It’s almost the end of the year which means it’s time to look back at my ranking for the films I watched in 2019 ahead of my 2020 ranking. Enjoy! 14. Triple Frontier
Netflix never fails to deliver original films and I’ve seen a few this year. One such movie was Triple Frontier, starring Oscar Isaac and Ben Affleck. It’s a film whose facade makes it seem like this is Sicario 2.0 but in reality, it’s a military take on Ocean’s Eleven which was an unexpected twist, I’m not going to lie.
My family and I ended up watching the whole movie actually, which was a bit surprising. So yeah, it may not have been as good as I had hoped but decent enough for a matinee film.
13. The Irishman
This may be the unpopular opinion but I wasn’t a fan of The Irishman. In fact, it literally made me sick. I was lost from the get-go as the screenplay tried to deliver a powerful narrative of the rise of one of the past century’s most prolific gangsters but ended up just muddling what could’ve been a great film.
I’ve seen The Godfather and Godfather 2. Both are great films that seized me and didn’t let go. The Irishman didn’t do that. The only reason why this movie is getting as much praise as it’s getting is because it has Al Pacino, Robert de Niro, Joe Pesci, and even Ray Romano in it. Talk about a stellar cast for what I thought was going to be a stellar film.
12. Godzilla: King of the Monsters
The extended trailers and sneak peeks in IMAX is what lured me into watching this film in the movie theaters on my birthday. Godzilla: King of the Monsters was HORRIBLE! I’m talking about absolutely ridiculous. The action scenes were expectedly enjoyable but the annoying storyline outshined the good, which was far and few.
Godzilla vs. Kong is coming out next year and I refuse to be tricked again. I went to see Godzilla in 2014. Hated it! I went to watch Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Once again, I was disappointed. I’m not going three strikes and I’m out. Godzilla vs. Kong is going to be horrible again.
11. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is one of those movies that I was actually excited to see. I liked the first one, my sister said the second one was pretty good, but the third one was ultimately disappointing. There was nothing emotionally impactful about the film, it was predictable with zero surprises, and yeah, the conclusion was touching but The Hidden World will definitely not be winning Best Animated Film of the Year this year either.
10. Alita: Battle Angel
I saw the trailers for Alita: Battle Angel several times in the movie theater and every time I was wowed. When I finally got to see the film I can’t express to you how disappointed I was. James Cameron may have produced this movie but it is nowhere near the brilliance of his other films like The Terminator or Avatar.
Alita: Battle Angel is one of those movies that left me saying, “Why?!” The action scenes were pretty good but the characters weren’t likable enough and the story wasn’t compelling enough to have me want to watch a sequel or a prequel.
9. Beats
Beats is one of those Netflix movies that are worth the watch. Emotionally impactful and filled with a pretty dope musical score, Beats was pretty good, I have to say. Watch this with headphones. It’ll give you the best experience for sure.
8. The Rise of Skywalker
The Rise of Skywalker had every chance of being the best film of the year. Instead, it would become yet another controversial cog in the tirade that is Star Wars. Filled with boring fan-service and nonsensical storytelling, The Rise of Skywalker has ended the year on a bit of a sour note. But it still manages to outshine some of the other films on this list simply because it’s Star Wars.
7. Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel was not a tremendous superhero movie and never will be but it is fun to watch. Brie Larson did an excellent job bringing the cocky, soaring superhero to life and the characters surrounding her were likable enough for this film to be both memorable and rewatchable.
6. Toy Story 4
The best thing about Toy Story 4 was the animation and the newest character to join the cast of lovable toys, Forky. The animation was the best that had ever been displayed for the Toy Story franchise and Forky just might be my favorite character ever to appear in the films, besides Woody and Buzz of course. However, the story was expectedly sappy and while I did cry at the end (because how are you not going to cry at a Toy Story film?!) it was nowhere near as enjoyable as Toy Story or Toy Story 3.
5. Murder Mystery
Murder Mystery was a real surprise. Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler are a perfect comedy pair that brought this hilarious riff on a murder mystery to life. With a hilarious supporting cast featuring Luke Evans and many others, Murder Mystery is one of the best Netflix movies of the year. Take a look. It’s hilarious!
4. Spider-Man: Far from Home
Spider-Man: Far from Home was so cute! With teenage drama, fun action sequences, one of the greatest Marvel villains in the MCU, and some nice surprises via the two post-credit scenes, this was a worthy sequel to the first film that redeemed Spider-Man on the big screen in 2017.
3. Shazam!
Shazam! was so much fun. I saw the trailers. Wasn’t excited! I heard the reviews. I became intrigued. My family and I went to see it and we were in love with the film. Yes, it was cliché and yes it was a bit of a drag at times but overall, this was hands down the best DCEU film by a mile. Funny and with a fantastic surprise that’ll surely make the sequel worth the watch, Shazam! was one of the most joyous surprises this year.
2. The Two Popes
What charmed me the most about The Two Popes was how beautiful it was. The churches, the robes, the cinematography, people have been talking about The Irishman but the movie critics should really be praising is The Two Popes. Showcasing an actually heartwarming friendship between former Pope Benedict XVI and the present Pope Francis, The Two Popes surprisingly wowed me in ways The Irishman couldn’t.
Check it out. It’s up for a Golden Globe and rightfully so. I definitely feel it’s one of the best movies of the year.
It’s currently available on Netflix.
1. Avengers: Endgame
No, Avengers: Endgame wasn’t the best Marvel movie I’ve ever seen (that title still goes to Avengers: Infinity War) but it was one of the greatest experiences I will ever have at the movie theaters. The tears, the cheers, this movie’s final act shattered my expectations in ways that I will never forget. Hence, it is undoubtedly my favorite film of the year.
I’d like to give an honorable mention to The Mandalorian which, of course, wasn’t a movie but because it was such an enjoyable series this year I had to highlight it as one of the best things of 2019, maybe even the decade!
I thank you once again for sharing another year with me. Here’s to 2020 and the decade to come! May the Force be with you.
Annlyel Online 