Big Picture Big Sound

It's been a pretty quiet year at the movies so far. The past two years have produced Best Picture nominees in February ("Get Out" in 2017 and "Black Panther" in 2018). Upon looking at the Oscar tea leaves, nothing from the first have of 2019 is poised to go the distance that those two films did.

Despite no film kicking off Oscar talk early, there have been a few gems from early in the year. Most of these films didn't generate a great deal of business at the box office, so here's a reminder to seek them out and help give them new life at home.

In alphabetical order, the best movies of the year, so far:

"American Woman"

Jake Scott's "American Woman" is a straightforward but compelling drama led by a career-best performance by Sienna Miller. She stars as Debra, a young mother, who's forced to raise her grandson once her teenage daughter goes missing. What makes "American Woman" involving is that it doesn't get bogged down in procedural trappings. The movie is about a parent's worst nightmare and how life changes but, somehow, progresses after something unimaginable happens. Miller has been an underutilized actress from so long and she is our tour guide on this emotional journey.

"Booksmart"

Olivia Wilde's directorial debut is a hilarious and affecting tale about friendship in the final days of high school. Molly (Beanie Feldstein) and Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) have been longtime friends, who realize they have only focused on their grades and not so much on having fun. They plan to change all of that by attending the last party of their high school career. On paper, "Booksmart" seems like a by-the-numbers teen party movie but Wilde and the screenwriters give such agency to the lead characters and allow the supporting players individual moments to feel like real people. "Booksmart" is as fun as movies got in the first half of the year.

 

"Fast Color"

Julia Hart is a deeply empathetic filmmaker. Her directorial debut "Miss Stevens" was a demonstration of how a filmmaker can bring fictional characters to life and make an audience care for them as if they were real. Her latest, "Fast Color," is no different. Gugu Mbatha-Raw stars as Ruth, who is on the run when people discover she has superhuman powers. She is forced to hide out at her mother's house (played by a terrific Lorainne Toussaint), which isn't an easy decision for Ruth. "Fast Color" is about an inescapable past and how it affects one's present, and Hart's screenplay, co-written with Jordan Horowitz, finds a beautiful balance in telling a story without spoon-feeding the audience. "Fast Color" is quietly hypnotic and lingers long after it's over.

 

"Rocketman"

Taron Egerton is stunning as Elton John in the jukebox musical about the singer's life. He finds the balance of ego and pain, which gives "Rocketman" an emotion and melancholic undercurrent in between all of the toe-tapping musical numbers. We've seen the trajectory and layout of the story many times before but "Rocketman" has great style and energy for Elton John and musical fans alike.

 

"Us"

Jordan Peele had the freedom to make any film he pleased after his debut "Get Out." It simultaneously put a great deal of pressure on him and gave him creative freedom. His follow-up would never match the razor-sharp screenplay of "Get Out," but "Us," his newest socially conscious horror film, sparked some of the best movie discussions so far this year.  Lupita Nyong'o gives a captivating dual performance, in what may be her best work to date. "Us" isn't as strong of a narrative as "Get Out" but the production value has increased considerably, creating some of the best shots, set pieces, and craftsmanship of the year. Not all of "Us" works, leaving some questions and plot holes, but it's always great to look at and unpack upon multiple viewings.

 

This list only considered films released theatrically between January and June. There are a lot of great films on the horizon and pretty soon we will be talking end of year Top 10 lists and Oscars. If there is a movie on this list you haven't seen or heard of, give it a shot. The best movies are the ones you least suspect.