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With another calendar year in the books and a whole bunch of movies having been released in a back-loaded 2019, it seems as if my Top 10 films of 2019 have been cemented. Some of these could be subject to change when I finally catch films like A Hidden Life, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Honeyboy, and 1917, and I could only imagine those getting in this stellar Top 10 if they are as better than what people say they are.
Without dragging this on much longer; Here are my Top 10 films of 2019.
Honorable Mentions
Doctor Sleep - Dir. Mike Flanagan
Ford v Ferrari - Dir. James Mangold
Dragged Across Concrete - Dir. S. Craig Zahler
John Wick - Chapter 3: Parabellum - Dir. Chad Stahelski
Booksmart - Dir. Olivia Wilde
10. The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Dir. Joe Talbot
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A striking capture of wealth and class disparity set to the backdrop of cascading curtains of light. Symmetrical in its multi-generational obstacles with attempts to overcome and grow beyond the pressures of a dying city. Forgotten histories, undying buildings, and new waves make-up the textures of the drama that are faced with recollection and fear. A fear of the past being forgotten, a fear of the future moving on without you, caged in the present day troubles of a citizen within the decreasing perimeter of San Francisco.
9. The Peanut Butter Falcon
Dir. Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz
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This indie comedy came out of nowhere, and taking the time to see it was emotionally satisfying. Excluding the fact that I’ve been a fan of Shia Labeouf since his Disney Channel days, and patiently waiting for the day Dakota Johnson and I can grab a cup of coffee together, The Peanut Butter Falcon soars. It wobbles a bit in the third act when everything comes together, but it’s mentality, wonder, blunt reality infused with this southern folktale trek across land and sea really got to me. One of Roger Ebert’s most famous quotes about movies is, “Movies are a machine that generate empathy,” and this film does that. Movies are much more complex than that, but I’m a sucker for quirky character dramas, and the sincere honesty in this one is hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking.
8. Little Women
Dir. Greta Gerwig
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Greta Gerwig’s follow-up to Lady Bird is one of the most comforting, warm, and nurtured movies in recent memory. There are a lot of ideas in this, and they are all executed as well as you could hope. The editing and screenplay are bold and creative, the characters distinct and performed wonderfully, and the music and visual style are a portal into an era we’ve seen so many times before, but as fresh as an apple pie right out of the oven. For all of the late up and coming directors of the 2010s, it’s the surge of actress turned director, Greta Gerwig that has me the most excited to see what she does next. She’s her own unique voice, separate from so many others, I’m leaning on my chair to see what is on deck, and I hope she brings Saoirse Ronan with her. She’s to Greta what De Niro is to Scorsese.
7. The Farewell
Dir. Lulu Wang
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I feel like this movie has been forgotten as time has gone on, but this is another stellar production from A24. Identity, culture, heartbreak, truths and lies are the core of this film, and they all work in tandem to create an unforgettable experience. There is a sense of inevitability to it all, and although I feel it kind of cheats our emotions a bit at the end, that sense of what may come is palpable. It’s that unshaking feeling of understanding that the time will come for family to pass on. It’s heartbreaking and painful, but that journey can make new memories and give us much needed laughs in a grim time.
6. The Lighthouse
Dir. Robert Eggers
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An overwhelming assault from start to finish. A story scribbled on parchment paper, tucked away in a glass bottle, and shipped out to sea for someone to find, The Lighthouse is a trip. An ode to Ingmar Bergman and David Lynch in a film that never stops coming at you with its head lowered and shoulders squared. Pattinson and Dafoe bounce off one another like they’d been working towards this film together for years, and the result is extraordinary, but also incredibly hilarious. One of those movies that resurrects what seems to be a dying era of thriller/horror, and cements Robert Eggers as the best horror director working today. It’ll make you laugh, give you a much deeper appreciation for steak, worry about your cooking, loving mermaid totems more than usual, and screaming into the depths of the night.
5. Ad Astra
Dir. James Gray
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Although eerily similar to Apocalypse Now in terms of structure and plot, Ad Astra is another effort from James Gray that captures the former vision of americana and masculinity, and reshapes it. An emotionally distant film that feels near and familiar, and Brad Pitt delivers this in what could be a career best work. Everyone here is on the same page, in belief of the story they’re telling, and although there was some studio meddling, the end result was still overwhelming. I was emotionally moved, and grappled with my emotions the second I left. I was reminded that it’s okay to feel, despite how badly people don’t want you to. Facing your fears is facing yourself, and there is no doubt I could argue this is my favorite film of the year.
4. Knives Out
Dir. Rian Johnson
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How best to visualize Internet politics and make fun of it? Knives Out is the answer. A total assault on class, prestige, the margins between true good and inherited evil, a film so funny, that it’s very few moments of genuine empathy make it an emotionally overwhelming experience. Deliberate, creative, unpredictable, and a movie that wants you to not get ahead of it. It lives in the moment, presenting new ideas, characters, frustrating dialogue between privileged people, but keeping an inkling of where it’s going tucked away for safe-keeping. Along with Greta Gerwig, Rian Johnson is no doubt my most anticipated director heading into the 2020s. A director so creative, bringing to life new ideas and new ways to tackle genre films in a contemporary setting, but one filled with so much empathy, that everything he makes, simply works.
3. Parasite
Dir. Bong Joon-ho
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Perhaps the greatest achievement of 2019, Parasite is an overwhelmingly remarkable masterpiece in storytelling in the medium of film. It takes every element of what goes into making one, and calculates and dials up something beautiful and powerful. The way it tackles capitalism and doesn’t keep it exclusive to South Korea is the sign of a master film-maker. Bong Joon-ho clearly felt like this was a film that needed to be made now, and the sense of urgency, relevancy, and timeliness of it all is outstanding. The way it balances various tones and never gets trapped under the umbrella of one of them, but all of them still leaves me in awe. No doubt in my mind, a movie that genuinely resembles the best aspect of modern film-making.
2. Marriage Story
Dir. Noah Baumbach
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A true sign of a great American film-maker is one who can understand the current on-goings of the topics they’re tackling in their film. Baumbach straddles that line of divorce and the moments between being together and separate with reflection and maturity. The strengths of this film come from all parties involved, but the screenplay and performances don’t miss a beat. The way characters are blocked, interact with each other, and the way it’s shot is emotionally moving every step of the way. Adam Driver delivers a career best performance, Scar Jo isn’t too far behind, and Noah Baumbach creates a true American masterpiece perfectly suited for the times.
1. The Irishman
Dir. Martin Scorsese
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If you told me two Netflix films would be my top 2 films of 2019, I’d have called you insane, but here we are. For the discourse about Martin Scorsese that made-up a good portion of film discourse in the last quarter of the year, it’s ironic that he put almost every movie to shame in 2019. A soaring 3.5 hour epic from a film-maker who fully understands the emotions he wants his film to elicit from us. An elegy for a dying genre, actors and storytellers transitioning into an era where they’re more likely to be forgotten, than remembered. An unbelievable masterpiece that greatly defines Scorsese’s filmography with characters that are confronted with organic conflict and put into scenarios where every choice could progress a relationship with someone, and leaving someone else behind. Not enough can be said about this film and how it utilizes the medium in it’s newest wave on a streaming service that reminisces about the time before then.