The Year in Review- 2018

   It was the year Christian Bale put on a pound for every year that Dick Cheney spent plotting against the American people. Thanos pulverized the Avengers, Michelle Pfeiffer slipped into poverty, and a Farrelly brother won Best Picture. Tom Cruise was indestructable, Bradley Cooper became a director, and Han Solo was an undeserved box office bust. Here are the ten best films in order for 2018.

1. "Vice"(2018) A portly, barely-recognizable Christian Bale is at his best as the most influential VP in U.S. history in this savage serio-comedy that should serve as an overdue wake-up call for the uniformed "Fast and the Furious"-obsessed masses. Republican bogeyman Dick Cheney quietly and cunningly amassed a scary amount of power over the course of a forty-year career in "public service". Writer-director Adam McKay brings the same frenzied energy and deft touch that was imbued in 2015's revelatory "The Big Short", to skewer a Fox News-fostered political landscape that was dysfunctional way before Donald Trump. The slam-dunk supporting cast includes the amazing Amy Adams as Lynn Cheney, Steve Carell as Donald Rumsfeld, and Sam Rockwell's uproarious George W. Bush. You can either laugh or cry. I did both.

2. "Avengers: Infinity War"(2018) I want young people to read this blog. The MCU inarguably peaked in 2018-19(Chadwick Boseman's Black Panther was a February phenomenon and the year's top grosser). Josh Brolin gives us the greatest motion-capture characterization since Gollum as the Stone-seeking alien tyrant Thanos. Chris Pratt's wisecracks offset the impending gloom and doom of the universal disintegration known as 'The Snap'. A $325 million budget buys at least a dozen heroes and an hour-long eye-popping finale that may be the decade's most purely pleasurable cinematic experience. The reliable Russo brothers(Anthony and Joe) and super-producer Kevin Feige would break the box office reuniting the team one year later in "Avengers: Endgame".

3. "Where Is Kyra?"(2018) We go from a movie the whole world saw, to one you've never even heard of...until now. A 58 year old Michelle Pfeiffer mounted a quiet comeback as Kyra Johnson, a lonely, unemployed divorcee living on the fringe of society. Indie director Andrew Dosunmu frames her NYC surroundings in incredibly bleak terms that were bound to alienate unadventurous casual viewers. But the character's desperation and seemingly insurmountable financial plight rings true, and "Kyra" achieves a stark reality rarely seen in cinema since the sobering works of the 1970s. Movies still have to hold up a mirror to our world once in a while. Kiefer Sutherland costars as her equally disenfranchised boyfriend.

4. "Mission Impossible- Fallout"(2018) A godly Tom Cruise(seemingly superhuman at age 55) extends the globetrotting adventures of IMF agent Ethan Hunt in the sixth installment of a franchise that was launched in 1996. That's incredible. With frequent creative partner, writer-director Christopher McQuarrie(returning from 2015's "Rogue Nation"), the star-producer performed a staggering amount of stunts himself- a HALO jump, a bathroom brawl, a motorcycle chase, an ankle-breaking rooftop leap, and a climactic helicopter showdown with a villainous Henry Cavill and his mustache. The bioterrorist plot is secondary to some of the greatest action ever filmed. "Fallout" was a mid-summer sensation that made "MI" fans out of a generation that has no idea it all started out as a TV show.

5. "Green Book"(2018) The talents of Viggo Mortensen and two-time Best Supporting Actor winner Mahershala Ali elevate this pleasingly-old-fashioned, fact-based drama, directed by Peter Farrelly, of "Dumb and Dumber" fame. In 1962-63, a tough Italian bouncer(Frank Vallelongo) and a cerebral African-American musician(Don Shirley) really did take a road trip through the segregated deep South, and a mutual respect was earned. "Book", like 1989's "Driving Miss Daisy", has been blasted online for being a 'safe' Best Picture winner, at a time when some(ahem, Spike Lee) want more forward-thinking art recognized. Ignore that noise, and enjoy a really good movie.

6. "The Favourite"(2018) Thirty years after "Dangerous Liasons", another dark, provocative 18th Century costume drama dazzled critics and became an instant Oscar favorite(pun intended). Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz are both exceptional as well-dressed rivals in 1705 Great Britain, vying for the attention and affection of an ailing Queen Anne(breakout Best Actress winner Olivia Colman). Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos displays a Kubrick/Malick-like sense of camera framing and composition. I own a physical copy of "The Favourite"(it's not streaming as I type this), and intend to revisit this terrific trio for many years to come.

7. "Bohemian Rhapsody"(2018) Freddie Mercury lives in this blockbuster musical biopic that boasts a Best Actor-winning, star-making turn from Rami Malek. Andrew McCarten's screenplay charts his rise from the London pub scene to the endelible songs that brought worldwide fame in the '70s and '80s. His legendary Live Aid performance is a showstopping highlight made more remarkable by the pall of HIV/AIDS. The bisexual Mercury expired in 1991. Queen superfan Mike Myers makes a rare appearance as a record executive. That's very fitting. Before the renewal of sexual assault allegations against Bryan Singer, he was said to be the director of this film.

8. "A Star Is Born"(2018) What a great year for music fans. Lady Gaga(Stefani Germanotta) can act, and Bradley Cooper can direct. I was as surprised as you were. A familiar story(there are versions from 1937, 1954, and 1976) is given a fresh coat of paint by super-screenwriter Eric Roth, as an aging, alcoholic country music star falls for his young protege. It doesn't matter that you already know what happens. Jackson and Ally Maine were a runaway success critically and commercially, and the radio-friendly Gaga-Cooper duet "Shallows" instantly entered the greatest soundtrack contribution conversation. Every woman in the world loved this movie.

9. "Solo: A Star Wars Story"(2018) There's too much negativity in the "Star Wars" universe. I can't imagine any fan, young or old, not thoroughly enjoying Ron Howard's rollicking origin story, that fills in the blanks of everyone's favorite space pirate, Han Solo. Alden Ehrenreich is hugely likable in the role that Harrison Ford immortalized forty years earlier, and would be an A-lister himself right now if not for an underwhelming reception. Fortunately, film is forever, and there are online indications that the fans are coming around. Joining Han and Chewie in the intergalactic criminal underworld is the lovely Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, Paul Bettany, and a scene-stealing Donald Glover. Disney replaced "Lego" duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller with steady industry vet Howard in the middle of production, ballooning an already-huge budget and creating bad press that in no way reflects the film itself.

10. "Widows"(2018) "12 Years a Slave" director Steve McQueen followed up that masterpiece with this timely, unpredictable female-led crime flick, that he crisply cowrote with "Gone Girl" author Gillian Flynn. Critic Richard Roeper(Roger Ebert's old TV partner) named it the best film of 2018. Viola Davis is one of this decade's success stories, so it makes perfect sense that she'd get to plan a daring Chicago heist with the wives of her dead husband's gang. Local politics and plenty of complications ensue. The loaded cast includes Michelle Rodriguez, Daniel Kaluuya, Elizabeth Debicki, Cynthia Erivo, Liam Neeson, Colin Farrell, Brian Tyree Henry, Jacki Weaver, and Robert Duvall.

Honorable Mentions- "Black Panther"(2008) Wakanda forever. "The 15:17 to Paris"(2018) Clint Eastwood used the real heroes that prevented a 2015 train terrorist attack. "Annihilation"(2018) Natalie Portman puts out an intriguing sci-fi thriller. "Red Sparrow"(2018) Jennifer Lawrence as a sexy Russian spy. "Chappaquiddick"(2018) The Kennedy curse continues in 1969 NY. "Ready Player One"(2018) Spielberg serves popcorn. "The Last Movie Star"(2018) Burt Reynolds' last ride. "Game Night"(2018) Rachel McAdams was very game for this madcap comedy.

"Rampage"(2018) The Rock vs. a CGI silverback gorilla. "A Quiet Place"(2018) John Krasinski and Emily Blunt start a horror franchise. "I Feel Pretty"(2018) Amy Schumer feels flawless. "Tully"(2018) Jason Reitman rebounds with a baby-making Charlize Theron. "First Reformed"(2018) Ethan Hawke plays a conflicted priest for Paul Schrader. "Deadpool"(2018) Ryan Reynolds firms up his fame in this hit sequel. "Gotti"(2018) John Travolta as the dapper Don. "Overboard"(2018) Anna Faris in an amiable remake of the 1987 comedy. "Incredibles 2"(2018) This Pixar sequel pulled $608 million in the U.S. "Hereditary"(2018) Toni Collette is terrific in this horror thriller.

"Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom"(2018) Chris Pratt crashes a dinosaur auction. "Ant-Man and the Wasp"(2018) Michelle Pfeiffer joins Paul Rudd as Janet van Dyne. "Boundaries"(2018) Vera Farmiga sets some with Chris Plummer. "Three Identical Strangers"(2018) This heartbreaking doc details the lives of male triplets. "Won't You Be My Neighbor?"(2018) Fred Rogers was the real deal. "Skyscraper"(2018) The Rock vs. a burning building. "Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot"(2018) a wheelchair-bound Joaquin Phoenix. "The Equalizer 2"(2018) Denzel Washington's first sequel. "BlacKkKsman"(2018) Spike Lee's best work in over a decade. "Destination Wedding"(2018) Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder were a cute couple. "Eighth Grade"(2018) It sucks for everyone. "Leave No Trace"(2018) Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie are moving in this little-seen indie. "First Man"(2018) Ryan Gosling is Neil Armstrong in Damien Chazelle's 1969-set space epic.

"The Old Man & the Gun"(2018) Robert Redford is a charming bank robber in his last starring role. "Christopher Robin"(2018) Ewan McGregor meets Winnie the Pooh. "Crazy Rich Asians"(2018) This Singapore wedding was a sleeper hit. "Bad Times at the El Royale"(2018) Jeff Bridges, Jon Hamm, Chris Hemsworth, and Dakota Johnson in a run-down hotel. "Peppermint"(2018) Jennifer Garner in a politically-incorrect thriller. "A Simple Favor"(2018) Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively do a favor for Paul Feig. "White Boy Rick"(2018) Richard Wershe Jr. is doing life for drug dealing. "Gloria Bell"(2018) Julianne Moore is just great. "Dragged Across Concrete"(2018) Writer-director S. Craig Zahler's gritty cop movie reinvigorates Mel Gibson and Vince Vaughn. "The Sisters Brothers"(2018) Joaquin Phoenix and John C. Reilly in 1851.

"Mid90s"(2018) Jonah Hill's raw directorial debut. "Fahrenheit 11/9"(2018) Michael Moore takes on Trump. "Instant Family"(2018) Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne warmed my heart. "The Grinch"(2018) is voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch in this holiday hit. "Creed II"(2018) Michael B. Jordan vs. the son of Ivan Drago. "The Christmas Chronicles"(2018) Kurt Russell plays St. Nick for Netflix. "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse"(2018) Miles Morales wins the Best Animated Oscar. "Ben Is Back"(2018) Julia Roberts and Lucas Hedges both deliver in this indie addiction drama. "Aquaman"(2018) DC's underwater warrior ruled the Christmas season. "Mary Poppins Returns"(2018) Emily Blunt in the sequel to the 1964 classic. "Welcome to Marwen"(2018) Steve Carell has a cool doll collection. "On the Basis of Sex"(2018) Felicity Jones stars in this RBG biopic. "If Beale Street Could Talk"(2018) Regina King won Best Supporting Actress for this Barry Jenkins drama. "Roma"(2018) Alfonso Cuaron won Best Director(again) for this black-and-white 1970 Mexico City-set Oscar bait. "Stan & Ollie"(2018) Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly are Laurel and Hardy. "The Mule"(2018) Clint Eastwood is 88 years young.