American Sniper

Cooper nails simultaneously macho and vulnerable performance as he maneuvers through the realistic (except the baby) and enthralling world of the Middle-Eastwood.  Well executed, if slightly over-cinematized, film rides wire between propaganda and entertainment but certainly hits its artistic mark.  Suffers from under-elaborated abrupt ending but perhaps that too is

Inherent Vice

Source material is film’s inherent vice.  Phoenix stays lit as latter day Lebowski amidst a stellar cast of coked-up costars while Anderson’s brilliant long-shots mark the highlight of an overly long and convoluted mockery of narrative.  Rainbow pallet lightens the gravity of what may be the brightest noire ever made.

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Starts with a bang, ends with an ass, and provides a fun ride in between but James Bond: First Class kicks less ass than expected.  Vaughn gets it Wright occasionally but otherwise burns screen-time with tedious training, self-critical comedy, and a lead less compelling than any of his ample support.