By Tristan Bishop
I admit it – I’m slightly late on my end of year list, but then I’ve never been one to keep up with the latest trends, so, like a middle-aged man desperately trying to cling onto his youth by pumping the latest deep house sounds out of his iPhone on the back seat of the bus, I bring you my Top Ten of 2014 whilst everyone else is getting on with living in the present.
To be honest, 2014 is a bit of a strange year to evaluate – in fact the only trend I’ve really spotted is that the traditional horror film seems to have been in a recession, and genre film in general has been twisting into new and interesting shapes. Scanning my list there is actually only one film here which I would consider a traditional ‘horror’ film – and even that could be deemed a social realist drama in disguise. Nonetheless this blending of styles has resulted in an end of year list which can stand happily against any other year in the past couple of decades. Here’s to an equally interesting 2015!
- Cold In July
Jim Mickle is turning out to be one of the most interesting directors working in American cinema. 2010’s Stake Land announced his arrival as a horror talent worth paying attention to, and 2013’s We Are What We Are managed the impossible and proved to be an English-language remake of a foreign film that was easily the equal of the original (and possibly even surpassing it). This year he branched out from straight horror with Cold In July, an adaptation of Joe R Lansdale’s novel, which manages to knock even Mickle’s previous films out of the park. A thriller which confounds the expectations constantly – by turns chilling, moving and utterly hilarious, and blessed with a trio of excellent central performances. (Keri’s review.)
- Gun Woman
Regular BAH readers will know we have a big thing for the queen of modern Japanese cult cinema Asami, so this film was like a gift from the heavens. A lean, grim exploitation film about a former drug addict (Asami) who has been trained as an assassin. In order to bump off the VIP she is after, she has gun parts implanted in her body and has to pretend to be a corpse (don’t ask). Cue most of the film featuring a naked Asami as an angel of death, her wounds (from where she has to retrieve the gun parts) a ticking clock as she races to complete the task in hand before she bleeds to death. Woozy, violent, nasty and stylish, this harks back to the heyday of 70’s Japanese ‘pinky violence’ cinema, and proves the queen is very much here to stay. (Ben’s review.)
- The Editor
I’ll admit I was expecting not to like this. My previous experiences of the Aston 6 crew had been varied; I pretty much hated Manborg, although I had enjoyed some of their short features, but their tribute to the golden age of Italian cult film is in a different league. Spot-on in look and feel, the jokes range from very silly slapstick to some surprisingly obscure references (Hitch Hike, anyone?) Add a couple of excellent bit parts from the legendary Udo Kier (who gets to deliver the best line) and Human Centipede 2’s Laurence Harvey, and you’ve got a great deal of fun on your hands, although it probably helps to have at least a vague grounding in the source material. (Nia’s review.)
- Tusk
Now here’s a film that a great many claimed was one of the worst they have ever seen. I would put to those people that they really need to watch more bad films. Yes, Tusk is flawed, and it’s fundamentally weird as hell (it’s also ~extremely~ talky), but it manages a lot of laughs, some unexpectedly powerful scenes, and at least one moment of genuine horror which blows everything else this year out of the water. Add to this two show-stealing performances from Michael Parks and a certain Hollywood A-lister who will remain nameless (no spoilers here), and you have something worthy of attention. You’ll believe a walrus can talk!
- The Forgotten
I’ve covered The Forgotten in full here recently, but suffice to say this slow-burning urban British ghost story is a film which blends a great setting (an abandoned council estate) with genuine affection for the abandoned characters it features, and the low-key chills it generates will linger in your memory long after the latest Hollywood slice of spooky bombast has faded. (My review.)
- Captain America : The Winter Soldier
Not quite your average BAH material, I’ll admit, but as a huge fan of Marvel’s cinematic output this one managed to surpass all expectations. The first Captain America film was an enjoyable enough superhero origin story which hit a slightly sour note by casting aside the expected epic action scenes in favour of human drama. The Winter Soldier manages to keep the soap opera to a minimum (despite containing one scene – incidentally originally intended for the first Avengers film – which might bring a tear to the eye) in favour of a frankly brilliant (and very timely) meditation on the issues of surveillance in society, which just happens to beat The Avengers for spectacle, laughs and thrills. The only film I went to see three times in 2014.
- Only Lovers Left Alive
A vampire romance for grown-ups! And waaaaay better than that might sound. Jim Jarmusch’s undead love story eschewed sparkly emo cliché and told a story of two ageless vampires who live oceans apart yet cannot live without each other. Pop culture references from through the 20th century (and beyond!) weave throughout the script, it looks utterly gorgeous, and there’s a fantastic soundtrack of gloomy drones and old-school soul, but the beating, engorged heart of the film is the chemistry between lead actors Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston. (My review – Nia’s review.)
- Godzilla
For a film which divided much opinion, it’s appeared on a lot of end of year lists on this here site! The reason for this is pretty simple – we love our giant monsters, and they’ve probably never been done better than they have in Gareth Edwards’ reboot. Yes, there’s lacklustre human story going on here but who cares – we all know it’s filler for the main event, and when it gets going fans of the Big G will be leaping from their seats with delight – old-school monster mayhem with cutting edge digital effects. And you can skip the bits with the people when watching it at home. (Ben’s review.)
- Housebound
Here’s one which has united film festival audiences in praise wherever it has been shown. I caught this at Abertoir without knowing a single thing about it, and it as an absolute joy to experience cold. Therefore in the spirit of this I will give away nothing except that Housebound is one of the least predictable genre pieces I have ever seen, flitting from thrilling to spooky to gruesome to laugh-out-loud funny at regular intervals. Do yourself a favour and catch it soon. (Nia’s review.)
- The World Of Kanako
A quick read of the plot synopsis makes this sound like a Japanese variant on Taken, but what we have instead is an ultra-violent, hallucinogenic trip to hell with a main character who we alternately find ourselves hating and cheering on at various points throughout the film. Tetsuya Nakashima (Kamikaze Girls/Memories of Matsuko) here unleashes his best stylistic flourishes around a compelling, sweaty lead performance by Koji Yakusho. Kanako’s world might contain some places you would rather not visit, but the trip itself is the key here. (My review.)