The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland Into the Past: 2018

Welcome to The Wasteland into the Past! Join this journey backwards in time as I take a cinematic look at years past. Each article will focus on a singular year and my Top 5 films from that year. Turn back the clock with me…and let’s get started! 

2018

Annihilation

What is one of those films that will make you question what you just saw when the credits started rolling? Alex Garland’s Annihilation is that for sure. This science fiction, horror, adventure is based on the novel by Jeff VanderMeer that centers on a strange alien biome that grows around the impact of a strange material from space. Garland crafts a unique cinematic experience that brings this biome to life with all the twisted and morphed beings that make it up. The foliage is breathtaking and horrifying at the same time. What this alien material does to the living things in this place is downright mesmerizing and horrific at the same time. The gene splicing of the creatures and the environment creates some impressive scares. There are few things in life that are scarier than the bear from this film and the whole sequence will chill you to the bone. The discovered video of the first team that ventured in is a body horror nightmare. The climax is an abstract experience that is terrifying despite displaying the whole horror right in front of you. The music is some of the most unsettling and other-worldly compositions ever put to a film (thanks to composers Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury). But the cast is what elevates this past just an experience to something with thematic depth and emotional richness. Natalie Portman delivers an incredibly layered performance as she anchors this film with her strength, emotion, and physicality. The likes of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson, and Gina Rodriguez add plenty of layers too. A group of such talented performers could only bolster this impressive film to start. No other film in 2018 reached to levels of raw cinematic might that Garland crafted in Annihilation.

Eighth Grade

Middle school really sucked, didn’t it? This point in young American lives is so awkward and uncomfortable. You can only imagine how much more complicated it can be for young women as they navigate getting their first period. Whoever would have thought that the person who could fully capture the awkward years of a young woman is Bo Burnham? He is an intelligent and talented comedian, but this was such an interesting choice to dive into directing but even more so with such a choice of story. When it comes to this transition, it works so perfectly as he has always understood people in a deep level and that translates so much into the script and into his direction. There is a great vibe that Burnham creates with the digital focus of the film and the reliance on social media (for which our protagonist has a strong connection to). The music fits that vibe thanks to the strong efforts of composer Anna Meredith. There is plenty of empathy that Eighth Grade can muster for our young protagonist who tries to navigate making friends, finding a boyfriend, and building her social media following. There are so many great moments that whisk you back to that middle school experience that feel so profoundly relatable. But the anchor of Burnham’s whole film is young actor Elsie Fisher. The performance of this young actor is just off the charts. The authenticity. The empathy. The emotion. We began to know Kayla on such a deeply meaningful level, and it was such a great journey to go on with her. Josh Hamilton, who portrays Kayla’s father, has one of those showstopping parent speeches that just ties the film together thematically and brings plenty of emotion. The rest of this young ensemble deliver as well with a whole crew of believable young folks that Kayla meets along the way. This is one of the greatest coming of age stories for a generation and a great film worth your time.

Bad Times at the El Royale

What great personality and magic did Drew Goddard have up his sleeve? Bad Times at the El Royale exist in a time when Quentin Tarantino is a star director so of course it will get those comparisons. Goddard can leave his own slick mark on this unnerving mystery thriller set in the most unlikely of hotels. The El Royale has all the personality in the world as just a setting. Half in one state and half in another. The main office captures the 1969 setting perfectly with the jukebox and color scheme. What a great place for some murder, hidden money, and a cult to ride on into. Goddard screenplay plays around with the nonlinear storytelling popular in the post-Pulp Fiction cinema landscape and creates a great sense of mystery around the four strangers who rent rooms on this fateful evening at The El Royale. The vibe that ties this film together is pitch perfect. There is a darkness looming over every interaction and a richness to every shot that cinematographer Seamus McGarvey captures. The music chosen for the soundtrack is killer bolstering each scene that it is layered in. What really sends this film over the edge as a thrilling good time is the impressive cast of actors who bring it all together. Jeff Bridges is one half of the main duo, and he delivers one of the best performances in the past 20 years. Playing a priest is one thing but playing a “priest” with a lot more backstory is something even more compelling. Bridges sinks his teeth deep into this role and delivers something special. The other half of this impressive central duo is Cynthia Erivo. This impressive breakout performance shows off so many layers of Erivo as a performer. Her singing is incredible. Her depth of emotion allows the audience to connect and fall in love with her character. There is so much going on in her performance and she really steals the show. Dakota Johnson delivers one of her best performances up to this in her career (with plenty more great work to come). Jon Hamm is as charming as Jon Hamm can be. Lewis Pullman’s Miles is a surprising character as well. Then there is Chris Hemsworth. His cult leader, Billy Lee, is one of the most interesting and unexpected turns of his whole career.

The Death of Stalin

Who could possibly make the aftermath of a dictator’s death so funny? Armando Iannucci. This man can make anything bitingly hilarious. He proved it with Veep, The Thick of It, In the Loop, and Avenue 5. But a film about the death of Josef Stalin…that is an impressive accomplishment. The Death of Stalin has all the crazy manic energy of all of the work while also having an incredibly dark and deep screenplay. There are plenty of sarcastic moments and some top-notch dry humor, but it is the depth and commentary of human nature and political systems that elevates this comedy to being something quite impactful. In a modern time where so much of politics is crazy and outlandish, The Death of Stalin finds the perfect way to skewer the fascist regime of Stalin and the incredibly horrific actions he did which eventually backfired in trying to save his life (in the best for of irony). There are plenty of big directing choices that bring the film plenty of energy and personality (the introduction of Jason Isaacs’ Field Marshal Zhukov is badass as hell). But the best feature of all of Iannucci’s projects is always the ensemble. You need the right performers to sell the insanity of his wild scenarios. This one is less outlandish as it is something that “actually happened” but you still need the right actors to channel the absurdity of the situations. Steve Buscemi is the most likely holder of the title of “Lead” and he wears it well. This is not something he gets to do often but he acts as the perfect anchor for this wild ride. Simon Russell Beale gets the opportunity to go full blown insanity in his turn as the most devious of Stalin’s cronies. Seeing Michael Palin acting in a meaningful role just might be the hidden gem of the film because he is such a legendary talent. Andrea Riseborough and Rupert Friend get to have plenty of fun as well as the children of Stalin. But the one having the most fun is certainly Isaac who is a towering figure of masculinity and brute force (the comedic tidal wave that Tucker represents in The Thick of It). This film is hilarious but what really makes it so affecting is the biting commentary of the horrifically bad leadership in Stalin’s regime but also the way it shows the oppression of the people. Iannucci has a lot to say in between all those bits of laughter.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Are you still in awe of how this film even exists? Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse changed everything for the dominant genre of today, comic book films. The serious focus was always on live action with some fun films (especially Batman ones) coming out on video or digital in the form of animation. Sony took their Spider-Man property, found a new focus in Miles Morales and created one of the most visually striking films ever created. The ways the style of the animation brings immense depth to the world of Marvel and how each new Multiverse world has a new look (something expanded upon greatly in Across the Spider-Verse) is downright incredible. Each different Spider character has a distinct and unique look. There is so much depth in the story of a young man who comes from modest upbringing to take up the mantle of Spider-Man when the beloved hero of his universe dies at the hands of the mountainous and heinous Kingpin. Shameik Moore delivers one of the strongest voice performances in recent memory as Miles who must find a way to stand up, keep his secret, and lead a team of Spider heroes in battle against Kingpin and his rogue’s gallery of villains. Jake Johnson delivers such an unexpected turn as a middle-aged Peter Parker who must stop being a letdown and start being the mentor that young Miles needs. Hailee Steinfeld (a star in her own right) brings so much life and layers to the character of Gwen Stacy who has the powers in her own universe. Across might blow up the idea of infinite Spider heroes but the fun team of Into the Spider-Verse is so satisfying. Nicolas Cage kills it as the hard-boiled detective Spider Noir. John Mulaney is hilarious as Spider-Ham. Lieve Schreiber’s Wilson Fisk and Kathryn Hawn’s Doc Ock are standouts villains. But the heart and soul come in the form of Miles’ Uncle Aaron. His complexity is brought to life with so much energy and soul but the great Mahershala Ali. The striking colors of the visuals and the rich grays of the story make this a towering achievement of animation and comic book films alike.