JWM 2018 wrap-up

Happy New Year everyone! Thanks to all who took the time to check out this humble movie blog of mine in 2018.

Here are a few stats and superlatives from the year that was at Joel Watches Movies:

Reviews posted: 125

First review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)
Last review: Green Book (2018)
Most liked review: Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
Least liked review: Gold (2016); Green Book (2018)

Best film(s) watched: Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot (2018); Eighth Grade (2018); Good Time (2017); Paddington 2 (2017); Roma (2018) (all 9/10)

Best classic film (20+ years old) watched: Reservoir Dogs (1992) (8/10)

Worst film(s) watched: Game Over, Man! (2018) (3.5/10)

Stay tuned for my Oscar picks and snubs when the nominations come out! (I’ll hopefully have watched all the major contenders by then!)

Looking forward to another year of film in 2019- thanks for following along on my journey 🙂

– Joel

 

Good Time (2017)

After a heist goes awry, a bank robber spends a night trying to free his mentally handicapped brother from being sent to Riker’s Island prison. (IMDb)

Claustrophobic, anxiety-provoking, and just generally discomforting: All negative descriptors, but in this case they’re just a testament to the gripping atmosphere created by the well-crafted gritty thriller script (Ray’s tangential story was the one hiccup), memorable turns and score, and bold camerawork (see the glut of shaky close-ups, birds-eye car shots). All of this is brilliantly bookended by two tear-jerking scenes of innocence that stand in sharp contrast to the grime in the middle.

9/10 (Amazing)

– #5 on my Top 10 Most Underrated Films list