Top 10 Best Films of 2017

Top 10 Best Films of the Year

Well...It's certainly been an eventful year for film and cinema, hasn't it?! From the hilarious mix-up that plagued the preceding Oscar award ceremony, with La La Land initially taking the Academy Award for Best Picture but was shockingly announced in the same observance that Moonlight was the actual winner of the category, to the shameful revelation and accusation of Harvey Weinstein sexually harassing and assaulting a many number of actresses, which in turn unearthed hidden truths of a select few who have carried out the same heinous act, it can't go unnoticed just how busy the year of 2017 has been for the cinematic-medium and those who are accustomed to said industry. Aside the aforementioned stories that comprised what the filmic medium was represented to be throughout the year, there have been a lot of films released into cinemas during these past twelve months that have either challenged the very way we perceive a particular stories outlook, or have presented us with concepts that has evolved the cinematic going experience and changed genre perception. The films selected in this list of the best films of 2017, are ample examples of the two points mentioned and have all equally provided something that breaks away from their respective genre formalities. So without further a due, let's begin the listing! (Just to keep in mind, this list is solely based on my OWN viewings and opinions, so not only will this Blog Post be subjective, as well as objective of course, but there will be films that I will for sure leave out. There are a plethora of films that I liked watching this year, but also features that I haven't has the chance to watch yet, like Jordan Peele's Get Out and James Franco's The Disaster Artist. If you feel as though my list isn't to your taste for whatever reason, you're more than welcome to comment down below and provide examples that should be in my list. As I said, there have been a lot of great films that have been released this year, and it was certainly difficult to comprise a list such as this which would result in some feature being left out. Thank you to those who understand, and let's begin! 😎)

Firstly, here are my Honourable mentions! A Monster Calls, John Wick: Chapter 2, Okja, Thor: Ragnarok and Mudbound. 

10. Split - M. Night Shyamalan

By far the most arguably controversial film to be selected, starting off my list is a psychological horror-thriller flick that was released into cinemas earlier this year that revoked a certain film-makers film-making prowess and reputation. I'm of course referring to M. Night Shyamalan and how he proficiently utilised his best film-making into his film of Split, a feature that devotedly follows a man with twenty-three different personalities who kidnaps and imprisons three teenage girls in an isolated underground facility. As much as the formalities that Shyamalan utilises makes for a view able experience that is synonymous with the genre shown, as seen through the ever-curious cinematography done by Mike Gioulakis, the same person who applied the camera work for It Follows, if there's one profound aspect to take away from Split, it's the transparent performance that James McAvoy displays and fearlessly enacts as a character that is never stale or predictable. It's one of the more transfixing performances of the year and, similar to how Jake Gyllenhaal should have been nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in Nightcrawler, McAvoy could and should have been proposed for the preceding film awards for his simple devotion into playing such as complex and demanding role...

9. Mother! - Darren Aronofksy

No other film that has been released into cinemas this year has had quite the polarising reaction than Darren Aronofksy's Mother!; a film that stars both Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem which follows a young woman whose tranquil life with her husband is disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious couple. As much as it's a film that people will either love or hate, the fact that Aronofsky's feature received a strong reaction from critics and audience members alike is a rather good thing to see and isn't necessarily something that I've seen happen for a long while. the purpose of Mother! was to always intentionally bewitch it's viewing subjects by providing allegorical motifs that ensnare your way of thinking and subtly comments religious and environmental motifs that are profound as well as personal to the aforesaid auteur. It can't be denied that it is a film that needs re-watching multiple times, just to get a proper understanding of the events that take-up the narrative run-time. However, as ridiculous as the story proceeds, Mother! will make people wonder and ponder long after viewing and implements one of Lawrence's best performances with camera formalities that are undeniably lustrous, to display something that is wholly distinctive and devoid from the norm...  

8. Personal Shopper - Olivier Assayas

One of the only selections in this list that surprised me from the initial viewing, Olivier Assayas' Personal Shopper is a supernatural thriller that boasts both melancholy and beauty at the same time and never once manages to burden itself with film-making practises that are 'traditional' or off-putting. The film itself follows Kristen Stewart's character of Maureen who seems to have the ability to communicate with spirits, like her recently deceased twin brother but soon starts to receive ambiguous messages from an unknown source. Devoid from the silliness associated with narratives fixated on ghosts and otherworldly spirits, Personal Shopper stamps its mark in being a thriller that combines bold tonal shifts with cognitive themes and aspects to present something that is both spooky and sleek at the same time. Unreasonably, Stewart gets a lot of flack due to the fact that she was a major part of the Twilight filmic franchise which gets fairly mocked. Having seen her within this suspenseful story, Stewart's performance is hard to ignore here and is an aspect of the film that has made me place Assayas' feature on this list. Definitely worth the watch.

7. A Ghost Story - David Lowery

From one artistic and metaphysical film to the other, David Lowery's A Ghost Story is another mysterious feature that, unlike other movies of similar ilk, conveys unlikely themes of time and life-after-death that fit appropriately to the said features story; a narrative that is both heartfelt yet harrowing to behold. To even attempt at describing Lowery's piece of illusive imagination would only be a disservice to said directors film but it is an art-house feature, non-the-less, that displays imagery and editing that evoke inventiveness and poignancy to an attainable manner. Indeed, poetically illustrating this idea of post-existence and how tangible a connection can be for a couple or for a group of friends, Lowery has devised a film that is subtly haunting from what it simply displays and combined with the whimsical soundtrack, which features a lugubrious song performed by Dark Rooms, it's an extraordinary mood piece that amounts to the directors quirky yet vivid imagination.   

6. The Red Turtle - Michaël Dudok de Wit

As much as the year of 2017 didn't really amount to much in the way of animation, which was disappointing for me to behold, if there's one animated piece that took the limelight for itself, it's Michaël Dudok de Wit's minimalist yer prudent animated-feature of The Red Turtle, an East meets West compromise that purposefully assimilates a splendour of abstract artistry with a welcoming silence that hallmarks back to the silent-era of cinema; more specifically the works of George Méliès' A Trip To The Moon and Salvador Dali's animated-short of Destino. In being universal to all demographics, The Red Turtle doesn't hesitate in appealing to all audiences and combines colour with quietness to set itself apart from a lot other animated works. With it being a part of Studio Ghibli's film-making longevity, de Wit's feature will not only stand the test of time, but could be an animation that sparks a new-age for said Japanese animation company; a future that see's them collaborating with other like-minded animators and utilise other distinct and profound cell animated techniques...

5. Baby Driver - Edgar Wright

For sure the coolest film to grace the silver-screen this year, Edgar Wright's cinematic-outing of Baby Driver exceeded cinema-goers expectations by providing an editing synthesis of well-choreographed sequences with the beat of the music. In inhabiting a plot that derives from the likes of Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless and Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, Wright takes a rather simplistic story-idea and moulds it into his own stylisation; a method of film-making which see's loveable characters bounce-off each other in engaging ways and employs inspired editing techniques to create something that is hard to latch-away from. There's never an instance when the film stagnates to a sudden halt, every aspect to the film moves at a pace that is seamless. It's just annoying that, with it having a run-time of just under two hours, that we don't have enough time to go deeper into the characters' backgrounds and explore more of the world that Wright has created. Nevertheless, it's hard to complain and critique the artistry that Wright has comprised in Baby Driver. It's a film that will not only satisfy those select-few who are unaware of said directors filmography and craft, but it stands, at the end of this year, as one of the most creative and imaginative pieces of cinema.

4. War for the Planet of the Apes - Matt Reeves

Alongside the ever on-going production line of superhero films, reboots of already acclaimed franchises are features that take up the majority of the industries space and monetary gain. While there have been a considerate amount of reboots in recent years that didn't fulfil their purpose in bettering the original film and sparking a new trilogy of its own, their are a few re-instalments that have been worthwhile in watching. One rebooted franchise that has captured the eye of many and has improved with every that has been released, is the recent Planet of the Apes set of films and how, in some manner of speaking, eclipsed the many Apes films that have come before. This is most certainly true with Matt Reeves' conclusion to the recent rebooted franchise with War for the Planet of the Apes since the said feature amalgamates some of the best special effects seen in film this year with a poignant yet bold narrative that, although concludes one cinemas best and most recent franchises on a powerful note, leaves us wanting more. It's arguable to say that there have been a select few blockbusters released in 2017 that have gone-on to disappoint. War for the Planet of the Apes is an example of a mega-hitter that boasts quality and warrants multiple viewings over time...

3. Logan - James Mangold

As previously highlighted and as stated in many past film reviews, superhero features without a doubt plague the cinematic industry; since there a multiple Marvel full-length films that are released every year and they generate the most gain at the box-office. With this said, while it's arguable to state how formulaic many of these superhero features have become, there are a select few that accommodate new outlooks and ideas taken from other genre-types. This is certainly the case when it comes to James Mangold's Logan, a superhero feature that combines genre tendencies from Westerns and sci-fi's films and uses these constructs to tell a different story that is devoid from the typical formalities associated with Marvel and D.C. orientated products. In concluding the Wolverine story, Logan is not your average superhero flick; it not only makes you care for characters that you can identify with on some level, but it provides a fitting end to one of contemporary cinemas fictional characters. It's a swansong that, although has some well-choreographed segments that expected to be seen in a film such as this, succeeds in mirroring themes of discrimination, loss and heart-ache. It's a film that defies genre conventions, much like Deadpool, and presents a performance, enacted by Hugh Jackman, that unearths a touching sense of sadness. The very fact that Jackman has been involved in a role such as this for nearly twenty years since the inception of X-Men in the year 2000, shows the dedicated calibre of the actor and it's hard to imagine anyone else playing the iconic character...

2. Blade Runner 2049 - Denis Villeneuve 

It's not common to see a sequel in this day-and-age to be more exceptional than the original feature. However, this is something which Denis Villeneuve had done with Blade Runner 2049, a sequel to Ridley Scott's 1982 film that thoroughly and everlastingly expands upon its predecessor whilst being a sci-fi epic in its own right by possessing an impressive blend of film-making and storytelling aspects. It's a visual feast to gorge yourself with and even though the lengthy run-time will diminish the viewing experience for those who are unaffiliated by the majesty that they're seeing, as well as falling short at the box-office, everything from the production design to Roger Deakins' ever-luminous cinematography that provides an alluring beauty amidst the bold confines of an ever-gritty narrative, is near-enough perfect to perceive. Unlike other lengthy blockbusters which dower our gaze with an extensively nonsensical and foreseeable action set-pieces that declines any attainable progression, Blade Runner 2049 demonstrates to those who've never seen the original film how a two and a half-hour feature length picture that can in-fact instil thought provoking concepts can be just as rewarding to fathom. If nothing else, take note of the fact that, for the past two years now, director Denis Villeneuve has been at the forefront of some amazing film projects; with Arrival and now Blade Runner 2049. For sure, it's going to be intersting to see what feature Villeneuve will make next...  

1. Dunkirk - Christopher Nolan

So...As you can tell from the poster on the left of this piece of text, my favourite film of 2017 is Christopher Nolan's war-epic, Dunkirk; a film that meticulously depicts the true story of 400,000 British soldiers and other allied forces trying to desperately evacuate from a war-torn beach and harbour in France. As much as naysayers will arguably bemoan my pick, purely because the film was projected on IMAX screens which inevitably heightened the overall viewing experience, it's a film that, regardless of it's format, would have been enjoyable to watch from a computer monitor. There are a lot of qualities, besides it's attempted realistic visualisation, that captured my attention and curiosity. Indeed, one of  Dunkirk's purposes is to envelope the watcher with it's distinct visual language. However,  it's the manner in which it intertwines other superlatives, such as the crescendoing of the never-ending musical score and the split narrative structure which displays three different points of view of the story, that makes Nolan's feature horrifically moving amidst the brutality of the battles and the tense surviving efforts. In spite of the misgivings that critics and audiences alike have in relation to the film 'cold-nature', Dunkirk  is an assured and thrilling war-flick in its own right and isn't even comparable to many other accomplished war-films that imbue conventional constructs of benevolence. This is, my film of the year...

On that note, I think it's time for to end. As always everyone, thank you for reading my last Blog Post of the year where I go through my personal picks for the best films of 2017 and I hope you enjoyed the read! As mentioned before, if you feel as though there should be a film to be placed in this list of mine, you're more than welcome to comment down below. As we come close to the end of the year, all I will say to end 2017 is, thank you to those who've joined in this intriguing year of film and I can't honestly wait to share 2018 with all of you as well! 😁 I'm sure it'll be just as fun as this year was! Thank you once again and I'll see you all in 2018! I hope you all have had a lovely Christmas and have a great new year! Adieu! 😊✌👋🎆🎇🎉🎊

Alex Rabbitte