Top Ten 2017 Movies

Now that a quarter of 2018 is nearly over, it must be time to post a 2017 Top-Ten. With the Oscars on our doorstep, I’ve finally covered last year’s bases and have my regret-free list.

10. The Florida Project

I don’t think I’m qualified enough to reliably separate real American poverty from Hollywood poverty, but I think this movie figured it out. The Florida Project is a stirringly believable experience that bypasses the easy, “make everything really sad so we feel bad” angle. The film plays like a documentary, so much so that Willem Dafoe almost seems out of place because he’s a recognizable actor. It’s a great performance, make no mistake, but it looks like real life Willem Dafoe quit acting to compellingly manage an underprivileged motel outside Disney World. The Florida Project is one of the most powerful stories of the year, all while subverting Hollywood’s typical storytelling.

9. Lady Bird

I sang Lady Bird’s praises in the Oscars Countdown review, but for the sake of being thorough I’ll recommend it again in this Top Ten. Lady Bird finds nuances in the coming of age genre without reinventing the wheel. If you have a drinking game for 2017 films, take another shot for an outstanding performance by a lead actress. Whether or not your life situation resembles Lady Bird’s, you’ll find a way to relate to her story.

8. Baby Driver

Baby Driver has the best first fifteen minutes of this entire list. The next fifteen are great. The entire first couple of acts are very good. And the rest slowly works its way down to disappointing, which prevents an even higher result on my final 2017 standings. But make no mistake, Baby Driver’s unique personality and musicality offer some of last year’s most memorable entertainment. If you long for more creativity in your action films, look no further than Baby Driver.

7. Split

Speaking of creativity, the virtue was never M. Night Shyamalan’s weakness. Execution has been a different story here and there, and several other places. Split takes the Shyamalan formula back a couple of decades to a time when fun ideas and sensible storylines coexisted in one man’s wacky world. The twist is among the director’s best, and the multifaceted performance from one James McAvoy is one to remember.

6. War for the Planet of the Apes

This forgotten finale to a forgotten trilogy is among the most underrated films of 2017. That describes the entire trifecta of our Apes reboot, but War for the Planet of the Apes was the strongest of the three entries. Andy Serkis continues to deserve awards he doesn’t have, which the Academy will pretend is fine when they throw him some lifetime achievement in the distant future. War of the Planet of the Apes puts more care into a look at humanity than most movies that primarily feature humans.

5. Phantom Thread

I don’t use these reviews to campaign for jobs, but it should be noted that I’ve done more for this movie’s marketing than their actual marketing team. Sure, it can be a tough sell, but everyone should be bold enough to give the unconventionally thrilling Phantom Thread a chance. I wind up mentioning it in half my reviews, which means all of fifteen people are now more likely to watch it. That’s about triple the amount of people who have actually seen a trailer for this thing. Make an effort, guys.

4. Get Out

Get Out takes my personal vote for Best Picture of the available nominees, so let that speak for how highly I recommend Jordan Peele’s vision and directorial debut. The film combines the artistic quality of a movie you’d skip with the appealing entertainment of one you’d watch. Get Out serves as proof of the idea that nothing is too fine to be fun, thereby devaluing most of history’s nominees in this category. I can safely recommend Get Out to anyone, with the possible exception of people who would’ve voted for Obama a third time if they could.

3. Wind River

I may have prematurely given the underrated superlative to some of our previous films. They at least grabbed some nominations. A rather unfortunate production company might have something to do with Wind River’s quiet existence. But it’s a fantastic and powerful movie that, oddly enough, artfully addresses some of the many issues that said company may have overlooked. Wind River is a voice-for-the-voiceless cultural message, wrapped in a gripping thriller, covered in great acting. It’s the best performance of Jeremy Renner’s career, a similarly stunning result from Elizabeth Olsen, and another winner from director Taylor Sheridan.

2. Blade Runner 2049

I’ll stop talking Oscars now so these final entries don’t descend into pages of complaining. Blade Runner 2049 takes a movie I don’t particularly like, nor does anyone for the first ten or so years apparently, and turns it into something spectacularly superior. “World building” is a term you often hear tossed around in various mediums, from films to shows or games. Blade Runner 2049 sets a new standard that overshadows most existing examples of that term. A simple story with complicated themes acts as the vehicle for this visual masterpiece.

1. Logan

Logan is of course the tragically epic culmination of a seventeen-year performance. There’s a weight to it that goes beyond any one movie, especially for diehard fans. But it’s also the best (well, my favorite…but I don’t think “best” is a tremendous stretch) individual film of 2017. Logan is heavy as can be without the artificial depression that lesser movies in this genre use as an imposter for depth. It is, as I once said in its glowing review, a fun yet stern reminder that everything ends. This is the one movie of its kind that didn’t claim to be the “best western since Unforgiven,” yet it’s the one that actually is. Logan took my top 2017 spot early and held it all year long. That right there is true cinematic love.