I'm getting this out super late, but here it is. After a few years absence, my 20 favorite films of 2018. This has been an amazing year for film, so, like many other years, I am going to give you a list a flicks that barely made it into the list. They were still so good, that I really feel that I need to give them the love. Here are numbers 35-21!
(As of this writing, I still have not seen "Roma" or "You Were Never Really Here" despite both of them being on streaming. I know, "Shame on me.")
35. Bad Times at the El Royale
34. A Futile and Stupid Gesture
33. Hostiles
32. Mission: Impossible: Fallout
31. Incredibles 2
30. The Old Man & the Gun
29. Mid90's
28. Support the Girls
27. Vice
26. A Quiet Place
25. First Man
24. Creed II
23. Teen Titans Go! To the Movies
22. Leave No Trace
21. Disobedience
20.
American Animals
Part documentary, part heist film. The true story of 4 young men trying to steal rare books from a college campus was a brilliant exercise in tension. The dramatic performances matching up with the interviews were so well done. The editing between the two was storytelling done right in every single way. Writer/director Bart Layton uses the opposing views of the interviewees to construct an unreliable narrator that blurs the line between fiction and life. It certainly takes you for quite the ride.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Real life people interacting with their dramatized counterparts. What is not to love?
19.
Vox Lux
"Vox Lux" is a stark look at celebrity and its toxic nature. Natalie Portman throws in a near career best performance as Celeste, a pop star who uses her wounding in a school shooting to rise to prominent stardom. At a young age she is given anything and everything she can get her hands on, and it leads to her eventual downfall. Brady Corbet has a knack for mining human despair. He sets Celeste at odds with everyone in her orbit (her sister, her long time manager, and her daughter), and explores her self destruction with such intimacy. It isn't a comfortable watch, but it is well made one.
Moment I Fell in Love:
The prologue is gripping and shocking in all the greatest, and most upsetting, ways.
18.
Unsane
Claire Foy had a hell of a 2018, didn't she? "The Crown" really launched her into stardom. She had "First Man", playing Janet Armstrong against Ryan Gosling, and she became the third actress to play Lisbeth Salander in "The Girl in the Spider's Web". For my money, though, her finest performance came in Steven Soderbergh's "Unsane", where she plays a woman locked in a mental institution against her will. What we are given is thrilling film about the modern health care system, and the fight women face to get the care they deserve.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Claire Foy giving a clinic in acting confused and terrified.
17.
Isle of Dogs
I'm sure no one is surprised to see Wes Anderson on this list. This year he crafted his second fully stop-motion animated film about a young boy trying to find his lost dog after Japan has exiled dogs to a garbage dump due to a sickness named dog flu. More to the point, he struck up a beautiful narrative about the limits of language, and how we let it separate us as a people. The voice cast is stacked with all-star talent from top to bottom, and the trash island that the majority of the film is set on, is an imaginative wasteland that we are lucky enough to trip through.
Moment I Fell in Love:
It is an animated film about dogs by Wes Anderson. I fell in love when they greenlit this puppy.
16.
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
When the Coen Brothers get dark, they really go for it. This time they have an anthology of six short films set in the West. From a white clad murderous gunslinger (played hilariously by Tim Blake Nelson) facing a younger man in a duel, to a young soon-to-be betrothed woman and her brother heading west in a wagon train, to a quadruple amputee reciting monologues on a travelling wagon for small crowds. "Scruggs" examines themes of death and betrayal with sincerely dark humor in a way only the Coen Brothers can makes look seamless.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Any film with Tom Waits gets bonus points. Any film with Waits singing gets SUPER bonus points.
15.
The Favourite
Restoration Era politics were never my specific cup of tea, but I will be damned if Yorgos Lanthimos didn't make them one of the most entertaining, hilarious, and awkwardly gripping things in film this year. Lanthimos anchors his cast with three incredible leading ladies: Olivia Colman as Queen Anne, (in my favourite performance of the year), Rachael Weisz as Anne's closest adviser, Lady Sarah (picking up where she left off in "Disobedience"), and a career best Emma Stone as Abigail, the new girl in the palace. Beautifully shot, well scored, and an all around joy to watch. Can't wait to see what he has next in line.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Robbie Ryan's gorgeous cinematography. Everything is so beautifully framed!
14.
Black Panther
After making my
favorite film of 2013, and bringing the "Rocky" franchise back to glorious prominence with "Creed", director Ryan Coogler continues his hot streak with easily one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's best films. A tale that is as much about the struggle of man's sudden rise to power, as it about the dangers of isolationism in modern society. It is a film of its time, as well as a timeless piece that speaks truth to power. The cast is incredible, the visuals are stunning, and it is packed with touching moments that leave a lasting impression. WAKANDA FOREVER!
Moment I Fell in Love:
Michael B. Jordan putting in the leg work as the MCU's most memorable film villain.
13.
Eighth Grade
How did a YouTube sensation, and stand-up comedian, write and direct a such a beautiful film that made me find a piece of myself in both an introverted 14 year-old girl, and her dopey, well-meaning single father? It was such a personal film, with such straightforward premise: a young girl tries to find herself in her last days of middle school. It is moving, awkward, and never ironic. Elsie Fisher's Kayla is one of the most human performances of the year, and her lack of an Oscar nomination is heartbreaking. Thank you, Bo Burnham. You have crafted an earnest and beautiful look at depression and loneliness in the internet age.
Moment I Fell in Love:
"Gucci!"
12.
First Reformed
Speaking of depression and loneliness! Paul Schrader has found his way back into my heart (as if he ever left) by writing and directing a film about a preacher (Ethan Hawke) in a small, historic church who finds himself at odds with his megachurch donors when a member of his congregation commits suicide over the looming climate change crisis. He has trouble reconciling the church's view on the matter with the known science, and the inhumanity it takes to ignore the facts. It becomes a breathtaking look at the blind following of clueless leaders, and finding spirituality in connection to nature and fellow man.
Moment I Fell in Love:
My final sentence made visual in the moment pictured above.
11.
Suspiria
Let me be the first to admit, I have some vague ideas, but I still don't know 100% what I was supposed to take away from this Dario Argento remake. It is visual treat from start to finish, however. Luca Guadagnino crafts a haunting film about a dance troupe, it's strange inner workings, and the nefarious purposes of its stark choreography. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom's beautiful framing, and use of color is pleasing to the eye in every conceivable way. Performances from Tilda Swinton and Dakota Johnson top a stunning cast, and a film that has to be seen to be believed.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Did I mention Tilda Swinton?
10.
The Hate U Give
This is one of many films this year that made check my privilege at the door. I will never get to know, personally, the black experience in America. I will never have to live with the fear that comes along with it. I will always have the privilege of my fair skin to insulate me from the injustice faced by many in its community. The violence forced on African-Americans in this country is disheartening. Having to watch it through the eyes of the community's younger generation, while they prime targets for profiling, and their lives can be taken by law enforcement for any reason, is emotionally crippling. A stunning leading turn from Amandla Sternberg as Starr Carter fronts an excellent cast for one of director George Tillman, Jr.'s absolute best.
Moment I Fell in Love:
I like when a film can keep me emotionally off-balance through its runtime. This did exactly that.
9.
Sorry to Bother You
I had been a huge fan of hip hop artists, The Coup, for a long time (R.I.P. Pam the Funkstress). When I heard that Boots Riley, the group's MC, was going to be directing an absurdist comedy about a man named Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield in a truly wonderful performance) finding success in telemarketing by finding his "white voice", I thought I knew what I was in for. I did receive gleefully anarchist and anti-capitalist social commentary that warmed my black heart. What I didn't expect was the absolute gonzo, out of left field twist that shocked a theatre goer so much, that he left my screening, and did not return. And saying there is a twist is not a spoiler, because if you think you have an idea what it is, then you have no idea what it is. THANKS, BOOTS!!!
Moment I Fell in Love:
"OH YEAH! ALRIGHT! HELL YEAH! THAT'S TIGHT!"
8.
Tully
It is rare to see parenting young children represented so honestly on screen in all of its ugly, thankless glory. Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody did it though, and... whew, damn... was it hard to watch. Charlize Theron plays a mother of three young children, one being a newborn, and is having trouble keeping up. She hires a night nanny, played by Mackenzie Davis, to help with the newborn and night, and the two spark a instant friendship. The places this film goes to show the genuine terror and heartache that goes into parenting through postpartum depression is moving, and all too realistic. As the father of two young boys, it made me feel horribly guilty for seeing this while my wife was at home with them. Sorry, my love...
Moment I Fell in Love:
A montage of made of parenting nightmares.
7.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
I am going to say some things now. You are welcome to disagree with them. This is the most enjoyable comic book movie of the decade so far. I believe it is easily the first great film to feature the character of Spider-Man since Sam Raimi made "Spider-Man 2" in 2004. It is the single most heartfelt and visually stunning comic book movie (possibly) to date. The only comic adaptation that even comes close to it this year is "Black Panther". The themes of loss and self discovery are only rivaled by Disney's "Big Hero 6", and the stylish comic book presentation feels like the spiritual successor to Edgar Wright's "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World". Never boring, never wavering, never unsure of itself. It is at once a complete deconstruction of, and love letter to, the genre. Great job again Lord and Miller. If we couldn't get your version of "Solo", I am glad we got your version of "Spider-Man" in its place.
Moment I Fell in Love:
"I don't think you know what puberty is."
6.
Paddington 2
I'm not sure that there is anything negative I could say about Paul King's "Paddington 2". It is equally as charming, equally as vibrant, and equally as moving as his first outing. Except this time King obviously has his sights set on the most polite take down of Brexit. Paddington Bear is jailed for a crime he didn't commit, and it is up to the Browns to try to get him released. His absence in the neighborhood begins to show, and the man responsible, A British actor played perfectly by Hugh Grant, is still on the loose committing more crimes. The film is part comedy, part adventure, part family drama, part watching Hugh Grant fill his stomach with as much scenery as one actor possibly can (in the best way). This could have easily been my number one, if not for...
Moment I Fell in Love:
Seeing the trailer.
5.
Blindspotting
Real life friends, and Oakland natives, Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal, wrote and directed a captivating tale about perception, and the trouble with taking anything at face value. Every plot thread leads back to this theme, and they go to some weighty places. Diggs plays a recently released convict that is re-evaluating his current surrounds, and the relationship with his closest friend (played by Casal), when he becomes witness to the murder of a black man at the hands of the police. Set against the gentrification of Oakland, this film takes on race relations in this country to some truly heart wrenching places.
Moment I Fell in Love:
A long freeform rap that Diggs spouts near the end of the film.
4.
Annihilation
Long time writer Alex Garland has written and directed two films now that have graced my top five. This time he brings a cast of all-star female talent to the table, and puts them in a sci-fi horror film that is as beautiful as it is tense. Garland takes long, existential look at the nature of death, and the affect it has on the living against the backdrop of an alien shimmer that is morphing the DNA of a natural preserve to stunning effect. It is a slow burn that often turns the tension up to 11, and leaves the viewer with more questions than when they walked in.
Moment I Fell in Love:
That scene with the bear. You know the one.
3.
Hereditary
There is so much heartache in this movie, and I do a love a good smattering of heartache in my horror. At its heart "Hereditary" is more of a family drama, with elements of horror, but the deeper it delves into horror, the more beautiful the story becomes. Toni Collette plays a mother whose life, and family, are slowly falling apart, possibly due to supernatural forces. She runs a full gamut of emotions, and anchors a wonderful cast in a gruesome film that may leave your stomach churning from the depths the film explores.
Moment I Fell in Love:
The out of left field twist that changed the entire feeling of the film.
2.
BlacKkKlansman
Spike Lee has inspired me throughout my life. With films like "Do the Right Thing", "Bamboozled", and "Malcolm X", to name a few. He stood out as a director of great vision and passion. Add this to the list of his very best. A strong film about a the first black cop in Colorado Springs (John David Washington) infiltrating the local KKK chapter, over the phone, with the help of a Jewish colleague (Adam Driver) posing as him in face to face meetings. The pacing is tense, the story unravels nicely, and the performances are a cut above so many this year, especially Washington's star-making turn as the real-life inspiration, Ron Stallworth. I have many hopes that this will take home a few gold statues this year, but I guess we will see.
Moment I Fell in Love:
Stallworth calls the head of the Klan chapter while the rest of the detective force listens in disbelief.
1.
If Beale Street Could Talk
Barry Jenkins is shaping up to be the director of this generation. His visual style is fluid and stunning. The ways he tells stories is methodical and touching. Actors in his films clearly care about the stories he chooses to tell, and give star making performances time and again. "If Beale Street Could Talk" looks at how the story of black America never seems to change, and how a story from 1970's Harlem is just as sadly relevant in 2018 (as shown by a few other picks in this top ten). It is a story about love, injustice, and the racial divide that continues to grow in this country. It is achingly beautiful, and utterly heartbreaking, and its two leads, Kiki Layne and Stephan James, are captivating enough to have had me on the brink of tears for the nearly two hour run time.
Moment I Fell in Love:
That opening shot. Jenkins tells us so much, and sets the mood perfectly.
