The Best of 2015: The Best New Movies I Saw

With a few hours left to go in 2015, I've watched 151 movies this year.

For my purposes, 53 of them were new releases, including some that for Academy Award purposes, or for list makers who have better access to everything, or for the main IMDB parentheses date, are officially 2014 movies.

But several of the "prestige films" that may have opened in New York or LA in December 2014 didn't hit Chicago area cinemas until January, February.

In a couple cases, movies may have played one screen in Chicago--typically the Century or River East--around Christmas 2014, but didn't open in the suburbs until awhile later.

Then there are movies--many of them foreign--that may have played film festivals throughout 2014 but didn't actually open anywhere in Chicago, or even on any U.S. screens beyond festivals, until sometime in 2015. (I'm really not sure how film festival screenings count against Academy Award eligibility for a given year.)

So while acknowledging the imperfections, I am essentially counting as eligible any movies I watched over the past 12 months that I didn't have a reasonable chance to see previously.

I realize that this logic could theoretically make eligible films that showed up for a week at the Siskel Film Center, Facets or the Music Box in, say, 2012--or didn't even--but only came to DVD, cable or Netflix in 2015, but in reality it means that I'm looping into the choices below about 7 movies technically from 2014 that I didn't get to see until 2015.

Given my erosive memory, there's always the possibility that films seen almost a year ago may suffer in my thought process next to ones seen just this week or month, but it's also possible I may recall something as even better than I would now find it to be.

So, take my rankings for what they're worth.

To augment my rankings, I also provide the Top 10 choices of my friends Dave and Brad, both--like me--members of the Chicago Film Discussion Meetup Group.

Obviously there are numerous other lists like this but I enjoy pointing out Paste Magazine's list of The 50 Best Movies of 2015, which further serves to reveal how many substantive movies I didn't see this year, whether I could have or not.

For no entirely explainable reason, I've decided to cite my favorite documentaries separate from feature films, possibly because some were never released in theaters.

Anyway, enough with the preamble, here are my:

Best New Movies Seen in 2015 -
Feature Films 
(F = Foreign; 14 = Officially a 2014 release)

1. Selma (14) 
2. Room

3. Phoenix (F)

4. Two Days, One Night (F, 14)

5. 99 Homes

6. The End of the Tour

7. Love & Mercy

8. Wild Tales (F)

9. Spotlight
10. Carol
11. Still Alice (14)

12. The Martian

13. The Big Short

14. American Sniper (14)

15. Ex Machina

16. Brooklyn

17. The Gift

18. The Danish Girl

19. Trumbo
20. Bridge of Spies

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

A Most Violent Year (14)
Grandma

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Experimenter
Son of Saul
Tangerine

Straight Outta Compton
Force Majeure 

Desert Dancer
A Borrowed Identity (F)
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
The Last Five Years
Leviathan (F)

Notable 2015 Movies Not Yet Seen
Anomalisa, Chi-Raq, Steve Jobs, Sicario, The Revenant, White God, The Tribe, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amselem, The Peanuts Movie, It Follows

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above 

The Hateful Eight, Trainwreck, Youth, Mad Max: Fury Road, While We're Young, Far From the Madding Crowd, Woman in Gold, Joy, Z for Zachariah

The Best New Documentaries Seen in 2015

1. The Jam: About the Young Idea
2. Keith Richards: Under the Influence
3. Amy
4. Lambert & Stamp
5. Red Army (14)

Didn't see: Cartel Land, Janis: Little Girl Blue, Iris, Seymour: An Introduction

Saw, didn't love: Cobain: Montage of Heck

Dave's Top 20 Movies of 2015

1. Wild Tales (F)
2. Human Capital (F, 13)
3. Tangerine
4. Mommy (F, 14)
5. Two Days, One Night (F, 14)
6. Steve Jobs
7. Carol
8. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (F, 14)
9. Spotlight
10. Goodnight, Mommy (F, 14)
11. Victoria (F)
12. The Gift
13. Bridge of Spies
14. Phoenix (F)
15. The End of the Tour
16. Leviathan
17. Selma
18. Inside Out
19. Inherent Vice
20. The Hateful Eight  

Brad's Top 11 Movies of 2015

1. Inside Out  
2. Mountains May Depart (F)
3. Mad Max: Fury Road 
4. The Hateful Eight 
5. Star Wars: The Force Awakens 
6. Son of Saul (F) 
7. Tangerine 
8. Anomalisa 
9. It Follows 
10. Love & Mercy
11. Spotlight

The Best of 2015: Some Most Memorable Meals

It should be fairly obvious that I like to eat.

But I don't like to cook, or at least just don't do it very often.

Certainly, financial imperative demands that I eat some meals at home, but almost all of these involve a microwave, toaster, George Foreman grill, cereal bowl or--if I'm really ambitious--a frying pan.

So in the name of good taste, I wind up eating in quite a lot of restaurants.

The majority of these aren't very fancy and as, in addition to not demonstrating culinary skills I've never watched a single cooking show, I can't really pass myself off as a gourmet.

Or a foodie.

But somewhat akin to how I attend, enjoy, review and, at year's end, compare & extol concerts, musicals, plays, albums, songs, museums, movies, etc., etc., so to do I perceive fine cooking to be an art form worthy of exploration, comparison and, yes, expenditure, rather than simple digestion.

Though I am comfortable dining by myself, and often do, again in 2015 I delighted in many meals
shared with a wide array of relatives, friends and colleagues, some who were kind enough to treat me.

See the full Zagat list here

All of these made for "memorable meals" and although any sort of rankings would be about the food itself, given the challenge of remembering specifics of meals savored over the past 12 months--and who knows if I ordered "the right thing" anywhere--instead I'll just highlight places I greatly enjoyed, split as best I can.

A good number of restaurants below can be found on Zagat's 50 Best Restaurants in Chicago list--based on consumer surveys; published in January 2015--which I used as something of a guide of places to try.

Before the start of 2015, I had eaten at 12 restaurants on the Zagat list, but added 10 more to my tally throughout the year.

The categories are imperfect; some "fancy & exotic" cost far less than some steakhouses--especially if patronized during Chicago Restaurant Week--and a few could even qualify as "cheap eats." And a few of the "cheap eats" had rather fancy flavorings and some costlier options.

The Most Memorable Meals I Enjoyed in 2015
were at these restaurants (in no specific order):

Fancy and/or Exotic

Jean-Georges - NYC

Azul Historico - Mexico City
Pujol - Mexico City
Jean-Georges - NYC
El Mayor - Mexico City
Frontera Grill - Chicago (Mexican)
Longman & Eagle - Chicago
Au Cheval - Chicago (Famed cheeseburger)
Katsu - Chicago (Sushi)
Oceanique - Evanston
Mixteco Grill - Chicago (Mexican)
Blackbird - Chicago
The Purple Pig - Chicago
Tava - Morton Grove (Indian Buffet)
Kansaku - Evanston (Sushi)
Tanta - Chicago (Peruvian)
Seagrape - Miami Beach
Glenn's Diner - Chicago (Seafood)
McCormick & Schmick's - Skokie
Hello Tacos / De Cero - Chicago

Oceanique - Evanston

Heaven on Seven - Chicago (Cajun)
Xoco - Chicago (Mexican)
Cafe de Tacuba - Mexico City
Depot Nuevo - Wilmette  (Latin)

Steak & Chops

The Capital Grille - Rosemont
Chicago Cut Steakhouse - Chicago
Frontier - Chicago

Morton's - Northbrook
Keens - NYC

Rosebud PrimeSwift & Sons
Jameson's Charhouse

Chicago Cut Steakhouse - Chicago

Miller's Pub
L. Woods (Ribs)
Gale Street Inn (Ribs)
Longhorn Steakhouse
Rub Backcountry Smokehouse (Ribs)
Allstate Arena Prime Rib Sandwich
United Center Prime Rib Sandwich
 

Cheap Eats

Curt's Cafe - Evanston
Real Urban BBQ - Vernon Hills
Naf Naf Grill - Niles
BIG & little's - Chicago
Taco Nano - Northfield

Dengeos - Skokie

El Carrito - Chicago

Poochie's - Skokie
Portillos - Skokie and various
Al's Beef - Niles
Sarkis Cafe - Evanston
Sparky's - Skokie
Pizza Capri - Chicago (I like the Mixed Baby Greens salad) 
Johnnie's Beef - Arlington Heights
Herm's Palace - Skokie
Superdawg - Chicago
Pita Inn - Skokie
Taste of Cuba - Lincolnwood
El Carrito - Chicago (A great newcomer)
Sopraffina - Chicago (I enjoy their salads) 
Cafecito - Chicago
Chicago's Dog House

Azul Historico - Mexico City

Hot "G" Dog

Standbys - Old & New

Las Fuentes - Morton Grove
Pizano's - Glenview (Best Pizza)
The Noodle - Wilmette
Bakers Square - Wilmette
Ruby Tuesday - Skokie
Alexander's - Skokie (Brunch)
Annie's - Skokie (Brunch)
Hotcakes - Wilmette (Brunch)
Courier Cafe - Urbana (Brunch)
Taqueria Los Comales - Niles

Blackbird - Chicago

El Tipico - Skokie
Himalayan - Niles (Indian Buffet)
Glenview House - Glenview
Dixie Kitchen - Evanston
Ridgeview Grill - Wilmette
Players Grill - Highland Park
Siam Rice - Chicago
Lou Malnati's - Lincolnwood 
Sweet Tomatoes - Glenview
The Bagel - Skokie

Sweet Treats

The Doughnut Plant - NYC

Doughnut Plant - New York

Mirabelle Bakery - Urbana
Chez Bon Bon - Miami Beach
Margie's Candies - Chicago
Stan's Donuts - Chicago
Cafe Lutz - Chicago

For the History more than the Meal

Versailles - Miami
News Cafe - Miami Beach
Sloppy Joes - Key West
Jack's - Skokie
Patsy's - NYC

The Best of 2015: The Best New Albums I Heard (and Some Great Old Ones)

When it comes to hearing, obtaining and maintaining collections of music, I am both old school and new school.

I still have, on numerous shelves in my condo, over 2,000 physical CDs, and though far less so than in years past--due to both new technology and perceptions of modern musical quality--I continue to buy hard copies of most albums I acutely want to "own."

There are some inconsistencies to this--primarily regarding official concert "bootlegs" released by Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam, for which I will pay simply to download--but generally I only feel like I own, or even "have," an album if I can hold it in my hands. 

But I use Spotify voluminously, and even pay $10 for the Premium ad-less version, so in giving me access to pretty much every album ever recorded, with the same ease of access as provided by iTunes or the AmazonMusic app--which provides me free "Auto-Rip" MP3s of any physical CD I buy through Amazon.com--the notion of albums I own or have has been forever transmogrified, especially as I do the bulk of my listening via digital files, even if I have the physical CD. (I'll either have imported the CD into iTunes--and perhaps then onto my iPhone--or have Amazon MP3s or simply listen to Spotify, even for albums I physically own.)

I used to believe that there was something slightly unscrupulous about using Spotify, as the concept of hearing full albums you didn't pay for--and even free Spotify users can do so--has been taboo for the majority of my 47 years.

Except of course for records you borrowed from the library and recorded onto a Maxell cassette, albums a friend copied for you whether onto cassette or later CD, Napster downloads and various other means of getting free music.

But Spotify seemed to be sanctioned piracy, and it felt kind of wrong--and in many cases, likely still is--that artists weren't being equitably compensated for their creations, at least versus the album royalties of old. Certainly, there have been numerous--and recent--reports about how millions of listens on Spotify have earned the recording artists mere pocket change. And Taylor Swift and Adele have opted to keep their gazillion-selling latest albums off Spotify, and The Beatles' entire catalog was unavailable on steaming platforms until just last week.

See article here

Yet, I recently read that record labels now make more money from streaming services such as Spotify than they do from purchased downloads or physical album sales.

And with the Beatles providing further validation that streaming is a fully legitimate form of musical distribution, it feels even less necessary to buy CDs, even if I intrinsically like having something tactile, with cover art and liner notes and printed lyrics.

So I undoubtedly still will, but sparingly, especially as the $120 I pay Spotify yearly equates to 12  CDs in physical form. 

All of which is a long-winded way of getting to the point that, of albums newly released, I bought a total of two CDs in a rock vein in 2015. One was Blur's first album in 12 years and the other was Adele's mammoth-selling 25, which I'm guessing she doesn't regret keeping off Spotify, and which proves that physical CDs still can sell.

(Just to mention it, perhaps for my own future knowledge, besides the reissues mentioned below and two previously released Beatles reissues, the only old CD I bought in 2015 was King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King, which is not on Spotify.)

Anyway, here's what I liked best of what I heard anew in 2015, including mostly rock artists but--given the relative sparsity of those--also a few Broadway cast albums that provided great listening pleasure. And yes, I'm aware that Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp A Butterfly is almost universally praised as the Best Album of 2015 elsewhere, but with all due respect, I never got into it as I'm not a big rap fan. Though I may continue to explore it from time to time.

On Spotify.

The Best New Albums I Heard in 2015

1. Blur - The Magic Whip (Spotify link)

2. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Chasing Yesterday (Spotify link)

With my top 2 picks, some may appreciate the inherent allusion to the Blur vs. Oasis "Battle of BritPop" 20 years ago.

3. Hamilton - Original Broadway Cast Recording (Spotify link)

4. Adele - 25 (Not on Spotify)

5. Ash - Kerblammo (Spotify link)

6. Paul Weller - Saturns Pattern (Spotify link)

7. Keith Richards - Crosseyed Heart (Spotify link)

8. Florence + the Machine - How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (Spotify link)

9. Wilco - Star Wars (Spotify link)

10. Darlene Love - Introducing Darlene Love (Spotify link)

11. The Waterboys - Modern Blues (Spotify link)

Honorable Mention

- Finding Neverland - Original Broadway Cast Recording (Spotify link)
- Jeff Lynne's ELO - Alone in the Universe (Spotify link)
- Jason Isbell - Something More Than Free (Spotify link)
- Titus Andronicus - The Most Lamentable Tragedy (Spotify link)
- The Visit - Original Broadway Cast Recording (Not on Spotify)

Special Mention

Bruce Springsteen - The Ties That Bind: The River Collection (Spotify link)
As I wrote about here, the entire box set commemorating 1980's The River album is terrific. But had simply the 11 previously unreleased outtakes been put out as a new Springsteen album, it would rank #1 on the list above.

Bruce Springsteen - Archival Concerts - Philadelphia 1975, Nassau 1980,
East Rutherford 1984, Los Angeles 1988, Columbus 2005, Rome 2013
Each concert above was individually released in 2015--plus Cleveland 1978, released late 2014--and most represent the best music I acquired during the year. All are great; my top recommendations would be 1) Cleveland 2) Nassau 3) Rome 4) Los Angeles. Downloads or physical CDs can be bought through: live.brucespringsteen.net

Pearl Jam - Nov. 4, 2015 Santiago, Chile - official concert bootleg
Unlike previous tours, Pearl Jam hasn't released recordings of every show on their recent South American trek, but this Santiago show is a great listen with a rabid crowd. A Buenos Aires show is also available. Shop here for downloads or physical CDs.

Best Reissues:

Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti (Spotify link)  
Led Zeppelin - Presence (Spotify link)
Led Zeppelin - In Through the Out Door (Spotify link)