Half the year has passed and we’ve seen some excellent film releases, some very watchable ones, and some stinkers – here are the seven best as of June 2018.

The Shape of Water

Guillermo del Toro’s latest, and possibly greatest film to date, The Shape of Water, made a huge impact when it released in January.

The unique love story between a woman and a human-fish hybrid creature was peculiar, to say the least, and not without some controversy.

Only the likes of Del Toro can get away with such an oddball, fantasy-romance film that went on to win 4 Oscars – easily one of the year’s best films.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri

Another popular film at the Oscars, taking home 2 awards at the most recent ceremony, Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri is a moving crime drama with some exceptional performances from its cast members Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell.

The film’s subject is not one to make light of no matter how you slice it, yet McDonagh finds a way to interject humour and an overall light-ish tone in a film that could just as well have worked as a hard drama.

It’s a film that subverts expectations considering the themes – the type that doesn’t come around very often.

Annihilation

Alex Garland’s Ex Machina was a breakout hit among sci-fi film fans and critics when it dropped in 2014.

His highly anticipated follow-up Annihilation lived up to expectations, and then some.

The film follows a biologist (Natalie Portman) and her crew into an unknown alien landscape that has mysteriously appeared on Earth, with some horrific results.

The best thing about this film, however, is all the questions it leaves you with at the end (oh, and you can watch it on Netflix from the comfort of your own home).

Phantom Thread

Paul Thomas Anderson, a director’s director, did not disappoint with his latest film, Phantom Thread.

Featuring his There Will Be Blood (2007) collaborator, and one of this generation’s finest actors, Daniel Day-Lewis, the film follows the legacy of a 1950’s high-fashion dressmaker.

A snoozefest, you’re likely thinking, but the character study in this film is of the highest quality, along with the performances.

A must-see in 2018 for anyone remotely interested in top-quality cinema.

The Ritual

David Bruckner’s Netflix film The Ritual hit home screens in 2018 with a mixed-to-positive reception.

The underrated horror film follows four high-school friends that trek out on a hiking tour in a dense, Scandinavian forest to pay tribute to a lost friend.

Everyone knows how scary dark forests are, and Bruckner plays along those fears extremely well when the friends begin to see and hear things that shouldn’t, and couldn’t be there, but are.

The nightmarish trip tests the limits of their friendship, as well as the audience’s fear factor.

Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Infinity War, a spectacle film 10 years in the making arrived earlier this year and was a massive hit!

Marvel’s films had definitely hit a saturation point, but somehow, the team at Marvel Studios have managed to breathe new life into their film universe with this epic release.

Infinity War will have you gobsmacked, will have you laughing, and by the end, probably crying.

It’s a hard task to get a superhero film to give you so many emotions, but this one does it.

Thoroughbreds

Probably the least known film on this list, Thoroughbreds is a great little crime drama featuring two of the industry’s biggest rising stars in Anya Taylor-Joy and Olivia Cooke.

One could say the film even borrows a lot of motifs from the movies of the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, as well as some great performances from its leads.

Featuring some evocative themes, Thoroughbreds is definitely one film that’s worth seeking out this year.

It too, sadly, was the late Anton Yelchin’s final performance in a film, if you needed another reason to check it out.

Notable omissions:

Ready Player One

While I really enjoyed Stephen Spielberg’s Ready Player One, it was, essentially, just a textbook blockbuster, by the inventor of the modern blockbuster.

As far as engaging popcorn movies go, this one easily hits the mark, but does it bring anything new to the table?

Not really.

A Quiet Place

Could A Quiet Place be this year’s most overrated film?

Well, it’s too early to say, however, I think it’s right up there.

The film was definitely enjoyable, and its whole ‘silent’ gimmick worked for the most part, but at the end of the day, it was just that – a gimmick.

Hereditary

The only reason this film didn’t make the list is because I haven’t seen it yet, unfortunately.

But if you believe all the buzz, then Hereditary should likely end up on everyone’s top-lists of the year.

I, Tonya

Margot Robbie (pictured top of the page) absolutely crushed it in I, Tonya.

As did Sebastian Stan and Allison Janney.

It was hard leaving this one out, but as entertaining as the film was, there wasn’t much separating it from the formulas of biopics that came before it.

What do you think?

Let us know if you agree/disagree with any of my choices, and what you think needs to be added/removed in the comments below!