Hey there pals!! So since 2018 is half way over (that's crazy!), I thought I would share my top 10 movies of 2018 so far. There have been some really great movies this year and I've loved going to the theater. It's my happy place. If I'm going to be honest with you, I've used my MoviePass more in the past week than I've used my gym membership in the past month. That tells you a little bit about me... so there's that. Anyway shall we get started? I know you're just itching to know what I've chosen (Ha! Kidding. I know you probably don't care but I'm bored so let's get this show on the road).
(Oh Tina Fey how I love you)
10. Molly's Game
This movie directed by Aaron Sorkin in his directorial debut was one that I was really excited about. It looked Oscar baity-ish (not a real word) and I'm all about those type of films. It also stars Jessica Chastain who is one of my top 5 favorite actresses of all time. This film tells the true story of Molly Bloom who was an Olympic skier who after a major accident moved to LA where she started the world's most exclusive poker game. She became a target of the FBI and had to find a way to defend herself from serving some major jail time. I didn't know of this story beforehand but I found it very interesting. It was fascinating to see how she got her start in the seedy underworld of poker and the repercussions she faced as a result. In fact I found this story so interesting, as soon as I left the theater I went and bought Molly Bloom's book which this movie is based on. Jessica Chastain gives a wonderful performance and really captures you from the start. I was slightly disappointed when she didn't get nominated for this role because she really stole the show and made you connect to her character.
9. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
This film is the sequel to the hit film, Jurassic World. Taking place shortly after the events of the first film our two favorite heroes, Claire and Owen head back to the island to save the dinosaurs left behind before the active volcano on the island erupts. They work with a group who claims to want to relocate the dinosaurs to a new island but more sinister plans may be at play. It's up to Claire and Owen to figure out what these plans are and to put a stop to it. If you've read my review on this film then you know I really liked this one and if you haven't read my review on this film... what are you waiting for? I'll spare you guys another review so I'll just do some highlights of the film. The first one is pretty obvious I think... Chris Pratt. That guy is just the best and knows how to make a great movie. He's a great action star but also includes his signature sense of humor. Also Bryce Dallas Howard is amazing in this one and really gets to have as much fun as Pratt. There's humor, action, romance, suspense, everything you could want from a big summer movie like this.
8. Solo: A Star Wars Story
Following the success of Rogue One, the first anthology film in the Star Wars universe, Disney decided to release another one, this time focusing on the origin of everyone's favorite scoundrel, Han Solo. This tells the story of a young Han Solo and how he became the wise-cracking guy we have all come to know and love. It shows how he met Chewy and how they became one of the greatest duos in movie history. I also did a review on this movie so again I'll spare you the spiel but I really enjoyed this movie even though I was pretty nervous about it at first. I mean it's not Harrison Ford. How can you make a Han Solo film without Han Solo? Well apparently you can and you can do it well (if you're Ron Howard). This is just a fun movie with characters we all love while introducing us to some really awesome new characters (looking at you Qi'Ra played by Emilia Clarke). This movie also has some major girl power in it which as you all know I absolutely love. Even if you're not a huge Star Wars fan this is an enjoyable heist flick. It's just a fun time and makes a great addition to the Star Wars universe.
7. Unsane
Shot entirely on an iPhone, this movie tells the story of Sawyer Valentini (Claire Foy in a role very different from Queen Elizabeth II on The Crown) who goes to a therapist because she thinks her ex-boyfriend is stalking her. Little does she know that the therapist she goes to works at a mental institution and admits her unknowingly into said institution. While trying to convince everyone that she does not belong there she is confronted by or at least she thinks she is by her ex-boyfriend who she believes is stalking her. No one believes her because there is no evidence of said boyfriend which leads her to believe that she may be going insane... or is she? This movie is a wild ride from start to finish. This movie captured me from the beginning that I completely forgot it was shot on an iPhone which is a pretty neat concept. I saw this one with my mom and the whole time we were tense and often grabbed each other's hand. This movie will keep you guessing and has twists and turns everywhere. It's a great thriller and I highly recommend it.
6. Avengers: Infinity War
This movie is insane. Literally every superhero you can think of (excluding Ant-Man and Hawkeye) are in this movie. Thanos (Josh Brolin) who we've only seen snippets of in other Marvel films is after the Infinity Stones which if he possesses them all can pretty much control or destroy the whole world. There are six stones: reality, space, time, power, mind, and soul. Each one of these stones control a certain element and if they are all used together can cause some major damage. Hence why all the Avengers band together from Captain America to Black Panther. They must team up and find a way to put a stop to Thanos before he gets his hand (or glove) on all the stones. This movie is jam packed with everything from talented actors to a really interesting story. And the ending! I'm not going to spoil anything but if you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about. This movie is so bold to put that many characters in one movie but it works. It's an action-packed, often stressful movie. I really enjoyed this one and thought it was a great way to bring all of our favorite characters together. This movie just proves that Marvel can do no wrong and I will continue to keep buying tickets to these movies.
5. I Feel Pretty
I was so excited for this movie from the first trailer. It just looked like a great, encouraging film about loving yourself and being confident in who you are. This movie's message is so wonderful yet so simple: Be yourself. This movie tells the story of Renee Bennett (Amy Schumer) who's a not-so-confident person at the beginning. One day she goes to Soul Cycle and falls and hits her head. When she wakes up she thinks she's become the most beautiful woman in the world. But on the outside she hasn't changed one bit, she looks exactly the same. In her eyes however, she has become this goddess and she has all the confidence in the world. With this new confidence and gusto, she begins taking risks she would have never even thought about taking before and finds the joy in loving herself. I really loved this movie because it showed what every woman and man feels inside. We all have those days where we just don't feel our best. We all have those fleeting thoughts of what it would be like if we just didn't have that one part on our body that we hate or if we looked a certain way. This movie takes those thoughts and shows that those are normal thoughts that everyone has but they're not thoughts we should have. We should love who we are and be confident in that person. There's only one of you in the world, so be that you.
4. Black Panther
Where to even start with this movie? I guess I'll start with this... I loved this movie. This is one of my favorite Marvel movies ever. This movie tells the story of T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) who is the Black Panther/king and his rise to power. It also allows us to get a glimpse of his home country, Wakanda which has been mentioned several times in previous Marvel movies. T'Challa has become king after his father was killed by a bomb while giving a speech about supporting the Sokovia Accords in Captain America: Civil War. Although we met the Black Panther briefly in Civil War I was excited that he would get his own film because I found his character so fascinating and wanted to learn more about him and his origin. While T'Challa is learning the ways of becoming a king, his claim is threatened by a dangerous outsider named Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan). T'Challa must find a way to put a stop to this danger and protect his country. I loved this movie, not only because I found this story and the characters really fascinating , but this is the first major African American superhero which so awesome. The cast is also predominately African American which is very rare and let me tell you, each and every person in this movie was fantastic. It also featured some fantastic female characters who in all honesty were some of the strongest characters. You've got Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), Okoye (Danai Gurira), Shuri (Letitia Wright), and Ramonda (Angela Bassett). That's four super strong, lead female characters. How awesome is that? Like I said before this movie easily became one of my most favorite Marvel films.
3. Ant-Man and the Wasp
I know what you're thinking... geez this girl really likes superhero movies. Yes, yes I do and I have no shame in that. So if you read my latest blog then you'll know I really, really, really loved this movie. It's one of the funniest movies I have seen this year. Not to mention it features the first titled female superhero, the Wasp. This is a huge step for Marvel and it's about darn time! Sure there have been many other fantastic female superheroes before her like Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, and Gamora but they were always a supporting player. The Wasp or Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) if you prefer is an equal partner to Ant-Man (Paul Rudd). She has just as much screen time as him and is a major key component of this movie. Not to mention she's one of the coolest superheroes ever and has easily become one of my all-time favorites. This movie picks up after the events of the first Ant-Man and Captain America: Civil War. Hope and her father Hank haven't talked to Scott in 2 years that is until they get a call from him about Hope's mother who was lost in the quantum realm. They team up once again to see if they can save her using their device they've created to go into the quantum realm. However, someone else, Ghost, is also after that device and will stop at nothing to get their hands on it. Scott, Hope, and Hank must team up to put a stop to Ghost and see if they can bring Janet safely home. This is a refreshing movie to clear your head after the depressing film that was Infinity War. It has great action, characters, and comedy. I highly recommend this movie if you just want to have a good time and laugh about a million times.
2. Ocean's 8
You must have known this movie was going to make the list after I gushed over it. This film tells the story of Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock) who has just been released from prison. She comes up with a plan to steal a 150 million dollar necklace from the most exclusive party in the world, the Met Gala. Why would she already be planning to steal something after she was just released from prison? Because she's a con artist and thief, my friend, and as she says in the film, it's what she's good at. In order to steal this necklace she needs a team, a team of 7 to be exact. That's where Lou, Tammy, Amita, Constance, Nine Ball, and Rose come in. Each have their own set of skills which can help in this plan. If you want to know each of their skills read my review on this movie because I'm too lazy to write it here. Anyway they need a neck to carry the necklace they intend to steal so they have Rose, who is a fashion designer (there I told you one of their skills) to design Daphne Kluger's, the host of this year's Gala, dress. What transpires is a hilarious heist movie with twists and turns which I personally love. So as I previously mentioned, I pretty much loved this movie. Not only because I'm a huge Ocean's fan but this movie has 8 women leading the charge. That is almost unheard of in any movie. I loved each and every one of these ladies and thought they each brought their own unique flair to the story. I hope we get to see more of these types of movies because this one proves that ladies can lead a film and it will be successful.
AND NOW THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR (probably not)... MY #1 MOVIE OF 2018 (so far).
1. A Quiet Place
Now I'm not a horror fan by any means but I absolutely loved this movie! While watching it, it felt more like a movie about family rather than a horror movie. That's not to say that I didn't jump from time to time. Everything about this movie was wonderful from the acting, the pacing, the story, the music, the directing. John Krasinski directed this... yup Jim from The Office directed this masterpiece. After watching this film I wouldn't be mad if he directed more movies. This movie tells the story of a family led by John Krasinski's character, Lee and Emily Blunt's character, Evelyn. I didn't even know their characters had names because I don't think they are mentioned once in the film, I just found this out through IMDb. Anyway they have two children, Regan (Millicent Simmonds) and Marcus (Noah Jupe). They are living in a post-apocalyptic world where they can make no sound or they will be hunted by monsters who have super sensitive hearing. This is a scary concept in itself. No noise... no talking, no music (unless in headphones), no laughter, nothing. While watching this movie I found myself trying to make as little noise as possible because I didn't want the family to get caught. Everyone's acting in this movie is phenomenal. With little to no dialogue they really had a challenge on their hands. The way they were able to capture emotions with just a look or expression was amazing. I felt so connected to these people and they didn't have to utter one word. The standout for me in this film was Millicent Simmonds who is actually deaf as portrayed in this movie. She was just so, so good. She was able to show so much emotion and made me connect to her character so quickly. We feel what she feels and that is due in no small part to her acting. This movie is so intense but there are also these really beautiful, intimate moments between our four core characters. My favorite scenes were between Regan and Lee. Their relationship was the most interesting to me and they had some really great moments together. I highly recommend this movie. Although it's categorized as a horror movie I wouldn't call it that. It's really a story about family and the lengths we will go to protect them. It really is a beautiful film with some jump scares along the way. If you see any movie on this list I think it should be this one.
Well there you have it folks, my top 10 movies of 2018 so far. I hope you enjoyed this blog even though it's a bit different from your regularly scheduled programming. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this list and hear what your favorite movies of this year have been. As always please make sure to leave me a comment or suggestion and make sure to tell your friends! Until next time!
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