My Top 10 Movies of 2018

2018, in my opinion, has been a bad year at the movies, the total opposite of 2017. However, there were some films that I did enjoy. I do not see a lot of films in theaters, but here are my top ten films of 2018. Factors include my enjoyment of the film, overall quality, connection to existing franchises, staying power, and repeat viewings in theaters (which was very rare for me this year - I didn’t see any films three times and the only films I saw twice are the top two and technically Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle). (These are the films that I saw that aren’t on the list: A Wrinkle in Time, Incredibles 2, The Little Mermaid, Maze Runner: The Death Cure, Isle of Dogs, and Ready Player One.) 10) Black Panther - I’ll acknowledge that this was a well-done movie and very culturally significant, but I personally found it kind of forgettable and it didn’t resonate with me with that much. I thought that the first half was kind of slow and ironically, the third act that most people criticized for following the Marvel formula too much was my favorite part and the only time in which I was really invested. So it’s good, but it’s one of only four MCU films I don’t own on DVD. 9) On the Basis of Sex - I saw a free screening of this film recently and I really enjoyed it. The second half is much stronger than the first and some of the criticisms it’s received are valid, but overall, I thought this was a very enjoyable biopic that I wouldn’t mind seeing again. 8) Ralph Breaks the Internet - I found this movie hilarious and it has a very creative depiction of the internet, though the story is not as strong as the original, which I don’t even own on DVD. It has an important message but I didn’t feel quite enough of an emotional buildup that felt genuine and it started to get too preachy. The climax is creepy and honestly would have terrified me as a kid. The princess scenes and the post-credits scene were my favorite parts. Please Disney, give us a Disney Princess spin-off! 7) Pick of the Litter - I saw this documentary at the Gasparilla film festival this year. It’s a heartwarming documentary that not only benefits from having cute puppies but is really emotional. The film really makes you appreciate what dogs training to become Guide Dogs for the Blind have to accomplish to earn that title. I highly recommend you see this film! 6) Avengers: Infinity War - I really need to rewatch this movie and hopefully will be improved upon by its sequel because I’ve still only seen it once. I admire what they were able to accomplish, but I am honestly surprised that fans didn’t riot after the ending because the rest of my family practically did. 5) Christopher Robin - It wasn’t quite as strong as I would have liked, but I found this to be a sweet and adorable film. It works as an expansion of the existing franchise and not simply a reboot. It certainly isn’t the best of the Disney remakes, but it’s not the worst either, and in my opinion, it’s worthy enough to own on DVD. 4) Creed II - I was surprised by how much I liked the first Creed movie and was looking forward to the sequel. While it’s not quite as good as the original and it didn’t take long for me to predict some of the plot structure of the film, it was still very good with a lot of good character development, especially for Ivan Drago. It’s also not too necessary to see Rocky IV before this one, as I had only seen the honest trailer of it beforehand but understood what was going on. 3) Solo: A Star Wars Story - I know some people hated this film, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought it was a fun space adventure and heist film and since I don’t adore Star Wars religiously, I had fun and liked it for what it is. 2) Crazy Rich Asians - I saw this film at a free screening about a month before its release, then saw it a second time for my birthday. This is a fun and hilarious romantic comedy that was much better than I expected. As a fan of rom coms, I hope this helps the genre make a comeback in theaters as it has on Netflix. I highly recommend this film if you haven’t seen it. 1) Ant-Man and the Wasp - Of all the films I saw this year, this was the one I enjoyed the most and the first really good movie I saw this year after several duds. It is hilarious and possibly funnier than the original. Ghost makes for a terrific villain, the use of the San Francisco setting was awesome (especially since I visited the only a month and a half before and some of those hills really are insane), and the mid-credits scene was a great tease for Avengers: Endgame.