YNOT at the Movies

Once again, it's the time to compose a top-ten list of feature films I saw in 2015. Because it's almost impossible to define the term "a film in 2015," as always, I stick with my own plain and simple rule: I select ten (no more, no less) films from the 248 feature films (including documentaries) I saw during the calendar year of 2015, no matter when and if a film is released in the US in 2015.

Here are the top ten best feature films in 2015.

1. The Tribe (Плем'я | Ukraine 2014 | in Ukrainian sign language | 130 min. | My review)

   The Ukrainian write/director Miroslav Slaboshpitsky masterfully creates an astonishing cinema experience that's eerily raw and deeply compelling.

   

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2. A Most Violent Year (USA 2014 | 125 min. | My review)

   The writer-director J.C. Chandor marvelously tells a suspensive and gripping story about a businessman's battle to win in the New York City.

   

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3. Inside Out (USA 2015 | 94 min. | My review)

   This exquisitely crafted 3D film, co-directed by Pete Docter and Ronaldo Del Carmen, not only charms us with dazzling visual and an intelligent and original story, but also provokes us to reflect on how our emotions and memories make us for who we are.

   

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4. Steve Jobs (USA 2015 | 122 min. | My review)

   This fantastic film, directed by Danny Boyle, vividly captures the charisma of its enigmatic protagonist, outstandingly performed by Michael Fassbender.

   

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5. In Her Place (Canada 2014 | in Korean | 115 min. | My review)

   In this beautiful film, the Korean-Canadian director Albert Shin terrifically captures the complex and overwhelming emotions of his gripping characters.

   

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6. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (USA 2015 | 104 min. | My review)

   The director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon aims to unleash laughter instead of tears in this terrifically crafted film and wonderfully creates a few likable, original, convincing, and unconventional characters.

   

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7. The Martian (USA 2015 | 141 min. | My review)

   Even though we all know that it's impossible to go to Mars and then return in today's technology, this science-minded movie, directed by Ridley Scott, is remarkably realistic in telling a gripping story about bringing a resourceful and humorous astronaut back from the deserted red planet.

   

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8. Carol (UK/USA/France 2015 | 118 min. | My review)

   The director Todd Haynes beautifully tells two women's love story featuring the best female performances this year by two wonderful actresses Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara.

   

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9. Son of Saul (Saul fia | Hungary 2015 | in Hungarian/Yiddish/German/Polish | 107 min. | My review)

   What the Hungarian director László Nemes accomplishes remarkably in this film is that he takes us to the concentration camp as close as possible and then evokes our own imagination to experience the heinous crimes at the death camp.

   

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10. A Hard Day (끝까지 간다 | South Korean 2014 | in Korean | 111 min. | My review)

    The South Korean writer-director Kim Seong-hoon's (김성훈) sophomore feature is an immensely entertaining crime thriller.

    

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Until next year...