I can't believe that it's already March. I meant to make this list in January, but I held off partially to catch up on some movies I had missed and partially (ok, mostly) out of busyness and procrastination. These are probably not technically the best films of the year, but they are my favorites. Overall, I think the movies were better in 2016, but there were some good ones this year too.
10. Ghost in the Shell
Ghost in the Shell got a bad rap from from pretty much everyone. People complained about white-washing and unfaithfulness to the original anime. However, I've seen it twice and really liked it both times. It is a visually stunning movie and pretty entertaining throughout. Does it think that it's smarter than it actually is? Probably so, but as it's so rare to have a solid cyberpunk movie come out, I'll take it.
9. Only the Brave
If you like patriotic war movies, Only the Brave has the same feel. It is jam-packed with American ideals and the Western Man. It's a true story of sacrifice and heroism. All of which sounds like something I would hate, but Only the Brave completely drew me in. It's got some pretty great acting and I especially connected with the story of Brendan McDonough, a drug addict and convicted felon. McDonough, through the camaraderie and support of his colleagues, is able to slowly put aside his ways and become an upstanding person and father to his daughter. I strongly recommend it, but be prepared for an emotional experience.
8. Colossal
Colossal is a weird movie, which is probably why it's so under-appreciated. It starts off as a hybrid of an indie story of a woman's struggle with alcoholism with a kaiju movie. However, as the film goes on, it starts to develop elements of psychological horror as the main character is manipulated and threatened into staying in an abusive relationship. Anne Hathaway is phenomenal in Colossal. If you can get past the weirdness of the whole thing, Colossal is worth the watch.
7. Hidden Figures
I know what you're thinking. Isn't Hidden Figures a 2016 movie? Well, it was nominated for the Oscars as a 2016 movie, but under my admittedly arbitrary rules, it is a 2017 movie because it wasn't given a wide release until January 2017. But regardless of when it came out, Hidden Figures is just a solid movie on so many counts. It's a great civil rights movie, a great historical movie, a great science movie, and a great feminist movie.
6. Dunkirk
When I first saw Dunkirk, I was certain that it would be on the very top of this list. Not only was it directed by Christopher Nolan, the director who can do no wrong, the sheer spectacle of it just completely blew me. I didn't care that I couldn't tell the difference between the two young soldiers on the beach or that the timeline was needlessly complicated. I just sat there in awe. But then I re-watched it on DVD at home and I was surprisingly disappointed. I was bored and feeling nitpicky. By the end of the movie, I realized how much Dunkirk depends on being shown in a theater. That doesn't make it any less of a cinematic accomplishment, but a good movie should be able to transcend the screen size it is on, at least to some extent. So I still really liked Dunkirk, but I had to dock it for those reasons.
5. War for the Planet of the Apes
I'll admit, it was earlier in the year that I saw War for the Planet of the Apes and I only so it once, so my memory is a little fuzzy on it. I'm looking forward to watching it again. But I have really enjoyed the entire new Planet of the Apes trilogy and War was no different. I remember Andy Serkis being great and especially liking the way it functions as a sort of retelling of the Exodus story. This one was somewhat slower than the first two, but I think it was more thoughtful and philosophic. I own this film on DVD, so I might need to do a stand-alone review at some point in the future when I've seen it again.
4. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Talk about a controversial movie. While critics loved Last Jedi, fans were much more disappointed. Personally, I have mixed feelings about it. The parts I liked, I absolutely loved, but I hated the parts I didn't like. I didn't care for the entire casino planet sequence and I rolled my eyes at Princess Leia's force pull back from space. However, any scene with Rey and Kylo Ren well made up for the bad stuff. I was very interested in Kylo Ren from The Force Awakens because he seemed like he wasn't really committed to evil. Last Jedi reveals that he is a very tortured soul who struggles through the entire film until he finally commits to evil. And the battle on Crait? That was one of my favorite movie moments of the entire year. The way the red surface of the planet becomes exposed as the fight goes is almost gruesome and still hauntingly beautiful. That scene alone makes Last Jedi worth watching.
3. Logan
I wasn't going to watch Logan. It sounded more violent than anything I wanted to watch. But a close friend convinced me to give it a shot and I am so glad that I did. Logan does not spare the viewers any of the bleakness and bitterness that has consumed Wolverine's life. At one point, he tells his 11 year old companion that he carries around an adamantium bullet so that he can shoot himself some day. I feel like that one interaction sums up the feel of the entire movie. But Logan is so much more than an exercise in despair. It's actually more like a Western where the hero has to find himself in a world that has left him behind. For such a violent action movie, Logan takes plenty of time to slow down. It's thought-provoking and probably one of the best superhero movies since The Dark Knight.
2. Your Name
Here's another weird one. Your Name is a gorgeously drawn anime that is reminiscent of the films of Hayao Miyazaki. The main plot idea is that a teenage boy and a teenage girl who have never met keep waking up in each other's bodies. While it starts off with the typical awkward situations you might expect, as the film progresses, they learn to respect each other and come to have a truly deep connection. About half-way through the movie, the boy comes to the realization that they are separated by time as well as by distance. Your Name was probably overlooked by a lot of American viewers, but hopefully will come to get the following it deserves.
1. Darkest Hour
Honest Trailers described Darkest Hour as "a movie about all the talking that was going on at the same time" as Dunkirk. This is true, but doesn't mean that Darkest Hour is not worth your time. Gary Oldman is probably going to win the Best Actor Oscar on this one and for good reason. His phenomenal performance is comes together with the script, score, and cinematography to make a pretty good movie. I especially love the scene at the end where the light falls on Churchill in the House of Commons as he makes his "We Will Fight on the Beaches" speech. It's a solid drama and well worth watching.
Honorable Mentions
Here is where I try to redeem myself from the invariable outcry from the mob about their favorite film that didn't get listed. Of course, the mob isn't always right, but I'll toss them a bone.
First, I wanted to take a moment to highlight a film that almost made the list and I feel really bad about leaving off, especially as it's very unknown. Shorter than most feature films, Call of the Void is an indie neo-noir that is pitch black and nihilistic in its tone. It's a fascinating look at sanity and the use of camera as an unreliable narrator. Call of the Void has great performances from Mojean Aria and the ever charming Ashley Clements also has a leading role. You can stream Call of the Void on Amazon Prime.
So let me then briefly list some other movies that weren't good enough for the list, but are still worth watching. I really liked Valerian. It was visually stunning and filled with gorgeous colors and interesting aliens. Unfortunately, it was also a mess. And so it missed the cut. Gifted was also a good movie that sort of competes with Hidden Figures, but just wasn't as good. Still, McKenna Grace is pretty good for a child actress. As for superhero movies, all the Marvel movies were great, probably even slightly better than most. Wonder Woman almost made the cut, but the ending is just too hard to swallow. Jumanji was surprisingly good; it's the hardest I've laughed in a movie all year. Also, I was able to see some good documentaries that didn't quite fit what I was looking for for this list, but are definitely timely and worth watching (City of Ghosts, Abacus: Small Enough to Jail). The Florida Project is a movie that really connected with me, but is also one that I hesitate to recommend to everyone. You can read my full review here. Also, Stranger Things 2 would have made number one on my list if it weren't for the one problem of not being a movie.
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