Year-End Lists

Ben Sachs: Favorite Films of 2015, as published by The Chicago Reader

[see also 2010s • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Fish & Cat
   Shahram Mokri
2. Inherent Vice
   Paul Thomas Anderson
3. Eden
   Mia Hansen-Løve
4. Blackhat
   Michael Mann
5. Love Battles
   Jacques Doillon
6. Hard to Be a God
   Aleksey German
7. Mad Max: Fury Road
   George Miller
8. Goodbye to Language
   Jean-Luc Godard
9. Office
   Johnnie To
10. Nasty Baby
    Sebastián Silva

Runners-up

11. Magic Mike XXL
    Gregory Jacobs
12. In the Name of My Daughter
    André Téchiné
13. Jafar Panahi’s Taxi
    Jafar Panahi
14. In A Foreign Land
    Icíar Bollaín
15. In Jackson Heights
    Frederick Wiseman
16. Ned Rifle
    Hal Hartley
17. The Wonders
    Alice Rohrwacher
18. Manglehorn
    David Gordon Green
19. On the Way to School
    Pascal Plisson
20. Aloft
    Claudia Llosa

J.R. Jones: Favorite Films of 2015, as published by The Chicago Reader

[see also 2017 • 2016 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. White God
   Kornél Mundruczó
2. 99 Homes
   Ramin Bahrani
3. Spotlight
   Tom McCarthy
4. Maps to the Stars
   David Cronenberg
5. Queen and Country
   John Boorman
6. Court
   Chaitanya Tamhane
7. Mommy
   Xavier Dolan
8. About Elly
   Asghar Farhadi
9. Youth
   Paolo Sorrentino
10. Results
    Andrew Bujalski

Runners-up

11. The Assassin
    Hou Hsiao-Hsien
12. The Diary of a Teenage Girl
    Marielle Heller
13. The Forbidden Room
    Guy Maddin
14. Best of Enemies
    Morgan Neville and Robert Gordon
15. A Poem Is a Naked Person
    Les Blank
16. Room
    Lenny Abrahamson
17. Bridge of Spies
    Steven Spielberg
18. What We Do in the Shadows
    Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi
19. Black Mass
    Scott Cooper
20. A Most Violent Year
    J.C. Chandor

Dummy: 30 Best Albums of 2015

[see also 2011]

1. Garden of Delete
   Oneohtrix Point Never
2. To Pimp A Butterfly
   Kendrick Lamar
3. If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
   Drake
4. A Paradise
   Gwilym Gold
5. Dark Energy
   Jlin
6. DS2
   Future
7. Platform
   Holly Herndon
8. In Colour
   Jamie xx
9. Elaenia
   Floating Points
10. I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside: An Album
    Earl Sweatshirt
11. Nothing
    Kode9
12. The Gleaners
    Amateur Best
13. M3LL155X
    FKA twigs
14. Multi-Love
    Unknown Mortal Orchestra
15. Testimony
    Letta
16. Foam Island
    Darkstar
17. No Now
    Clarence Clarity
18. Faze Miyake
    Faze Miyake
19. Personal Computer
    Silicon
20. Art Angels
    Grimes
21. Ancient Mechanisms
    LV
22. Vulnicura
    Björk
23. Inji
    LA Priest
24. I Want To Believe
    Project Pablo
25. Sound Pellegrino Presents SND.PE, Vol. 4: Melodic Mechanisms
    various artists
26. Beat Tape 2
    Tom Misch
27. EVENIFUDONTBELIEVE
    Rustie
28. Lantern
    Hudson Mohawke
29. Hipnotony
    Garth BE
30. Saturday
    Samoyed

The Washington Post: 10 Best Books of 2015 (presented alphabetically by title)

[see also The 10 Best Books of 2023 • 50 Notable Works of Nonfiction in 2023 • 50 Notable Works of Fiction in 2023 • 50 Notable Works of Nonfiction in 2022 • 50 Notable Works of Fiction in 2022 • The 10 Best Books of 2022 • 50 Notable Works of Nonfiction in 2021 • 50 Notable Works of Fiction in 2021 • The 10 Best Books of 2021 • 10 Best Books of 2020 • 50 Notable Works of Nonfiction in 2020 • 50 Notable Works of Fiction in 2020 • Best Books of 2019 • 10 Best Books of 2018 • 100 Notable Books of 2018 • 10 Best Books of 2017 • The 10 Best Books of 2016 • The Ten Best Books of 2014 • Top 10 Books of 2013 • The 10 Best Books of 2012]

• Between the World and Me
  Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Black Flags

  The Rise of ISIS
  Joby Warrick
• The Book of Aron
  Jim Shepard
• Destiny and Power

  The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush
  Jon Meacham
• Fates and Furies
  Lauren Groff
• Future Crimes

  Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It
  Marc Goodman
• A Little Life
  Hanya Yanagihara
• Negroland

  A Memoir
  Margo Jefferson
• Purity
  Jonathan Franzen
• Welcome to Braggsville
  T. Geronimo Johnson

Variety: 10 Best Films of 2015 (as voted by 14 Variety reviewers)

1. Carol
   Todd Haynes
2. The Assassin
   Hou Hsiao-Hsien
3. Mad Max: Fury Road
   George Miller
4. Spotlight
   Tom McCarthy
5. Phoenix
   Christian Petzold
6. The Look of Silence
   Joshua Oppenheimer
7. Inside Out
   Pete Docter
8. Brooklyn
   John Crowley
9. 45 Years
   Andrew Haigh
10. Son of Saul
    László Nemes

This list summarizes other lists, including these:

• A.V. Club: Nick Schager: The Best Films of 2015

Ignatiy Vishnevetsky: The Best Films of 2015, as published by The A.V. Club

[see also 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2014 • 2013]

1. Phoenix
   Christian Petzold
2. It Follows
   David Robert Mitchell
3. Hard to Be a God
   Aleksey German
4. The Assassin
   Hou Hsiao-Hsien
5. Bridge of Spies
   Steven Spielberg
6. Mad Max: Fury Road
   George Miller
7. The Hateful Eight
   Quentin Tarantino
8. Crimson Peak
   Guillermo del Toro
9. Sicario
   Denis Villeneuve
10. Office
    Johnnie To
11. Magic Mike XXL
    Gregory Jacobs
12. Welcome to New York
    Abel Ferrara
13. 45 Years
    Andrew Haigh
14. Horse Money
    Pedro Costa
15. Queen of Earth
    Alex Ross Perry

This list contributes to:

• A.V. Club: 20 Best Films of 2015

Fact Magazine: 50 Best Albums of 2015

[see also 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Blackheart
   Dawn Richard
2. Garden of Delete
   Oneohtrix Point Never
3. To Pimp A Butterfly
   Kendrick Lamar
4. Mutant
   Arca
5. Art Angels
   Grimes
6. 56 Nights
   DJ Esco & Future
6. DS2
   Future
7. Dark Energy
   Jlin
8. Hallucinogen
   Kelela
9. Grind
   DJ Richard
10. RIP Chrysalis
    Eartheater
11. EVENIFUDONTBELIEVE
    Rustie
12. Piteous Gate
    M.E.S.H.
13. Better Strangers
    Acre
14. A Year With 13 Moons
    Jefre Cantu-Ledesma
15. I’ll Try Living Like This
    death’s dynamic shroud
16. Assertion of a Surrounding Presence
    Kuedo
17. Rose
    Abra
18. Olympic Mess
    Helm
19. Dream a Garden
    Jam City
20. The Reach
    Boogie
21. Levon Vincent
    Levon Vincent
22. Platform
    Holly Herndon
23. Summertime ’06
    Vince Staples
24. Knockin’ Boots
    Julio Bashmore
25. Ecologies
    J.G. Biberkopf
26. Who’s Gonna Get Fucked First?
    Father
27. Odyssey
    Murlo
28. Gqom Oh! The Sound of Durban Vol.1
    various artists
29. The Blue Quicksand Is Going Now
    FIS
30. Nothing
    Kode9
31. Pregnant with Success
    Junglepussy
32. Danger
    Nidia Minaj
33. Frozen Niagara Falls
    Prurient
34. Reflection
    Fifth Harmony
35. Sicario (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
    Jóhann Jóhannsson
36. My Last Days
    Johnny May Cash
37. asdfasdf
    Katie Dey
38. We Are Not the First
    Hieroglyphic Being
39. Currents
    Tame Impala
40. Cascade
    William Basinski
41. King Triton
    JT The Goon
42. The Original Faces
    Helen
43. Guud
    Ash Koosha
44. A Shapeless Pool of Lovely Pale Colours Suspended in the Darkness
    Smurphy
45. Sallows
    ANAMAI
46. Gloss
    Theo Burt
47. Insomnia
    Leila Abdul-Rauf
48. Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper
    Panda Bear
49. It Follows (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
    Disasterpeace
50. Sleeping Tapes
    Jeff Bridges

Vogue: The 10 Best Books of 2015

[see also 2023 • 2020 • 2019]

• A Little Life
  Hanya Yanagihara
• Hold Still

  A Memoir with Photographs
  Sally Mann
• Between the World and Me
  Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl
  Carrie Brownstein
• The Story of the Lost Child
  Elena Ferrante
• City on Fire
  Garth Risk Hallberg
• The Love Object
  Edna O’Brien
• H Is for Hawk
  Helen Macdonald
• Outline
  Rachel Cusk
• The Visiting Privilege
  Joy Williams

Sputnikmusic: Top 50 Albums of 2015

[see also 2017]

1. To Pimp A Butterfly
   Kendrick Lamar
2. Carrie & Lowell
   Sufjan Stevens
3. Art Angels
   Grimes
4. Act IV: Rebirth in Reprise
   The Dear Hunter
5. Viet Cong
   Viet Cong
6. Have You In My Wilderness
   Julia Holter
7. No Cities To Love
   Sleater-Kinney
8. In Colour
   Jamie xx
9. Departure Songs
   We Lost the Sea
10. Instant Gratification
    Dance Gavin Dance
11. Pale Horses
    mewithoutYou
12. I Love You, Honeybear
    Father John Misty
13. Sorni Nai
    Kauan
14. Painted Shut
    Hop Along
15. New Bermuda
    Deafheaven
16. Garden of Delete
    Oneohtrix Point Never
17. Meliora
    Ghost B.C.
18. The Epic
    Kamasi Washington
19. Depression Cherry
    Beach House
20. Summertime ’06
    Vince Staples
21. Fading Frontier
    Deerhunter
22. Arcturian
    Arcturus
23. Dumb Flesh
    Blanck Mass
24. E•MO•TION
    Carly Rae Jepsen
25. Divers
    Joanna Newsom
26. The Direction of Last Things
    Intronaut
27. I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside: An Album
    Earl Sweatshirt
28. Under the Red Cloud
    Amorphis
29. The Plague Within
    Paradise Lost
30. Lightless Walk
    Cult Leader
31. Vulnicura
    Björk
32. Peripheral Vision
    Turnover
33. Condition Hüman
    Queensrÿche
34. Currents
    Tame Impala
35. What Went Down
    Foals
36. All Fours
    Bosse-de-Nage
37. Positive Songs for Negative People
    Frank Turner
38. Scar Sighted
    Leviathan
39. How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
    Florence + The Machine
40. Apocalypse, Girl
    Jenny Hval
41. Aphotic Veil
    Exgenesis
42. That’s the Spirit
    Bring Me the Horizon
43. Anareta
    Horrendous
44. The Ride Majestic
    Soilwork
45. Pageant Material
    Kacey Musgraves
46. The Magic Whip
    Blur
47. The Colossus
    Cairo Knife Fight
48. Froot
    Marina and the Diamonds
49. Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress
    Godspeed You! Black Emperor
50. Behind the Devil’s Back
    Fightstar

Pretty Much Amazing: 50 Best Albums of 2015

[see also 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. To Pimp A Butterfly
   Kendrick Lamar
2. Black Messiah
   D’Angelo and The Vanguard
3. Art Angels
   Grimes
4. Carrie & Lowell
   Sufjan Stevens
5. In Colour
   Jamie xx
6. Currents
   Tame Impala
7. Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit
   Courtney Barnett
8. I Love You, Honeybear
   Father John Misty
9. Surf
   Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment
10. E•MO•TION
    Carly Rae Jepsen
11. No Cities To Love
    Sleater-Kinney
12. Vulnicura
    Björk
13. Wildheart
    Miguel
14. Summertime ’06
    Vince Staples
15. VEGA INTL. Night School
    Neon Indian
16. Multi-Love
    Unknown Mortal Orchestra
17. Painted Shut
    Hop Along
18. Fading Frontier
    Deerhunter
19. Viet Cong
    Viet Cong
20. Me
    Empress Of
21. Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper
    Panda Bear
22. Depression Cherry
    Beach House
23. Poison Season
    Destroyer
24. Divers
    Joanna Newsom
25. The Epic
    Kamasi Washington
26. Ratchet
    Shamir
27. I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside: An Album
    Earl Sweatshirt
28. Sprinter
    TORRES
29. Thank Your Lucky Stars
    Beach House
30. Have You In My Wilderness
    Julia Holter
31. B’lieve I’m Goin Down…
    Kurt Vile
32. Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
    Lin-Manuel Miranda and the Original Broadway Cast
33. Goon
    Tobias Jesso Jr.
34. The Agent Intellect
    Protomartyr
35. Compton
    Dr. Dre
36. But You Caint Use My Phone
    Erykah Badu
37. Every Open Eye
    Chvrches
38. Garden of Delete
    Oneohtrix Point Never
39. Sound & Color
    Alabama Shakes
40. Barter 6
    Young Thug
41. How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
    Florence + The Machine
42. Late Nights: The Album
    Jeremih
43. Mutilator Defeated At Last
    Thee Oh Sees
44. Platform
    Holly Herndon
45. Something More Than Free
    Jason Isbell
46. Pageant Material
    Kacey Musgraves
47. Apocalypse, Girl
    Jenny Hval
48. Ten Love Songs
    Susanne Sundfør
49. The Most Lamentable Tragedy
    Titus Andronicus
50. On Your Own Love Again
    Jessica Pratt