What is the best film of 2014?

By IQ Score on TV Intelligentsia, Boyhood, Whiplash, Birdman, and Inherent Vice anchor the year's Masterclass tier. The Grand Budapest Hotel, A Most Violent Year, and Mr. Turner round out the canonical entries.

Why was 2014 such a strong year?

2014 was widely cited as the mid-2010s peak of prestige-indie convergence. Linklater's Boyhood (12-year production), Damien Chazelle's directorial debut (Whiplash), and PTA's only English-language Pynchon adaptation (Inherent Vice) all released within twelve months. The auteur-indie register peaked commercially.

Which 2014 film is most underrated?

A Most Violent Year (J.C. Chandor), Calvary (John Michael McDonagh), and Force Majeure (Ruben Östlund) are the three most-underrated 2014 films by IQ Score relative to cultural reach. Each operates at register the genre's mainstream catalog rarely amplifies.

Cinema · 2014 Ranked

Best Films of 2014, Ranked by IQ Score

The year the prestige-indie convergence reached its mid-2010s peak. The films of 2014, ranked by IQ Score.

2014 is widely cited as the mid-2010s peak of prestige-indie convergence. Whiplash, Boyhood, Birdman, Inherent Vice, Mr. Turner, A Most Violent Year, Nightcrawler — all released within twelve months.

Anchor picks: Boyhood (Richard Linklater's 12-year production) is the canonical formal-experiment entry. Whiplash (Damien Chazelle's debut) is the canonical music-pedagogy entry. Birdman won Best Picture and Best Director. Inherent Vice (PTA) is the only English-language Pynchon adaptation.

14 titles · ranked by IQ Score