dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 9:35:23 GMT -5
If there's anything that betrays me as a millenial (aka the "low attention-span" generation), it's my love for listicles and rankings. Like everyone, I like to rank my favorite movies every year, but this year I took that up a notch. Top 10s, Top 20s? Pah. I rank better, I rank harder, I will rank all the 2018 movies I saw in theaters. And you will read it. OK, you probably won't read it... Various notes : - only movies I saw in theaters. No Netflix, no Hulu, no (gasp!) illegal streaming. I find it hard to compare the theater experience to the "sitting in front of a computer" experience. - Only fiction, no documentaries. Same reason : I don't know how to compare fiction and non-fiction. - Only new releases in French cinemas. For example, I won't include a 1959 movie I saw during a retrospective. And you will have movies that were released way before in American cinemas (mostly the Oscar stuff). OK let's go. We'll first get rid of the BAD movies right away... 98. Wild Mouse (dir. Josef Hader)
I saw no egregiously bad movies this year. No bottom-of-the-barrel stuff. So let the last place be occupied by that extraordinarily forgettable German movie. When we get foreign European movies released in France (with the exception of British ones), it's usually of the arthouse, festivally kind. So how did that 'barely good enough for German TV' movie have that kind of theater release, I never will know. It's not even that bad. Just a big nothing of a movie. 97. Await further instructions (dir. Johnny Kevorkian)
To hell with those Milgramy-Stanfordy 'social experiment' pseudo-nihilistic movies that seem to have been written by your 14-year old cousin who keeps telling you « Free your mind, the TV is brainwashing you, man ! » 96. The Looming Storm (dir. Yue Dong)
A dreary subpar Memories of Murder knock-off. It probably has very pertinent things to say about social and economical dynamics in modern China, I'll let others be the judge of that. But I can recognize bloated and boring when I see it. 95. Eva (dir. Benoît Jacquot)
Benoît Jacquot's (one of the most hit-and-miss French directors working today) follow-up to the intriguing 2016 Never Ever is an uninspired erotic thriller with Isabelle Huppert on autopilot. 94. Lifechanger (dir. Justin McConnell)
The problem with high-concept sci-fi/horror movies like Lifechanger is that sometimes the concept is so « high », and so outlandish, that the script loses all real-life possible echoes and ends up talking to itself, in a vacuum. 93. The Man who killed Don Quixote (dir. Terry Gilliam)
I'm glad that Terry Gilliam finally got that movie out of his chest. The fact that it's a tiresome mess is almost irrelevant. 92. Life Guidance (dir. Ruth Mader)
A cold and distant dystopia so cold and distant I can't even figure out what the fuck is happening. 91. Venom (dir. Ruben Fleischer)
I'll admit having some sympathy towards this movie. It's unusual, and it has funny moments. Still terrible overall. 90. Diamantino (dir. Gabriel Abrantes & Daniel Schmidt)
So there's this famous footballer who lost his funk and who follows this therapy which secret purpose is to clone him to order to advance an anti-immigration agenda, and there's money laundering and giant fluffy dogs... Sigh... I like weird. What I don't like is half-assed randomness. I did like the giant fluffy dogs though. 89. Up among the stars (dir. Zoe Berriatua)
Some interesting visual flourish that are somehow reminiscent of Alex de la Iglesia's work, but the movie seems in constant denial of its own darkness. Wins this year's award in the category 'Ill-advised attempt at making parental abuse whimsical' (last year winner : The Glass Castle). |
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 9:54:41 GMT -5
88. Dachra (dir. Abdelhamid Bouchnak)
A horror movie that comes from an unusual place : Tunisia. And it's impeccable on a technical level : one could absolutely mistake it as coming from a more horror-savvy country. But it's yet another unpleasant-to-look-at found-footage movie, and the story itself sabotages the filmmaker's ambition to denounce some barbaric traditions that plague his country. 87. Abracadabra (dir. Pablo Berger)
I was sold (or, more accurately, I sold myself) a more visually-arresting treat from the maker of Blancanieves. What I got is a pedestrian ghost-possession comedy that's not even half as silly as it should have been to be interesting. 86. Early Man (dir. Nick Park)
Aardman Studios will always have a special place in the pantheon of stop-motion animation. But their recent outputs have been nothing but disappointing lately.
85. Amalia (dir. Omar Rodriguez-Lopez) This off-putting slice-of-life/body-horror hybrid from one half of Mars Volta is, well, one half of a good movie. The 'slice-of-life' one. The other half is confusing, badly put together, and not scary in the slightest. 84. Piercing (dir. Nicolas Pesce)
I... dozed off during the projection. Not the movie's fault, it happens when I didn't sleep well the previous night. But I wasn't especially enthralled by what I saw before nap time. A short, kinky movie probably more suited for kinkier people than I am. 83. The Disaster Artist (dir. James Franco)
Less a movie than a lazy succession of anecdotes straight from IMDb's trivia section for The Room. And the cast is REALLY distracting. OK James, I understand you're buddies with Seth Rogen or Paul Scheer or Charlyne Yi but they're supposed to interpret real people, not slightly different versions of themselves. 82. The Third Murder (dir. Hirokazu Kore-Eda)
I love you, Hirokazu. You're one of my favorite filmmakers. And if you want to branch out and try a crime movie, go for it. It's a little cumbersome and repetitive, but I forgive you in a heartbeat. And i will see Shoplifters very soon, I promise! 81. Kings (dir. Deniz Gamze Ergüven)
Deniz Gamze Erguven flubs her Hollywood post- Mustang debut. Halle Berry and Daniel Craig give great performances, but the movie's sunshiny cinematography and naive plotting seem to give an unwelcome rose-tinted lense to the Rodney King riots. 80. After my death (dir. Ui Seok-Kim)
I remembered liking this movie while leaving the theater, but that movie since flew out of my memory like nobody else's business. 79. On the beach alone at night (dir. Hong Sang-Soo)
I postponed watching a Hong Sang-Soo movie for too long. I had the feeling his cinema would be too « Rohmerian », meandering, plotless, for my tastes. And... I was right ! But I still appreciated it more than I anticipated, particularly because of some unexpected surreal elements. 78. The Unthinkable [Den blomstertid nu kommer] (dir. Crazy Pictures)
This Swedish disaster movie looks incredible considering its small, partially Kickstarter-funded, budget. But it has the same disappointing progression as many apocalypse movies : a solid 45 minutes of interesting character development, but then the disaster happens and it becomes a mish-mash of running, hiding and yelling. 77. Unsane (dir. Steven Soderbergh)
One of the movies I will disagree the most with the “general consensus”. I'll always welcome a new Soderbergh release, whatever the genre. But that one is a little too ludicrous. A thriller has to be a little realistic to be convincing : I can't fear for the protagonist's well-being if I feel that the bad stuff that happens to her is improbable. And Claire Foy's plight, stuck as she is between a murderous stalker and a tyrannical mental institution (no less!), is nothing short of eye-rolling.
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Dellarigg
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Post by Dellarigg on Jan 6, 2019 9:56:08 GMT -5
I used to know (and I'm still facebook friends with) the writer of Await Further Instructions. I was so-so about him as a person, and felt no great wish to see the film. He's sure done a lot of fb posting about it recently though; I liked a few of them, to be gracious.
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 10:12:02 GMT -5
So, that was the BAD. Now, onwards to the MEH76. First Man (dir. Damien Chazelle)
It's competent, it's well acted. It's... boring. To be honest, I wasn't all that interested in the subject matter, and biopics aren't my thing. I don't know what the movie could have done that would've made me like it. I'm simply not the target audience. 75. Galveston (dir. Mélanie Laurent)
Mélanie Laurent's movie has a beautiful feel to it, but weak character work and plot make the movie unengaging. It didn't help that I saw Ben Foster a few days before in the much superior Leave no trace (more on that one later). 74. BlacKkKlansman (dir. Spike Lee)
I wanted a Spike Lee joint. What I got is a Spike Lee movie. That movie had the potential to be such a punch in the face (see the opening scene or the ending) that I was deeply disappointed by how normal it was. 73. School's Out (dir. Sébastien Marnier)
Intriguing and suspenseful, with Laurent Laffitte being his usual amazing. But i was underwhelmed by the ending, and the resolution of it all. The script promises a monumental climax that doesn't happen. 72. Violence Voyager (dir. Ujicha)
It's certainly unusual, and the mixture of childish and gory is incredibly unsettling. But the “moving cardboard cut-outs” animation style makes it hard to maintain interest during a feature-long movie ; it feels cheap after a while, and not pleasant to the eyes. 71. Pig (dir. Mani Haghighi)
Pig has the merit of showing a new facet to the Iranian cinema landscape, far from the kitchen-sink dramas that populate the festival circuits. Pig is punk, nasty, and at times very funny. Until it botchers its finale. 70. Utoya - July 22 (dir. Erik Poppe)
I was high on it when I left the theater but I came down a little, because I think it's a little icky on the moral side. Sure, it's efficient and nerve-racking, but it also depicts a real (and relatively recent) tragedy. It's not the time or the place to show off your technical maestria. 69. Northern Wind (dir. Walid Mattar)
Every year there is a glut of that kind of French 'social issues' movies, and I usually shy away from them (they all look the same). This one was okay but that doesn't make it particularly memorable. 68. Anna and the Apocalypse (dir. John McPhail)
Every musical lives and dies by the quality of its songs. And Anna and the Apocalypse has some good ones. But also some very unmemorable ones. And when the songs aren't very good, your mind tends to focus on the rest, and the rest is a lazily written plot with no conclusion whatsoever. 67. The Field guide to evil (dir. various directors)
Some EXCELLENT shorts (namely from Austria, Poland and Hungary) but also the worst horror short I've seen in my life (from... America!) so that takes it down a few pegs. 66. The Nutcracker And The Four Realms (dir. Lasse Hallström, Joe Johnston)
You know what? It's really pretty to look at. The story's nonsense, but it's a REALLY good-looking movie. |
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 10:28:06 GMT -5
65. The Summit (dir. Santiago Mitre) I like movies about politics but I must be dumb because I have NO idea what Santiago Mitre is going for in that one. I think I like more pulp in my politics... 64. A Quiet Place (dir. John Krasinski)
So that was one of the horror movies this year that everyone was getting crazy about? A movie where characters must be quiet so as not to attract creatures ? How is that a new concept ?
63. S/He (dir. Shengwei Zhou)
A cool stop-motion movie with a nice, sometimes a little too confusing story, but unfortunately I saw the day before the most jaw-dropping stop-motion film in the history of the medium (more on that one later), and this one paled in comparison. 62. 3 Billboards (dir. Martin McDonagh)
I liked that movie overall, but something was off, and I still can't pinpoint what. I think it's a collection of great movie moments that never congel into one great movie. 61. A Simple Favor (dir. Paul Feig)
I'm probably too snobbish of a moviegoer to appreciate fluff for what it is. Here's a movie that tells you “appreciate the humor and the nice costumes. Have fun, and don't focus too much on the plot” and I'm like “NO, I want MORE”. 60. Searching (dir. Aneesh Chaganty)
A interesting and mostly successful experiment, but one that rings false. No phone- or computer-screen that you see in the movie feel like they belong to a real person. They're all too “clean”, too bare-bones. 59. High Life (dir. Claire Denis)
When you hire Claire Denis to do a sci-fi movie, don't expect said movie to be regular sci-fi. So I'm the only one to blame for feeling weirded out. There's some parts that I truly loved, but it then shifts into a completely different direction and I just want the movie to go back to the stuff I love.
58. The Guilty (dir. Gustav Möller)
Similar to Searching, The Guilty bends over backwards to tell a complete story, with beginning, middle and resolution, out of the parcellar knowledge we see on the screen. And it feels artificial and forced. 57. Downsizing (dir. Alexander Payne)
It reminded me of Andrew Niccol's In Time a few years ago. They introduce a sci-fi high concept as a metaphor for the real world, only to completely forget it mid-movie. The subtext becomes text. When Matt Damon is only surrounded by people his size, does it matter any longer that they're tiny? Still not a complete wash though. The sincerity and heart of Downsizing has its charms. 56. Mandy (dir. Panos Kosmatos)
It's weird that I'm being harsher on Mandy than on Nutcracker. Nutcracker : bad story but nice visuals. Mandy : nice visuals but bad story. It's because I expected more of Mandy.
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 10:51:03 GMT -5
The MEH is over. Now on to the GOOD.
55. Under The Silver Lake (dir. David Robert Mitchell)
Could make a good double feature with Inherent Vice, as 'crime movies where the hero is too wasted to truly understand what's going on'. It's fun and trippy, and its meandering plot is, I guess, a feature rather than a bug. But I still left the theater a little underwhelmed. 54. Bad Times At the El Royale (dir. Drew Goddard)
A movie that tries REALLY hard to entertain and surprise you, and it should be lauded for that. Great cinematography and performances. There's 5 or 6 different stories that interconnect, but the thing is, if you single them out, none of them are really interesting. It's the mix that makes the movie compelling. 53. The Darkest Hour (dir. Joe Wright)
I want none of that 'the make-up makes the performance' hot take. Do you really think acting is that easy ? Gary Oldman in incredible in this role and deserved the Oscar. The movie built around him is also good, in the 'stuffy period-piecey Oscar-bait' category. The good kind of Oscar-bait. 52. Phantom Thread (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Meh, I want PTA to go full Magnolia at least once more. Phantom Thread is too distinguished. The kind of movies I want Todd Haynes to make, not PTA. Although there is a welcome perversity to be found if you scratch under the surface. 51. Paul Sanchez Is Back! (dir. Patricia Mazuy)
Another one hard to pin down. An efficient but nondescript thriller with a great ending that ties the movie together. 50. Luz (dir. Tilman Singer)
Very impressive for a student's film with a very limited budget. Director Tilman Singer nails the creepy atmosphere and the ambiguity. 49. Shape Of Water (dir. Guillermo Del Toro)
One of GDT's finest film. I could list its qualities all day. I also didn't believe in the central romance. I can't picture true love without a meaningful form of communication. And Sally Hawkins and the Fishman don't really communicate. 48. Mirai (dir. Mamoru Hosoda)
For one full hour, it's mediocre-to-bad. Too cutesy, not very funny, some scenes even boring. But by Gosh, the last third of the movie is GORGEOUS. One could argue the mundane stuff earlier was necessary to give meaning to the final act. 47. Suspiria (dir. Luca Guadagnino)
Around the same place as Mirai for the exact same reason. Lots of questionable directorial decisions in the first two thirds. But the climax is insane and absolutely unforgettable. 46. Loro (dir. Paolo Sorrentino)
Another one of those 'First bad, then good'. Loro's first half is an unwatchable 45-minutes long vulgar Jean-Paul Gaultier commercial with half naked women dancing to house music around a swimming pool. It then becomes a surprisingly nuanced portrait of the infamous Italian politician. 45. Tully (dir. Jason Reitman)
 I don't want to divulge what makes Tully an interesting watch, besides Charlize Theron's wonderful performance. Something really unexpected happens, but there is one downside : it makes the movie stuck between metaphor and magical realism. 44. I feel good (dir. Gustave Kervern & Benoît Delepine)
One of Kervern/Delepine's sloppiest movie, but also one of their funniest. A charming imperfect movie that got at least a dozen good belly-laughs out of me. 43. Lady Bird (dir. Greta Gerwig)
I was never huge on coming-of-age movies in general, which might explain why I don't love Lady Bird as much as many. But it's competently made and it makes me curious about what's next for newfound director Greta Gerwig 42. Donbass (dir. Sergei Loznitsa)
Sergei Loznitsa pulls no punches in his satirical take on the independentist Ukrainian region. Some parts work better than others, and one could also ponder what's the point in verisimilar reproductions of Youtube videos. But when it's funny, it's very funny and when it's terrifying it's really terrifying. 41. Custody (dir. Xavier Legrand)
I felt that the plot's turn from social study to 'ripped from the headline' thriller could have been done better. But the whole final act is gripping as all hell. 40. Wonder Wheel (dir. Woody Allen)
Above average late-era Woody Allen with a distinct Tennessee Williams flair and great cinematography. On that note, thanks Woody for all the good movies but I think I'm done with you now. I probably put up with you and the crap you did for longer than I should. Now it's over. |
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 11:16:44 GMT -5
That was merely GOOD. But now it's time for the VERY GOOD. 39. The Trouble With You (dir. Pierre Salvadori)
Pierre Salvadori remains the best French comedy director working today. The Trouble With You tries something a little darker than usual, and mostly succeeds, even when it's maybe a little too comedic for its own good. The darkness gets muted and I don't think that was the point. 38. The Mercy (Dir. James Marsh)
The most underseen movie of the year as far as I'm concerned. A delicate and haunting tale of hubris, magnificently acted by Colin Firth. 37. The Incredibles 2 (dir. Brad Bird)
Can we stop saying that Pixar is past its prime? They keep churning out great movie after great movie. Incredibles 2 doesn't reach the heights of Coco (and I prefer my Pixars when they make me bawl my eyes out), but it's still a lot of fun at the movies. 36. Isle of Dogs (dir. Wes Anderson)
I have no strong opinion about the controversy surrounding its depiction of Japanese culture. I thought is was fine but I'm also not Japanese. Isle Of Dogs is no Fantastic Mr. Fox, but it scratched my Wes Anderson itch in a delightful manner. 35. Dark River (dir. Clio Barnard)
I hope Clio Barnard doesn't keep gratuitously introducing super-traumatic events very late in her movies. It worked for The Selfish Giant because it felt like a natural development. But in Dark River, it only feels like misery piling on misery. Which is a shame, because besides that, Dark River was FANTASTIC and poised to be one of my favorite movies of the year.
34. Leave No Trace (dir. Debra Granik)
I have literally nothing bad to say about that movie. Everything is good-bordering-on-great. But it didn't linger in my mind the way some other movies did. 33. Hereditary (dir. Ari Aster)
Better than The Babadook but not as good as It Follows or The Witch in the canon of New Great Horror. The family dynamic is a little been-there-done-that, but what makes Hereditary pop is its sense of restraint and its ability to bypass the traditional "jumpscare/cooling down/jumpscare/cooling down AD LIB" pace of horror movies. 32. The Spy Gone North (dir. Jong-Bin Yoon)
Starts as a traditional (and expertly made) spy movie, then morphs into something more soulful : a sort-of bromance between a North Korean and a South Korean pitted against each other in an absurd war. 31. Burning (dir. Lee Chang-Dong)
I should probably rank it higher. It's SO good. But the ending is SO frustrating. For all its qualities, I still left the theater a little pissed off. I'm not as big a fan of ambiguity as I thought I was. 30. Place Publique (dir. Agnès Jaoui)
 The most inconsequential movie of one of the greatest filmmaking duo in French cinema. It might not be as thought-provoking as their earlier outings, but the gallery of great characters, the exquisite dialogue, the inspired comedy make up for all of it. Jaoui/Bacri seem incapable of doing a bad movie.
29. Last Flag Flying (dir. Richard Linklater)
I'm surprised no one seemed to make a fuss about that sweet movie. A Richard Linklater movie with Steve Carell, Bryan Cranston and Lawrence Fishburne : what more do you want? A Linklater movie with lesser ambitions than Boyhood or the Before trilogy is still a Linklater movie! 28. Terrified (dir. Demian Rugna)
I'd be a bigger fan of jumpscare horror movies if they were all as fun and inspired as Terrified. It's got a very convoluted plot that probably doesn't hold for scrutiny, but it has some scares I've never seen before and it has a great Sam Raimi-like sense of humor. 27. Mary And The Witch's Flower (dir. Hiromasa Yonebayashi)
Sometimes you just want to sit back and visit a wonderfully imaginative fantasy world filled with witches, weird creatures and beautiful landscapes. The substance might disappoint people expecting something akin to Spirited Away, but sometimes the style is enough. What a magical film. 26. Murder Me Monster (dir. Alejandro Fadel)
A new entry into what I read someone else pin as "Zulawski-core" : a monster movie in which the creature is a representation of the characters' psychosexual neuroses (see also : The Untamed). Not profoundly scary, but it had a poetic obliqueness that really jived with me. 25. Call me by your name (dir. Luca Guadagnino)
Yep, it's beautiful. Everyone else said it. I agree with them. Although I had to get past the irritating "rich people doing rich things in rich houses" atmosphere. 24. Dilili in Paris (dir. Michel Ocelot)
It finally clicked. I now understand the appeal of Michel Ocelot. His "side-scrolling" character movements, his caricaturally articulate enunciation, his disregard for shadows and shades : it felt quaint before. But I was enthralled by Ocelot's idiosyncrasies in Dilili in Paris. 23 Lean On Pete (dir. Andrew Haigh)
Beautiful movie about the kind of American people we rarely see on screen. The movie loses some of its poetry after a mid-film plot decision that I won't spoil. That's the only reason it's short of the top twenty |
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 11:35:46 GMT -5
VERY GOOD ain't enough for ya? Have a load of these EXCELLENT movies. 22. How To Talk To Girls At Parties (dir. John Cameron Mitchell)
Want to dismiss my entire ranking ? Look no further. I adored John Cameron Mitchell's critically-panned movie. Hedwig and the Angry Inch is one of my favorite movies, and I desperately wanted him to do something a little colorful and outrageous again. He didn't disappoint me. 21. The Children Act (dir. Richard Eyre)
Don't let the "stuffy British prestige cinema" vibe deter you. It's a quiet and heartbreaking drama, with an excellent script. The fact that it's a faithful adaptation of an great book did probably help. 20. The Dark (dir. Justin P. Lange)
I cried three times, at three different scenes, in the last fifteen minutes of the movie. Maybe the movie pulled easy strings, I don't know, I don't care. You like to cry at the movies, run to see that one. 19. I Am Not A Witch (dir. Rungano Nyoni)
It's the very first movie I saw last year, in the early days of January, and my memory is fuzzy on some elements. Maybe it should be higher, maybe lower. What I remember is that it's an excellent movie that doesn't look like anything else I've seen. 18. Widows (dir. Steve McQueen)
Steve McQueen, after three interesting movies of variable quality, finally found equilibrium between his arthouse and popular sensibilities. Splendid character work and rich worldbuilding make for a riveting heist movie. 17. Everybody knows (dir. Asghar Farhadi)
The second non-iranian movie by Asghar Farhadi is also one of his best. Soapier than usual, but Farhadi's grasp on the characters is so strong that I wouldn't have minded watching them crying and yelling at each other for another hour. 16.Dogman (dir. Matteo Garrone)
Italian cinema gave us two out-of-this-world actor performances this year : Toni Servillo as Berlusconi in Loro, and Marcello Fonte here. His expressive face carries the entire movie, going from funny to tragic to poetic in the blink of an eye. 15.Private Life (dir. Tamara Jenkins)
Man, it's way harder to talk about films you love than films you hate. Private Life is great. Go see it. 14.Spiderman : Into The Spider-verse (dir. Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsay & Rodney Rothman)
The filmmakers knew that Into The Spider-verse would be a landmark in animation for its visuals alone. They could have half-assed the rest, and they didn't : it's funny, it's thrilling, it's moving, it's a small miracle of a movie. 13. The Sisters Brothers (dir. Jacques Audiard)
Thanks Annapurna and Megan Ellison for taking chances, year after after, on those kinds of movies. But you have to step up your game on the marketing level. There was an audience out there for a movie as beautifully filmed and, all things considered, quite accessible as Sisters Brothers. 12.Zama (dir. Lucrecia Martel)
Every frame a wonder. So many things to unpack, background elements to notice... It's a demanding movie, maybe even too demanding for a dummy like me, who completely misunderstood the ending. The all-too-rare Lucrecia Martel is one of the most unsung directors working today. And she deserves better than a Marvel movie.
11.Winter Brothers (dir. Hlynur Palmason)
Like Zama, a movie you can put on mute and simply look in amazement at all the incredible shots. Winter Brothers is weirder and more confrontational. If your own weirdness aligns with the film's, you will watch a harrowing tale of wounded masculinity. |
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Invisible Goat
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Post by Invisible Goat on Jan 6, 2019 12:01:52 GMT -5
Is it okay if I co-opt your thread to post my list which required much less effort and is worse. I'm gonna do it
1. First Reformed
2. Annihilation
3. Roma
4. The Favourite
5. Sorry to Bother You
6. Hereditary
7. Mission: Impossible – Fallout
8. Thoroughbreds
9. Widows
10. Eighth Grade
11. Unsane
12. First Man
13. Vice
14. Suspiria
15. The Death of Stalin
16. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
17. Game Night
18. Blockers
19. A Simple Favor
20. Disobedience
21. You Were Never Really Here
22. Support the Girls
23. Searching
24. Overlord
25. Can You Ever Forgive Me?
26. The Sisters Brothers
27. Private Life
28. BlacKkKlansman
29. Bad Times at the El Royale
30. Isle of Dogs
31. A Star Is Born
32. A Quiet Place
33. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
34. American Animals
35. Solo: A Star Wars Story
36. Black Panther
37. Unfriended: Dark Web
38. Tully
39. Mandy
40. Avengers: Infinity War
41. Ready Player One
42. Mortal Engines
43. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
44. The Meg
45. Hotel Artemis
46. Upgrade
47. The First Purge
48. Set It Up
49. The Hurricane Heist
50. The Commuter
51. Aquaman
52. Hold the Dark
53. The Cloverfield Paradox
54. Skyscraper
55. No Resolution
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dwarfoscar
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 12:10:02 GMT -5
10. In Fabric (dir. Peter Strickland)
It's not as good as The Duke Of Burgundy, but it's only because Duke of Burgundy is a straight-up masterpiece. Peter Strickland is on his way to become my favorite filmmaker. And he can add "excellent comedy writer" on his already impressive résumé. 9. Wildlife (dir. Paul Dano)
Who knew that Paul Dano had that in him? The kind of movie so elegant, so in control of itself, that it seems made by a veteran filmmaker. Carey Mulligan gives the performance of her career, and I'll riot if she is not in contention at the Oscars for Best Actress. 8. Keep An Eye Out! (dir. Quentin Dupieux)
Dupieux does what Dupieux does. You won't like this one if you don't like his other movies. Keep an eye out sees the filmmaker at his most relaxed, far from the philosophical musings of Wrong or Reality, or the aggressivity of Wrong Cops. Here, he only wants to be gently funny, and he makes his most hilarious movie to date. 7. The House That Jack Built (dir. Lars Von Trier)
Honestly, I'm a little uncomfortable with how much I loved The House That Jack Built. It's a completely irresponsable movie in the current climate, not to mention downright narcissistic. But it's very funny, and my favorite kind of laughter is the one that makes you feel shame for having laughed. 6. The Wild Boys (dir. Bertrand Mandico)
There's an emerging school of French weirdoes making movies, and I'm here for it. Bertrand Mandico reigns supreme among them. Wild Boys feels old and new at the same time, as if it was made in a year and a country that don't exist. 5. Quién te cantara (dir. Carlos Vermut)
I loved La Nina de Fuego and was eagerly anticipating Carlos Vermut's next movie. And he's done another masterpiece. Another movie with a bewitching atmosphere, incredible photography and intriguing story. I've read comparisons with De Palma and Almodovar, but it's so perfectly midway between De Palma and Almodovar that it's unmistakably a Vermut movie. 4. The Wolf House (dir. Joaquin Cocina & Cristobal Leon)
There it is, the aforementioned jaw-dropping stop-motion movie. Insanely brilliant and brilliantly insane. Has to be seen to be believed. Find a way to watch it. But don't bring your kids. 3. The Death of Stalin (dir. Armando Iannucci)
Is Armando Ianucci the funniest person alive? If not, he's a solid contender. Every line of dialogue is exquisite. Death Of Stalin might be the best dark comedy ever, because the darkness is never toned down by the comedy. The character of Beria is both hilarious and one of the most terrifying villain I ever got to watch. 2. The Apparition (dir. Xavier Gianolli)
That movie could have gone so wrong in so many directions. It could have been predictable in ten different ways. I literally braced myself mid-movie for ten different endings, and it surprised me with a perfect eleventh one. A thrilling and nuanced examination of faith, so nuanced that it is able to satisfy religious people as well as hopeless atheist killjoys like me. 1. Invasion (dir. Shahram Mokhri)
I don't even know if I recommend that movie. I don't know if it's good. But I liked everything from the first second to the last. Probably not the best movie I've ever seen, but it's the most me movie I've ever seen. As if there was a cable connecting my brain directly to the white screen. I wish everyone gets to have the same experience in a theater.
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dwarfoscar
TI Forumite
it's complicated
Posts: 503
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 12:17:40 GMT -5
Is it okay if I co-opt your thread to post my list which required much less effort and is worse. I'm gonna do it The only way it's worse is because it doesn't have those cool embedded photos. Glad to see someone else nonplussed by Mandy or Blackkklansman (unless you think all your movies all the way to 40 are good, in which case it's been a good year!). I hope we have a French release for Eighth Grade or Thoroughbreds, but it seems unlikely. And yep, Hold the Dark suuuuuucked. |
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Post by Desert Dweller on Jan 6, 2019 21:25:21 GMT -5
Thank you for doing this! Unfortunately, it gave me several more movies that I now want to see.
Sadly, I don't think Carey Mulligan is in contention for the Oscars. She isn't listed in any of the top 10 or even top 15 lists I've seen. And I doubt most of the voters saw the film. You can give a great performance in a film, but if none of the nominating voters see it, then you won't be nominated.
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dwarfoscar
TI Forumite
it's complicated
Posts: 503
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Post by dwarfoscar on Jan 6, 2019 21:42:45 GMT -5
You can give a great performance in a film, but if none of the nominating voters see it, then you won't be nominated. My GIF game is not on point, but if it was, I'd post a GIF of a woman, maybe out of a reality-show, yelling "THAT'S BULLSHIT!" |
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Post by kitchin on Jan 14, 2019 20:44:12 GMT -5
57. Downsizing (dir. Alexander Payne) It reminded me of Andrew Niccol's In Time a few years ago. They introduce a sci-fi high concept as a metaphor for the real world, only to completely forget it mid-movie. The subtext becomes text. When Matt Damon is only surrounded by people his size, does it matter any longer that they're tiny? Still not a complete wash though. The sincerity and heart of Downsizing has its charms. Enjoyed this today on the basic-plus cable channel Epix. Over at the AVClub A.A. Dowd did not like it, but you know how people are about genres. (Whatever his pet genres, but it was something about SciFi vs. Alexander Payne.) Who made the Truman Show (...ggg... Peter Weir, surprising)? Anyway it was better than that over-hyped semi-Spielbergian affair. And it was certainly not all-out Michel Gondry. The social satire is harder and more classical, until we get a discussion of the eight types of f*ck. So it's more romantic than Jonathan Swift, but he might get a kick out of it.
There's a funny visual gag at the end about what smugglers would take to a small world run by an unimaginative public-private partnership: Absolut, WD-40 and one large bottle of Siracha. So A.A. Dowd was wrong about it running out of humor. Also, rather than harming this movie with his ham, Christoph Walz practically saves it.
It also reminded me of a funny thing about butterflies: the word is different in every language. (Yes, I know it's not strictly true, and nature words tend to be idiosyncratic, but it's a nice line. I would use it at one of Christoph Walz's parties.) |
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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Jan 14, 2019 21:20:52 GMT -5
Is it okay if I co-opt your thread to post my list which required much less effort and is worse. I'm gonna do it 1. First Reformed 2. Annihilation 3. Roma 4. The Favourite 5. Sorry to Bother You 6. Hereditary 7. Mission: Impossible – Fallout 8. Thoroughbreds 9. Widows 10. Eighth Grade 11. Unsane 12. First Man 13. Vice 14. Suspiria 15. The Death of Stalin 16. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs 17. Game Night 18. Blockers 19. A Simple Favor 20. Disobedience 21. You Were Never Really Here 22. Support the Girls 23. Searching 24. Overlord 25. Can You Ever Forgive Me? 26. The Sisters Brothers 27. Private Life 28. BlacKkKlansman 29. Bad Times at the El Royale 30. Isle of Dogs 31. A Star Is Born 32. A Quiet Place 33. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? 34. American Animals 35. Solo: A Star Wars Story 36. Black Panther 37. Unfriended: Dark Web 38. Tully 39. Mandy 40. Avengers: Infinity War 41. Ready Player One 42. Mortal Engines 43. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before 44. The Meg 45. Hotel Artemis 46. Upgrade 47. The First Purge 48. Set It Up 49. The Hurricane Heist 50. The Commuter 51. Aquaman 52. Hold the Dark 53. The Cloverfield Paradox 54. Skyscraper 55. No Resolution IG, where would you rate Gotti? |
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Invisible Goat
Shoutbox Elitist
Grab your mother's keys, we're leaving
Posts: 2,644
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Post by Invisible Goat on Jan 14, 2019 21:34:20 GMT -5
Is it okay if I co-opt your thread to post my list which required much less effort and is worse. I'm gonna do it 1. First Reformed 2. Annihilation 3. Roma 4. The Favourite 5. Sorry to Bother You 6. Hereditary 7. Mission: Impossible – Fallout 8. Thoroughbreds 9. Widows 10. Eighth Grade 11. Unsane 12. First Man 13. Vice 14. Suspiria 15. The Death of Stalin 16. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs 17. Game Night 18. Blockers 19. A Simple Favor 20. Disobedience 21. You Were Never Really Here 22. Support the Girls 23. Searching 24. Overlord 25. Can You Ever Forgive Me? 26. The Sisters Brothers 27. Private Life 28. BlacKkKlansman 29. Bad Times at the El Royale 30. Isle of Dogs 31. A Star Is Born 32. A Quiet Place 33. Won’t You Be My Neighbor? 34. American Animals 35. Solo: A Star Wars Story 36. Black Panther 37. Unfriended: Dark Web 38. Tully 39. Mandy 40. Avengers: Infinity War 41. Ready Player One 42. Mortal Engines 43. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before 44. The Meg 45. Hotel Artemis 46. Upgrade 47. The First Purge 48. Set It Up 49. The Hurricane Heist 50. The Commuter 51. Aquaman 52. Hold the Dark 53. The Cloverfield Paradox 54. Skyscraper 55. No Resolution IG, where would you rate Gotti? It's a regrettable blind spot, rando. |
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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Jan 14, 2019 21:59:42 GMT -5
IG, where would you rate Gotti? It's a regrettable blind spot, rando. I am going to watch and rate Gotti and lord this fact over all of you cineastes because my list of the eight 2018 movies that I've seen will have Gotti on it, and none of of yours will. |
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