Top 10 of 2018

Still working on a mega-post of Everything Else new I saw this year, but here's the top 10. Not necessarily the best -- I don't consider myself an authority on that -- but the 10 that meant the most to me.

"Three bags of Tostitos Scoops I noticed."

"There was a special on these tonight. Three for one."

"Three for one?"

"Yup."

"How can that be profitable for Frito-Lay?"

I didn't expect much out of Game Night, particularly as it was released in February, a notable wasteland for quality movies. So imagine my shock when this turned out to be a near perfect piece of popcorn entertainment. It starts with an exceptionally tight and funny script by Mark Perez (whose previous credits included The Country Bears and Herbie Fully Loaded, so you could be forgiven for not expecting much) and has a phenomenal cast of well-drawn characters, led by Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams (the latter of whose full comedic gifts are on display for a director who actually knows what to do with her). Jesse Plemons is the MVP, though, playing a "weird" neighbor the game night group continually tries to avoid. Nothing is wasted here; it's a lean 100 minutes with no lulls in the humor or action. And there is an ADORABLE DOG. What more could you want? (Streaming on HBO. For purchase on Amazon/YouTube/iTunes/Google Play/Vudu.)

"Aunt Lucy said, if we're kind and polite the world will be right."

I found the first Paddington movie charming, but the sequel is something quite special. With a story that celebrates community and family (and the magic of marmalade sandwiches!), and even has something to say about the criminal justice system, this is a sequel along the lines of Toy Story 2 -- one that deepens the characters and our affection for them. I'd long been a fan of Ben Whishaw, but between this and Mary Poppins Returns, he's a definite favorite. And Hugh Grant turns in a gloriously hammy performance as the film's villain. Much has been said about the new Mary Poppins movie and how we need movies like that now, and this is very much a film with that kind of spirit and optimism. I think we could use as many of these as we can get. (Streaming on HBO. For purchase on Amazon/YouTube/iTunes/Google Play/Vudu.)

"Sometimes I think that when I'm older, I'll have a daughter of my own or something... and I feel like if she was like me, then being her mom would make me sad all the time. I'd love her because she's my daughter, but I think if she turned out like me that being her mom would make me really sad."

So, I wasn't *exactly* Kayla when I was in eighth grade. I thankfully had a little circle of friends to bouy me through that harrowing time. But there's a lot for me to identify with in this movie, even as a (*gulp*) forty-three year old. The being invited to a schoolmate's party and knowing it was just because their parents made them invite you. The wanting to impress a guy and pretending to be more experienced than you are. The feeling like you're already a failure and a disappointment at barely the start of your life. And perhaps especially the finding out that that person you sort of avoided because you thought they were a little weird is actually pretty great. (Available to rent on Amazon/iTunes/YouTube/Google Play/Vudu.)

"Stand up straight. Stand up. Only pussies and little girls slouch."

Lynne Ramsay's first feature since We Need to Talk About Kevin, You Were Never Really Here is a Taxi Driver for the 21st century, where our modern-day Travis makes his living taking out the likes of Sport and his Iris is a bit more proactive. To say that Joaquin Phoenix's Joe has a lot of demons is an understatement. We see almost as much of his suicide attempts and ideations as his violence against others. And perhaps the most frightening thing is how easy it is to root for him when his targets are what they are. The use of flashbacks is genius -- usually just brief snatches of memories, enough to drive home how these moments inform what's going on in the current timeline. There are a lot of great scenes, but my favorite includes the greatest use of "I've Never Been to Me" EVER. (Available on Amazon Prime.)

"It's the same story told over and over, forever. All any artist can offer the world is how they see

those twelve notes. That's it. He loved how you see them."

The fact that I could enjoy and be moved by this movie in the midst of a frankly historic assault from my uterus about 45 minutes in is proof enough of its power. I'd never seen any of the previous versions until about a month before this came out, but I prepared for the movie by watching them all (and enjoyed each of them in very different ways). I sincerely think this one is the best (though the Garland version might have been if the studio hadn't botched it). I think it fixes what was hard to like about the Norman Maine character and makes the romance much more believable. Lady Gaga is getting most of the attention and her director and co-star Bradley Cooper seems happy to give it to her. But while Gaga is great, Cooper gives maybe the best performance of his career so far, while beautifully directing the film at the same time. The soundtrack deserves a mention too, as it perfectly portrays the character beats of the movie, particularly Aly's transition from making music in Jackson's world to exploring more of what's inside of her. "I Don't Know What Love Is" is still my favorite. (Still in theaters.)

"We are alone. No matter what they tell you, we women are always alone."

Alfonso Cuaron has been making beautiful, game-changing cinema for years, and every frame of this movie is a painting. Inspired by experiences from his youth, this is very much a meditation on memory. Cuaron gives us a glimpse of the life of a young housekeeper. She is close to the family she works for and lives with, but there's very much a line of demarcation between herself and that family. Things get complicated when she has to rely on them for a very personal matter. This is a very intimate story with a lot of big stuff (including the Corpus Christie massacre) happening in the background. (Streaming on Netflix, but if it's playing at a theater near you, you should definitely see it on a big screen.)

"As it turns out, I'm capable of much unpleasantness."

A bit All About Eve, a bit Mean Girls, but with the fate of a nation at stake. This is the film that is causing the most category confusion for awards voting bodies, because a film with three equal female leads is nigh unheard of, even in this, the Year of Our Lord 2018. It shouldn't be this refreshing to see a movie about women wielding power, but here we are. Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone all shine, and all the men in the movie are glorious side-fops who are chiefly there to look pretty and curry favor so that the ladies can bestow just a little power on them. I love that this isn't your average musty period piece. It feels very modern, to the point of anachronistic (lol that dance!), and is dagger sharp and wickedly funny. One of my New Year's resolutions is to use "Do shhh when I'm thinking" on a regular basis. (Still in theaters.)

"With the right white man, we can do anything."

Dear me, was this ever a year for movies you can't talk about at Thanksgiving! The greatest of which, in my opinion, was Spike Lee's latest, about a black policeman in Colorado who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan. Spike makes no bones about drawing clear parallels between the events of the film and our current nonsense. From discussion of the future political implications of David Duke's outwardly polite appeal, to chants of "America First!" to the movie's final moments, it was an essential reminder of exactly where this mess came from. Seeing the Charlottesville footage on the big screen was almost traumatizing, but it's the perfect final note for a movie that's mad as hell. On a lighter note, there's a cameo in this movie that gave me more delight than any moment in any film this year. If you haven't seen it, I won't dare spoil it, but ... (*heart swells*). (Available to rent on Amazon/iTunes/YouTube/Google Play/Vudu.)

"I don’t have time to be their victim, their AIDS poster boy, their cautionary tale. No, I decide

who I am. I’m going to be what I was born to be, a performer, to give the people what they want.

Go to the heavens, Freddie f***ing Mercury."

This movie had me at Brian May's 20th Century Fox guitar fanfare and never let me go (LET HER GO!). This is pure joy from start to finish and the last twenty minutes are the closest thing our world has come to time travel. Rami Malek is rightly getting much kudos for his incandescent performance as Freddie Mercury, but he's supported by a pretty incredible cast, particularly Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy and Joseph Mazzello, who play bandmates Brian, Roger and "Deacy," respectively. Their chemistry is amazing and I'm thrilled they were recognized as an ensemble by SAG. (Tom Hollander is great too, as manager Jim "Miami" Beach.) I've heard all the complaints, but ... I just don't care. I feel so differently about it. This is a movie about collaboration, about the power of music to bring people together, and about how hard it can be to be different and sometimes music is all that can pull you through. I've been a fan of Queen for many years, but their music sounds different to me now -- deeper, richer. (Still in theaters, hey hey hey heyyyyy.)

"I'm a quiet soul. My favorite sound in the whole world is the sound of a teacup

finding its place... on a saucer."

A cheat? I would argue not, but regardless, it's far and away my favorite thing I saw this year in any medium. Gadsby is in a pretty classic movie cliche for women -- the Woman Trying To Make It In A Man's World. No matter how many brilliant female comedians there are, it's still seen as a "guy's field" and women who do it just as well or better still play second fiddle, even when they're completely nailing it. Gadsby turns comedy itself on its own head, deconstructing the typical stand-up routine and putting it back together as something else entirely. I watched it four times and it wiped me out every time, and I'm floored that Hannah Gadsby did this night after night for months -- opening up her emotional wounds over and over again for an audience and still managing to make them laugh hysterically. (Streaming on Netflix.)

2018 Film Discoveries

Top 10 (or whatever) of this year still to come, but I wanted to do a list of my favorite vintage discoveries from this year. All but one of these I saw in a theater, and the fact that I can say that remains one of my favorite things about living in NewYork.

Listed in the order in which I saw them.

THE PASSIONATE FRIENDS (1949)

(seen on FilmStruck)

Like many, I was prompted to watch this by Paul Thomas Anderson as a companion piece to last year’s Phantom Thread. I don’t like most love triangle stories, because most of them just use what should be incredibly complicated feelings and emotions as a plot device, without dealing with those feelings at all. The Passionate Friends reminded me a bit of The Unbearable Lightness of Being, where a character is torn between two lives - one with a lover for whom they cherish a deep passion and understanding, and one with a spouse with whom they are genuinely happy. Ann Todd is heartbreaking in this, and the end of the film, while simple, blew me away. This is truly Claude Rains’ best work apart from Casablanca and I’m mad at myself for not knowing about this film when I was filling out my BNAT application in 2014 (where we had to take a character actor from Casablanca and list our favorite non-Casablanca role of theirs). (Available to rent on Amazon - if FilmStruck were still around, it would be there as well (*sniff*).)

PEPPERMINT SODA (1977)

(seen at Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers as part of their women filmmakers marathon event)

Probably my favorite entry in Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers’ “films directed by women” marathon, this movie is an utter delight. A stunning feature film debut by Diane Kurys (who went on to direct the Oscar-nominated Entre Nous), it is somewhat autobiographical and centers on two Jewish sisters, one 13 and one 15, who split their time between their separated parents in the early 1960s. They spend most of the year with their mother in Paris, where they attend a strict boarding school, and they spend summer break at the beach with their father. There’s an obvious element of nostalgia here, but it’s not precious about the pain of growing up. This is one of those movies I’d love to live in, if only for the beautiful pastel color palette. (Not available right this second, but Cohen Media is releasing a Blu-Ray in February.)

LIQUID SKY (1982)

(seen at Quad Cinema)

In the world of punk films, there is Liquid Sky and there is everything else. Like Rocky Horror Picture Show before it, this movie inspired a cult following that includes midnight screenings and fans willing to dress up as the film’s oddball characters. Set in present-day (1982) New York, Liquid Sky follows several characters, including male model Larry and Connecticut beauty Margaret (both played by the film’s star, Ann Carlisle). And the closest thing resembling a plot in the film is a group of aliens that land on top of a building and feed off the energy released when people get high on heroine (or have orgasms). It is an assault on the senses in the best way. (Available to stream on Shudder, and for rent on Amazon.)

FRANKENSTEIN CREATED WOMAN (1967)

(seen in 35mm at Quad Cinema as part of their Hammer retrospective)

Not without its controversial aspects (particularly when viewed through a modern lens), this is nonetheless a fascinating take on Hammer studio’s Frankenstein mythos -- with a transgender twist. Cushing’s Frankenstein is intent on trapping the human soul of a recently deceased person, believing he can transfer it to the body of another recently deceased person. His eventual subject is Christina, a woman who has drowned herself in despair over her lover’s death. Frankenstein transfers the soul of this lover, Hans — a man unjustly accused of and executed for murder — to Christina and nurtures her back to health. But hijinks (and death) ensue when Christina is compelled by the spirit of Hans to avenge his death. Again, not without its issues, but still one of my favorite Hammer offerings. (Unfortunately not available to stream anywhere and physical copies are hard to find, unless you’re prepared to give an arm and a leg for them.)

OLD ENOUGH (1984)

(seen in 35mm at Quad Cinema as part of their NY Woman series)

Don’t let this movie’s title put you off! It is a thoroughly engaging coming of age drama about a friendship between an 11-year-old from an upper class family and an older girl from the lower middle class (in true New York fashion, their wildly different worlds are only a couple blocks from each other). The two become friends and learn about each other’s different lifestyles. Like Peppermint Soda, this feels achingly honest and the film’s two leads feel very much like real girls and have a great chemistry. (This movie is also the film debut of a very young and adorable Alyssa Milano.) I got to see this as part of Quad Cinema’s “NY Woman” series, and I’m so glad I took a chance on it. (Available to stream for free on Amazon Prime.)

BABY FACE (1933)

(seen in 35mm at Quad Cinema as part of their NY Woman series)

This is another entry in Quad Cinema’s “NY Woman” series. Barbara Stanwyck is a stone cold badass in this movie and doesn’t give a hoot if you don’t find her “likable.” Her character, Lily, sleeps her way to the top, both socially and financially, and thinks little of the lives she steps on along the way. I love that you can’t pass judgement on Lily’s actions in this movie without also examining what her options are as a woman in this time period. Not only did this movie have to be edited with extra moralizing in order to pass the New York State Censorship Board, it also is one of the handful of films that brought an end to the Pre-Code era in Hollywood. It also features a very young John Wayne in a small role. (Available to stream on YouTube, Amazon, iTunes, Google Play and Vudu.)

STAR 80 (1983)

(seen in 35mm at Quad Cinema as part of their Fosse series)

I watched this and was so impressed by it that I bought it, but I’m not sure I ever want to watch this again. This is the last film directed by the great Bob Fosse and it is brutally ugly. The movie tells a semi-fictionalized version of the tragic story of Dorothy Stratten, who was a celebrated Playboy Playmate and burgeoning actress before she was murdered by her husband Paul Snider. Mariel Hemingway is great as Stratten, but the film centers on a truly brilliant performance by Eric Roberts, who gives Snider a surprising amount of humanity without losing any of his sliminess or giving him one iota of forgiveness. The end of this film is a gut punch, and you can tell Fosse utterly loathes the men in this movie, who treat Stratten — even after her death — as a product. (Available to stream on YouTube, Amazon, iTunes, Google Play and Vudu.)

WELCOME HOME, ROXY CARMICHAEL (1990)

(seen in 35mm at Alamo Drafthouse Brooklyn as part of their Winona Forever event)

Where has this movie been all my life?! When it comes to iconic female role models played by Winona Ryder, Heathers and Beetlejuice are the movies you probably think of first. Oh, and Little Women, of course. But Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael reigns over them all, and I truly wish I’d known about this movie when I was a teen and could have identified with this scruffy dog lover who doesn’t need a guy in her life bad enough to put up with not being treated like the queen she is. All hail Dinky Bossetti! (Available to stream for free on Amazon Prime.)

LOS SURES (1984)

(seen in 35mm at Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers as part of their I Love Old New York event)

I don’t watch a lot of documentaries, but this one knocked me out. Part of the Yonkers Drafthouse’s “I Love Old New York” marathon, this is a doc about the Brooklyn neighborhood that is now known as Williamsburg. It’s almost unfathomable that the area of Brooklyn seen in this film is the same as the upscale hipster haven that Williamsburg is today. Los Sures was one of the poorest neighborhoods in NYC when this film was made and was once called the worst ghetto in America. The film follows five individuals and is an incredible portrait of a community that struggles with crime and disenfranchisement but also has people who are willing to fight to make it better. (Available to rent on Amazon.)

ANGUISH (1987)

(seen in 35mm at Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers as part of Dismember the Alamo)

It’s been a couple of months since I first saw this and I’m still not sure what I saw. What begins as a creepy mother-son psychic revenge plot with major eye squickiness (and top-billed Zelda Rubinstein!) takes a HARD left turn about thirty minutes in. The trick this movie pulls is one that should definitely be used sparingly, but it really works here and becomes (for me, at least) a much more relatable nightmare. I can’t really say much more without spoiling, and I can’t imagine how they advertised this movie, but it’s a very solid slasher that isn’t like a hundred slashers you’ve seen before. I’m so glad I got to see this in an actual movie theater, and that I think is the ultimate way to see it. Provided you can handle the eye squick. (Hard to find, unfortunately - there’s a Blu-Ray but it’s Region 2. Some Region 1 DVDs for sale by some collectors on Amazon, but you’ll probably get a better price on eBay.)

20 Fall Movies I Can't Wait to See

It's the most wonderful time of the year! For me, anyway. Between the Entertainment Weekly Fall Movie Preview issue (or, as I like to call it, "September Vogue for movie geeks") and the triple whammy of the Venice, Telluride and Toronto film festivals, I start becoming overwhelmed with all the films I want to see.

A friend asked me back in February what movies I was looking forward to this year, and I didn't have much of an answer. But I do now. So for M.D. (and anyone else who's interested), here are twenty movies coming out between now and the end of the year that I CANNOT WAIT to get in my eyeballs.

(from Mandy)

MANDY (9/14)
I've been hearing about this since Sundance. The latest from Panos Cosmatos, who made Beyond the Black Rainbow. That, plus a reportedly bazonkers Nic Cage (more bazonkers than usual, even) is all I need to know. (Trailer)

TEA WITH THE DAMES (9/21)
Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins and Joan Plowright, drinking and dishing about their careers. What could be better? (Trailer)

THE OLD MAN & THE GUN (9/28)
Yes, it has Casey Affleck in it, which might be a dealbreaker for some. But it's also Robert Redford's swan song before he leaves acting for good, and Sissy Spacek is supposed to be really fantastic in it. (Trailer - omg they used the Butch & Sundance font!)

(from A Star Is Born)

A STAR IS BORN (10/5)
Not gonna lie, this is my *most* anticipated film of the fall. It blew people away at Telluride and Venice. I've been watching the previous incarnations, and there's a moment in the trailer for the new one that I realized is a very specific callback to all of the previous films and I can't even think about it without crying. (Trailer)

BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE (10/5)
Drew Goddard's follow-up to Cabin in the Woods, and it looks like a very different endeavour. I'm not that into movie trailers these days, but this one is great and I hope the film has that same cool, creepy feel they're trying to sell. (Trailer)

FIRST MAN (10/12)

Another movie that slayed at the end-of-summer festivals. It's Damien Chazelle's follow-up to La La Land with Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong. I've tried to be cynical about this one, but I can't. I'm DYING at the controversy over the American flag thing, though. (Also at the idea that a story about American astronauts landing on the moon wouldn't be inherently fiercely patriotic.) (Trailer)

HALLOWEEN (10/19)

Everything I've seen of this so far has been incredible. I'm thrilled to see Jamie Lee Curtis back as Laurie Strode and to see Michael Myers as an actual human villain, not a death-proof killing machine. I also kind of like that they're pretending Halloweens 4, 5, 6, H20 and Resurrection never happened. (No need to touch 3, of course.) (Trailer)

SUSPIRIA (10/26 limited, 11/2 expanded)

The original is one of the more messed-up horror films of all time, as well as a movie I love, and I'm looking forward to seeing what Luca Guadagnino does with this (it seems miles from his previous film, Call Me By Your Name). I'm glad, to begin with, that it doesn't look too similar to Argento's version, because I couldn't deal with that. (Trailer)

(from Widows)

BODIED (11/2)

This was the most talked about movie from Fantastic Fest last year. I watched the trailer once, but didn't quite ... get it? I mean, I get that it's a rap battle movie, but I'm curious what sets this apart. Anxious to slap eyeballs on it. (Trailer)

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND (on Netflix 11/2)

A previously unreleased film by Orson Welles? YES PLEASE. The documentary about the making of this film, They'll Love Me When I'm Dead, is being released concurrently with this. (Trailer)

PETERLOO (11/9)

New Mike Leigh movie. 'Nuff said. It looks different from most of the stuff he's done, in that he doesn't usually make films with this kind of scope. Topsy-Turvy is a glorious exception, and if that's anything to go by, I am really excited to see this. (Trailer)

FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD (11/16)

I was mildly interested in the first film but didn't fall in mad love with it. This one, however, is going to give us some beloved characters and settings we're familiar with -- Dumbledore! Hogwarts! NICHOLAS FLAMEL! (Trailer)

WIDOWS (11/16)

Steve McQueen directing an all-female heist movie? With Viola Davis, Cynthia Erivo, Jackie Weaver, Liam Neeson, Daniel Kaluuya, Carrie Coon, Colin Farrell and Robert Duvall? I am so here for this! (Trailer)

THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS (on Netflix 11/16)

I'm always up for a new Coen Brothers joint, and this one is a western anthology. Starring Tim "we thought you was a toad" Blake Nelson from my favorite Coen flick (so far), O Brother, Where Art Thou?. (Fun fact: another member of the cast is Harry Melling, aka Dudley Dursley.) (no trailer yet)

RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET (11/21)

I don't care what else is even in the movie, They had me at the Disney Princess scene. (Trailer)

THE FAVOURITE (11/23)

The new Yorgos Lanthimos. Loved The Lobster and loved Killing of a Sacred Deer even more. This looks utterly bonkers (even better -- PERIOD bonkers!). And that cast! (Trailer)

IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK (11/30)

New film by Barry Jenkins, who directed Best Picture-winner Moonlight. It looks beautiful, and it's based on a James Baldwin book, and I'm so ready. (Trailer)

ANNA AND THE APOCALYPSE (limited 11/30)

Another Fantastic Fest favorite from last year. A zombie Christmas musical. Deck the halls with blood and guts, baby! (Trailer)

(from Roma)

MARY POPPINS RETURNS (12/19)

Why have we not seen more of this since that teaser that played during ... was it the Super Bowl? Anyway, Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins, with a supporting cast that includes Lin-Manuel Miranda, Meryl Streep, Julie Walters, Emily Mortimer, Ben Whishaw, and even Dick Van Dyke (though not as Burt - we'll see if that accent returns). (Trailer)

ROMA (12/14)

The latest from Alfonso Cuarón and his first feature film since 2013's Gravity. Heard this was incredibly emotional. And semi-autobiographical. It's being released by (on?) Netflix, but it will also have a theatrical run. (Trailer)

**********

POSSIBLE WILD CARD:
Clint Eastwood's latest (The Mule) is in post-production, and he is well known for dropping movies into the schedule unexpectedly. Haven't seen or heard anything about this yet, but Eastwood cares not for your fall movie schedule. Clint gonna Clint. (If this slips into the Oscar race, Bradley Cooper could be looking at a possible FIVE Oscar nominations this year alone.)

(Five Because) Movies That Are Completely Bonkers

The most recent Pure Cinema Podcast was about mind-meltingly bonkers movies. There are a lot of ways to go with this, but here are my "five because."

RUBBER (2010) (trailer)

Most of this movie is a classic slasher setup, except that the killer in this case is a rubber tire. That's not a euphemism. An actual rubber tire. We see it come to life, learn how to roll, and eventually learn that it can destroy things -- first by rolling over them and crushing them, then when it encounters larger objects and even humans, by psychically causing them to explode. There aren't many things I love more than when a filmmaker gets some harebrained idea and commits to it utterly and completely, and this is absolutely one of those movies. I'm not as in love with the framing device of the in-universe "audience" watching the proceedings from afar (though it does give us the line "Hey, wait! It's not the end! He's been reincarnated as a tricycle!" aka one of my favorite lines of dialogue EVER), but director Quentin Dupieux made a story about a serial killer rubber tire WAY more compelling than it has any right to be. (available to rent on Amazon)

THE BABY (1973) (trailer)

This movie only could have been made in the 1970s. A social worker begins working with "Baby" -- a physically grown male who is kept in a large crib and wears a diaper. He supposedly suffers from a developmental disorder, but we eventually learn that his mother and sisters have been doing this to him -- perversely denying him even the most basic conditioning and development. They torture him to discourage him from attempting to stand, walk and talk, keeping him in a perpetual infantile state (Baby's "dialogue" is even dubbed by an actual cooing infant - GAH). And one of his sisters (played by Messiah of Evil's Marianna Hill) occasionally sneaks into his room at night for ... you know, we're not shown exactly what, and I'm pretty thankful for that, but it doesn't take much guesswork. The social worker, it turns out, has designs of her own, and the climax, while admittedly batshit insane, actually makes sense and does a good job of tying everything together. (available to rent on Amazon)

FATEFUL FINDINGS (2012) (trailer)

A master class in what a friend of mine calls "anti-timing" (what is the exact wrong moment to cut? what is the exact wrong time to deliver a line, and the exact wrong line to deliver?), this movie is the work of Neil Breen, former Las Vegas real estate agent and architect turned auteur. In addition to producing, writing, directing and editing the film, Breen stars as Dylan, a man who is imbued with supernatural powers after finding a mysterious rock as a child and who uses his hacking skills to uncover "secret government and corporate secrets." This movie contains several "love" scenes between people who clearly don't want to touch each other, an amazing scene in which Breen's character tearfully tells his friend who's just apparently committed suicide that he can't get him out of this jam, and a climax in which a number of generic "corporate types" in power suits take their lives in various ways after having their secrets exposed (though the film never troubles itself with exactly what those secrets are). I know a lot of people don't have much patience for movies like this, made by people who are not "real filmmakers" and don't have any level of fluency in cinematic language. But I'm fascinated by people like Breen who have a dream and just go for it, not caring what anyone else thinks or even if they know what they're doing. And I kind of love getting a peek into Breen's mind and trying to piece together what he's trying to say. #NOMOREBOOKS (available to rent on YouTube)

HAUSU (1977) (trailer)

Save us, Kung-Fu! One of the best entries in the "fantasy horror" subgenre, Hausu is absolutely bazonkers and the kind of stew you'd get if you put together "Pee Wee's Playhouse," The Shining, Suspiria, The Grudge and the boat ride scene from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Director Nobuhiko Obayashi, who prior to this was best known for his TV ads (including the Charles Bronson-starring Mandom commercials), was inspired by his young daughter's descriptions of her strange dreams to create this wackadoo film about a group of girls who go to a house for the summer and who each meet their untimely demise when the house "eats" them in various and utterly insane ways (one girl is literally eaten by a piano). There are no male heroes to save the day here; the few male characters in the movie are all ineffectual and have little or no impact on the story -- though they contribute to the overall hysteria. The closest thing to a "masculine hero" in the movie gets his butt stuck in a bucket and ultimately is turned into -- I'm not kidding -- a giant, roughly man-shaped pile of bananas. BANANAS. (streaming on FilmStruck)

GOODBYE UNCLE TOM (1971) (trailer - NSFW)

(Apologies for the somewhat nondescript screenshot; Google Image search for this movie is a LANDMINE.)

The other four movies on this list are "fun" bonkers. This one is utterly outrageous in a very different way and not fun at all. Nevertheless, it's horrifyingly compelling and I suspect pretty historically accurate (the last 10 minutes or so notwithstanding). If you liked 12 Years a Slave but didn't think it went quite far enough to show the atrocities of slavery in America, check out this film and afterwards go punch a Confederate flag-waving alt-righter in the face (bonus points for screaming "BECAUSE YOU'RE WHITE" like the guy at the end of this movie). Perhaps the most bonkers thing about this movie is how it was made. The filmmakers, Franco Prosperi and Gaultiero Jacopetti, were mostly known for shockumentaries like Mondo Cane and Addio Africa, and turned their documentarists' eyes toward the American slave trade, shooting the movie as if they had gone back in time (seriously!) to the antebellum South and were just filming what was going on in front of them. Meaning that they staged (with underpaid Haitian actors) the most degrading, humiliating acts of oppression imaginable as if they were current events. From the opening scene, where a black child is fed scraps under the dinner table as if he were a dog, to a scene near the end of the film, where a young slave girl "offers herself" to one of the filmmakers (saying that she prefers white men because they're "smaller"), this movie is Off. The. Charts. And just when you think it can't get crazier, the present-day (1970s) coda pushes it right over the edge. (available to rent on Amazon and iTunes, if you dare -- be sure to get the English version)

Exploitation Sampler

Inspired once again by Pure Cinema Podcast, whose most recent episode is what they call a "sampler platter" of various flavors of exploitation (blaxploitation, hicksploitation, Canuxploitation, sexploitation, etc.), I wanted to offer up a sampler platter of my own.

BLAXPLOITATION -- This subgenre has some obvious classics, like Sweet Sweetback's Baadassss Song, Blacula, SuperFly, Coffy, Shaft, etc. And my own choice might seem obvious as well, but I couldn't resist.

PUTNEY SWOPE (1969)

Putney says she's gotta have soul! No list of exploitation movies is complete without this one. Directed by Robert Downey (original recipe), who also ended up dubbing the voice of the main character himself, this movie was kind of a forerunner of the blaxploitation subgenre. After the head of the executive board of an ad agency dies (in one of the most hilarious scenes I've ever seen -- "How many syllables, Mario?"), the token black man on the board (the titular Putney, played by Arnold Johnson) is accidentally made the new boss, and he proceeds to turn everything upside down. The story is a pretty basic "power corrupts" narrative, but the real magic of the movie is in the series of commercials made by the fictitious "Truth and Soul, Inc." -- particularly the ads for Face Off face cream, Ethereal Cereal and Fan-A-Way ("You can't eat an air conditioner.").

I had the privilege of seeing a 40th anniversary screening of this in Harlem in 2009, with Downey in attendance, and it's one of my favorite experiences of living in New York.


HICKSPLOITATION - I went a bit outside the box for this one. We tend to think of hicksploitation as strictly taking place in the American South, but I submit that you don't have to be southern to be a hick. In fact, you don't even have to be American.

THE WICKER MAN (1973)

I defy you to tell me this isn't hicksploitation. I'm sure most people familiar on any level with the horror genre have seen this, but I think it's kind of interesting to look at it through the hicksploitation lens. The plot is the plot of nearly every hicksploitation flick ever made. A city-dwelling interloper (Edward Woodward) goes into a remote, rural area. He almost immediately meets with resistance from the mysterious and creepy locals, but he doesn't do himself any favors by not respecting their customs and culture. He is tempted by the farmer's daughter (or in this case, the landlord's daughter -- a naked, wall-slapping Britt Ekland). He comes face to face with the village's leader (Christopher Lee), whose proxy in most of these films is a small-town sheriff. And no matter what he thinks is going on, the truth is way more messed up than he anticipated.


CANUXPLOITATION - I'm not sure I have a handle on what does or doesn't count as Canuxploitation and what's just a Canadian film, but after consulting the exhaustive list on canuxploitation.com, I settled on this one, which I saw a few years ago and highly enjoyed.

CANNIBAL GIRLS (1973)

Starring Andrea Martin and an extravagantly afro'd Eugene Levy, and directed by Ivan Reitman, this is your basic Texas Chainsaw setup, but plays much more as a spoof. One stand-out feature (which is explained in the film's amazing trailer) is that the movie sounds a kind of bell tone whenever something gross or scary is about to happen -- to alert the more squeamish members of the audience so that they can look away. It might not be the best movie of its kind, and it's frequently an uneasy mix of horror and humor, but it's certainly entertaining and you can see why Reitman and Levy and Martin all went on to have noteworthy careers.


SEXPLOITATION - I'm not as well versed as I might be in this particular subgenre, and there are a lot of "nearby" genres that often get mistaken for this one. But I went with a movie from a known purveyor of a very particular type of sexploitation -- Jean Rollin.

FASCINATION (1979)

I was tempted to go with Rollin's Requiem for a Vampire (aka Caged Virgins), which I like slightly better, but that movie leans a bit more to the horror end. This movie also has a good bit of horror, but it leans more toward sexploitation. This subgenre often dovetails with horror, especially the surprisingly robust "lesbian vampire" canon, and Rollin made a lot of films like this. Like a lot of European erotic horror, it's best not to try too hard to nail down the plot. Basically, a thief, after cheating his partners out of their share of loot and running off, takes refuge in a mountain chateau. He encounters two beautiful women and tries to intimidate them, but he turns out to be in way over his head and gets caught up in a ... well, it's not entirely clear. A love triangle? A vampiric cult? Both? Whatever it is, there is no moment in this film more amazing than the scene depicted above, in which Eva -- clad in nothing but a black cloak and boots -- lays waste to the thief's remaining accomplices with a big ole scythe.


EXPLOIT ANYTHING - For the wild card slot, I'm swinging for the fences, exploitation wise. I've talked about this film before, but it's been a while. A classic I first encountered at BNAT back in 2004.

TOYS ARE NOT FOR CHILDREN (1972)

I guess this would most accurately be categorized as toysploitation? This movie might be easily discarded as trash, but while it's certainly sleazy, it's also pretty danged good. The narrative structure is provocative in a way that you don't normally see in films like this. Wait -- films like this? Scratch that, there are no films like this. The very first thing you see in the film is our heroine, Jamie, writhing on the bed, caressing a plush toy soldier and moaning "Daddy," so right away you know you're in for a wild ride. As you might guess, Jamie has severe daddy issues, brought on by her own father's abandonment and her mother's verbal abuse. She also has an unusually fierce attachment to toys (her main connection to her father being the toys he gave her when she was little). Not as lurid as it undoubtedly sounds, this movie nonetheless forces viewers to join Jamie on her obsession spiral, which takes her from toy shop employee to unhappy wife to New York prostitute as she gets closer and closer to realizing her twisted fantasy. The climax of this movie is just flipping unreal. I can't believe this movie exists.

2017 in Film - The Favorites

I did 20 honorable mentions, listed in alphabetical order because I had a hard enough time narrowing down and ordering the top 10.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Baahubali 2: The Conclusion - I thought nothing could top the beauty, majesty and utter insanity of the first film. I was wrong. I do prefer this one, because we spend more time in the flashbacks (and the courtship story is not as creepy as the one in the first movie). I’m not the biggest fan of the music in these movies, but Devasena’s “lullaby” to Amarendra is lovely and one of my favorite scenes. (available for rent on streaming services)

Blade Runner 2049 - Gorgeous and epic, and it gives a new richness to the original film. I wish it had been better with its female characters, but the world building is pretty fantastic. It’s wonderful to see Harrison Ford as Decker again, but make no mistake, this is Gosling’s movie. (available on streaming services)

Brawl in Cell Block 99 - From the moment Vince Vaughn tears up a car with his bare hands, I knew I was in for a ride. Vaughn has been pretty hit and miss but this was a great role for him — no sass, just a simple man trying to look out for his family. This movie is unbelievably brutal, but truly great, and I wish it had been advertised more aggressively and found a bigger audience. (available on streaming services - Amazon has it for $0.99 right now)

Call Me By Your Name - Beautiful and devastating. Where the heck did Timothée Chalamet come from? And why did it take so long for someone to figure out how to best use Armie Hammer? Will I ever be able to eat a peach again? Homosexuality issues aside (ba-dump-bump-chhh), the story unfolds like any romance between two people with a bit of an age gap where it’s impossible to take things beyond the infatuation of a summer. I love that they don’t really like each other at first and that it takes a while for the sparks to really ignite anything. And is there anything more heartbreaking than the final shot of this movie under Sufjan Stevens' "Visions of Gideon"? (no longer in theaters, not yet streaming)

Colossal - This is such a great movie, and I wish it had gotten more attention (and perhaps been advertised a bit better, though part of the magic of the movie is how it surprises you). Anne Hathaway is falling apart in her hometown when she discovers, on a hungover morning, that she has a kaiju avatar in Seoul, North Korea. It only appears when she steps into a particular small park and once she figures out what’s going on she manages to make things right. But that’s only half the story. Jason Sudeikis is an absolute dick in this movie — toxic masculinity run amok. Unfortunately a movie very much for our times. (available on streaming services)

Dunkirk - Most of you have surely seen this by now. A brilliant examination of three perspectives on the “miracle at Dunkirk” - from sea, from land, and from air. It took me far too long to get the hang of the different time settings, but it’s a very clever way to thread the stories together. One drawback for me is that it feels too detached. I don’t know any of these people, and that’s probably the way it’s supposed to be, but it’s harder to get invested that way. It’s a spectacular achievement nonetheless. (available on streaming services)

Girls Trip - If you didn’t see this in a theater full of people, I don’t know that watching at home will give you anywhere near the same experience. This is a wild ride from start to finish, and *another* film this year where someone has sex with a piece of fruit. Regina Hall, Queen Latifah and Jada Pinkett-Smith are all in fine form here, but the true star of this movie is Tiffany Haddish, whose wild antics give the film much of its humor but who also gives it a lot of its heart. (available on streaming services)

Good Time - After a bank robbery goes badly, Robert Pattinson spends the rest of the night trying to raise the money to get his mentally handicapped brother out of a Rikers Island holding cell. Like the characters in Dog Day Afternoon, this guy survives one crisis only to find himself neck deep in another, and so on and so forth. I really liked this, not only for Pattison’s incredible performance but for its bleary-eyed neon-soaked visuals that reminded me of Taxi Driver and the synth pop pulse that reminded me of an 80s Tangerine Dream soundtrack. I suppose that makes it sound derivative, and I guess in a lot of ways it is, but it steals from the best so who cares? (available on streaming services)

The Killing of a Sacred Deer - I liked this even more than The Lobster, and I love that Yorgos Lanthimos has found a kind of muse in Colin Farrell. Here, Farrell plays a doctor who is forced to make an impossible choice after losing a patient. Nicole Kidman plays his chillingly practical wife, and Barry Keoghan (who also appeared in Dunkirk) is our villain, who makes eating a plate of spaghetti into the most horrifying and threatening thing on earth. This movie makes a commitment and sticks to it through the bitter end, and it goes to some dark and hilarious places. The scene where Farrell’s character goes to his kids’ school and interrogates the principal to figure out which of his kids is “better” is one of my favorite moments of anything ever. (available on streaming services)

Lady Bird - I can’t quite nail down why I didn’t connect as much with this as everyone else seems to have, but I’d never deny that it’s a well-made film that has a lot of great things to say. The relationship between Christine and her mother is wonderfully real, and Beanie Feldstein is the best thing in the movie. This is a rare movie that’s about the lower middle class — the people who have been struggling the most since the economic meltdown. I do love Christine’s taste in music and related so hard to her indignant response to being judged for having a “greatest hits” compilation (“but … they’re the greatest”). Despite my relatively lukewarm (though still warm!) reception to this movie, I’m very eager to see what director Greta Gerwig (I love saying that) does next because she is one of my favorite people. (still in theaters)

Lady Macbeth - A Victorian drama with tremendous bite and a wonderful lead performance by newcomer Florence Pugh. Pugh plays Katherine, a woman trapped in a loveless marriage who is willing to go to any lengths to have the life that she wants. Florence’s connection to her Scottish counterpart is not exact. Rather than power, she seeks sexual freedom, which was itself a kind of power for women of the time. The movie also has some subtle things to say about white supremacy. (available on streaming services)

Logan - What a great farewell for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. It’s not often we get to see the latter days of a superhero’s life. They’re constantly being reinvented and rebooted with new, young actors so that we’re spared this part of the story (because this part is depressing as hell). And as sad as Logan’s role in this is, Patrick Stewart’s declining Professor X is even more heartbreaking. And don’t even get me started on the incredible Dafne Keen. (available on streaming services; on HBONow for free)

Logan Lucky - Ocean’s Eleven with rednecks is the simplest summary, but this is a bit more than that. The characters in this movie are incredibly smart, even sophisticated in their own way, and their motives (Jimmy’s, anyway) are more sympathetic. And in a year where a third of all movies, it seemed, used a John Denver song, there was no better use than “Take Me Home, Country Roads” in this movie. (available on streaming services)

The Lost City of Z - I had no idea what this movie was before slapping eyes on it, but it’s really remarkable. Based on the true story of Percy Fawcett’s explorations of the Amazon and his efforts to find the lost city, it’s a welcome example of a story that takes great pains to make the case that there was indeed civilization before white people started invading the world. Charlie Hunnam is good, but Robert Pattinson outshines him a bit. (available on streaming services; free on Amazon Prime)

Mudbound - I had several chances to see this on a big screen and I blew it, having to settle instead for my television. This is a beautifully shot movie about two families — one black and one white — who work on the same land and struggle to co-exist (and just exist in general). I hated Jonathan Banks SO MUCH in this movie. Mary J. Blige gives a wonderful, understated performance that I hope gets recognized on the awards circuit. (available on Netflix)

Okja - Another one I wish I could have seen on the big screen, but I don’t think I ever had a chance to. This movie made me care way more than I expected to about a giant CGI pig. It’s not the first film to exploit our stubborn separation of animals we love and animals we eat (which are frequently the same animals), but it very effectively sets up its heroine as a David fighting the Goliath of the meat industry, while also bumping up against an animal rights group that has its own motives.  An exceptional film. (available on Netflix)

The Post - Another film for our troubled times. This is Meryl’s movie, period, and it’s her best performance in years. I mean, she’s always great, but she’s truly exceptional here as Katherine Graham, owner of the Washington Post. The other MVP is Bob Odenkirk as Ben Bagdikian, who actually procured many of the Pentagon Papers from Daniel Ellsberg. This is a great celebration of the media’s role in holding the powerful accountable, but I’m not sure how much power a paper like this has nowadays when anything you don’t like you can just declare fake until people forget about it. Still a great movie. (wide release Jan. 12)

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women - Seems a strange coincidence that this came out the same year as Wonder Woman, but it does add some meaningful context. This is based on the real life relationship between William Marston (creator of Wonder Woman), his wife Elizabeth, and a woman named Olive who was Marston’s teaching assistant and who becomes romantically involved with both of them. We see how this relationship and the two women inspire the creation of Wonder Woman and how they struggle as an unconventional family in the 30s and 40s. There aren’t many movies about polyamorous relationships, and they’re usually presented as salacious, but this was beautifully done. (only available on DVD/Blu for now)

Thor Ragnarok - The exact kick in the pants these movies needed. So much humor and connection to the rest of the Marvelverse — I usually find the endless easter eggs and references to the other characters’ movies tiresome, but the Thor movies have been somewhat distant from all that up to now, so the connections feel more fresh. Hela is a welcome addition to the saga, and I loved the subtle condemnation of colonialism. (still in theaters)

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri - Goes in directions you don’t expect, and that’s exciting. Frances McDormand and Sam Rockwell are the MVPs (Rockwell’s arc makes the movie, in my opinion), but Woody Harrelson gives a beautiful performance as well. The script also boasts the best line of dialogue of any movie this year — “Penelope said ‘begets’?” (still in theaters)

**********

And now...

THE TOP TEN

Ay, mi familia, oiga, mi gente, canten a coro

Let it be known

Our love for each other will live on forever

In every beat of my proud corazón!

I cringed pretty hard when I first heard about this movie, because while Pixar is one of the more progressive studios, they're still overwhelmingly white. And here they were making this movie about Mexican culture -- how was this not going to be hugely awkward and embarrassing? It's a good thing, then, that they stacked the cast and crew with massively talented Mexican storytellers and actors. From the moment I heard the Disney fanfare played by a mariachi band I was in love. Coco is steeped in the rituals of Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead), a tradition where families pray for and remember those they have lost. People bring gifts and food and other offerings to encourage the souls of the departed to visit them. The plot here is fairly standard Pixar stuff, but the visuals are some of the most vivid and beautiful in any of their films. It might seem strange that a movie where most of the characters are skeletons is so bright and uplifting, but it feels like the true spirit of the Day of the Dead. Not sombre, black-draped mourning, but a brilliant celebration of life and the generations that have gone before. And the music! Everyone loves "Remember Me," and it's getting the big awards push, but my heart belongs to "Proud Corazón" (quoted above). (still in theaters)

Nancy gets hit once, and the whole world shits! For me, it's an all-the-time occurrence!

Unable to reconcile the highly conflicting stories told respectively by Tonya Harding and Jeff Gillooly, the filmmakers decided to just show the audience everyone's point of view and let them decide what they feel the truth is. For my part, as someone who followed figure skating in the 1990s and went to a "Tonya vs. Nancy" party in college during the '94 Olympics, this movie forced me to seriously reconsider what I had always thought about Harding and the whole "kneecap" affair. (I'm convinced she had no part in the actual assault -- she wanted to defeat Kerrigan too badly to cheat herself of the satisfaction of outskating her.) And though she does dole out more blame to others and never really accepts any guilt herself for any of her misfortunes, you do get the impression that she never really got a fair shake, particularly in the skating world, where the judges only saw her as white trash who didn't belong in their rarified world. Performances in this movie are off-the-charts great. Margot Robbie is equal parts vulnerable and tough, and Allison Janney has literally never been better (no, not even in The West Wing, if you can imagine). (still in theaters)

These are the rooms we're not supposed to go in... But let's go anyways!

This movie takes place in a world I never knew existed, and if this story were told from anyone's point of view but Moonee's, it would be unbearable and exploitative. We see a summer in Orlando, Florida through the eyes of a six-year-old who lives in a pay-by-the-week motel with her indifferent mother. The reality of her life is objectively terrifying, but she doesn't see it that way herself and her perspective gives the movie a bizarrely magical quality, making you *almost* forget to feel sorry for her. The movie's cast of mostly unknowns is breathtaking, anchored by a thoroughly engaging Brooklynn Prince, who defies the scores of cloying, clever-beyond-their-years child performances that came before her. Willem Dafoe does some of his best work to date here as the motel manager who is a reluctant psuedo-parent, and Bria Vinaite -- who director Sean Baker found on Instagram and who never acted before this -- is astonishing as Moonee's mother. This movie has one of the greatest endings ever, and while everyone will talk about Moonee's breakdown or whether or not everything that follows is really happening, *the* moment for me is Jancey's reaction, which is the purest "I got you, girl" I've ever seen. (still in theaters, though not for long)

What's my stance on 9/11? Oh um, anti.

It was a tragedy, I mean we lost 19 of our best guys.

There are two ingredients I have always considered the secret weapons to making great romantic comedies: (1) fantastic supporting players (such as Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby in When Harry Met Sally) and (2) something going on other than the love story (e.g., the political goings on in The American President, the turbulent baseball season in Bull Durham). You've got to have at least one of those two things, in my opinion, but The Big Sick has both. In many ways, this movie is really a love story between a guy and his girlfriend's parents, perhaps more so than between the couple (whose relationship, until the very end, only spans the movie's first act).  Kumail Nanjiani (who plays himself, or a version of himself) wrote the movie with his wife, Emily Gordon (a version of whom is played in the movie by Zoe Kazan). Based on the actual events of their courtship, this movie beautifully explores the meat of relationships beyond the flurry of attraction and the initial stages of dating -- what happens when you actually try and merge your world with someone else's, taking on all the quirks of their life while asking them to take on yours. (available on streaming services; free on Amazon Prime)

The moment you catch feelings is the moment you catch a bullet.

I've long been a fan, but I fell deeply in love with Edgar Wright this year, both as a filmmaker and as movie enthusiast in general. I love that he came out of what must have been a disappointing experience with Ant-Man and decided that this was his next step. A movie he'd been wanting to make since well before the Cornetto days. A loving homage to the car chase movies of the 60s and 70s and an absolute feast of perfectly chosen songs (sweet mercy, that first six minutes!). That's right -- a friggin' car chase musical! There's a great deal of flash in the cast, including a boss cameo by Paul Williams, but it's all anchored by an understated (and frankly underappreciated) performance by Ansel Elgort. All of Wright's films reward multiple viewings, but this one especially seems to have about a million easter eggs and I'm still trying to find them all. I think of all his filmography so far, Hot Fuzz still has my heart (I could watch this gif on a loop until I slipped into a coma), but Baby Driver is a bold and ballsy step in a completely different direction and I am one hundred percent here for it. And it makes me incredibly excited to see what he does next. (available on streaming services)

If I could, I would have voted for Obama for a third term.

Remember when we elected Barack Obama and white people thought racism was over? Then the 2016 election happened, and we learned what black people had known all along? Like another film on this list (see #1), this movie could not have come at a more auspicious time. Get Out brilliantly punctures the hubris and complacency of white liberals who consider themselves allies because they have non-white friends, vote for a black president, and use "woke" hashtags on Twitter, but nevertheless contribute to white supremacy. It's also a reminder that you don't have to use the n-word or fly a Confederate flag to be a racist. Perhaps my favorite thing about this movie is that (SPOILER) there is not one single "white savior" to be found; I'm certain that a white director would have had at least one white character who was a "good guy" who stepped in to save the day or at least said "hey, that's not right." Jordan Peele has no time for #notallwhitepeople, and his movie is all the more powerful for it. (available to stream on HBONow)

Your mum was tough at first. Kept saying I was her best friend at school. It drove me nuts! It's not like she had a boyfriend. Just me. And then we had our first kiss. And I understood.

One of my main takeaways from this movie is that hazing in French veterinary school is hella hardcore. Our heroine, lifelong vegetarian Justine, is starting at a vet school which her older sister is already attending, and after one hazing ritual where she is forced to eat raw rabbit kidneys, she descends into a spiral of insatiable hunger (of many kinds, but most especially hunger for raw meat). Filmmaker Julia Ducournau very cleverly gets the audience on Justine's side by putting her into a situation at the very beginning where she is being yelled at and forced to do ridiculous, humiliating things, which compels us as viewers to mentally rebel against it along with her and therefore identify with her. She then spends the next two hours challenging that identification by showing us Justine's cannibalistic impulses and compelling us to see the humanity in them. Heavily influenced by the work of Cronenberg, Ducournau uses the language of body horror to tell a story about growing up and figuring out who you are, and about how doing that changes the way you see the world and your place in it. Not for the squeamish, but a very rewarding watch if you dare. (available on streaming services)

Don't you start using that filthy, little word, "chic."

Whoever invented that ought to be spanked in public.

On the surface, a movie set in the world of high fashion in 1950s London is not a movie I would have expected from the filmmaker behind Hard Eight, Boogie Nights, Magnolia and Inherent Vice. Daniel Day-Lewis (in what he claims will be his final role) plays a renowned fashion designer who has a strict routine and very particular ways of doing things. He's had a series of muses who he eventually discards (usually with a parting gift of one of his gowns), but his latest one, Alma, upsets all that and upends his neatly ordered universe. Anderson is playing a bit in Hitchcock's sandbox here -- the film bears a passing resemblance to Rebecca and maybe a little Rear Window -- but that should not suggest that this is derivative. It feels like an old fashioned movie but the relationship and power dynamics are handled with a modern touch. You already know Daniel Day-Lewis is phenomenal, so I won't belabor that point except to say that he still is. I don't know where Vicky Krieps came from, but I demand to see more of her because she is gobsmackingly great in this, as is the always great Lesley Manville who can take a gesture like pushing her hair behind her ears and give it the oomph of a Rocky montage. There is a wealth of rich detail in the production design and the costumes (the dress pictured above nearly made me cry) and the food. And it's all tied together with an astonishingly beautiful score by Jonny Greenwood. (wide release Jan. 19)

He's a wild creature. We can't ask him to be anything else.

There's a moment in this movie that so thoroughly charmed me that I melted nearly to the floor of the theater. The story is essentially Creature from the Black Lagoon but where the Creature gets the girl. There are so many moments that could have been disastrous and unintentionally funny, but Guillermo del Toro's empathy, imagination and skill as a filmmaker make it work exceedingly well. To the point that I'm confident saying this is his best work to date and is a textbook example of that corny term "movie magic." This movie is about outsiders, and it's incredibly satisfying to watch this band of misfits come together and carry out a heist (not to mention overcome a villain who has a winning ticket in Bigot Bingo). Everyone in this movie shines -- Octavia Spencer, Richard Jenkins, Michael Shannon, Michael Stuhlbarg, Doug Jones -- but none more so than the spectacular Sally Hawkins, whose joy and heart practically bleed onto the screen. (still in theaters)

Only love can save this world. So I stay. I fight, and I give ... for the world I know can be.

This is a movie I needed this year in so many ways. A female-directed, female-centered movie that I could wholeheartedly support, and not just because another one might not get made otherwise, but because it was genuinely good. A movie with a woman hero to whom it does not occur that she shouldn't speak up in a room full of men, to whom it does not occur that she should cover her entire body in clothes that restrict her ability to move so as not to be objectified or be a "distraction," and who cannot fathom a cause so hopeless that it isn't worth fighting for. In a year of "nevertheless, she persisted" and women speaking uncomfortable truths about powerful men, Diana the Wonder Woman is a hero that women desperately needed. And it's incredible to have a film version of her that's iconic in it own right and truly honors who Wonder Woman is. The image above might as well be the symbol for women in 2017.

Go back and listen to the old theme song from the Wonder Woman television show. I would particularly draw your attention to the lyrics "Make a hawk a dove ... stop a war with love ... make a liar tell the truth" and "Stop a bullet cold ... make the Axis fold ... change their minds ... and change the world." I know the wait was ridiculously long for a movie about Wonder Woman, but I think it could hardly have come at a more appropriate time. (available on streaming services)