Some years, making a Top 10 list is fairly easy. Other years—like 2016—it’s much harder. There were a lot of films I really enjoyed this year, but few that I truly loved. For whatever reason, I found plenty of films enjoyable or thought provoking or emotional, but not very many that really connected as in years past. To be honest, I would’ve been fine crafting a Top 5 this year instead of a Top 10, but the rules clearly state that you must have 10 favorite films each year or else your list is invalid. So, here we are.
This isn’t to say there are films on my list that I don’t like—I either love or really like every single one—but it wasn’t a situation where I was agonizing over having to leave certain films off the list. Although I will offer one disclaimer—I have not seen Silence, and really, really want to. So that film could be a spoiler when I eventually see it.
But for now, I present my personal Top 10 films of 2016. These are movies that made me laugh, cry, scream in anger, and sometimes all three. Behold.
10) Swiss Army Man
I was in the first public audience to ever see Swiss Army Man at Sundance back in January, and it was a fascinating experience. The consensus was that there was no consensus. Reports of a massive amount of walkouts during the movie were, I can attest, false, and while there was no unanimous critical appreciation, everyone was in agreement on one thing: no one had ever seen anything remotely like Swiss Army Man. Indeed, directors Daniel Scheinert and Dan Kwan crafted a 100% wholly unique film that refuses to conform to any specific genre. It’s a drama and an absurdist comedy and a romance and a survival thriller and a buddy movie all at once. The sheer ambition on display in this film is worthy of recognition alone, as Scheinert and Kwan are able to use this buddy conceit of a suicidal man who befriends a corpse to craft a film about why life is worth living.
Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe are phenomenal as the central duo. Dano has been doing terrific work for years, and as the “straight” man here he plays the arc of a semi-insane man with pure empathy. But it’s Radcliffe who steals the show as a corpse slowly coming back to life. In a role that very easily could have become a one-note joke, Radcliffe absolutely soars. He colors Manny with various different shades, and even when most of his body is immobile, Radcliffe delivers a fantastic performance. In truth, it’s the turns from Dano and Radcliffe that solidified this film as one of my Top 10 of the year—it’s stunning work in a film that demands to be seen to be believed, and via the hard work from Dano, Radcliffe, Daniels & co., they manage to make a “farting corpse movie” somehow profound.
9) Weiner
While Weiner was released back in May, I didn’t see it until mid-November, after the presidential election. Reviews out of Sundance, where the film premiered, were raves, but seeing this movie in the wake of the election of President Donald J. Trump was an almost surreal experience. The film began as a chronicle of Anthony Weiner’s supposed resurgence, as he ran for Mayor of New York City a changed man, two years after his sexts (with someone other than his wife, mind you) became public. But in the midst of his campaign, more photos that were taken during the same time period surface, putting an end to this so-called comeback as his campaign goes up in flames.
Weiner presents a man with good intentions (aside from his personal shortcomings, Weiner’s got some solid ideas) who continues to be sidelined by his own ego. In one scene, Weiner can’t stop watching his trainwreck of an interview with Lawrence O’Donnell where the two traded insults, while his wife (the insanely smart, good-natured political staffer Huma Abedin) looks on in horror. Weiner finds the incident funny, pointing out zingers where he “got” O’Donnell, while Abedin is mortified with embarrassment.
What’s surreal about watching Weiner in the age of Trump is that, yes, Weiner sent some naughty photos and texts within a certain timeframe, but Trump repeatedly, over decades, spouted hateful, racist, sexist, inappropriate rhetoric—sometimes off camera, and sometimes directly on the record. That Weiner’s career came crashing down and Donald Trump became president is a horrific bit of irony. For all of Weiner’s faults (and there are many), his passion for the betterment of his constituents was never in question. Even when his campaign is on its last leg, Weiner fulfills a speaking engagement with a hostile town hall, admitting his personal faults while explaining specifics as it pertains to what he would have done had he been elected Mayor.
I’m not advocating for Anthony Weiner, but this documentary is a brilliant portrait of a difficult man that is made all the more relevant in the wake of Trump’s election. It’s frustrating to be sure, but it’s a fascinating snapshot of who we are as a nation, and the hypocrisy of what we will and won’t stand for.
8) 10 Cloverfield Lane
There’s something about an expertly crafted thriller that makes the movies feel “magic” again. While 10 Cloverfield Lane carries the moniker of a franchise entry, director Dan Trachtenberg really just put together a Hitchockian thriller all his own, casting the hell out of this three-part ensemble piece and letting Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Gallagher Jr., and the incomparable John Goodman run wild. Winstead offers up a hero that we need right now—one that isn’t simply a female character that’s given male character traits and dialogue, but also not a sobbing damsel in distress. Michelle is tough, complex, and vulnerable all at once, and Winstead delivers a tremendous performance that goes toe to toe with Goodman, which is not an easy task. John Goodman is one of our greatest living actors, and he gives the audience more information about the enigmatic Howard with a single look than many actors are able to deliver in an entire movie. It’s a truly terrifying performance chock-full of nuance, and if there were any justice Goodman would have his first Oscar nomination for the role.
In all, 10 Cloverfield Lane is just an incredible popcorn movie. Trachtenberg directs with purpose and confidence, making what’s basically a film about three people talking in a bomb shelter an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride. And Bear McCreary offers the cherry on top with one of the best scores of the year—a true Hitchcock throwback that stands on its own.
7) Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
I saw a lot of movies in 2016, but the film I saw the most was Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. While Universal sold the so-called “Lonely Island movie” as a parody of Justin Bieber and the world of popstars, what Andy Samberg and co-directors Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer actually crafted is a hilarious, lean comedy that stands on its own with a genuinely original story and, shockingly, characters you actually care about. The film is indeed shot in a documentary-style format, but cinematographer Brandon Trost finds beauty in the stage wings and car interiors that populate the film, offering up a colorful and dynamic visual palette. That works in concert with Samberg, Taccone and Schaffer’s masterful comedic timing as the film is laden with sight gags, phenomenal throwaways (Bill Hader talking about Flatliners, “shot by Jan de Bont”, will never not make me laugh), and performance pieces that are A. Visually striking and B. Showcasing songs that are both hilarious and genuinely great.
Taccone has become the king of crafting cult comedies as his previous masterwork Macgruber failed to find an audience in the theaters and Popstar similarly faltered at the box office, but if there’s any justice this movie will get its due.
6) Moonlight
Moonlight is a stunning piece of filmmaking, plain and simple. Writer/director Barry Jenkins’ chronicle of the life of one man in three snapshots in beautiful, painful, and hopeful all at once. The film puts a very different kind of spin on the “coming-of-age” story, presenting the life of Chiron in three parts—as a young boy, as a teenager, and as a man. In each stage, we see him grappling with his sexuality, poverty, a less-than-ideal home life, and what it means to be black in this country. Jenkins is never overtly political with his approach, nor does he devolve the story into saccharine scenes of yelling and tears. Chiron is a man at war with himself and the world around him, and we see that internal conflict play out in fits and starts, with a trio of tremendous performances bringing the character to life in a way that almost doesn’t make sense. The actors playing Little, Chiron, and Black all feel like the same person, even though we know it’s not, and that’s a testament to Jenkins’ assured and masterful direction.
5) Everybody Wants Some!!
If you traveled back in time from the year 2050 to tell me that, decades from now, humanity is in agreement that 2016 is one of the worst years in human history, I would shrug my shoulders and say, “Makes sense.” It’s been a rough year, which is why in hindsight we really needed Richard Linklater’s effortlessly cool Everybody Wants Some!! Dubbed a spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused, the film is also something of a thematic follow-up to Boyhood as it follows the life of one college freshman the weekend before school starts. The film tackles issues of masculinity, identity, and growing up, but all with an attitude of cool surrounding it. Linklater has crafted the anti-party party movie—a film that is 100% fun from start to finish, but is mostly made up of scenes of people talking about life. That’s kind of Linklater’s niche, and with Everybody Wants Some!! you see the work of a filmmaker who has honed and fine-tuned his craft to perfection, resulting in a viewing experience that you never want to end.
4) Sing Street
When I first saw Sing Street back at Sundance in January, I was convinced it would be a massive hit. The film’s joy is infectious, it has a killer soundtrack, and it ends on a highly emotional note. The Weinstein Company, however, had other plans, completely botching the release and relegating the film to “also ran” status. But I’m here to tell you Sing Street is terrific, and it’s one of the best films of 2016. It marks a return to form of sorts for Once filmmaker John Carney after going “Hollywood” with the so-so Begin Again. Sing Street takes place in Ireland in the 80s, following a young somewhat awkward boy who decides to start a band in order to impress a girl. That’s the set-up, and while he does indeed start said band and begin a wonderfully awkward friend-zone-esque relationship with said girl, Carney also uses the film to dig into coming-of-age territory as it relates to family life. We sometimes use music or other outlets as an escape from problems at home, and the film’s young protagonist is no different.
But Sing Street is also an out-and-out joy. Conor’s older brother (played by a surprisingly fantastic Jack Reynor) expands his music knowledge, and as the tastes of Conor change from Duran Duran to The Cure to Hall & Oates, so does the vibe of their music. Carney and various other co-writers wrote the original songs for the film, and it boasts the best soundtrack of the year (yes, even better than La La Land). It’s buoyed by a grounded, realistic aesthetic from Carney, and it builds to an emotional climax that’ll have you crying tears of joy.
3) O.J.: Made in America
A debate is raging on about whether O.J.: Made in America is a movie or a TV series—it was produced by ESPN as a 30 for 30 doc, but director Ezra Edelman asserts that he crafted the seven-hour piece as a feature film with no consideration given to commercial breaks. I’m siding with Edelman here and considering it a movie, and thus it lands a spot on my Top 10 as one of the very best films of the year. Instead of focusing just on O.J. Simpson’s trial or football career, Edelman takes an all-encompassing approach to the public figure’s life, and in doing so crafts a story not just about O.J., but about race in America. We watch as the seeds of O.J.’s insecurity are planted early on in his life, and as he distances himself from racial protests while playing college football. As he became a star, O.J. started “passing” as white—mainly befriending white people, modulating his accent to fit in, and ignoring racial issues facing the country. The irony, of course, is that it was his lawyers’ decision to play the race card that largely led to his acquittal in the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, which then led to a shift in which O.J. was shunned by the white community and had to start embracing his African-American side.
The complexities of the doc are far more intricate than I could ever summarize, but it is a towering achievement and an absolute must watch.
2) Manchester by the Sea
When describing Manchester by the Sea to people, the adjective I find most fitting is “human.” It’s a grief drama so of course it’s a sad movie, but it’s also hilarious and sweet and frustrating. That’s the human condition, and in chronicling the story of a man who’s seen his share of tragedy whose brother suddenly dies, writer/director Kenneth Lonergan touches on all aspects of being human—the good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s a refreshingly honest film. In many other versions of this story, you’d have the screaming matches that end in tears and the finale that closes with a Coldplay song. Lonergan refuses to give into cliché, taking the road less traveled, but in doing so he taps into something far more earnest. Life isn’t a Lifetime movie. Life is messy and strange and sometimes incomprehensible. All we have in this world is the people around us, and those relationships have the power to lift us up or tear us down. Manchester by the Sea is a story that is specific in its chronicle of grief, but universal in its ability to capture the human condition.
1) La La Land
Despite the fact that I merely liked-not-loved Whiplash, I went into La La Land with sky-high expectations. I’m a sucker for old school Hollywood musicals—especially of the Astaire/Rogers variety—and the casting of Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in this particular film seemed perfect. When I finally saw it, my expectations were not merely met, they were exceeded. Writer/director Damien Chazelle pulls off some sort of magic trick by blending that old Hollywood musical vibe with the crushing practicalities of reality, crafting a film in which a sunny musical number on a highway doesn’t detract from the emotional connection the audience builds to two wide-eyed hopefuls in the City of Stars.
As with the best musicals, the numbers in La La Land serve to heighten the emotions of our lead characters, from a straight-up Astaire/Rogers number that mimics the trepidatious flirtation between the two to a brutally earnest audition number. As he did with Whiplash, Chazelle put together a massive gut-punch of an ending here that left me crying and smiling at the same time. It’s a spectacular finale that drives home the theme of the film in jaw-dropping fashion—something of a mic drop from Chazelle at the end of this wondrous magic trick.
And that’s what La La Land feels like—magic. It’s a “they don’t make ‘em like this anymore” kind of throwback that also doesn’t ignore reality for the sake of make believe. Life can be marvelous and devastating in the same breath, and Chazelle toes this impossible line between fantastical musical and grounded relationship story with a masterful touch.
Honorable Mentions: Nocturnal Animals, Arrival, Zootopia, The Nice Guys
For more of our Best of 2016 coverage, click here or on the links below.
Movies
- Matt's Top 10 Films of 2016
- The Best Horror Movies of 2016
- Best Performances, Villains, and More of 2016
- The Most Iconic Movie Animals of 2016
- The 18 Best Movies You May Have Missed in 2016
TV