As 2018 draws to a close and I look back at all the movies I watched this year, I got to say it was a pretty down year for film in my opinion. Sure 2018 started with a bang with Black Panther but the summer was disappointing (outside of Infinity War) and the same could be said about the Oscar season slate. No movie has jumped out at me as the clear cut Oscar winner for Best Picture. However I do live in the middle of nowhere Minnesota and the movie selection here is rather limited despite having three movie theaters in town. Here’s a list of what I haven’t seen: The Favourite, Widows, If Beale Street Could Talk, The Front Runner and Burning.
Honorable Mentions: Incredibles 2, Blackkklansman, Overlord, Unsane, Halloween, Ready Player One, Solo, Love, Simon, Isle of Dogs, Upgrade, Tully, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Creed II, The Hate U Give, Annihilation, Eighth Grade, Green Book, Mid90s and Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Despite thinking it was a down year for film, it was weirdly very difficult to narrow a list down to ten. But here goes:
10. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
The Coen Brothers are back with their bleakest film yet! The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is an anthology of six short films set in the Old West post-Civil War. Although each short story tends to get bleaker than the one before it, the film is simply gorgeous to look at and the storytelling is masterful. I love the Coen Brothers and will watch anything they make. If you don’t mind bleak storytelling, then I highly recommend The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.
9. A Quiet Place
A Quiet Place is a rather unconventional horror film. Directed by John Krasinski aka Jim from The Office and starring his real life wife, Emily Blunt, A Quiet Place is about a family struggling to survive in a post-apocalyptic world inhabited by blind monsters with an acute sense of hearing. This movie is intense and extremely inventive with the clever use of sound as a storytelling device. Can’t recommend this movie enough.
8. Hereditary
Hereditary, the directorial debut of Ari Aster, is a supernatural horror film about the unraveling of a family by an evil supernatural force following the death of the matriarch grandmother. This film came out of nowhere for me. As a self proclaimed horror movie junkie, I was completely blown away by it. From Toni Collette’s amazing performance to brilliant direction by a first time director, Hereditary is a must-see for any horror movie fan.
7. First Reformed
Ethan Hawke stars as a pastor of a low-attended historical landmark church in upstate New York. His mental state spirals out of control following an encounter with an environmentalist who believes the world is coming to an end. Written and directed by Paul Schrader known for his seminal work on Raging Bull and Taxi Driver, First Reformed is an extremely DARK film but really thought provoking. Hawke gives an Oscar worthy performance. I’ve been a fan of Paul Schrader for a long time. Highly recommend this film as long as you’re prepared for it to be DARK.
6. A Star Is Born
Do I even need to give a synopsis for A Star Is Born?!? I feel like everyone has seen this film. The soundtrack is INCREDIBLE. Lady Gaga gives an extraordinary performance and this is coming from someone who doesn’t even like her music. Bradley Cooper is fantastic in his directorial debut and Sam Elliott better be nominated for Best Supporting Actor. I’ve been singing “Swallow” loudly in my car since October. Love this movie.
5. Avengers: Infinity War
Almost didn’t include Avengers: Infinity War on my list because it’s so mainstream. But I saw this movie in the theater three times I enjoyed it so much that it needed to be on this list. Can’t wait for Avengers: Endgame!
4. Mission Impossible: Fallout
This is the 6th Mission Impossible movie and it is by far my favorite in the series. This franchise gets better and better with every entry. Tom Cruise is back being Tom Cruise crazy doing his own stunts. My wife Rebecca Ferguson is also back as gorgeous and awesome as ever. Can’t wait for the next one.
3. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse
This movie surprised me in the best possible way. I didn’t know what to expect when I entered the theater but I was completely delighted by the end. My best friend Jared said to me that if I, Eddie Snow, was a movie that I would be Spider-Man Into the Spider-verse. For those that know me, you know that I’m a huge comic book nerd. I was into Marvel long before the cinematic universe existed. This film was a love letter to Marvel Comics and to everything Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created. The use of color, the halftone effects, the use of comic book panels and speech balloons, this movie was a comic book come to life on the screen. Miles Morales, created by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli, is my favorite new Marvel character to come along in quite some time. This movie has helped in introducing him to the masses. The entire movie is basically an origin story about Miles, a half black, half Puerto Rican teenager from Brooklyn, who is bitten by a radioactive spider and turns into a new version of our favorite wall crawler. This is by far and away my favorite Spider-Man movie of all time. And that is no hyperbole. (Sorry Sam Raimi.) If you haven’t seen this movie, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!? GET OUT AND SEE IT NOW!
2. Black Panther
I feel like people are sleeping on Black Panther as one of the best movies to come out in 2018. Released in February 2018, Black Panther is my favorite movie from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Again no hyperbole here. This film gave me everything I could want out of a superhero movie and more: an awesome superhero lead in Black Panther, played by Chadwick Boseman, a compelling villain in Killmonger, played by one of my favorite actors, Michael B. Jordan, a fantastic supporting cast headlined by Letitia Wright as Shuri and Winston Duke as M’Baku and an incredible backdrop in Wakanda. Needless to say I love this movie. WAKANDA FOREVER!
1. Roma
The latest from Oscar winning director, Alfonso Cuarón, Roma tells the story of Cleo, a maid for a middle class family in Mexico City in the early 1970s. I don’t want to give anything else away about the film considering it just came out two weeks ago on Netflix. You can really sense that this is a deeply personal film for Cuarón. Cleo is actually based on the live-in maid he grew up with as a child. Yalitza Aparicio plays Cleo and she gives an absolutely incredible performance for a first time actress. Shot entirely in black and white, Roma is absolutely breathtaking to look at. Highly recommend that you watch this movie on as big a screen as you possibly can. Definitely wish that I had seen Roma on the big screen.