Staff Picks: Film Superlatives 2018
Best Egg-Cracking of 2018: Roma
Competing with Armie Hammer’s adorably clumsy egg-cracking in 2017’s instant classic Call Me By Your Name, Roma offers a fantastic moment, depicting one of many ways to serve a breakfast egg.
The devoted and enduring housemaids of Roma work harder than any member of the family they serve, especially when it comes to cooking and serving food — and we need not go any further than Yalitza Aparicio’s majestic crack and plating of a simple egg.
– Staci
Best Use of a Movie’s Title in the Movie: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Though my irrational fear of spiders (and my undying devotion to Tobey Maguire) prevented me from actually seeing it, I can tell that this movie doesn’t play around when it comes to character names. We’ve got Spider-Man, another Spider-Man, yet another Spider-Man, Spider-Woman (yay for girl power), Spider-Ham, and Spider-Man Noir. If you went to see this film, I have a question for you: how were you not confused??? – Hayley
Best Lobster of 2018: The one Tom Hardy ate in Venom
More people need to talk about how Tom Hardy literally jumped into a lobster tank in the middle of a nice restaurant and ate one of them on camera in Venom, all with one hundred percent sincerity. I’m not even sure I need to comment on how brave the lobster must’ve been to take on this role, or what instructions director Ruben Fleischer must’ve given him or her to accurately portray a lobster being eaten by Tom Hardy. Either way, this was a much more satisfying lobster performance than what we got in Yorgos Lanthimos’ 2015 film The Lobster, because...well, there actually was some semblance of a lobster in Venom. Got’em! – Hannah
Weirdest Cameo of 2018: Dave Franco in If Beale Street Could Talk
Fresh off his Oscar win for Moonlight, Barry Jenkins was safe to assume he’d be working with some critically acclaimed, high brow actors for his 2018 drama If Beale Street Could Talk. Instead, none other than teen heartthrob Dave Franco -- famous for his roles in Nerve and the Jump Street franchises, as well as that horrid, unspeakable 9th Season of Scrubs -- to steal the spotlight as a goofy Jewish landlord. I’m sorry, Barry Jenkins. You deserve better. – Hayley
Runner Up: Cher in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again
Honestly not that weird, given the theatrics of this fun, summery franchise. Even less weird when you consider that ABBA appeals mostly to grandmas, and, like, people who also like Cher. The only problem? Now I can only hear Super Trouper in Cher’s voice. Rip. – Hayley
Best Buns of 2018: The Bao Bun in Bao
Through the heartwarming story of a mother’s journey to overcome the loneliness of being an empty nester, Bao manages to portray three-minutes of bare buns on-screen in a ~tasteful~ manner. Plump, pudgy and tender, one look at these bao buns will want you hungry for more. And more is what you’ll get! This voluptuous feat accomplished by director Domme Shi, who has contributed to animations such as Inside Out and Incredibles 2, has earned her her very own Pixar feature film set to premiere in 2022. Let’s hope the buns in the feature are as bao-ntiful as in this short! – Mia
Sexiest Legs of 2018: The Favourite
In this interesting period piece (can you expect anything less from director Yorgos Lanthimos?), a chambermaid (Emma Stone) and a political correspondent (Rachel Weisz) vie for Queen Anne’s affection by taking advantage of her sexuality. They flatter her with undeserving compliments, childishly race her around in a wheelchair, and seductively moisturize her legs. Her red, bulging, swollen, arthritic legs, severely affected by raging spells of gout. Mmm, so ~sultry~! – Hayley
Best Prank Call of 2018: BlacKkKlansman
While picturing a giggling John David Washington and Adam Driver laughing into the mouthpiece of a phone in an inappropriately, adolescent boy’s room is an image that makes even the coldest heart warm, that wasn’t exactly the behavior the context of this prank call required. Ron Stallworth (Washington) did get to practice impersonating someone else, something a lot of us had the privilege of relishing in during our own prank calls, yet, for Stallworth, stakes might have been a tad life threatening considering his prank call involved impersonating a white man and buddying up with Grand Wizard, David Duke, of the KKK. Just a tad. – Tess
Best Musical Performance: The Rap Scene in Widows
There’s something about staring death in the face that produces hits. The scene almost feels like comedic relief, as the two artists had been locked in what could be a cooler - for however long - and then brought into an abandoned basketball court to stare off with some seriously intimidating men.
Daniel Kaluuya’s character asks them to rap and at this point the audience does not know how dangerous he really is, so for a while it feels like they are just being teased. The beat one of the men makes flows smoothly, as the other man spits the lyrics. All the while, you’re kind of scared for them, but find yourself nodding along. Kaluuya’s character is feeling them and you’re like “yeaaah, okay.” You’re into it too. That is, until Kaluuya’s character decides he’s had enough of them, and the best musical performance - all impromptu and without instrument, btw - is cut short. Fun fact: the pair are an actual rap due called The Cool Kids. – Tatiana
