MFM's Best Movies of 2015

2015 will most likely be remembered as the year when the new Star Wars came out and made more money than any other film before it. But, besides the big toy franchises, the previous year had some nice surprises as well when it comes to movies. In 2015, huge action franchises like the Mission Impossible and Jurassic Park/World showed that they can make fun, unpretentious films, while the documentary domain for feature length pieces seems stronger and more vibrant than ever. Of course, some movies just came out bad, even though all pointed that they should be at least interesting. But, out of all those movies that came out in the last 12 months, here's my pick of the best films of 2015:

Voices From The Mist - A short film by Vladislav Pantić

Vladislav Pantić is a visual artist and animator from Belgrade, Serbia. As a veteran of the gaming industry, Vladislav was included in the game development process for several years before he published his first short animated film called Voices From The Mist.

Featuring a combination of the classic frame by frame animation and CGI element, the short film tells about the relationship between humanity and the hidden world of the fairies.

With a brilliant voice over acting and plenty of atmosphere, the short piece really has that vintage fantasy feel that marked so many fantastic films from the 70's and the 80's. 

Film Review - Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Copyright: Walt Disney Studios

George Lucas was the guy who invented the concept of the Force, and then 30 years later decided that the Force was actually produced by midi-chlorians, a type of microorganism in the blood of a person. After that, he apparently realized that he just doesn’t get these new kids, which is the reason why his last three films in the Star Wars franchise failed so miserably, even when it comes to selling a lot of merchandise (for some reason, not many people bought Hayden Christensen T-shirts).

At that moment, he did something unattainable for most despots through history and released the reins to someone else for the Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Lucas was done and many felt really happy that he was out of the picture.

The guy who filled his shoes was J.J. Abrams, a film industry veteran that must have been Cardinal Richelieu or someone like him in his past life because he continues to swim like a champion in the shark-infested waters of Hollywood. 

Film Review: Sicario (2015)

Copyright: Lionsgate

There’s a lot of justice in the fact that Benicio Del Toro had the opportunity and the privilege of being a part of two seminal films about the War on Drugs, almost exactly 15 years apart. One is Traffic while the other one is Sicario and this review will perceive them both as a single chapter in a bloody and futile endeavor.

Both films are crucial in their presentation of how the US collective subconsciousness is grappling with the issue of drug trafficking in the Americas and the violence it breeds in the ever-widening cracks left by poverty.

In my Sicario review, I have to congratulate the director Denis Villeneuve for continuing his streak of fantastic movies that includes Enemy and Prisoners. As intense as always, Villeneuve in his latest film tells two stories – first covers a driven and honest FBI agent accepting a role in a task force with a semi-secret, semi-legal mission that will include both the US and Mexico territory.

Film Review: Ted 2

Copyright: Universal Pictures

There is a lot to be gained by completely letting go of some cinematic ideas (and ideals). In Ted 2, this is demonstrated by the readiness of its director and writer Seth MacFarlane to disregard the previous installment of the series and everything that happened there.

This way, MacFarlane slithers back into his TV zone of comfort, where he makes one more Family Guy episode that only happens to last two hours and includes live action and not animation.

There’s no doubt that he is a smart and talented guy, but I kind suspect that he sees himself as the golden god of comedy. Unfortunately for him, he isn’t, especially when it comes to feature-length movies.

Film Review: Bone Tomahawk (2015)

Copyright: RLJ Entertainment

So far, Bone Tomahawk is one of the best films of 2015.

Films like it are only enforcing my strong belief that we’re living in the golden age of neo-western film. Furthermore, it seems that the standards set by films like The Salvation, The Retrieval, and the Das finstere Tal are constantly upgraded by other filmmakers who dare to push the genre into its next developmental chapter.

Here’s one way to describe it: Bone Tomahawk is a film that somehow managed to get connected with the spirit of Quentin Tarantino circa 1991 and offer him a chance to use a cast of choice to make a western horror dead-pan delivery dark comedy. The man that got the opportunity to channel this spirit is S. Craig Zahler, who made his debut with this film.

Before this, Zahler worked as both writer and cinematographer. But, in this film, his directorial results can only be described as flawless.