Top 10 Movies of 2018
Well, 2018 has come and gone and I spent way too much of it watching movies. Seriously, I think I have a problem. I watched 91 newly released movies this year. Now that I've finally seen every movie that I want to see from this 2018, I can finally release my Top 10 list. There have been plenty of disappointing films this year, but plenty of excellent films as well. I gave 9 of my Top 10 perfect scores! So, what made the final cut? Let's take a look.
#10. Mandy
Mandy is an absolutely bonkers film that follows a man (Nicolas Cage) as he goes on a murderous rampage to kill a group of cultists that murdered his girlfriend, Mandy (Andrea Riseborough). Mandy has a slow start, but eventually goes complementary off-the-rails in epic fashion. It's a beautiful film with one of Cage's best performances. It's an utter masterpiece of insanity and worthy of a spot in the Top 10.
#9. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
There's an argument to be made that Into the Spider-Verse is the best Spider-Man movie. I don't know if that's true, but it's definitely the best animated film of the year. The film follows Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) has he gains spider powers and meets other people from various universes with the same powers that he does. The animation is stunning, the humor is top-notch, and villain is very well developed. I was skeptical of this movie for months before it came out and I am very happy to be proven wrong.
#8. The Miseducation of Cameron Post
One of two movies to come out this year about gay conversion therapy camps, this film follows Cameron Post (Chloë Grace Moretz) who gets caught with another girl and sent to a camp to try and "cure" her. The acting, cinematography, writing, and directing are absolutely top-notch. It's impressive work all-around. It's a subtle film, but eventually it dives head-first into the darkness and it's effective when it finally does.
#7. BlacKkKlansman
This film follows two police officer, one black (John David Washington), the other Jewish (Adam Driver), as they work together to infiltrate the KKK and uncover a violent plot. The film perfectly strikes the necessary balance it needs to be both very dark, but very funny. BlacKkKlansman gives us some excellent performances and plenty to think about. The 3rd act is one of the best directed sequences of the year. It's not a subtle film, but that was never the intention and that works well when delivering its message.
#6. Won't You Be My Neighbor
This is the only documentary to make it on my list. I did debate about whether or not to include it, but I enjoyed it so much that I felt I had to. Won't You Be My Neighbor takes a look at the life of Fred Rogers and his television show, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. It's a beautiful film that will make you love Mr. Rogers even more than you already do and gives some hope in a dark time.
#5. A Quiet Place
A Quiet Place has a brilliant concept and executed on it with distinction. It's a horror movie with monsters that hunt by sound. It follows a family that communicates via sign language and the ingenious methods they use to survive without sound. The pacing, acting, and directing are all excellent and the film flies by. I was shocked to learn it was PG-13 and it is probably the scariest PG-13 horror movie I have ever seen. Horror is my favorite genre and having such a good film with an excellent premise come out of this genre propels it into the Top 5.
#4. The Ritual
Another horror film, The Ritual follows a group of friends who go backpacking through a forest in Sweden only to discover something evil that won't let them leave. I know it sounds pretty run-of-the-mill, but The Ritual executes on this flawlessly. The film doesn't rely on jump-scares, but focuses on tension and dread by using the atmosphere. It takes elements from The Blair Witch Project and the first season of Lost to give us some really effective sequences. The characters are very well developed and there is some excellent cinematography and inventive sequences. This could have been another paint-by-numbers horror movie, but the filmmakers worked hard to make this something special.
#3. Unsane
But my favorite horror film of the year has to be Unsane, which follows a woman (Claire Foy) who gets locked in a mental institution against her will. She also discovers her stalker has gotten a job at the institution...or has he? As the lines between reality and imagination blur, Unsane makes us question our own sanity as we watch the film play out. It really is a nightmarish-work of art. Not only is the story terrifying, but the way it is presented is as well. The editing and the cinematography make you feel like you are going insane. The acting is fantastic all around and there is one top-tier cameo. This is probably the most nightmarish film of the year.
#2. Avengers: Infinity War
The superhero film that finally has all of our favorite heroes take on their most powerful foe yet, Thanos (Josh Brolin). I had extremely low expectations for this film. I thought Age of Ultron was very bloated and I wasn't sure Marvel would be able to pull off having a film with so many characters. Boy, was I wrong. I am so impressed with this film and everything they managed to have in it without it collapsing at the seams. The characters are all great, but Thanos is the real star of the show. He is, without a doubt, the best Marvel villain. The ending is absolutely incredible and I can't believe Marvel had the guts to go through with it. I will never forget how I felt at the end of Infinity War. If you would have told me this would end up being my 2nd favorite movie of the year, I wouldn't have believed you, but it is and it absolutely earns its spot.
Quickly, I want to give out some honorable mentions for some other truly great films that just didn't make the cut.
Incredibles II
Ready Player One
Overlord
The Favourite
A Simple Favor
Searching
The House That Jack Build
Cam
Blockers
Thoroughbreds
Paddington 2
Black Panther
Annihilation
Deadpool 2
Upgrade
Finally, my number 1 film of 2018 is...
#1. Boy Erased
The other film about gay conversion therapy. This one follows the son of a baptist preacher (Lucas Hedges) who is sent to a camp to be "cured" of his homosexuality. This one focuses more on the relationship between Hedges and his parents, while Cameron Post focused more on the interactions between the campers. Hedges, Russell Crowe, and Nicole Kidman give it their all and their scenes together are some of the best in the film. Joel Edgerton is fantastic as not only the director of the camp, but the director of the film as well. At times, this movie is like a horror-film. It's extremely effective at putting you it the shoes of the protagonist. Finally, the sequence where Hedges makes a break for it is the single best sequence of the year. I was on the edge of my seat with my eyes glued to the screen hoping that he would make it out. Boy Erased is a powerful and terrifying film and it has an extremely important message. It's a masterpiece and I hope it does well in the award season. More than any other film of 2018, Boy Erased has got it going on.
So that's my list. Let me know what you thought!
#10. Mandy
Mandy is an absolutely bonkers film that follows a man (Nicolas Cage) as he goes on a murderous rampage to kill a group of cultists that murdered his girlfriend, Mandy (Andrea Riseborough). Mandy has a slow start, but eventually goes complementary off-the-rails in epic fashion. It's a beautiful film with one of Cage's best performances. It's an utter masterpiece of insanity and worthy of a spot in the Top 10.
#9. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
There's an argument to be made that Into the Spider-Verse is the best Spider-Man movie. I don't know if that's true, but it's definitely the best animated film of the year. The film follows Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) has he gains spider powers and meets other people from various universes with the same powers that he does. The animation is stunning, the humor is top-notch, and villain is very well developed. I was skeptical of this movie for months before it came out and I am very happy to be proven wrong.
#8. The Miseducation of Cameron Post
One of two movies to come out this year about gay conversion therapy camps, this film follows Cameron Post (Chloë Grace Moretz) who gets caught with another girl and sent to a camp to try and "cure" her. The acting, cinematography, writing, and directing are absolutely top-notch. It's impressive work all-around. It's a subtle film, but eventually it dives head-first into the darkness and it's effective when it finally does.
#7. BlacKkKlansman
This film follows two police officer, one black (John David Washington), the other Jewish (Adam Driver), as they work together to infiltrate the KKK and uncover a violent plot. The film perfectly strikes the necessary balance it needs to be both very dark, but very funny. BlacKkKlansman gives us some excellent performances and plenty to think about. The 3rd act is one of the best directed sequences of the year. It's not a subtle film, but that was never the intention and that works well when delivering its message.
#6. Won't You Be My Neighbor
This is the only documentary to make it on my list. I did debate about whether or not to include it, but I enjoyed it so much that I felt I had to. Won't You Be My Neighbor takes a look at the life of Fred Rogers and his television show, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. It's a beautiful film that will make you love Mr. Rogers even more than you already do and gives some hope in a dark time.
#5. A Quiet Place
A Quiet Place has a brilliant concept and executed on it with distinction. It's a horror movie with monsters that hunt by sound. It follows a family that communicates via sign language and the ingenious methods they use to survive without sound. The pacing, acting, and directing are all excellent and the film flies by. I was shocked to learn it was PG-13 and it is probably the scariest PG-13 horror movie I have ever seen. Horror is my favorite genre and having such a good film with an excellent premise come out of this genre propels it into the Top 5.
#4. The Ritual
Another horror film, The Ritual follows a group of friends who go backpacking through a forest in Sweden only to discover something evil that won't let them leave. I know it sounds pretty run-of-the-mill, but The Ritual executes on this flawlessly. The film doesn't rely on jump-scares, but focuses on tension and dread by using the atmosphere. It takes elements from The Blair Witch Project and the first season of Lost to give us some really effective sequences. The characters are very well developed and there is some excellent cinematography and inventive sequences. This could have been another paint-by-numbers horror movie, but the filmmakers worked hard to make this something special.
#3. Unsane
But my favorite horror film of the year has to be Unsane, which follows a woman (Claire Foy) who gets locked in a mental institution against her will. She also discovers her stalker has gotten a job at the institution...or has he? As the lines between reality and imagination blur, Unsane makes us question our own sanity as we watch the film play out. It really is a nightmarish-work of art. Not only is the story terrifying, but the way it is presented is as well. The editing and the cinematography make you feel like you are going insane. The acting is fantastic all around and there is one top-tier cameo. This is probably the most nightmarish film of the year.
#2. Avengers: Infinity War
The superhero film that finally has all of our favorite heroes take on their most powerful foe yet, Thanos (Josh Brolin). I had extremely low expectations for this film. I thought Age of Ultron was very bloated and I wasn't sure Marvel would be able to pull off having a film with so many characters. Boy, was I wrong. I am so impressed with this film and everything they managed to have in it without it collapsing at the seams. The characters are all great, but Thanos is the real star of the show. He is, without a doubt, the best Marvel villain. The ending is absolutely incredible and I can't believe Marvel had the guts to go through with it. I will never forget how I felt at the end of Infinity War. If you would have told me this would end up being my 2nd favorite movie of the year, I wouldn't have believed you, but it is and it absolutely earns its spot.
Quickly, I want to give out some honorable mentions for some other truly great films that just didn't make the cut.
Incredibles II
Ready Player One
Overlord
The Favourite
A Simple Favor
Searching
The House That Jack Build
Cam
Blockers
Thoroughbreds
Paddington 2
Black Panther
Annihilation
Deadpool 2
Upgrade
Finally, my number 1 film of 2018 is...
#1. Boy Erased
The other film about gay conversion therapy. This one follows the son of a baptist preacher (Lucas Hedges) who is sent to a camp to be "cured" of his homosexuality. This one focuses more on the relationship between Hedges and his parents, while Cameron Post focused more on the interactions between the campers. Hedges, Russell Crowe, and Nicole Kidman give it their all and their scenes together are some of the best in the film. Joel Edgerton is fantastic as not only the director of the camp, but the director of the film as well. At times, this movie is like a horror-film. It's extremely effective at putting you it the shoes of the protagonist. Finally, the sequence where Hedges makes a break for it is the single best sequence of the year. I was on the edge of my seat with my eyes glued to the screen hoping that he would make it out. Boy Erased is a powerful and terrifying film and it has an extremely important message. It's a masterpiece and I hope it does well in the award season. More than any other film of 2018, Boy Erased has got it going on.
So that's my list. Let me know what you thought!
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