The Best Underrated and Underseen Films of 2018

By starrymag | December 24, 2018

By: Jennifer Verzuh

 

 

It’s end of the year list season. Just about every critic, blogger, and proud member of film you will see on Twitter is working on or has already published their list of the “Best Films of 2018.” This year that’s no easy task as we’ve seen so many great movies released thanks to visionary directors from Lynne Ramsey to Alfonso Cuaron to Yorgos Lanthimos. I won’t even attempt a definitive year end list here though. Rather, I hope to introduce you to some of my favorite films this year that may not even be on your radar. Before working on your personal ranking, I hope you’ll check these films out (the majority of which are currently out on DVD and available for rental online) as they’re all well worth your time and deserve far more praise and attention than they’ve yet received.

 

 

Nancy

 

You’d be hard pressed to find an actor or actress whose more consistently churning out good work than Andrea Riseborough and across all genres in both television and film. In addition to her work on the miniseries “Waco,” this year alone she’s starred in a comedy, action/horror hybrid and the character driven drama Nancy in which she gives one of the year’s best and most understated performances. Director and writer Christina Choe has crafted a very intimate, cool, aching and fascinating story about loneliness and the lengths a person will go to receive the love and recognition they so desperately desire.

 

Claire’s Camera

 

This is an absolute delight. Acclaimed actresses Isabelle Huppert and Kim Minhee play two strangers who meet at the beach in Cannes, France (the former having just been fired from her boss while there for a work trip) and connect, sparking a lovely little friendship. It’s a pretty small scale and simplistic movie in just about every way, but it’s fully entertaining and charming with a runtime that comes in at a refreshing sixty-nine minutes. This means there is no excuse not to watch it!

 

Good Manners

 

This film is one of the best surprises of the year. Part lesbian-romance, part mother-son drama, part musical and part monster movie the film Good Manners defies classification. However, this Brazilian werewolf fable is a hundred percent compelling. A modern-day fairytale for adults, it’s a surprisingly emotional and tender story about love in its various forms with terrific and horrific fantastical elements thrown in.

 

Skate Kitchen

 

If you don’t already skate, you’ll be tempted to purchase a board after watching this movie. Director Crystal Moselle cast a real life all girl skateboarding group for this portrait of youth, friendship, and New York’s skating subculture. Using non-professional actors is always a bold move, but in this case it was clearly the right one. The chemistry and camaraderie between these girls is easy and undeniable, and they’re all extremely talented skaters. The best and most beautiful scenes are just them on their boards, looking miraculously free. Additionally, the movie features some of the best cinematography and editing of the year.

 

Beast

 

To describe the film’s plot would make it sound like a thriller, but that’s not exactly the case here. The premise sees a lonely young woman (Jessie Buckley) from a small island community become involved in a whirlwind romance with an unpopular, rugged man (Johnny Flynn) only to see him fall under suspicion for a series of murders in the area. However, the film ultimately becomes about the darkness that lies within her, not him, making it a chilly and frightening character study that’s unique from other romantic or crime thrillers. And it has excellent leading performances from Buckley and Flynn who share a chemistry that is at times sweet and other times terrifying.

 

 

1985

 

It absolutely breaks my heart how few people have seen or even heard of this one. It’s a gutting, emotional film that despite having a cast made up of only six actors and using just a handful of locations, feels richly cinematic and revolutionary in its own quiet way. Taking place, as the title suggests, in 1985 you meet Adrian (a remarkable Cory Michael Smith) who is returning to his hometown in Texas for Christmas with his family after years away. There’s the normal awkwardness that comes with visiting home, but something else is clouding all of his interactions with his family: he’s HIV positive and at a time when that diagnosis was a death sentence and one that he feels unable to disclose as a closeted gay man. It’s devastating familial portrait and certainly one of the better LGBT films of the year.

 

 

The Guilty

 

Set entirely at an emergency call center, it’s hard to believe this dark Danish thriller is just as exciting and captivating as it is! We follow Asger Holm (Jakob Cedergren), a police officer taken out of the field and on duty as an operator, as he takes a call from a kidnapped woman. He heads out from his desk and does his best to track her and the perpetrator down before it’s too late, though as the film proceeds it becomes clear things are not quite what they seem and something even more sinister may be taking place. The plot developments, twists and turns are all extremely effective and the movie is paced brilliantly. The script and stellar voice acting making up for the fairly static and repetitive visuals and makes this one to check out, especially if you were a fan of this year’s Searching.