It’s time for everyone to compile their favorite films of 2019. Like many previous years, 2019 gave us a lot to enjoy and think about. We had some fantastic independent films and amazing tentpole films. Here are my 10 favorite films of 2019.

In no particular order….

Avengers: Endgame: Not sure how they crammed 10 years worth of films into one amazing story, but they pulled it off. Any film that opens with Dear Mr. Fantasy is going to get my attention. There were some real deaths, a few cool surprises, and one tearjerker ending. The movie was a lot more emotional than I expected and it delivered everything I wanted. Hats off to the MCU!

 

Knives Out: Rian Johnson delivers an amazing murder mystery full of intrigue and laughs. From Daniel Craig’s ridiculous accent to Chris Evans playing a smug rich kid, the film never stops being entertaining.  If there’s one takeaway from Knives Out – Ana de Armas is a star. I’m excited to see what she does in the new Bond film.

 

Luce: It’s hard to even explain Luce without giving away too much This kid, played by the amazing Kelvin Harrison Jr., is the perfect high school student….or is he. His teacher has concerns and it starts of chain reaction of events that lead to a cat-and-mouse game between Luce and his teacher. There are great performance and a nice conversation about the expectations we put on people and ourselves.

 

Waves: 30 minutes in and I knew this was going to be one of my favorite films of the year. I’m not sure why this movie isn’t getting a lot of love for award season.  The story is heartbreaking and encouraging at the same time. It’s beautifully shot with an amazing soundtrack. What anchors this film are two exceptional performances form Taylor Russell and Kelvin Harrison Jr. They both gave breakthrough performances.

 

Midsommar: Easily the craziest film I saw all year. The story is a bit disturbing and if horror isn’t your thing, I’d definitely pass. What elevates this film for me is Florence Pugh. She’s incredible in this and gives one of the best performances of the year. It’s also a film that will make you afraid to travel abroad lol. You definitely find out what happens to people when they turn 72. Here’s a hint: It’s not good.

 

Us: I almost forgot it came out this year, but Us is a great film with a phenomenal performance form Lupita Nyong’o. It’s a creepy horror film based around the Hands Across America campaign from 1986. It’s a weird thing to structure your horror film around, but it works. Us gave us the term “tethered”, a term I’m sure will be in our vocabulary for a long time.

 

Rocketman: Easily my favorite biopic of the year. Taron Egerton is great as Elton John in this musical fantasy. Everything you want is here from the costumes, to the music, to the humor. It made me revisit a lot of Elton’s music and his life as a musician.

 

Parasite: If I was ranking these films, I’m not sure where the other films would land but Parasite would be #1. It’s the best film I’ve seen in years. Director/writer Bong Joon-Ho deserves all the awards. He sucks you in the story and takes you on the wildest ride you could imagine.

 

Uncut Gems: A wild movie with a crazy ending. Sandler is known for his silly Netflix films but he reminds everyone that he can act and delivers a powerful performance. Newcomer Julia Fox is great and so is NBA legend Kevin Garnett. It’s intense from beginning to end so don’t forget to breathe.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum: Easily the most fun I had in a theater all year. The John Wick franchise is one of my favorites and this film had everything you’d want from it. They could rename this film “1,000 Different Ways to Kill” and it would be more appropriate. Halle Berry makes a great cameo as another assassin and delivers some vicious kills of her own. Can’t wait to see how Wick kills people in Chapter 4.