The buzzy 2015 movie you should see, based on your personality type
Movie awards season is upon us. No time to see all the year’s noteworthy films? No worries. Based on your personality, we pair you with an 2015 movie that should fit you better than that fur pelt wrapped around Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant.
We used personality types based on the famous Myers-Briggs Indicator, which categories personalities based on four traits that indicate how someone processes his or her worldview (extrovert or introvert), information (sensor or intuitor), decisions (thinker or feeler) and structure (judger or perceiver).
Take a quick test, then find your movie match below. Happy awards season.
Personality Type ISTJ: "The Investigator"
About you: You’re responsible, organized and don’t take no for an answer.
Make sure you've seen:Concussion (Already seen it? Go for The Revenant)
USA TODAY review, in two sentences: Concussion digs into the trenches of the NFL. Directed by Peter Landesman (Parkland), the movie (**½ out of four; rated PG-13) features Will Smith in his most transformative role as Bennet Omalu, a real-life forensic pathologist whose work investigating brain damage in pro football players lines him up opposite the NFL.
Type ESTJ: "The Boss"
About you: People call you a natural leader. You like structure.
Make sure you've seen: Jurassic World (You'll probably also like Avengers: Age of Ultron and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2)
Two-sentence review: The computer-generated dinosaurs of Jurassic World (***; PG-13) are just as cool as they were decades ago in Jurassic Park — but it takes the equivalent of a Stone Age to actually get to the exciting parts in this fourth installment in Steven Spielberg's giant-reptile franchise. World is a monster step up from the two disappointing previous sequels, but is sorely missing the heart and inherent wonder of the classic first film.
Type ISFJ: "The Bodyguard"
About you: You’re a creative problem-solver. You’re in tune with others’ feelings. And you always want to do better.
Make sure you've seen: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2
Two-sentence review: After surviving two battle-to-the-death films and one movie mostly about making propaganda material, Jennifer Lawrence’s ace archer is in for one more fight for her life in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2 (**½; PG-13), the explosively uneven finale to the successful movie franchise. It has the best action sequences of all four chapters, though its revolutionary message gets bogged down by a meandering plot and some good old-fashioned overacting.
Type ESFJ: "The Giver"
About you: You find joy in order and in helping other people.
Make sure you've seen:Inside Out (You should also take in a screening of Pitch Perfect 2)
Two-sentence review: It's good to get your emotions in check before watching the exquisite Inside Out. Directed by Pete Docter — the man behind indelible Pixar classics Up and Monsters, Inc. — the animated film (***½; PG) peeks at the goings-on in the noggin of 11-year-old Riley (voiced by Kaitlyn Dias).
Type ISTP: "The Artisan"
About you: You know the devil is in the details. You’re good at a lot of things — and execute best with autonomy.
Make sure you've seen:The Revenant (Other good bets: Spectre and Black Mass)
Two-sentence review: Brutal and beautiful, director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s wilderness thriller (***½; R) showcases man’s savagery and humanity in simpler times. And Leonardo DiCaprio, his usual movie-star good looks hidden under a wild beard, gives a ferocious effort as a real-life frontiersman seeking to survive and avenge.
Type ESTP: "The Live Wire"
About you: A quick-thinker and excellent reader of people.
Make sure you've seen: The Hateful Eight (No. 2 and No. 3 picks for you? Southpaw, and Shaun the Sheep Movie)
Two-sentence review: Quentin Tarantino’s latest film (****; R) mashes up the Western genre with a murder mystery to depict one night with eight unpleasant strangers — some more loathsome than others — packed together in the most tense of situations. It’s also one of the iconoclastic filmmaker’s finest works, mixing gallows humor, ultra-violence and strong character work into a real potboiler.
Type ESFP: "The Artist"
About you: Charming is the first word that comes to mind. You hate being bored and being alone.
Make sure you've seen: Trainwreck
Two-sentence review: Judd Apatow's films have always focused on maturity, be it with a 40-year-old virgin or getting knocked up. But in his latest, a deconstruction of the romantic comedy, star Amy Schumer's character easily lives up to the title of Trainwreck; you know she's going to somehow grow up in the movie (***; R) but she does it in the most raucous way possible, with the help of some amusing athletic supporters.
Type ISFP: "The Author"
About you: You have a distinct sense of style. Your beliefs are paramount. You’re a good listener.
Make sure you've seen:The Danish Girl (Perhaps, also Carol)
Two-sentence review: Delicately directed by Tom Hooper (The King's Speech), the period drama (***; R) features the Theory of Everything star as transgender icon Lili Elbe, the first person known to receive gender reassignment surgery. It's a performance that’s actually more impressive than the one for which Redmayne won his Oscar — playing Stephen Hawking — but he’s not the only standout in this moving love story, as Alicia Vikander proves her thespian mettle in a breakthrough role.
Type ENTJ: "The General"
About you: You’re full of bold ideas. Others follow your lead.
Make sure you've seen: Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Seen it seven times already? Try San Andreas and/or Black Mass)
Two-sentence review: That old Star Wars magic is back. With a cast of entertaining new characters, heartfelt scenes, huge planetary battles and no qualms about being very funny or very dark at times, director J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Force Awakens (****; PG-13) returns the iconic sci-fi franchise to a glorious place that hasn’t been seen since Ewoks danced off into victory in Return of the Jedi.
Type INTJ: "The Intellectual"
About you: Basically, you’re brilliant.
Make sure you've seen: The Martian (Some other good options for you: Spotlight, The Big Short)
Two-sentence review: As an astronaut stranded on the desolate landscape of another world, Matt Damon powers the awesome combo of adventure, humor and human drama in The Martian (***½; PG-13), director Ridley Scott’s latest venture into the sci-fi genre. Instead of aliens or replicants, the biggest antagonists in front of Damon’s Mark Watney in the adaptation of Andy Weir's novel are time and the wild and woolly nature of outer space.
Type ENTP: "The Idealist"
About you: Ideas? You’re full of them. It’s not hard for you to find success.
Make sure you've seen: Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (You'll also probably meld well with Star Wars, duh, Room and Ted 2)
Two-sentence review: Deftly juggling humor and heartache while always exuding a lovable quirkiness, the excellent art-house comedy/drama (***½; PG-13) showcases three teenagers. They pop off the screen with originality and, unlike a lot of the current coming-of-age ilk, just the right amount of unpredictability.
Type INTP: "The Planner"
About you: You need the truth. You’re quite logical, but also excel at out-of-the-box thinking.
Make sure you've seen: Bridge of Spies (Thumbs up also go to The Big Short, Spotlight)
Two-sentence review: As good-hearted and perseverant lawyer James Donovan in Bridge of Spies, Tom Hanks has a scene where he inexplicably orders two breakfasts in a German hotel. His earnest attorney doesn’t get to eat either of them, but the idea of a meal is fitting when talking about director Steven Spielberg’s latest historical drama (***; PG-13), which is not phenomenal, especially compared to the rest of the Spielberg oeuvre, but still hits the spot.
Type ENFJ: "The Professor"
About you: You dig a challenge. Challenges stoke your creative juices.
Make sure you've seen: The Big Short (Already on your radar? Check out Creed)
Two-sentence review: Putting Margot Robbie in a bubbly hot tub and having her explain risky mortgages is one way to make a movie about financial scandal somewhat palatable. The subject matter is dry, but at least it’s made entertaining in director Adam McKay’s The Big Short (**½; R), a tragi-comic satire of sorts about iffy dealings in the housing industry and how a small group of people could see the 2008 financial crisis coming years before America had to bail out its banks.
Type INFJ: "The Advocate"
About you: You’re full of big ideas, and big beliefs. And you strive to do better.
Make sure you've seen:Southpaw (See also Sicario and Mad Max: Fury Road)
Two-sentence review: As champ-turned-chump Billy Hope, Jake Gyllenhaal shines with the same intensity he showed in Jarhead and Nightcrawler, and performances from him and Forest Whitaker lift up a movie that goes a full 12 rounds of rope-a-dope with every boxing-movie story trope. In a lot of ways, Southpaw (***; R) is actually Rocky in reverse: Instead of climbing up from nothing, Billy starts off on top of the world as the light heavyweight champ who mounts no defense whatsoever in his bouts.
Type ENFP: "The Ace"
About you: You can be a bit of a chatterbox, and a bit scattered. But you are talented at many things.
Make sure you've seen: Pitch Perfect 2 (Another good choice for you is Minions)
Two-sentence review: You have to love a movie about collegiate a cappella singers that references Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor in a bawdy joke. While just a jot less fun than its predecessor, Pitch Perfect 2 is a worthy sequel in tone, even if the story feels padded with a few too many montages (**1/2; PG-13).
Type INFP: "The Therapist"
About you: Sensitive, and bursting with purpose.
Make sure you've seen: Carol (Tick off also Room and Brooklyn)
Two-sentence review: With terrific acting performances and a bygone era that sparks to life with impressive filmmaking, Carol crafts a memorable romance. Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara put on their own two-woman masterclass in director Todd Haynes’ 1950s period drama (***½; R), an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s The Price of Salt.