#'it' being acting like a drama queen using visual aids and scenery

[that-shamrock-vibe]

2018 Round-Up: My Favourite Movies of 2018

Disclaimer: 2018 has been another feast for movie goers all year round, so with the new year just around the corner I have decided to disclose my favourite movies of the year. Careful for spoilers for movies that have recently come out as a couple are on this list.

#10. Love, Simon

As I mentioned in my review, I enjoyed this movie. I still think it accurately captures a teenage coming out story, not THE teenage coming out story because everyone has their own story and the endings aren’t always good but this one definitely showed the good without over-fantasizing it.

I mean okay, I still think this movie doesn’t do enough to show the dangers of emailing virtual strangers outside of the fact that you get your private information shared but again that balances out with the fact it is only a school-centric forum so I give the movie a pass on that. Also I do feel bad for saying there are “better” ways to come out because as I did follow immediately up with saying, everyone has their own story.

But overall I do really think this is a great movie and an underrated one at that. The characters are all likeable and relatable, Nick Robinson surprisingly proves himself as a leading man and Keiynan Lonsdale gives his best performance.

#9. Venom

I always had in mind that Venom would make my favourites list. Not only is Tom Hardy finally getting the chance to shine in a superhero role, but I finally get to see one of my favourite anti-heroes brought to life in the right way on the silver screen. I loved this movie, I thought this was a great spin-off in the Spider-Verse and a great start to Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters.

I know for a fact this movie has problems, Riot as a villain isn’t the most compelling, the movie does play like it’s set within the 90s Spider-Man Animated Series and that Carnage tease was a let down in the casting department. However, this movie gives us Venom and allows him to be Venom. Yes the comedy is slightly damp at times but Tom Hardy sells himself as an action hero, comedy star and stunt performer. I do hope this movie gets a sequel because I really want to see more.

#8. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

I am in the minority of people that enjoy this movie, but am in the majority of people that feel the end reveal was completely nonsensical. However I am giving J.K. and the team a pass on this movie and that is why it takes the #10 slot.

It is a great movie visually, it has all the traditional sceneries and locales that you would expect from a Wizarding World movie, the world building of exploring not just the British but also the French Ministries of Magic was a fun addition, Grindelwald shrouding Paris as a way of summoning his followers was visually appealing and of course seeing Hogwarts again brings back all the nostalgic feels a Potter fan could ask for.

I will continue to defend Johnny Depp in the role of Grindelwald as I feel he is very well suited to the role and that he was one of the better things about this movie. Like I said in my reviews he kind of book-ended this movie with two great scenes first when he escaped captivity and then when he addressed his followers, both were well acted, well shot and largely counted of Depp’s performance which he mastered.

My biggest complaint with the movie is that I did expect more of a mythos built movie than the focus being on characters we already said goodbye to in the first one, but that’s not to say what I did get was bad it was just not how I would have taken the story going forward.

Eddie Redmeyne and the cast from the first movie are all still charming and have more character development to carry them through to the next movie, while Jude Law and Zoe Kravitz are both really great additions.

I will wait and see what the third installment in this franchise has in store before deciding my final opinion on the movies as a whole but I do think J.K. has some work to do to keep people on board.

#7. Christopher Robin

This was a complete nostalgia trip for me, I really had a good time watching this movie. Not only did it really hit at the emotional core of anyone who grew up with Winnie the Pooh but it was just so charming, so quaint and made me feel like a kid again.

Ewan McGregor as an adult Christopher Robin was very well cast, not only did he go through the arc that apparently every working adult goes through in losing his child-like wonder only to be reminded of it and realizing what is truly important in life, but Ewan is an actor who can do it with such charm that a tired old story like this seems fresh.

Also this story is made fresh by the fact that it does centre on the characters of  Winnie the Pooh. The visual effects used to bring these characters to life are so well done. I loved the behind the scenes knowledge of knowing that they created toy replicas of these characters and then digitally animated them throughout the movie. It just adds a sense of realism to the movie and makes it more enjoyable.

Mary Poppins Returns did a similar story arc with Michael as they did with Christopher but in my opinion this story is told a lot more organically. I’m happy with the movie and glad I now own it.

#6. Incredibles 2

14 years in the making and still worth the wait. I had a blast watching this movie. Not only was it a direct follow-up to the first one but I felt the story managed to progress our favourite characters in an organic way that still kept in theme with this being a superhero family franchise.

I thought the focus being on Elastigirl being the focal superhero as opposed to Mr. Incredible this time around was a fun change of pace and didn’t feel like a cry for feminism as other movies and TV shows do.

Meanwhile having Mr. Incredible being the stay-at-home dad learning to cope with his teenage daughter’s drama and super-baby discovering his powers was a lot of fun and led to some very comedic moments.

Also the hilarious moments in the first movie were still here in this one from Frozone and his wife to Edna Mode. The whole movie just felt that, even though it had been over a decade since the first movie, it just felt like coming home it was so inviting.

The main problem is the reveal of the villain because anyone with half a brain would be able to tell that while they tried the red herring of Win Deavor being the evil Screenslaver, the fact it was Evelyn Deavor wasn’t a shock. Evelyn Deavor...Evil Endeavor...it was obvious.

But overall a really enjoyable movie and hopefully we won’t have to wait another 14 years for the threequel.

#5. Avengers: Infinity War

The movie event of the year but that doesn’t mean it was the movie of the year. This was such a spectacle and celebration of 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that I could not get enough of it.

Everything worked well in this movie, all the characters we’ve seen throughout the last ten years working together was such a treat and a promise that only Kevin Feige’s MCU could deliver on.

There are so many things right about this movie, I thought the plot for the movie really brought a genuine threat and splender to the MCU that managed to almost fix the MCU’s villain problem, Thanos was a genuine threat despite the fact that he had not been shown as formidable in any of the previous movies, then there’s the Black Order who present both a brilliant and fun henchmen group.

The heroes all coming together for the first time isn’t as big of a deal as made out because aside from the Guardians teaming up with Iron Man, Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, everyone else who teams up has teamed up before aside from a brief interaction between Shuri and Bruce Banner.

Regardless, this was such a fun movie, a slight complete deviation from the comics event as the key characters aren’t in play for the MCU just yet. However, this was very much the movie of the summer and definitely an event everyone was talking about. I loved it and roll on Avengers: Endgame.

#4. Bohemian Rhapsody

I love Queen, I love everything about the band and more to the point I love Freddie Mercury. I love everything that he stands for and everything that makes him an icon for the LGBT community. Throw in Rami Malik and you have everything I am looking for in a movie like this.

A Star Is Born did not make my list and in fact almost falls into my Least Favourite Movies list because I just didn’t really like it as a movie and the two movies are often compared. But while A Star Is Born had okay songs and an okay story, Bohemian Rhapsody had fantastic songs and a fantastic story because they all came from a raw and talented source.

I get there is some controversy with the movie as the remaining members of Queen tried to make it more of a Queen origin story than a Freddie Mercury biopic but the best thing about this movie is it is a perfect blend of both stories because you can’t have one without the other.

Also, the movie recreated Live Aid in such a mirrored way that it was almost like a straight-up recording with the actors in place of the actual people. This movie should definitely garner praise and accolades for that alone.

It’s just such a fantastic movie and provides such a potent love-note to all Freddie fans, I can’t say enough good things about it.

#3. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Best Spider-Man movie ever! This is a statement I found myself saying throughout this movie and a couple of days after seeing it I still think it, this is the best Spider-Man movie ever created. I’m not including Venom in that because it’s from the same material but is more of a spin-off from the mainstream Spidey movies than what has come featuring the red and blue webslinger.

But yes, I had reservations about this movie. Not only do I not know Miles Morales that well but I genuinely thought they were going to go down the Spider-Man origin route again and to be honest I don’t think I can sit through another retelling of that. Now this movie has one trope that goes in line with the traditional Spider-Man story which doesn’t exactly damage the movie but doesn’t seem necessary for the movie.

Also this is an all-age animated movie, that is very hard to do without pandering more to one age demographic and traditionally if they go down the adult animation route it’s often offensive and vulgar whereas this had none of that. Instead it dealt with several mature themes, mixed with some brilliant action sequences and quite hardcore violence. I mean it, Kingpin goes all out here.

In terms of the overall movie, there is a disclaimer right at the start before the opening credits that is specific to this movie saying “Do not copyright”...In the first 4 minutes you understand why. This movie is choc-full of twists, spoilers and treats for any Spidey fan and I personally guarantee there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Furthermore, because it is an animated movie, the entire story plays out like a comic-book practically like a live motion comic partially because of the use of captions used just they are in comics. The movement of the characters and the artistic scenery adds to what makes this movie so unique and so special.

Voice talent wise, Chris Pine makes a surprising vocal appearance as the Peter Parker of Miles’ Earth who dies towards the start, but then you have Jake Johnson, Nicholas Cage, Liev Schreiber, Hailee Steinfeld and Mahershala Ali all providing great support to Shameik Moore who himself is brilliant.

All in all, as everyone has said, this is the best Spider-Man movie to be released, I am very much looking forward to seeing where this movie takes the universe in the future.

#2. Aquaman

This movie came so close to being my #1 because I genuinely believe it is the best movie of the year, however #1 is my favourite and that’s what this list is about.

If someone had told me Aquaman would be DC’s best movie since The Dark Knight I would have laughed in their face. I cannot believe how much I enjoyed this movie. Visually stunning, there is not a lot more I can say about how gorgeous this movie is that everyone else has not said.

Jason Momoa takes to this role like Gal Gadot takes to Wonder Woman and Hugh Jackman took to Wolverine. He has so much joy in this movie and you can tell he, Amber Heard and the other cast members love being part of this world.

I will reiterate what I said in my non-spoiler review, this movie essentially showed us the scenary of a live-action Little Mermaid complete with Ariel in Amber Heard’s Mera and yet we are still looking forward to Disney’s live-action version of the movie. I guarantee you there will be a lot of comparisons between these movies, even if Zendaya gets cast because she will be compared to both Mera and Aquaman as both the lead and lead female.

This movie does what Wonder Woman could not and that is nail the final act and the climactic battle sequence. Oh my god it was like watching Lord of the Rings underwater it was so magnificent.

What they set up for a hopeful sequel is very juicy, you have Nicole Kidman as Aquaman’s mother still alive, you have Aquaman and Mera finally together, you have Orm still alive so there’s potential for either redemption like Loki or a return to form in a future movie. Also Black Manta will hopefully become more formidable in a future movie considering he was essentially a side-villain in this movie.

I want a sequel, I want a sequel for Aquaman more than I want any other DC Movie coming out. I cannot wait.

#1. Black Panther

Without question this movie outshines most movies in any genre. I still think Aquaman is the best movie because it is solidly brilliant from beginning to end, but Black Panther is miraculous in terms of visuals, music and the representation of African culture.

It is in some ways an origin movie because it’s how T’Challa adapted to becoming king of Wakanda, however because we already met T’Challa during Civil War, much like Spider-Man it wasn’t a question of needing to know their origins it was more about exploring them as individuals and what makes them superheroes.

However, surprisingly, Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther was not the most compelling part of this movie. Don’t get me wrong he’s still a brilliant actor and an integral part of the movie, but the way Ryan Coogler accurately portrays African culture, from the tribal combat tradition of earning the mantle of king, to the styling of each tribe to make them distinct, even with what the inclusion of the superhero angle brings with Wakanda being a technologically advanced nation and the visuals that they bring.

Just like Aquaman, this movie had a great main villain but a somewhat weak side-villain. Both Orm and Killmonger were brilliant but Killmonger outshines Orm because what he stands for divided audiences and even created a social media storm with the hashtag #Killmongerwasright. Yes Ocean Master also had a sense of righteousness because of what he stood for with believing the surface world to be the sea inhabitants enemies which sparks an environmental debate but Killmonger struck a core with African history. His final line of “Bury me in the ocean, with my ancestors that jumped from the ships, because they knew death was better than bondage.” is still probably the best line in any superhero movie for the power of the message it gets across.

Also T’Challa has been often critiqued for being outshined by his female supporting characters Shuri, Okoye, Nakia and Ramonda. I personally agree with this critique but again it’s not to the detroment of T’Challa or the movie because if anything it makes the movie that much better for having strong female characters who aren’t just “the love interest” or “the family” because yes that is what they essentially are but they’re celebrated for that.

Also, Letitia Wright is the breakout star of this movie, I would say Danai Gurira but she has The Walking Dead under her belt. Shuri is not the stereotypical princess character as not only is she 18 and head of the science and technology division of Wakanda but she has the personality and drive to easily take over the Black Panther mantle as she did in the comics.

Overall, this is not quite a perfect movie but it is definitely one of the best movies of the year, century and MCU in total. Not only is it a cultural milestone in terms of movie representation but also it is a movie that has earned numerous award nods and deserves to win all of them.

So that’s my list of my favourite movies of 2018, as I said it was a truly brilliant year for movies and I cannot wait to see what the new year has in store for us. In the mean time you can check out more Movie Reviews and other posts.

Happy New Year to all!

#2018 #2019 #black panther #aquaman #spider-man: into the spider-verse #love simon #bohemian rhapsody #avengers: infinity war #incredibles 2 #christopher robin #venom #fantastic beasts: the crimes of grindelwald #the crimes of grindelwald