Honorable mentions: Occulus, Interstellar, The Piano, Little Children, The Counselor, Much Ado About Nothing (2102), Godzilla (2014), Lone Survivor, Philomena, Antichrist, The Railway Man

10. Nebraska

A father-son road movie. Bruce Dern plays crazy so well (as he always does) but Will Forte is out of his acting league with this cast. However, it is June Squibb as the cantankerous mom that steals the movie.

9. Snowpiercer

It has all the right buzz words, climate change , post-apocalyptic, geo-political, multi-ethnic and dystopian. A very cool (pun intended) ride (pun intended). Tilda Swinton is terrific.

8. Under the Skin

Kubrickesque to the extreme. A weird and compelling movie made even more amazing by the enigmatic performance of Scarlet Johansson.

7. Enough Said

A wonderful “adult” romantic comedy. Intelligent and sad and funny at the same time. It will make you really miss James Gandolfini .

6. The Way, Way Back

 Michael convinced me to see this and I’m glad he did. A superb and understated coming-of- age story.

5. The Edge of Tomorrow

Groundhog Day meets Starship Troopers and Emily Blunt is a real bada**.

4. Ida

A haunting and beautiful movie about a novice nun and a terrible family secret she unearths in 1960’s Poland. Brilliantly directed by Pawel Pawlikowski.

3. Mud

 Mark Twain-like southern “fairy tale” with a terrific cast highlighted by Matthew McConaughey.

2. Guardians of the Galaxy

 Sorry Avengers and X-Men, but this is the best super hero ensemble movie ever. Smart, funny and irreverent, it never lets the special affects overshadow the characters.

1. American Hustle

What a cast! Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, Louis CK. All directed by David O. Russell. It’s a can’t miss movie and it doesn’t.