John DeFore is a film critic at The Hollywood Reporter.

The Hollywood Reporterin elokuvakriitikko John DeFore valitsi omat suosikkinsa R&A:n ohjelmistosta. Film critic John DeFore from The Hollywood Reporter chose his own favorites from the HIFF 2014 programme. 

Boyhood
“Richard Linklater has often explored the varied ways movies can address the passage of time, but this is his most profound take on the topic yet. By following a single boy for twelve years, he both creates a true-to-life story that parallels his own biography and allows the youngster to become his own man before our eyes.”

Calvary
“No admirer of Irish character actor Brendan Gleeson should miss this film, which offers him perhaps the best role of his career. As a priest, whose life has been threatened, he’s a deeply soulful idealist caring for a village full of amusingly nasty caricatures; as intriguing as the film’s anti-clerical mystery plot is, it pales in comparison to the joy of watching Gleeson’s priest calmly live what may be his final days.”

20,000 Days on Earth
“Iconic musician Nick Cave gets the strange, sneaky portrait he deserves in this feature debut from artists Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. Built around a single day in his life, it distills the personality of the once-self-destructive, now composed artist into carefully imagined scenarios and reflective voiceover narration.”

The Trip to Italy
“Just as funny as its predecessor The Trip (2010) and more satisfying as a story, Michael Winterbottom’s second faux-doc road trip with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon would be well worth taking even without the spectacular scenery and sumptuous food.”

Muscle Shoals
“Casual music fans may be astonished at the range of soulful records made by the team of small-town white Southerners introduced in this documentary. Legends ranging from Aretha Franklin to Keith Richards offer first-hand accounts of how two little studios in Alabama produced a decades-long string of hits.”

Short Term 12
“A moving film about life at a group foster home that is serious but not nearly as bleak as it sounds, Destin Daniel Cretton’s feature-length version of his 2008 short film provides a breakthrough role for young actress Brie Larson without shortchanging the other members of the ensemble.”

The Rover
“An alienated, art-film cousin of George Miller’s Mad Max films, David Michôd’s bloody and disturbing follow-up to Animal Kingdom (2010) is both distinctively personal and a clear descendant of the Australian New Wave. Guy Pearce hasn’t had a showcase this good since Memento (2000).”

Pictures from the films The Rover, Calvary, The Trip to Italy, Muscle Shoals and Short Term 12