What were your favorite films of 2018? There were lots of worthy contenders, and choosing just ten can be challenging, but Spinning Platters Film Editor Carrie Kahn has given it a go. Below Carrie shares her ten favorite films of 2018, presented in descending rank order. You can also check out her list from last year, here.
- 10.) Juliet, Naked
Romantic comedies are often met with derision because they can be formulaic and cliché-ridden. When one comes along that feels fresh, then, it deserves to be rewarded. Such is the case with Jesse Peretz’s appealing adaptation of Nick Hornby’s best-selling novel about a woman (Rose Byrne) who finds herself drawn to her boyfriend’s rock ‘n’ roll hero (Ethan Hawke). Byrne and Hawke are wonderful together, with Hawke synthesizing a career’s worth of flakey charmers into a man struggling to do right by his family before it’s too late. And Chris O’Dowd, as the obsessed fan Duncan, adds some thematic weight to a picture that allows us to explore not just questions of romantic partnership, but of art and artists and their supporters, and what, if anything, they owe each other. (You can also read my original capsule review from its Sundance Film Festival premiere here.)
9.) Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Comedian Melissa McCarthy turns in a stellar dramatic performance in this based-on-a-true-story picture about Lee, a complicated, abrasive woman who finds self-worth penning forgeries of letters from famous writers. Richard E. Grant brings dignity and heartbreak to his role as Lee’s alcoholic compatriot Jack, who finds the humanity under Lee’s carefully constructed armor. Director Marielle Heller has created an indelible portrait of an unusual friendship between characters who don’t fit a typical Hollywood protagonist mold, and her film is all the better for it. (You can also read my original full-length review here.)
8.) If Beale Street Could Talk
In his follow up to his 2017 Best Picture winner Moonlight, director Barry Jenkins has managed to do what many thought was impossible: adapt the haunting, poetic words of writer James Baldwin for the screen. But this cinematic version of Baldwin’s 1974 novel captures Baldwin’s eloquence both visually and narratively, as quiet interludes intersperse with meticulous dialogue. Baldwin’s story of a family’s determined quest to free a wrongly imprisoned young black man remains as relevant today as it was 40+ years ago. Powerful performances by Regina King, Kiki Layne, and Stephan James help make this picture a worthy successor to Jenkins’s earlier Oscar winner.
7.) A Quiet Place
Like romantic comedies, horror films often don’t get the respect they deserve. Last year’s Get Out, however, proved that the genre could yield serious award contenders. This year, actor John Krasinski, in his second feature film directorial effort, gives us a similarly smart, wholly unique, and armrest-clutching post-apocalyptic thriller in which the slightest noise means certain death. Krasinski also stars in the picture alongside real-life wife Emily Blunt; the two play a couple fighting to keep their family safe from ever present danger. Perhaps the only movie this year that kept audiences from rustling their popcorn, Krasinski’s film deserves its Top 10 spot for its original story, terrific non-verbal acting (Blunt’s character must give birth in utter silence, which is award-worthy right there), and its unparalleled, gasp-inducing moments of sheer terror.
6.) Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
Readers of a certain age no doubt instantly recognize the question raised by this film’s title. Fred Rogers asked it of his young viewers in his PBS show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Morgan Neville’s documentary about the revolutionary program and its host is just as special. Neville takes us behind the scenes, and lets us see just why Mr. Rogers was ahead of his time, why he was so beloved, and what we, as a society, have lost with the absence of a program that lovingly reminded children that they are perfect just the way they are. To watch critics of Rogers’s show and goals is to marvel at the small-mindedness of some people, just as to watch Rogers talk to children about weighty topics like death, divorce, and racism is to realize how effective gentle, compassionate, and open speaking and listening can be — for children and adults alike. A documentary that will inspire and move you, Neville’s film shows us what happens when patience and kindness become the norm, not the exception. (You can also read my original capsule review from its San Francisco Film Festival screening here.)
5.) First Reformed
How can we find grace in a world filled with so much despair and destruction? Writer/director Paul Schrader returns to themes he first explored over 40 years ago in Taxi Driver in this haunting look at a grieving, depressed pastor. Ethan Hawke gives his best performance to date as Pastor Toller, a small town minister whose counseling of a young woman (Amanda Seyfried) and her environmental activist husband (Philip Ettinger) amplifies his growing crisis of faith. Stark and affecting, Schrader’s picture asks more questions than it answers, and is sure to become as much of an unforgettable classic as his earlier films. (You can also read my original capsule review from its San Francisco Film Festival screening here.)
4.) Blindspotting
Berkeley High grads Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal turn their screenwriting talents towards a changing Oakland in this Sundance Grand Jury Prize-nominated film. The picture chronicles Collin’s (Diggs) attempts to complete parole while maintaining his longtime friendship with the volatile Miles (Casal). While it takes a hard look at some of Oakland’s more complicated and pressing issues (gentrification; policing; racial justice), the picture also celebrates the Town’s rich, varied beauty and strong neighborhood bonds. The pair still clearly love their city, despite it being in flux, and that unyielding affection permeates the film, even during its most difficult moments. (You can also read my original full-length review here.)
3.) Free Solo
Three years ago, the mountain-climbing documentary Meru made my Top 10, and now husband and wife directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi return to the list with their equally breathtaking new picture about climber Alex Honnold. Depending on your perspective, Honnold is either a suicidal daredevil or a courageous genius, with the truth probably somewhere in between. Free Solo follows Honnold’s attempt to free climb (that’s without support ropes, for those not up on rock climbing parlance) Yosemite’s famed El Capitan. Stunning visuals of Yosemite are interspersed with a fascinating character study of a young man whose drive and determination are beyond that of 99% of other human beings. The picture also grapples with complex questions about ethics and art that contribute to this documentary being my favorite of the year.
2.) Searching
A well-crafted mystery about a missing teenage girl, Searching was my favorite film at Sundance this year. It earns its number two spot here for its unusual, innovative storytelling that seizes on the way we communicate now. Told entirely on computer screens via texts, videos, Facebook messages and digital news clips, director Aneesh Chaganty appropriately sets his tech-heavy story in Silicon Valley’s neighboring San Jose. John Cho is outstanding as a worried, widowed father who discovers he may not know his daughter as well as he thought, and Debra Messing, as the police detective on the case, does equally fine work. Unlike any thriller you’ve ever seen before, Chaganty’s film sets a new bar for avant garde cinematic narrative techniques. (You can also read my original capsule review from its Sundance Film Festival premiere here, where it played under the title Search.)
1.) Paddington 2
In a year filled with cynicism, snark, and angst, a little British storybook bear named Paddington reminds us, with exquisite care, of the great power of pure and true kindness, in much the same way Morgan Neville’s documentary does. Paul King’s simple, irony-free charmer of a tale about Paddington’s quest to buy a birthday gift for his Aunt Lucy is beautiful to look at, clever but genuinely sweet, and filled with sincere, joyful performances. Hugh Grant’s portrayal of the vain actor Phoenix Buchanan alone is enough to earn this picture its number one spot. It’s a rare picture that can make you feel good about yourself and your fellow humans (bears?), but Paddington 2 does so without being pedantic; it wears its warmth and heart on its sleeve, and is all the lovelier for it. Put it at the top of your Netflix queue, stat.
Honorable Mentions: Eighth Grade; On the Basis of Sex; Black Panther
