10. Green Book
Dir. Peter Farrelly
Dumb and Dumber is (abashedly) my favorite movie of all time, but even after defending that 90s goofball comedy for years, even I was surprised that director Peter Farrelly could pull a movie like Green Book off! The film, based on a true story, follows the budding friendship between Dr. Shirley (Mahershala Ali), a world-class African-American concert pianist, and his driver Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen), a tough-talking Italian American from the Bronx, as they embark on a concert tour through the Deep South in 1962. Although it's a little hokey, it's the good kind of crowd-pleaser. Funny, heartfelt, and socially-conscious, Green Book is a pleasant deviation from Farrelly's typical low-hanging slapstick material!
9. Won't You Be My Neighbor?
Dir. Morgan Neville
The documentary Won't You Be My Neighbor isn't just a great biography of one of the most iconic figures in children's television - its power comes from the fact that it illuminates the guiding philosophies behind Fred Rogers' productions, showing how deeply felt and truly groundbreaking the program really was. It's sad, but the fact that he respected his audience and promoted loving each other seems pretty antiquated in 2018. Won't You Be My Neighbor is a moving, insightful, entertaining movie that paints a fascinating portrait of a man you may think you already know!
8. The Hate U Give
Dir. George Tillman Jr.
Based on the young adult novel of the same name, The Hate U Give, despite its status as a story for "young adults," is an incredibly powerful film about poverty and race and hatred that couldn't be more relevant right now. After witnessing the murder of a close friend at the hands of a police officer, Starr Carter (Amandla Stenberg) has to come to terms with her identity in both the poor, primarily black neighborhood in which she lives and the rich, mostly white prep school she attends. Harrowing, emotional, and lead by an amazing central performance from Stenberg, The Hate U Give is a gripping story of social justice.
7. First Man
Dir. Damien Chazelle
Neil Armstrong is one of those iconic Americans that can be easy to take for granted - but when you think of it, he really was just a human being like the rest of us, and, at no small sacrifice, took those first steps on the moon with no knowledge of what could happen. First Man humanizes Armstrong's journey up to the big rock in the sky, showing the toll it took on his family and the ramshackle "safety" of the spacecrafts he flew in. A visceral, epic movie that perfectly combines the grandeur of space travel with an intimate character drama.
6. Annihilation
Dir. Alex Garland
Like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Annihilation won't give you all the answers to its mysteries, but that doesn't make it any less intriguing. This nightmare-fuel sci-fi movie follows a group of military scientists into "The Shimmer," a mysterious, quarantined zone where people go missing and the laws of nature don't seem to apply. With alternately beautiful and chilling imagery, an eerie, ethereal music score, and a story framed like a philosophical puzzle box, Annihilation is intense, surreal, and gets under your skin in the best way!
5. Searching
Dir. Aneesh Chaganty
At first glance, the story for Searching seems pretty pedestrian: a thriller about a father looking for his missing daughter. However, the gimmick of Searching brings a whole new, intriguing layer to the drama: the entire film is told through the screens and technology used by the determined father (John Cho) to find out what happened. In addition to being a powerful father-daughter story, this film uses technology to explore the hidden lives we hide from others online, as well as the many ways that it has completely changed how we live and function in the world. Just the fact that a movie like this exists - that all the tools necessary to solve a missing persons case can be found on your computer - is a fascinating comment on our current screen-obsessed society.
4. Three Identical Strangers
Dir. Tim Wardle
Three Identical Strangers is one of those "truth is stranger than fiction" stories. It examines a set a triplets who at 6 months old were adopted by three separate families, unaware that each child had brothers. Through archival footage, re-enactments, and present-day interviews, Three Identical Strangers brings to light the incredible story of the brothers' reunion and the dark secrets behind their separation. Don't look up spoilers for this one before watching it!
3. Paddington 2
Dir. Paul King
I know that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but if your heart doesn't melt while watching Paddington 2, I'm pretty sure you're a sociopath. This sequel to the charming Paddington tops the first film with some amazing physical comedy that would make the silent greats proud, and a pure-hearted character and story that will make you go "aw." A perfect film for audiences of all ages!
2. Phantom Thread
Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
Paying homage to the "twisted romances" of Hitchcock films like Rebecca and Vertigo, Phantom Thread is filled with romantic tension and subtle humor, woven around an intricate story with perfectly developed characters. Daniel Day-Lewis plays a meticulous, renowned London fashion designer in the 1950s whose budding romance with a waitress opens himself up to her more "free spirited" ways. Everything about this movie feels elegant, from the music to costumes to the performances, and I love how the tension builds and builds until... well, watch the movie to find out!
1. Eighth Grade
Dir. Bo Burnham
Being a kid is always tough, but being a kid today must REALLY suck. With the proliferation of Smartphones and social media, that awkward period of time where we're learning about "who we are" is now possibly available online for everyone to see! Eighth Grade, the dramedy from comedian Bo Burnham, captures this period of time incredibly honestly, and is never anything less than hilarious or heart-rendingly relatable. The thirteen-year-old Kayla (Elsie Fisher) looks and sounds like a real middle schooler, and her pitch-perfectly awkward performance expertly holds together this story about the warped perspectives of teens and technology in the modern age.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
BEAST - Dir. Michael Pearce
A troubled, lonely woman is torn between her controlling family and a secretive man, suspected of a series of murders, that she's starting to fall in love with! A twisted, tense romance!
CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? - Dir. Marielle Heller
True story of Lee Israel, a failed author who in the 1970s turned to forging literary documents. Melissa McCarthy delivers a great performance!
CHRISTOPHER ROBIN - Dir. Marc Forster
A grown-up Christopher Robin, now a working class family man, reconnects with his childhood bear friend Winnie the Pooh, and learns the joy of life again. Beautiful movie with amazing, photorealistic effects!
INCREDIBLES 2 - Dir. Brad Bird
In this long-awaited sequel, the Parr household is thrown for a loop when Bob - Mr. Incredible - must manage the house, while his wife - Elastigirl - goes out to save the world. Perfectly balances superhero action, domestic drama, and slapstick, animated comedy.
MID90s - Dir. Jonah Hill
The heartfelt and authentic directorial debut of Jonah Hill, following a 17-year-old in Los Angeles navigating between his troubled home life and his new skateboarder friends.
OH LUCY! - Dir. Atsuko Hirayanagi
A sweet and funny tale about a lonely woman in Tokyo who takes an English class, where she develops an alter ego named Lucy, as well as an unrequited crush on her teacher.
SUSPIRIA - Dir. Luca Guadagnino
Genuinely disturbing, creepy remake of the 1977 Italian horror movie, following an ambitious young dancer who joins a renowned German dance company secretly run by witches.
UPGRADE - Dir. Leigh Whannell
A gritty, low-budget sci-fi movie in the vein of Robocop about a technophobe who, after an accident, is outfitted with a computer chip that turns him into a killing machine.
WHITNEY - Dir. Kevin Macdonald
An in-depth look into pop star Whitney Houston's legendary rise and fall. An unflinching and moving tribute.
Here are some movies I missed out on this year: Bad Times at the El Royale, Ben is Back, Burning, Cold War, Destroyer, Don't Worry He Won't Get Far on Foot, The Front Runner, Hearts Beat Loud, The House that Jack Built, If Beale Street Could Talk, Love Simon, Mary Queen of Scots, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Old Man and the Gun, On the Basis of Sex, Puzzle, Shoplifters, 22 July, Vox Lux, White Boy Rick, The Wife, Wildlife, and probably others!
Thanks for reading! Can't wait to see what awesome movies I'll get to see in 2019!
No comments:
Post a Comment