Once again we find ourselves at the end of another long year filled to the brim with all kinds of different films. Just like in any other year, there were a few that didn't quite live up to their reputation, but there were still plenty of great films to choose from, so at long last, here are my picks for the ten best films of 2018: 10. Three Identical Strangers – Starting off the list is one of the best documentaries of the year, “Three Identical Strangers.” On its outset, it appears to be the simple story of how three triplets managed to find each other at the age of 19, which obviously turns their world completely upside-down, but as the film proceeds, the tale gets deeper and darker as it
After “Justice League” came out last year to a disastrous reception from critics and fans alike, it was hoped that DC would put the brakes on their current slate in hopes of finally taking the time to figure out just what was going wrong with their releases. After all, there were clear problems with duds like “Suicide Squad” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” and with another disaster like “Justice League,” clearly something needed to be done to fix the continuous problems these films were having. Alas, this didn’t happen, and they’ve opted to plunge full speed ahead with a solo film featuring one of the duller characters from their last outing, Aquaman. It’s a film that no one was pa
If you've seen this morning's Screen Actors Guild nominations, then you know there was quite a major shakeup involving several shocking snubs and surprise appearances, so let's take a look at the biggest ones and what it means for the rest of awards season. First off, "The Favourite" was shockingly left out of Best Cast (in favor of the undeserving "Bohemian Rhapsody") after having won a multitude of awards in this category for the past few weeks. Now, it's always possible that the SAG nominating committee merely felt that the cast consisted primarily of Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz, and Emma Stone, and that they didn't constitute an ensemble in the strictest sense, but everyone else thus far
The Screen Actors Guild has just finished announcing their nominations for 2018, and to say that there were a few surprises would be the understatement of the year. First off, the single biggest shock of the morning was finding "The Favourite," which had been winning Ensemble awards all over the place, left out of the Best Cast category, where it was the assumed frontrunner. It was somehow replaced by either "Bohemian Rhapsody," which merely has one memorable performance from star Rami Malek, or "Blackkklansman," which had a decent pair of performances from John David Washington and Adam Driver, but also which didn't nearly hit the amazing heights of the cast of "The Favourite." Secondly, af
It was a big day for film critics awards today, with the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the New York Film Critics Online, the Toronto Film Critics Association, and the San Francisco Film Critics Circle all announcing their year-end picks. The fascinating thing here is that all four groups were in agreement, naming Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma" as the best film of 2018. New York and Toronto also awarded the film Best Director, while Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco also awarded it Best Cinematography. Additionally, San Francisco also named it Best Foreign Language film. Only a few things happened out of the ordinary today, such as Los Angeles and Toronto giving Best Supporting Actor
It seems like we've been waiting for an absurdly long amount of time for our first look at the new "Avengers" film, but at long last, Marvel Studios has finally dropped the first official trailer for the film this morning, and it certainly doesn't disappoint. When last we saw our heroes, things were not going quite so well. The battle with Thanos had resulted in half the living creatures in existence being wiped out, including several of The Avengers, so understandably the trailer shows us the survivors trying to pick up the pieces in the aftermath. Now, of course the trailer doesn't show us all that much besides this, but this should definitely be seen as a good thing, for it still manages
This morning's Golden Globe nominations were a lot to take in, with plenty of surprise inclusions and snubs, so let's take a look at a few and what this means for these films' Oscar chances. First off, "Vice" topping the list was entirely unexpected, with the film taking six major nominations (Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor, Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress). They clearly loved the film, but will it actually win any of these awards? For the supporting categories, I would say no, for Regina King seems to have Supporting Actress locked up, while Supporting Actor appears to be between Grant and Ali. Director would appear to be Cuaron's to lose, while Screenplay is probably between
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association has just announced the nominees for their annual Golden Globe Awards, and as usual, there are plenty of surprises to be found among them. For starters, I don't think anyone could have predicted that Adam McKay's Dick Cheney biopic, "Vice," would be leading the way with six nods, including Best Picture (Comedy/Musical), Best Director, Best Screenplay, and three acting nominations. Several films followed right behind with five, including "The Favourite," "Green Book," and "A Star is Born." Perhaps most shocking of all, however, is the disappointing omission of Yorgos Lanthimos from Best Director for his stunning work on "The Favourite." The HFPA clearly
The Film: The “Conjuring” series of films and spinoffs has been a series of hits and misses thus far, with there being an unfortunate leaning towards the misses. The original franchise started on a very shaky note, with a bland, dull, scareless, and overly-long entry that failed to provide the frightening experience it desperately wanted to give to audiences, while the second film miraculously managed to improve in just about every area. Meanwhile, the “Annabelle” films tried to go off and do their own thing, only to stumble in their own attempts to elicit terror. Now we come to another prequel, “The Nun,” that seeks to explain the origin of the sinister spirit from “The Conjuring 2.” Will t
The Show: HBO took an awfully big gamble when they green-lit “Westworld” for its first season in 2016. After all, who knew how the public was going to react to a slick and sophisticated reimagining of a small sci-fi film from the 70s. Luckily for them, the risk paid off with an opening season that, despite taking a little too long to get a move on, ended up weaving together some intriguing storylines into a compelling mystery that made the wait worthwhile. Before the first season even finished airing, the show had been approved for a second season, which was good news for viewers as the finale had left the show right at a precarious point. Heading into season two, the show now had boundless
The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) announced their awards this morning, adding even more praise to Alfonso Cuaron's gorgeous "Roma," declaring it the Best Film of 2018. The film also received Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Foreign Language Film. The rest of the awards were very spread out, honoring a number of films, including "The Favourite" (Best Original Screenplay and Best Acting Ensemble), "If Beale Street Could Talk" (Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Score), "A Star is Born" (Best Actor and Best Actress), and "Isle of Dogs" (Best Animated Feature and Best Voice Performance). Even "Black Panther" managed to squeeze in a rather shocking win,