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

 

Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)

Three decades after the Empire’s defeat, a new threat arises in the militant First Order. Stormtrooper defector Finn and the scavenger Rey are caught up in the Resistance’s search for the missing Luke Skywalker. (IMDb)

Self-sufficient Rey (“I know how to run without you holding my hand!”), nervous and naive Finn (“Stay calm” “I am calm” “I’m talking to myself”), and moody Kylo Ren (“I’m being torn apart”) make up a fresh and engaging trio of central characters (Poe was excellent too, just needed more screen time) that carry the film in spite of the weak plot and sometimes wooden returning characters. Great action, good pace, and surprisingly funny (“How do we blow it up? There’s always a way to do that”).

7.5/10 (Really Good)