6) Inherent Vice
Squarely landing between the unmovable must-haves of this list and the more flexible upper half, Inherent Vice is an 11th hour write-in, and also a bit of a cheat. As of this writing, the contact high of watching Paul Thomas Anderson’s loopy, sometimes lyrical period romp is still in my bloodstream, and, boy, is it a buzz worth indulging.
For more specifics on why Joaquin Phoenix’s Doc Sportello is a ganja-loving gumshoe worth following down Anderson’s drug-fuelled rabbit hole, check my recent review. Its inclusion here owes as much to the film’s quality as it does perfect timing; Inherent Vice is, in many ways, the perfect chaser for film 2014, a menagerie of bizarre and wonderful experiences that constitute one powerful, unwieldy whole. With its luminous cast of actors and characters, Inherent Vice makes for a finely directed goose chase through 1970 L.A. that’s going to reverberate with movie-goers well into 2015 and beyond.