Twenty Eighteen in Film

This is simply a list of the movies, flicks, films and what-have-yous released (or widely released, or finally released) during the calendar year. I don't have any hard and fast metric for how I order this list, it's some ephemeral combination of components. Overall quality (of course), rewatchability, originality, voice and novelty all factor in, combined with my personal interests and fetishes. Point is: this is my list. Don't like it? Make your own list. (And send me the link and I'll check it out)

Last year I watched 47 movies. I thought that was a lot (and it is) but I still wanted to break that record. This year I saw 68. Sixty-eight! Next year I hope to watch 69. (Nice.)

Anyway, see below for my list:

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BLACK PANTHER

Seriously: Wakanda forever.

THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE

Technically not a movie, but it deserves the exception.

ANNIHILATION

Beautiful, complex and sad. 

GAME NIGHT

Biggest surprise of the year.

THE RITUAL

I'd enjoy it anyway, but the creature design makes it a favorite.

HALLOWEEN

I got surprisingly emotional during the finale.

MANDY

Panos Cosmatos translates my dreams to film.


THELMA

A queer take on Carrie that burns slowly, but no less intensely.

THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER

Maggie Gyllenhaal is fearless playing an irredeemable character.


THE MIMIC

Don't believe everything you hear (unless it's about how good this South Korean thriller is).

MARY POPPINS RETURNS

Not as practically perfect in every way as the original is, but quite close!

WINCHESTER

Better than it seemed, but slept-on, this deserves a cult following.

UPGRADE

You can't fight the future in this Blumhouse banger.


APOSTLE

Literary-feeling ye olde horror of the highest order.


THE STRANGERS: PREY AT NIGHT

Worth waiting like 10 years since the original.

A QUIET PLACE

A fantastic feature-length Twilight Zone concept, directed with a natural sure-footedness.

THE ENDLESS

Ambitious, fun and trippy. Benson & Moorhead made a Goosebumps book for adults.


REVENGE

Possibly the coolest film of the year.


UNSANE

Soderbergh experimenting with technique in the exploitation genre.


MOM AND DAD

A movie that makes you root for the bad guys.


THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS

Even mediocre Coen Bros. is better than most other films.


AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

Candy for comic book nerds (which I am) with a chewy nougat center of failure.

THE POLKA KING

Jack Black brings the house down in this true-life crime caper.


THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME

I would watch one million Mila Kunis / Kate McKinnon team-up movies!


INTO THE DARK: POOKA!

"Look at all the pretty lights."


SORRY TO BOTHER YOU

What. Just. Happened.

YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE

Engrossing and nihilistic, this may require a second watch.

WON'T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?

I cried big, ugly tears.


UNCLE DREW

Shaq should get an MVP award for this.


MARY AND THE WITCH'S FLOWER

A familiar-enough story with wonderful, creative flourishes.


SICARIO: DAY OF THE SOLDADO

As far as wholly unnecessary sequels go, this one's pretty great.


AMERICAN ANIMALS

Solid performances buoy the occasionally self-satisfied tone of this heist tale, based on a true story.


BEFORE I WAKE

Solid thriller from Mike Flanagan shelved since 2016.


12 STRONG

a.k.a. Them Horse Boyz


INSIDIOUS: THE LAST KEY

Really enjoyable worldbuilding anchored by our love of Lin Shaye.


RAMPAGE

Can ya smell what The Rock and some giant CGI monsters are cookin'?


ROBIN HOOD

Even Taron Egerton doesn't know why they made this. Look at him.


SUMMER OF '84

Drenched in nostalgia, it kind of treads water for a while before an abridged but haunting climax.


A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE

The appropriately smart/dumb origins of The National Lampoon.


WILD WILD COUNTRY

Even for a cult, this is a viper's nest of strangeness and unreliable narrators.


HOLD THE DARK

Impressively bleak, but slightly too abrupt for me to love.


ERREMENTARI: THE BLACKSMITH AND THE DEVIL

Feels like a Guillermo del Toro B-side.


THE NIGHT COMES FOR US

Fantastically brutal.


CAM

Manages to make the real world and the supernatural goings-on equally fearsome.


THE LODGERS

Inconsistent internal logic, but wonderful visuals.


SATAN'S SLAVES

Classic style supernatural spookiness with a kinda confusing finale.


ANIMAL WORLD

A really fun cards movie bookended with murder-clown fantasies.


EVIL GENIUS

Truly chilling and sad.


SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY

This would be infinitely more enjoyable if it understood Han Solo as a character.


THE PREDATOR

Fun when it's not saggy, but it's frequently saggy.


THE CLOVERFIELD PARADOX

The main story is trashy horror fun, but the constant cut-aways to Earth slow the pace.


THE HURRICANE HEIST

Kinda takes too long getting to the good stuff, but when it does, it's very fun.


YOU MIGHT BE THE KILLER

If you're gonna do the self-aware horror thing in this day & age, you better at least do it this well.


HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES

Pretty punk and pretty weird, but could've been punker and weirder.


LIKE FATHER

The dramatic core of a comedy is a hard thing to pin down. This does better than most.


NANCY

A very small film about big emotions; loneliness being chief among them.


TERMINAL

More interesting visually than intellectually.


LOVE, SIMON

Not a bad film, but I wanted something bolder.


BOOM FOR REAL: THE LATE TEENAGE YEARS OF JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT

An well-made documentary into a lesser-known side of Basquiat, left me wanting more.


TRUTH OR DARE

Great cast, but an underwhelming script.


DEATH WISH

Surprisingly toothless revenge thriller.


BAD SAMARITAN

Even David Tennant can't improve this subpar thriller.


A WRINKLE IN TIME

My biggest disappointment of the year, for sure.


OATS! STUDIOS, VOL. ONE

Neill Blomkamp's experiments with effects, format and story.


INTO THE DARK: THE BODY

The inaugural installment of this Blumhouse / Hulu team-up is promising but a bit lackluster.


SLICE

Like a pizza with literally everything: meats, veggies, drywall, carpet samples, dead pets, etc., etc.


TAU

I'm afraid I can't watch that, Dave.


PRODIGY

"I'll only eat my vegetables with some jelly beans and a nice Chianti."

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So that's it. How many movies from my list did you see? What's your list look like?

I hope next year treats you and yours better than the year behind us. Cheers, and long live the movies!