That's right folks, it's almost time for the 6th Annual O'scars...my list of the top films of the year. 2016 was a pretty good year for film. I saw 47 theatrically released films. Most were at least "aight" and 13 were top-notch.
A Special O'scar for Weirdest Movie of the Year: THE LOBSTER
Colin Farrell is a talented actor...and thank goodness he is, because The Lobster is absolutely bizarre. From the ridiculous plot to the intentionally stilted dialogue, this film challenges the viewer to keep watching. I stuck it out to the end, though I don't know if I can say that was rewarding. I enjoy "weird"...but I sometimes thought this film was weird merely for weird's sake. If there was a higher purpose, it escaped me. But it had John C. Reilly in it, so...REDEMPTION.
A Special O'scar for My Guilty Pleasure of 2016: MIKE AND DAVE NEED WEDDING DATES
Such a funny cast! Adam DeVine and Aubrey Plaza, in particular, added to my enjoyment of this ridiculous film. The great Stephen Root as the dad...Anna Kendrick, funny as always...Kumail Nanjiani in a hilarious small role. This movie won't win any Oscars, but it made me laugh, even when it was dumb.
A Special O'scar for WORST Film of the Year: CAPTAIN FANTASTIC
You know that person that thinks he knows everything? The one that has to be hipper than everyone...that corrects everyone when they are wrong...that thinks they know what's best for everyone? That person is the cast of Captain Fantastic...in particular the children of Viggo Mortensen's character. What a bunch of insufferable brats. I wouldn't wish these children on any parent. Viggo Mortensen is a great actor, but this film is so pretentious that it almost defies description. For the love of everything Holy, don't watch it. You'll thank me.
A Special O'scar for Superhero Movies: "Dr. Batman's Strange Civil War Against Captain Deadpool's Suicidal Apocalypse."
Around the beginning of the millennium, technology began to make comic book movies fun to watch. Without CGI, it just wasn't possible to make a realistic Avengers, Spider-Man, etc. Now, we are inundated with superheroes. We're on our third retelling of Spider-Man's story in 10 years, which seems a bit excessive. In a sense, it's an embarrassment of riches because the quality of superhero films this year was fairly high. But, they are beginning to run together in my mind. It doesn't help that Marvel and DC are running very similar plot lines in their respective universes. I liked just about every Marvel/DC movie this year, despite DC's obvious inferiority. Partly because I've reached my superhero saturation point, none of these films made my Top 13 this year. But here they are in order of my enjoyment:
Tier 1: Captain America: Civil War and Deadpool
Tier 2: Dr. Strange and X-Men: Apocalypse
Tier 3: Batman vs. Superman and Suicide Squad
In my opinion, Guardians of the Galaxy was the freshest, most interesting comic book movie of the last 10 years. I'm looking forward to the sequel.
THE ARRIVAL...so close. Probably was the best of the rest.
BFG...very cute film. Loved the giant serving Her Majesty.
KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS...best (and only) animated film I saw this year.
CAFE SOCIETY...nice work by Woody Allen.
MIDNIGHT SPECIAL...Michael Shannon excellent as always.
GREEN ROOM...do you hate Nazis? You'll like this.
10 CLOVERFIELD LANE...John Goodman, 'nuff said.
EYE IN THE SKY...tense thriller about drone warfare.
THE NICE GUYS...Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe made a very good film that erred in a few critical ways that lost it a place among the Tier 1 movies of the year.
And now, the Top 13 Films of the Year...
#13: A HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING
Tom Hanks is a movie star. He can carry a film all by himself, but he didn't have to in this offbeat film about an American businessman falling in love in Saudi Arabia. Both his love interest, a divorced Muslim woman (Sarita Choudhury), and his cab driver, played by the very funny Alex Black, make the movie worth seeing. I enjoyed the subtlety of the film's explorations of various themes surrounding a different culture. A fine piece of work by the writers, directors, and performers.
#12 Best Film of the Year:
EVERYBODY WANTS SOME
Richard Linklater was widely heralded for his excellent "Boyhood." He follows that up with a look into college life for a group of baseball players in 1980's Texas. He cast a group of raw, young actors to play those parts. Though I was only 5 in 1980, I found the portrayals to be accurate and heartfelt. There is a certain sweetness to the film that I found endearing...despite the fact that much of it centers around the characters' attempts to find "romance" of a most temporary kind. The film is a reminder of how much has changed in my lifetime...especially our relationship to technology.
#11 Best Film of the Year:
PASSENGERS
Essentially, this film is a castaway story with the twist that you get to choose your fellow castaway. The plot is well-done, but it's the performances by Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence that make this one of my top films of the year. Lawrence is already the greatest star of her generation, but I believe Chris Pratt is the movie star of the future. He's funny, a nice guy, and can play the "everyman." So, watch it, fall in love with Jennifer Lawrence or Chris Pratt, and enjoy the ride. Plus, Laurence Fishburne!
#10 Best Film of the Year:
SULLY
Hey, there's Tom Hanks again. It's no accident. He's the go-to actor for roles aged 45-65 for a reason. I love Aaron Eckhart in this as well. If you learn anything from this movie, it's to trust men with manly moustaches to make sure things will turn out just fine. I found the film quite moving as the plane was about to land...though I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because Sully was so heroic. Maybe because it had a happy ending. Regardless, 3 Cheers 4 Sully!
#9 Best Film of the Year:
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY
After The Force Awakens smothered us with wonderful nostalgia, it was time for a change of pace. Even though the plot was intricately wound up with the grand story of the original movie, Rogue One felt original and fresh. This tale of rebellion worked expertly at creating a fondness for the new characters (though we barely got to know them before they perished). I thoroughly enjoyed the ending scene. The way it connected the film with A New Hope was very satisfying. I look forward to future stand-alone Star Wars films!
LION
Was someone cuttin' onions while I watched this movie??? Seriously, don't bring raw onions to a movie theater. It was hard not to get wrapped up in the emotions of a tale like this. A lost boy, separated from his family, endangered in an uncaring world...rescued from abroad, but still wounded by his experience. I think the story of Saroo's brother was an important addition to this film. It provided the plot with more emotional complexity. A boy rescued and living happily ever after would have been a little too neat. Nice work by the actor playing young Saroo. Maybe he'll become the next Dev Patel.
THE WITCH
I contemplated moving this film further up the list. It might well deserve it. Daniel Day Lewis truly inhabited the character of a goat named Black Phillip. Just kidding...Black Phillip was played by a actor-goat named Charlie. But jeez, this movie was as about as spooky as they come. A Puritan too pure for his fellow Puritans moves to the isolated frontier with his family. And then the baby disappears. His eldest daughter Thomasin bears the brunt of the family's continued misfortune...right up to the end. It is unlike any other film I saw this year...in a very good way. This film helps us understand the superstitions and mythology of Puritan Christianity. Loved it!
THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
A high-quality coming of age tale is always welcome in my book. The 1980s produced so many of those kind of films, especially thanks to John Hughes. The Edge of Seventeen is a worthy heir to this tradition. This film features an outstanding performance by Hailee Steinfeld, whom you probably remember as the little girl from True Grit. The teenagers in this film were very true-to-life...very believable. It's not easy being that age, and Steinfeld shows us how difficult it can be. Also a great, understated performance by Woody Harrelson as her teacher. If you find that you don't understand teenagers today, give this film a shot. It might help.
#5 Best Film of the Year:
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA
Ok...YES, this film does have all the hallmarks of a 2-Kleenex box tearjerker. So much undeserved suffering! A lesser film would just ride that to box office success. But Casey Affleck shows off his filmmaking chops in this piece of deserved Oscar-bait. I know, it's hard to believe he transformed himself into a Bostonian for this role, but stick with it. I very much enjoyed Michelle Williams as his ex-wife and Lucas Hedges as the bereaved nephew. Though it is a very sad film, it is also hopeful and funny; and it isn't easy to do all those things in one movie. I think this film vaults Casey into the role of Top Affleck in Hollywood. If you haven't seen it yet, give it a shot. It's "wicked good."
#4 Best Film of the Year:
LA LA LAND
"City of stars...are you shining just for me?"
A beautiful film with a wonderful soundtrack performed by talented Ryan Gosling and ever-so-lovely Emma Stone. Honestly, you could just go see it for the music. But the story is such a great one that it earns all those accolades and awards it has and soon will be receiving. Grumpy Gosling (The Canadian Gos) is especially entertaining as the jazz purist forced to play lesser music. Great chemistry between the co-stars helps...as does Emma Stone's enormous energy and top-level talent. See Manchester first, and then this movie to give you a pick-me-up.
#3 Best Film of the Year:
HELL OR HIGH WATER
Jeff Bridges at his most irascible, gnarled, and feisty...a veritable human badger. West Texas, in all its stark glory...its inhabitants unique and raw and real. The grinding rural poverty that never lets up...and that keeps getting worse. A good man in a desperate situation...a much less good man by his side. Two lawmen, each representing different and legitimate faces of modern Texas. A great film that is easily worth the price of admission. A thinking man's thrill ride.
#2 Best Film of the Year:
LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP
Whit Stillman is the greatest writer/director you haven't heard of. "Barcelona" and "The Last Days of Disco" are his two greatest works. In fact, "Barcelona" is probably my favorite movie of all-time. So, when I heard he was going to adapt the little-known Jane Austen novella "Lady Susan" into a film, I was both ecstatic and afraid: ecstatic because I love all his work, but afraid because I've never been a big fan of Jane Austen. My fears were without merit. I laughed more during this film than every other film put together this year. Kate Beckinsale is perfectly ridiculous as she attempts to scheme her way into a rich marriage at a time when this was one of the few ways a woman could achieve power and success. The dialogue in this film, adapted by Stillman, is absolutely brilliant and raucously funny. Tom Bennett provides great comedy as Sir James Martin, while Stephen Fry is the epitome of English sobriety and good sense. Chloë Sevigny, as usual, is brilliant. I absolutely loved this film. In fact, I feel like I need to watch it again, very soon.
And now, the #1 Best Film of the Year:
SING STREET
From the man who wrote and directed "Once"...a story about a high school boy in 1985 inner-city Dublin who decides to form a band to impress a girl (92% of bands are created to impress women). The music is fantastic, the young actors are brilliant, and the plot is loads of fun. The protagonist, Conor, is forced to attend a lesser school when his dad announces he can't afford to pay tuition. He struggles with bullies and creepy priests before meeting an older girl that lives across the street from school. To impress her, he tells her he needs a model for his band's music video. From there, he and his band steadily improve, making music in the various styles popular in the '80s. Conor's older brother Brendan is particularly enjoyable, giving advice on music and life, despite his slacker lifestyle. This film is funny and sweet and full of life. It's a great way to end this list...and a good way to start this coming weekend. So go check it out.
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