Author Archives: MovieMinis Staff

The MovieMini Awards for the Films of 2019




Best Specialty Performance

Winner: Tom Hanks as Woody — Toy Story 4


Runner-up: Tony Hale as Forky — Toy Story 4
4. Billy Eichner as Timon — The Lion King

Next Group:
Rosa Salazar as Alita — Alita: Battle Angel
Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu — Pokémon Detective Pikachu
Keegan-Michael Key as Ducky — Toy Story 4

Best Feature Debut

Winner: Olivia Wilde — Booksmart

François Duhamel/Annapurna Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Alma Har’el — Honey Boy
3. Joe Talbot — The Last Black Man in San Francisco
4. Jérémy Clapin — I Lost My Body
5. Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz — The Peanut Butter Falcon

Next Group:
Vince Gilligan — El Camino
Nia DaCosta — Little Woods
Melina Matsoukas — Queen & Slim
Jennifer Kaytin Robinson — Someone Great
Josh Cooley — Toy Story 4

Best Original Song

Winner: “Control” — Her Smell

Don Stahl/Gunpowder & Sky/Courtesy

4. “Pulled Down” — Her Smell

Next Group:
“Show Yourself” — Frozen II
“A Glass of Soju” — Parasite
“The Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy” — Toy Story 4
“IHOP” — The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience
“Glasgow (No Place Like Home)” — Wild Rose

Special Mention: Jessica Only Child Illinois Chicago — Parasite

Best Original Score

Winner: Thomas Newman — 1917

François Duhamel/Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Daniel Lopatin — Uncut Gems
3. Emile Mosseri — The Last Black Man in San Francisco
4. Alexandre Desplat — Little Women
5. Matt Morton — Apollo 11

Next Group:
Max Richter, Lorne Balte — Ad Astra
James Newton Howard — A Hidden Life
Dan Levy — I Lost My Body
Jail Jung — Parasite
Michael Abels — Us

Best Sound


Twentieth Century Fox/Courtesy

3. Eric Milano, Brian Eimer — Apollo 11

Next Group:
Ryan M. Price, Patrick Southern — Her Smell
Warren Shaw, Skip Lievsay, Tom Fleischman — Uncut Gems

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

Winner: Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis, Rebecca Cole — 1917

François Duhamel/Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Fríða Aradóttir, Judy Chin — Little Women
4. Mónika Tóth, Katalin Jakots, Iván Pohárnok — Midsommar

Next Group:
Nicki Ledermann, Sean Flanigan, Michael Marino — The Irishman
Traci Loader, Linda Flynn, Adrien Morot — The Lighthouse
Scott Wheeler, Camille Friend — Us

Best Costume Design

Winner: Julian Day — Rocketman

Paramount Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Jacqueline Durran — Little Women
3. Arianne Phillips — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
4. Ruth E. Carter — Dolemite Is My Name
5. Albert Wolsky — Ad Astra

Next Group:
Mitchell Travers — Hustlers
Sandy Powell, Christopher Peterson — The Irishman
Mayes C. Rubeo — Jojo Rabbit
Dorothée Guiraud — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Miyako Bellizzi — Uncut Gems

Best Production Design



3. Dennis Gassner, Lee Sandales — 1917
4. Craig Lathrop, Ian Greig — The Lighthouse
5. Jess Gonchor, Claire Kaufman — Little Women

Next Group:
Kevin Thompson, Karen O’Hara — Ad Astra
Bob Shaw, Regina Graves — The Irishman
Henrik Svensson — Midsommar
Thomas Grézaud, Hélène Delmaire — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Sam Lisenco, Kendall Anderson — Uncut Gems

Best Stunts

Winner: Hayley Saywell, Ben Cooke, Rhye Copeman — 1917

Universal Pictures/Courtesy


Next Group:
Mindy Kelly — The Art of Self-Defense
Ian Mclaughlin, Tabitha Dumo — Hustlers
Gáspár Szabó, Ildikó Szücs, Anna Vnuk — Midsommar

Best Visual Effects

Winner: Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler, Dominic Tuohy — 1917

Universal Pictures/Courtesy


Next Group:
Jonathan Fawkner, Carlos Monzon, Dale Newton — Pokémon Detective Pikachu

Best Cinematography

Winner: Roger Deakins — 1917

Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Jarin Blaschke — The Lighthouse
3. Claire Mathon — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
5. Hoyte van Hoytema — Ad Astra

Next Group:
Phedon Papamichael — Ford v Ferrari
Rodrigo Prieto — The Irishman
Yorick Le Saux — Little Women
Robert Richardson — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
Hong Kyung-pyo — Parasite

Best Film Editing

Winner: Nick Huoy — Little Women

Wilson Webb/Columbia Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Yang Jin-mo — Parasite
3. Todd Douglas Miller — Apollo 11
4. Thelma Schoonmaker — The Irishman
5. Fred Raskin — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood

Next Group:
Lee Smith — 1917
Andrew Buckland, Michael McCusker — Ford v Ferrari
David Marks — The Last Black Man in San Francisco
Julien Lacheray — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Ronald Bronstein, Benny Safdie — Uncut Gems

Best Documentary Feature

Winner: Apollo 11

Neon/CNN Films/Courtesy

Runner-up: Diego Maradona
3. American Factory
4. Honeyland
5. Knock Down the House

Next Group:
The Biggest Little Farm
For Sama
The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley
The Legend of Cocaine Island

Best Animated Feature

Winner: I Lost My Body


3. Toy Story 4

Next Group:
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part
Missing Link

Best International Feature

Winner: Parasite


Runner-up: Portrait of a Lady on Fire
3. Pain and Glory
4. I Lost My Body
5. Slut in a Good Way

Next Group:
Ash Is the Purest White
Everybody Knows

Best Scene/Sequence

Winner: The Peach Scam — Parasite


Runner-up: The Final Bet — Uncut Gems
3. Sixteen Hundred Men — 1917
4. The Trailer — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
5. The Benoit Blanc Breakdown — Knives Out
6. It’s What It Is — The Irishman
7. The Night Window — 1917
8. Leaving China and Nai Nai — The Farewell
9. The Laurie-Jo Devastation — Little Women

Next Group:
Leave It Open a Little Bit — The Irishman
Beth — Little Women
Shirtless Cliff Booth — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
Lovers — Pain and Glory
I’ll Remember — Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Best Adapted Screenplay

Winner: Greta Gerwig — Little Women

Wilson Webb/Columbia Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Steve Zaillian — The Irishman
4. Taika Waititi — Jojo Rabbit
5. Matthew Michael Carnahan, Mario Correa — Dark Waters

Next Group:
Mike Flanagan — Doctor Sleep
Terrence Malick — A Hidden Life
Lorene Scafaria — Hustlers
Jérémy Clapin, Guillaume Laurant — I Lost My Body

Best Original Screenplay



Runner-up: Lulu Wang — The Farewell
3. Céline Sciamma — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
5. Quentin Tarantino — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood

Next Group:
Shia LaBeouf — Honey Boy
Rian Johnson — Knives Out
Noah Baumbach — Marriage Story
Pedro Almodóvar — Pain and Glory

Best Ensemble

Winner: Parasite


Runner-up: The Irishman
3. Little Women
4. Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
5. Knives Out

Next Group:
The Farewell
Uncut Gems

Best Supporting Actor

Winner: Al Pacino — The Irishman


Runner-up: Joe Pesci — The Irishman
3. Song Kang-ho — Parasite
4. Shia LaBeouf — Honey Boy
5. Jonathan Majors — The Last Black Man in San Francisco

Next Group:
Dean Charles-Chapman — 1917
Tom Hanks — A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Chris Cooper — Little Women
Alan Alda — Marriage Story
Kevin Garnett — Uncut Gems

Best Supporting Actress

Winner: Zhao Shuzhen — The Farewell

Casi Moss/A24/Courtesy

Runner-up: Florence Pugh — Little Women
3. Cho Yeo-jeong — Parasite
4. Scarlett Johansson — Jojo Rabbit
5. Park So-dam — Parasite

Next Group:
Jennifer Lopez — Hustlers
Thomasin McKenzie — Jojo Rabbit
Jamie Lee Curtis — Knives Out
Lee Jeong-eun — Parasite
Julia Fox — Uncut Gems

Best Lead Actor

Winner: Adam Driver — Marriage Story


3. Adam Sandler — Uncut Gems
4. Leonardo DiCaprio — Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
5. George MacKay — 1917

Next Group:
Brad Pitt — Ad Astra
Robert De Niro — The Irishman
Robert Pattinson — The Lighthouse
Antonio Banderas — Pain and Glory
Choi Woo-sik — Parasite

Best Lead Actress

Winner: Lupita Nyong’o — Us

Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Saoirse Ronan — Little Women
3. Elisabeth Moss — Her Smell
4. Awkwafina — The Farewell
5. Adèle Haenel — Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Next Group:
Beanie Feldstein — Booksmart
Ana de Armas — Knives Out
Florence Pugh — Midsommar
Noémie Merlant — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Samara Weaving — Ready or Not

Best Director

Winner: Bong Joon-ho — Parasite


Runner-up: Greta Gerwig — Little Women
3. Céline Sciamma — Portrait of a Lady on Fire
4. Sam Mendes — 1917
5. Martin Scorsese — The Irishman

Next Group:
Todd Douglas Miller — Apollo 11
Marielle Heller — A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Lulu Wang — The Farewell
Lorene Scafaria — Hustlers
Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie — Uncut Gems

Best Film

Winner: Little Women

Wilson Webb/Columbia Pictures/Courtesy

Runner-up: Parasite
3. The Irishman
4. Uncut Gems
5. Portrait of a Lady on Fire
6. 1917
7. Once upon a Time… in Hollywood
8. The Farewell
9. Apollo 11
10. Marriage Story

Next Group:
Ad Astra
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Dark Waters
Ford v Ferrari
Honey Boy
Jojo Rabbit
The Last Black Man in San Francisco
The Lighthouse
Pain and Glory



The MovieMini Awards for the Films of 2018





Here are the MovieMini Awards for the Films of 2018:


Best Specialty Performance

Winner: Ben Whishaw as Paddington — Paddington 2

Warner Bros./Courtesy

— Miyako Singer

3. Holly Hunter as Elastigirl — Incredibles 2
5. Sonoya Mizuno as Humanoid — Annihilation

Next Group:
Josh Brolin as Thanos — Avengers: Infinity War
Jim Cummings as Winnie the Pooh — Christopher Robin
Stephen Lang as Shrike — Mortal Engines
Honorable Mention: Olivia as Good Doggo — Game Night/Widows

Best Breakthrough Performance

Winner: Yalitza Aparicio — Roma


— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Thomasin McKenzie — Leave No Trace
3. Kiki Layne — If Beale Street Could Talk
4. Elsie Fisher — Eighth Grade
5. Lady Gaga — A Star Is Born

Next Group:
Cynthia Erivo — Bad Times at the El Royale
John David Washington — BlacKkKlansman
Geraldine Viswanathan — Blockers
Brady Jandreau — The Rider
Lana Condor — To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Best Feature Debut

Winner: Bradley Cooper — A Star Is Born

Clay Enos/Warner Bros./Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Paul Dano — Wildlife
3. Ari Aster — Hereditary
4. Bo Burnham — Eighth Grade
5. Boots Riley — Sorry to Bother You

Next Group:
Carlos López Estrada — Blindspotting
Kay Cannon — Blockers
Gustav Möller — The Guilty
Josie Rourke — Mary Queen of Scots
Aneesh Chaganty — Searching

Best Original Song

Winner: “Shallow” — A Star Is Born

Warner Bros./Courtesy



— Rosemarie Alejandrino

3. “Opps” — Black Panther
4. “Maybe It’s Time” — A Star Is Born
5. “Suspirium” — Suspiria

Next Group:
“All the Stars” — Black Panther
“Pray For Me” — Black Panther
“A Cover Is Not the Book” — Mary Poppins Returns
“Always Remember Us This Way” — A Star Is Born
“Wrapped Up” — Vox Lux

Best Original Score

Winner: Nicholas Britell — If Beale Street Could Talk

Annapurna Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Justin Hurwitz — First Man
3. Ludwig Göransson — Black Panther
4. Lorne Balfe — Mission: Impossible – Fallout
5. Thom Yorke — Suspiria

Next Group:
Mowg — Burning
Alexandre Desplat — Isle Of Dogs
Jóhann Jóhannsson — Mandy
Daniel Hart — The Old Man & the Gun
Alexandre Desplat — The Sisters Brothers

Best Sound Mixing


Universal Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

4. Michael Barosky, Brandon Proctor — A Quiet Place

Next Group:
Michael Semanick, Nathan Nance, Vince Caro — Incredibles 2
Drew Kunin, Andrew Stirk — You Were Never Really Here

Best Sound Editing


Daniel McFadden/Universal Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: James Mather — Mission: Impossible – Fallout
3. Skip Lievsay, Sergio Díaz — Roma

Next Group:
Glenn Freemantle, Niv Adiri —Annihilation
Shannon Mills, Daniel Laurie — Avengers: Infinity War
Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker — Black Panther
Coya Elliott, Ren Klyce — Incredibles 2
Gary Rydstrom, Richard Hymns — Ready Player One

Best Makeup & Hairstyling


Matt Kennedy/Marvel Studios/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Nadia Stacey — The Favourite
3. Mark Coulier, Fernanda Perez, Manolo Garcia — Suspiria
5. Greg Cannom, Kate Biscoe, Patricia DeHaney — Vice

Next Group:
LaWanda M. Pierre, Shaun Perkins — BlacKkKlansman
Göran Lundström, Pamela Goldammer — Border
Heike Merker — Crazy Rich Asians
Bill Corso, Barbara Lorenz — Destroyer
Oriane De Neve — Mandy

Best Costume Design

Winner: Ruth E. Carter — Black Panther

Matt Kennedy/Marvel Studios/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Sandy Powell — The Favourite
3. Caroline Eselin — If Beale Street Could Talk
4. Mary E. Vogt — Crazy Rich Asians
5. Sandy Powell — Mary Poppins Returns

Next Group:
Kym Barrett — Aquaman
Alexandra Byrne — Mary Queen of Scots
Lindy Hemming — Paddington 2
Renee Ehrlich Kalfus — A Simple Favor
Amanda Ford — Wildlife

Best Production Design

Winner: Hannah Beachler, Jay Hart — Black Panther

Hannah Beachler/Marvel Studios/Courtesy


— Levi Hill

Runner-up: Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton — The Favourite
3. Eugenio Caballero, Bárbara Enrı́quez — Roma
4. Nathan Crowley, Kathy Lucas — First Man
5. Mark Digby, Michelle Day — Annihilation

Next Group:
Martin Whist, Hamish Purdy — Bad Times at the El Royale
Nelson Coates, Andrew Baseman — Crazy Rich Asians
Adam Stockhausen, Paul Harrod — Isle of Dogs
Gary Williamson, Cathy Cosgrove — Paddington 2
Keiko Mitsumatsu, Akiko Matsuba — Shoplifters

Best Visual Effects


Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Kyle Kizu

5. Jason Smith — Bumblebee

Next Group:
Jody Johnson — Mission: Impossible – Fallout

Best Cinematography

Winner: Alfonso Cuarón — Roma




— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Rob Hardy — Mission: Impossible – Fallout
3. Lukasz Zal — Cold War
4. Linus Sandgren — First Man
5. Hong Kyung-pyo — Burning

Next Group:
Robbie Ryan — The Favourite
James Laxton — If Beale Street Could Talk
Bing Liu — Minding the Gap
Joshua James Richard — The Rider
Benoît Debie — The Sisters Brothers

Best Film Editing

Winner: Eddie Hamilton — Mission: Impossible – Fallout

Paramount Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

3. Alfonso Cuarón, Adam Gough — Roma
4. Jonathan Amos, Mark Everson — Paddington 2
5. Joe Walker — Widows

Next Group:
Nick Fenton, Chris Gill, Julian Hart — American Animals
Barry Alexander Brown — BlacKkKlansman
Yorgos Mavropsaridis — The Favourite
Hirokazu Kore-eda — Shoplifters
Jay Cassidy — A Star Is Born

Best Documentary

Winner: Minding the Gap



Hooman Yazdanian

Runner-up: Free Solo
3. Hale County This Morning, This Evening
4. The Dawn Wall
5. Science Fair

Next Group:
Nossa Chape
They Shall Not Grow Old
Three Identical Strangers
White Tide: The Legend of Culebra

Best Animated Film

Winner: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Sony Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Incredibles 2
3. Ralph Breaks the Internet
4. Mirai
5. Early Man

Best Foreign Film

Winner: Shoplifters

Magnolia Pictures/Courtesy


— Miyako Singer

Runner-up: Roma
3. Burning
4. Cold War
5. Happy As Lazzaro

Next Group:
The Guilty
I Am Not A Witch

Best Adapted Screenplay


Sony Pictures/Courtesy


— Levi Hill

Runner-up: Paul King, Simon Farnaby — Paddington 2
3. Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan — Wildlife

Next Group:
Ryan Coogler, Joe Robert Cole — Black Panther
Peter Chiarelli, Adele Lim — Crazy Rich Asians
Barry Jenkins — If Beale Street Could Talk
Debra Granik, Anne Rosellini — Leave No Trace
Jacques Audiard, Thomas Bidegain — The Sisters Brothers

Best Original Screenplay

Winner: Deborah Davis, Tony McNamara — The Favourite

Yorgos Lanthimos/Twentieth Century Fox/Courtesy


— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Hirokazu Kore-eda — Shoplifters
3. Bo Burnham — Eighth Grade
4. Alfonso Cuarón — Roma
5. Tamara Jenkins — Private Life

Next Group:
Paweł Pawlikowski, Janusz Glowacki — Cold War
Paul Schrader — First Reformed
Mark Perez — Game Night
Alice Rohrwacher — Happy As Lazzaro
Ari Aster — Hereditary

Best Supporting Actor

Winner: Steven Yeun — Burning

Well Go USA Entertainment/Courtesy


— Levi Hill

Runner-up: Hugh Grant — Paddington 2
3. Brian Tyree Henry — If Beale Street Could Talk
4. Alex Wolff — Hereditary
5. Daniel Kaluuya — Widows

Next Group:
Timothée Chalamet — Beautiful Boy
Richard E. Grant — Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Nicholas Hoult — The Favourite
Jesse Plemons — Game Night
Jake Gyllenhaal — Wildlife

Best Supporting Actress

Winner: Rachel Weisz — The Favourite

Yorgos Lanthimos/Twentieth Century Fox/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Regina King — If Beale Street Could Talk
3. Emma Stone — The Favourite
4. Elizabeth Debicki — Widows
5. Marina de Tavira — Roma

Next Group:
Michelle Yeoh — Crazy Rich Asians
Rachel McAdams — Game Night
Margot Robbie — Mary Queen of Scots
Kayli Carter — Private Life
Kirin Kiki — Shoplifters

Best Lead Actor

Winner: Bradley Cooper — A Star Is Born

Peter Lindbergh/Warner Bros./Courtesy


Hooman Yazdanian

Runner-up: Tom Cruise — Mission: Impossible – Fallout
3. Ethan Hawke — First Reformed
4. Ryan Gosling — First Man
5. Lily Franky — Shoplifters

Next Group:
Yoo Ah-in — Burning
Tomasz Kot — Cold War
Stephan James — If Beale Street Could Talk
John Cho — Searching
Christian Bale — Vice

Best Lead Actress

Winner: Sakura Ando — Shoplifters

Magnolia Pictures/Courtesy

— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: Olivia Colman — The Favourite
3. Toni Collette — Hereditary
4. Carey Mulligan — Wildlife
5. Yalitza Aparicio — Roma

Next Group:
Joanna Kulig — Cold War
Thomasin McKenzie — Leave No Trace
Kathryn Hahn — Private Life
Regina Hall — Support the Girls
Glenn Close — The Wife

Best Ensemble

Winner: The cast of The Favourite

Atsushi Nishijima/Twentieth Century Fox/Courtesy


— Kyle Kizu

Runner-up: The cast of Shoplifters
3. The cast of Black Panther
4. The cast of Widows
5. The cast of Game Night

Next Group:
The cast of Bad Times at the El Royale
The cast of Crazy Rich Asians
The cast of If Beale Street Could Talk
The cast of Private Life
The cast of The Sisters Brothers

Best Director

Winner: Alfonso Cuarón — Roma

Carlos Somonte/Netflix/Courtesy



— Levi Hill

Runner-up: Paul King — Paddington 2
3. Lynne Ramsay — You Were Never Really Here
4. Lee Chang-dong — Burning
5. Hirokazu Kore-eda — Shoplifters

Next Group:
Ryan Coogler — Black Panther
Yorgos Lanthimos — The Favourite
Bing Liu — Minding the Gap
Christopher McQuarrie — Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Tamara Jenkins — Private Life

Best Picture

Winner: Paddington 2

Warner Bros./Courtesy



— Hooman Yazdanian

Runner-up: The Favourite

3. Shoplifters
4. Mission: Impossible – Fallout
5. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
6. Black Panther
7. Minding the Gap
8. Roma
9. Wildlife
10. Private Life

Next Group:
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Cold War
Game Night
If Beale Street Could Talk
A Star Is Born
You Were Never Really Here

Feature graphic by Kyle Kizu

Our Most Anticipated Movies of 2019


20. The Truth

Written by: Hirokazu Kore-eda, Léa Le Dimna
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche, Ethan Hawke
Release date: TBD
Levi Hill

19. Ford v. Ferrari

Release date: June 28, 2019
Kyle Kizu

18. Honey Boy

Directed by: Alma Har’el (Bombay Beach, LoveTrue)
Written by: Shia LaBeouf
Release date: TBD (Sundance premiere)

17. The Beach Bum

Directed by: Harmony Korine (Spring Breakers)
Written by: Harmony Korine
Release date: March 22, 2019

16. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

TriStar Pictures/Courtesy

Written by: Micah Fitzerman-Blue, Noah Harpster
Starring: Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys, Chris Cooper
Release date: October 18, 2019
— KK

15. Proxima

Directed by: Alice Winocour (Augustine)
Written by: Alice Winocour
Starring: Eva Green, Matt Dillon, Lars Eidinger
Release date: TBD

14. Toy Story 4


Directed by: Josh Cooley
Written by: Stephany Folsom, Will McCormack
Release date: June 21, 2019
— LH

13. Detective Pikachu

Warner Bros./Courtesy

Directed by: Rob Letterman (Goosebumps)
Written by: Nicole Perlman, Rob Letterman
Release date: May 10, 2019

12. Velvet Buzzsaw

Netflix/Sundance Institute/Claudette Barius/Courtesy

Written by: Dan Gilroy
Release date: February 1, 2019 (Sundance premiere)

11. Little Women

Columbia Pictures/Courtesy

Directed by: Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird)
Written by: Greta Gerwig
Release date: December 25, 2019

10. Midsommar

Directed by: Ari Aster (Hereditary)
Written by: Ari Aster
Release date: August 9, 2019

9. The Lion King


Written by: Jeff Nathanson, Brenda Chapman
Release date: July 19, 2019

8. Uncut Gems

Directed by: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie (Good Time)
Written by: Benny Safdie, Josh Safdie, Ronald Bronstein
Release date: TBD

7. Lucy in the Sky

Fox Searchlight/Courtesy

Directed by: Noah Hawley (Legion, Fargo)
Release date: TBD

6. Us

Universal Pictures/Courtesy

Directed by: Jordan Peele (Get Out)
Written by: Jordan Peele
Release date: March 15, 2019

5. Knives Out

Written by: Rian Johnson
Release date: November 27, 2019

4. Ad Astra

20th Century Fox/Courtesy

Written by: James Gray, Ethan Gross
Release date: May 24, 2019 (rumored Cannes premiere)

3. Star Wars: Episode IX

Written by: J.J. Abrams, Chris Terrio
Release date: December 20, 2019

2. Godzilla: King of the Monsters

Warner Bros./Courtesy

Directed by: Michael Dougherty (Krampus)
Written by: Michael Dougherty, Zach Shields, Max Borenstein
Release date: May 31, 2019
— LH

1. Avengers: Endgame

Disney/ Courtesy

Written by: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Release date: April 26, 2019

Kyle’s Next 15:

15. Superpower Dogs

Directed by: Daniel Ferguson (Jerusalem)
Release date: March 15, 2019

14. Ammonite

Directed by: Francis Lee (God’s Own Country)
Written by: Francis Lee
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Kate Winslet
Release date: TBD

13. The Nightingale

Directed by: Jennifer Kent (The Babadook)
Written by: Jennifer Kent
Starring: Sam Claflin, Aisling Franciosi, Baykali Ganambarr
Release date: TBD (2018 Venice premiere, Sundance showing)

12. The Laundromat

Written by: Scott Z. Burns
Release date: TBD

11. Waves

Written by: Trey Edward Shults
Release date: TBD

10. Chaos Walking

Release date: March 1, 2019

9. Joker

Written by: Todd Phillips, Scott Silver
Release date: October 4, 2019

8. Newsflash

Written by: Ben Jacoby
Starring: Seth Rogen, Logan Lerman
Release date: TBD

7. Captain Marvel

Release date: March 8, 2019

6. Spider-Man: Far From Home

Written by: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
Release date: July 5, 2019

5. Fonzo

Directed by: Josh Trank (Chronicle)
Written by: Josh Trank
Release date: TBD

4. The Woman in the Window

Written by: Tracy Letts
Release date: October 4, 2019

3. Triple Frontier

Written by: J.C. Chandor, Mark Boal
Release date: March 15, 2019

2. The Last Thing He Wanted

Directed by: Dee Rees (Mudbound, Pariah)
Written by: Dee Rees, Marco Villalobos
Release date: TBD

1. Apollo 11

Directed by: Todd Douglas Miller (Dinosaur 13)
Release date: TBD (Sundance premiere)

Levi’s Next 15:

15. The Dead Don’t Die

Written by: Jim Jarmusch
Release date: TBD

14. Radegund

Written by: Terrence Malick
Release date: TBD

13. Native Son

Directed by: Rashid Johnson
Written by: Suzan-Lori Parks
Release date: TBD (Sundance premiere)

12. IT: Chapter Two

Directed by: Andy Muschietti (It, Mama)
Written by: Gary Dauberman
Release date: September 6, 2019

11. The King

Written by: David Michôd, Joel Edgerton
Release date: TBD

10. The Irishman

Written by: Steven Zaillian
Release date: TBD

9. The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part

Directed by: Mike Mitchell (Trolls), Trisha Gum
Release date: February 8, 2019

8. Parasite

Written by: Bong Joon-ho
Release date: TBD

7.  How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

Written by: Dean DeBlois
Release date: February 22, 2019

6. The Last Black Man in San Francisco

Directed by: Joe Talbot
Written by: Joe Talbot, Rob Richert, Jimmie Fails
Release date: TBD (Sundance premiere)

5. Jojo Rabbit

Written by: Taika Waititi
Release date: TBD

4. The Lighthouse

Directed by: Robert Eggers (The Witch)
Written by: Robert Eggers, Max Eggers
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Robert Pattinson
Release date: TBD

3. High Life

Release date: April 12, 2019 (TIFF premiere)

2. Dumbo

Written by: Ehren Kruger
Release date: March 29, 2019

1. Everything Everywhere All At Once

Written by: Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert
Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina
Release date: TBD

Honorable mentions:


Directed by: Pablo Larraín (Jackie, Neruda, No)
Written by: Guillermo Calderón, Alejandro Moreno
Release date: TBD

Gemini Man

Release date: October 4, 2019

Last Christmas

Directed by: Paul Feig (A Simple Favor, Bridesmaids)
Written by: Emma Thompson, Bryony Kimmings
Release date: November 15, 2019

Long Day’s Journey Into Night

Directed by: Bi Gan (Kaili Blues)
Written by: Bi Gan
Starring: Sylvia Chang, Tang Wei

Men in Black: International

Written by: Art Marcum, Matt Holloway
Release date: June 14, 2019

Featured image via Warner Bros.

March Madness of Movies — The Champions

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

After a month of intense, nail-biting competition, we finally have the winners in our four brackets for the March Madness of Movies.

Best Big Budget Directing of the 21st Century

Peter Jackson won the Best Director Oscar for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. That film has cemented itself in cinematic history as one of the best epics, one of the best fantasy films.

But, more recently, we got another cinematic landmark, this time in the action genre (while also in the fantasy realm). Mad Max: Fury Road is essentially a two hour action scene. That it works, that it feels like a full movie with thematic heft — let alone the fact that the action is masterful — is a testament to how truly astonishing George Miller’s directing job was.

Winner: George Miller — Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Superhero Villains of the 21st Century

Black Panther‘s Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) will be long remembered. What he means as a character, as a villain, within a film that, itself, means so much, transcends cinema.

But there’s just something different, however, about The Dark Knight‘s The Joker (Heath Ledger). The master of mad dogs, The Joker is a villain of chaos, a terrorist who causes you to cower and to flee before you really have reason to. His visage is iconocraphic, a remnant of a harrowing time of fear in our a real world.

Winner: The Joker — The Dark Knight

Best A24 Films

This was the closest matchup in the entire competition. We needed a tiebreaking vote between Moonlight and Lady Bird, and the vote took up an entire day with it coming down to the final one.

At the end of the day, Moonlight came out on top. As the Best Picture winner that defied everyone, it sits as our champion in this bracket triumphantly.

Winner: Moonlight

Best Cinematography Since 2010

Sorry Roger Deakins. You got your Oscar for Blade Runner 2049, but we couldn’t give you the win here.

Hoyte van Hoytema won quite easily for Her, a sci-fi love story that is far more tender, vulnerable and powerful precisely because of how van Hoytema’s photography evokes a lonely, beautiful world.

Winner: Hoyte van Hoytema — Her

Featured image via Warner Bros.

March Madness of Movies — The Final Matchups

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

Best Big Budget Directing of the 21st Century

The last results offered us the winners of each subcategory — Ryan Coogler took best superhero directing for Black Panther, Peter Jackson took best franchise directing for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, George Miller took best original/prestige/non-franchise studio directing for Mad Max: Fury Road and Pete Docter and Bob Peterson took best animated directing for Up.

Those four finalists offered us fascinating matchups as the subcategories were pitted against each other for the first time. Coogler took on Jackson and Miller took on Docter and Peterson. While Coogler was able to take down the goliath that was Christopher Nolan for The Dark Knight, he couldn’t best the Oscar winner Peter Jackson, whose achievement with The Lord of the Rings final film continues to hold strong.

And in the bizarre matchup of Miller vs. Docter/Peterson, animation just couldn’t quite compete, as Up was pummeled by Fury Road.

Now for the final matchup — two absolute epics, handled masterfully by their directors. While only one won the Oscar, there are plenty of arguments out there that the other should’ve as well.

Best Superhero Villains of the 21st Century

This final matchup is not much of a surprise. With the way seeding and layout ended up, the paths were clearly laid out for the two contenders. That’s no disrespect to any of the other contenders. Both Magnetos of the two X-Men trilogies were always going to have strong showings. Bane, from The Dark Knight Rises, surprised many with both seeding and performance.

But it was inevitably going to come down to Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) from Black Panther and The Joker (Heath Ledger) from The Dark Knight — Marvel’s best villain and DC’s best villain. The strengths of the two are a bit different. While Jordan’s performance isn’t necessarily outstanding — remember, this bracket is judged on performance, writing and directing of the character — the writing and directing, in the backstory and themes that Killmonger’s journey evokes, are nearly unparalleled. With The Joker, Ledger’s performance is, quite obviously, the standout. The dialogue is brilliant, and the choice of a lack of backstory and the ways in which Christopher Nolan visual frames The Joker are superb. But Ledger’s performance is one of the best, of any character of all time.

Best A24 Films

Similarly to the bracket above, the paths were clear for our two finalists. They simply had to traverse those paths. What the matchups prior to this final were meant to represent was the ridiculously briliant resume of A24 and how, in almost any matchup in any round, it was incredibly hard to decide between films. Had the other two finalists, 20th Century Women and Ex Machina, been pitted against one another, it would’ve been another extremely tight matchup.

But here we are, with the expected Moonlight vs. Lady Bird, the two landmark A24 films that have found a place in cinema’s history so quickly. And as was the case with this bracket, these two will be nearly impossible to choose between.

Best Cinematography Since 2010

While big budget directing was rather up in the air, this bracket might’ve been even more so. We do have our two top seeds, but they both had to battle hard to get to this point and could’ve easily been knocked out for other contenders that would’ve made for a fascinating finale.

Look at the two of the final four that didn’t make it — Hoyte van Hoytema for Dunkirk, who lost a tie-breaking vote, and Mihai Malaimare Jr. for The Master, who lost by one vote. These are two cinematographers who, with this film, offered stunning iconography, specifically in 70mm film.

But we have Hoyte van Hoytema for Her and Roger Deakins for Blade Runner 2049, and it’s an equally as stunning matchup, but with digital lensing. Arguably, this matchup feels a bit more right than any other would have. In the finale, we have Roger Deakins, one of the best cinematographers of all time, and Hoyte van Hoytema, a DP who is quickly rising to that status.

Stay tuned for the championship results, which will be posted this week on Friday, April 6!


Featured image via A24/Warner Bros.

March Madness of Movies: Best A24 Films — Round 3

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

“Best A24 Films” is yet another of our brackets where the final four aren’t simply the four #1 seeds. There was no world where Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight doesn’t make it to here. And while Room was a Best Picture nominee and The Lobster is a cult favorite, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird made too heavy of an impact to be taken down by anything.

And that’s appropriate. When one thinks of A24, they likely go straight to Moonlight and Lady Bird as the best two. Even A24 themselves took such offense to the idea of those two films being pitted against each other in the first round of a Twitter A24 bracket that they tweeted out in opposition from their official account.

In regard to the bottom right of the bracket, The Florida Project firmly earned its #1 seed and Good Time is a very popular film among our staff. They both posed serious threats to Ex Machina, but Alex Garland’s feature debut film pushed through. In truth, Ex Machina won A24 one of its first Oscars and was a key film in defining the company’s brand.

The bottom left of the bracket offered a lovely surprise. While it was a #2 seed, 20th Century Women could’ve easily lost out to #1 seed A Ghost Story or other fan favorites like The Witch and Under the Skin. Mike Mills’ film, however, assuredly earned a final four spot.

But it may all be for naught, as both 20th Century Women and Ex Machina will have trouble making it passed Moonlight and Lady Bird. If any film could, it would likely be Ex Machina, so we’ll simply have to wait for the votes.

Stay tuned for the round 4 results, which will be posted next week on Friday, April 6!


Featured image via A24.

March Madness of Movies: Best Superhero Villains of the 21st Century — Round 3

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

Two of the four finalists were near guarantees to make it from the very beginning — Heath Ledger’s The Joker from The Dark Knight and Ian McKellen’s Magneto from the first X-Men trilogy. Ledger had some admiral contenders in Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin from Spider-Man and Michael Fassbender’s version of Magneto from the second X-Men trilogy. But truly, no one stood a chance. McKellen was less of a sure thing. Whether he had come up against Aaron Eckhart’s Harvey Dent/Two Face from The Dark Knight or, his eventual competitor, Jason Lee’s Syndrome from The Incredibles, there was an off chance that personal preference might’ve taken him down.

But the two made it through, and will now take on each other. The Joker is, surely, the stronger contender, but McKellen’s Magneto is the strongest competition that he’s come up against.

On the other side of the bracket, the battle between Tom Hiddleston’s Loki and Michael B. Jordan’s Erik Killmonger was expected — Loki being the old favorite and Killmonger being the new favorite. While there was a shot for Loki to hold onto that love that he earned years ago and make it through, the votes tipped heavily to Black Panther‘s Killmonger, an absolutely worthy final four entry.

The villain he’ll face, Tom Hardy’s Bane from The Dark Knight Rises, started of this bracket by surprisingly earning a #1 seed. There was always an opportunity for him to fall, whether that be to the recently beloved Vulture from Spider-Man: Homecoming or the previous brilliant webslinger antagonist, Doc Ock, from Spider-Man 2. But Bane advanced confidently. Yet, he’ll have a massive mountain to climb in the face of Killmonger.

At this point, we’ve lost representation from the “other” group of villains, while retaining entries from the MCU, DC and the X-Men films. And if the favorites make it through to the finals, it’ll be the classic Marvel vs. DC battle we’ve all come to know quite well.



Featured image via Marvel/20th Century Fox/Warner Bros.

March Madness of Movies: Best Cinematography Since 2010 — Round 3

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

The final four of Best Cinematography Since 2010 is here and we have two fascinating matchups. While Emmanuel Lubezki had four entries with GravityBirdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)The Tree of Life and The Revenant, he did not make it through. Bradford Young, who entered with ArrivalA Most Violent Year and Mother of George, also did not make it.

Roger Deakins had three entries and squeaked through for his Oscar winning work on Blade Runner 2049. He will face off against the oldest (not that any of these are actually old) cinematography in Mihai Malaimare Jr. for Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master. These are two absolute titans, two #1 seeds in a battle that could rather easily go either way.

The other battle is both bad news and good news for its contenders, as Hoyte van Hoytema will compete against himself in a cinematography matchup of Her vs. Dunkirk. The bad news is that he’ll knock his own work out, but the good news is that he’s guaranteed a spot in the finally. And, much like the other matchup, this one is nearly impossible to predict — though it is a fight between a #1 and #2 seed, instead of two #1 seeds, meaning that the slight, slight edge is with van Hoytema’s lensing for Spike Jonze’s Her. Although, Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk is a much larger canvas.

It will be interesting to see what the finale ends up being. Will it be a battle of 2017 Best Cinematography nominees? Will it be a battle between the oldest contenders? Will it be a battle of the 70mm films? Will it be a battle of the artificial intelligence sci-fi pictures?



Featured image via Annapurna/Warner Bros.

March Madness of Movies: Best A24 Films — Round 2

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

While every other bracket had some kind of outside seed make it into the elite eight, “Best A24 Films” stuck to the script with every #1 seed and #2 seed advancing through round 2.

But this is not say that that’s bad or boring in any way. On the contrary, this makes this upcoming round as hard as it could possibly be, contenders nearly impossible to decide between.

As a top eight, of sorts, of A24, these films are unbelievable. From Oscar winners to indie gems to near arthouse experiments, these eight films are about as strong as it gets from a studio, especially from such a young one.

#1 seed Moonlight has, expectedly, made it this far, and will face off against #2 seed Swiss Army Man. While Moonlight did win Best Picture, Swiss Army Man was its own kind of transformative film, at least for a few on staff.

#1 seed Lady Bird has also, expectedly, made it to round 3, and will take on #2 seed The Lobster. If there’s ever an indie name to cheer on, it’s eccentric writer-director Yorgos Lanthimos — that is, unless he’s facing off against Greta Gerwig. Either film will be a worthy choice.

#1 seed A Ghost Story held on through two rounds, but now faces its toughest challenge in Mike Mills’ absolutely lovely and sublime #2 seed 20th Century Women. Can the strength of Greta Gerwig not only help Lady Bird, but also 20th Century Women?

And finally, #1 seed The Florida Project will compete against #2 seed Ex Machina. In regard to material, these two films could not be more different, so it seems like this one will likely come down to taste.

Hopefully, the results of the next round will not be too painful.



Featured image via A24.

March Madness of Movies: Best Superhero Villains of the 21st Century — Round 2

These matchups were vote on by the MovieMinis Staff.

While five The Dark Knight trilogy villains worked their way into round 2, only 2 now remain in #1 seeds The Joker (Heath Ledger) and Bane (Tom Hardy) from The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, respectively. #4 seed Scarecrow from the entire trilogy and #3 seed Ra’s al Ghul from Batman Begins were eliminated at the hands of MCU heavyweights #1 seed Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) from Black Panther and #2 seed Loki (Tom Hiddleston) from The Avengers (and other MCU films). Those two heavyweights will now face each other in what is, essentially, the decider of the best MCU villain.

The previously mentioned #1 seed Bane will compete against the #2 seed Doc Ock (Alfred Molina) from Spider-Man 2 — both physical beasts with fascinating stories behind them. #1 seed The Joker will go head-to-head with #2 seed Magneto (the Michael Fassbender version) from the new X-Men trilogy. While the absence of a backstory makes The Joker so frightening and effective, it’s the tragic, heartbreaking backstory of the younger version of Magneto that elicits so much empathy for him, despite his cruel actions.

The final matchup will be #1 seed Magneto (the Ian McKellen version) from the original X-Men trilogy vs. #3 seed Buddy Pine/Syndrome (voiced by the hilarious Jason Lee) from The Incredibles. While Magneto still has the backstory, his older version is plenty of fun to watch, as is Syndrome. Both hit on the larger-than-life characters while never feeling cheap.

The spread of contenders remaining feels just about right. This bracket is made up of villains from the MCU, DC films, X-Men films and any other superhero villains, and there is prominent representation of each of those subcategories in the elite eight. There is even potential for there to still be representation of each in the next round.



Featured image via Marvel/20th Century Fox/Pixar/Warner Bros.

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