Cinema · 2019 Ranked
Best Films of 2019, Ranked by IQ Score
The last year before COVID reshaped cinema. The films of 2019, ranked by IQ Score.
2019 is the last year before COVID reshaped cinema. Parasite won Best Picture (the first non-English-language film to do so). Joker made over a billion dollars on a $55M budget. Marriage Story, 1917, Knives Out, Uncut Gems, all canonical within the same twelve months.
The structural argument for 2019-as-canonical-year: the convergence of A24's prestige-indie catalog (Uncut Gems, The Lighthouse), Netflix theatrical-prestige (Marriage Story, The Irishman), Korean cinema's commercial breakthrough (Parasite), and the franchise-conclusion year (Avengers: Endgame). The last fully-functional theatrical year before COVID reshaped distribution.
22 titles · ranked by IQ Score
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Questions about this ranking
What is the best film of 2019?
By IQ Score on TV Intelligentsia, Parasite (168) anchors the year, Best Picture winner, first non-English-language film to win the category. Joker, Marriage Story, 1917, The Irishman, and Uncut Gems round out the canonical entries.
Was 2019 cinema's last good year?
2019 is the year-of-density argument's best 2010s candidate. The decade-ending convergence of A24, Netflix theatrical, Korean cinema's breakthrough (Parasite), and the franchise-conclusion year produced an unusual density at the top of the catalog.
How did COVID change cinema after 2019?
The 2020 theatrical shutdown accelerated streaming's dominance over theatrical distribution. The mid-budget studio film (the $20-50M prestige drama) was the casualty, most subsequent years have produced fewer mid-budget entries at canonical scale than 2019 did.
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