TOP 10 MOVIES OF 2019

This year was amazing film for cinema. We had films that put on emotional roller coaster rides. We had films that really made us appreciate life. We had films that educated us. We had films that really gave us important life lessons.

Honorable Mentions List:

The Upside, Joker, US, AVENGERS: ENDGAME, BookSmart, The Last Blackman In San Fransisco, Parasite, Beats, Firecrackers, Honey Boy, Black and Blue, and Clemency.

Check out my Top 10 Favorite films of 2019:

10. HOTEL MUMBAI

Hotel Mumbai was directed by Anthony Maras and co-written by Maras and John Collee. It was inspired by the 2009 documentary Surviving Mumbai about the 2008 Mumbai attacks at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in India.

Dev Patel really carried this film. You become emotional invested into his character. It is one of the best acting performance I seen all year.

The film also stars Armie Hammer, Nazanin Boniadi, Anupam Kher, Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Jason Isaacs, Suhail Nayyar, Nagesh Bhosle and Natasha Liu Bordizzo.

9. UNCUT GEMS

Uncut Gems was directed by the Safdie brothers, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ronald Bronstein. The film stars Adam Sandler, Kevin Garnett, Idina Menzel, Lakeith Stanfield, Julia Fox, The Weeknd, and Eric Bogosian. The plot follows Howard Ratner, a gambling addict in New York City’s Diamond District, who gets in over his head with loansharks and must retrieve an expensive gem he purchased in order to pay off his debts.

This is arguably Adam Sandler best performance. We have never seen Adam Sandler in this type of way. It’s truly a masterpiece by the Safdie brothers.

8. THE LIGHTHOUSE

The Lighthouse is a 2019 psychological horror film directed and produced by Robert Eggers, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Max Eggers. Shot in black-and-white with a 1.19:1 aspect ratio, the film stars Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson as two lighthouse keepers who start to lose their sanity when a storm strands them on the remote island where they are stationed.

I honestly had low expectations for this film before watching and after watching it I knew it was going to be somewhere on my top 10 list this year. It’s must watch film.

7. The Peanut Butter Falcon

The Peanut Butter Falcon is a comedy-drama film directed and written by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, and starring Shia LaBeouf, Zack Gottsagen, Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes, Bruce Dern, Jon Bernthal and Thomas Haden Church.

The movie follows a young man with Down syndrome (Gottsagen) who escapes from an assisted living facility and befriends a wayward fisherman on the run (LaBeouf); as the two men form a rapid bond, a social worker (Johnson) attempts to track them.

The MVP of this movie is Zack Gottsagen without being invested into his character this movie really doesn’t go. It also made Shia LaBeouf and Dakota Johnson job easier. It’s touching a film I wish it would ended a little bit bitter but they opened it up for a sequel so it’s understandable.

6. QUEEN & SLIM

Queen & Slim is a romantic drama film directed by Melina Matsoukas (in her feature directorial debut) and written by Lena Waithe, from a story by James Frey and Waithe. The film stars Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Bokeem Woodbine, Chloë Sevigny, Flea, Sturgill Simpson and Indya Moore.

The movie follows a criminal defense attorney, Queen, has dinner with her date, Slim, in an Ohio diner. Slim drives Queen home afterwards; his presumably erratic driving attracts the attention of a police officer, who pulls the two over and makes Slim step out of the car after not complying with his orders. The agitated officer draws his gun on Slim, and when Queen gets out and tries to record the incident on her phone, he shoots at her, grazing her leg. Slim tackles the officer before grabbing his gun and shooting him in self-defense. Queen tells Slim that they either have to go on the run or will spend the rest of their lives in prison. When they run out of gas, the pair flags down a pickup truck for help. The driver, Edgar, turns out to be a sheriff in Kentucky. At the gas station, Edgar gets a notice on his radio about the Ohio officer’s death and identifies Queen and Slim as the suspects. They hold Edgar at gunpoint and steal his truck, trapping him in their broken-down car’s trunk.

Queen and Slim travel to New Orleans to go to the house of her estranged Uncle Earl, a pimp, for help. Although Earl is reluctant, Queen convinces him to aid them since she helped him avoid jail for killing her mother. Slim proposes that they escape to Cuba, and Earl tells them that when he was serving in Iraq, he saved the life of a Mr. Shepherd who would be able to help them get there from Miami. Queen and Slim eventually take one of Earl’s cars and head towards Florida. As they continue their drive in the morning, the couple’s car breaks down. They take it to a garage where the mechanic’s son, Junior, expresses his admiration for them.

The next day, Queen visits her mother’s grave with Slim and shares her grief over the relationship she had with her mother, and the two have sex in their car. Elsewhere, at a protest in support of Queen and Slim, Junior pulls a gun on an officer and impulsively shoots him, and is subsequently killed. Queen and Slim go to the home of the Shepherds, but when a neighbor recognizes them, a SWAT team shows up outside, and the Shepherds have Queen and Slim hide in a crawlspace under the bed in their room. As they go to take a spare car from the Shepherds’ garage, a black officer stumbles upon them, but lets them go.

A man who spots their car one morning leads them to a friend with a plane that can get them away. He drives them to the tarmac, but as the two walk toward the plane, a squad of cops corner them. An overzealous cop then shoots Queen in the chest, instantly killing her. Devastated, Slim picks up her corpse and carries her toward the cops, leading them to gun him down as well. News of the tragic end to the manhunt is publicized everywhere, and the couple’s real names are made public. Hundreds of civilians attend their funerals and view them as martyrs and heroes.

The movie was honestly one of the best films to watch. It had literally everything you need in a film. You were emotionally invested in Queen & Slim and you were rooting for them the whole way. The only thing I wished for is that we had a little more background info for Queen. I feel like telling or doing a little flashback on her would have been amazing. Queen was the MVP of the film.

5. BREAKTHROUGH

Breakthrough is a Christian drama film directed by Roxann Dawson and written by Grant Nieporte, based on the Christian book The Impossible, an account of true events written by Joyce Smith with Ginger Kolbaba.

The film stars Chrissy Metz, Josh Lucas, Topher Grace, Mike Colter, Marcel Ruiz, Sam Trammel, and Dennis Haysbert with a cameo by contemporary Christian music artist Phil Wickham and Christian rapper Lecrae. Basketball player Stephen Curry and pastor, author and civil rights activist Rev. Samuel Rodriguez Jr. are executive producers.

The film tells the story of a St. Louis teenager who slipped through an icy lake in January 2015 and was underwater for 15 minutes before resuscitative efforts were started. Although being rescued, he is in a coma, and his family must rely on their faith to get through the ordeal.

These last two DeVon Franklin projects have been extraordinary. This was great way following up Miracles From Heaven. This film would make atheist become Christians. It’s really a remarkable film.

4. DOLEMITE IS MY NAME

Dolemite Is My Name is a biographical comedy film directed by Craig Brewer and written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski. The film stars Eddie Murphy as filmmaker Rudy Ray Moore, best known for portraying the character of Dolemite in both his stand-up routine and a series of blaxploitation films, starting with Dolemite in 1975.

In 1970s Los Angeles, Rudy Ray Moore (Eddie Murphy) is a struggling artist working in a record store, trying to get his music on the air in the in-store radio station. At night, he moonlights as an MC for his friend Ben Taylor (Craig Robinson) and Taylor’s musical group at a club. He asks the owner of the club for some time to do comedy, but the owner turns him down. At the record store one day, a homeless man comes wandering in and begins making loud, rhyming proclamations; one of which includes the name “Dolemite”. Moore gets the idea to create a stage persona telling these stories at the club he works at. Dressing in pimp attire and brandishing a cane, Moore takes the stage at the club as Dolemite and launches into a crudely humorous and foul-mouthed routine titled “The Signifying Monkey”. Taylor and his group join him on-stage to back him up. The crowd applauds.

Moore asks his aunt (Luenell) for money to record a comedy album entitled “Eat Out More Often”. He gets his friend Jimmy Lynch (Mike Epps) to record him at his home in front of an audience. After making several copies of the record, Moore begins to sell them out of the trunk of his car. The record proves to be very popular, obtaining the attention of a record company who agree to market it to record stores. Moore offers to go on tour through the Deep South to promote the record. While in Mississippi, he befriends a single mother named Lady Reed (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) and convinces her to join him as part of his tour.

Moore and his friends celebrate the success of the tour by taking in a movie, The Front Page. The majority white audience of the theater finds the film hilarious but Moore and his friends do not. Moore gets the inspiration to make a film starring himself as Dolemite. After being turned down by a film executive (Tip “T.I.” Harris), Moore asks his record company for an advance on royalties from his albums to fund the movie himself. The record executives agree to do so, but warn Moore if he fails that he will be in debt to them for the rest of his life.

Moore gets in contact with playwright Jerry Jones (Keegan-Michael Key) who, despite initial reluctance, agrees to write the screenplay. Moore and Taylor go to a strip club and find Rosemary’s Baby actor D’Urville Martin (Wesley Snipes) and offer him a role in their Dolemite film. Martin is offended by their offer until Moore gives him the opportunity to direct the film himself. Moore and his friends convert an old, abandoned hotel into a makeshift soundstage. Jones invites a group of white film students from UCLA to work as the film’s crew, including Nicholas Josef von Sternberg (Kodi Smit-McPhee) as cinematographer.

Moore, Martin, Jones and crew begin filming Dolemite, a kung-fu-themed Blaxploitation film. Moore’s lack of knowledge of karate and predilection towards camp disgusts Martin. Despite much of the cast and crew having a lot of fun making the film, Martin quickly abandons the crew after filming is completed, but not before belittling the others and proclaiming that the film will never be seen by anyone. Martin’s words seem to be true as no film distributor agrees to purchase the film. Moore decides to return to touring, though with much less enthusiasm. In Indiana, Moore is asked about the film’s release by a local DJ (Chris Rock) and remains noncommittal about whether the film will ever be seen. The DJ says that he could premiere the film in town with the right amount of promotion. Deciding to take him up on the offer, Moore promotes the film single-handedly all around town. Though he spends a lot of money on four wall distribution, Moore is pleased to see a massive crowd waiting outside the theater, and the audience greatly enjoys the film.

Hollywood film executive Lawrence Woolner (Bob Odenkirk), whose studio Dimension Pictures had turned down Dolemite previously, finds out about the premiere in Indiana and contacts Moore with the promise of distributing the film. Moore arrives at Dimension Pictures dressed as Dolemite along with Lady Reed and the crew dressed up as well. The executive says that although Moore could continue promoting the film himself, he would not see profits right away. However, Dimension Pictures could put the film in theaters and everyone would profit. Moore agrees and begins working on promoting the film professionally. En route to the Hollywood premiere of the film, Moore and the cast read negative reviews of the film that lower their spirits. Upon arrival however, the group is astonished to see an even bigger crowd of people cheering for them outside the theater. While the cast and crew go inside the theater to see the film, Moore stays outside to entertain the crowd who have to wait for the next show.

The film’s epilogue notes that Rudy Ray Moore continued to tour and star in sequels to Dolemite until his death in 2008. He is today considered to be the “Godfather of Rap”. Footage from the real Dolemite movie is shown as well.

This was a great return project for Eddie Murphy. After watching this movie it really inspired me to start grinding more. You literally got to see the blood, sweat, tears, and laughter Rudy Ray Moore had just to make it. It was the ultimate I won’t fail film I’ve seen along time.

3. JUST MERCY

Just Mercy is a legal drama film directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, and starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson, Rafe Spall, and Brie Larson. It tells the true story of Walter McMillian, who with the help of young defense attorney Bryan Stevenson appeals his murder conviction. The film is based on the memoir of the same name, written by Bryan Stevenson.

This film was mind blowing if you read the book your mind was blown away and the film really illustrated that in a cinematic experience.

2. WAVES

Waves is a drama film written and directed by Trey Edward Shults. It stars Kelvin Harrison Jr., Lucas Hedges, Taylor Russell, Alexa Demie, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Sterling K. Brown. Set against the vibrant landscape of South Florida, it traces the emotional journey of a suburban family as they navigate love, forgiveness and coming together in the aftermath of a loss.

Tyler Williams is a popular high school senior on the wrestling team. Outside of school, he parties with his friends and spends time with his girlfriend, Alexis Lopez, but is routinely pushed to be better by his domineering father, Ronald. His stepmother, Catherine, is more understanding of Tyler’s pressure, and tries her best to connect with him. Unbeknownst to anyone at school or home, Tyler suffers from a Level 5 SLAP tear, which he keeps secret from his family and team by stealing his father’s painkillers. Tyler’s doctor highly recommends undergoing surgery before it’s too late, but, unwilling to postpone the remainder of his season, Tyler continues to wrestle competitively until he is thrown onto his shoulder during a match, causing irreparable damage and ending his season, as well as his career.

One night, Tyler gets a text from Alexis, who reveals that her period is late, indicating that she is pregnant. He takes her to get an abortion, but when confronted by pro-life protesters outside the clinic, Alexis contemplates bringing the child to term, leading to a heated argument. Tyler objects to becoming parents at their age, and in his condition. Angered by his insensitivity to her own feelings, Alexis walks home alone. Distraught, Tyler begins drinking heavily and abusing drugs at parties with his friends, and is later consoled by his younger sister, Emily. Eventually, Tyler texts Alexis back, who is willing to mend their relationship. However, Alexis tells Tyler that she has decided to keep the child with support from her family. When Tyler tries calling her and demands to speak to her in person, Alexis breaks up with him and blocks his number, sending him into a rage.

The night of the school dance, Tyler goes on Instagram and sees Alexis posing for a picture with another boy. He gets high, and attempts to leave the house before being confronted by Catherine. Ronald attempts to defuse the situation, but Tyler throws him to the floor and leaves in Ronald’s truck. He drives to a house party, where he sees Alexis go upstairs with the boy from the photo. Emily notices his arrival from a distance but says nothing, and Tyler drinks heavily before following Alexis to the garage, demanding to know if she had sex with the boy and if she’s been drinking while pregnant. She asserts that the boy she was with is gay, but their argument turns physical, the two trading blows before Tyler strikes Alexis, slamming her head into the floor and knocking her unconscious as she begins to bleed out. Horrified, Tyler flees the scene after a girl walks into the garage and witnesses the act. Ronald arrives shortly after, bearing witness to a chaotic scene of police and paramedics, before Emily breaks down and reveals what happened. Tyler returns home before attempting to run away on foot. However, he is caught and arrested by the police. Paramedics attempt to resuscitate Alexis, but she dies from her injuries.

Despite a guilty plea, Tyler is sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder, with the eligibility of parole after thirty years. Between the flood of support Alexis receives and the spiteful messages levied toward her and her brother, a grieving Emily deletes her social media accounts. One day, she is approached by Luke, an awkward but kindhearted classmate who was also Tyler’s wrestling teammate. He asks her out to lunch and the two begin dating. Emily begins to open up to Luke and her classmates, participating in activities outside of school with them. During this time, Emily also overhears Ronald and Catherine arguing over Tyler, with Ronald blaming Catherine for her lack of presence in his and Emily’s lives, and Catherine accusing Ronald of putting too much pressure on Tyler. While fishing, Emily reveals to Ronald that she feels guilty knowing that she could’ve stopped Tyler and that she hates him for what he did. Ronald advises her not to hold a grudge against her brother and that no matter what, he loves them both. The two reconcile.

Meanwhile, Emily and Luke become closer, eventually having sex for the first time. Emily learns from Luke that his estranged, abusive father is dying of cancer, and she urges him to make amends with him with the time he has left. The two drive to Columbia, Missouri, where Luke’s father is residing, and upon seeing his son, Luke’s father’s spirits are lifted. He begins to survive longer than expected, but soon passes away in the night, and Emily consoles a mourning Luke on the drive home to Miami while Catherine visits Tyler in prison, Alexis’s parents grieve, and Catherine reconnects with Ronald. Sometime after arriving home, Emily rides a bike, having found peace.

I believe all teenagers should really watch this film. It’s a film that should be on everybody top 5 list of this year. It’s also blasphemy that Taylor Russell didn’t receive a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in this film.

1. FIVE FEET APART

Five Feet Apart is a romantic drama film directed by Justin Baldoni (in his directorial debut) and written by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis. The film was inspired by real life couple Dalton and Katie Prager, who both suffered from cystic fibrosis. Haley Lu Richardson and Cole Sprouse play two young patients with cystic fibrosis, who try to have a relationship despite always being forced to stay a certain distance away from each other.

This film honestly made cry, happy, sad, laugh, cry again, and it gave me hope. This film literally makes so much invested into these characters that you are literally yelling at the movie screen like you seriously know them or if they can hear you. This film is one of the best films all decade. It gave you serious heartbreak moments out of no where like a Randy Orton RKO. It really makes you appreciate life and your love ones around you because at any moment it could all end.