Between taking advantage of the rise and fall of MoviePass, the subsequent transition (for myself and many others) to AMC Stubs A-List, and me keeping track of the movies I watched via Letterboxd for the first time, 2018 was a pretty big movie year for me. Here is a list of my top ten movies of the year. 10. Mission: Impossible - FalloutWatching Mission: Impossible - Fallout in 3D after watching through the entire franchise in the weeks leading up to its release was my most enjoyable moviegoing experience in recent years. Christopher McQuarrie manages to string together several unforgettable action set pieces with a plot that moves forward relentlessly, but isn't difficult to follow. It's full of twists and turns, most of which I probably could have figured out ahead of time if I bothered to try, but I was having too much fun to do that. I threw my hands up in gleeful shock several times, thinking (and sometimes saying out loud), "Wow, I love movies!" 9. BlacKkKlansmanBlacKkKlansman is a buddy cop movie about a black man infiltrating the KKK in the 1970's. John David Washington and Adam Driver have a great onscreen chemistry that made this film a lot more fun than I was expecting it to be, while also adding to the gravity of this true story. Terence Blanchard enhances the movie with one of my favorite original scores of the year, featuring Hendrix-esque electric guitar as well as sweeping orchestral swells. The film has received some criticism for how accurate it is to its source material and how it handles some of the heavy topics it attempts to tackle. While these criticisms are valid and quite possibly accurate, BlacKkKlansman was still helpful for me as a white man in understanding the dynamics of what was happening with racism in the 1970's, and how much of that has carried forward to the modern age. 8. A Star is BornWhen I first saw the trailer for A Star is Born, I thought it looked like stinky doodoo garbage juice. I then proceeded to log onto the world wide web to find the universe ooh-ing and ah-ing about how wonderful it looked, and was dumbfounded. Eventually, I came around to the hype, understanding the film for what it is supposed to be. I was charmed by my first viewing, and absolutely enthralled by my second. I love rock and roll. A Star is Born portrays rock and roll, and live music in general, better than any movie I've ever seen (except maybe School of Rock, which is a flawless film, don't @ me). There was pretty much no hope of me getting much enjoyment out of this year's other live-music flick Bohemian Rhapsody after being captivated by the lifelike energy that this film puts forth in its concert sequences. Of course, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper are both amazing in their chemistry and in their individual performances. This fourth incarnation of A Star is Born is predictable, cheesy, and not particularly original, but it also completely works for me 100% of the time. 7. Paddington 2Okay, I know, I know, but listen... Paddington 2 really is as good as everyone is telling you it is. I promise. Paddington is a kind little bear who just wants to get his Aunt Lucy a pop-up book for her birthday. And you know what? That's pretty much it. Sure, hijinks ensue, and he ends up getting thrown in jail for a crime he didn't commit, but the plot of this adorable and moving little story is remarkably simple. I could talk about the beautiful cinematography, the perfectly whimsical set and costume designs, or Hugh Grant's wonderfully hilarious performance as the villain, but I don't really want to. I just want to say that Paddington 2 is a very nice movie, and we need more nice movies. 6. First ManI'm a sucker for any story about a person who's grieving and is terrible at expressing his/her emotions (Manchester by the Sea was another one of these that spoke my language). I had no clue that’s what I was walking into when I bought a ticket for First Man. The breathtaking rocket launch and moon landing sequences are just icing on the cake that is Ryan Gosling's perfectly subtle performance as the socially inept weirdo that was Neil Armstrong. But the moment I would find myself laughing at him for being such a big dumb dork, he’d do something that felt like a punch in the gut. It was like he was leaning out of the screen, poking me in the chest, and yelling, “THIS IS YOOOOUUUU, DON’T YOU GET IT? I’M YOU! WHY ARE YOU SO SCARED OF YOUR FEELINGS? WHY ARE YOU SO COLD TO YOUR LOVED ONES?” Maybe I need to go to the moon. 5. Bad Times at the El RoyaleBad Times at the El Royale might be the most controversial entry on my top ten list, as it received pretty mixed reviews and was criticized by many for being a fun but rather simple Tarantino knockoff. However, I think Drew Goddard has a lot of stuff that he's trying to say in this admittedly overstuffed little romp that you would never see in a Tarantino Flick. Every single performance is so incredibly fun to watch, and all the plot threads come together in a really satisfying way. Sure, this movie is dark, but it's not cynical. Even after maintaining a gritty and violent tone throughout, it somehow manages to end on a pretty hopeful note that doesn't feel trite or forced. Bad Times at the El Royale takes the "people aren't who they appear to be" narrative and turns it on its head, leading up to a fulfilling and somewhat honorable ending that's not really common for bloodbath flicks like this. It runs and it jumps and it flips, and it comes super close to sticking the landing. 4. First Reformed"Wisdom is holding two contradictory truths in our mind, simultaneously, Hope and despair. A life without despair is a life without hope. Holding these two ideas in our head is life itself." The modern church loves to throw around pithy little statements akin to this quote from the protagonist of First Reformed, ("living in/embracing the tension") but this movie brings this idea to life in a way that can't be done in a five point sermon. Reverend Ernst Toller, played by Ethan Hawke, finds himself in a position that seems to be pretty common for many young people in the church today: frustrated, and somewhat hopeless, but also leaning into his faith and trying to figure out how it fits into a changing world. As gloomy as First Reformed is from start to finish, it seems to be birthed out of that growing movement of angry people who believe the church is supposed to be a force for justice. The one scene where Toller acts the slightest bit happy is when he's teaching a group of kids about the church's history of hiding slaves on the underground railroad. This film paints an uncomfortable picture of what happens when a clergyman realizes that what happens to the world is, in part, his responsibility--an important message for a church that largely seems to think its job is to keep its hands clean, distance itself from the 'world', and wait for Christ to return. 3. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-VerseAnimation is an underutilized medium, especially in the action genre. So when I heard we were getting an animated Spider-Man movie for the big screen I was on board pretty much immediately. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse understands Spider-Man at a fundamental level better than any other previous movie that his featured the character. If I may speak for the entire world for just a moment, we love Spider-Man because we can see ourselves in him. This film is all about how a hero can come from anywhere, which feels like a really important message in this superhero-saturated culture that's jam packed with uber specific origin stories. There is a lot going on in this thing, but for the majority of the time it doesn't really feel like it. Writers Lord and Miller trust their audience to understand what's going on without too much clunky exposition, which allows them to glide through a colorful world at a breakneck pace without feeling lost. And of course, the visuals are unique and mesmerizing. More animated action movies, please! 2. Incredibles 2 Speaking of animated action movies... The Incredibles just might be my favorite movie of all time, so the bar was really high for me going into this one. Somehow, writer and director Brad Bird made a sequel that comes pretty close to to the quality of its predecessor in almost every way. I say almost every way, because there is one category in which Incredibles 2 actually tops the first one by quite a bit, and that's comedy. From baby Jack Jack straight up fist-fighting a raccoon to the perfectly executed visual of water spraying out of Violet's nose when she sees that her crush Tony (hit up the contact form if you're interested in joining the Tony Rydinger fan club) is her waiter at the diner, this movie is so dang funny. And Michael Giacchino's energetic big band score is excellent, accenting every moment perfectly from start to finish. With tight and intentional storytelling, it hits all the beats that you would expect an Incredibles sequel to hit, but it hits them so hard and so dead-on that the predictability takes absolutely nothing away from this fun action flick. I believe Brad Bird is one of the greatest filmmakers of our time, and while I can't wait to see what original work he cranks out next, I would buy a ticket for a third Incredibles film in a heartbeat. 1. Eighth GradeWorking for YOKE Youth, I spend a lot of time around middle school students, and they are some of my favorite people in the world.
Bo Burnham's Eighth Grade nails the trauma of middle school in a way that is sometimes really, really uncomfortable and sometimes really, really satisfying. Elsie Fisher delivers a performance that you can see yourself in, no matter who you are or where you come from. The film provides a merciless depiction of the real issues that young people are dealing with, but is full of heart and ultimately gives more than it takes, leaving its audience happy and full. As heavy as it is at times, Eighth Grade is also delightfully funny. Few things are more hilarious to me than middle school kids doing extremely bad bits and then laughing. I giggle every time I think about that one kid quoting the “Lebrooon James” meme loudly in a quiet crowded room, followed by all his friends cackling. It sounds kind of silly, but after watching this film, I left the theater feeling so full of love and hope. I love Generation Z so much. They’re a bunch of goofballs right now just figuring out the world, but so am I. I can’t wait to see what they do with this stupid planet.
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