, especially breakout Caren Pistorious who I genuinely hope to see in more films soon. It may not make Top 20 of 2015 lists, but I hope it has a sort of second coming for those who realize they shouldn’t have glossed over this one.

Cameron Morewood

Beasts of No Nation is overrated

With Beasts of No Nation, Cary Fukunaga is often more concerned with demonstrating his ability to showcase flashy visuals than he is with staying true to the heart of his story and characters. The film’s mise en scène consistently feels detached from the human beings on screen. Raids and chase sequences are depicted in crude slow motion and accompanied by awkward synth music. Idris Elba is certainly a saving grace. Many of the children in the film, including the lead (Abraham Attah), also proved to be surprisingly talented actors. With a different director who possessed a better understanding of how to respond to the material and stylized his film accordingly, Beasts of No Nation could have been something that wasn’t so easily forgotten.

Beloved Sisters is underrated

Beloved Sisters had the unfortunate fate of being intended as a December 2014 release, but being dumped off in January instead. As a result, it was either overlooked or forgotten about by many. But what filmmaker Dominik Graf gives audiences is a rich and epic melodrama, bolstered by a trio of exceptional performances and cinematography which is often classical, but occasionally off-base, deviating into territory more commonly associated with other genres. It’s also lavishly produced and wonderfully scored—its locations feel genuine and lived in, absent of CGI in its rendering of a baroque atmosphere.

Byron Bixler

Straight Outta Compton is overrated

As a big fan of old school hip-hop, Straight Outta Compton was one of my most anticipated films of the year. The genre and the artists who work within it has rarely been addressed by Hollywood, and the few times it was represented, the results were shaky at best (I’m looking at you, Notorious). But with an exciting marketing campaign and the active involvement of Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Eazy-E’s widow, I had confidence that this might be different.

I want to make it clear that Straight Outta Compton is not a bad film—it’s just alright. F. Gary Gray’s direction is fluid, the concert and party scenes have an infectious energy, Jason Mitchell gives a breakthrough performance in an ensemble of solid turns and the needle drop moments are on point. However, the script is where I begin to scratch my head at the universal praise. It’s an ambitious sprawl of a story, but all the character relationships, ambitions and internal issues are painted out in broad strokes. The dialogue is frustratingly on the nose and low on nuance, with several moments playing out with the simplistic instincts of a TV movie of the week. I’m thrilled that Straight Outta Compton has sparked a resurgence of interest in late ’80s/early ’90s hip hop, but it could have been so much better. I can’t help but think we’re settling for less due to the film’s weak field of competitors.

When Marnie Was There is underrated

While most Studio Ghibli films open to a rapturous response, When Marnie Was There seemingly came and went without a word this summer. The only substantial discussion revolved around its status as Ghibli’s last film before taking an extended break. Perhaps this was because it lacked the overtly imaginative fantasy of Spirited Away or My Neighbor Totoro. Or maybe it’s because it wasn’t quite as distinctive in its animation or storytelling as last year’s sensation, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Whatever the reason, When Marnie Was There is an emotionally charged gem that soars on its sensitivity to themes of depression, abandonment and alienation. Heavy stuff for sure, but when filtered through the prism of a mysterious spectral tale, it becomes amazingly accessible to both young and old viewers. It’s a ghost story that’s tender rather than frightening and a family film that levels with its audience, refusing to pander and getting to the heart of very real childhood issues. There’s a lot to dig into here, and while it might not be top tier Ghibli, it stays true to the studio’s tradition of beautiful, smart, and universally relatable filmmaking.

Bernard Boo

Carol is overrated

Todd Haynes’ Carol is one of the most overwhelmingly beloved films of the year; on this issue, I stand a lonely outsider. Perhaps there’s some deeper beauty that’s lost on me, but I found the film to be emotionally cold and half-awake. Lifeless, even. It’s ironic for a movie so visually colorful and sublime, but that’s what makes it so irreconcilable in my head. The production and costume design are unbelievably good, and the performances by leads Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett are solid. But I could never shake the feeling that the whole movie felt like an overly studied Examination on the laws of attraction (capital “E” intended). The warmth of the production and Haynes’ directorial style too often doesn’t gel with the cerebral, structured material, an issue that consistently kept me at arms length from the story and its characters. There are a lot of amazing things going on in this movie, but I feel as if the movie needs a big hug, both to heat it up and to bring its terriffic-but-disconnected elements to a tighter state of cohesion.

The Visit is underrated

The first movies M. Night Shyamalan’s made will haunt him forever. I won’t name them here—we all know what they were and, more importantly, how goddamn good they were. Audiences have been watching his movies with arms folded and a skeptical smirk ever since, waiting for him to capture his former glory. He hasn’t, which is unfortunate, but with The Visit it feels like Shyamalan’s finally dropped that weight he’s had on his shoulders for all those years and is starting to have fun again. This selfie-generation take on Hansel and Gretel is wild, mischievous, scary, wickedly funny, and most importantly doesn’t take itself so seriously. It’s not a film that will resurrect Shyamalan’s credibility completely, but I think I’m through with using his early films as the ultimate measuring stick for his career. The Visit is one of the most entertaining horror movies of 2015, though I think the context of its filmmaker’s larger career has stifled its success.

Blair Hoyle

Avengers: Age of Ultron is overrated

It truly speaks to the generic, predictable nature of most current superhero movies that Avengers: Age of Ultron wasn’t even particularly well received. And yet it’s still overrated. Another by-the-numbers comic book adaptation that tries (and fails) to convince the audience that the indestructible characters are actually in danger, the film rarely—if ever—provides any emotional stakes. When the most entertaining moment of a high-octane superhero movie is when the characters are just kind of hanging out at a cabin, you know something has gone horribly wrong.

Project Almanac is underrated

At a time when a vast majority of found footage films follow a formulaic blueprint and execution, Dean Israelite’s Project Almanac brings something new to the table. A time travel film that doesn’t find its protagonists saving the world from a government conspiracy, Project Almanac instead focuses on high school kids doing high school things. They use their time machine to attend past music festivals, to win the lottery, and impress love interests. It’s an insanely charming film, filled with excellent performances that showcase its young cast’s comedic and dramatic acting skills. It’s energetic, exciting, and sure to elicit equal amounts of cheers and laughs.

C.J. Prince

Goodnight Mommy is overrated

Did critics get collectively hit on the head by a brick when they praised Goodnight Mommy? A torture porn dressed up in Euro arthouse clothing, Goodnight Mommy is an exercise in austere agony that uses violence as a distraction from the fact that it has nothing to say. It starts off as an intriguing story about twin brothers who think their mother—whose face is bandaged up after getting surgery—is a sinister impostor, but that’s about as interesting as things get. Eventually writers/directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala decide to let the boys tie their mom up and torture her to see if she’s really their mother. Franz/Fiala try to be ambiguous about whether the boys’ suspicions are justified, but in this case it’s irrelevant. If their mother turned out to be an alien/ghost/demon/<insert evil thing here>, does that make watching her lips get sliced open any less gruesome to watch? And it’s not like showing this sort of gore is an achievement in horror either; wincing at a woman screaming while someone flosses her gums until they tear apart is a natural reaction, not evidence that the people putting it on screen have any talent. Goodnight Mommy is just a vacuous torture chamber, and shouldn’t be looked at as anything more than an Eli Roth movie with a better cinematographer.

Saint Laurent is underrated

Saint Laurent is a strange case for me, since it’s a film I feel passionate about yet it’s one I can’t really defend. It’s definitely a flawed film, one that overstays its welcome and gets lost in itself plenty of times, but out of the countless movies I’ve seen this year this one still rattles in my mind from time to time. Bertrand Bonello has made what I’d be more comfortable calling a far masterpiece rather than a near masterpiece, a film that comes to life in sublime flashes while being surrounded by more plodding and mediocre parts. Besides having a terrific cast and a killer soundtrack (Bonello is flawless in this department), Saint Laurent takes a more intriguing approach to a biopic; it’s more concerned with nailing down the moods and emotions of what being Yves Saint Laurent would be like, a sort of boundless opulence that comes with holding so much talent and wealth. And when Bonello nails that aspect, Saint Laurent hits a seductive, giddy high that no other film this year comes close to matching. It’s understandable why Saint Laurent can prove to be a frustrating experience given its flaws, but that doesn’t mean it should be tossed off or derided. It’s a film that has the courage to try and (more importantly) fail, a quality that should be embraced rather than opposed.

Dustin Jansick

Mommy is overrated

I’m not sure if there were more obnoxious characters than the mother-son duo in Xavier Dolan’s Mommy. Somehow the film walked away with the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and caused even more people to praise the ground beneath Dolan. These characters are irritating by design: the boy (played by a hyperactive Antoine-Olivier Pilon) suffers from ADHD, causing violent outbursts like setting a fire in a school cafeteria and screaming on the top of his lungs for no apparent reason, and the mother (Anne Dorval) is equally unpleasant with her nonchalant attitude on life. Eventually, all the child-like screaming and hitting just becomes exasperating and downright insufferable. Then there’s the frustrating 1:1 aspect ratio. Dolan devotees will tell you this was an essential part of the film which leads to a some sort of epiphany. But I’m here to tell you it’s more of a gimmicky stylistic choice, paired hilariously with Oasis’ overplayed song “Wonderwall”. So while I respect Dolan as a filmmaker—I think some day he may be considered one of the greats—most of his films end up feeling like exercises in self-indulgence, and Mommy is no exception.

Wild Tales is underrated

The only logical explanation as to why more people aren’t talking about Damián Szifron’s Wild Tales this year is that they didn’t realize it counts as a 2015 release (in the U.S.) after generating so much buzz last year from its Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language film. Szifron’s wild anthology film consists of six short tales, each with the same theme of revenge along with plenty of absurd humor. With perhaps the best opening scene of 2015, Wild Tales starts things off with the shortest of its tales: passengers on a plane quickly discover inconceivable connections with each other, realizing it’s more than just a coincidence just before the story comes to abrupt end. With each new story, Szifron finds inventive ways to up the stakes. Most involve well-mannered characters methodically planning schemes to take down the person that wronged them. Of course, their plans don’t always work out perfectly. The final chapter concludes with an outrageous scuffle when a bride finds out her husband cheated on her with one of their guests, resulting in the most ridiculous and awkward wedding reception of all time. Given its anthological nature, there’s never a dull moment in Wild Tales. What’s better than a well-told revenge tale? Six of them.

Michael Nazarewycz

It Follows is overrated

What David Robert Mitchell did with It Follows—this year’s darling of the indie horror scene—is pretty neat. The film’s conceit alone is clever enough: a shape-shifting (though frequently unseen) entity hunts a person—in slow walking, ’80s slasher style—until it catches and kills that person. But if that person sleeps with someone, the person with whom the hunted slept with becomes the new target. Complementing that is a score by Disasterpeace that invokes memories of the great John Carpenter scores of the 1980s. And Mike Gioulakis’s cinematography? To die for. And yet. For as visually great as It Follows is, the other two key points the film’s devotees cling to—the conceit and the score—are flawed and highly overvalued. The score, while wonderful on its own, is as oppressive as it is random in its application. It’s as if Mitchell isn’t sure when to use it, so he uses it when he thinks he should, which is too often. The greater sin, though, is how fast and loose the film plays with its own rules. I’m usually not one to nitpick such things, particularly in the horror genre, but the film’s premise—hell, its entire marketing campaign—is all about “The Rules”. But once the film gets deeper into the second act, Mitchell, who also wrote the screenplay, needs to cheat those rules to keep the film going. That simply doesn’t fly. It Follows is a good film, but it’s too imperfect to be as revered as it is.

Ant-Man is underrated

A pair of things have hampered a full appreciation for Ant-Man. The first is the foolish melodrama that preceded the film’s release—melodrama created by the internet when the film’s original director, Edgar Wright, left the project. The second is the film having been released after Avengers: Age of Ultron. Because The Avengers brought the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase One to a close, it only seemed fitting that Ultron close Phase II and leave the fans waiting for the next major all-out Avenger-fest, Captain America: Civil War. But along comes Ant-Man, closing out Phase II and wedging itself between two event pictures. But what a wedge it is. Not only does Marvel (again) take another familiar film style—this time the ’50s sci-fi flick, cross-bred with a heist film—it makes it so much more than just another man-in-tights entry on a list. Besides the very effective scenes where Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) is miniaturized, there is a depth of character and a structure of relationship that is surprisingly impressive, and makes Lang something of a contemporary of (and dare I speculate, heir apparent to) Tony “Iron Man” Stark. Both are technically savvy, both have father/father-figure issues, and both are, in their own ways, tied to the MCU canon at a high and critical level, namely, the early days of S.H.I.E.L.D. (both also have strong women beside them). But while Tony is the “Genius Billionaire Playboy Philanthropist,” Scott is the “Resourceful, Blue-Collar, Father-of-One Convict.” Sure, those are opposite sides of a coin, but it’s the same coin, and because of this clever and deep connection, I look forward more to the future of Ant-Man than any other MCU hero.

Nik Grozdanovic

Amy is overrated

Fame is evil. Something that most of us who’ve seen enough fiction and non-fiction films on the subject have no doubt gathered by now. Director Asif Kapadia doesn’t seem to think so, however, because that’s the just about the only message his doc Amy is sending out. Amy Whinehouse had an incredible voice; she was a naturally gifted jazz singer whose songwriting was basically diary entries broken down into poetic verses. Depending on individual closeness and knowledge of her personal demons, backstage abuses, and unfortunate circle of people, Amy will be hitting all kinds of chords. But, looked at objectively (or, as objectively as possible when judging any piece of artistic expression) we’re looking at a completely average, by-the-books, documentary that reveals very little real insight, and keeps hitting the same point over and over ad nauseam. At the time of writing this, Amy has won Best Documentary with both the LA Film Critics and New York Online Film Critics associations, making it that much more overrated. Wanna see a great documentary about a celebrity? Choose Listen To Me Marlon instead.

Crimson Peak is underrated

Guillermo del Toro might have directed his best film to date (time will tell if Pan’s Labyrinth and The Devil’s Backbone will be surpassed overall, but they certainly are on a technical level) and yet, no one’s really talking about Crimson Peak. Featuring a triplet of outstanding performances by Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, and Jessica Chastain—the latter slipping into uncharted villainous territory like she’s been playing baddies her whole career—the film also drips volumes of atmosphere and boasts a production design to die for. With del Toro’s classic mesh of romance, horror, and seeking the beautiful in the monstrous, Crimson Peak manages to even add new layers to the director’s signature trademarks. Painted in thick Gothic brushstrokes and flowing more like a first edition Victorian novel than a 21st-century motion picture, it’s a fantastic ghost story made all the more compelling by being told mostly through resplendently old-fashioned imagery (costumes, set designs, etc.) A truly spellbinding experience that I implore everyone to seek out and get lost in.

Zachary Shevich

The Wolfpack is overrated

Coming off of The Wolfpack’s premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, there was a lot of excitement around Crystal Moselle’s debut documentary as well as the lanky, longhaired clan of film geek Angulo brothers. The film took Sundance’s Best Documentary Feature award, the Angulos partnered with Vice Films to produce an experimental arts & crafts short film, and The Wolfpack received an overly positive review from me during the glow of the Tribeca Film Festival. At the time, Moselle’s discovery of a group of eccentric lo-fi filmmakers confined to a Lower East Side apartment by an abusive father was simply too compelling to ignore. Yet, their story remains an enigma—even months later. Moselle’s film raises twice as many questions and it answers. Her decisions to keep elements of the documentary and the Angulos’s timeline vague makes the liberation arch fall flat. I noted the filmmaker’s hesitation to dive deeply into her subjects in my April review of the film, but in retrospect that treatment is severely limiting. The approach denies curious viewers a fuller experience. The Wolfpack is a prime example of film’s subject matter exceeding the quality of the filmmaking around it.

Unfriended is underrated

Perhaps Unfriended wasn’t best suited for big screens. Watching it on the intimacy of a laptop monitor—the same way the film’s final girl Blaire (Shelley Hennig) experiences the action—creates an immensely chilling effect. Unfriended is a lot more than a riff about young people living their lives through technology. It’s a smart and effective thriller about a ghost that exploits the comforts of private, digital spaces that we create for ourselves online. Director Leo Gabriadze and writer Nelson Greaves ambitiously contain the entire story to a continuous shot of a glitchy computer monitor where the main character clicks through her iTunes library, her deceased friend’s Facebook photos and a group Skype chat infiltrated by the “hacker ghost.” Unfriended has the potential to rely on computer-generated gimmickry and “teen speak” but doesn’t. Gabriadze and Greaves gives each member of this friends group their own skeleton-filled closets, which allows the tension to stem from their increasingly tense dynamic. As the friends turn on one another, it shifts the attention away from an all-powerful digital demon and back to the computer users themselves. Sporadic use of some laptop-related gags (such as the diagetic soundtrack moments) punctuate an enjoyable, slightly campy horror with amusing comedic relief; however, Unfriended wastes no moment of its 83-minute runtime. Gabriadze & Greaves exhibit their mastery of elevating and deflating the stakes.

Maybe it is because I’m from Chicago, but Kartemquin Films has always been a big deal for me. The Chicago-based documentary company has churned out dozens of fantastic docs in their 50 years, most with a specific eye toward social justice. Even if you don’t recognize the name, it’s likely you’ve seen films they’ve produced—most likely their work with Steve James, including Hoop Dreams and Life Itself. You now have a great opportunity to see many of their great films with their newly announced partnership with Fandor. The streaming service will be the exclusive home for 30 films from throughout Kartemquin’s history, with the first 16 available now. Highlights of the partnership include Kartemquin’s first film, Home for Life, labor struggle film The Last Pullman Car, James’s Grassroots Chicago, and seven-hour immigrant story The New Americans. When you want to take a break from splurging on this new amazing catalog, check out other films new to streaming down below.

Netflix

Starlet [Sean Baker, 2012]

With Sean Baker’s Tangerine garnering great reviews on the indie scene, it’s a great opportunity to check out his last feature. Starlet stars Dree Hemingway and Besedka Johnson as unlikely friends with about 60 years between them. After directionless Jane finds a considerable amount of cashed stored in the thermos she just bought from Sadie’s yard sale, she gets tied up in the old woman’s life. Starlet is a unique film with just a touch of blackly comedic tones over the usually quirky May-December friendship plot. For more on Starlet and Sean Baker, check out our original review of the film and our recent interview with Baker discussing Tangerine.

Other titles new to Netflix this week:
Can’t Hardly Wait [Harry Elfont & Deborah Kaplan, 1998]
Do I Sound Gay? [David Thorpe, 204]
Doomsdays [Eddie Mullins, 2013]
Harry and Tonto [Paul Mazursky, 1974]
Last Days in Vietnam [Rory Kennedy, 2014]
Master of None [Series, Season 1]
Seymour: An Introduction [Ethan Hawke, 2014]
Twinsters [Samantha Futerman & Ryan Miyamoto, 2015]

Fandor

Sembene! [Samba Gadjigo & Jason Silverman, 2015]

Our friends at Fandor have become one of the best places on the internet to check out a number of classic films, but they offer much more than their well-publicized Criterion Picks. As a prime example, now-streaming Sembene! (check out our review) hits Fandor the same week it debuts in limited release. The film is a profile doc of 84-year-old filmmaker Ousmane Sembene, the first director from Africa to find sustained international acclaim. His films Black Girl, Xala and Moolaadé are often recognized as the greatest films ever from the continent, exploring much more than the outsider view we so often see. Chronicling his incredible artistic journey, Sembene! is definitely of interest for fans of world cinema.

Other titles new to Fandor this week:
The Grandmother [David Lynch, 1970]
Happy Valley [Amir Bar-Lev, 2014]
The Pearl Button [Patricio Guzmán, 2015]
Watchers of the Sky [Edet Belzberg, 2014]
Zorns Lemma [Hollis Frampton, 1970]

MUBI

If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle [Florin Serban, 2010]

An underseen release from the Romanian New Wave, If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle may have an unwieldy title, but remains a tense drama. The film involves Silviu, a teenage prisoner on the brink of being released. When he finds out that his estranged mother is leaving Romania and taking his beloved young brother, his emotional response threatens his status. This leads to the film’s major dramatic setpiece, an extended hostage situation where Silviu has taken a young social worker with who he has developed a connection. Like most recent Romanian films, If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle is intensely bleak and with high emotional stakes. Director Florin Serban’s following project, Box, sounds like an intriguing puzzle-like thriller, and will most likely come to the West next year. So, in order to catch up, you can check out If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle on MUBI until December 2.

Other titles new to MUBI this week:
Aliyah [Elie Wajeman, 2012]
Free Men [Ismaël Ferroukhi, 2011]
Her Name Is Sabine [Sandrine Bonnaire, 2007]
Tu Dors Nicole [Stéphane Lafleur, 2014]
Watchtower [Pelin Esmer, 2012]

Video On-Demand

Inside Out [Pete Docter, 2015]

One of the most loved films of the year and Pixar Studio’s most successful film not named Toy Story 3, Inside Out arrives on Video On-Demand along with its DVD and Blu-ray release. Joy, Sadness, Disgust and the gang’s journey is among the most entertaining, sharp and emotional experiences in the cinema. Perhaps more importantly, after a few relatively mediocre releases, Pixar showed once again that it is the top dog in animation. I am convinced Inside Out will be on a wide variety of end-of-year lists and is an honest contender for major awards outside of animation. Check out our review for more thoughts on the latest masterpiece from the animation juggernaut.

Other titles new to VOD this week:
The Hallow [Corin Hardy, 2015]
Lost in the Sun [Trey Nelson, 2015]
Vacation [John Francis Daley & Jonathan M. Goldstein, 2015]

Pixar’s Inside Out is that is both the weirdest and the most universal movie the studio has ever made. It’s from the mind of Pete Docter, who’s brainstormed one of the most conceptually out-there movies in the studio’s history, a coming-of-age story like no other that stands as one of Pixar’s very best offerings.

Inside Out goes smaller than Pixar’s ever gone before; smaller than Toy Story, smaller than Ratatouille, even smaller than A Bug’s Life. It takes us inside the mind of an 11-year-old girl named Riley, who’s piloted by five adorable sprites bouncing around a Star Trek-inspired command center inside her head. Each of them personifies one of Riley’s primary emotions: Joy is played by Amy Poehler, Sadness by Phyllis Smith, Anger by Lewis Black, Fear by Bill Hader and Disgust by Mindy Kaling. (They all fill their roles perfectly, though Smith’s performance is particularly outstanding.)

The story’s outer layer follows Riley as she goes through a common childhood dilemma: she’s been uprooted from her hometown in Minnesota to move to a stuffy, two-story fixer-upper in San Francisco with her mom (Diane Lane) and dad (Kyle MacLachlan), who hopes to get his start-up off the ground. She goes through all the crises associated with this kind of adjustment period you’d expect, but the film’s primary concern is the chaos that ensues in her candy-colored “headquarters.”

To this point, Joy’s been the captain of the ship, helping to fill Riley’s head with happy memories represented by golden orbs that pop into the control room like glowing gumdrops on a conveyor belt. But due to Riley’s sudden, upsetting change of environment, the control room begins to look more like a panic room.  Sadness feels a sudden urge to take the reins as her blue orbs begin popping into the control room instead of the Joy’s golden ones. Joy tries her best to suppress sadness’ takeover, but when an accident flings both of them out of the control room, Riley’s world is thrown into disarray. While Anger, Fear and Disgust jostle and compete back in the control room, Joy and Sadness try to find a way back home as they traverse the outer reaches of Riley’s headspace.

Emotionally, Inside Out gets pretty turbulent. As things begin to break down inside Riley’s mind, we see her slowly descend into depression in the outside world, mourning the loss of her old friends, her hockey team, her old house, and a time when her parents didn’t bicker so much. It’s likely that audience members who haven’t reached Riley’s age yet won’t recognize the gravity of certain scenes of desperation and loneliness, but Docter and co-director Ronnie del Carmen handle much more sensitive, layered issues than in most of Pixar’s previous work.

The movie’s mostly a comedy, though, with the cast providing some big laughs to go along with the endless string of visual gags. Erratic, twisted humor is provided by Richard Kind, who voices Bing Bong, Riley’s childhood imaginary friend who’s been pushed to the back of her mind, doomed to a vagabond existence. The wide range of emotion covered by this character was a welcome surprise.

Though designed to appeal to mainstream audiences, Inside Out is audacious because it dares to visualize cognitive experiences, like when songs get stuck in your head, how long-term memory works, where dreams come from, and why we forget imaginary friends. The craftsmen at Pixar manage to represent these complex mental inner-workings in inventive ways, like a long-term memory night crew who discard Riley’s least valuable memories as she sleeps (piano lessons get the boot, save for “Chopsticks” and “Heart and Soul.”) These concepts are clever and often hilarious, and I have no idea how Pixar got them to fit together so perfectly to make up such a cohesive mental ecosystem, but there’s more to them than that.

From the “Train of Thought” to “Dream Productions,” a film studio in charge of amusing Riley as she sleeps, every little piece of the world Pixar’s created represents a piece of us. All of us. We feel connected to the characters because they exist within us already. We know them. They way they jockey for position in Riley’s head? We feel that competition play out inside us every day of our lives. That’s the key to Inside Out‘s power. It’s recognition, empathy, consolation, acceptance; everyone on the planet can relate to this movie. This isn’t a story about Riley’s brain. We don’t see talking synapses or blood vessels or grey matter. This story is about Riley’s mind. In other words, it’s a story about the nature of feeling.

Colorful, detailed and stylized, the imagery churned out by Pixar is jaw-dropping as usual. Design is the strong suit, though, as the surface-level aesthetics don’t quite have the richness or texture of movies like Toy Story 3 and Up. The scenes outside Riley’s head look phenomenal, but the “inside” scenes look too sterile and clinical, resembling more of a Dreamworks or Disney Animation aesthetic. (That’s a minor, minor knock, as those two studios have produced some terrific-looking work.)

The movie’s most glaring weakness is the Disgust character, who largely feels inconsequential. Kaling is fine in the role, going all-out diva, but Disgust is easily the least defined character of the five mains. Another stumble is the movie’s middle section, which feels slightly bloated. Joy and Sadness visit some amazing places on their way back home, but their journey feels too linear. These lapses in excellence are fleeting, though, as the sheer magnitude of Docter and Pixar’s ambition and imagination burns bright in every piece of character and set design, making it hard not to get swept up at any given moment.

The patented Pixar “big idea” here is that we must express and be in tune with our emotions because they’re what connect us with others. It’s a legitimately profound message, and though it can be argued that it’s just plain common sense, to see these psychological maneuverings play out on-screen forces you to take a look back at all the times you’ve pushed others away, or went back on a promise, or ran away from a difficult situation, all because you insisted on keeping your emotions locked up. Inside Out encourages us to open the floodgates.

On this very cerebral installment of the Way Too Indiecast, Bernard, Ananda and Zach have a meeting of the minds as they review Pixar’s latest animated adventure, Inside Out. The gang also pick their favorite “movie minds,” characters whose psyches, philosophies and/or thought processes they find particularly memorable, fascinating, frightening or even downright pathetic. Plus, an overview of our Best Movies of 2015 So Far list, and our Indie Picks of the Week.

Topics

• Indie Picks of the Week (2:15)
• Best Movies of 2015 So Far (6:19)
• Favorite Movie Minds (15:09)
• Inside Out Review (31:09)

WTI Articles Referenced in the Podcast

Inside Out review
A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence review
The Nightmare review
Two Days, One Night review
20 Best Films of 2015 So Far

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Just last week the lineup for the 2015 Cannes Film Festival was announced, and slowly more information about the films playing is starting to surface. While many of the films don’t even have official synopsis yet, a select few have released images and trailers. It’s hard to believe that 2015 Cannes is less than a month away already (this year the festival runs from May 13th – May 24th), but we’ll be keeping this festival media guide updated as the festival approaches and more information about Cannes titles come in.

Amnesia

Amy

A documentary on the late singer/songwriter, who died of alcohol poisoning in 2011.

Carol

Set in 1950s New York, a department-store clerk who dreams of a better life falls for an older, married woman.

Irrational Man

On a small town college campus, a philosophy professor in existential crisis gives his life new purpose when he enters into a relationship with his student.

Inside Out

After a girl moves to a new home, her emotions are plunged into chaos as they compete for control of her mind.

The Little Prince

A pilot crashes in the desert and meets a little boy from a distant planet.

Mad Max: Fury Road

In a post-apocalyptic world, in which people fight to the death, Max teams up with a mysterious woman, Furiousa, to try and survive.

Mia Madre

Our Little Sister

A story that revolves around three sisters who live in their grandmother’s home and the arrival of their 13-year-old half sister.

Sicario

The Tale of Tales

So 2014 gave us over a 1,000 movies and 2015 may have just as many if not more. That’s a lot of options. Dwindling box office numbers last year lead us to believe you, oh moviegoer, are of a discerning nature. So for those of you looking for a little direction, here are 22 films hot on our radar here at Way Too Indie.

The lineup for 2015 looks too good to be true so far, and who knows what other surprises could be coming down the line! (Seriously…who saw Selma coming last year?) On the way this year are new potential masterpieces from some of the most beloved auteurs of our generation (Tarantino, Herzog, del Toro, Malick), the latest entries in the flourishing careers of today’s indie kings (Baumbach, Wheatley, Nichols, Saulnier), two planet-sized studio blockbusters that’ll have geeks soiling their pants (you know what they are…), and the returns of two powerhouses trying to reclaim their former glory (the Wachowski siblings, Pixar).

Oh yeah…and MAD F*CKING MAX.

We can’t vouch for any of these films yet, but they’re buzzing in our ears and on our lists of must-sees. What movies are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments and stay tuned to Way Too Indie throughout the year to see whether these films live up to our expectations or make us howl in disappointment (*cough* Mockingjay *cough* Big Eyes *cough*).

Most Anticipated 2015 Films

Far From The Madding Crowd

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Based on Thomas Hardy’s book, Thomas Vinterberg’s (The Hunt) latest film doesn’t exactly look like something we’d expect from him, but because of the novel’s fame as a great love story it certainly seems as if he’s trying his hand at a grander scope. From the film’s first trailer it’s quite lovely to look at, and if there are more like myself, suckers for period pieces focused on a forward-thinking woman taking love into her own hands, then the film’s already got a built-in crowd. Carey Mulligan stars as Bathsheba Everdene, a woman suited by three very different men who offer her three very different futures. Everyone loves a good love triangle, er quadrangle, and it’s been a while since we’ve had a good film version of the novel. The film releases in May, just in time for spring fever, wink wink. [Ananda]

High-Rise

Director Ben Wheatley proved that he is more than adept at making audiences distinctly, yet subtly, uncomfortable with his 2012 film Sightseers, and this is a talent entirely necessary when tackling a novel by J. G. Ballard. Though the author’s most famous work might be Crash, High-Rise is undoubtedly a masterpiece that is eerily relevant even now, 40-years after its publication. As a fan of Ballard’s writing, Wheatley has stated that his plan is to stay true to the author, who is well-known for his dystopian visions of modern life. The plot of the novel revolves around the residents of a luxury high-rise building, and the way the highly developed technology available to them not only isolates them, but does strange things to their psychological states. With a strong cast including Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans and Elisabeth Moss, the film is bound to not only be interesting, but perhaps also one of the most unsettling things we shall see this year. Set in England, High-Rise doesn’t have a release date yet but is expected to be seen in British theaters first. [Pavi]

The Walk

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James Marsh’s Man on Wire is my favorite documentary of all time, and its subject’s story is one of the most amazing I’ve ever heard. The film chronicles the events leading up to French tightrope walker Philippe Petit’s awe-inspiring, death-defying high wire act of a lifetime, when he danced in the sky on a wire stretched between the twin towers in 1974. Petit is the most mesmerizing documentary subject I’ve ever seen, and the film plays out like a heist movie as he and his team describe their intricate plans to break into the heavily guarded buildings and set up the daring spectacle (which was, of course, totally illegal). Robert Zemeckis’ upcoming dramatization of Petit’s story, The Walk, is exciting to me for obvious reasons, but what I’m really hoping for is a return to form for the director, who used to make excellent films but has fallen off in the past decade. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as Petit, an actor in whom I have all the confidence in the world. Hopefully Zemeckis can capture the thrill of the artistic caper as well as Marsh did. [Bernard]

The Hateful Eight

I love Quentin Tarantino’s love of film. I love how every second of his films are soaked in that love and I love how palpable it is to his fans. Whenever he announces a new film I get excited, and even though I think Django Unchained is the weakest film he’s made as of yet, and I’m not over the moon that he’s doing another Western, that’s not stopping me from being excited for The Hateful Eight. What I’m most anticipating about ensemble piece is the cast Tarantino has lined up. Channing Tatum, Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Tim Roth, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Madsen, and Damien Bichir. Some of the cast have worked with Tarantino before, but how long has it been since Tim Roth or Michael Madsen graced a Tarantino flick? Way too long. Not much is known about the film plot-wise, but when has Tarantino really disappointed in that department? We all know what’s coming our way; lots of cussing, lots of violence, and lots of blood. [Blake]

Mistress America

Noah Baumbach’s already got one comedy coming out this year in While We’re Young (which I caught at Toronto and then again as the Surprise Screening during the New York Film Festival), and while that film’s comedic look into age and identity merits its own selection on a Most Anticipated of 2015 list, we’re intrigued by the prospect of Baumbach’s newer project Mistress America. Premiering at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, the movie features Baumbach re-teaming with his Frances Ha collaborator (and girlfriend) Greta Gerwig, who once again co-writes and stars. The story follows Tracy (Lola Kirke), a lonely college freshman in New York whose university experience is failing to match her expectations. When Lola is taken in by her soon-to-be stepsister Brooke (Gerwig), described on Sundance’s website as, “a resident of Times Square and adventurous gal about town,” Lola gets swept up in Brooke’s adventures around New York City. If Mistress America ultimately resembles a companion piece to Frances Ha we won’t mind (Frances Ha was WTI’s 2nd favorite flick of 2013), but what’s exciting is to see Baumbach return to a street-level look at NYC, where he and Gerwig previously created an enticing, exhilarating perspective on being young amid the overwhelming offerings of big city life. [Zachary]

Ex Machina

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Alex Garland’s career achievements so far have been penning novels and screenplays such as The Beach, 28 Days Later, Sunshine, and Dredd, but now he’s stepping behind the camera with his directorial début, Ex Machina. Set in the near future when artificial intelligence is beginning to make major breakthroughs, a young programmer named Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) is assigned to evaluate the humanistic qualities of a female A.I. robot. Caleb ends up falling in love with the beautiful robot girl, and she urges him to second guess his boss (played by Oscar Isaac) and question the motives behind the experiment. By the sounds of it, the film would make an interesting double feature with Spike Jonze’s metaphysical romance film Her. Given Garland’s previous writing efforts, there’s a good chance Ex Machina will be an imaginative and trippy thrill ride—exactly the type of sci-fi we like to watch. Those lucky enough to attend this year’s SXSW Film Festival in March will be able to catch the North American premiere. [Dustin]

Sisters

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I think Tina Fey and Amy Poehler have solidly established themselves as the queens of the comedy realm. People want to see (or read) whatever they do. Though their first attempt as a duo in a feature film, Baby Mama, didn’t make a big splash at the box office, with 7 years and (almost) 3 Golden Globes under their belts, they have been perfecting their chemistry since then. What’s really exciting is that adding to their biting wit and snarky banter, they will be directed by Jason Moore, whose job on Pitch Perfect took everyone by surprise and the comedic world by storm. SNL veteran Paula Pell will be handling the script, so we can rest assured that this super basic plot will be taken advantage of in every which way to give us a hilarious trip. I’m really looking forward to seeing the likes of Maya Rudolph, Ike Barinholtz, Kate McKinnon, and Bobby Moynihan make this perhaps the comedy of the year. Though SNL movies in the past have been mainly hit or miss, I’m banking on this one being a home run. [Scarlet]

Jupiter Ascending

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Like many indie cinephiles, I am an unabashed fan of the Wachowskis. After the groundbreaking success of The Matrix and their downfall throughout its sequels, the directing duo have seemed to reset themselves with a series of films that felt more pure while maintaining their incredible bold vision. There are many people that wouldn’t get behind Speed Racer and Cloud Atlas, but these are films I absolutely love for their visual and narrative uniqueness. Jupiter Ascending seems like it could be a slight return to a more mainstream genre exercise, but the Wachowskis are simply too interesting for me to ignore. The film’s delay from late 2014 to February should be a worrisome sign, but it almost feels like a badge of honor—perhaps it isn’t what the studio was looking for and won’t be what they expect as a sci-fi showcase for a mass audience. Even Channing Tatum’s (an actor I very much enjoy) weird blonde goatee isn’t enough to turn me off. Could it be a total garbage fire? Certainly. Then again, as the Wachowski’s have showed more than once, one man’s garbage fire could be another man’s masterpiece. [Aaron]

Queen of the Desert

Oh, the plagues of film production. Werner Herzog’s next feature-length fiction film was all but set and ready to go for last year’s fall festival circuit, until the official announcement came through that the film had met with technical difficulties in post. My heart, along with many others, sunk. Time heals, however, and now that we’re in 2015 I’m hopeful once again. It’s Werner Herzog, someone whom I have a bottomless admiration for (check out WTI’s 20 Herzog Film Retrospective we did last year to mark the man’s birthday). This time around, he’s tackling the biopic genre again (something he’s mastered in the past), and what’s most curious is that it’s a biopic of a woman (fresh!). It recounts the life of British archaeologist and explorer Gertrude Bell, who became instrumental to British imperial policy-making at the turn of the century. Joining Nicole Kidman in the title role (which Herzog reportedly says she nails), are James Franco, Robert Pattinson (both men having proven great with the right material), and Damian Lewis of Homeland fame. But, in truth, all you had to tell me is that it’s a Herzog film set in a desert and I’d be sold. Which I am. No official release yet, but since it’s reportedly overcame its post-production hurdles, expect Queen of the Desert to make an appearance at Cannes. [Nik]

Evolution

Last summer it was announced that French director Lucile Hadžihalilović was starting production on her newest film, and ever since then I’ve been anxiously looking for any news related to Evolution. For those unfamiliar with Hadžihalilović, I insist you go check out her 2004 film Innocence. It’s a little-known film about an all-girl boarding school that feels like an ominous fairy tale come to life. It’s a gorgeous, moody, atmospheric and undervalued work, one that would have established Hadžihalilović as one to watch if she made anything since then. Little is known about Evolution, except that it deals with young boys being the subjects of genetic experiments meant to reverse the stages of evolution. Hadžihalilović has cited The Island of Dr. Moreau as an influence on this film, so it’ll be interesting to see how she handles something more in the realm of horror and sci-fi. Will Evolution be worth the 11 year wait? Based on the strength of Innocence, I won’t be surprised if the answer to that question turns out to be a resounding yes. [C.J.]

Inside Out

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At this point, there is little anyone could say to deter me from being genuinely excited about every little piece of news we discover about the latest Pixar project. Inside Out, the animation that is quickly drawing more and more interest for its characterisation of human emotions—all inside the mind of a young girl—promises not only to uplift our spirits in the way most of Pixar’s original creations do, but also to be one of the most challenging adventures they have taken on to date. With little but the human mind as a backdrop, the film will no doubt be one of Pete Docter and Ronaldo Del Carmen’s most incisive deconstructions of human emotion and behaviour. Not to mention: is there anything more joyful than Amy Poehler being the voice of Joy? What could be more appropriate than Bill Hader voicing Fear? And Mindy Kaling is bound to bring unprecedented levels of sass to the role of Disgust. Announcing Inside Out, Pixar promised an exploration inside the world of the human mind, and with over a year having passed since their last film, it’s safe to say we can expect them to deliver on their promises. [Pavi]

Crimson Peak

My interest in the latest film from Guillermo del Toro was piqued (no pun intended) while at Comic-Con last July. Those in attendance were invited to a sneak preview of del Toro’s highly atmospheric film, and from what I could tell it appears to harbor all the creepiness of Pan’s Labyrinth combined with the ambiance of The Devil’s Backbone (my personal favorite of del Toro’s films). Emphasizing the horror elements was the blood-streaked logo of Legendary Pictures opening the teaser. Tom Hiddelston (master of dark macabre moods) plays the owner of an elaborate and gothic old house to which he has just brought his young bride Edith (Mia Wasikowska). Del Toro says he wanted a film led by a woman who gets the man and then has to deal with life beyond that, though of course it’s not likely most newlyweds’ experience to find themselves in a house alive with secrets and ill intentions. Jessica Chastain and Charlie Hunnam round out the cast for what looks to be a truly frightening and beautifully crafted gothic horror. The film is set for an October release (duh). [Ananda]

Midnight Special

Writer/director Jeff Nichols garnered a significant amount of attention for attaching himself to the McConaissance, just prior to Dallas Buyers Club‘s rise to Oscars prominence, with the filmmaker’s 3rd feature Mud. That intriguing drama about two young Southern boys who cross paths with a fugitive and help him reunite with a mysterious ex-girlfriend illustrated Nichols’ ability to craft personable characters shrouded in secrecy. For my money, it’s his previous film Take Shelter that’s his best, an eerie, low-key thriller about a possibly psychotic man haunted by a series of apocalyptic visions debating how to best protect his family. His upcoming project, a supernatural sci-fi thriller titled Midnight Special, seems to take aim somewhere between those last two movies. The story concerns a man (played by Jeff Nichols’ muse Michael Shannon) and his son Alton (St. Vincent newcomer Jaeden Lieberher) on the run after the father discovers his son’s unique abilities. Also starring Joel Edgerton and Kirsten Dunst in the group trying to keep Alton safe, as well as Sam Shepard and Adam Driver among the villains hunting the child down, Jeff Nichols has described the project as an ’80s style genre flick in the vein of John Carpenter’s Starman. If that brew of ideas sounds enticing, look out for Midnight Special in theaters November 25th of this year. [Zachary]

Avengers: Age of Ultron

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I know, I know. Avengers: Age of Ultron is about as far away from independent filmmaking as it can get, but there are reasons to be excited for it. It gets people to the movies, which is always a good thing. It gives its stars freedom and clout to make smaller films and get smaller films made. It’s also the best at what it is—there’s always room for popcorn as long as it’s good popcorn, and Marvel makes the best popcorn. Most importantly, The Avengers franchise is an unprecedented achievement in storytelling and moviemaking. Until the MCU, film series have mostly been vertical—film one begets film two, then three, and so on. Quentin Tarantino has dabbled in the horizontal, making tangential references among his films, but nothing has been as ambitious in scope as the MCU. Characters routinely crossover from film to film. The events of one film impact others on both axes and everyone assembles for the climax. This ambitious design takes great creativity and vision, but to have the skill to turn that vision into ten (and counting) successful films over the last seven years is a creative feat that gets lost in both the fanfare and the hate. [Michael]

The Lobster

If you’ve seen Dogtooth (if you haven’t, make it your top priority), it will be easy to understand why we’re anxiously awaiting Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest project. Lanthimos, who helped birth the “Greek Weird Wave” movement, will be making his English language début with The Lobster, and he’s lined up a killer cast: Rachel Weisz, John C. Reilly, Ben Whishaw, Colin Farrell, Olivia Colman and Léa Seydoux, just to name a few. The only other things we’ve seen from this film are the amazing photo shown above and a completely bonkers plot-description. And what is that crazy plot-description? Well, the film takes place in a dystopian future where single people are captured, locked in a hotel and given two options: find a partner within 45 days, or turn into an animal and get released in the woods. How can you read that and not want this movie in front of your eyeballs right this second? [C.J.]

Green Room

Jeremy Saulnier’s last film, Blue Ruin, was an out-of-the-blue masterpiece—its success even surprised Sundance, who initially passed on the film. Whenever a début is released that hits such a confident and stylish cord, there will always be pressure on the follow-up. Green Room seems to double-down on the dark and moody tone set by its predecessor. The basic plot has two separately, yet equally awesome, parts: a young punk band who somehow get wrapped up in a horrible act of violence at one of their gigs and a group of neo-Nazis who have some sort of relationship to said band. These groups coming together certainly has a great potential for dark humor and bone-chilling violence, which Saulnier has already wonderfully showcased the ability to meld and morph. But perhaps the most intriguing part of Green Room is the casting of Patrick Stewart, the grandfatherly actor and surprisingly wacky twitter persona, as the head of the neo-Nazi group. Green Room currently doesn’t have a theatrical release date set, but expect it to pop up at Cannes and top film festivals throughout 2015. [Aaron]

Mad Max: Fury Road

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I’m going to be that guy for a second: sorry, but I will never say that Die Hard is the greatest action movie of all time. I firmly believe that the honor belongs solely to The Road Warrior, George Miller’s rough and tough Australian film from the early ’80s. So when I heard that the series was finally getting a fourth film, I naturally started fist pumping until my arms went numb. The film has been in production for seemingly a decade now, long enough for me to pull the ol’, “I’ll believe it’s being made when I see a trailer.” Well, that trailer premiered at Comic-Con last summer and has had fanboys (including yours truly) singing from the rafters ever since. Miller returns to helm the film which is now being led by everybody’s favorite actor of late Tom Hardy, who seems like an excellent choice to play Max, the ever tortured soul of Australia’s barren and wasted Outback. What’s immediately admirable is that Miller has decided to stick with mostly practical effects (crashing cars for real with stuntmen) over digital effects. Because who doesn’t love cars smashing into each other at a 100mph for 2 hours? [Blake]

Joy

David O. Russell’s first collaboration with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper was 2012’s Silver Linings Playbook. That film went on to great success, earning back six times its budget and collecting Oscar nominations for Russell for writing and directing, Lawrence and Cooper for acting (Lawrence won), and for Best Picture, among others. That turned out to be more than luck. One year later the dynamic trio joined forces for American Hustle to similar results. The film made back four times its budget and earned them another round of Oscar noms (as well as Best Picture, among others). After taking 2014 off (collaboratively, at least), Russell, Lawrence, and Cooper are at it again in Joy. The film is the real-life rags-to-riches tale of Joy Mangano, inventor of the Miracle Mop. Lawrence is playing the title role. Russell, Lawrence, and Cooper are on a hot streak. I can’t wait to see it roll on. [Michael]

Tomorrowland

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Brad Bird is one of my favorite directors currently working (I’m forever grateful for The Incredibles and The Iron Giant), and the fact that he’s helming Disney’s Tomorrowland instills a lot of confidence where, in a lesser director’s hands, I would probably write it off as a throwaway blockbuster with an arbitrary, shoehorned Disney trademark slapped on to inflate profits. I believe in Bird’s skills as a live-action filmmaker (I thought Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol was very good), and from what I saw in the inventive teaser trailer released last year (its highlight is one of the most fun, startling visual effects I’ve seen in a while), he seems to have a clear, fresh vision of the world of tomorrow. According to Disney, the film follows “a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor jaded by disillusionment as they embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory as ‘Tomorrowland.’” With George Clooney, newcomer Britt Robertson, Judy Greer, Hugh Laurie, and Kathryn Hahn, the film boasts a strong cast to boot. [Bernard]

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

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Adventure. Excitement. A Jedi craves not these things. I, on the other hand, really want this to be full of both of those. I can’t help but struggle, however, with a deep-seated fear…and we all know where that leads. Though our old heroes will be returning in the flesh—the real Han and Luke and Leia—will they bring back that original magic (Disney magic notwithstanding)? Or will they desecrate everything we hold dear? So, when I say this movie is anticipated, it’s an anxious anticipation. I want to love it. I dread the possibility that I will hate it. Some might find my lack of faith disturbing, but I tend to be a Star Wars traditionalist and still have a bitter taste in my mouth from the “special editions” of Episodes 4, 5, and 6 and consider Episodes 1, 2, and 3 to be nothing short of farcical. Though if you enjoyed those films, you’re pretty much guaranteed to enjoy The Force Awakens, so I won’t spoil it. For those in my boat? Well, it’s difficult to see. Always in motion is the future. Nevertheless, we have to know. This movie must be seen. [Scarlet]

Knight of Cups

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For our money, Terrence Malick is one of the greatest auteurs working today, so it’s not a surprise to find his latest experiment (because that’s what his films are) on our most anticipated list. Knight of Cups has run laps in the rumor mill for a couple of years now, so when the trailer finally arrived last month we could breathe a sigh of relief. And judging solely from the trailer, it appears we’re in for another ambiguous story filled with gorgeous cinematography from Emmanuel Lubezki somewhat like The Tree of Life—and if it’s half as good we’ll be thrilled! Knight of Cups sounds as cryptic as it looks, loosely structured as a modern-day fable with Christian Bale as a “young prince” who gets caught up in the celebrity lifestyle of Hollywood, possibly pissing off his father (aka the king) in the process. The film has a huge cast of stars: Cate Blanchett, Imogen Poots, Natalie Portman, Teresa Palmer, Ben Kingsley, and Nick Offerman. Though we know little about the film (typical Malick), all that really matters is that Malick is behind the camera, which is enough for us to eagerly wait in line for tickets. [Dustin]

Macbeth

This is going to be a great year. Part of the reason I believe that is because I’ve had such a hard time trying to decide which two films to write about (after my top choices Knight of Cups and The Lobster were already shot-gunned). It wasn’t long before I remembered Macbeth and got all jittery with excitement. Where to begin? As a student of literature, watching any Shakespeare adaptation (especially when the original text is retained) is like eating homemade apple pie; there’s an intimacy there that’s unrivaled by anything else. And his tragedy about a soldier too ambitious for his own good, succumbing to his own twisted sense of righteousness (twisted, mostly, by his cunning wife), is one of my absolute favorites. I’ve been aching to see what director Justin Kurzel does next ever since he blew me away with his haunting feature début Snowtown, and once I heard that it was Macbeth, with Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, I was hooked in an instant. Working again with his brother Jed Kurzel (who composed the hell out of Snowtown) and True Detective’s cinematographer Adam Arkapaw is like a scoop of delicious vanilla ice-cream next to the pie I would’ve gobbled up regardless. No official release date yet, but it’s been in post for a while so no reason not to think it won’t be ready in time for Cannes. [Nik]

Before World Pride inevitably takes over all of Toronto at the end of June, the 24th Annual Toronto LGBT Film Festival is currently happening from May 22 to June 1. The festival is a great showcase of films dealing with youth and LGBT issues from around the world. This year’s line-up is already filled with some highlights, including the HBO film The Normal Heart along with Ira Sachs’ hotly anticipated Love is Strange, a film getting Oscar buzz already for its two lead performances.

We wanted to share our thoughts on a few of the films playing this year, while letting people know of a great chance to check out some little-known and important films over the next 10 days. There are many more films playing, so be sure to check out the schedule here to see what films are playing. Screening information for the films reviewed will be included below as well. You can find out more information about Inside Out at their official website, www.insideout.ca.

The Dog

Screens May 31, 2014 at TIFF Bell Lightbox

The Dog is a companion piece of sorts to Sidney Lumet’s film Dog Day Afternoon. John Wojtowicz is the man Al Pacino’s character is based on, and the subject of Allison Berg & Frank Keraudren’s documentary. Wojtowicz was married with two children before he accepted his homosexuality (while people classify Wojtowicz as gay, the self-described “pervert” is most likely bisexual) and joined the gay rights movement back in 1970s New York. He met his second wife Elizabeth, a transgender woman desperately wanting a sex change she couldn’t afford. After his wife’s frequent suicide attempts landed her in a psych ward, Wojtowicz decided to rob a bank in order to pay for the surgery. The rest, as they say, is history.

Berd and Keraudren made The Dog over a long period, following Wojtowicz (who eventually succumbed to cancer in 2006) and interviewing various people from his life. The presentation is bland, instead relying on the charisma of its subject to carry things forward. Wojtowicz also creates another major problem for the film: he’s shown in a positive and sometimes sympathetic light, a decision that makes zero sense considering what the man has done. Many parts of his story are tossed aside or glossed over, the most sickening example being when he casually talks about sexually assaulting someone like it’s a funny anecdote. Interviews with Wojtowicz’s mother don’t provide any pertinent material, and only a few talking head interviews give some sort of context to Wojtowicz’s story. The Dog picks a subject worth exploring in a documentary, it just goes about it in one of the worst possible ways.

Kidnapped for Christ

Screens May 25, 2014 at TIFF Bell Lightbox

Director Kate Logan started Kidnapped for Christ as a young film student and evangelical Chrisitian. While doing missionary work in the Dominican she hears of a Escuela Caribe, a nearby camp helping troubled teens. She looks at it as the perfect opportunity for a documentary, profiling troubled teens and watching their path to recovery through faith. She spent over six weeks at Escuela Caribe, and soon discovered an entirely different story.

Most of the children she interviewed didn’t show signs of needing to be shipped off to a $72k a year behavioural school. Beth is a young girl with nothing more than intense anxiety problems, and Tai is a teenager with drug problems as a result of past traumas in her life. Logan eventually realizes the camp is like an abusive labour camp more than anything. Students are classified into different levels based on their behaviour, and even the tiniest infraction against the camp’s absurd standards results in punishments ranging from solitary confinement (“The Quiet Room”) to physical abuse (referred to as “swats”). Logan focuses primarily on David, a 17 year old forcefully taken from his home after coming out to his parents.

Logan’s amateur filmmaking both helps and hurts the film. Her own commentary is fascinating at times, as she clearly has no idea how to pursue the film she wants to make once she starts getting pushback from the camp’s officials. Watching her try to adapt herself to continue exposing the camp, along with inserting herself into the story when she sneaks a letter from David out of the camp, is exciting to watch. Logan’s transformation from a passive observer to an active one only works in small doses though. Her involvement can sometimes feel too self-indulgent, like when she narrates about questioning her faith as a result of filming. The same goes for the last block of the film, a sort of half-assed epilogue briefly going over how places like Escuela Caribe house thousands of teens all over the world. These issues are relatively minor though, as Kidnapped for Christ has a topic that, at its core, is bound to compel viewers.

Tom at the Farm

Screens May 26, 2014 at TIFF Bell Lightbox

Tom at the Farm is Xavier Dolan’s fourth film, and it’s a departure for the young filmmaker. Dolan heads into genre territory, adapting a play about a young man (Dolan) visiting his deceased boyfriend’s estranged family. The family, a mother and son living on a farm in rural Quebec, pose a lot of problems for Tom. The mother (Lise Roy) never knew about her son’s sexual orientation, and her other son (Pierre-Yves Cardinal) terrorizes Tom into making sure he won’t tell her the truth. The relationship between Tom and his dead boyfriend’s family soon gets a lot more complicated, as Tom starts working at the farm while enduring constant abuse from the brother.

Dolan has quite the eye for visuals, and Tom is his best film yet. That doesn’t exactly say too much though, as Dolan has continually made so-so films up to this point. Tom at the Farm suffers from writing that eventually steers into the implausible. Tom’s decision to stay at the farm increasingly makes no sense, mainly because he’s such an underdeveloped character. Roy and Cardinal, on the other hand, are excellent as the grieving family. This turns Tom at the Farm into the kind of thriller where characters feel more like puppets for the writer than actual people. It’s this kind of poor writing, along with several ineffective visual choices from Dolan, that hold the film back.

A full-length review of Tom at the Farm will go online next week to coincide with its Canadian release

The Case Against 8

Screens May 30, 2014 at TIFF Bell Lightbox

We’ve talked about The Cast Against 8 before in our Hot Docs coverage earlier this year, but it’s worth mentioning again. This is a well-done documentary dealing with the legal battle to declare California’s Proposition 8 as unconstitutional. Through its profiles of the lawyers working on the case, along with the two same-sex couples serving as plaintiffs, The Case Against 8 is yet another reminder of how same sex equality is a human rights issue, not a political one. It made our Top 10 of Hot Docs, and if you weren’t able to catch it back in April you should definitely see it here while you have the chance.