Best films of 2017

2017 was dominated by headlines detailing how movie attendance was generally down. However, the trend of releasing films based on comic books continued. As streaming and new distribution channels come into play, it's interesting to assess how films and how we consume them is rapidly changing. My ten best list, includes films produced and released during 2017. I also included two new TV shows that debuted in 2017, that are worth checking out.

Lady Bird

Director: Greta Gerwig

Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalfe, Lucas Hedges, Tracy Letts, Timothee Chalamet, Beanie Feldstein, Lois Smith, Jake McDorman, Jordan Rodrigues, Odeya Rush, Andy Buckley, Marielle Scott

Call Me By Your Name

Director: Luca Guadagnino

Stars: Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel, Victoire Du Bois, Vanda Capriolo, Antonio Rimoldi, Peter Spears

The Shape of Water

Director: Guillermo Del Toro

Stars: Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Octavia Spencer, Michael Stuhlbarg, David Hewlett, Nick Searcy, Stewart Arnott, Nigel Bennett, Lauren Lee Smith, Martin Roach, Allegra Fulton, John Kapelos, Morgan Kelly

Dunkirk

Director: Christopher Nolan

Stars: Fionn Whitehead, Aneurin Barnard, Mark Rylance, Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jack Lowden, James D'Arcy, Harry Styles, Barry Keoghan, Matthew Marsh 

The Post

Director: Steven Spielberg

Stars: Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Bruce Greenwood, Matthew Rhys, Alison Brie, Carrie Coon, Jesse Plemons, Michael Stuhlbarg, David Cross, Zach Woods, Pat Healy, John Rue, Rick Holmes, Philip Casnoff, Jessie Mueller, Stark Sands, Will Denton, Jennifer Dundas, Christopher Innvar, Coral Pena

Phantom Thread

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Stars: Daniel Day Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville, Gina McKee, Camilla Rutherford, Brian Gleeson, Julia Davis, Harriet Sansom Harris, Lujza Richter

Blade Runner 2049

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Stars: Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas, Robin Wright, Dave Bautista, Sylvia Hoeks, Jared Leto, Carla Juri, Edward James Olmos, Mackenzie Davis, Hiam Abbass, Lennie James, Barkhad Abdi, Sean Young

Marjorie Prime

Director: Michael Almereyda

Stars: Jon Hamm, Geena Davis, Lois Smith, Tim Robbins, Hannah Gross, Stephanie Andujar, Azumi Tsutsui

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Director: Martin McDonagh

Stars: Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Caleb Landry Jones, Abbie Cornish, Lucas Hedges, Zeljko Ivanek, John Hawkes, Peter Dinklage, Kerry Condon, Amanda Warren, Clarke Peters, Nick Searcy, Sandy Martin, Samara Weaving

I, Tonya

Director: Craig Gillespie

Stars: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janey, Julianne Nicholson, Paul Walter Hauser, Bobby Cannavale, Bojana Novakovic, McKenna Grace, Jason Davis, Caitlin Carver

TV shows worth investigating include the David Fincher produced and directed Mindhunter and Amy Sherman-Palladino's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

Special highlights should go to the following films that were equally impressive: Sofia Coppola's The Beguiled, Angelina Jolie's First They Killed My Father, Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky,  Mike Flanagan's Gerald's Game and Darren Aronofsky's divisive Mother!. The films that simply failed on multiple levels include Zack Snyder's Justice League, Alex Kurtzman's The Mummy, James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 2 and David Ayer's Bright.

Phantom Thread

Movie Name: Phantom Thread
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Stars: Daniel Day Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville, Gina McKee, Camilla Rutherford, Brian Gleeson, Julia Davis, Harriet Sansom Harris, Lujza Richter
Genre: Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
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Synopsis:

Three years following the underrated "Inherent Vice", director Paul Thomas Anderson is back with "Phantom Thread". The film follows the story of acclaimed fashion designer Reynolds Woodcock, in London in the 50s. Woodcock is a perfectionist, and a person fastidious and extremely observant of his daily routines. He is accompanied in his life and business by his stern sister. In one of his trips to the country (to recover and gain inspiration), Woodcock meets Alma, a waitress working in a small coffee shop. There's an instant attraction, and Alma becomes an inspirational muse, love interest, and equally model for the collections that Woodcock is producing in his atelier. However as their collaboration continues, the less interested he becomes in keeping her around, something that provokes Alma to react in an unexpected manner.
Out of all Paul Thomas Anderson films, "Phantom Thread" has in my opinion, some contacts with one of his more joyous previous films, but in a much darker perspective. I'm speaking of course of the beautiful and romantic "Punch Drunk Love". Though both films chronicle the blossom of romantic relationships, whereas "Punch Drunk Love" is a beautiful and artistic dig at the traditional screwball comedy, "Phantom Thread" goes for a much darker and murkier aspect of that romanticism. The film focuses on the relationship between a relentless, deeply methodical and accomplished man, and his elected muse, someone who's never given much opportunity to disclose her background, her wants and needs, or really grow as an individual. There's a monstrous narcissism that consumes Woodcock, preventing him from seeing what surrounds him, with only his sister keeping an edge over his ego and behavior, which teeters on infantile at times. It's definitely a film of a different scope for the director, who has always gone in the direction of focusing his attention in polarizing characters, but ones that were always encased in a very diverse web of relationships. This film is an exploration of this amorous relationship, one that evolves as these two people become accustomed to each other, and how they learn to get something out of each other. It's definitely a compelling film, featuring great performances from the three leads, alongside impeccable camera work from the director himself, and a subtle score from Jonny Greenwood. A good film worth watching.

Oculus

Movie Name: Oculus
Year of Release: 2013

Director: Mike Flanagan

Stars: Karen Gillan, Brenton Thwaites, Katee Sackhoff, Rory Cochrane, Annalise Basso, Garrett Ryan, Miguel Sandoval, Kate Siegel
Genre: Horror, Mystery

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis:

"Oculus" is a follow up to a short feature directed by Mike Flanagan from 2006. The film follows the story of Kaylie and Tim Russell, siblings in their early 20s, who ten years prior went through a very disturbing and traumatic event in their family. Tim was incarcerated in a psychiatric institution as a result of having shot their father. Kaylie has long suspected that the events that unfolded were a direct result of supernatural presences that existed within a mirror that was present at their home. Now an adult, Kaylie has tracked down that mirror, and she intends to prove the power from that mirror, with the help of her recently released brother. However, the mirror, and the powers that it holds within has some different ideas.
Mike Flanagan has carved out a career for himself, with smartly constructed suspense and horror films, where the concept/premise of what is being watched is the focus, building an environment of discomfort and unease, as opposed to the graphical or visceral elements that have characterized so many horror films. "Oculus" is a great example of his approach - the film has an interesting premise, with a haunted mirror that influences some characters to do extreme things, and that can control what the characters see in reality. It's a premise that makes for a very dynamic unfolding of the narrative, as the director smartly interweaves the present and past timelines, to give the story an added sense of menace and distress (particularly since in the past timeline, the children are being forced to defend themselves from their possessed parents). The film is thin on character development, but it does manage to maintain the interest of the audience, by never overexposing the entity, and by suggesting more than gratuitously showcasing frights and scares. The cast assembled is interesting and diversified, with Karen Gillan and Rory Cochrane creating strong performances, while Brenton Thwaites continues to showcase the same type of performance from film to film (null, devoid of emotion and ultimately, credibility). The cinematography from Michael Fimognari is impeccable, as is the score from The Newton Brothers. An entertaining film worth watching.

The Post

Movie Name: The Post
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Steven Spielberg

Stars: Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Bruce Greenwood, Matthew Rhys, Alison Brie, Carrie Coon, Jesse Plemons, Michael Stuhlbarg, David Cross, Zach Woods, Pat Healy, John Rue, Rick Holmes, Philip Casnoff, Jessie Mueller, Stark Sands, Will Denton, Jennifer Dundas, Christopher Innvar, Coral Pena
Genre: Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
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Synopsis:

Following his less seen, but by no means less excellent, "The BFG", celebrated director Steven Spielberg is back, with one of his finest features of the last few years. The film is based on the true story of the events that surrounded the publication of the Pentagon Papers by The Washington Post in 1971, during the Nixon administration. The film specifically focuses on the story of Kay Graham, the owner and publisher of the Washington Post, a woman who inherited that position following her husband's suicide. The film introduces us to her and to the scenario, as the newspaper is about to go public. When we're introduced to Kay she's depicted as an intelligent, humane and kind person, without much voice of her own, in a business that is solely male dominated, and where her input is considered secondary. She has a dynamic relationship with her editor, something that escalates when the New York Times starts publishing a classified document, that details the findings surrounding the involvement of the Government in the Vietnam War. This event sparks a scandal of epic proportions, and the Times is indicted as a direct result of that. When the source that started this while process finds its way to the Post, it's up to Kay to decide what to do with the publication of those documents, and how that can impact the future of her newspaper and its employees.
"The Post" is a film, much like Alan J. Pakula's "All the President's Men" that serves the point of illustrating that exposing the truth, is at times a perilous and difficult task, one that involves overcoming powerful voices that just want to silence that same truth. This is a film that comes at an important time, when the debates surrounding the veracity of news is being questioned on a daily basis. This film is perfectly executed by Steven Spielberg and his fantastically talented team - they manage to create a perfect choreography of actors and camera, and make the scenes flow seamlessly, without a falter or glitch. It's a testimony to the director's capabilities, that the film never feels overly didactic or sanctimonious - it's a film that showcases what a tremendously talented director, with an impeccable production team and cast can effectively do - deliver a gut wrenching lesson on the power of free speech and upholding justice. The cast is truly stelar, with Meryl Streep once again delivering a nuanced performance, which contrasts heavily with Tom Hanks, who this time arounds plays the character always on the verge of a heart attack (this role would have been more interesting if played by someone such as David Strathairn). The supporting cast is uniformly impeccable, particularly the always underrated Bruce Greenwood, Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Paulson and the fantastic Tracy Letts. A fantastic film worth watching and discussing.

I, Tonya

Movie Name: I, Tonya
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Craig Gillespie

Stars: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janey, Julianne Nicholson, Paul Walter Hauser, Bobby Cannavale, Bojana Novakovic, McKenna Grace, Jason Davis, Caitlin Carver
Genre: Comedy, Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis:

Director Craig Gillespie is back, and in fine form, following two previous films that were met with a somewhat tepid response (following his celebrated start with "Lars and the Real Girl" and his impeccable remake of "Fright Night"). "I, Tonya" is a dark comedy, detailing the life of American ice skater, Tonya Harding. The film chronicles her life, from the time she was a child, through her convoluted upbringing, with her mother always demanding more from her, particularly when it came to her attention and focus on ice skating. By the time she turns into a teenager, Tonya falls in love and into an abusive relationship with Jeff Gillooly, just as her range and accomplishments in the ice ring get progressively more successful. The story continues to track Harding's experiences in professional ice skating, until the scandal surrounding the attack on her rival Nancy Kerrigan, at the Winter Olympics of 1994, and how it involved people who surrounded Tonya, namely her ex-husband, and a mutual acquaintance of both, Shawn, a young man with delusions of grandeur.
"I, Tonya" is a film that captures with a deep irony, how public perceptions are built, and how troubled and damaged upbringings can cast a deep shadow on someone's life. Craig Gillespie, employs a documentary style of approach in depicting the events taking place, but allows the actors to break the fourth wall, particularly the stupendous Margot Robbie, who addresses the audience, demystifying a lot of the events that occurred or that are being depicted. It's a film that walks a fine line between being tragic and comedic, with the latter always vanquishing, but Margot Robbie manages to infuse the character with a heart and a pain that comes across in every single smile and dour expression she gives. The overall cast is fantastic, particularly the always remarkable Allison Janey, Julianne Nicholson and Sebastian Stan. It's an inventive, funny, and deeply humane character study, which makes for a really rewarding watch. Highly recommended.

John Wick: Chapter 2

Movie Name: John Wick: Chapter 2
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Chad Stahelski

Stars: Keanu Reeves, Ian McShane, Common, Riccardo Scamarcio, Ruby Rose, Laurence Fishburne, Claudia Gerini, Lance Reddick, Tobias Segal, John Leguizamo, Bridget Moynahan, Thomas Sadoski, David Patrick Kelly
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis:

After the surprise success of "John Wick", both commercially and critically, most of the team behind the original feature is back for a sequel, which continues the adventures of the professional killer. The film picks up shortly after the events of the first film, with John being asked by a crime lord to do a service for him, something that he has to comply, due to the rules of the game. When John goes to Italy to finish the job, he finds himself in a tough spot, with a series of people on his tail. Upon dispatching these foes, John returns to New York to settle scores, and finds himself once again in a tough situation, of being himself the target for a series of hitmen.
What has made this series so entertaining has always been the fact that it knows that it's nothing more than a slick B movie. It's a series that holds no pretensions, and yet it has enough smarts to create a central character that though not fully realized, is also sufficiently engaging and dimensional to hold the interest of the viewers. It's a far more interesting version of James Bond, since it avoids being cartoonish, instead being violently over the top, while retaining humor and enough edge to always keep the audience entertained. Keanu Reeves is perfectly cast, since his silent demeanor is perfectly on par with the taciturn aspect of the character. The action set pieces are expertly choreographed by director Chad Stahelski, who also manages to populate the film with an interesting array of supporting actors, from Laurence Fishburne, through Ian McShane. The cinematography from Dan Laustsen is beautiful. A solid and entertaining action film.

Fun Mom Dinner

Movie Name: Fun Mom Dinner
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Alethea Jones

Stars: Katie Aselton, Toni Collette, Molly Shannon, Bridget Everett, Adam Scott, Rob Huebel, Adam Levine, Paul Rust, David Wain, Paul Rudd
Genre: Comedy

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 2
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Synopsis:

Following a career of directing TV shows and shorts, "Fun Mom Dinner" is director Alethea Jones first feature film. The film is the first film from writer Julie Rudd (who is married to well known actor Paul Rudd, who also cameos in this film). The film follows the story of 4 mothers, whose children all go to the same school, and who all decide to have a fun night out, including dinner and some drinks. Initially in the group is divorcee Jamie and her best friend, the funny Melanie. They both invite Emily who is going through a rough patch in her marriage, and she brings along the resistant Kate, her high school best friend, who has no interest in hanging out with these two other women. As the night progresses, this group gets involved in some pratfalls, all the while learning a bit more about each other.
"Fun Mom Dinner" is a film that tries desperately to be a R-rated comedy companion to Paul Feig's "Bridesmaids". Sadly it's a film that lacks the bite, the humor, the heart, to effectively engage the viewer to be invested in the lives of these 4 women. All central characters are poorly developed, and aren't much more than cardboard variations of common place cliches, and ultimately the situations that are generated, simply aren't comical or engaging. For all the high jinks that are depicted, the film feels tame, safe, when it truly needed more of heartfelt satire tone. The cast populated with impeccable actors, are wasted in lifeless and forgettable roles. A passable effort.

First They Killed My Father

Movie Name: First They Killed My Father
Year of Release: 2017

Director: Angelina Jolie

Stars: Sareum Srey Moch, Phoeung Kompheak, Sveng Socheata, Mun Kimhak, Heng Dara, Khoun Sothea, Sarun Nika, Run Malyna
Genre: Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis:

Following her little seen "By the Sea", director Angelina Jolie returns, with a subject matter that is closer to her previous directorial efforts and subject matters (such as "In the Land of Blood and Honey" and "Unbroken"). The film is an adaptation of a book by Loung Ung, one that traces her childhood in Cambodia, as the country was ravaged by Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge regime. The film introduces us to Loung, who is 7 and who suddenly sees herself taken alongside her family, from the cities to work camps. While there, she witnesses the progressive deterioration of the quality of life of her family (including her parents and six siblings). She eventually gets isolated from her family and goes through the harshness of labor camp, and is trained as a child soldier. Things take a turn when the Vietnamese army invades the country and deposes the Khmer Rouge regime, allowing her and her reunited siblings to find solace in refugee camps.
Angelina Jolie has thus far in her career, mostly focused on stories that have a backdrop of extreme situations of war, famine and destruction, as vehicles to demonstrate the sheer bravura and resilience of the human spirit. "First They Killed My Father" may be her best feature yet: it's a film that anchors itself in the point of view of a child, and how her witnessing the destruction of all that was familiar to herself, though horrifying and shattering, still kept her going in the hopes of finding a semblance of family. It's a film that again marries her point of view of documenting the destruction and arrowing effects of war, with the beauty that surrounds everyone, particularly in this case, the young central character. The film is simultaneously brutal in its depiction of violence, and aesthetically stunning, capturing the natural beauty of Cambodia (thanks to fantastic cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle). A good film, worth watching.