Top 10 Films of the First Half of 2019

So we are already into the second half of the year (time flies) and we’ve already seen a few very interesting new releases. While not as exciting as this time last year in my opinion, there has been some films that are very worthy of discussion. Some of these were actually released during the festival circuit last year, but they entered major distribution this year – the only exception to this criteria I’m not including is “Birds of Passage”, which I actually caught mid summer last year in my home country, and since it was our net at the Oscars for 2018 I still consider it a 2018 release. Also, I’m mainly considering films that were released from January to June, so no “Midsommar” (which sadly hasn’t been released yet where I live). I also haven’t been able to watch “Toy Story 4” yet, but from what I’ve heard it might be the only fourth part in a movie franchise that is actually good.

Anyway, usually I would now talk about some honourable mentions, but I don’t think I’ve seen enough films this year that deserve this categorization to actually make a whole session. There are still, however, a couple that were or almost were pretty good and I’ll discuss them briefly: “Brightburn” – some great acting and cool scenes, but ultimately disappointing considering the potential of its premise, needed to flesh out Brandon’s character more; “The Beach Bum” – unique, funny and some times straight up outrageous, while boasting an excellent performance by Matthew McConaughey but kind of feels hollow at the end (though you could argue it was done in purpose to reflect the main character); “Booksmart” – probably gonna get criticized for this, but this movie didn’t do much for me, it’s well vast and Olvia Wilde does a great job directing, but the humour was very hit and miss and for all its progressive ideas it does lack nuance ; and of course there’s “Avengers: Endgame”, which I reviewed earlier, a film that brings the Infinity Saga to an end, but also goes a little too much into nostalgic territory (albeit doing it right for the most part), and it takes Marvel’s greatest villain and doesn’t do him enough justice. Also, for kids stuff I really enjoyed both “Shazam!” And ” Detective Pikachu”.

Okay, so with that out of the way, let’s get started with the top 10 Films of the first half of 2019:

10. The Dead Don’t Die (Jim Jarmusch)

An excellent cast and a very talented auteur at the helm, even with all its great moments one can’t help but feel somewhat disappointed by Jarmusch’s latest film. A zombie flick doesn’t sound like your standard material for an indie director, but after what he did with vampires in “Only Lovers Left Alive” I had high hopes for this. It tells the story of a zombie outbreak from the perspectives of several residents in a small town. It has some very hilarious scenes, there ‘s some unexpected stuff going on, and it’s wonderful cast all give excellent performances all around. The thing is, the film has too many characters for a runtime of around 100 minutes. You could cut out a couple of the subplots to better focus on some of the most interesting characters (I’d day Driver, Murray, Swinton and Waits were the most interesting aspects), or alternatively make the film’s run to be up to two hours maybe, and you’d have a better movie all around. Regardless, the film is a very entertaining piece and does deserve your time.

9. The Perfection (Richard Sheppard)

Perhaps somewhat ironically, “The Perfection” is far from perfect. A psychosexual thriller about musical prodigees years after they’ve left a shady music academy. The film seems that it kind of struggles to decide what type of story it wants to be, it twists and turns in many unexpected ways, some lackluster but some devilishly good. I’ve seen people criticize this film because it isn’t “realistic”, but this isn’t the type of movie you should judge on its level of realism. It is convoluted and far fetched, but it still does achieve what it sets out to do: to be a disturbing and provocative mindf*ck of a movie. Also, Allison Williams’ performance deserves a shout out. It has tonal and pacing issues (another example of a film that could’ve benefited from an extra 10-15 minutes), and like I said it is somewhat convoluted, but as a thriller in the vein of Korean revenge cinema Italian giallos I’d say it is pretty effective. Again, not necessarily a “great” film, but the only reason it sits above “The Dead Don’t Die” is that it doesn’t have a proven outstanding director from whom you’d expect more.

8. Monos (Alejandro Lanés)

I may not be considering “Birds of Passage” as an entry for this year, but Colombia has another great recent film among its ranks that hopefully sparks some attention. It tells the story of a group of youngsters in a mountain terrain far away from civilization, being trained and indoctrinated to fight an illegal war. The film never specified if they belong to the guerrillas or the paramilitary organizations, and I liked it all the more for not taking a political stance. The film is a surreal fever dream, a descent into he’ll well within the Colombian jungles. The imagery is beautiful and brutal, the sound design is extremely immersive, the story is great throughout and the actors all give their best. If I had to signal one flaw it’d be some of the character’s lack of characterisation, but I’d say it’s not a big issue. I caught the film at the Berlinale earlier this year, and I’d recommend to anyone to go out and see it, the future of Colombian cinema seems bright.

7. The Miracle at the Sargasso Sea (Syllas Tzoumerkas)

Another film I caught at this year’s Berlinale, a Greek mystery film with its surrealist moments and an appeal in the tradition of the country’s Greek wave. It tells the story of a detective, played by the great Ageliki Papoulia, who is transferred from Athens to a small coastal town, where, many years later, she must solve the apparent suicide of a local musician, for which she must uncover some of the town’s disturbing secrets. It is a complex film with several heavy topics, but it managed to handle them (mostly) with great care and respect. Papoulia gives an excellent performance in the central role, and her character offers perhaps a new heroine mould in this sort of surrealistic neo-noir genre. I’d say the film’s major weaknesses are its first scene (which isn’t particularly bad but it feels from another movie altogether) and it’s last (which kind of robs the ambiguity of the main character’s arc), but all in all a pretty good and well made film, alas I’d hesitate to recommend it since it is a hard watch and may play out more as an acquired taste.

6. I Am Mother (Grant Sputore)

As you may know, I’m a big fan of thought provoking science fiction, and this year’s “I Am Mother” offers exactly that. It tells of an A.I. known as “Mother” (voiced by Rose Byrne), which is activated one day after an extinction event that wiped out humanity, and is tasked to raise a new generation of humans. Years pass and a new offspring, simply known as “Daughter” (Clara Ruggard) starts her path into adolescence, when a mysterious woman (Hilary Swank) appears, meaning that Daughter is in fact not the only human alive, what leads her to ask questions about the nature of her situation. This film poses all sorts of philosophical and ethical questions, is tense and thrilling, extremely well executed, perfectly acted and it develops into very unpredictable territory. Ruggard gives a breakthrough performance, and both Swank and Byrne deserve major recognition for their roles. If you’re a fan of thought provoking science fiction that’s also thrilling and narratively compelling you should check this one out.

5. Her Smell (Alex Ross Perry)

A musical drama starring Elisabeth Moss as a troubled rockstar whose self-destructive behaviour compromises her career and personal relationships. A relatively small film, it is in reality a very compelling and at times heart breaking narrative, even if it steps sometimes into melodrama territory. Elisabeth Moss gives what is perhaps the best performance of her career as the troubled Becky, a towering shift that’ll sadly get ignored in the award season since this is a low profile film. The music is pretty great, some sort of mid 2000s rock-pop mixed with some sentimental ballades for good meassure. I once saw a film by Perry starring Moss as well at a film festival (“Queen of Earth”), and after finding out that there was a new collaboration between the two I decided I had to watch it as soon as possible, and I’ve gotta say that “Her Smell” not only lived up to that expectation but also surpassed it.

4. Us (Jordan Peele)

Jordan Peele follows up his breakout hit “Get Out” with another smart horror filled with tons of social commentary. Lupita N’yongo stars as Adelaide, a woman who years ago had a disturbing encounter at a house of mirrors at the beach in Santa Cruz as a kid. Now, years later, she and her family visit Santa Cruz again, only to be met by doppelgängers, dark reflections of themselves. Peele’s sophomore effort solidifies him as a true talent to be reckoned with, showing his mastery of the genre and his ability to handle complex social issues. Unlike “Get Out”, which is pretty straight forward with its commentary, I’d argue that in “Us” it is left somewhat more ambigous, albeit such an ambitious and complicated project does leave a sense that it’s reach extended its grasp. I’d argue that his first film is a much tighter outing that knows and embraces its limitations, whereas “Us” does suffer a little from being too ambitious. Regardless, it is still an excellent horror film that comments on the american reality and issuses such as inequality, social mobility and gaining social status at the expense of others.

3. Ash is the Purest White (Jia Zhangke)

I came into this film expecting a gangster/crime drama from a chinese perspective, but what I got was something much more rewarding. It tells the story of Qiao, whose boyfriend Bin is a mob boss with a lot of influence. One night, a biker gang attacks them in attempt to dethrone Bin, so Qiao steps in, firing a gun into the sky, what scares them off but also calls the attention of the police; Qiao is arrested. She’s released after five years and here’s where the real drama begins: we see from her perspective how she’s unable to adapt to a rapidly changing world. China’s development as a country has been one of the fastest ones in history, and this film thematizes that with particular care for the people who aren’t really able to keep up. If anything, the film plays out like a gangster film for the first 30 minutes, but afterwards it becomes a deeply personal drama about this woman trying to understand this world. A character study which pays careful attention to the small nuances of interpersonal relationships in such an environment, which effectively shows why Zhangke is one of China’s most celebrated modern auteurs.

2. Long Day’s Journey into Night (Bi Gan)

The director of 2015’s surprise film “Kaili Blues” is back with another exploration of cinematic time that boasts great technical prowess. The film tells the story of a man who returns to his home town for the funeral of his father, while reminiscing about an old friend called Wildcat, and starts searching for a long lost love. This film had a particularly interesting marketing campaign in China: it was released at New Year’s eve and it was marketed as the ultimate romantic film, with special interest on the final scene as the clock would strike midnight and signal the beginning of 2019. It became the highest grossing opening for a chinese film, yet the box office returns decreased afterwards because, as it turns out, the film was something completely different to what was marketed. Viewers expecting a romantic drama were flabbergasted by an out of the ordinary and far from straight forward art film that played with time perception and memory. The last hour of the film is a single continous shot that flies through different locations, meetings with characters from different eras, and defies traditional story expectations. This final sequence alone makes it worth while, if anything because of the great technical aspect (not to mention its in 3D), but also how the film handles its themes and the particular way it tells its story makes this an unforgetable film experience.

1. High Life (Claire Denis)

In what is perhaps my favourite film of the year as of now, Claire Denis directs a talented cast that includes Juliette Binoche, Robert Pattison and Mia Goth in a nightmarish mix of science fiction, horror and art house sensibilities. A group of criminals are sent to space as a punishment in a mission to harvest energy from a black hole. Unbeknownst to them, they are there to be used as guinea pigs for sexual and reproductive experimentation, in an effort by Dr. Dibs (Binoche) to achieve artificial insemination. This is a very disturbing film that may appear inaccesible at first (for the first 40 minutes or so I was struggling to understand what the hell was going on), but once you get a semblance of an idea for what is happening things will start falling into place. The film is full of surreal and nightmarish sequences that make it unforgettable. The performances are all around great, Goth demonstrating she’s excellent for such dark tales as she did in “Nymphomaniac”, “The Survivalist” and last year’s “Suspiria”, and Pattison keeps solidifying his status as an indie star (which does give hope for the future Batman). But of course, the MVP of the picture is Juliette Binoche, twisted as she is sensous, disturbing yet oddly charming, stealing the spotlight in every scene she’s in. Claire Denis has crafted one of the most unforgettable films of the year, bringing her talent and unique vision to the science fiction genre, the result being what could be this year’s best.

So there you have it. Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it. If you could share this with your friends and family it’d be of great help, and don’t forget to hit that follow button to keep up to date with this blog’s contents. Also, check out my Letterboxd to see this list develop as the year goes by and I watch newer films. Here’s to hoping that the second half of 2019 brings even more great films. Until next time!

Films to look forward to in 2019

2018 is oficially over, that means we now enter this weird period where you don’t know if any film you watch counts as last year’s or this one’s. It is a time to recap what made 2018 such a great year for movies, but before we get to that (since there’s still a lot of stuff out there that I’d like to see before tackling that head on) we should take a look at awaits us in this new year.

On the blockbuster front there’s a lot to be excited about: conclusions to both the Avengers saga and the new Star Wars trilogy (the last movie might have divided the fan base, but I’ll be damned if the movie doesn’t kill at the box office), Marvel has also solo outings for its first female-led superhero film “Captain Marvel” and a sequel to Tom Holland’s spidey titled “Spider-Man: Far from home”, there’s also the last 20th Century Fox X-Men film to look forward to, namely “Dark Phoenix”,  a new reboot for “Hellboy” (directed by Neil Marshall, who’s directed a few episodes on three series that I love, namely “Hannibal”, “Westworld” and “Game of Thrones”), and Ryan Reynolds stars as Pikachu in a sort of odd-ball detective story set in a world where people and Pokemons co-exist in “Detective Pikachu” (kind of reminds of me of Roger Rabbit). Then there’s “Toy Story 4” of course, but to be honest I’m a little apprehensive towards this one since Pixar doesn’t really have the best track record with sequels, but then again the “Toy Story” franchise is the only exception, so let’s just hope for the best. Disney has also a couple of “live-action” remakes for its classics “Dumbo”, “The Lion King” and “Aladdin”, but while it is true that those films look visually stunning based on the promotional material we’ve got, I don’t think I’ll be attending the theater to see those, mainly because of Disney’s shameless prostitution of its own beloved titles (but I guess that’s a subject for another day perhaps). And how could we forget the sequel to 2017’s surprise horror hit “It”, which has already rounded up a stellar cast to play the grown versions of the children, and there’s even a new Terminator sequel that plans on retconning everything since T2 back in 1991, and if the last Halloween movies is something to go with then this might turn out to be exactly what the franchise needs. All in all, it is an exciting year to be a film fan.

Anyway, those are the biggest projects and franchises from the big studios of the industry, however we all know that the very best films of the year will come out of nowhere. In any case, there are five movies that I’m currently more excited to see beyond the ones I already mentioned, so here they are, in order of release.

Glass (M. Night Shyamalan, January 18th)

This one is dropping pretty soon in a couple of weeks from now, so it is kind of weird to include it on the main list (maybe I should have gone with “Endgame”?), but I wanted to talk about a little before it got released. Now, Shyamalan doesn’t have the best track record, he’s spent the majority of the last two decades putting out bad film after bad film after bad film, but there are a couple of movies in his canon that are really great cinematic pieces, and those are: “The Sixth Sense”, “Unbreakable” and “Split”. This new entry into his filmography is a sequel of the latter two, which makes it exciting enough. The idea of seeing Bruce Willis’ indestructible hero take on James McAvoy’s multi-personality villain, while Samuel L. Jackson’s Mr. Glass is pulling the strings behind their backs, it just sounds too good to miss. Ana Taylor Joy is also back for this one, which is great considering the hot streak of awesome movies she’s been in lately. Of course, this could all backfire, it is Shyamalan after all, but let’s just hope “Split” wasn’t a one-off thing and more of a solid return to form.

Us (Jordan Peele, March 15)

The mastermind behind “Get Out” is back with another tense, nail-biting thriller. The trailer looks awesome and it promises a ride full of suspense, horror and a good dose of a psychological edge. Its about a family who apparently are being stalked by a group of people that turn out to be their doppelgangers, but if Peele’s last film is anything to go by we can safely bet that there will be a lot more to this under the surface. It stars Lupita Nyong’o and Elizabeth Moss, two actresses that I’m really excited to see work with Peele. The talent is there, the intriguing premise is there, the ambiguity regarding the plot is also there. All in all, the potential for this film to be one of spring’s most important hits is huge, let’s hope it lives up to it.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Quentin Tarantino, July 26th)

Tarantino follows up his 2015 “The Hateful Eight” by tackling the Manson family murders. Based on that sentence alone I’m already sold. Add to that a cast that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Al Pacino, Burt Reynolds, Kurt Russell, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Dakota Fanning and Luke Perry and how can you resist to that. Now, I do think that Tarantino is a tad overrated by milleannials, and his two previous work have been a little lacking in quality compared to his earlier films (though there’s a clear reason for that: the untimely death of editor Sally Menke, to whom Tarantino himself referred to as his most trusted collaborator), but with a cast like that and a subject matter with which Tarantino can go crazy “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” is a film you don’t want to miss.

Joker (Todd Philipps, October 4th)

If you’ve read my post of a rebooted DCEU you know I’m a big fan of the Joker and that I’m all for giving him his own movie. Nevertheless, I was a little apprehensive when they announced this movie. The painful memory of Jared Leto in “Suicide Squad” still lingered at the time, and Warner Bros. were losing their credibility in all matters DC. However, what really got me curious were the people behind the project: Todd Phillips, director of “The Hangover”, will be helming the project, so you know from he get go that we’ll have some really dark humour in our hands; then there’s Scott Silver, who wrote the screenplays of “8 Mile” (2002) and “The Fighter” (2010), which means he will probably give the film its street edge, so to speak; and there’s of course Martin Scorsese, who is producing, though it is unclear to which degree he will be involved; finally there’s Joaquim Phoenix as the Joker, a prospect that I am really excited about, since just recently he delivered one of the very best perfomances of 2018 in “You Were Never Really Here”, so I’m really looking forward to seeing where he takes the Joker.

The Irishman (Martin Scorsese, TBA)

A new Scorsese film is always a reason to rejoice, now add to that the fact that he’s reuniting with Robert DeNiro since 1995’s “Casino”; now add to that Joe Pesci who also starred and thrived in “Casino” and, more importantly, in “Goodfellas”; now add to that the first time in history that Al Pacino will be working with Scorsese; add to that a cast rounded by such talents like Bobby Cannavale, Harvey Keitel, Ray Romano and Anna Paquin; and on top of all that the scrip is being written by Steven Zaillian, screenwriter of “Schindler’s List” (1993), “Gangs of New York” (2002), “American Gangster” (2007) and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (2011). Need I say more? Netflix is distributing and they haven’t announced a release date yet, but I’m pretty sure post-production will be completed in the coming months and that it will be ready for an end of year release, just in time for an award push.

So there you have it, my five most anticipated upcoming movies of 2019, their releases ranging fromjust in a couple of weeks to we have virtually no idea to when it will drop, so yeah, it already seems that this will be a very exciting year for cinema. Also, regarding the end of the year list, I think I will have it up around the final week of January probably, but until then I’d like to call your attention to Letterboxd: most of you probably already know about it, but Letterboxd is a community for cinephiles where you can rate, review and list your favourite movies. There I have an ever changing list of the best of 2018, as well as a list for my all time favourites, so if you’re interested you can always check that out and add me over there, since I’m still new to it and don’t know many people. But the site is awesome, definitely worth checking out.