The 15 Best Movies of 2018 That You Didn't See

2018 was full of so many good movies that we totally get if you missed one or 12. As we rocket to the end of the year, here are all the movies you need to see before Dec. 31.

'A Simple Favor'

This movie seemingly had it all -- a couple of very hot stars (Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively), a director known for his sharp, observational female roles (Paul Feig), and a hooky, paperback-y thriller conceit in the vein of “Sharp Objects” or “Big Little Lies” (the script by Ryan Murphy-confederate Jessica Sharzer is based on the novel by Darcey Bell). But the movie failed to connect fully at the box office. It’s a shame, too. Kendrick plays a single mom and video blogger who falls under the spell of another, much cooler mom (Blake Lively). Both have kids in the same class and when Lively goes missing, the movie turns much darker and even more deliciously fun. Best watched with a giant martini.

'Ilang: The Wolf Brigade'

Kim Jee-woon is one of the most exciting filmmakers working today, so it was somewhat surprising that his latest, “Ilang: The Wolf Brigade,” a live-action update of a beloved Japanese anime, was quietly dumped onto Netflix with zero fanfare. The movie deserves better. “Ilang” is one of the most layered and visually-astonishing action movies of the year. It plays like a futuristic companion to his terrific 2015 film “Age of Shadows,” wherein cops and criminals get morally confused in the quest for doing what is right, and feels very much, in its execution, technically prowess, emotionality, and ultra-violence, like an early Paul Verhoeven movie. And how cool is that?

'The Old Man and the Gun'

Recently, a popular critic mused on Twitter, “Why wasn’t ‘The Old Man & the Gun’ more of a thing?” And, really, it’s hard to come up with an answer. It’s the terrific, true crime tale of an elderly bank robber (Robert Redford, in supposedly his final on-screen role), who falls in love (with Sissy Spacek, naturally) and avoids detection by a dogged police officer (Casey Affleck). Its leisurely pace, lush visuals, and philosophical tone (courtesy of writer-director David Lowery), help make it one of the very best heist movies in a year of very good heist movies (“American Animals,” “Widows,” “Ocean’s 8”). It’ll steal your heart.

'The Sisters Brothers'

“The Sisters Brothers” had the bad luck of opening during a time when its distributor Annapurna was going through some very public financial troubles. Somehow, the movie and its hefty budget ($40 million) got a lot of the blame, unfairly. Because, honestly, this movie rules. The English language debut of brilliant French filmmaker Jacques Audiard, the movie followed a pair of killers (John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix) as they traveled around the old west, doing jobs for a shadowy Commodore (Rutger Hauer). Soon enough they get involved with a alchemist (Riz Ahmed), who thinks that he has discovered a way of detecting gold in the river. Saying more would ruin the movie’s pure, often perverse delights, but needless to say, this is an exceptionally odd western that is made with the highest commitment to both craft and character (we haven’t even said anything about Jake Gyllenhaal’s squirrelly character). Few romps in 2018 were this rewarding.

'Teen Titans Go to the Movies!'

There was no shortage of superhero movies in 2018 and many of those movies happened to be animated. So it’s easy to see why “Teen Titans Go to the Movies!” was overlooked, especially given its relatively simplistic 2D animation (instead of the 3D computer animation that’s so popular). But ignoring this movie is a mistake, because it’s one of the fastest, funniest, most meta-textual comedies released this year (it directly addresses the glut of superhero movies).

'Border'

This is, undoubtedly, Guillermo del Toro’s favorite film of the year. A quiet fantasy that occasionally borders on being too subtle, Ali Abbasi’s “Border” casts its own unique spell. It’s the tale of a somewhat deformed Swedish border guard named Tina (Eva Melander), who encounters someone who reminds her of herself, named Vore (Eero Milonoff). Soon enough, they’re exploring aspects of themselves that they could never fully engage with because, and this runs the risk of ruining something but, yeah, they’re trolls. Weaving ancient Swedish mythology with modern taboos (and it really goes there), “Border” is beguiling and unique.

'Bad Times at the El Royale'

Writer-director Drew Goddard’s hotly-anticipated follow-up to “Cabin in the Woods” had a starry cast (including Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson, Jeff Bridges, and Chris Hemsworth), a groovy high concept (a group of disparate strangers, many of them obvious criminals, converge on a seedy hotel on the California-Nevada border), and some of the best marketing materials of the year. None of that generated much commercial interest, unfortunately, especially with a lukewarm critical response that knocked the movie’s cool-for-coolness-sake aesthetic and self-indulgent 140-minute runtime. But if you can get on the movie’s wavelength, it’s a wicked good time.

'Annihilation'

Alex Garland’s follow-up to the critically-acclaimed “Ex Machina” attracted a lot of critical praise despite Paramount’s best efforts to bury it last spring, and it continues to resonate as a smart, female-driven science fiction project exploring issues worthy (at least) of a Best Adapted Screenplay nod, not to mention recognition of Rob Hardy’s phenomenal cinematography, Mark Digby’s production design and some really beautiful, bonkers visual effects.

'First Reformed'

“First Reformed” is, by no means, an easy film to watch. It concerns thorny subjects like self-destruction, eco-terrorism, and the place of religion in the modern world. But it’s also, as written and directed by Paul Schrader, a deeply humanist story about how one man can lose his grip on the thing he was, seemingly moments ago, most passionate about. And that is something that is a feeling that’s downright universal. Ethan Hawke, in one of the year’s best performances, plays a pastor who questions his faith around the same time he befriends a young woman (Amanda Seyfried) whose husband was engaged with radical environmentalists. Deeply spiritual, sometimes surreal, and with one of the greatest endings of the year, “First Reformed” will convert just about anyone.

'Can You Ever Forgive Me?'

Leave it to Melissa McCarthy to star in one of the very best movies of the year and arguably the worst movie of the year as well (“The Happytime Murders”). In “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” (the really good movie), McCarthy plays Lee Israel, the failed biographer turned criminal forger, who defrauded a number of high profile memorabilia collectors in the 1980s. It’s a simple story, told richly and with utterly committed performances (Richard E. Grant plays her partner-in-crime), with an autumnal look and similarly melancholic feel. If, for some reason, you only saw one of McCarthy’s broad studio comedies, this is the perfect antidote: charming, streamlined, and sublime.

'THE HATE U GIVE'

Unfortunately, this movie kind of came and went without raising anywhere near the amount of attention it deserved, in a number of year-end awards categories - including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay for Audrey Wells, Best Actress for star Amandla Stenberg, and Supporting Actor Russell Hornsby. It’s a movie born out of earned (and deserved) anger that somehow never loses that emotional energy but manages somehow to feel hopeful in spite of it.

'Leave No Trace'

Given the late surge in popularity for this film from a number of critics’ groups, Debra Granik’s film about a PTSD-stricken veteran raising his daughter off the grid seemed like it had a real shot for at least some well-deserved Best Adapted Screenplay and possible Best Director nominations. But both Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie do exceptional work in their co-lead roles, and its timely message resonates in such a way that a Best Picture nomination would be absolutely warranted.

You Were Never Really Here

Lynne Ramsay is just one of a number of incredible female filmmakers whose work went unrecognized this year at the Oscars, but her latest film, about a troubled hit man who rescues trafficked girls, deserved nominations for both her direction and screenplay, its lead, Joaquin Phoenix, cinematographer Tom Townend, and Jonny Greenwood’s phenomenal score.

'Shirkers'

This documentary has a set-up as good as any mystery this year: Sandi Tan and her friends set about to make Singapore’s first independent film, with the help of a shadowy American named George Cardona. When the film was finished, George (along with all of the footage) disappeared. Tan then set about to figure out what had happened to the missing film and who, exactly, George Cardona really was. It’s fascinating and works as both a loving homage to the trials and tribulations of low budget filming and a kind of coming-of-age tale about trying to grow and learn as an artist and a person. This is the kind of documentary that is told unsentimentally but is still overflowing with charm and personality.

'Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot'

In 1995, Gus Van Sant teamed with a young Joaquin Phoenix for the unforgettable “To Die For.” Now, they’ve finally gotten back together, for a movie that could prove to be just as timeless. “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot” is the story of Portland alternative cartoonist John Callahan (Phoenix), who was crippled after a drunk driving incident and paralyzed for much of his life. (Robin Williams originally optioned the material and teamed with Van Sant to adapt it.) But instead of some treacly, feel-good nonsense, Van Sant and Phoenix richly portrayed a character who kept his grit even after his accident (and the accompanying detox process). Supported by a starry array that includes a never-better Jonah Hill, Rooney Mara and Jack Black, this is the rare biopic that feels both tender and thorny in all the right places.