Many of my favorite movies that received their Chicago theatrical premieres in 2018 expanded my sense of cinema history. Whether they were rediscoveries from past eras (such as the first and seventh films on my list) or new films by old masters (such as the films to hold the fourth- and tenth-place rankings), these works reminded me of how expansive the art form has always been in terms of visual beauty and social insight. As usual, I’m particularly grateful to the city’s independent programmers, who are responsible for bringing most of these movies to town. Keep up the good work, all of you.
24 Frames and The Arboretum Cycle (tie) Beautiful and enveloping experimental features by master artists, these films inspired reverence for nature and cinema simultaneously. The final feature by Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami, 24 Frames (which played at the Film Center in February) employed subtle cinematic trickery to make still photographs seem to come to life. In The Arboretum Cycle (which played at Northwestern University’s Block Cinema in September), American avant-gardist Nathaniel Dorsky found transcendental beauty in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park and the nuances of 16-millimeter cinematography.
The Third Murder Japanese writer- director Hirokazu Kore-eda may have won the Palme d’Or this year for Shoplifters, but I prefer this 2017 legal drama, which played at the Film Center and Facets late this summer. The film showcases Kore-eda’s skillful sense of characterization and ethical inquiry, asking viewers to think long and hard about the meaning of justice.
