Top Ten Films 2017 — The Gourmand Film Writer

Jun 19

Jun 19 Top Ten Films 2017

A difficult year in general… I have rarely been so grateful for good films; films that both confront some of the difficulties we face, but also films that lift our hearts and perhaps only our imagination. I admit that I have not seen many of the films making most people’s Top Ten lists including “The Post” or “A Quiet Passion” among others. But of the films that moved me, it is amazing how many could be called bildungsroman: an overdone genre without much originality left… yet “The Florida Project”, “Lady Bird”, “Call Me by Your Name” all seem to resonate with the hope of youth despite the true trials children face… a message I need right now. Here are my choices for the top ten films of 2017:

1. The Florida Project ****

I feel like I am in an echo chamber, but, I will join the chorus. Just like last year, where there seemed to be an obvious favorite with “Moonlight”, this year the film that cemented its status as the year’s best is Sean Baker’s “The Florida Project”. The story of a young girl trying to survive a life of poverty but protect her innocence is located on the outskirts of Disneyland; how fitting for our times, yet there is “real” magic within this film, not Disney magic. Willem Dafoe turns in his finest performance as the manager of the hotel where he tries to protect the kids from the world. Innocent and yet poignant, moving and yet funny… such a rare film.

2. Call Me by Your Name ****

Rarely has a film captured the beauty of falling in love for the first time. Timothee Chalamet (in three films this year, a true breakthrough) plays Elio, the son of a professor of Greco-Roman culture who hires an American intern played by Armie Hammer (in another revelatory performance). As their curiosity and interest with each other circles, the camera work done in Italy only captures the beauty of what is occurring on screen. Throw in one of the best monologues by the always incredible Michael Stuhlbarg, playing Elio’s father, and you have the most beautiful film of the year.

3. Lady Bird ****

Much has been written and said about the acting in “Lady Bird” and it is phenomenal. Saoirse Ronan, playing Christine (the afore mentioned Lady Bird), and Laurie Metcalf (turning in one of her best performances) should be nominated. However, what impressed me more than anything about this film was the writing. Greta Gerwig, writing semi-autobiographically, has achieved something great. Too often, quirky characters coming of age, even when based on reality, come off as whimsical or not real. As much as I loved “Juno”, it was the performances that elevated the material. Here, Greta captures the reality of living in Sacramento and the hysterical frustrations of growing up in a film that feels familiar and yet original at the same time. The relationship between mother and daughter anchors the film in reality.

4. First They Killed my Father ****

This will of course be remembered as the movie where Angelina Jolie proved herself a masterful director… but more on that later, because saying that diminishes the accomplishment that this movie possesses. Having taught “Apocalypse Now” in classes for years, and having understood the problems with the narrative about Vietnam being told from a white perspective (although I have long argued that the film is not about the Vietnam war), I was hesitant about Jolie helming this story, based on the life of human rights activist and Khmer Rouge survivor Loung Ung. But although Jolie is a triumph in everything she does here, it is Loung Ung’s story… and wow… what a powerful story it is… Trying to survive under the Khmer Rouge, one of the most horrific genocides in history, Loung Ung suffers so much and yet as a child continues to find hope in it all. One of the best anti-war movies ever made, comparable to “Life is Beautiful” and importantly made from the perspective of those who endured rather than the outsiders who came.

5. Wormwood ****

Errol Morris is one of our greatest documentarians, but unlike Warner Herzog (another great documentarian), he often does not place himself into movies preferring to use his Interrotron so the interview subject, while talking to him, actually looks like he’s staring into the camera. The result is deeply personal interviews like in “Fog of War”. But with “Wormwood”, Errol jumps in, using almost every documentary device at his disposal to talk and recreate possibilities for how Frank Olson, an army scientist, plunged to his death in 1953. The use of recreating scenes with actors of what might happen, plays into the central themes of this incredible documentary about memory and belief and how they form. [I struggled with whether this was a film or a mini-series {it was released in theaters to be nominated and I saw it all at once rather than in episodes}… as I could have put as my favorite film of the year, Ken Burn’s “Veitnam” which is definitely a mini series…]

6. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri ****

Francis McDormand should be considered an American treasure, but for reasons amply made public this year, women in Hollywood are rarely given the credit they deserve. It is shocking to realize how few leading roles Frances has had, despite winning an Oscar for Marge Gunderson in “Fargo” (a fact that she likes to remind people … Marge had less screen time than any of the other major male characters). Here, she meets with one of the most exciting writer / directors to pull off a masterpiece, equally funny, violent, and poignant. Think Tarantino at his best without the pop culture allusions. Martin McDonagh has long been interested in the theme of vengeance and here follows a mother who buys billboards so that the community will not forget the horrific crime against her daughter.

7. I am not another you ****

Rarely am I this moved by a documentary. Nanfu Wang creates another risky documentary with her singular style. Beautifully shot, having a background in photography, what is truly incredible though is the intimate portrayal of Dylan, her subject. Staying at a hostel in Florida, she meets Dylan, a charismatic homeless drifter whom she decides to accompany and ask to film. He agrees. At first, I was really hesitant as the film seemed to be romanticizing homelessness, but then we begin to see the true difficulties of this life and that charismatic demeanor of Dylan cracks as we see problems that lurk beneath. After leaving him, Nanfu eventually connects with his father in an attempt to understand Dylan. Her becoming a part of this family and following where the story takes her allows her to create one of the most intimate portraits of a person I’ve ever seen… whose life while tragic also has far reaching implications in our society and how we deal with both the poor and the mental ill. Incredible.

8. Dunkirk ****

The largest evacuation in military history… WWII… there’s rarely a scope for a movie set in war bigger than that and yet Nolan by playing with time and intercutting his sequences actually makes his most intimate film in years. Asking us to accompany these various people as they set forth to try and survive. In the end, the realization that sacrifice is needed for survival is such a powerful realization and an important message for our time.

9. Mudbound ****

It’s rare to see a movie that is truly an ensemble film. “Mudbound” is definitely that. Yes, there are without a doubt two characters the movie follows from returning after fighting in WWII to battling racism in Mississippi, but it is the town and the racism deeply imbedded in America that are the true story here. By juxtaposing the fight for freedom abroad with institutionalized racism at home, “Mudbound” brings a more modern reminder that the horrors of such things in “12 Years a Slave” are not as far removed as most think.

10. TIE: Blade Runner 2049 **** and Star Wars The Last Jedi ****

Two movies continued the stories of previous films. One I was suspicious about… the other I hoped to like.

“Blade Runner 2049” I didn’t think was necessary, before I saw it, but, what Denis Villeneuve achieves is something of a miracle. Continuing the style of the original and yet making it boldly his own, he expands on the theme of the original questioning the identity of humanity, while again making it personally his. The use of cinematography to show the isolation of replicants in the midst of overpopulation is fantastic.

Then, there was the next film in the Star Wars trilogy that I had hoped for. The Last Jedi was everything I wanted it to be. I don’t care that it was overly long; I think that they dealt well with the many story lines. I think all of the new characters were incredible, especially the Vice Admiral and Rose (perhaps this excludes Benicio del Toro). I thought they dealt with the force better than any other film and how they used Luke Skywalker and a surprise cameo were inspiring. Rian Johnson’s direction is probably the best in the series, using his own unique choices of color and imagery that still somehow seemed in the Star Wars universe. It reminded me of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” because in that film, director Alfonso Cuaron, took the Harry Potter reigns, but injected his own style. Here, Rian Johnson does the same. Incredible.

Runners up: Get Out ****, Ghost Story ****, Phantom Thread ****, The Killing of a Sacred Deer****, Okja ****, Logan *** ½, Baby Driver *** ½, Personal Shopper *** ½, War for Planet of the Apes *** ½, Coco *** ½

Best Actor: Timothee Chalamet (Call Me by Your Name ****)

Runner Up: Daniel Day Lewis (Phantom Thread ****)

Best Actress: Sareum Srey Moch (First They Killed my Father ****)

Runners Up:

Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri ****)

Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird ****)

Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread ****)

Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe (Florida Project ****)

Runner Up: Michael Stuhlbarg and Armie Hammer (Call Me by Your Name ****)

Best Supporting Actress: Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird ****)

Runner Up: Hong Chau (Downsizing ***)

Best Cinematography: Sayombhu Mukdeeprom (Call Me by Your Name ****)