Previous Rankings
#191-209
#171-190
#151-170
#131-150
SINGLE ALL THE WAY is the rare, competent Netflix Christmas movie. That maybe clouded my vision on it some, but I really enjoyed it. It focuses on a gay man for a change. But it still hits all the traditional rom-com beats. It’s a comfort genre, and when it’s done well, it works. THE HAND OF GOD mostly hits the emotional points it wants to, but some of the other narrative choices don’t work quite as well. Kind of like rom-coms, there’s a certain formula for heist movies, and ARMY OF THIEVES follows it pretty well. It enough of its own flare as well.
The first trailer for BARB AND STAR had me convinced it would be one of the year’s worst movies. So the fact that it not only wasn’t one of the worst, but was actually pretty decent, was one of the more pleasant surprises. The style of humor definitely won’t be for everyone, but if it works for you, you should really enjoy yourself. Plus it features the first of two iconic musical moments from Jamie Dornan. RAGING FIRE is light on story but heavy on the action. And when Donnie Yen and Nicholas Tse headline that action, you’re in good hands.
THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT offers a pretty good balance of horror and mystery, and you can always count on Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson. MIXTAPE is a simple movie, but cashes the nostalgia cards in big time. Sometimes that’s enough. THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK was definitely marketed as a young Tony Soprano movie, while in reality it was the Dickie Moltisanti story. Which is fine, but it set up a different set of expectations that could never be met.
JOLT isn’t great by any means, but Kate Beckinsale dials it up to 11 and it goes over the top just enough without truly jumping the shark. I *love* the Fast and the Furious franchise, and I always will. But F9 (full review here) might mark the beginning of the end. There are only two more planned in the main series, but are still some spin-offs in the works. For however long the series continues, let’s hope they can regain the magic found with Fast 5 and Furious 7. But if you like how completely absurd and unrealistic the movies have become, there is still plenty to like about this latest entry.
OUTSIDE THE WIRE perhaps benefitted from being one of the first movies released this year. It’s got some decent enough action, but you’re likely to completely forget it as soon as the end credits roll. AFTERLIFE OF THE PARTY hit me on an emotional level unlike any movie has in a long time – or maybe ever (I wrote about it here). So even though it’s a very flawed movie, it’s always going to hold a special place for me. Maybe I was just thrilled to finally see Lucy Hale in a movie that wasn’t absolute garbage, but I liked THE HATING GAME. She and co-star Austin Stowell have serious chemistry, which makes the standard rom-com bits really sing.
ANNETTE is truly something else. I don’t know that I recommend it as a movie, but maybe as an experience. It’s *wild*. ARMY OF THE DEAD is everything you love and hate about Zack Snyder’s filmmaking style, for better and for worse.
HARD LUCK LOVE SONG has two strong lead performances from Sophia Bush and Michael Dorman. It’s hard to root for them, though, as they make bad decision after bad decision, but they’re both magnetic enough to elevate the movie past those flaws, even if only just. RESPECT is similar to The United States vs Billie Holiday, but just done slightly better. THE KING’S MAN is fine, but lacks the style and humor that made the first two entries (especially the first) so much fun.
HAPPILY fails to meet its lofty goals, but it’s a good enough mixture of comedy and drama, helped by its impressive cast. Can’t help a bad ending though. Tom Hanks is his usually charming Tom Hanks self in FINCH, just hanging out with his dog and robot. But it doesn’t have much more to offer beyond that.
