Search Results for Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2021
I saw a little over 200 films that I’m counting as “2021” films this year. You can see the whole list here. I also had the privilege to attend a few film festivals (online and in person) and saw several wonderful films that won’t be more widely available until next year, so any of those films will count towards next year’s list. I’m not sure there is as strong a theme connecting the films that resonated with me this year as there was last year, but I will say three movies in my top five I saw in the first three months of the calendar year. I love a year when films linger that long. Please remember this is a subjective list. This is what spoke to me. Hopefully something on here speaks to you too!
It’s Cinema Fanatic’s 12th Anniversary!
Absolutely cannot believe I’ve been blogging on here for twelve years! My life has seen a lot of changes over those years. I really want to thank everyone who has been reading so diligently all these years. I’m planning to continue doing my monthly wrap-up posts on here, but in 2022 I am also going to be posting more frequently over on Substack. If you’d like to receive more movie recommendations, read interviews with cool people, and more, please think about subscribing. And definitely let me know what kind of posts you’d like to see more of!
No worries though, my wrap up for December, my Favorite Fifteen Films, and my year end wrap up will live here on this blog. But moving into 2022 most of my (non-paid) work will live there, so sign up early so you don’t miss anything!
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2020
Again, sorry for the delay on this post. If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram (oldfilmsflicker on both), then you’ve likely already seen this list, but along with the list I’ve written at length about each of my favorite films from 2020, what resonated with me, and why I loved them so. You can see the whole list of how all 2020 releases ranked here.
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2019
I honestly cannot believe this is the end of a decade. The 2010s have been a very transformative decade for me in almost every way possible. The one thing that has stayed with me is my love of cinema. I always have ups and downs with contemporary cinema, but this year I found several films that really spoke to me. So, as always, you can find my favorite fifteen films of the year after the cut. You can also see my whole list here.
It’s Cinema Fanatic’s 10th Anniversary!
I definitely should have planned something more fancy for my 10th anniversary, but this year has completely gotten away from me. Moving across the country and starting a new job can take a lot out of you!
Some highlights: Noirvember also celebrated its 10th year, I attended a few film festivals for the first time (mostly for work, so I didn’t see anything, but still it was fun): Toronto International Film Festival, Fantastic Fest, and New York Film Festival. I went back to Pordenone for the fourth time.
In terms of work, I did some great interviews over the year including the DP and supporting cast of The Irishman (watch those here), and some really fun director’s commentary podcasts (listen here).
I’m really grateful for all the opportunities this blog has given me of the last decade, but as we head into a new one I’m not sure that I will have the time to dedicate to it properly. I plan to close out this year like I always do with my end of the month post for December, my Favorite Fifteen Films of 2019, and my end of the year wrap up, but after that I may retire the blog in 2020. Maybe bring it back just for the end of the year next December. I guess we’ll see.
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2018
In 2017 I saw 72 new releases, which I believe was a record number for me. This year I saw 117! I attribute this to several of this year’s new releases being Netflix films (so convenient, if not ideal) and MoviePass. Yes, MoviePass. I saw a few things I may have skipped in previous years because of MoviePass. For awhile I could watch one film a day via MoviePass and then see a second one that I paid for. This led to a lot more double features at the Midtown Art Cinema than in pervious years. Also last year I saw 32 new releases that were directed by women. This year I saw 59 new release films directed by women (170 in total, but I’ll write more about that in tomorrow’s end of the year post), which is half of the new release films I saw this year. I plan to at least keep up that ratio next year, if not do better. You can see all the new release (and festival) films I watched in 2018 and how I ranked them here. After the cut you’ll find my Favorite Fifteen Films, and as always I remind you that this is subjective and in no way should be considered a “best” list.
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2016
After last year’s A Year With Women I was apprehensive dipping my toes back into to the world of cinema directed by men. Luckily, one thing 2015 taught me was that I could skip movies that I knew I wouldn’t enjoy instead of seeing everything just to be part of the conversation (although I did see a few things this year that I thought I would hate for that very reason and then I hated them anyways; not happening in 2017, I swear!). Overall, there were lots of films released in 2016 that I truly loved. There are a few late released 2016 films that haven’t come to Atlanta yet that probably would have made this list, but I doubt any of them would dethrone my #1 favorite of the year. For the first time since 2012, my favorite film of the year was actually directed by a man. I am as shocked as you are! As always, you’ll find my favorite films of the year after the cut, as well as some brief thoughts.
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2015
As you probably remember, I spent 2015 only watching films directed by women (save for Noirvember, where I watched films that were written by women), and although I still have one new-to-me film I’m going to watch this afternoon, it’s time to post my favorite 2015 releases. Last year I watched 67 “new” releases; this year I watched 66 (and I missed/skipped a few films). People talk a lot about the small number of female directors working today, but the key thing is that they are working and we can support them. I live in Los Angeles, so I was able to see a lot of films that I know don’t make it to other markets, but I also watched a lot of these new releases on VOD – and that’s something you can do anywhere in the USA. I urge everyone to take up Women In Film – Los Angeles’ #52FilmsByWomen challenge in 2016 and put their money where their mouth is! That said, you can see all 66 new films I watched here and tomorrow I will be posting both an end-of-the-month wrap up for December and an end of the year post, so look out for those! And now, without further ado, here are my Favorite Fifteen Films of 2015!
It’s The End of the Year As We Know It: December 2014 in Films
I didn’t even manage a film a day in December this year. The end of the year is always crazy, and I was running around a lot (my parents were here for a week!), but also I was trying to surpass a book reading goal (I made it to 60 this year!), so that took up a lot of time. I did, however, watch several of my favorite 2014 films in December. As always, the full list is after the cut.
Cinema Fanatic’s Favorite Fifteen Films of 2014
Last year there were films I enjoyed, but mostly I was just really underwhelmed. This year, however, it was really hard to narrow it down to fifteen films. I think part of this was living in Los Angeles and being able to see those little films that only play for a week in some small theater. I’m so grateful to be able to do that! If you are interested in all of the 2014 releases I saw this year, you can check out the full list here.
the diary of a film history fanatic 