By Debbie Schlussel

Took some time off to catch up on rest, other work, and just needed a break. But I didn’t want to let any more time go by before I brought you my list of top movies of 2014. This was a bad year for movies, so I liked very few. All things are relative, and many of these would not make my list in previous years. That said, it was hard to narrow it down to just ten movies. So I picked my top choices and everything that I liked, which numbered 18 movies. You can read my full review of each movie by clicking on the name of the movie.

You will note that some of the movies I chose for this list didn’t get FOUR or even THREE REAGANS when I reviewed them. But in comparing the movies to the whole lot from this year, they’ve moved up in quality in my opinion (or I initially underrated them–“Land Ho!” is one of those). Others have declined in my view. I had a hard time putting the list in order (and kept switching the list around) because I liked most of these equally, so any of them will do. Also, some smaller movies debuted in other markets in 2013, but I reviewed them in 2014, when they came out here in the Detroit area. Below my Top 15 are also a few bests in particular categories. These also could have made my top movies list and are equally as good.

Here’s the list:

TIE- 1) “Land Ho!“: Nope, the title doesn’t describe Kim Kardashian when she’s not in the air or water. This small-budget movie was shown mostly in art house theaters. But it was fun, very funny, and exactly the kind of escapist movie I like to see. Two American former brothers-in-law go on a trip to Iceland and have a ball. One of them is a very blunt, politically incorrect, retired doctor from the South (fabulous first-time actor Earl Lynn Nelson). The other is a transplanted Aussie who lives in New Orleans.

TIE – 1) “Walking with the Enemy“: The touching, heroic true story of Pinchas Rosenbaum, the Aryan-looking Hungarian Jew, who impersonated a Nazi, and saved thousands of Hungarian Jewish lives during the Holocaust. The ending brought tears to my eyes. This movie got off to a slow start” but is otherwise great.

3) “The Grand Budapest Hotel“: Based on a Stefan Zweig novel, this quirky flick about a fictional hotel in 1932 Europe is very funny and entertaining and moves quickly. Director Wes Anderson at his best.

4) “Whiplash“: A young jazz drummer prodigy is driven by his own ambition and his teacher/guru’s merciless demands. See the caveat in my review about American society demanding too little from most, rather than too much, as in this movie.

5) “Words and Pictures“: Smart movie about feuding teachers at a fancy New England prep school. He used to be a budding literary star, and she was a famous artist and painter. Today, they are afflicted by other demons and have sparked a debate between themselves and their students about which speaks better: literature or art.

6) “Chef“: A chef father and his young son grow close on a summer food truck trip across the country.

7) “Night Crawler“: Obsessed nut becomes a top cameraman and turns his agenda into manufactured local news stories, with tragic consequences.

8) “The Imitation Game“: Unconventional genius Brit Alan Turing creates the first computer and helps break the Nazi Enigma code during World War II, saving many lives and ending the war early.

9) “The Guest“: Very campy movie is a take-off on ’80s-style thrillers, complete with music and other accoutrements. Great newcomer Dan Stevens plays the Iraq War veteran who comes to visit the bereaved family of one of his fallen comrades and ingratiates himself into their lives.

10) “Interstellar“: Very cool sci-fi thriller that includes space travel beyond all imaginable dimensions, including time. Many movies in one with moral and other issues explored.

11) “Birdman“: Interesting movie explores an aging actor’s attempt, at the twilight of his career, to make a comeback in the theater, after playing a superhero for years. Quirky and different, Michael Keaton and his superhero alter ego have conversations throughout the movie, but is it real? A little too raunchy in one part for my taste, but otherwise, this has everything–funniness, despair, and even an expose on the power-hungry “writers” at the New York Times.

12) “And So It Goes“: A light, funny, charming dramedy about an aging real estate man, his songstress neighbor, and how they change each other’s lives. Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton still have a lot left in them.

13) “The Monuments Men“: A group of American soldiers come to Nazi Europe to save and recover stolen art and property, both public and that owned by Jews. Has some very touching moments and is light and entertaining while also impressing upon us another important job well done by the Americans in Europe, whose contributions continue to go unappreciated especially to date. Yes, unfortunately, it stars George Clooney and Matt Damon. But it’s also got Bill Murray in the best scene in the movie. Read my review to find out what that is.

14) “Beyond the Lights“: A Kardashian-esque pop star falls in love with her working-class bodyguard and throws away her sexy, sleazy image (and her sleazy mom/manager who pushed it on her) in favor of a more modest, natural, down-to-earth lifestyle.

15) “The Best Offer“: Cool, psychological thriller about a misanthrope art dealer/appraiser who falls for a phantom recluse who wants him to value her late parents’ estate.

16) “Begin Again“: Keira Knightley plays the more talented half of a musical couple. He (Adam Levine) is a conceited rock star (so he didn’t have to act much) who cheats on her and uses the songs and music she wrote. She “begins again” after being discovered by a recovering alcoholic music executive who is also beginning again in his career after losing everything. Together they make music and try to make hits.

17) “Edge of Tomorrow“: Futuristic movie in which Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt fight aliens to save the world, but must keep repeating previous events to learn more. Funny, cool, filled with action.

18) “Guardians of the Galaxy“: A superhero movie starring Chris Pratt and an ensemble of animated and alien misfits, together they fight evil to save the galaxy.

BEST DOCUMENTARY: “I’ll Be Me“: A touching, sad film about great musical talent Glenn Campbell and his struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease as he embarks on his farewell tour. I will post a more in-depth review of this soon.

BEST FOREIGN FILM: “Like Father, Like Son [Soshite Chichi Ni Naru]“: A wealthy, upper-class Japanese family discovers that their six-year-old son is really someone else’s, as he has been switched at birth. They also find out that their biological son is being raised by a working-class, less cultured, but far more happy family. Do they want to switch their sons back? Is it about biology or the son that you’ve already raised for so long?

BEST ANIMATION: “Big Hero 6“: Terrific movie for people of all ages. A young boy genius uses robots to find out who killed his brother and what happened with his invention. Funny, charming, and cute (thought slightly politically correct).