How To Train Your Dragon 2

The first How To Train Your Dragon was an incredible surprise for two reasons: it was a DreamWorks Animation film that was actually good after a long stretch of questionable films (save Kung Fu Panda), and it out-Avatared James Cameron's Avatar with its depiction of immersive and jaw-dropping 3D flight sequences. The story and voice work were stellar, and the film's visual flair produced some of the most impressive action sequences that graced a movie screen that year. It's been four years since the first film was released, and now writer/director Dean DeBlois (co-writer and co-director of the original) is back to continue the story with How To Train Your Dragon 2.

How To Train Your Dragon 2
Writer/Director: Dean DeBlois
Starring: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Gerard Butler, Cate Blanchett

X-Men: Days of Future Past

The third entry in the X-Men film series, 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand, was so reviled by critics and audiences that it nearly killed the entire franchise. It took 20th Century Fox five years to get things back on the right track with X-Men: First Class, an energetic prequel that creatively reignited the mutant saga, and now the studio is back with X-Men: Days of Future Past, an ambitious sequel that combines two generations of cast members into one film. Bryan Singer - largely responsible for sparking the current wave of superhero films thanks to his work on the first two X films - is back in the director's chair here, and though some have questioned whether he still has an eye for action after after the disappointing Jack the Giant Slayer, Singer uses this film to reestablish himself as one of the best comic book movie directors working today. X-Men: Days of Future Past is not only an outstanding science fiction/action film, it's also the best X-Men movie yet.

X-Men: Days of Future Past
Director: Bryan Singer
Starring: Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Peter Dinklage

Neighbors

I've always thought that writer/director Nicholas Stoller works best with his frequent collaborator Jason Segel. Their first feature collaboration may have been their best: Stoller directed Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which Segel wrote and starred in, and the duo co-wrote The Muppets reboot (which I enjoyed) and The Five-Year Engagement (which I also enjoyed). It's when Stoller sets out on his own without Segel - as he did with Get Him to the Greek, Gulliver's Travels, and a couple other projects - that I feel the quality of his films tends to slip a little bit. Segel had nothing to do with Neighbors, so how does this film hold up with Stoller at the helm?

Neighbors
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Starring: Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne, Dave Franco

Enemy

Strange, beautiful, terrifying, and stunning, Denis Villeneuve's Enemy is one of the most enigmatic films of the year.

Enemy
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Melanie Laurent, Sarah Gadon