And still, the greatest and most important movie of the summer as well as the year isn't a blockbuster at all, but a simultaneously intimate and epic drama conceived by the mastermind behind the Before trilogy, Richard Linklater. Boyhood is a coming-of-age tale spanning the 12 years as Mason (Ellar Coltrane) ages from a boy to a man, and Linklater opted to make his film in "real time" over those 12 years, filming a few scenes each year to dramatically depict he aging process. In this stead, Boyhood is completely unmatched in the genre in terms of demonstrating the passage of time: seeing Coltrane and the movie's other actors (namely Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette, who play his parents, and Linklater's daughter Lorelei, who plays Mason's sister) age over the sprawling 160-minute run-time recalls a long-form documentary, yet the movie still retains Linklater's majestic visual style and penchant for thought-provoking drama. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the film, though, is its overt ordinariness: a few of Arquette's drunken partners aside, there's not a whole lot of melodrama to be found. Rather, the sheer spectacle of the passage of time is enough, and audiences will almost unavoidably project much of Mason and his family's journey onto what they've experienced throughout their own lives. One of the riskiest projects in cinema history paid off dividends, as Boyhood currently stands as one of the best-reviewed films of all time, and one certainly has their fingers crossed for Linklater snagging his first Best Director Oscar nomination next year. Did we miss any of your favourite films from the summer of 2014? Let us know in the comments!
Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes).
General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.
