122 Best Movies & Shows Released in 2015 (Page 8)

released › 2015
Staff & contributors

Find the best movies and show to watch from the year 2015. These handpicked recommendations are highly-rated by viewers and critics.

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, 2015

A wonderful homage to the woman, actress, and mother based largely on her own archives and interviews with her four children. Bergman was an avid photographer, filmographer and letter writer. What emerges is a loving portrait of an adventurous, driven, complex, and loving woman. Not to be missed.

Genre: Documentary, History

Actor: Alan Marshal, Alberto Sordi, Aldo Fabrizi, Alfred Hitchcock, Alicia Vikander, Alma Reville, Anatole Litvak, Anna Magnani, Anthony Perkins, Cary Grant, Cecil Parker, Clark Gable, Ed Sullivan, Ernest Borgnine, Fiorella Mariani, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, Ingmar Bergman, Ingrid Bergman, Isabella Rossellini, Isotta Rossellini, Jack Weston, Jean Renoir, Jeanine Basinger, Jennifer Jones, Liv Ullmann, Lyle Talbot, Mel Ferrer, Merv Griffin, Mervyn LeRoy, Pia Lindström, Roberto Rossellini, Sigourney Weaver, Spencer Tracy, Victor Fleming, Ward Bond, Yul Brynner

Director: Stig Björkman

Rating: Not Rated

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Shot from the movie

, 2015

In 2013, following the Ukrainian government’s termination of an EU agreement (in blatant disregard of what its citizens have been calling for), a wave of peaceful protests start to crop up at the country’s capital. Things escalate when the police violently disperse the protestors, but the people of Ukraine are not so easily held down. They fight back, growing in number and conviction each time they do, until an all-out war finally breaks out. 

Winter on Fire documents this series of events, staying close to the ground and allowing bits of humanity to shine through its subjects. In between chilling clips of the clashes, we're shown intimate interviews with people of all walks of life. They're doctors, actors, students, bankers, lawyers, and clergymen, from various classes, races, religions, and genders. Despite their many differences, all of them share one hope: to secure a better future for the people of Ukraine. 

Genre: Documentary, War & Politics

Actor: Bishop Agapit, Catherine Ashton, Cissy Jones, Kristina Berdinskikh, Kurganskyi Eduard, Natan Hazin, Serhii Averchenko, Valery Dovgiy

Director: Evgeny Afineevsky

Rating: Unrated

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, 2015

When we love a person, most of us are convinced that we love them for their personality, and if we truly love them, love would remain even if their beauty fades away. The Beauty Inside, a Korean remake of the 2012 American interactive Internet series, challenges this notion. As Woo-jin’s body changes regularly, he’s unable to live a normal life because of a lack of a consistent appearance, a lack of a visual reference point that allows him to be recognized by the people he loves. While more can be explored with the premise's metaphysical elements, and Woo-jin’s characterization is mostly a neutral, blank canvas, The Beauty Inside is still a sweet, feel-good romance that makes the impossible feel wonderfully possible.

Genre: Fantasy, Romance

Actor: Bae Hyun-kyung, Bae Sung-woo, Choi Yong-min, Chun Woo-hee, Do Ji-han, Go A-sung, Go Gyu-pil, Gong Min-jeung, Ha Si-yeon, Ham Tae-in, Han Hyo-joo, Jang Eui-soo, Jo Dal-hwan, Jung Young-ki, Juri Ueno, Kim Dae-myung, Kim Hee-won, Kim Joo-hyuk, Kim Min-jae, Kim Sang-ho, Kim See-eun, Ko Dong-hyoung, Lee Beom-soo, Lee Bom, Lee Dong-hwi, Lee Dong-wook, Lee Hyun-woo, Lee Jae-joon, Lee Ji-min, Lee Ji-won, Lee Jin-wook, Lee Kyung-young, Lee Mi-do, Moon Sook, Ok Joo-ri, Park Keun-rok, Park Seo-jun, Park Shin-hye, Seo Kang-joon, Shin Dong-mi, Son Seong-chan, Yeom Ji-young, Yoo Yeon-seok, Yoon Hwan

Director: Baik

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, 2015

This is a slightly weird and not so slightly quirky movie to be avoided by anyone with a low tolerance to the weird or quirky. Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Frances Ha) and Noah Baumbach (The Squid and the Whale, also Frances Ha) write the story, while Gerwig plays a lead role. Two girls, one a New Yorker and the other having just arrived in New York for a writing program, get in touch because their parents will marry. The writer is fascinated by the personality of the New Yorker and follows her everywhere to understand her more, and eventually write about her. Mistress America is their journey through friendship and through New York. Stick around the first 40 minutes or so, because the second half of this 82-minute movie is hilarious.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Amy Warren, Andrea Chen, Charlie Gillette, Cindy Cheung, Clare Foley, Colin Stokes, Dean Wareham, Greta Gerwig, Heather Lind, Jasmine Cephas-Jones, Jessie Austrian, Juliet Brett, Kathryn Erbe, Lola Kirke, Mary Beth Minthorn, Matthew Shear, Michael Chernus, Mickey Sumner, Morgan Lynch, Nat Baldwin, Noah Baumbach, Rebecca Henderson, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Seth Barrish, Shana Dowdeswell, Sharon Washington, Shoba Narayan

Director: Noah Baumbach

Rating: R

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Shot from the movie

, 2015

At first glance, one may think that Welcome to Leith is a well thought-out fictional thriller of people’s most unwarranted night terrors. But if you squint real hard, you will come to realize that it portrays a scary reality in which violence, fear, and isolation is prevalent and that it could happen to possibly any town with little to no effort. Nichols and Walker aim to capture this frightening message in hopes of bringing awareness, using white supremacist Craig Cobb’s attempt at taking over the small North Dakotan town to display objectivity in an otherwise touchy subject.

Genre: Crime, Documentary, Thriller

Actor: Craig Cobb

Director: Christopher K. Walker, Michael Beach Nichols

Rating: Not Rated

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, 2015

Thithi is a 2015 Kannada film from India that begins with the death of 101-year old Century Gowda, and follows his family as they prepare for his funeral celebration 11 days later. The story-line focuses on 3 generations of his descendants, as his son, grandson and great-grandson are caught up in individual dramas related to the impending funeral as well as their own personal aspirations. His son Gaddappa, an elderly wanderer, absconds with a traveling family of shepherds, his grandson Thammanna hatches an elaborate plan to claim the family land for himself, and his great-grandson Abhi becomes enamored by a young shepherd girl whom he pursues doggedly. Filmed using non-professional actors recruited from villages in the southern Karnataka state of India, Thithi is a humorous and enjoyable portrait of life in a rural part of South Asia rarely seen by the world-at-large. As a realistic slice-of-life, the film gives the viewer an outsider’s glimpse into not just the lifestyle of many residents of rural India, but also their elaborate customs and rituals related to death according to Hindu tradition. Thithi is the type of film that moves at its own deliberate pace, but ultimately provides a winning experience in both its storytelling and its cultural significance.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Abhishek H.N., Channegowda, Pooja, Pooja S.M., Singri Gowda, Thamme Gowda, Thammegowda S.

Director: Raam Reddy

Rating: N/A, Not Rated

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Shot from the movie

, 2015

A beautiful, poetic and disturbing ode to the waters of the Chilean archipelago from the perspective of the stars and planets, its Indigenous inhabitants, and the bodies of those who were disappeared into it under the Pinochet regime. As Patricio Guzman tells us and shows us, water has a memory and a voice. The opening sequence is like Salgado's "Genesis" photos but in colour and moving on the screen, absolutely breathtaking.

Genre: Documentary

Actor: Adil Brkovic, Gabriel Salazar, Gabriela Paterito, Patricio Guzman, Raul Zurita

Director: Patricio Guzmán

Rating: N/A

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, 2015

The Gift is Joel Edgerton's directoral debut, a twisted and smart thriller that sneaks up on you where you least expect it. He also stars in it as Gordo, a friend from the past that enters a new couple's life (played by Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall) and brings a secret that has been hidden for decades. A very "movie" movie, it has enough in it that's original and enough that's not to make for a very enjoyable 100 minutes.

Genre: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Adam Lazarre-White, Allison Tolman, Beau Knapp, Busy Philipps, Darren P. Leis, David Denman, David Joseph Craig, Felicity Price, Jason Bateman, Joel Edgerton, Katie Aselton, Laura Drake Mancini, Melinda Allen, Mirrah Foulkes, Nash Edgerton, P. J. Byrne, Rebecca Hall, Susan May Pratt, Tim Griffin, Wendell Pierce

Director: Joel Edgerton

Rating: R

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, 2015

One of the most memorable entries to the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, The Diary of a Teenage Girl caused considerable controversy for its story about a love affair between a 15-year-old wannabe cartoonist, Minnie (Bel Powley), and her mother’s boyfriend (Alexander Skarsgård). With the narrative never straying from Minnie’s point of view, the film deals with the usual problems of adolescence against the backdrop of 1976 San Fransisco. Taking a fresh perspective that is rare for American cinema, this dramatic comedy portrays adolescent sexuality as something movingly unremarkable.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Abby Wait, Alexander Skarsgård, Anthony Williams, Austin Lyon, Bel Powley, Carson Mell, Christopher Meloni, John Parsons, Kristen Wiig, Madeleine Waters, Margarita Levieva, Miranda Bailey, Quinn Nagle, Willie

Director: Marielle Heller

Rating: R

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, 2015

A very cool documentary about old ladies living in a forbidden zone near Chernobyl. They just came back to their homes in the "stalker zone" few years after the accident and kept living their lives care-free for a staggering 30 years. All of them seem healthy and they love telling jokes. It's a completely different view on this zone and you just find yourself full of admiration for these old ladies for their will and humorous way of living despite the circumstances. Home is home after all.

Genre: Documentary

Director: Anne Bogart, Holly Morris

Rating: Not Rated

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, 2015

Slow West is a modern western about a young Scotsman (Kodi Smit-McPhee) trekking across America in search of Rose, the young woman he loves, while accompanied by a wayward outlaw named Silas (Michael Fassbender). Jay soon realizes that he is unwittingly leading a pack of nefarious bounty hunters toward Rose and her father as well, as a sizable reward rests on their heads for the accidental killing of a nobleman. It’s a melancholy yet clever and enjoyable film with a distinct Coen Brothers-esque sense of dark humor and quirky violence. In his debut feature, John Maclean gives the western a fresh spin and a nice creative twist, marking his territory as a promising new name in the film world.

Genre: Action, Drama, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Western

Actor: Aaron McGregor, Alex MacQueen, Andrew Robertt, Andy McPhee, Aorere Paki, Ben Mendelsohn, Brian Sergent, Brooke Williams, Caren Pistorius, David T. Lim, Eddie Campbell, Edwin Wright, Hayden Frost, Jeffrey Thomas, Kalani Queypo, Karl Willetts, Ken Blackburn, Kieran Charnock, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Madeleine Sami, Michael Fassbender, Michael Whalley, Rory McCann, Stuart Bowman, Stuart Martin, Tawanda Manyimo

Director: John Maclean

Rating: R

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, 2015

This  exploration of the complex and loving relationship between a mother and her son will take you through a variety of emotions: it's uplifting, disturbing, provocative, sad, and hopeful. We don't get many of these middle-class-budget films anymore, and this one might be one of the category's best.

A kidnapped girl (Brie Larson) has a son after being raped by her abductor. She tries to provide a "normal" environment for the kid in the room where they're being held captive until they can escape. Brie Larson won an Oscar for Best Actress in Room, so make sure to also check out Short Term 12, an equally impressive performance by her in an equally amazing movie.

Genre: Drama, Thriller

Actor: Amanda Brugel, Brie Larson, Cas Anvar, Chantelle Chung, Graeme Potts, Jack Fulton, Jacob Tremblay, Jee-Yun Lee, Joan Allen, Joe Pingue, Justin Mader, Kate Drummond, Katelyn Wells, Matt Gordon, Megan Park, Ola Sturik, Randal Edwards, Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll, Rory O'Shea, Sandy McMaster, Sean Bridgers, Tom McCamus, Wendy Crewson, William H. Macy, Zarrin Darnell-Martin

Director: Lenny Abrahamson

Rating: R

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, 2015

On par with the best documentaries of the 21st Century thus far, “Requiem for the American Dream” is an essential viewing for the discerning viewer in search of a more complete understanding of how American society has evolved to such a dramatic point of polarization, and how both politics and big business have played a role in this process. In his introductory remarks to the film, celebrated intellectual and linguistics professor Noam Chomsky expounds: “Inequality has highly negative consequences on society as a whole, because the very fact of inequality has a corrosive, harmful effect on democracy.” Chomsky spells out his perspective regarding the modern political machine and the downfall of democracy, with a keen eye to the historical decisions and influences that have sabotaged the “common good” and shaped America’s current political, financial and social landscape.

Genre: Documentary

Actor: Noam Chomsky

Director: Jared P. Scott, Kelly Nyks, Peter D. Hutchison

Rating: Not Rated

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