top 10 movies of 2019

top 10 films of 2019

I originally made this list on my instagram account (@ken_guidry), but I merely presented it as is without comment. Now that the Oscars are over, the prospect of looking back at 2019 in cinema can feel like old hat. But man, this would be a good exercise for me when it comes to writing about film. I really haven't done much in that department these last few years aside from the occasional review on letterbox'd. I'm gonna do top 10 lists for the other years too. All the years I hadn't gotten too in this blog so... 2015-2018. And I may revisit my lists from 2010 to 2014 as well. All this will maybe, finally, get me to get off my ass and do a whole, big, top 100 movies of 2010s. Why? Because lists are fun even if they're done to death on the internet.

Anyway, let's get to my top 10 films of 2019.

10. The Beach Bum

Director: Harmony Korine

Matthew McConaughey, ladies and gentlemen. What an actor, what a performance, what a soul. "The Beach Bum" features McConaughey playing up his movie persona to the extreme. A womanizer with an uber laid back attitude that ultimately comes across as nihilistic and destructive. This movie delivers a parade of "what the fuck?" performances from Jonah Hill, Zac Efron, Snoop Dogg,  Isla Fisher, and Martin Lawrence. It's a movie I never really got a chance to revisit, but man, it's stuck with me.

9. Midsommar

Director: Ari Aster

A movie that completely took me by surprise when I saw it over the summer. I never got a chance to see "Hereditary" so I was new to Ari Aster and didn't know what I was in for. Billed as a horror movie, and it definitely has its "horrific" moments, but it's more of a slow-burn psychological drama that gradually gets more fucked up and weird as the story goes on. Also, it's funny. Damn funny in places. I was laughing as the movie was ending. "Midsommar" is both funny and horrifying at the same time. What an amazing feat to achieve.

8. Marriage Story

Director: Noah Baumbach

Noah Baumbach has been on the map for me ever since "The Squid and the Whale" - a movie that moved me deeply. Fourteen years later, Baumbach gives us another movie centered around a divorce, but this time from the perspective of the parents (and, yes, largely from the father/husband played by Adam Driver). And as it happens, I am now a married man and the father of a six-year-old child. So once again, Baumbach has made something that's pierced my soul. But beyond that, "Marriage Story" just might be the most technically accomplished film of Baumbach's career. It really is exquisitely crafted, featuring music from Randy Newman and impeccable cinematography. The prospect of watching a divorce movie - especially when you're married - it's a tall task. But that first sequence, when the main characters of the film narrate what they love about their spouses, the movie hooked me. Not just from the content itself, but the combination of cinematography, editing, music, performances, COMBINED WITH the writing. Baumbach has really upped his game with this one.

7. Knives Out

Director: Rian Johnson

Look, I'm already running out of gas and if I don't finish writing about these movies in one sitting, then this list will remain unfinished. So here goes... "Knives Out" is a wonderfully made whodunnit film from Rian Johnson, who has now firmly established himself as a genre savant. Every little touch and detail feels cut from the cloth of the best of Agatha Christie. But what really sells this movie is the flourishes Johnson adds to really make the movie his own. The way he makes you feel like the crime is being solved halfway through, only for it to be a way for him to completely throw you off the scent of what was REALLY happening. Man, this was a tough year in the screenwriting category, but it's a damn shame Rian Johnson didn't get enough accolades for this script. There's a reason why we don't get a whodunnit every year. Especially one not adapted from Agatha Christie! They're tough as hell to conceive of and pull off---well, at least it's tough for anyone not named Rian Johnson, who apparently wrote this in weeks and is already making a follow-up. Godspeed, RJ.

6. The Farewell

Director: Lulu Wang

I have been juggling 6, 5, 4 like a circus performer. So consider these next three movies to be in a three-way tie. Right now "The Farewell" feels like #6, but tomorrow I might feel different. I love this incredibly personal, delicately-made domestic drama starring Awkwafina. This movie asks a lot of tough questions, questions that are difficult - neigh, impossible - to answer. Is Billi Wang's family wrong to not tell their matriarch that she's dying? Man, it's really hard not to get emotional even thinking about this movie. It's incredible.

5. The Irishman

Director: Martin Scorsese

To put it simply, if not for the visual effects, this is a stone cold masterpiece. Undeniable. As it is, it's merely the 5th best movie of 2019 and one of the best films of the decade. In fact, it's probably better than number five, I just haven't had time to revisit it. I was lucky enough to see it in theaters and I'm just incredibly grateful this movie came out and that it exists. I'm even more grateful that it's actually fucking brilliant. And I applaud Scorsese for going for it with the de-aging technology even if it doesn't all work the way one would hope.

4. Little Women

Director: Greta Gerwig

"Lady Bird" instantly made Gerwig one of my favorite filmmakers and it was her first film. "Little Women" was awe-inspiring. Gerwig elevates her craft in every single possible way here. Not only that, but she pulled off an amazing adaptation. She found a creative way to breathe new life into this story that's been told several times over. And made me care about these characters in ways that I never thought I would. Saoirse Ronan plays Jo perfectly, but I expected that from her. Florence Pugh is a damn revelation as Amy. The performances were great across the board, but what really makes this an enduring film, and one that I'd be happy to revisit, is the way it blends timelines so seamlessly and expertly. That's what really puts this movie over the top for me. It's just delightful.

3. Uncut Gems

Directors: Safdie Brothers

Instantly quotable and meme-able. Has an ending that'll leave you breathless and intoxicated. I was utterly stunned by this movie. A fantastic film from filmmakers who have also stepped up their game - a recurring theme with this list. Sometimes critics will describe a movie as "a shot of adrenaline" and then I'll watch it and wonder what they're talking about. "Uncut Gems" is the exact movie where that metaphor works. It really is a shot of adrenaline. But more than that, it's got such a great cast of first-time performers. Seriously, I can't tell what the Safdies do better... have a star actor churn out the greatest performance of their career? (First Pattinson in Good Time, and Sander in this). Brilliantly incorporating the music of Oneohtrix Point Never? Or is it finding a team of unknowns to convincingly play all these different characters peppered throughout the film? I'll take all of the above. And as I say all that, I've thought of more things they do brilliantly - like how they fully develop specific worlds in New York City - but I'm trying to finish this list so I'll stop there. Also, Kevin Garnett. Goddamn. That's all. No, that's not all. Eric Bogosian. Goddamn. He should be in more things. His expressions in this movie are priceless. I wish I'd seen this movie 80 times by now. I can't get enough.

2. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Regardless of whatever Quentin does with the rest of his career, what a fantastic movie to make at the twilight of his filmmaking career. I digest Tarantino interviews like it's coffee. I can't get enough of hearing QT talk. One thing I always found amusing is his adoration for Richard Linklater's "Dazed and Confused". And here, Quentin has found his own way to make a hangout movie, but it's with a fictional actor and his stuntman set in 1969 with the Manson Murders being the underlying tension throughout it's 160-minute runtime. This movie is Quentin at his sweetest and at his most Quentin-est. And it features Brad Pitt, Leo DiCaprio, and Margot Robbie delivering top-notch performances. This is another movie I'll enjoy re-watching time and time again for years to come.

1. Parasite

Director: Bong Joon-ho

What's there to say about this movie at this point? It won friggin' best picture at the Oscars. First foreign-language movie to do so. "Parasite", in my eyes, is an instant classic. This movie is an utter joy to watch from start to finish, even when the content isn't always so "joyful". The joy, for me, is watching the machinations of its plot unfold, coupled with clever setups that are paid off so gloriously and important thematic details that are so rich and layered, including details that go beyond me since I'm not Korean. But as I were to understand it, this movie is fucking deep on so many levels. 2019 became a banner year for movies by November, yet as soon as I saw "Parasite", I knew it was my #1 for the year and that nothing could possibly top it. The fact that the fucking Academy felt the same way as I did kinda scares me, but mostly excites me. It's really, hugely important that movies like this get maximum attention. This movie is both the very best that cinema has to offer, but also it fucking rules! It's entertaining as hell! Why am I yelling?! Bong Joon-ho! Holy shit!




(excuse the formatting, I haven't done this in a long ass time!)