Year-End Lists

The Playlist: 25 Best Films of 2018

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2010s • 2019]

1. You Were Never Really Here
   Lynne Ramsay
2. First Reformed
   Paul Schrader
3. Hereditary
   Ari Aster
4. Annihilation
   Alex Garland
5. Burning
   Lee Chang-dong
6. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
7. Eighth Grade
   Bo Burnham
8. The Favourite
   Yorgos Lanthimos
9. Leave No Trace
   Debra Granik
10. Suspiria
    Luca Guadagnino
11. Paddington 2
    Paul King
12. First Man
    Damien Chazelle
13. If Beale Street Could Talk
    Barry Jenkins
14. Mandy
    Panos Cosmatos
15. Shoplifters
    Hirokazu Kore-eda
16. A Quiet Place
    John Krasinski
17. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
    Morgan Neville
18. Sorry to Bother You
    Boots Riley
19. Wildlife
    Paul Dano
20. The Death of Stalin
    Armando Iannucci
21. Private Life
    Tamara Jenkins
22. A Star Is Born
    Bradley Cooper
23. BlacKkKlansman
    Spike Lee
24. The Rider
    Chloé Zhao
25. Black Panther
    Ryan Coogler

Just a point or two from cracking the top 25

26. Blindspotting
    Carlos López Estrada
27. Vice
    Adam McKay
28. Can You Ever Forgive Me?
    Marielle Heller
29. Cold War
    Pawel Pawlikowski
30. Crazy Rich Asians
    Jon M. Chu

After that

31. Mission: Impossible – Fallout
    Christopher McQuarrie
32. Widows
    Steve McQueen
33. Thunder Road
    Jim Cummings
34. Thoroughbreds
    Cory Finley
35. Love, Simon
    Greg Berlanti
36. Incredibles 2
    Brad Bird
37. Let the Sunshine In
    Claire Denis
38. The Tale
    Jennifer Fox
39. Custody
    Xavier Legrand
40. Claire’s Camera
    Hong Sang-soo
41. Game Night
    John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein
42. Upgrade
    Leigh Whannell
43. Madeline’s Madeline
    Josephine Decker
44. 1985
    Yen Tan
45. Araby
    João Dumans and Affonso Uchôa
46. Foxtrot
    Samuel Maoz
47. Minding the Gap
    Bing Liu
48. Vox Lux
    Brady Corbet
49. Museo
    Alonso Ruizpalacios
50. This Is Congo
    Daniel McCabe

Sheila O’Malley: Top Ten Films of 2018, as published by RogerEbert.com

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016]

1. First Reformed
   Paul Schrader
2. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
3. BlacKkKlansman
   Spike Lee
4. Shirkers
   Sandi Tan
5. Shoplifters
   Hirokazu Kore-eda
6. The Rider
   Chloé Zhao
7. Mandy
   Panos Cosmatos
8. A Star Is Born
   Bradley Cooper
9. Eighth Grade
   Bo Burnham
10. The Other Side of the Wind
    Orson Welles

This list contributes to:

• RogerEbert.com: Ten Best Films of 2018

Dana Stevens: Best Movies of 2018, as published by Slate

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

• A Star Is Born
  Bradley Cooper
• Can You Ever Forgive Me?
  Marielle Heller
• Eighth Grade
  Bo Burnham
• First Reformed
  Paul Schrader
• Leave No Trace
  Debra Granik
• Minding the Gap
  Bing Liu
• Roma
  Alfonso Cuaron
• Support the Girls
  Andrew Bujalski
• Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
  Morgan Neville
• Zama
  Lucrecia Martel

Honorable Mentions

• 24 Frames
  Abbas Kiarostami
• Game Night
  John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein
• If Beale Street Could Talk
  Barry Jenkins
• The Rider
  Chloé Zhao
• You Were Never Really Here
  Lynne Ramsay

Kristen Lopez: Top Ten Films of 2018, as published by RogerEbert.com

[see also 2019]

1. Blindspotting
   Carlos López Estrada
2. On the Basis of Sex
   Mimi Leder
3. Bad Times at the El Royale
   Drew Goddard
4. A Simple Favor
   Paul Feig
5. The Favourite
   Yorgos Lanthimos
6. Widows
   Steve McQueen
7. Black Panther
   Ryan Coogler
8. Hereditary
   Ari Aster
9. A Quiet Place
   John Krasinski
10. Sorry to Bother You
    Boots Riley

This list contributes to:

• RogerEbert.com: Ten Best Films of 2018

Tomris Laffly: Top 10 Movies of 2018, as published by Time Out New York

[see also 2022 • 2021 • 2019]

1. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
2. You Were Never Really Here
   Lynne Ramsay
3. Burning
   Lee Chang-dong
4. Private Life
   Tamara Jenkins
5. First Man
   Damien Chazelle
6. Cold War
   Pawel Pawlikowski
7. Can You Ever Forgive Me?
   Marielle Heller
8. Custody
   Xavier Legrand
9. 1985
   Yen Tan
10. Hereditary
    Ari Aster

The next ten

• Widows
  Steve McQueen
• Happy as Lazzaro
  Alice Rohrwacher
• On the Basis of Sex
  Mimi Leder
• Minding the Gap
  Bing Liu
• Shoplifters
  Hirokazu Kore-eda
• Crazy Rich Asians
  Jon M. Chu
• Eighth Grade
  Bo Burnham
• If Beale Street Could Talk
  Barry Jenkins
• The Guilty
  Gustav Möller
• Suspiria
  Luca Guadagnino

Odie Henderson: Top Ten Films of 2018, as published by RogerEbert.com

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016]

Honorable Mentions

• Widows
  Steve McQueen
• Custody
  Xavier Legrand
• Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
  Morgan Neville
• Hale County This Morning, This Evening
  RaMell Ross

1. Blindspotting
   Carlos López Estrada
2. If Beale Street Could Talk
   Barry Jenkins
3. BlacKkKlansman
   Spike Lee
4. Black Panther
   Ryan Coogler
5. Amazing Grace
   Sydney Pollack
6. Paddington 2
   Paul King
7. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
8. Leave No Trace
   Debra Granik
9. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
   Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman
10. I Am Not a Witch
    Rungano Nyoni

This list contributes to:

• RogerEbert.com: Ten Best Films of 2018

Joshua Rothkopf: Top 10 Movies of 2018, as published by Time Out New York

[see also 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Hereditary
   Ari Aster
2. Burning
   Lee Chang-dong
3. Widows
   Steve McQueen
4. Suspiria
   Luca Guadagnino
5. The Death of Stalin
   Armando Iannucci
6. Bisbee '17
   Robert Greene
7. Private Life
   Tamara Jenkins
8. Happy as Lazzaro
   Alice Rohrwacher
9. Shoplifters
   Hirokazu Kore-eda
10. Support the Girls
    Andrew Bujalski

The next 10

• Zama
  Lucrecia Martel
• You Were Never Really Here
  Lynne Ramsay
• Shirkers
  Sandi Tan
• Thoroughbreds
  Cory Finley
• Sorry to Bother You
  Boots Riley
• Where Is Kyra?
  Andrew Dosunmu
• A Star Is Born
  Bradley Cooper
• Mary Poppins Returns
  Rob Marshall
• Green Book
  Peter Farrelly
• Tyrel
  Sebastián Silva

Michael Phillips: 10 Best Movies of 2018, as published by The Chicago Tribune

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. The Rider
   Chloé Zhao
2. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
3. Can You Ever Forgive Me?
   Marielle Heller
4. The Favourite
   Yorgos Lanthimos
5. Minding the Gap
   Bing Liu
6. Widows
   Steve McQueen
7. First Reformed
   Paul Schrader
8. Sorry to Bother You
   Boots Riley
9. Zama
   Lucrecia Martel
10. Black Panther
    Ryan Coogler

Runners-up, 11-30, alphabetical

• At Eternity’s Gate
  Julian Schnabel
• BlacKkKlansman
  Spike Lee
• Blindspotting
  Carlos López Estrada
• Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story
  Alexandra Dean
• Cold War
  Pawel Pawlikowski
• The Death of Stalin
  Armando Iannucci
• Filmworker
  Tony Zierra
• The Hate U Give
  George Tillman Jr.
• Hereditary
  Ari Aster
• If Beale Street Could Talk
  Barry Jenkins
• Lean On Pete
  Andrew Haigh
• Let the Sunshine In
  Claire Denis
• Paddington 2
  Paul King
• Private Life
  Tamara Jenkins
• Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda
  Stephen Nomura Schible
• Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
  Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman
• Support the Girls
  Andrew Bujalski
• Wildlife
  Paul Dano
• Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
  Morgan Neville
• You Were Never Really Here
  Lynne Ramsay

Brian Tallerico: Top Ten Films of 2018, as published by RogerEbert.com

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2017 • 2016]

1. Roma
   Alfonso Cuaron
2. If Beale Street Could Talk
   Barry Jenkins
3. Leave No Trace
   Debra Granik
4. Burning
   Lee Chang-dong
5. Widows
   Steve McQueen
6. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
   Joel & Ethan Coen
7. Annihilation
   Alex Garland
8. Shoplifters
   Hirokazu Kore-eda
9. You Were Never Really Here
   Lynne Ramsay
10. Sorry to Bother You
    Boots Riley

Runner-ups

• Black Panther
  Ryan Coogler
• Blindspotting
  Carlos López Estrada
• First Man
  Damien Chazelle
• First Reformed
  Paul Schrader
• Hereditary
  Ari Aster
• Lean On Pete
  Andrew Haigh
• Mission: Impossible – Fallout
  Christopher McQuarrie
• Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
  Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman
• Wildlife
  Paul Dano
• Zama
  Lucrecia Martel

This list contributes to:

• RogerEbert.com: Ten Best Films of 2018

Keith Uhlich: Top 10 Films of 2018

[see also 2019 • 2017 • 2016 • 2012 • 2011]

Do Something New

1. 24 Frames
   Abbas Kiarostami
1. Ready Player One
   Steven Spielberg

Size Does Matter?

2. The X-Files
3. La Flor
   Mariano Llinás

This Is Existentialism 101

4. The Terror
5. The Green Fog
   Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson

…And This Is Love

6. If Beale Street Could Talk
   Barry Jenkins
7. Sense8: Episode "Amor Vincit Omnia"
   Lana Wachowski
8. Suspiria
   Luca Guadagnino

Dea(d)r White People

9. Monrovia, Indiana
   Frederick Wiseman
10. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
    Joel & Ethan Coen