Moneyball (2011)

Moneyball (2011)

[7] In this film based on a true story, Brad Pitt stars as Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane, who introduced computer analysis of player statistics into recruitment strategy and forever changed the way baseball is played. Jonah Hill plays…
Bad Johnson (2014)

Bad Johnson (2014)

[4] Cam Gigandet (Easy A, Twilight) stars as a playboy whose penis detaches and manifests as its own person (Nick Thune). I'm all for absurd concepts and sex comedies, but Bad Johnson plays it too safe and formulaic to leave…
Life Itself (2014)

Life Itself (2014)

[7] Steve James (Hoop Dreams) directs this documentary about the life and career of Roger Ebert, arguably the most famous and most well-loved film critic who ever lived. Life Itself begins near the end of Roger's life, after cancer has…
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

[8] James Gunn (Slither) co-writes and directs one of the best Marvel movies ever. The plot is simple, nothing new or groundbreaking. Good guys gotta stop bad guys from literally destroying the world. Been there, done that, right? And like…
Snowpiercer (2014)

Snowpiercer (2014)

[9] South Korean director Bong Joon-ho (Mother, The Host) directs this tale of class warfare set in an ice-age Armageddon wherein the last few living humans reside aboard a technologically advanced train that constantly circumnavigates the globe. Chris Evans (Captain…
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

[9] In this sequel from director Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In), the virus introduced in the previous film has obliterated more than 99% of the human population worldwide. In San Francisco, there is a small colony of humans focused…
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

[7] The first two-thirds of this franchise reboot (a second after the 2001 Tim Burton clunker) are surprisingly good. I was expecting to see computer-generated monkeys go nuts for two hours (all of which is saved for the less interesting…
Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

[7] It's the future and an alien race has just about taken over all of Europe and Asia. Tom Cruise enters this scenario as a cowardly military spokesperson forced into the front lines of combat by a shit-if-I-care general (Brendan…
50/50 (2011)

50/50 (2011)

[6] The title of this movie refers to the chances of survival for its main character, Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Adam's life and all his relationships are turned upside down when he learns he has cancer. I'm glad the movie is…
The Dance of Reality (2014)

The Dance of Reality (2014)

[5] The Dance of Reality is the first film in decades from well-loved cult filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky (El Topo, The Holy Mountain). The film is a quasi-autobiography from the filmmaker, covering his childhood in a Chilean coastal town. Jodorowsky is…