We are three weeks into 2020 and last year is already starting to feel like a distant memory. That’s why I greatly relish getting to look back at the previous year’s films and trying to select a handful that I think are shining examples of the best the year had to offer and present them to you, the reader, in hopes that you will revisit them (or watch them for the very first time) and receive the same emotional and intellectual nourishment they gave me.
I try to watch films regularly from every genre and from as many countries as I can. So, the below list will be reflective of that- small independent films will be listed next to big-budget blockbuster spectacles next to romantic comedies and so on. The world of cinema is a wild and varied place and I hope you take a chance on at least one of the films listed below that you may have never heard of or have been hesitant to watch.
You never know, you might just discover a new favorite.
So, without further ado, here is
Video CULTure’s Top 15 films of 2019!
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***NOTE: For a film to be considered for this list it had to have been released between January 1st and December 31st 2019 in the United States.
15. The Death of Dick Long
“Backwoods noir” is an incredibly hard genre to get right. Moral ambiguity, violence, sex, and taboo subjects seem like the perfect concepts to play with when Juxtaposed against the backdrop of a sleepy small southern town. The problem is though… the details of the southern setting rarely feel authentic. Too often, they come across as cartoonish, hurting the film in fundamental ways.
THE DEATH OF DICK LONG does not have that issue. Directed by one half of the insane duo behind the “Daniel Radcliffe as a corpse” movie SWISS ARMY MAN, THE DEATH OF DICK LONG gets all the details of modern, small-town Alabama spot on. This attention to detail helps make the bizarre story of how the titular Dick Long ended up dead after a night out drinking with his buddies …and their subsequent attempts to cover up their involvement feels like it has real stakes. If it was just a straight thriller it would still be gripping and worth your time.
It just so happens to also be hilarious though. The odd humor of the film calls to mind Coen brothers classics like RAISING ARIZONA and BURN AFTER READING but with a slightly more cynical edge. Even with the darkly comedic tone and southern noir stylings, THE DEATH OF DICK LONG still has a surprising emotional depth that leaves you invested in the fates of all the main characters, even the ones who should elicit no sympathy.
This one certainly isn’t for everyone but anyone who likes dark comedy, noir, or weird southern stories will find plenty to enjoy here.
More info about the film can be found here: IMDB
To find out where this film is available to stream, click here: Just Watch
14. Avengement
Writer/director Jesse V. Johnson and actor Scott Adkins have developed a very interesting creative relationship over the past two years. Working in the largely ignored realm of “straight to video” film releases, the duo has put together a string of meagerly budgeted action films that have impressed critics and fans of action cinema in equal measure with their quality and “old school” action sensibilities, where the most important special effect was the physical prowess of the performers and the quality of the action choreography.
They have brought this throwback style to their latest collaboration, AVENGEMENT. The unusual title of the film is an actual word that means “the act of taking vengeance“. In this film, the man looking for vengeance is Cain Burgess (Adkins). Recently escaped from a British prison, Cain has made his way to a private club owned by his gangster brother in an effort to strike back at the people he feels are responsible for his hellish stint in lock up.
The action on display in AVENGEMENT shows a great deal of variety in its fisticuffs; from brawls inside of a prison involving makeshift weapons and found objects to a neon-soaked one on one standoff in a dance hall, up to the final confrontation where Adkins squares off against multiple assailants in a wild free for all. The fight scenes seamlessly blend the flash of Hong Kong-style martial arts moves with a brutal sense of reality.
Films are often judged by audiences using unfair comparison to other films. Small films get dismissed because they don’t have the sheer spectacle of large Hollywood releases. This sort of thinking is what has relegated films like AVENGEMENT to a strict home viewing experience and that is a real shame. What Jesse V. Johnson and Scott Adkins have accomplished here is not only another well crafted, entertaining action film but also the best film of their collaborations (so far).
More info about the film can be found here: IMDB
To find out where this film is available to stream, click here: Just Watch
13. Always Be My Maybe
ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE is a delightfully sweet yet honest romantic comedy about childhood friends, played by comedic character actor Randall Park and comedienne Ali Wong, who run into each several years after their friendship dissolved due to a sudden romantic fling between them. Now that their lives are in very different places, they strike up their friendship again and inadvertently rekindle old romantic feelings.
What keeps ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE from feeling like another typical “rom-com” is a combination of elements. First, it avoids nearly all the clichés of the genre and presents both characters as normal, likable people. It also doesn’t use contrived misunderstandings or impossible scenarios to create drama. The film understands that the reality of starting and maintaining a relationship is more than enough fodder if the talent is there to help the audience connect with what’s happening on screen. Both Wong and Park are more than up to that task as they have been elevating projects with their supporting work for years. So now that they are the sole focus, their charisma and ability shine bright.
Lastly, ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE has a point of view that the genre typically ignores- that of Asian Americans. In filling its cast and behind the scenes crew with people from that group – the film creates an experience that feels unique even when it plays with universal concepts.
All that aside, the film is simply very very funny. It’s light, breezy, and charming. ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE even has what are possibly the best original songs of the year and what is definitely the best cameo of 2019.
More info about the film can be found here: IMDB
To find out where this film is available to stream, click here: Just Watch
12. Avengers: Endgame
AVENGERS: ENDGAME is an achievement that we will likely never see again regardless of its quality. It is the twenty-second film in a franchise that began eleven years ago: “The Marvel Cinematic Universe”, a franchise that had numerous creatives leading dozens of characters down a loosely connected narrative path towards a singular goal: this film. It’s an amazing feat that the plan for the “MCU” made it to this point and was able to engender enormous goodwill not only from fans but from critics as well with consistently enjoyable films. So, expectations were high for AVENGERS ENDGAME. Could it live up to the hype and the historical significance that had been placed upon it?
In a word: yes, yes it can. AVENGERS: ENDGAME is a film that confidently meets those expectations and, in many areas, exceeds them. It is a sweepingly epic story that touches on nearly all of the twenty-one films that came before it, providing new context to them along the way. Unexpectedly, AVENGERS: ENDGAME even goes so far as to retroactively correct some poor creative choices those earlier films made in a way that feels organic to the story that it’s currently telling. The film does this while simultaneously remaining accessible enough that even a viewer with only a rudimentary knowledge of the franchise can follow along and appreciate what is happening on-screen while also providing intense emotional payoffs for long-term, diehard fans. It’s jaw-dropping what the longtime team of screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely and directors Joe and Anthony Russo were able to achieve with this film.
AVENGERS: ENDGAME is, no pun intended, a marvel – a truly astonishing thing. There will obviously be other films in the MCU but if any viewer decided to bid farewell to the franchise with this film, they would be exiting on the strongest high point imaginable.
More info about the film can be found here: IMDB
To find out where this film is available to stream, click here: Just Watch
11. Midsommar
Ari Aster exploded on to the horror scene with 2018’s surprise hit HEREDITARY. Whenever a filmmaker comes out of the gate with a debut that strong, there is always worry among fans that their follow up will disappoint.
Well, Aster not only successfully avoided the cliché of the “sophomore slump”- he delivered one of the best films of the year with MIDSOMMAR. The film which feels like the Scandinavian love child of two iconic 1970’s horror films, THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE and THE WICKER MAN, while at the same time having a surprisingly “sunny” demeanor is unlike anything else released in 2019.
The film stars one of the breakout stars of the year in Florence Pugh. She does remarkable work handling the strange mix of horror, humor, and relationship drama that makes up the film. Yes, you read that correctly, MIDSOMMAR is at it’s bloody, gore-soaked heart a metaphor for a relationship ending that uses a pagan cult’s summer festival as its main device. It is as weird and as wonderful as it sounds
More info about the film can be found here: IMDB
To find out where this film is available to stream, click here: Just Watch
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