The Top Ten Best Damn Movies of 2017. Period.

Buy and large, 2017 was one of the best years for movies we’ve had in a while (mediocre superheroes and a few sci-fi abominations not withstanding). It’s safe to say that making this list was very difficult, as there was an embarrassment of riches to pick from. Needless to say, several great movies will get little more than an honorable mention here.

But enough preface. In a post-truth world full of lies, scams, and fake news around every corner, the people need a Top 10 Movie list they can trust, so without further ado:

10) Raw

What’s not to like about a stylish French body-horror movie about college-aged cannibals? While it didn’t blow me away, Julia Ducournau’s genre-bending effort was more engaging than most films this year.  And despite all the salacious headlines, the film is, at its core, a coming of age story, one that focuses on an often overlooked part of growing up: facing down one’s demons and coming to terms with the dark, unpleasant aspects of one’s self. And it does this very well, using stylish cinematography, art direction, and great performances to tell a thoughtful, gross, and engrossing story of a young woman’s struggle with her own demons, ones that blur the line between sex, love, hunger, violence, and self destruction.

9) I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore

The directorial debut of writer/actor/Jeremy Saulnier’s best friend Macon Blair is basically a Jeremy Saulnier movie if the guy was into comedies. And it’s great. When lead actress Melanie Lysnkey’s Betty becomes fed up with literally everyone and all their bullshit, she goes on a quest for revenge against the burglars who stole her grandmother’s silverware, accompanied by a wonderfully weird Elijah Wood. They end up stumbling into more than they bargained for as the movie offers up more surprises and genuine suspense than most Hollywood thrillers can manage along with plenty of laughs. Macon Blair proves himself to be a creative force on in his own right, and this movie only makes me even more excited for 2018’s Hold the Dark.

8) It Comes at Night

Some people judge movies based on their marketing. Those people are very stupid and should not be allowed to operate heavy machinery.

While not a horror movie, It Comes at Night is a nauseatingly suspenseful drama with enough tension and anxiety to make most popcorn horror films look tame by comparison. The acting, production design, sound, and cinematography are all excellent and this bleak-as-hell story about survivors of a viral apocalypse is executed flawlessly. The grimness becomes a bit much as the film goes on, but I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

7) The Lost City of Z

I’m still not sure if Charlie Hunnam can act, but this movie is so good, he doesn’t really have a chance to do any damage. The film follows real life explorer Percy Fawcett (Hunnam) and his many expeditions to South America, all of which lead to his eventual obsession with finding a supposed lost civilization and the many conflicts that arise from that obsession. The movie is an excellent example of technique and atmosphere making up for a story that, while surprisingly true to the facts, feels like it has a few too many contrivances thrown in for drama’s sake. Every frame is gorgeous and the film does a great job of explaining the right things and leaving the right things ambiguous. It’s totally enthralling from beginning to end and, as a bonus, features a great performance from Robert Pattinson, who is proving himself to be one of the great chameleonic actors working today.

6) Brawl in Cell Block 99

A gritty grindhouse thriller with enough gore and great dialogue for two movies, Brawl is pure genre excellence. S. Craig Zahler, the writer/director/composer behind Bone Tomahawk, outdoes himself here, with a much leaner and meaner flick. It’s story and technical aspects are fairly straightforward, but the dialogue and simple, yet devastatingly effective fight sequences take precedence here. And to boot, Vince Vaughan (who was always better suited for drama than comedy) delivers his best performance yet as a taciturn criminal who has to fight his way into the nastiest prison on earth in order to save his wife and unborn child in a thrilling videogame-style dungeon crawl.

5) Logan Lucky

People these days seem to talk a lot about how serious blockbuster movies are and how they need to be more “fun”. Well, no movie in 2017 (except one) was more fun than Logan Lucky. Steven Soderberg, Mr. “Not Boring” himself, is back and as great as ever. The film features many of Soderberg’s favorite topics (heists, double-crosses, clever underdogs going up against more powerful people, money) as well as his signature off kilter, never-use-the-same-angle-twice camera work. It’s also impeccably cast, with a few winks at the audience thrown in (i.e. Daniel Craig and Hillary Swank). While held back a bit by some odd choices near the end, Logan Lucky is a blast to watch, a rare movie that does almost everything well.

4) The Killing of a Sacred Deer

The Lobster writer/director Yorgos Lanthimos doubles down on all his stylistic eccentricities in this tale about a father who must choose a family member to sacrifice as part of a bizarre, mystical revenge scheme. An interesting mix of multiple genres, deadpan deliveries, excellent camerawork (so many zooms!), and plenty of tar-black comedy makes this one of the most unique and well-executed ideas to come out in the past few years. It’s dark, strange, obtuse, and wonderfully funny. Comparisons to Kubrick are dime a dozen for this film, especially in relation to the late master’s best and final work, Eyes Wide Shut. But Lanthimos does plenty to help this movie stand well enough on its own, outside of the great Kubrick’s long shadow. While not for everyone, and hampered by a weak ending, The Killing of a Sacred Deer is well worth the price of admission.

3) Dunkirk

What I’m about to say might sound insane, but I think Dunkirk is criminally underrated. The conventional western narrative structure demands a clear, single protagonist, who has a clear goal, and is impeded by a single, defined antagonist. Dunkirk is often faulted for not fitting into this basic paradigm, but that’s kinda the point. Dunkirk may be the first slice-of-life war film, more documentary than narrative, more Battle of Algiers than Saving Private Ryan. It’s not about following an individual character, it’s about getting the audience to experience and understand the totality of the Battle of Dunkirk, and in that respect the film succeeds masterfully. Dunkirk captures the essence of a single event with immense clarity and precision and as a result, creates more tension, suspense, and anxiety than most blockbusters could ever hope to muster. One goes through the entire film with a knot in one’s stomach, truly feeling like anyone could die at any time. The film's editing is superb; it’s toying with time an excellent vehicle for exploring the battle. All the technical aspects are great and Tom Hardy’s in it, so extra brownie points for that.

2) John Wick: Chapter 2

When I walked out of the theater on opening night, I was worried I had seen the best movie of 2017 with 10 months left in the year. I was (almost) right. John Wick 2 is fucking awesome. It’s so fucking awesome that all I could think about while watching every other action movie this year was, “I could be watching John Wick 2 instead”. It’s the 2^nd best action movie of the last few years (behind Mad Max: Fury Road) and one of the best of all time. Chad Stahelski and Co. manage to perfectly balance ridiculousness and seriousness while walking the tightrope of badassery all the way from beginning to end. It takes everything that made the first one good: great choreography, stylish lighting and production design, precise camerawork, disciplined editing, and a comically blunt performance from Keanu Reeves, and raises it all to dizzying new heights while managing to raise the stakes to a level that manages to be both enthralling and absurd in a self-aware way. The film also features a roster of great character actors like Lawrence Fishburn, Ian McShane, Peter Serafinowizc, Peter Stormare, and Franco Nero all delivering hilariously hammy performances. And the action…my God…I can’t even begin to describe how great it is. I was giggling like a schoolgirl for over 2 hours. John Wick 2 was the most fun I had at the movies all year.

1) Good Time

It’s hard to give John Wick 2 the #1 slot, mainly because it isn’t “about anything”, at least anything other than stylish murder. Good Time, however, is the “serious” movie that matches John Wick 2 in terms of excellence. From New York’s Josh and Ben Safdie, Good Time is a film about desperate people trying to survive in a world that’s entirely too much to bear. Its style and mood reminded me a lot of the original Bladerunner, oddly enough. It follows Connie Nikas (Robert Pattinson) who has to scrap together enough money to get his mentally handicapped brother out of Ryker’s Island before he gets himself killed. But Connie, a generally shitty person, finds himself getting farther from his goal over the course of a single night, as his antics and manipulations continually make things worse and worse. The story, like Connie’s scheming, becomes more convoluted as it progresses, strange characters come and go, problems are solved only to introduce new ones, until the whole damn thing threatens to crumble under its own weight. The whole movie oozes style, with fittingly frenetic cinematography, excellent on-location lighting, and the best score of the year from musician Daniel Lopatin as well as a great original song from Iggy Pop. To boot, the entire cast delivers great performances. The movie pulls off a difficult high-wire act: It indulges in plenty of absurdity, but lets that absurdity comment on the narrative without overwhelming it. It manages to be sincere without being mawkish. And ultimately, it’s a story about a bad man trying to do one good thing: to save his brother and, by extension, himself. It’s about trying to care for and do right by the people you love, even if you’re not the right person to love them. It’s a movie that left a strong impression on me, one that’s lasted long after the screen faded to black and it’s the best damn movie of 2017.

So that’s that. The 10 best. Period.

Now of course this year’s was a crowded field, and a lot of good and great films were left on the outside looking in. Films like: PhantomThread, The Disaster Artist, Super Dark Times, Baby Driver, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Get Out, Personal Shopper, and A Ghost Story. 

~ G

Austin's Top 10

Austin here -

So I’ll be honest, I wasn’t really planning on actually writing this list, but then I saw how inconceivably bad Matt’s list was and decided that you readers deserve a list worth reading. I did not see nearly as many movies as the other two did because I somehow even have more of a life than those two nerds.

I'm not going to have any summaries of the movies in my list because it's boring and nobody cares. Y'all gotta trust me and just see the movies I've listed.

Blah blah blah something witty, blah blah blah. Here’s my list:

10 - The Lost City of Z

I was actually looking forward to this movie because I had read the book the film was based on and it didn’t disappoint. Who knew Charlie Hunnam could act?

9 - It

If you look at It as purely a scary movie, it’s mediocre. But as a coming-of-age film, it’s really entertaining and fun. I was never really scared in this movie, but all the characters were fun and the Pennywise dancing scene was amazing.

8 - Mayhem

I thought Mayhem was going to be right up my alley and it is to a certain point. It’s ridiculous and entertaining, but it just feels like they didn’t go far enough. The pay off lacks and the action isn’t very interesting. That being said, I did really enjoy this movie and Steven Yeun is awesome in it!

7 - I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore 

This movie is weird in all the right ways. It’s sooo indie, which would usually turn me off, but I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore is so fun, funny, exciting, and ridiculous that it earns a big, fat gold star.

6 - Dunkirk

Okay, Matt diss round 1. This one might get me in trouble, but I think we all know by now that I don’t really care.

OF COURSE, THIS GODDAMN MOVIE DOESN’T HAVE FEMALE CHARACTERS IN THE FOREGROUND BECAUSE IT’S ABOUT A SCENARIO IN WHICH NO GODDAMN WOMEN WERE PRESENT. I swear, I almost had a stroke when I read Matt’s paragraph about this movie. If Matt wants to make a WWII movie about women's role in WWII, then he can do that, but why does Nolan need to shoehorn women into a movie that they’re not supposed to be in??? Hey Matt, are you going to denounce Saving Private Ryan and your beloved Spielberg? No, I didn’t think so. Oh, and before Matt starts with the Austin hates women thing, TWO OF THE MOVIES IN MY TOP 7 MOVIES HAVE FEMALE LEADS.

Now, let’s talk about the movie. Dunkirk is awesome. It’s 2 hours of pure suspense and it’s so well directed and shot. Everything about this movie is executed so amazingly and this is the movie I’m hoping wins best picture!

5 - The Blackcoat’s Daughter

It’s been established that I’m UTW horror movie guy and I have to say it was a down year for horror movies. However, The Blackcoat’s Daughter stands out as easily the best of the year (I don’t count It Comes At Night as a horror film). It’s eerie, it’s atmospheric, and has really good performances from some young actresses. This movie has what most modern horror movies don’t: subtlety. This movie will probably bore the average viewer. Luckily, we don’t care about them.

4 - It Comes At Night

This movie is so agonizingly suspenseful. It’s also extremely well done. I know audiences hated this movie because it was mismarketed, but audiences have an average IQ of about 40 so I don’t really care what they have to say. Do yourself a favor and watch this movie.

3 - Happy Hunting

I only watched this movie because the poster looked almost identical to that of Blue Ruin. Oh man, was that a great decision. This movie was probably so cheap to make, but it is so goddamn entertaining. First, the cinematography is amazing. Second, it has so much amazing schlock. I know that probably nobody has ever heard of this movie, but thanks to me, you have. Now, go on Netflix and watch it! And then, you can come back here and thank me. Oh, and one of the main characters looks like a domesticated Henry Rollins so that’s fun!

2 - Brawl in Cell Block 99

Okay, I don’t know where Matt is getting this overt “America!” message in this movie, but he also loves Hook so maybe we shouldn’t put much credence into his thoughts on movies… This movie is so good it’s annoying. The movie starts with Vince Vaughn literally ripping a car apart with his bare friggin’ hands. He then proceeds to punch everybody and everything in front of him. This is probably Vince Vaughn’s best performance.

1 - John Wick 2

Gabe and I saw this when it came out and we were giggling like little girls the whole time. C’mon it’s Keanu Reeves murdering everybody for over 2 hours. What’s not to like?

Honorable Mentions: Justice League and Wonder Woman:

I feel like I have to talk about these movies because I’m the token DC apologists at UTW.

Yes, Justice League is stupid, schlocky, and has a bad villain. However, I had such a good time watching this movie that I can’t help but give it a shoutout.

As far as Wonder Woman goes, it’s in a gruesome battle with Logan as the most “it’s fine” movie of the year.

Worst Movie of the Year: Star Wars: The Last Jedi

I don’t know if mere words can convey how I feel about TLJ. This movie is so terrible in so many ways. And no Matt, this movie is not a mature Star Wars movie. What the hell is mature about Luke milking an effing space cow??? This movie is boring, the plot is meandering, and it pretty much acts like no other Star Wars movies exist. I’ll probably need to write a separate post about why this movie is terrible, but that will likely be at a later date.

Oh, and the hyperdrive scene was not cool. It made no sense and was very awkward when all the sound cut in the theater.




x

Matt's Top 15, 2017

Matt here--

In lieu of the trio doing an episode, we all agreed that we would start to use this blog the way it was meant to be used - to say stupid things and hope people try to debate us (at least, that's what I thought a blog was supposed to be). To kick it off, and before we get into double digits in February, we wanted to post our favorite films of 2017. While there will be some overlap of movies (due to us being in fairly constant contact), there is a good chance that the lists won't match up 100%. While some people (Gabe) will tell you that their list is objective and 100% fact and you are wrong if you don't agree, mine is much more just my opinion as a moviegoer who went to quite a few flicks this year. My taste is probably the most modest of the three of us.

Without further ado, and in no particular order, I give you my top... 15 (because I couldn't decide on ONLY 10):

1. Wind River
   I like any movie that shows me something I don't normally see. I also enjoy a good Jeremy Renner movie. I also like a movie that pleasantly surprises me. I'll be honest - a movie about an employee from Fishing and Wildlife solving a murder on Native American soil in the dead of... August(?)... when it is bitter cold in Wisconsin sounds like the kind of movie I would probably stay away from. But there was something about the dedication to show the world of these people and their way of life, and in some ways how they are completely disconnected from their heritage and from the rest of the world, that I absolutely loved. I will say that the camera work can be better, and the editing is a little choppy... but the dedication from the cast and crew to bring the world to life in a way that both entertains, educates, and depresses is worth the price of admission. It's an insult that this movie wasn't considered at all for any major awards.
   
2. Blade Runner 2049
   I think there are two types of people who watch Blade Runner 2049: those that will hold their bladder till the almost-three-hour film ends, and those that won't. I was the former. Most people complained about the pace of the film, wished it was faster, that it was too cold and sterile, that there was too much packed into the film, what-have-you. I totally dug the flick from beginning to end. I thought Ryan Gosling did a great job as K, I thought the philosophical undertones were great, and I couldn't stop laughing at old-ass Harrison Ford running himself ragged through the flick. I will say that I never felt Ford was playing Deckard as much as he was just playing himself, but that's a minor nitpick (that and his lame costume... I'm not sure what they were thinking in a film with such visually rich outfits). The production design, camera work, performances, directing - all stellar. I love long movies, and this is certainly one I'll come back to a few times.
   
3. John Wick Chapter 2
   If you don't like John Wick Chapter 2 then you should never visit this blog again. Expanding on the world created in John Wick, the film boasts amazing cinematography, editing, production design, pacing, character development... the film is the Bee's Knees. Keanu Reeves plays the role perfectly - the clashing motivation is set up perfectly and the action is top notch - better than the first film. I could sit here and praise the movie all day, but it's much better to just sit down and watch the damn thing. "Will somebody PLEASE get this man a gun?"
   
4. Wonder Woman
   It's fitting that the first female super hero film of this generation of superhero films be Wonder Woman. It's also fitting that it is one of the best films of the year. A lot of people have complained that it feels too much like a generic Marvel movie and that the ending is fairly "blah" or corny. I think that sums up the superhero genre perfectly - a bit corny, but a whole lot of fun. The production design is phenomenal, Gal Gadot proves she can carry the movie (though this one gets by on playing off the character's naivete - something that made all the interactions interesting but not something that can be replicated in a second film). Chris Pine is excellent (as usual), and the supporting, diverse cast adds a bit of texture to the movie. I will say that the first time I saw it, I felt the ending was spiraling out of control, and I would like a better villain than a digital David Thewlis... but that's a minor nitpick in what is one of my favorite Superhero films ever made.
   
   Also, I want to see a Robin Wright action film.
   
5. Dunkirk
   It's not perfect, and it probably won't win the Academy Award for Best Picture. It's another WWII film that leaves women as background. While everyone has gone gaga over the cinematography, I'm not sold on it - the color timing is horrible and if you're creating these beautiful vistas, why are you framing shot-reverse shot so close and not taking advantage of the gorgeous 70mm canvas? With those complaints aside, the movie goes back to the best of Christopher Nolan's roots - playing with cinematic time to create suspense and dramatic potential. As a fan of Tom Hardy, I decree that he steals this movie as the coolest character - vastly downplayed in the trailers, he is the ultimate thinking-man's pilot who has the best ticking clock in the movie. Outside of Hardy's storyline, though, I didn't much care for any of the other storylines (special shout out to Kenneth Branaugh, who makes two appearances on the list, as probably my second-favorite character). I do like the ultimate conclusion of Mark Rylance's story, but the one that takes the center stage - the boy running away from the fight - is also my least favorite and the one that, to me, struggles to find its footing (as it takes place over a week). Still, the film game is fun in this movie and, at a tight 106 minutes, moves at an almost perfect rate.
   
6. The Last Jedi
   People who want a mature Star Wars movie but complain about this film should shoot themselves for their own stupidity. Is the movie perfect? No. The Canto Bight sequence is boring (as is the running animals), the film struggles to give Finn and Rose anything to do (hence the boring sequence) - tragic since John Boyega is all in with these movies (he deserves a better character), the film struggles to create a tense ticking clock and then twarts its own efforts by making characters planet-hop, Luke never really goes all "Force Unleashed" like we were all hoping he would, there's still no really good reason aside from dashing Poe's pride that Holdo doesn't tell him (and Holdo should have been given more badass stuff to do aside from what she does at the end)...
   
   But what it does right more than makes up for any issues I have for it. Rey becomes a much more complex character with this movie (she was interesting in The Force Awakens, but was very rarely challenged). She is also a new archetypal character for Star Wars - a person birthed of no particular significance who shows that she has a gift. I also like how she faced down the dark side of the force and realized, unlike most characters, that there is nothing for her in the Dark Side. The fight where Kylo Ren and Rey face the Praetoriate is awesome as well - visually very rich. I think the production design takes a step back from The Force Awakens - look at Kylo Ren in TFA and then in TLJ, or look at Snoke's outfit. But it's a minor point of contention in a film that is shot spectacularly.
   
   Really, though, the movie belongs to Mark Hamill. I don't think he had a single poor line read, and the jokes he makes play off a lot better than most of the jokes in the movie. He also fulfills the final Sensei archetype that was missing from Star Wars - the bitter, defeated, reluctant sensei who finally finds a worthy pupil. His scene with Yoda is perfect, as is his final showdown with Kylo Ren.
   
   Also I was a fan of Flying Force Leia. And your dismissive comments won't change that.
   
7. Logan Lucky
   Adam Driver Double Feature. Stephen Soderberg is back doing his usual thing - making a film efficiently and having a good time doing it. There are a couple of lame moments (specifically with the ex-wife's husband), but overall it's nice to see a master of efficient movie making. Working as DP and editor, his use of two-shot, 3-shot, deep focus cinematography... you could learn how to make a movie by watching this film. He also pulls great stuff out of Daniel Craig who steals the show as a convict who also should have a degree in chemistry (the lesson on ene-gy is a particularly perfect moment) goes all-in with his character, and Adam Driver is perfect as the slow-talking, one-handed bartender brother who is hard on luck. Just be wary any time someone yells "Cauliflower" at you.
   
8. Coco
   The obligatory animated film on the list is a very emotionally resonant film that is gorgeous to look at. Yes, you can see the twists coming a mile away, but it's good that they didn't bury the lead with this movie too much. Very heart-felt and perfectly composed, Coco is another movie that explores culture, both good and bad. Once again, Pixar gets great milage out of child actor Anthony Gonzales, who carries the movie incredibly well. The animators and designers are, again, top-notch and bring a lot of character to skeletons that, under normal circumstances, would all look the same. While it tackles a bit of what was done in Book of Life, this movie is a lot more accessible and moves at a much better pace. I want to say more about the movie, but it's hard when it's a good, solid film that proves its worth by what it shows on-screen.
   
9. Molly's Game
   I'm a sucker for Aaron Sorkin screenplays. I love how Idris Elba plays the moral center of the film. Jessica Chastain disappears from the screen and becomes Molly Bloom. Michael Cera does an excellent job playing off-type as the cocky celebrity composite character. The movie moves at the rate that every Sorkin film moves at. Sure, the camera work isn't fantastic. Sure, it's not the most brilliantly edited film. Sure, it feels like some of the story strands don't close neatly. Sure, some of the information about the movie was made up. It was still a fascinating movie full of great characters and tense drama.
   
10. Atomic Blonde
    It's messy. Very messy. And it's missing the interesting world of John Wick. It also takes way too long to get to the first action scenes in the film, but once they start they don't stop. Charlize Theron does a... well, she commits to the role of action hero whole-heartedly, and the action scenes are pretty awesome. The red herrings, the main plot, James McAvoy... they're there, but they are also very confusing and the less paid attention to them, probably the better. And yes, I am a fan of the long-take fight scene in the film.
    
11. Thor Ragnarok
    Also known as "Comedy undercuts the drama, the movie". No, I was not a fan of all of the jokes that most people were. I don't think they had a problem representing Thor in the Marvel universe. This is a poor representation of Hulk and of Planet Hulk (one of the best storylines of recent times), and the art design (and some of the weapons) literally look like toys. Also, Karl Urban is mostly wasted, and the Warriors 3 die in stupid, unforgivable ways. WHERE THE HELL IS SIF?!? However, the tone of the film, established early, is maintained effectively throughout, carefully balancing between the comedy and the drama (Odin's death scene is a particular high mark of the movie, which is great because Sir Anthony Hopkins gets to let loose with the comedy a few scenes earlier). Also, I found Cate Blanchett surprisingly hot as Hela... not sure that was intended (but Zoe Bell as her Stunt Double is excellent). Some of the music video moments work fantastically well, such as the last stand of the Valkyries and both uses of The Immigrant Song in the movie. Jeff Goldblum is fantastic as Grandmaster and has a little bit too much fun. Ruffalo and Hemsworth play off each other perfectly in the movie. And it was smart to hire LotR veterans Ra Vincent and Dan Hennah as the production designers, who help to give more class to the overall art direction of the movie. Plus the "Disney Ride Scene" when Thor gets to Sacaar is great. I do feel that Taika Waititi put himself a little too front and center around the movie, and it does detract from the overall product for me. Also, Mark Mothersbaugh's music is unique, but I don't think it's as memorable as he would have liked it to be - my favorite song is still Thor's Theme from the first Thor movie, which makes an appearance at the end of the movie and then immediately undercut by a stupid comedy moment to END THE MOVIE, which is a horrible choice. In fact, the movie almost didn't make my list because of how much it undercut EVERY dramatic moment with a "comedic" one-liner.
    
12. Murder on the Orient Express
    Okay... I saw the 1970's version (directed by Sidney Lumet) before watching this version. That version is much more subtle and it is much more insightful. This version is high on the melodrama and has random action scenes for... no real reason..? Some of the characters are changed (not necessarily for the better) and the ticking clock of the story is altered, as is Poirot's motivation at the end of the film. Still... the all-star cast is good in the movie (Daisy Ridley makes a second appearance on this list!), and Patrick Doyle's score is... well, it's Patrick Doyle's score - very good but hard to remember exactly what it was. I love Kenneth Branagh films, especially his production designs (they always feel very majestic), so I thoroughly enjoyed this somewhat melodramatic romp through an entertaining mystery.
    
13. The Post
    As a huge Spielberg fan, this movie has to be on my list. It felt a little bit like "The Crown", with Meryl Streep not knowing what do to with her paper, and Tom Hanks playing against-type as the crochety publisher who doesn't get along with anyone. It's another showcase of Janusz Kaminski and Steven Spielberg's phenomenal ballet of camera work and staging, making what could be a series of shot-reverse shots bland filmmaking into something where the camera literally pulls us into the story. A great cast with a ton of television and movie faces pop up to add additional flavor to the movie. In a film so cast-heavy and fact based, it is surprising that Spielberg wasn't nominated for best director; at the same time, this isn't one of his showy-er films - his DNA is in the film but in a much subtler way.
    
14. Beauty and the Beast
    Why is this movie still on my list?!? Probably because I've seen it four or five times and I still love watching it. I will say that Bill Condon does about half as well as he should with the material and that the second unit direction isn't particularly good. Most of the staging of the characters is average on average, with quite a bit being fairly poor. However, it benefits from great cast members (though the cast isn't entirely strong or particularly inspired in sections). Dan Stevens holds his own as the Beast, becoming one of the strongest characters in the film; Luke Evans is perfect as Gaston, who makes even his murky motivations ring true. And it's always great to see Kevin Kline in a role. The songs are fantastic, with the new ones not quite as memorable as the original but still very moving in their own way (especially Days in the Sun). And Emma Watson isn't horrible as Belle (though people are critical of her singing), bringing enough of her own particular charm to the role. The movie operates on subtlety in a way the animated film never could. However, a bit of sloppy direction here and there (about 80% good stuff, 20% "what were they thinking") prevent it from transcending the animated classic.
    
15. Kong: Skull Island
    Tom Hiddleston goes full Ninja Gaiden in the movie. Is it great? No. Does it have a giant gorilla go God of War with a boat motor? Yes! There is enough adventure, fun, self-depricating humor, and John C. Reilly (who is used to the full extent in this) that it really allows you to sit back and have a fun ride. Shut your brain off, enjoy the actors having a good time hamming it up, and prepare yourself for a great Kaiju movie.

Honorable Mention

• Free Fire
  It's a bit too off-the-wall to really recommend for everyone, but the cast is fantastic and it really takes the premise as far as it can go. As per usual, I love seeing Cillian Murphy work, and the added flavor of Charlto Copley adds a good weight to the final product.
  
• Logan
  I don't really need to praise Logan more than it already has. It was good. It worked as a futuristic western. But there was something about the movie that just holds it back - whether it was the pace, the obscene amounts of F-Bombs, or the ending feeling like it needed one more pass to really draw out the gravitas. Most people might disagree with me, but it just didn't make that final mark for me.
  
• Get Out
  Another movie that doesn't really need anything more said. It's heavy handed in its message and the film is delivered perfectly. Just not something I want to go back to time and again, and the best character (the TSA Agent) has the least amount of screen time. Still, it has a very clever solution and is a very tight movie.
  
• Life
  It's got an ending that will make your skin crawl and was much better than it had any right to be. Thoroughly enjoyably with an excellent opening shot, and great use of their actors.
  
• Going in Style
  The cast alone is reason to rent this. The movie itself is pretty standard comedic fair, but all parts involved have fun.
  
• Baby Driver
  It's pretty good. I like Lily James so that works. The camera work is fantastic as well. Good stuff overall.
  
• Spiderman Homecoming
  It's good, solid Spiderman stuff. I just never felt like I needed to revisit it, which is a mark against it. Still not as good as Spiderman 2, in my mind.
  
• War for the Planet of the Apes
  The problem is that this felt too much like Logan, and yet is given even less credit. It would have made my list of best-of, but I only visited it once. I do enjoy how, in the end, the Apes proved more tolerant and malleable for change than the humans, even after Caesar saved the human's life. If I had seen it one more time, this might have knocked out the other Ape movie on the list.
  
• It
  It's fun. It's scary. It's riding the wave of 80's nostalgia, but it did have some parts that had me eating my fist in tension (especially when Pennywise comes OUT OF THE SCREEN!)
  
• Kingsman: The Golden Circle
  It has the problem of not being as good or clever as the first Kingsman, and of dragging a bit in the middle of the film. Otherwise, Taron Edgerton is still great to watch as Eggsy and the cast has a lot of fun.
  
• American Made and I, Tonya
  It's fun to watch once. Tom Cruise does a great job of holding down the movie and acting his ass off, but it's not as clean a movie as some of the films it attempts to homage. Ditto for I, Tonya, which benefits from great performances from Margot Robbie and Allison Janney and is a very watchable film (with some stuff that is shot so normally that it makes it harder to watch), but not quite something I'd come back to over and over.
  
• Happy Death Day
  Turned out to be the perfect movie to make fun of all the films it was inspired by.
  
• Justice League
  Two words: Superman Smiles. Three more: He cracks jokes. We finally got a Superman film where he felt like Superman. Not nearly as bad as most people say it is.
  
• Lady Bird
  I don't get why people think this movie was brilliantly shot. Either that, or it just had really bad editing. Of course, Greta Gerwig's personal touch and the acting performance by all involved (though Laurie Metcalf most of all) drive this movie to keep you watching. Otherwise it's a movie where we watch a main character that, personally, I didn't like very much doing stupid teenage things.
  
• Battle of the Sexes
  A little too on-the-nose with its politics, and it's ironic that Steve Carrell's name was ahead of Emma Stone's in most of the marketing, which didn't seem to understand the message of the film. Still, it's interesting to look at how someone can pose a generic arguement, be wrong, then adjust their arguement to say it was about something else. Unfortunately, it doesn't make you any more wrong. The film drags a lot in the middle, though.
  
• Phantom Thread
  It's a bit too strange for me to recommend to people, and I left the theater wondering what in high heavens I watched. Some great performances and that Paul Thomas Anderson touch with long scenes evolving over time are still a treat to watch.
  
• The Shape of Water
  It's Guillermo del Toro. He subverts the genre just enough and has fun in the time period with the production design. I liked it. I didn't best-picture or best-director like it (since he's done the same with Pan's Labyrinth and Crimson Peak), but I liked it.
  
• Brawl in Cell Block 99
  Vince Vaughn dominates this movie. It's tone is perfect, the scenes are smooth, the acting from Vaughn is awesome, the action is brutal and gritty. It has somewhat lackluster camera work and production design, and the overt "America!" message felt completely unnecessary, which held the movie back for me. If he wasn't so gung-ho about America minus immigrants, I think I would have liked it a lot better. Still, it's always fun to see a bit of videogame level structure invade a movie.

Worst Film of the Year

• Baywatch. And Pirates of the Caribbean 5
  Baywatch was BAD. VERY BAD. Both stars were in significantly better movies this year. And the only good parts about Pirates 5 were the Orlando Bloom scenes, which were over all too quickly. The entire retcon of the series was a strange direction to go, but having no strong characters was even worse!

Now that you know how my year wrapped up, I'd love to know how much you hated this list. Leave a comment below and I might reply to it.

Cheers!