The Movies of 2019: U.S. Releases
By Title // By Grade // By VOR Rating
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Full Listing of Films Screened
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⑤ |
Indispensable to film fans, even if it's flawed |
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| American Factory Dirs. Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert. Documentary A |
| Ash Is Purest White Dir. Jia Zhangke. Zhao Tao, Liao Fan, Diao Yinan B+ |
| Atlantics Dir. Mati Diop. Mame Bineta Sane, Ibrahima Traoré, Babacar Sylla A |
| A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Dir. Marielle Heller. Matthew Rhys A |
| Black Mother Dir. Khalid Allah. Documentary about contemporary Jamaica A |
| The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open Dirs. Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers, Kathleen Hepburn. Violet Nelson, Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers A |
| Burning Cane Dir. Phillip Youmans. Karen Kaia Livers, Wendell Pierce B+ |
| By the Grace of God Dir. François Ozon. Melvil Poupaud, Denis Ménochet A |
| The Cave Dir. Feras Fayyad. Documentary about underground Syrian hospital A |
| The Edge of Democracy Dir. Petra Costa. Documentary about Brazilian politics B+ |
| An Elephant Sitting Still Dir. Hu Bo. Peng Yuchang, Zhang Yu, Wang Yuwen B+ |
| End of the Century Dir. Lucio Castro. Juan Barberini, Roman Pujol, Mía Maestro A |
| For Sama Dirs. Waad Al-Khateab, Edward Watts. Documentary about Syria A |
| High Life Dir. Claire Denis. Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, Mia Goth A |
| Honeyland Dirs. Tamara Kotevska, Ljubomir Stefanov. Documentary A |
| The Image Book Dir. Jean-Luc Godard. Images and texts evoking modern chaos A |
| The Irishman Dir. Martin Scorsese. Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci A |
| Little Women Dir. Greta Gerwig. Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, Emma Watson B+ |
| Long Day's Journey into Night Dir. Bi Gan. Huang Jue, Tang Wei, Li Meng B |
| Midnight Traveler Dir. Hassan Fazili. Documentary about filmmaker in exile A |
| Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood Dir. Quentin Tarantino. Leonardo DiCaprio B |
| Pain & Glory Dir. Pedro Almodóvar. Antonio Banderas, Asier Flores B+ |
| Parasite Dir. Bong Joon-ho. Choi Woo-sik, Park So-dam, Song Kang-ho A |
| Peterloo Dir. Mike Leigh. David Moorst, Neil Bell, Rory Kinnear, Philip Jackson A |
| Portrait of a Lady on Fire Dir. Céline Sciamma. Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel A |
| Ray & Liz Dir. Richard Billingham. Patrick Romer, Ella Smith, Justin Salinger A |
| Synonyms Dir. Nadav Lapid. Tom Mercier, Louise Chevillotte, Quentin Dolmaire B+ |
| Waves Dir. Trey Edward Shults. Kelvin Harrison Jr., Taylor Russell A |
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④ |
Good or bad, this is risky and original work |
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| 3 Faces Dir. Jafar Panahi. Behnaz Jafari, Jafar Panahi, Marziyeh Rezaei B+ |
| 5B Dir. Paul Haggis, Dan Krauss. Documentary about first AIDS hospital ward B+ |
| Ad Astra Dir. James Gray. Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland B+ |
| América Dirs. Erick Stoll, Chase Whiteside. Documentary about elderly caretaking B+ |
| ANIARA Dirs. Pella Kågerman, Hugo Lilja. Emelie Jonsson, Arvin Kananian B+ |
| At War Dir. Stéphane Brizé. Vincent Lindon, Mélanie Rover, Jean Grosset B+ |
| Birds of Passage Dirs. Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra. Natalia Reyes, José Acosta B |
| The Burial of Kojo Dir. Blitz Bazawule. Cynthia Dankwa, Joseph Otsiman B |
| The Chambermaid Dir. Lila Avilés. Gabriela Cartol, Teresa Sánchez B |
| Clemency Dir. Chinonye Chukwu. Alfre Woodard, Aldis Hodge, Wendell Pierce B+ |
| Dark Waters Dir. Todd Haynes. Mark Ruffalo, Bill Camp, Anne Hathaway A |
| Diane Dir. Kent Jones. Mary Kay Place, Jake Lacy, Andrea Martin A |
| Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops Dir. Jenifer McShane. Documentary about retraining B+ |
| Feast of the Epiphany Dir. Michael Koresky, Jeff Reichert, Farihah Zaman B+ |
| The Gospel of Eureka Dirs. Michael Palmieri, Donal Mosher. Documentary B+ |
| Her Smell Dir. Alex Ross Perry. Elisabeth Moss, Agyness Deyn, Gayle Rankin C+ |
| A Hidden Life Dir. Terrence Malick. August Diehl, Valerie Pachner C+ |
| High Flying Bird Dir. Steven Soderbergh. André Holland, Zazi Beetz, Melvin Gregg B |
| Honey Boy Dir. Alma Har'el. Noah Jupe, Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges B |
| Hustlers Dir. Lorene Scafaria. Constance Wu, Jennifer Lopez, Keke Palmer B+ |
| I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History as Barbarians Dir. Radu Jude B |
| In My Room Dir. Ulrich Köhler. Hans Löw, Elena Radonicich, Michael Wittenborn B+ |
| Joker Dir. Todd Phillips. Joaquin Phoenix, Frances Conroy, Robert De Niro B |
| The Last Black Man in San Francisco Dir. Joe Talbot. Jimmie Fails B+ |
| The Lighthouse Dir. Robert Eggers. Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe B |
| Monos Dir. Alejandro Landes. Sofia Buenaventura, Julian Giraldo, Moisés Arias B |
| The Nightingale Dir. Jennifer Kent. Aisling Franciosi, Baykali Ganambarr B |
| One Child Nation Dirs. Nanfu Wang, Jialing Zhang. Documentary about China B |
| Queen & Slim Dir. Melina Matsoukas. Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith B |
| Rafiki Dir. Wanuri Kahiu. Samantha Mugatsia, Sheila Munyiva, Jimmy Gathu B
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| Rojo Dir. Benjamin Naishtat. Darío Grandinetti, Alfredo Castro, Diego Cremonesi B+ |
| The Souvenir Dir. Joanna Hogg. Honor Swinton Byrne, Tom Burke, Tilda Swinton B |
| Styx Dir. Wolfgang Fischer. Susanne Wolff, Gedion Oduor Wekesa B+ |
| Sunset Dir. László Nemes. Juli Jakab, Vlad Ivanov, Levenete Molnár B |
| The Third Wife Dir. Ash Mayfair. Nguyễn Phương Trà My, Mai Thu Hường B+ |
| Too Late to Die Young Dir. Dominga Sotomayor. Demian Hernández B+ |
| Transit Dir. Christian Petzold. Franz Rogowski, Paula Beer, Godehard Giese B |
| Tremors Dir. Jayro Bustamante. Juan Pablo Olyslager, Mauricio Armas Zebadúa B+ |
| Us Dir. Jordan Peele. Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph B |
| What You Gonna Do When the World's on Fire? Dir. Roberto Minervini A |
| The Wild Pear Tree Dir. Nuri Bilge Ceylan. Doğu Demirkol, Murat Cemcir B |
| Woman at War Dir. Benedikt Erlingsson. Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir A |
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③ |
Try to make time, but don't cry if you miss it |
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| Abducted in Plain Sight Dir. Skye Borgman. Documentary about child abduction B |
| American Woman Dir. Jake Scott. Sienna Miller, Aidan McGraw, Aidan Fiske B |
| Angels Are Made of Light Dir. James Longley. Documentary about Afghanistan B |
| Asako I & II Dir. Ryûsuke Hamaguchi. Erika Karata, Masahiro Higashide, Sairi Itô B |
| The Blonde One Dir. Marco Berger. Gaston Re, Alfonso Barón, Melissa Falter B+ |
| Diamantino Dirs. Gabriel Abrantes, Daniel Schmidt. Carloto Cotta, Cleo Tavares B |
| Dolemite Is My Name Dir. Craig Brewer. Eddie Murphy, Mike Epps, Craig Robinson B |
| The Farewell Dir. Lulu Wang. Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Diana Lin, Tzi Ma, Chen Han C+ |
| Fast Color Dir. Julia Hart. Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lorraine Toussaint, Saniyya Sidney B |
| Gay Chorus Deep South Dir. David Charles Rodrigues. Documentary B |
| Girls of the Sun Dir. Eva Husson. Golshifteh Farahani, Emmanuelle Bercot C+ |
| Gloria Bell Dir. Sebastián Lelio. Julianne Moore, John Turturro, Caren Pistorius B |
| Harriet Dir. Kasi Lemmons. Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., Joe Alwyn, Janelle Monaé C+ |
| Hotel by the River Dir. Hong Sang-soo. Ki Joo-bong, Kwon Hae-hyo, Yoo Joon-sang C |
| I Lost My Body Dir. Jérémy Clapin. Voices of Hakim Faris, Victoire Du Bois C+ |
| Judy Dir. Rupert Goold. Renée Zellweger, Darci Shaw, Jessie Buckley, Finn Wittrock C |
| The Kingmaker Dir. Lauren Greenfield. Documentary about Imelda Marcos C+ |
| Knives Out Dir. Rian Johnson. Ana de Armas, Daniel Craig, Christopher Plummer B |
| The Laundromat Dir. Steven Soderbergh. Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas C |
| Long Shot Dir. Jonathan Levine. Charlize Theron, Seth Rogen, June Diane Raphael B |
| Ma Dir. Tate Taylor. Octavia Spencer, Diana Silvers, Juliette Lewis, McKaley Miller B |
| Maiden Dir. Alex Holmes. Documentary about all-female crew sailing around the world B |
| Marriage Story Dir. Noah Baumbach. Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern C |
| Midnight Family Dir. Luke Lorentzen. Documentary about Mexican ambulance crew B |
| Midsommar Dir. Ari Aster. Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, Vilhelm Blomgren C |
| Les Misérables Dir. Ladj Ly. Damien Bonnard, Alexis Manenti, Djibril Zonga B |
| Richard Jewell Dir. Clint Eastwood. Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates B |
| Sauvage Dir. Camille Vidal-Naquet. Félix Maritaud, Éric Bernard, Nicolas Dibla B |
| Sorry Angel Dir. Christophe Honoré. Pierre Deladonchamps, Vincent Lacoste B |
| Touch Me Not Dir. Adina Pintilie. Laura Benson, Tómas Lemarquis, Hanna Hofmann B |
| Toy Story 4 Dir. Josh Cooley. Voices of Tom Hanks, Annie Potts, Christina Hendricks B |
| Uncut Gems Dirs. Josh and Benny Safdie. Adam Sandler, Julia Fox, LaKeith Stanfield C+ |
| Under the Silver Lake Dir. David Robert Mitchell. Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough D+ |
| Where'd You Go, Bernadette Dir. Richard Linklater. Cate Blanchett, Emma Nelson C |
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② |
Even if it's good, it's hardly groundbreaking |
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| 1917 Dir. Sam Mendes. George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Colin Firth C+ |
| The Beach Bum Dir. Harmony Korine. Matthew McConaughey, Snoop Dogg, Isla Fisher C |
| The Biggest Little Farm Dir. Don Chester. Documentary about a California farm B |
| Bombshell Dir. Jay Roach. Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie, Nicole Kidman C |
| Booksmart Dir. Olivia Wilde. Beanie Feldstein, Kaitlyn Dever, Skyler Gisondo C+ |
| Climax Dir. Gaspar Noé. Sofia Boutella, Romain Guillermic, Souheila Yacoub C+ |
| The Dead Don't Die Dir. Jim Jarmusch. Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Chloë Sevigny C |
| Ford v Ferrari Dir. James Mangold. Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Josh Lucas, Tracy Letts C+ |
| Frankie Dir. Ira Sachs. Isabelle Huppert, Brendan Gleeson, Marisa Tomei, Jérémie Renier C |
| Holiday Dir. Isabella Eklöf. Victoria Carmen Sonne, Lai Yde, Thijs Römer, Yuval Segal B |
| The Hottest August Dir. Brett Story. Documentary about modern New Yorkers C+ |
| How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World Dir. Dean DeBlois B |
| In Fabric Dir. Peter Strickland. Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Jaygann Ayeh C |
| Jojo Rabbit Dir. Taika Waititi. Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie D+ |
| Just Mercy Dir. Destin Daniel Cretton. Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Rafe Spall C |
| Karuppudurai Dir. Madhumita Sundararaman. Mu Ramaswamy, Nagavishal, Badava Gopi C+ |
| Knife + Heart Dir. Yann Gonzalez. Vanessa Paradis, Kate Moran, Jonathan Genet D+ |
| Late Night Dir. Nisha Ganatra. Mindy Kaling, Emma Thompson, Reid Scott C |
| Little Dir. Tina Gordon. Issa Rae, Marsai Martin, Regina Hall, Tone Bell, Justin Hartley C+ |
| Little Joe Dir. Jessica Hausner. Emily Beecham, Kit Connor, Ben Whishaw, Kerry Fox D |
| Little Woods Dir. Nia DaCosta. Tessa Thompson, Lily James, James Badge Dale C |
| Luce Dir. Julius Onah. Kelvin Harrison Jr., Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Tim Roth D+ |
| Missing Link Dir. Chris Butler. Voices of Hugh Jackman, Zach Galifianakis B |
| Motherless Brooklyn Dir. Edward Norton. Edward Norton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw D |
| The Mustang Dir. Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre. Matthias Schoenaerts, Bruce Dern C+ |
| Non-Fiction Dir. Olivier Assayas. Guillaume Canet, Vincent Macaigne C |
| Our Time Dir. Carlos Reygadas. Carlos Reygadas, Natalia López, Phil Burgers D+ |
| The Raft Dir. Marcus Lindeen. Documentary about maritime anthropology experiment B |
| Redoubt Dir. Matthew Barney. Anette Wachter, Matthew Barney, K.J. Holmes C+ |
| The Report Dir. Scott Z. Burns. Adam Driver, Annette Bening, Jon Hamm D+ |
| Rocketman Dir. Dexter Fletcher. Taron Egerton, Jamie Bell, Richard Madden C+ |
| Serenity Dir. Steven Knight. Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jeremy Strong F |
| Star Wars, Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker Dir. J.J. Abrams. Daisy Ridley C+ |
| This Changes Everything Dir. Tom Donahue. Documentary about Hollywood sexism B |
| Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am Dir. Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. Documentary B |
| The Two Popes Dir. Fernando Meirelles. Jonathan Pryce, Anthony Hopkins C |
| The White Crow Dir. Ralph Fiennes. Oleg Ivenko, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Ralph Fiennes C+ |
| Wild Rose Dir. Tom Harper. Jessie Buckley, Julie Walters, Sophie Okonedo C |
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① |
Low ambition, little originality, easy to forget |
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| The Aspern Papers Dir. Julien Landais. Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Joely Richardson D |
| Cats Dir. Tom Hooper. Francesca Hayward, Robbie Fairchild, Judi Dench, Idris Elba F |
| Klaus Dir. Sergio Pablos. Voices of Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simmons, Rashida Jones C |
| Tyler Perry's A Madea Family Funeral Dir. Tyler Perry. Tyler Perry D |
| The Wind Dir. Emma Tammi. Caitlin Gerard, Ashley Zukerman, Julia Goldani Telles C |
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