Ranking the Films of 2019 So Far

Will Smith's Genie performing Prince Ali is one of my film highlight's of the year! 

Hey guys! We're almost half way through 2019 and I've already seen 21 new films. 2018 proved to be a good year for films but this year has really surpassed it already. So being the film buff I am, I thought I'd rank the films I've seen so far this year, each with a little short and sweet summary. So here it goes!


21 - THE AFTERMATH

Dreadful. Just dreadful. I know it's a cliche when people say that they fall asleep at the cinema when watching films they don't like but this really did happen to me while watching The Aftermath. I've never seen such a full film and the acting from the whole cast was so wooden!

20 - ESCAPE ROOM

I couldn't wait to ESCAPE from the screening room myself! It was a pretty dull affair and not one character was remotely likeable in the slightest. 

19 - THE CURSE OF LA LLORONA

More like 'The Curse Of Modern Day Horror Film Cliches!' Yet another film in the ever extending Conjuring universe, though it's one to easily forget. However, the Mexican Priest character was genuinely hilarious! "Tah-dah!"

18 - BOY ERASED

One of those films where the trailer makes it look a heck of a lot better. Despite it being a very true and emotional story, I really struggled to get invested in it. Even the star power of Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman couldn't save it. However, the young lead Lucas Hedges put in a very strong performance. 

17 - US

The best of the 2019 horror films I've seen but still very far from one of the best films of the year. Many people praised it but I thought it was way overhyped. I will admit though that there were a couple of scenes that had me on edge. Here's hoping upcoming horror films this year will feature higher on my next list. 

16 - THE KID WHO WOULD BE KING

This was sadly my worst cinema experience of the year. I had two different groups of teens talking literally from the start until the end of the film. Still, I tried my best to enjoy the film. I did think it was pretty decent but far from a family classic like the film was being labelled. 

15 - ON THE BASIS OF SEX

Now trust me, I'm far from into politics. which this film is definitely about! However, I'm a big fan of Felicity Jones. I think she's one of the best British actresses we've had for years and she delivered a great performance in this film. I can't lie though, I was lost in a lot of the law talk. 

14 - A DOG'S WAY HOME

I'm a sucker for a cute animal film and this was definitely one of them. It was pretty much the same Homeward Bound story we've all seen copied countless times but I was pleasantly surprised and really got invested into the story. 

13 - CAPTAIN MARVEL

I'm in that small percentage of people who aren't into Marvel films. However, I thought I'd give this a go and I actually quite enjoyed it. Brie Larson was pretty easy on the eye too! 

12 - TOLKEIN

The trailer for this had me hooked, so I had to see it as soon as it came to cinemas! Though it may have been slow in parts, the acting was superb! Nicholas Hoult is one of my favourite actors of my generation and he was great as the title character. I sense a future Oscar winning performance in the coming years from Mr Hoult!

11 - ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL

This was a massive surprise for me because it was one of them films that I was expecting to really dislike, yet I really enjoyed it. I'm not a fan of CGI but it was used really well in this. Also any film with Christoph Waltz is good because he's just something else! 

10 - MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS

I think this film deserved a lot more credit than many gave it. I thought the acting was exceptional, especially from the two leads Margot Robbie and Saoirse Ronan. It may not have been one hundred percent historically accurate but then again these films never are, are they? 

9 - INSTANT FAMILY

This was a pleasant surprise for me. I really believed in Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne as a couple, I thought they played it phenomenally. The children cast were also hilarious. It was what I call a proper feel-good film!

8 - LONG SHOT

Oh wow. I totally didn't expect to be moved by this comedy but I really was. It was a bit of a Beauty and the Beat affair but it played out so well. This is without doubt the best thing I've seen Seth Rogen in. Charlize Theron has also proved that she can do comedy and really well at that! 

7 - ROCKETMAN

Well this was different! I think the bar for musical biopics has been set very high by Bohemian Rhapsody last year, so anything will be a tough act to follow. This film shouldn't be compared though because it was an actual musical and not just a biopic. The musical sequences were done very well, with personal favourites including the opening Bitch Is Back and Saturday's Night's Alright For Fighting. Taron Egerton will definitely be getting an Oscar nomination for this! 

6 - STAN & OLLIE

What a little gem this film was! It should have been a big hit in my opinion. The iconic duo of Laurel and Hardy were played magnificently by Steve Coogan and John C Reilly. The film told the story of the duos final tour of the UK and it was a very endearing story. Not enough people saw this film. 

5 - WILD ROSE

All I can say is Jessie Buckley, what an incredible performance! I mean you could argue it was boosted by the always fantastic Julie Walters in a supporting role but Miss Buckley totally stole the show. It wasn't the typical Hollywood feel-good ending but my God was it realistic and really hit home! 

4 - ALADDIN 

Oh wow, this was simply fantastic! The original animated version was never a big favourite of mine and this live action remake totally empowered it for me. Robin Williams as the original genie will never be bettered but I thought Will Smith was incredible in the role and his version of Ali Baba has become an instant favourite Disney moment of all time for me! 

3 - DUMBO

Now the reviews for this were extremely mixed but I totally loved it. While I get emotional at films, I've never physically sobbed in the cinema but Dumbo had me crying on numerous occasions. It may have been very different to the original cartoon but I really liked the darker direction Tim Burton took it. I mean really, what else did people expect Tim Burton to do?

2 - FISHERMAN'S FRIENDS

An instant British classic in my opinion. This reimagining of a true story was wonderfully played out and I genuinely think it was one of the greatest stories on film of the year so far. I fell in love with the whole cast, which included a couple of the real Fisherman's Friends band.

1 - GREEN BOOK

I'm not normally one to go by popular opinion but having seen Green Book win the Best Picture Oscar, I just had to give it a try. I'm so glad I did because the film featured the two best acting performances I've seen all year, by the wonderful Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen. It was quite honestly one of the best films I've ever seen!

Thank you for joining me on my lighthearted ranking of the films I've seen so far this year. The summaries were brief but I'll be going into these films in much greater detail in future blogs. 

That's 21 films down already, here's to many more!