132 Best Movies & Shows Released in 2015 (Page 9)

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

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, Javier Rebolledo, Patricio Guzman, Raul Zurita

Director: Patricio Guzmán

Rating: N/A

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

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

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

Pawn Sacrifice is a period drama about famed chess player Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire), following Fischer’s rise from his childhood in Brooklyn through to his famed matchup with Soviet Grandmaster Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber) at the 1972 World Chess Championship. The film captures Fischer’s adolescence as a time of burgeoning mastery of the game, while struggling in a fatherless home and beset by early signs of mental illness. Set during the height of the Cold War, tensions between the United States and Russia play a critical role in the story, as they fuel many of Fischer’s fears and anxieties over perceived Russian spying and surveillance. His paranoia reaches a fever pitch in Reykjavik, Iceland, the site of his famous duel with Spassky for the world championship, leading to a remarkably compelling finale. Writer director Steven Knight and director Edward Zwick have crafted a striking depiction of a real-life genius grappling with fraying sanity, and Maguire is stunningly evocative as the abrasive and acerbic Fischer. For the viewer, no advanced knowledge of chess is necessary to enjoy this vivid depiction of one man’s historical achievement in the face of profound mental disturbance.

Genre: Drama, Thriller

Actor: Aiden Lovekamp, Al Dubois, Al Vandecruys, Alain Goulem, Aleksandr Gorchilin, Alexandre Gorchkov, André Sogliuzzo, Andreas Apergis, Andrew Peplowski, Arthur Holden, Benoit Priest, Bobby Fischer, Bobo Vian, Brent Skagford, Brett Watson, Carlo Mestroni, Conrad Pla, David Pryde, Dennis Staroselsky, Edward Yankie, Edward Zinoviev, Ellen David, Eric Lee Huffman, Eugene Nomura, Evelyne Brochu, François Ducharme, Glen Bowser, Igor Ovadis, Ilia Volok, Joe Cobden, John Maclaren, Jonathan Dubsky, Katie Bird Nolan, Liev Schreiber, Lily Rabe, Lydia Zadel, Mark Slacke, Matt Keyes, Maurice Demers, Michael Stuhlbarg, Mohsen El Gharbi, Natalija Ugrina, Nathaly Thibault, Norman Lehnert, Peter Janov, Peter Sarsgaard, Raphael Grosz-Harvey, Richard Jutras, Robin Weigert, Roc LaFortune, Sam Stone, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick, Shanmugasunder Chetty, Shawn Campbell, Sophie Nélisse, Spiro Malandrakis, Tobey Maguire, Vitali Makarov, Vito DeFilippo, Zach Fraser

Director: Edward Zwick

Rating: PG-13

A peculiar Western that might not please everyone if it wasn't for its main star, Kurt Russel. It's a mix between classic western material, a horror flick, and a fantasy movie. Yes, it's a lot. And not only that, it can be slow at times. However, in those perks it also finds a lot of originality in a saturated genre, and one more time: Kurt Russel. He's amazing as can be expected, playing the sheriff of a quiet town that gets struck by sudden disappearances. The suspect is a faraway tribe known for its cannibalism practices, the movie follows the sheriff as he leads an expedition to save a disappearing woman.

Genre: Drama, Horror, Western

Actor: Alex Meraz, Brandon Molale, David Arquette, David Midthunder, Eddie Spears, Erick Chavarria, Evan Jonigkeit, Fred Melamed, Geno Segers, James Tolkan, Jamison Newlander, Jay Tavare, Jeremy Tardy, Kathryn Morris, Kurt Russell, Lili Simmons, Maestro Harrell, Mario Perez, Matthew Fox, Michael Emery, Michael Pare, Omar Leyva, Patrick Wilson, Raw Leiba, Richard Jenkins, Robert Allen Mukes, Sean Young, Sid Haig, Zahn McClarnon

Director: S. Craig Zahler

Rating: Not Rated