It may be a lack of cinema visits this year but I struggled a lot with this post, mainly with actually coming up with ten films that I didn’t like. Not that this year has been full of masterpieces but predominantly because my main consideration when reviewing a film is not necessarily the technical aspects of film making but, more so, based on how much I enjoyed watching it. As a result, films that may have been slated by film critics wind up being some of my favourites, and films that fans rave about don’t quite sit right with me.

Which is something that you guys are going to have to, quite quickly, come to terms with because there are a couple of films in this list that I can 100000% guarantee you are not going to agree with.

On that rather ominous note, here is my ten most disappointing films of 2019.

10. Cats

It just goes to show how difficult it was to come up with a shortlist when I include a film that I haven’t even seen yet, however the given the amount of backlash that it has received so far, I’m pretty sure my decision is justified. Plus the film’s first trailer was made enough to warrant it’s inclusion. Once I have watched Cats, I am sure it will wind up placing much higher up in this list but for now it will sit here.

9. The Shining (1980)

I know, I know The Shining is not a 2019 film but considering this year was my first viewing I thought I would include it, especially as I needed to make up the numbers! If you have already read my review, you will know that I was really disappointed with this film and didn’t enjoy it all.

8. Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker

The first of my controversial choices, most of you will be surprised to see The Rise of Skywalker included in this list but, for me, it just didn’t hit the mark, the story was far too safe, predictable and rather boring. My viewing experience was probably affected somewhat by the fact that I watched this during a midnight showing immediately following a double bill showing of The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, both (in my opinion) far superior films. There were, however, some redeeming factors that stopped it from being a complete write off but in terms of deliverance versus expectation it was distinctly lacking.

7. Alita: Battle Angel

I’ll be honest, I can’t really remember what I didn’t like about Alita, in fact I don’t really remember the film at all, which, for me, speaks volumes and is why Robert Rodriguez’s blockbuster earns its place in this list.

6. Aladdin

The current trend of making live action adaptations of animated classics is quickly getting tiring. Whilst some absolutely knock it out of the park, others fail to live up to the standards of the original. Despite Will Smith’s surprisingly good performance as the Genie, and a brilliant new song, for me, Aladdin just fell a little too short in my estimations.

5. Eli

This film from Netflix had a promising first two acts but the total ridiculousness of the final third completely ruined the whole film for me. Fans of Hereditary will probably enjoy this film but considering Hereditary took the number one spot in last years ‘worst of‘ post, Eli‘s similarity to it has cemented its inclusion in this years list.

4. Us

Having heard a lot of good things about director Jordan Peele and his Oscar winning debut film, Get Out, my excitement and expectations for this film were pretty high. Unfortunately, I felt as though the film did not really know what it wanted to be, and the twist was confusing and a little absurd, all of which led to an overall feeling of dissatisfaction by the time the final credits rolled.

3. Jumanji: The Next Level

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was one of those films that I didn’t expect a lot of but that turns into a comedic gem, as a result I was really looking forward to seeing what The Next Level would deliver but unfortunately it suffered from the same plight as most unnecessary sequels and failed to deliver.

2. Dumbo

A live-action adaptation rather than a remake, Dumbo had the opportunity to do something different, break new ground, give us something surprising. Instead director Tim Burton delivered something that was more style over substance and ultimately failed to deliver.

1. Avengers: Endgame

If I thought that my inclusion of Star Wars would be controversial, that is nothing compared to my decision to call the highest grossing film, not just of 2019 but of all time, my worst film of 2019. Yes, the scale of the film was immense and impressive. Yes, I cried at certain points. Yes, they managed to tie up a vast amount of storylines in a pretty bow, but…

For me; the film dragged on for far too long, too many great characters were pushed to the sidelines and the time travel aspect was just lazy and a little confusing. I wanted to give Endgame the benefit of the doubt but I was even more bored and disappointed during my second viewing than I was initially.

As I stated earlier, my main consideration when watching a film is enjoyment and I found Endgame to be exceedingly underwhelming and overtly boring, and it is for that reason why it immediately cemented its place as my most disappointing film of the year, and nothing has been able to dislodge it since.

So there you have it, my top ten worst films of 2019, many of which, I am sure, will sit in many people’s list of favourites but each to their own.

If you fancy a bit of reminiscing, then check out my worst list from 2018, or for something a little more positive, take a look at my favourite films of 2019.