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| Scene from BlacKkKlansman |
The end of 2018 is upon us. That could only mean one thing for Listmania. It is officially time to honor the best of cinema in 2018. Over the next two days, I will be counting down the Top 40 movies of the year, recognizing the wide variety of films that made the year a little better and will be talked about for years to come. It was an excellent year for dramas as well as genre films ranging from horror to action. It's hard to say goodbye to the year, but at least these films will be with us to remind us of how great it was to sit in a cineplex and cheer in awe as the images moved on screen. It's the one thing that's always pure about years as fraught with tension as this.
25. Thoroughbreds
There's nothing more unnerving than being a bored teenage girl. In this dark comedy that follows two disaffected girls who plan to murder their parents, the story becomes a laid back exploration of what drives people to such heinous act. With great performances by Anya Taylor Joy and Olivia Cooke, the film manages to explore its subject with an expert dryness that becomes just as unnerving as it does entertaining. It also features one of the last performances by Anton Yelchin in a role that reflected his ability to take on roles no matter how tough or icky. As a whole, this is a film best viewed as a psychological exploration of ourselves and where the moral divides lie when it comes to what we want and how we'll feel getting it.
24. Minding the Gap
In the past year alone, there were three skateboarding films released. Mid90's and Skate Kitchen were fun, but they couldn't hold a candle to the depth that the gut-wrenching documentary carried. Not only did it have the best footage of teenagers grinding and jumping off curbs, but it managed to understand on a deeper level what draws people to the sport in general. It's the quest for having a community who cares and will support them, no matter what their personal lives look like. This is a story of fathers and sons, where the divide between each of the central cast produces fascinating character studies that are plenty engaging. It's a story that's so accomplished that you don't have to be an X-Games fanatic to care about things. You just need to have a lust for life and a heart for the outcasts looking for someplace to skate.
23. Incredibles 2
The biggest joke of Pixar's latest film is that this sequel to their Oscar-winning original takes place SECONDS after the last film... which came out close to 15 years ago. What exactly has changed in that time? In the realm of computer graphics, there's been quite a lot. The film shoots through some of the most dazzling scenes of the year, including a train chase sequence where Elastigirl rides a motorcycles over buildings. It's one of the most electric and fun films of the summer, but it's also one of the most integral. The story centers around a conflict in which Mr. Incredible must become a stay at home dad while Elastigirl reclaims the public's pride of superheroes. For a story set in "the past," it still manages to feel modern and exciting in a way that actually improves upon the original and features one of the year's greatest supporting characters in Jak-Jak, whose superpowers are coming in like a baby's first tooth, and it's just as painful to get in the way of his laser eyes. It's one of the most entertaining family films of the year, and evidence that Pixar still has a lot to offer.
22. Ocean's 8
In a summer of lackluster blockbusters, there were few that stood out as such charming and effortless vehicles as this sequel to the Ocean's 11 franchise. With a female cast that is delightful together, the film plays like the lightest journey into the heist genre possibly ever. It's more about the star power, and boy is there a lot to enjoy about Cate Blanchett's snark or Anne Hathaway's self-effacing role as a celebrity obsessed with vanity. Add in an incredible score and plenty of style, and you get a film that may be a bit on the safe side, but manages to have fun telling its story with a lot of great fashion on full display. Many will consider it a lesser entry in the franchise, but it's better seen as a film that set out to have fun and succeeded on every front. There's not a dull moment here, and that helps to make it one of the most rewatchable films on this list.
21. They'll Love Me When I'm Dead
For most people, The Other Side of the Wind was the big Orson Welles project of the year. It's true that it took longer to hit the screen, but the accompanying documentary that Netflix put out is maybe even more provocative. It's a making of documentary that borrows a lot of footage from the film and gives it context as to how it was made. However, it's more interesting as a study of Welles as an individual, who was desperate to make art but didn't have much desire to cooperate with anyone. There's something heartbreaking about realizing his failures as a man, who was more obsessed with the illusion of completing a film than actually doing it. It's tragic and gives a nice new wrinkle to his legacy. As much as it will inform the other film, it's also just a tragic vision of hubris, and why it's important to trust others sometimes.
20. Ant-Man and the Wasp
Avengers: Infinity War was a gargantuan film that had so much going on that whatever proceeded it was bound to be underwhelming. However, Ant-Man and the Wasp's brilliance is that it doesn't address the other film until the last possible second. Instead, it focuses on Paul Rudd on house arrest while trying to rescue a shrunk building from bad guys. For what it lacks in connective tissue to the bigger tissue, it makes up for with being one of the most delightful, funny, slapstick-heavy films of the year. It plays with perspective in a great car chase and shows why Ant-Man is a superhero that shouldn't be taken for granted. He is a character who plays with perspective the way some heroes play with shooting bad guys. What other film featured ants playing drums, or even miniature cars placed into a mint container? This is what superhero movies could be if they didn't have to commit to a bigger picture. It's great to see Marvel having so much fun, and that a film this crazy could exist at all as quality entertainment.
19. BlacKkKlansman
Director Spike Lee had one of his best years in a long, long time and it's largely thanks to this film whose text is just as confrontational as its title. While it takes place in the 1970's, it is a story that feel relevant to the modern era thanks to the uncomfortable racism that underlines these characters. It's a film that finds the humor in the serious subject matter and forces audiences to question America's history with these murky texts, such as why films like Birth of a Nation and Gone With the Wind are held as quality works despite promoting outdated racism. For as slapshod as it sometimes could be, it's a story about trying to understand and destroy racism while finding that the road to doing it is a lot more difficult and disturbing than anyone was ready for. Humanity deserves better, but few are willing to realize it.
18. Shirkers
For many, there is something golden about being young and full of dreams. For those with cameras and a love of cinema, the idea of making a feature is so obvious that all it takes is going out there and do it no matter what. In this documentary, the Singapore cast explores a story of how a film that potentially could've changed the country's indie film scene ended up being sabotaged by egos and an enigmatic man. It's a tragic story, and one full of heartbreak as one's dreams are ruined in favor of feeling hopeless and unable to make art that matters. While there's a silver lining in the third act, the story itself has as many twists and turns as can be and creates one of the most compelling, uplifting stories of the year. The past may be ruined, but it also can be changed for the better if you have the willpower.
17. The Tale
While the film's HBO release arguably makes it a TV movie, this story of a woman dealing with the aftermath of her rape as a child is one of the most harrowing stories of the year. Laura Dern turns in a phenomenal performance as the director, pulling from her own experiences, manages to create something compelling and new in the imagery. What's here is a story of a woman looking back in ways that are powerful, self-reflexive, and done in a way that manages to avoid exploitation. By having the constant shifts between youthful innocence and maturity, the story manages to force the viewer into a perplexing understanding of how people deal with trauma and how hard it is to move on. It is possible, but the trauma will still be there, even if there's an attempt to make things change.
16. A Simple Favor
While it maybe wasn't the darker side of director Paul Feig that advertising warned of, it definitely was a twisted turn. It's a film that feels like a zanier version of Gone Girl, featuring a career defining performance by Blake Lively as the most blase woman to be seen on screen in awhile - and her third act twists are even more insane. This is a film that embraces its trashy text and becomes a film that is not afraid to be confident in its smut. Thankfully, Feig adds an artful touch with one of the best wardrobes of the year and a soundtrack that plays into neo-noir in a way that feels new. This may not be a great film in the sense that it is subtle or profound, but it definitely is one of the rare examples where films who exist solely to shock are more than cheap gimmicks. This is a fun movie that never lets up its craziness, and there's something wholly satisfying about it.
15. The Miseducation of Cameron Post
While Love, Simon portrayed a friendlier and more optimistic side to the contemporary LGBT teen, this comedy feels a tad more honest. Director Desiree Akhavan returns with a film that explores gay conversion therapy in a way that is meant to explore a simple idea. Why do people lie and persuade others to believe things that aren't inherent to them? It's a feeling of suppression, and one that takes dark turns as it gets to the heart of this strange religious pastime. With great performances from a cast huddling together as a form of survival, this is a story that manages to be critical without being entirely scathing. It's about the futility of converting gay kids into being straight and the harm it could otherwise do. There's plenty of heart and purpose to this film, and it's another strong note from Akhavan's impressive career.
14. Blindspotting
Not every story of importance has to be set in grandiose situations. For this drama, it's about a man on parole in Oakland, CA. There's not much to say about him other than that he has bad luck when it comes to friends. As a man trying to stay out of trouble so he doesn't go back to jail, he finds himself in harm's way thanks to a bunch of clashing egos that require him to step in and solve problems. They come at an expense, and the reason he went to jail in the first place is one of the most shocking scenes of the year. This is a creative look into a community whose racial profiling may be black and white, but isn't entirely devoid of some cultural fusion that makes things more difficult to solve. It's a moving drama and evidence that Daveed Diggs is capable of doing more than rapping in Hamilton. With a strong nuance, he manages to convey a conflicted character whose decisions weigh heavy on his mind. He's a normal man with normal struggles, and that's what makes his story all the more impressive.
13. Annihilation
From the director of Ex-Machina, Alex Garland's look into thought provoking sci-fi continues to be pushed further. This time he expands his vision by creating one of the most perplexing landscapes of any film this year. There's a world that has been fused to create disturbing monster-animal combinations, and the third act is a mix of horror film atmosphere and philosophical subtext. Everything about the film is rich with a surreal exploration of something new, and it makes for one of the rare experiences of having an out of body experience. It's a shame that the film didn't perform well at the box office, as the film warrants seeing it on a big screen, surrounded by sound and immersed in visuals that will rattle the brain and recontextualize a lot of long held beliefs. This is a film with a lot to say, and it does so in a beautiful manner that never lets up.
12. First Reformed
The year 2018 has been one full of uncertain dread, especially in American politics. It makes sense then that director Paul Schrader would think to make a film about a priest who loses faith in humanity. It's a nihilistic vision that drudges along like sludge through a field, finding new ways to fill the viewer with a sense of dread. Ethan Hawke has rarely been better, capturing the moment when despair overpowers even the small amount of surviving optimism. It's a story that wonders what happens if faith isn't enough to make one's life feel whole. It's disturbing and real in a way that plays to the director's strengths. The only hope is that this doesn't throw everyone else into an unending pit of despair.
11. Black Panther
There's a good chance that this film will resonate for hundreds of years. Not only is it a pinnacle of modern superhero cinema, but it depicts a black hero that's new and exciting in Wakanda: a world that is new to viewers on every level. It's a story about cultural identity, and how being American and African creates opposing conflicts within an individual. Of course, the action is some of the best that Marvel has ever produced, and the score is a brilliant mix of tribal, classical, and Afrofuturist in a way that ushers in the future of cinema. Black Panther is the hero that we need right now, and it's thankful that he came out of the gate so confident and iconic. This is a film with every component, even the incredible villain Killmonger, perfectly in place not only as an action story, but as a bigger narrative about how we treat each other in society. There may be a Black Panther sequel, but odds are that it will have trouble being as groundbreaking and exciting as this one.
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