Media Diet 2018: Movies

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As noted in the companion post about books, I’ll be keeping track of every movie I watch this year, with particular attention to the ones that move me in some serious way, positive or negative. Hopefully I can turn you onto some things you might not have otherwise found.

I’ll update this periodically.

Media Diet 2018: Movies

  1. Before I Wake—The first Mike Flanagan movie that didn’t really connect with me. Still, he’s one of the most exciting horror writers/directors working today.
  2. Shaun of the Dead
  3. The Cloverfield Paradox
  4. White House Down
  5. The Ritual—Super-fun British folk horror.
  6. The House—How can a movie with so many funny people in it be so unfunny? The outtakes at the end were funnier than the movie itself.
  7. Annihilation
  8. Brawl in Cell Block 99
  9. Phenomena
  10. Blade Runner 2049—I liked this way more than the buzz led me to believe I would. Maybe I’m just totally in the tank for Denis Villeneuve?
  11. Thor: Ragnarok—And liked this a bit less than expected. Oh well.
  12. Listen Up, Philip—While this had its charms, it reminded me of how good writer/director Alex Ross Perry’s later movie, Queen of Earth (which also stars Elizabeth Moss), is. Queen of Earth is just exquisitely disturbing.
  13. Ouija: Origin of Evil
  14. Andre the Giant
  15. Pyewacket
  16. Personal Shopper—Horror adjacent more than horror, and also pretty enjoyable.
  17. The World’s End
  18. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors—Honestly, I don’t get why so many people think this is the series’ best installment. It’s good, for sure, but also too jokey for my taste, and too much about superheroes and quips. NOES is never better than the first film in my book.
  19. Avengers: Infinity War
  20. ‘Salem’s Lot
  21. The Disappointments Room—Disappointing film.
  22. A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Child—Seriously diminishing returns here.
  23. Butter on the Latch—I’m not totally sure what happened here, but I sure did enjoy watching it.
  24. Excision—Some arresting images, but totally lacking any brains, heart, or moral sense.
  25. Predator
  26. Game Over, Man
  27. Hereditary—Truly superlative. One of the best horror movies in years.
  28. The Noonday Witch
  29. High Fidelity—Has not aged well from a gender politics perspective. Not sure why we’re supposed to like John Cusack’s character even a little. He now reads like a child in a man’s body, who sort of hates women, and can’t engage with the world as an adult.
  30. Pacific Rim: Uprising
  31. The Endless—Benson and Morehead are fantastic. Can’t wait for what comes next.
  32. Most Beautiful Island—An indie thriller that, I suspect, was almost not seen at all. But it’s very much worth seeing and I think there might be a good piece to be written on Larry Fessenden’s role behind the scenes in facilitating a lot of indie horror over the years.
  33. The East—A great indie thriller about eco-terror and corporate spies, and family and secret societies, and much more.
  34. The Evil Within
  35. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
  36. Sorry to Bother You—The best political movie of the year? The best hip hop movie of the year?
  37. The Thing
  38. Ghost Stories
  39. In the Mouth of Madness
  40. Unsane
  41. The Quiet Place—As good as everyone said.
  42. Dan Curtis’ Dracula—Not very good at all.
  43. The Dark Crystal
  44. Hell House, LLC
  45. Black Panther
  46. Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night 2
  47. Hell House, LLC 2—Why bother? The first was fun; the second didn’t add much.
  48. Little Evil—Bridget Everett is a national treasure.
  49. Blood Fest
  50. Ghostwatch
  51. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (78)—I love this movie so much.
  52. This Is Spinal Tap
  53. A Cure for Wellness
  54. Satanic Rites of Dracula—Is Dracula the most boring villain in horror history? Maybe!
  55. Prince of Darkness—For the first time, after 3 or 4 viewings, felt the weaknesses of this movie viscerally. Still love it against all odds, but it’s a weird one.
  56. Pontypool
  57. Return of the Pink Panther—Way funnier than I had expected. “Minkey” is now a catchphrase in my home.
  58. Game Night
  59. Widows—A fun crime thriller that falls apart the more you think about it. Don’t think about it, though, it’s pretty great.
  60. De Palma

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