2014 in movies for nerds and geeks

For the Sunday entertainment entry, I'm making good on the promise I with which I closed Happy to rewind 2014 in entertainment and social media to "have more to write about 2014 in entertainment when I post about awards shows and magazine picks for the best and worst."  Time for the magazine selections, beginning with Top 5 MOVIES of 2014! (Nerdist News w/ Jessica Chobot).  If it moves, it leads.

From original sci-fi dramas to Marvel’s blockbuster superhero movies, join Jessica Chobot as we count down the Top 5 Nerd Movies of 2014 on Nerdist News.

I saw two of these movies, "Snowpiercer" and "Guardians of the Galaxy."  "Snowpiercer" was better as art, "Guardians of the Galaxy" was better as entertainment.  Both were excellent in their own way and I recommend both.  In addition, my wife loves the songs used in the sound track.

Follow over the jump for more science fiction and fantasy films from io9 and documentaries about technology and general nerdiness from Wired.

Charlie Jane Anders of io9 included all of the five movies Nerdist mentioned and then some in The 10 Best And 10 Worst Science Fiction And Fantasy Movies Of 2014.

This was a weird year for movies. The box office was weak, but also, most films didn't deserve love or hate. They were just... okay. But the genre movies that did stand out were either brilliant experiments, or horrible misfires. Here are the 10 best and 10 worst science fiction and fantasy movies of 2014.

Anders agreed with Chobot of Nerdist on "Guardians of the Galaxy" as number one.  Her second best movie did not make it to Nerdist's list, but my wife and I watched it.  It was "Under the Skin," a moody character study of an alien disguised as a human.  It, even more than "Snowpiercer," is what I'd characterize as a science-fiction art movie.  I recommend it, but don't expect a lot of pyrotechnics.  It's a very eerie movie that underplays the action.

Moving from fiction to reality, I conclude with We Pick the Year’s 5 Most Intriguing Documentaries by Wired Staff.

If you care about technology and movies, which is to say if you’re a reader of this here website, then you were probably pretty excited about Citizenfour. That documentary pulled the curtain back on what happened with whistleblower Edward Snowden’s NSA leak in a big way. But that was just one of a few great documentaries that hit theaters this year. There were also docs on the life of Aaron Swartz, director Alejandro Jodorowsky’s attempt to adapt Dune, and the quest to find the “God Particle.” Here are a few of our personal favorite docs of the last year.

"To Be Takei" is another one on their list.  It's one I could see at home right now if I really were motivated.  Maybe after I move.

Also, I'd written about the documentary about the failed making of "Dune" in H.R. Giger dead at 74.  That movie looked like it would have been better than most, if not all, of the adaptations that actually made it to the screen, both big and small.

Here's to at least some of these movies being nominated for Best Feature Length Documentary at the Academy Awards.  If any of them are, I'll be sure to write about it.