2018 Top Ten

10. You Were Never Really Here. The comparisons with Taxi Driver are obvious, Except Joe (Joaquin Phoenix) is good at violence. He tries to do the right thing but is haunted with what he has seen. The violence is staged by director Lynne Ramsey in a way which gives no pleasure to the viewer. Kinda like in Taxi Driver.

9. The Hate U Give. Not just for Amandla Stenberg's star quality performance, but how the film so deftly shows how some African Americans have to nullify their attitudes to be accepted in a white dominated society.

8. A Quiet Place. Nothing intellectual here, just an acknowledgement that the theatrical experience was truly memorable. The creatures in the movie respond to sound, and you could hear a pin drop in the theater as no one wanted to make a sound.

7. Phantom Thread. Director Paul Thomas Anderson is an acquired taste, but he intrigues me every time. I was enraptured by his portrayal of a rigidly ordered man (Daniel Day Lewis) whose order collapses under the weight of his marriage.

6. Hearts Beat Loud. Just pure joy. Nick Offerman plays a record store owner who enjoys playing music with his daughter. Kiersey Clemons as the daughter is the discovery here, and the music is genuinely fun as well.

5. Leave No Trace. Director Debra Granik is best known for directing Winter's Bone, which was nominated for four Oscars. I think this is better. The portrayal of a father and daughter who live off the grid had an emotional pull that Winter's Bone did not quite achieve, and performances by Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie which pulled me in to the film.

4. Free Solo. The story of the first climb of a 3300 foot rock face in Yosemite with no safety equipment. The film is brilliant in getting the viewer to get to know the climber, Alex Honnold, and the climb, so that in the end when he makes the climb was more intense than any fictional action scene in years.

3. Won't You Be My Neighbor. If you love Mr. Rogers, this documentary of his life and philosophy will remind you why. You will need tissues.

2. A Star Is Born. The great showbiz tragedy with more life than I imagined. Holds up next to the 1937 and 1954 versions, which is saying a lot. You will need tissues.

1. Roma. It feels like an Italian neorealist classic. But there is amazing invisible use of effects to recreate 1970 Mexico City. The other films on this list are incredible. This is the one stone cold masterpiece. I have loved director Alfonso Cuaron's films before -- both Gravity and A Little Princess topped my lists of those years. Cuaron is at the absolute top of his game here, and at a level few directors ever reach.

2018 Top Ten (runners up)

Time to unveil my annual list of the best movies. As usual, my list is made up of movies which opened theatrically in 2018 in Columbus or Dayton. While all of this year's Oscar nominated best pictures actually opened in 2018, If Beale Street Could Talk and Cold War did not and will be eligible next year. Meanwhile, a Best Picture nominee and an Oscar winner from 2017 will be mentioned. Before listing my top ten, here are ten runners-up that just missed.

Annihilation. A truly unnerving film that takes its science fiction seriously.

BlacKkKlansman. Spike Lee delivers his best film since 4 Little Girls.

Black Panther. Marvel's best film to date.

Deadpool 2. The skydiving sequence was the loudest I laughed all year.

Eighth Grade. There is a reason this won the writers guild award for original screenplay.

A Fantastic Woman. Last year's Oscar winner for foreign film is the best treatment of transgenderism I have ever seen.

Juliet, Naked. I am a sucker for Nick Hornby's writing, and his continued look at men who haven't  quite grown up.

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Mission Impossible -- Fallout. The last 45 minutes were the best sustained action of the year.

Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse. Endlessly original and witty, Oscar got animated feature correct.

Three Identical Strangers. The most unique story in a documentary this year.

My Oscar predictions/votes

Picture

Will win: Roma
Should win: Roma
Should be nominated: If Beale Street Could Talk

Director

Will win: Alfonso Cuaron, Roma
Should win: Alfonso Cuaron, Roma
Should be nominated: Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born

Actor

Will win: Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody

Should win: Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born

Should be nominated: Joaquin Phoenix, You Were Never Really Here

Actress

Will win: Glenn Close, The Wife

Should win: Yalitza Aparicio, Roma

Should be nominated: Emily Blunt, A Quiet Place

Supporting Actor

Will win: Mahershala Ali, Green Book

Should win: Sam Elliott, A Star Is Born

Should be nominated: Michael B. Jordan, Black Panther

Supporting Actress

Will win: Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk

Should win: Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk

Should be nominated: Nicole Kidman, Boy Erased

Animated Feature

Will win: Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse 

Should win: Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse

Should be nominated: the correct films are nominated

Cinematography

Will win: Roma
Should win: Roma
Should be nominated: Black Panther

Costume Design

Will win: The Favourite

Should win: Black Panther

Should be nominated: Crazy Rich Asians

Documentary Feature

Will win: RBG

Should win: Free Solo

Should be nominated: Won't You Be My Neighbor?

Documentary Short

Will win: Black Sheep

Should win: Period. End of Sentence.

Editing

Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Should win: BlacKkKlansman 

Should be nominated: A Star Is Born

Foreign Film

Will win: Roma

I have only seen two nominees, so will not pick a should win.

Makeup and Hairstyling

Will win: Vice

Should win: Vice

Should be nominated: Black Panther

Original Score

Will win: If Beale Street Could Talk

Should win: If Beale Street Could Talk

Should be nominated: Suspiria

Original Song

Will win: Shallow from A Star Is Born

Should win: Shallow from A Star Is Born

Should be nominated: The Girl in the Movies from Dumplin'

Production Design

Will win: Black Panther

Should win: Black Panther

Should be nominated: Annihilation

Animated Short

Will win: Bao

Should win: Late Afternoon

Should be nominated: Wishing Box

Live Action Short

Will win: Marguerite

Should win: Marguerite

Sound Editing

Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Should win: A Quiet Place

Should be nominated: Ready Player One

Sound Mixing

Will win: Bohemian Rhapsody

Should win: A Star Is Born

Should be nominated:  Ready Player One

Visual Effects

Will win: Avengers Infinity War

Should win: Avengers Infinity War

Should be nominated: Black Panther

Adapted Screenplay

Will win:  BlacKkKlansman

Should win: A Star Is Born

Should be nominated: Leave No Trace

Original Screenplay

Will win: Green Book

Should win: Roma

Should be nominated: Eighth Grade

My Best Picture Ballot

Given an Oscar ballot requires voters to rank their choices, and I have seen all of the nominees, here is how I vote and why. I think this is the weakest roster of nominees in years, with half of the nominees not deserving of a nomination.

1. Roma. Alfonso Cuaron has crafted a masterpiece. A first glance, this has the feel of an Italian neo-realistic classic such as Rome, Open City of Bicycle Thief. But the immediacy of those films was part of their merits. This is film is so crafted but maintains the illusion of immediacy, with a couple of astounding set pieces in the second half, and images I will never forget.

2. A Star Is Born. The greatest pleasures of this film are the small pleasures. When the two main characters are discussing a song being written, and the way they say "How do you hear it?" When she kind of embarrassingly says "I don't normally do this" and he responds "Good. Then we're on the same page." The editing, frequently overlapping concert sound with another scene. There are so many ways this could have gone wrong. I amazed how much went right.

3. Black Panther. Marvel has not made a better film. The pleasures of a superhero film are merged with real life political concerns. Ryan Coogler has made a film that speaks to African Americans but has a universal appeal at the same time. The Screen Actors Guild got it right: this is the best cast across the board of any film this year.

4. BlacKkKlansman. I felt the first half of the film is a little too slowly paced. However, the final half hour, which cuts back and forth between a Klan membership induction and a black students meeting is stunning. The meeting, in which an elder gentleman recalls Emmitt Till is riveting because it is Harry Belafonte giving the talk. Then the film wraps up in a way that brings it forward to today in a way that leaves the audience angry at our current society.

5. Green Book. Now we enter the undeserving part of the roster. Green Book is a pleasant buddy comedy with a dash of anger about the racism of the 60s. It is not some great statement about race relations, and it is nowhere close to as strong a film on the subject as Driving Miss Daisy (let alone Do The Right Thing).

6. Bohemian Rhapsody. The music scenes are really well done, and why I slimly recommended it. But this film does not appear to know what made Freddy Mercury tick, and the scenes of his home life way the film down. I would have preferred to see more of the band together in the studio and onstage, because that is when the film really sings.

7. The Favourite. Apparently it is really daring to show that the Queen had lesbian affairs! To me, it felt like a five year old who thinks it is the height of daring and hilarity to say "poopy" over and over. Sure, the film is well made, but what does it accomplish?

8. Vice. It is hard to believe that Adam McCay made both this and The Big Short. The Big Short had all kinds of insight as to what made the financial crises occur. Vice has no insight whatsoever as to what makes Dick Cheney tick. It is a well acted but ultimately empty exercise.

2017 Oscar Nominations Predictions

Best Picture

The Big Sick
Call Me By Your Name
Dunkirk
Get Out
Lady Bird
The Post
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri

Best Director

Luca Guadagnino, Call Me By Your Name
Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk
Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water
Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri

 Best Actor
Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name
Daniel Day-Lewis, Phantom Thread
Tom Hanks, The Post
Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out
Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour

Best Actress

Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri
Margie Robbie, I Tonya
Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird
Meryl Streep, The Post

Best Supporting Actor

Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project
Armie Hammer, Call Me By Your Name
Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water
Christopher Plummer, All the Money In The World
Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri

Best Supporting Actress

Mary J. Blige, Mudbound
Holly Hunter, The Big Sick
Allison Janney, I Tonya
Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird
Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

Year by Year list for each year of my life

Responding to a challenge from a friend, here are my favorite films from each year of my life.

1968: The Producers
1969: The Wild Bunch
1970: Woodstock
1971: The Last Picture Show
1972: The Candidate
1973: Day For Night
1974: The Conversation
1975: Nashville
1976: Network
1977: Star Wars
1978: Halloween
1979: The Black Stallion
1980: Airplane!
1981: Raiders of the Lost Ark
1982: E.T.
1983: El Norte
1984: Once Upon a Time in America
1985: The Breakfast Club
1986: Platoon
1987: The Princess Bride
1988: Running on Empty
1989: Do The Right Thing
1990: GoodFellas
1991: Beauty and the Beast
1992: Malcolm X
1993: Fearless
1994: Schindler's List
1995: A Little Princess
1996: Les Miserables
1997: Titanic
1998: Saving Private Ryan
1999: American Beauty
2000: Magnolia
2001: Moulin Rouge
2002: Minority Report
2003: City of God
2004: Before Sunset
2005: A History of Violence
2006: United 93
2007: Pan's Labyrinth
2008: Slumdog Millionaire
2009: Up in the Air
2010: Inception
2011: The Tree of Life
2012: The Perks of Being a Wallflower
2013: Gravity
2014: Boyhood
2015: Mad Max: Fury Road
2016: La La Land

2017: Dunkirk

2018: Roma

2019: Parasite

2020: Hamilton

My Oscar ballot (2017)

I've posted what I think will happen in the Oscars tonight. Now for my personal choices. I will be abstaining in three categories where I have not seen at least two of the nominees, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Animated Feature and Best Documentary Feature, as I have not seen enough of the nominees to vote.

BEST PICTURE: La La Land

I am a fan of musicals, and my two favorites, Singin In The Rain and Umbrellas of Cherbourg, are both major influences on this film's look and tone. I also love how director Damien Chazelle took the joy of musicals and placed in the emotions of the reality. In a strong list of nominees, this for me is an easy choice.

BEST ACTOR: Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

I would be fine with any of the nominees, actually. It is a strong list. But Garfield impressed me the most. For most of the film, which is a bit routine, he nobly plays the strength required to stay a pacifist but still serve his country. But he secures my vote for how he plays gaining strength through faith in the climactic sequence where he saves many lives. His body language, total exhaustion yet determination, shows a power which wins my vote.

BEST ACTRESS: Emma Stone, La La Land

I loved the quiet strength of Ruth Negga's performance. Stone wins my vote for believably playing the highs and lows of pursuing acting stardom, and especially for the climactic explosion of emotion in her performance of "Audition" where she maps out why she does what she does.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

I will also be happy if Mahershala Ali wins. But Bridges had the most effect on me, as he quickly establishes in his laid back tone that he is smarter than every one in the room, picks apart the main characters' plan, and yet also plays the genuine emotion when the violence hits too close to home.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Viola Davis, Fences

I would have voted for her in the category where she belongs, Best Actress. One of our great actors in the performance of her year, and the emotional heart of the film, this is a really easy choice.

BEST DIRECTOR: Damien Chazelle, La La Land

For the same reason I am voting for best picture.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Hell or High Water

An impressive uses of the tropes of cops and robbers and the old west to offer a criticism of the economics of today.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Moonlight

I loved the intelligence of Arrival's screenplay, but the character study of Moonlight, also offering a criticism of the economics of today while also the lack of opportunity in the inner city for the main character to explore his homosexuality, hit me harder emotionally.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: La La Land

For the use of color and light and the way it calls back the musicals of the past.

BEST COSTUMES: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

The costumes and sets created a world in a way that no other did this year, a world which looks like a past that didn't happen, given the infusion of magic.

BEST SOUND MIXING: Arrival
BEST SOUND EDITING: Arrival

For me, the sound of Arrival was more critical to its success than any other film this year.

BEST EDITING: La La Land

Cutting together a musical yet remaining invisible is a tough, tough achievement.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: The Jungle Book

The animals look real to me.

BEST MAKEUP: Star Trek Beyond

For the creation of the character of Jaylah alone.

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

See costumes.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG: "Audition (The Fools Who Dream)" from La La Land

This is the emotional climax of the film, so I prefer it to the other La La Land song.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: La La Land

The other two score albums I bought this year -- Moana and Sing Street -- were not nominated. When a musical really soars, it is a testament to its music. the use of jazz to give this a subtly different flavor fits the themes and gives it life.