The year 2018 brought more action films to main stream audiences than any other genre. The top money earners at the box office really showed the strength of the action audience with high ranks for USA audiences that includes #1 Black Panther ($700 million plus), #2 Avengers: Infinity War ($678 million plus), # 3 Incredibles 2 ($608 million plus- Animated Action Adventure) #4 Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom ($416 million plus), #5 Deadpool 2 ($318 million plus) #7 Mission: Impossible – Fallout ($220 million plus), #8 Ant-Man and the Wasp ($216 million plus), #9 Solo: A Star Wars story ($213.7 million plus) and #10 Venom ($213.2 million plus). The only movie to break into the top ten that was not an action flick is the kids animated movie at #6 Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch ($265 million plus).
The highest grossing film taking top honors in the world however was the Marvel action film Avengers: Infinity War taking in over 2 billion dollars at $2,048,710,150 in 2018. If you were to divide that out by an average ticket price of approximately $9 per person then you would get a total viewer attendance at nearly 228 million people. For those who may be a bit skippable about their favorite USA film, Black Panther, it took in $1,346,913,161 worldwide and you can do the math to find out how many people saw the film in 2018.
So much for the numbers as our critics chose their top ten favorite films for 2018 and you can tell by their choices that they didn’t base them on how much money they made. Reasons for choosing their top 3 accompany those ranks on their list.
John Delia Sr. TOP 10 Films for 2018
1. A STAR IS BORN- for the music, acting, directing and heartbreaking story. The film works its magic from the opening scene to the strong finish.
2. GREEN BOOK- for the acting, direction, cinematography and eye-opening storyline. The film delves into the mistreatment of mankind in a way everyone can understand and makes a case for an avenue of change.
3. MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT- certainly for me the best action film of the year with a heart pounding story and excellent acting under the helm of Christopher McQuarrie.
4. BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY
5. BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE
6. THE MULE
7. THE FAVOURITE
8. BLACK PANTHER
9. IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK
10. INCREDIBLES 2
Honorable mention in alphabetical order
BACK ROADS
BEN IS BACK
BOY ERASED
EIGHTH GRADE
GALVESTON
INSTANT FAMILY
LEAVE NO TRACE
MOBILE HOMES
THE SISTERS BROTHERS
VICE
YOU WERE REALLY NEVER HERE
John Delia, Jr. Top Ten Movies for 2018
1. AQUAMAN is my number one favorite film of 2018. It had it all; action, adventure, love, romance, a character origin story, and a dangerous journey that saves the world. With excellent acting, spectacular special effects, and a fantastic storyline this film belongs at the top of my list.
2. BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY Bohemian Rhapsody is my next favorite film of 2018. This film stayed true to its historical and musical storyline of this amazing rock band called ‘Queen’ and its lead singer ‘Freddie Mercury’. It included spectacular acting, a great musical score, in-depth detailed historical storyline and an adventurous ride through the eyes of these most famous artist.
3. CHRISTOPHER ROBIN Christopher Robin is my third favorite film 0f 2018. This story brought back childhood memories of these loveable characters; Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, Eeyore, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, and Roo. It had a great storyline that included some of Christopher Robin’s adventures after the hundred acre woods. This warm-hearted film includes many funny scenes, along with some important messages that we could all relate to.
4. SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY
5. LIFE ITSELF
6. READY PLAYER ONE
7. VENOM
8. BLAKKKLANSMAN
9. THE HATE U GAVE
10. ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
Here are my remaining worth watching and honorable mentions in order of favorites
INCREDIBLES 2
FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDERWALD
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
BLACK PANTHER
WIDOWS
12 STRONG
GAME NIGHT
IAN’S “Teen View” TOP TEN MOVIES 2018
1. THE OLD MAN AND THE GUN after seeing this movie I knew it was going to be my favorite movie of the year. It’s possibly my all-time best movie based on a true story. It had a lot of twists that kept me in a state of suspense. It’s not that “the old man” was having fun as a criminal, but about his ups and downs that make it a high quality film.
2. READY PLAYER ONE Honestly I can’t get this movie out of my head. It pieces together all the things that most all teenagers look for in a movie; video games, conflicts between good and evil and the cross between real worlds versus virtual lives. To me it’s the way they make the connection between the fights “opposites of reality” vs “virtual reality”.
3. SUPER TROOPERS 2 The legacy of the restless troopers continues with not only the comedy that they had in the first one, but with all new ideas to make us all laugh. This will be one of those movies where their jokes will never die. This will surely be a classic for future teens as well with a memorable story plot that we can’t resist laughing at.
4. BLOCKERS
5. EIGHTH GRADE
6. SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY
7. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT
8. DEADPOOL 2
9. ANT-MAN AND THE WASP
10. AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
You can follow these and other critics throughout the year on ACED Magazine.
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
