Destined to Doom Movies of 2018, which were Surprisingly Great or Decent or Just About Average

If you love cinematic family dramas, then you'll wholeheartedly embrace every frame of the Golden-Lion winning Spanish film, Roma — a consistently moving and profoundly heartfelt masterpiece by writer-Director-cinematographer Alfonso Cuarón. The emotional albeit real family dynamics (not a vestige of melodrama here) are only rivaled by some of the most-arresting shots (be they long, mid, or closeups), haunting sound effects (the placement of everything from nigh silence to a sudden jolting bang is impeccable), and indelible scenes (allegories and visual metaphors that create a lasting impression) assemble together on screen. And just when you think what more brilliance could Cuarón achieve in a single film, the auteur makes this a telling feminist work of art, where the women are left to fend for the family in the face of some A-grade jerks for men.

This one is the clearly the frontrunner of the year for this year's Best Foreign-Language film at the Oscars. As for all the pretentious arty filmmakers and fans out there, well, Roma should be mandatory viewing for their types to see how an art film should be made — the narrative doesn't crawl at a snail's pace, the camera doesn't linger on a frame longer than needed, the actors don't drawl their lines till time stands still, and not a single shot of the sky, earth, an animal, place, insect, or any other piece of fluff is taken for the sake of artistic effect.

4.75/5 stars

Ratsasan is one-of-d-finest murder-mystery thrillers ever made, right up there with every classic frm Tessri Manzil, Gupt, Thupparivaalan, and AndhaDhun to Rear Window, The Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, and Memories of Muder. Every aspect of the film spells pure brilliance, gelling together to create a masterpiece for the ages.

4.75/5 stars

In the vein of Baby (2015), D-Day (2013), Ankhen (1968), Johny Mera Naam (1970), and Farz (1967), Goodachari is one of Indian cinema's best spy-actioners (Raazi hasn't been mentioned as it's an out-an-out spy-thriller as compared to the others here, which are spy-action films), extremely well researched, executed with surgical precision, boasting slick and pulsating action, brimming with edge-of-the-seat thrills, and replete with jaw-dropping twists and turns. Slick, stylish, sensational — films like Goodachari serve as timely reminders of how Indian filmmakers can always compete with the best in the business on even 1/10th of their budgets.

4.65/5 stars

Set against the flourish of early 18th century England, The Favourite is an emphatic triumph of dramatic intrigue, cutthroat politics, and caustic wit while also serving as a resounding blueprint of how a movie can soar when a profoundly layered script and sharp dialgoues are backed by first-rate performances (Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz feed off each other to pitch the three best female acts of the year, each equally exceptional as the other two). Barring the slightly ambivalent final scene, the rest of the film is a classic for the ages.

4.5/5 stars

Blockers puts a gender-and-age swapping spin on the tried-and-tested teen sex-comedy sub-genre, by revolving the sex-capade around a bunch of teenage girls, and sticking their protective parents into the thick of things, coming up with hilarious results, in major part due to Brian and Jim Kehoe's frequently rib-tickling script, and in no small part because of the brilliantly funny performances by Leslie Mann, John Cena, and Ike Barinholtz.

4.5/5 stars

5The Strangers: Prey at Night is a wickedly delightful piece of slasher horror, with thrills, chills, twists, turns, jumps, shocks, and unpredictable moments galore, and topped with an insane, scarcely believable, yet throughly absorbing, and wholly nail-biting climax that really puts this guiltless pleasure into perspective. It's also one of the rare horror sequels out there that's infinitely better than the original in every aspect (not that you need to have seen the first part to enjoy this one). Plus, the performances and technical aspects really stand out for a small-budget scary flock, not least of which are a killer background score, edgy editing, and some terrific camerawork, giving the film a deliberate 70s-80s Italian-Giallo horror vibe. The first edge-of-the-seat horror film of 2018 is here, and no self-respecting horror fan should miss it.

4.45/5 stars

Marathi film Maska may be no Ocean's Eleven, Inside Man, The Killing, The Sting, or even a Snatch, but then again, it doesn't ever appear that writer-Director Priyadarshan Jadhav was aiming for the slick and suave of those films. What he does impeccably well though is spin a desi yarn, filled with twists, turns, deception, guile, wit, humor, and unpredictability that'll keep you gleefully entertained and guessing to the very end, proving that simplicity too can weave a good game of sleight when backed by a well-executed plot and convincing performances. The unsuspecting victims in the film may have been conned silly, but you'll enjoy being fooled by the 'maska' of this crime-caper, and there in itself lies its brilliance. It's also the closest another Indian con film has come to replicating the excellence of Special 26, which should be reason enough to watch it.

4.25/5 stars

Riding high on the performance of a lifetime by Bradley Cooper, and ably supported by Lady Gaga, A Star is Born, despite being the third remake of its kind, swiftly overcomes a slightly see-saw beginning to end up towering above all its predecessors with amazing emotional heft, myriad indelible moments, and a heartbreaking romance for the ages.

4.25/5 stars

Short, simple, straightforward, but effectively scary — The Possession of Hannah Grace offers further proof that regardless how many times an idea or basic premise is repeated, it can still work, provided the writer and Director have the vision and conviction to juice the narrative into something different, interesting, exciting, and most importantly, entertaining. On that note, Hannah Grace may not boast a novel plot, but boy does its presentation scare you shitless. The lighting engulfs you in a sense of eerie uneasiness, the camerawork keeps you tense, the direction sends chills down your spine, the editing leaves you on constant edge, and after long, the jump scares in a Hollywood ghost story really make you jump. But, perhaps the most unique aspect of the film is how the scripting makes the demonic presence operate like a serial killer, stalking its prey one by one, rather than appear as just another supernatural element. Please ignore the Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb scores for this one, and watch it in a theater without fail.

4.15/5 stars

Aptly breezy as a slice-of-life film, ideally quirky as a dark comedy, and insanely funny as a road-trip movie, writer-Director Akarsh Khurana confidently balances all these elements in his sophomore outing Karwaan - an astronomical improvement from his debut feature, High Jack - helped no doubt by a talented cast, not least among whom is the great Irrfan Khan, who makes a good script appear amazing by his ability to infuse hilarity even in the most elementary of lines.

4/5 stars

I haven't laughed like this in a long time during a Hindi film. Sure films like Golmaal Again, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Hindi Medium, and to an extent Mubarakan gave me a lot to laugh about recently, but none were as vociferously, heartily, or effortlessly funny as Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi. This film is the paradigm of 'dil kholke ke hasna', and much funnier than the first part, which was no ineffective comedy itself. Sonakshi Sinha is good, but she doesn't get as funny a role as Piyush Mishra, Jason Tham, and Denzil Smith who put Mudassar Aziz's crackling, witty, wacky, insanely genius writing to brilliant use. (Genius is the only way to describe a script that turns Indo-Pak tension into hilarious one-liners and convinces us that Urdu-speaking, cricket-playing, biryani-loving Chinese exist.)

However, above all the madcap fun on display, the real star of the show here is Jimmy Sheirgill, who leaves you shrieking with laughter and clapping your hands in joy at his sensational comic timing or willingness to poke fun at himself. So good is he that his expressions appear to be genuinely funny even in the silliest of moments.

Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi is the most organically funny laugh-therapy session to emerge from #Bollywood in ages, and needs to be seen by every sane person out there just to feel how good it is to experience insanity for a while.

4/5 stars

It's slight naivete aside, White Fang is another heartwarming take on the bond between man and animal after Isle of Dogs earlier this year. However, unlike the quintessential dark, quirky humor and subtle commentary of the Wes Anderson instant classic, Director opts for a more emotional, dramatic, and family-friendly approach that achieves the desired impact all the same. Of course, it does help if your story is headlined by a captivating 4-legged protagonist with a well fleshed-out character arc, and backed by some of the most fluent animation and realistic-looking 3D characters seen on screen. Adults will be engulfed by the overall beauty of White Fang while kids will take away some beautiful messages, not least of which is the film's driving force that there are no bad pets, but only bad masters.

3.95/5 stars

A grisly, gritty, gory, blood-soaked, 'revenge' thriller that does justice to both its in-your-face moniker and exploitative influences. Each of the four actors in the film (there's no one else, yet you'll be hooked for its 100-or-so-minute runtime, which speaks volumes of Director Coralie Fargeat's sharp debut) perform their parts to the T, but it's almost impossible to tear your glance away from Kevin Janssens and Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz (in a star-making turnover as a woman scorned and desperate to survive) for even a second. Full of well-planned tense moments and shrewdly woven shock value, Revenge is bound to end up among the most surprisingly entertaining, small-budget films of the year.

3.85/5 stars

Telugu film Taxiwaala is one-of-the-better horror-comedies in recent times across both Indian and international cinema, presented with an overall fun vibe through mystery, chills, and humor in equal measure, and anchored by a assured central performance from the ever-reliable Vijay Deverakonda, who's fast becoming Tollywood's go-to hero for scripts that marry intelligence with entertainment. Taxiwaala's screenplay is no different, encapsulating several elements and sub-plots that keep you hooked through its 2-hour-20-minute runtime (a tad lengthy for a horror-comedy), while also probably being the first of its kind to base its supernatural phenomenon on an uncredited field of science — astral physics. The denouement does get a tad far-fetched, but not enough to undo the highly engaging narrative that precedes it.

3.85/5 stars

Final Score is an unabashed Die Hard clone, but neither does it make any bones about it nor does it do any disservice to its pastiche treatment. In fact, it's exactly what the abominable Die Hard 5 should have been. Dave Bautista has got the action chops, body language, dialogue-delivery style, and more than enough of overbearing physicality to bring to an alternate version of John McClane while the perennially underrated Ray Stevenson makes for the kind of formidable adversary that any self-respecting action hero should have. Throw in ex-Bond Pierce Brosnan for a neat cameo and Amit Shah for some comic relief, and you've got four exciting characters to back up a taut script and Scott Mann's adrenaline-pumping direction, which frequently leave you in the hot seat and hungry for the next thrilling action scene. Watch out in particular for a bike-chase sequence inside a football stadium and an insane stunt, also on a bike, on the rooftops of said stadium. Final Score is far from a perfect action movie, but it sure as hell is one helluva an entertaining one.

3.75/5 stars

Venom is yet another example of how the taste of the general movie-going audience is a far cry from that of most professional critics (saying this despite being one myself), especially when it comes to action movies (unless, of course, they belong to the Marvel stable). Venom is cool, flows well, has a great buildup, features an engaging origin story, comes with several witty one-liners, boasts several kickass action scenes, with one of the best bike-chase sequences filmed on screen being the highlight, and is anchored by a solid performance from Tom Hardy in the eponymous role. In short, it has everything going for it to make for an exciting superhero film, barring a slightly hurried and somewhat underwhelming action scene in the climax, and it most certainly doesn't deserve all the critical hate it had garnered upon release. Then again, what else could you expect from folks who thought that Black Panther, Thor: Ragnarok, and Spider-Man: Homecoming were the gold standard of superhero movies?

3.75/5 stars

Can You Ever Forgive Me is a very well-structured, well-acted, complex, and layered dramatic piece that should hold particular interest to anyone who is or ever has been involved with writing or entertainment journalism as a professional.

3.75/5 stars

The Grinch is by far the best film adaptation yet of Dr. Seuss' timeless children's tale, beautifully capturing the essence of the story, while expanding upon the milieu and characters rather than turning them on their head, so as not to alienate loyal fans of the book, but also offer enough to attract a modern audience. It's warm, funny, packs an emotional wallop at the end, and uses state-of-the-art animation to actually conceive and render some truly ingenious scenes. Sure, it won't win accolades as the next path-breaking animation film, but there's a lot of feel-good stuff and subtly wrapped messages here to entertain kids and adults alike.

3.75/5 stars

Slotting somewhere between the punk anarchy of Mad Max and the perilous ramifications of The Walking Dead (minus the zombies, of course), The Domestics may not reach the heady heights of those titles, but does enough on its own to carve a niche as a solid apocalyptic action film.

3.65/5 stars

Netflix's Scottish entrant Calibre keeps its atmosphere tense and narrative tight for most part while also raising enough morally ambiguous questions, without providing any easy answers, to ensure that it doesn't end up as just another watch-it-have-fun-forget-it thriller about modern people trapped in antiquated surroundings, filled with inhospitable folk, and fighting to survive. The only place where the film dips a bit is toward the end, where it takes a slightly convenient, somewhat predictable, surprisingly hurried, and rather implausible approach as opposed to the rest of its journey to that point.

3.65/5 stars

Vishal Bhardwaj's Pataakha is a first for Bollywood where a subtle anti-war theme is married with nuanced political satire, narrated under the umbrella of dysfunctional family dynamics. Vijay Raaz brings dollops of humor to a straightforward role, Sanya Malhotra shines in her first meaty part, and Radhika Madan transcends from television to cinema with a bang, but its Sunil Grover who steals the show as the most conflicting character of the film. Pataakha won't be everyone's cup of tea and it certainly has some narrative dips and flaws, but those whose sensibilities it'll appeal to, will relish every drop of it.

3.5/5 stars

Set It Up, quite literally, sets you up for a breezy and pleasant romantic ride along with its four central characters. What makes this all he more endearing is how identifiable it feels, especially for those with demanding jobs and high ambitions, which leaves very less time for socializing, leave alone one's love life. Even those who don't have a particular affinity for rom-coms, like me, would find it hard to escape the charms of this warm, cheerful, and funny film.

3.5/5 stars

Tollywood film RX 100 is a welcome throwback to the rebellious-lover films of yore, featuring wild, brawny men who lay it all on the line for the love of their lives, with a touch of homage also thrown in to Ram Gopal Varma's Telugu protagonists of the 90s. Of course, a sense of familiarity begins to creep into the middle portion, but the film ends on a great note courtesy a shocking climax, which such films were bereft of in the past. Plus, Kartikeya Gummakonda fits the bill of the crazy-in-love hero to the T, with his sturdy physicality also serving as a great asset to the character.

3.5/5 stars

Though slightly predictable in portions, Summer of 84 scores for its tense atmosphere and the nail-biting cat-and-mouse game played out between its killer and a bunch of unassuming heroes. It's not a horror film that lures you in with anything new, but it does end up engaging you with some smart direction, fine acting, and a shockingly unconventional climax.

3.5/5 stars

Mom and Dad is the most uniquely outrageous horror-comedy I've seen to date (and I've seen a lot of them), with a completely wacky, eccentric, and bat-shit crazy performance by Nicolas Cage, marking a welcome return to form for this underrated star-actor after ages. Had the final 20 minutes or so been more cohesive, this would have been an instant classic in its genre. Nevertheless, a brilliant effort from Director Brian Taylor (Crank 1 and 2, Gamer), and full marks to the idea and execution.

3.5/5 stars

Korean film Burning is the paradigm of a slow-burner thriller. It tears your patience to the limit and only a select few will be able to sit through it to the end. But if you’re among those select few, like me, then the wait is quite rewarding in the last 30 minutes or so, when the narrative comes together and things get interesting. However, you wish that writer #ChangDongLee would have made the big reveal at the end a bit more shocking and slightly less ambiguous, especially after how much time (its runtime is a tad above 2 hours and 20 minutes) and effort (it’s quite a tedious watch until the last half hour and demands extreme levels of concentration) you invest in it.

3.5/5 stars

Hamid is a heartfelt, honest portrait of the current socio-political structure in Kashmir, seen through the innocent eyes of an innocent 8-year old boy and the unlikely bond he strikes with a hard-as-nails army officer. A special mention to my dear friend, John Wilmor, who has captured Kashmir in all its beauty and brutality, with his brilliant camerawork, which adds heavily to the essence of the film. The only place where Director Aijaz Khan loses his grip slightly over the narration is during the climax. Nevertheless, Hamid is highly recommended when it hits screens in its wide release.

3.5/5 stars

Truth or Dare mixes supernatural and teen-slasher horror with good effect to produce a surprisingly fast-paced, tense, and crisp scary feature that keeps you guessing for the most part. The ending is a bit of a downer, but that shouldn't detract you from checking out this neat, little modern display of good ol' campy fun.

3.45/5 stars

After a slightly topsy-turvy start, Korean film Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum sinks its sinister claws into the found-footage horror sub-genre, giving you a bone-chilling experience in the bargain — some scenes gave me the shivers, leading me to believe that my hair was standing on end. Sadly, it ends on an extremely abrupt note (not open-ended, just plain abrupt), that leaves you feeling slightly cheated for having invested so much in the story and characters.

3.45/5

Braven is a simple, straightforward, albeit solid action film that is carried by the infectious charm and rests on the broad shoulders of its leading man, Jason Momoa.

3.35/5 stars

Despite a sketchy screenplay, Veere Di Wedding has a pleasant feel and humorous tone, with some good emotional moments toward the end. Most importantly, the camaraderie of the four main female protagonists strikes a chord, and the feminism actually says something instead of just making a noise.

3.25/5 stars

Anchored by another fine comic display from funny-man Kevin Hart, and boasting a bunch of equally funny supporting characters, Night School is harmless, harebrained humor, but even harmless, harebrained humor can be good for copious laughs, provided the jokes/gags never stop coming, they hit the mark, the plot doesn't take itself too seriously, and more importantly, you don't take it too seriously.

3.25/5 stars