Top 10 “Rotten” Films of 2014

Last year, Alex Thomas of Time for a Film had the great idea of highlighting his favorite films of the year that were deemed “rotten” by Rotten Tomatoes. I loved the idea and borrowed it for my own list. Keeping in that tradition, here are 10 “rotten” films from 2014 that I quite enjoyed. Be sure to share your favorite “rotten” films as well.

10. God’s Pocket

Rotten Tomatoes score: 36%

There’s a montage midway through this film (it cross-cuts a picnic with a man running in the street) that is the most utterly baffling and completely unnecessary sequence I saw from any film in 2014. But, aside from that scene, God’s Pocket more or less works. Philip Seymour Hoffman is great, and writer/director John Slattery establishes the tone of his world very well. If it weren’t for that damn montage, though.

9. The Interview

Rotten Tomatoes score: 52%

The Interview wasn’t worth the insane controversy that surrounded it (mostly because it ultimately wasn’t that good), but it did make me laugh out loud a few times. The CIA briefing scene and the epic hangover conversation were tops. “Would you… like a drink? Or... some of Aaron’s cocaine?”

8. Dom Hemingway

Rotten Tomatoes score: 59%

I’m not sure if Jude Law has had more fun in a movie before. His frenzied performance singlehandedly made Dom Hemingway worth it, but really, there were plenty of things to enjoy about this movie.

7. Trust Me

Rotten Tomatoes score: 52%

Trust Me is a little-seen indie starring the excellent character actor, Clark Gregg, who also wrote and directed the film. It’s a Hollywood satire about a struggling agent and the brutal competition of the town. A fun little flick (though one with a misguided ending). Also, Allison Janney is great in the film as a Hollywood shark from Hell.

6. Blood Ties

Rotten Tomatoes score: 53%

I’ll admit, with a cast like Clive Owen, Billy Crudup, Marion Cotillard, James Cann, Matthias Schoenaerts, and many more, Blood Ties probably should’ve worked better than it did. Still, that cast.

5. I Origins

Rotten Tomatoes score: 52%

Turns out I was one of the few people who really enjoyed Mike Cahill’s I Origins. Its excellent use of Radiohead’s “Motion Picture Soundtrack” is reason enough to include it here.

4. White Bird in a Blizzard

Rotten Tomatoes score: 49%

Gregg Araki’s White Bird in a Blizzard was a risqué period piece that I found no real fault in. Everyone in this movie was on point – Shailene Woodley, Eva Green, Christopher Meloni, Thomas Jane, plenty more. Shame it didn’t resonate with a wider audience.

3. Coldwater

Rotten Tomatoes score: 56%

This tiny indie, about a troubled teen sent to a brutal camp for combative young men, was the most criminally overlooked film I saw in 2014. You can read my full review of Coldwater here, but this one worked for me in nearly every way.

2. Breathe In

Rotten Tomatoes score: 55%

I had been excited for Drake Doremus’ follow-up to Like Crazy for years, and Breathe In certainly didn’t disappoint. I so enjoyed relishing in its bleak world. I mean, with Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones and Amy Ryan… what’s not to love?

1. The Gambler

Rotten Tomatoes score: 46%

So here’s the thing. I loved The Gambler. Loved it. All of it. And I didn’t expect to, really at all. Karel Reisz’s 1974 original starring James Caan is one of the best, most curiously underseen films of the American ‘70s, and I didn’t think a remake was necessary in the slightest. But the whole time I sat and watched Rupert Wyatt’s remake, I was waiting for it to let me down. To stray and begin justifying its mostly blasé reviews. Never did. Not for me. A desperate and rail-thin Mark Wahlberg, a fierce Jessica Lange, an intimidating John Goodman; ace script from William Monahan, stylish direction from Wyatt – it just worked for me.

There’s a basketball scene near the end of The Gambler that perfectly sums up Wyatt’s intention with the movie. The game is shot in low light and cold hues, and it looks unlike any college basketball game that has ever been played. Basketball games are bright and loud and aesthetically rather boring. This game in The Gambler is moody, atmospheric, and completely unrealistic. Which seems to be precisely the point. The world looks grim in this new Gambler, and I loved every minute of it.

(FULL DISCLOSURE: When a film effectively uses two of my favorite M83 songs, my brain is hardwired to automatically fall in love with it.) 

More Best Of 2014 Posts

Top 15 Films of 2014

Top 15 Female Performances of 2014
Top 10 Male Performances of 2014
Top 10 "Background" Performances of 2014