Green Book 2018
The Best Picture winner. The hosts liked it fine on first viewing, a lighthearted crowd-pleaser, but say it hasn't aged well once you factor in the backlash over how it handled the real-life story.
The Big Picture · Discussion · Draft
The 2018 Movie Draft
February 24, 2022/ 76 min/ Sean Fennessey · Amanda Dobbins · Chris Ryan
Sean Fennessey, Amanda Dobbins, and Chris Ryan draft 2018 across six categories (Drama, Comedy, Oscar Nominee, Action Horror, Blockbuster, and Wildcard), from Black Panther to Den of Thieves.
26 films across 2 segments.
AI-generated This episode was transcribed and analyzed with AI models. The matches aren't perfect — expect the occasional misheard title or a link to the wrong film.
2018, before the draft
Roma 2018
Alfonso Cuarón's Netflix drama. Amanda saw it in a small screening room and calls it beautiful and harrowing; it lost Best Picture to Green Book even though Cuarón won Best Director.
Bohemian Rhapsody 2018
Rami Malek won Best Actor for playing Freddie Mercury, a win the hosts remember as something of a punchline at the time.
Vice 2018
Christian Bale's Dick Cheney transformation earned him a Best Actor nomination, in a field crowded with Cooper, Malek, and Dafoe.
At Eternity's Gate 2018
Willem Dafoe's Van Gogh film picked up a Best Actor nomination that Sean says barely anyone actually saw.
A Star Is Born 2018
Bradley Cooper's directorial debut, discussed here for its Best Actor nomination before it comes back later as Sean's draft pick.
Avengers: Infinity War 2018
The hosts call it the moment the MCU fully became 'the movies now': stars, directors, and studios all funneling into one franchise.
Widows 2018
Steve McQueen's Chicago heist thriller made about $75 million, which felt disappointing in a year of $200 million blockbusters. The hosts say it was overlooked by awards bodies at the time.
The 2018 Movie Draft drafting 2018 movies
Amanda Dobbins
Drama
Roma 2018
Alfonso Cuarón's Netflix film. She calls it beautiful and special, even if it's since become a punchline for every director's attempt to make their own version.
Comedy
Game Night 2018
The funniest movie of the year for her, led by Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, whose deadpan 'Oh no, he died!' after a stunt gone wrong is her pick for the year's best line.
Oscar Nominee
Black Panther 2018
Her first-overall pick. She remembers a packed opening-weekend screening at the Hollywood Arclight and says it made her believe again that these movies could hold real ideas.
Action Horror
A Quiet Place 2018
John Krasinski's directorial breakout with Emily Blunt. She caught part of it at South by Southwest and remembers it playing 'like a house on fire.'
Blockbuster
Crazy Rich Asians 2018
Jon M. Chu's adaptation of Kevin Kwan's novel. She calls it smart and funny in a knowingly frivolous way, and wishes the delayed sequel had a bigger budget.
Wildcard
Wildlife 2018
Paul Dano's directorial debut, adapted from a Richard Ford novel. She says Carey Mulligan's performance is the one that should have gotten her the recognition Promising Young Woman later did.
Chris Ryan
Drama
Widows 2018
Steve McQueen's Chicago heist thriller, with Viola Davis and a villainous Colin Farrell, written by Gillian Flynn. He calls it a movie that felt like a slight disappointment on release and got much better on rewatch.
Comedy
The Death of Stalin 2018
Armando Iannucci's satire of Politburo jockeying after Stalin's death. He calls it the last great political satire and one of the darkest movies he's ever seen.
Oscar Nominee
Avengers: Infinity War 2018
Eligible off a visual-effects nomination. He admits he barely remembers the plot beyond the ending, but says it was the theatrical event of the year.
Action Horror
Annihilation 2018
Alex Garland's adaptation of Jeff VanderMeer's novel. He didn't like it on first watch, partly from being too attached to the book, but came around to its ambitious, 2001-style third act.
Blockbuster
Mission: Impossible - Fallout 2018
The movie he had the most fun watching all year, seen at least twice in theaters, with the bathroom fight against Henry Cavill as the highlight.
Wildcard
Den of Thieves 2018
Christian Gudegast's Gerard Butler heist movie, most of it two guys shooting at each other across a bridge. He's brought it up on the show for years since.
Sean Fennessey
Drama
First Man 2018
Damien Chazelle's Neil Armstrong film with Ryan Gosling. He underrated it after an empty-IMAX first viewing in Burbank, then came around on a rewatch while prepping to interview Chazelle.
Comedy
The Favourite 2018
Yorgos Lanthimos's Queen Anne court drama, written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara. Emma Stone won Best Actress for it, and Olivia Colman won Best Actress too, for a role the hosts debate was actually lead.
Oscar Nominee
A Star Is Born 2018
Bradley Cooper's directorial debut, one of his two favorite movies of the decade.
Action Horror
Hereditary 2018
Ari Aster's family-trauma horror movie with Toni Collette. He saw it at a midnight South by Southwest screening in an empty Austin multiplex and calls Collette's performance one the Academy will never recognize.
Blockbuster
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2018
He calls it a masterpiece of the decade, maybe the century, and credits it with raising the bar for what an animated movie could look like.
Wildcard
First Reformed 2018
Paul Schrader's Ethan Hawke film about a reverend's crisis of faith. One of his favorite movies ever; he says he'd have felt wrong not drafting it.
On the board, undrafted honorable mentions
Jurassic World: Fallen KingdomBeirutSet It UpThe Kissing BoothIf Beale Street Could TalkBlacKkKlansmanMinding the GapMid90sThe First PurgeOverlordReady Player OneUnsaneFantastic Beasts: The Crimes of GrindelwaldFree SoloSorry to Bother YouThunder RoadCold WarShopliftersSolo: A Star Wars StoryBlockersRampageThe Equalizer 2Fifty Shades FreedA Simple FavorThe Ballad of Buster ScruggsBurningThe MuleMary Poppins Returns
Also mentioned raised along the way
In passing Apollo 13The Right StuffPromising Young WomanLa La LandWhiplashDon't Look UpIdiocracyIn the LoopThe Personal History of David CopperfieldGlengarry Glen RossVenomIncredibles 2AquamanDeadpool 2The GrinchAnt-Man and the WaspLong ShotThe Towering Inferno
Not films filtered out: TV, games, ads
TV VeepSuccessionThe GreatMayor of Kingstown1883WandaVisionDevs
Ads Boar's HeadNetflix FIFA World Cup Launch Edition