8) Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine, Steve Jobs: 4) Carol. This acclaimed lesbian romance set in the
1950s, has already racked up a ton of trophies from various critics groups and is sure to be nominated by the Academy for Best Picture. Helmed by gay director Todd Haynes, who previously made the queer classics Velvet Goldmine and Far from Heaven, the film was adapted from a novel by lesbian author Patricia Highsmith. Cate Blanchett (who was splendid in 2015 as Cinderella’s wicked stepmother) and Rooney Mara, provide fully committed turns as the film’s ahead-of-their-time lovers, with out actress Sarah Paulson (American Horror Story) along for moral support. Carol turns all those self-loathing Children’s Hour conventions of the period on their heads… and it’s about time.
6) Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter. Yet another strong woman’s tale, even as it raises questions about its title character’s sanity. Dis- satisfied Kumiko feels trapped in a dead-end job in Japan. The two loves of her life are her pet rabbit, Bunzo, and the Coen Brothers’ movie Fargo. She gradually becomes obsessed with the notion that a suitcase full of loot buried in the film actually exists for the taking, so Kumiko hightails it to the U.S. to find it. From this somewhat absurdist premise grows a poignant if bittersweet fable about wish fulfillment. It is American-made but stars an unforgettable Rinko Kikuchi (Pacific Rim, Babel).
5) Brooklyn. Also set in the 1950s, this is an unapologetically nostalgic and charmingly romantic story of a young woman’s journey from Ireland to America (not unlike my great grandmother), where she falls in love with a young, Italian man played by the adorable Emory Cohen. An unexpected trip back to her home country challenges her loyalties while offering evidence that sometimes the grass truly is greener on the other side. Saoirse Ronan (Atonement, Hanna) gives a beautifully unaffected, touching performance as the film’s pioneering Eilis, which may be the one to beat at the Oscars. Nick Hornby’s script, based on Colm Toibin’s novel, will likely duke it out with The Big Short for Best Adapted Screenplay honors.
7) Inside Out and Shaun the Sheep. I don’t recall ever having two animated films at once in my annual “Top 10” list, but it would be a crime not to include these. They are totally different from each other in tone and style; the first a frequently touching CG-rendered depiction of a teenage girl’s coming of age and the other a slapstick-leaning tale of a flock of Claymation sheep who hop a bus for a day of adventure in the big city. Each serves as the new pinnacle in their respective mediums, both in terms of technique and storytelling. Inside Out is already the presumptive winner of this year’s Oscar for Best Animated Film.
in of
The Man in the Machine and Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films. I watched a ton of fine documentaries this year on a variety of interesting subjects, but these are the three that stuck with me the most. While the murder of young, gay man Matthew Shepard has received plenty of coverage during the last 17 years, Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine is the first doc made by one of his best friends, Michele Josue and provides a much more intimate perspective. The Man in the Machine is a more in-depth portrait of Jobs, the late tech wizard and helps to fill in the many blanks left by last year’s more fictionalized, frustrating Steve Jobs biopic (although Michael Fassbender is excellent in it). Finally, Electric Boogaloo is an endlessly entertaining piece of nostalgia about the low-budget studio that turned out tons of cheesy movies during the 1980s, including the homoerotic classic Masters of the Universe.
9) The Last Five Years. It’s great that Hollywood has produced more movie musicals in recent years and that audiences have embraced them. This one, adapted from Jason Robert Brown’s off-Broadway hit, wasn’t as well promoted or as successful as some of its predeces- sors but it is nevertheless one of the best. It succeeds beautifully with a storytelling conceit that is risky both on stage and screen; the rise and fall of a romance, with the woman’s perspective being told from the end of the relationship and the man’s perspective told/sung from its beginning. It boasts terrific performances by ning queen
the reigning queen of musicals, Anna Kendrick (Pitch o
10) 52
Girl. 2015 year that big screen
Perfect, Into the Woods) and dreamy Jeremy Jordan (Newsies on
on Broadway, TV’s Smash and Supergirl). 52 Tuesdays, Tangerine and The Danish
2015 has already been proclaimed as the t trans stories broke through to the een and these three films are the main reason why. Each is distinct in budget and technique (Tangerine was shot exclusively on cell phones with a non-professional cast) but each is a gem that provides unique, long-overdue insight into trans lives, both historic and contemporary. If I were a member of the Academy, Eddie Redmayne would get my vote for Best Actor for his
his subtle, immensely moving turn as the true-life Lili Elbe, one of the first people to undergo gender-reassignment surgery, in The Danish Girl.
JANUARY 2016 | RAGE monthly 19 JANUARY
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