FAVE FILMS 2016

Welcome to my 6th annual Fave Films review. Because many of you also share a love of film and also give me many recommendations throughout the year. This is one of my ways of giving back. As well as a kind of diary I keep to help me remember a particular year.

This is my biggest list yet, 45 films in total. I started early in the year & this is what it paid off. Here I present to you my top-20 general favorite in general, my top-20 favorite Horror, followed by my top-5 favorite Animated films of the year.

But what about documentaries? I’ve seen so few docs recently that I’m excluding myself from attempting to be any kind of mentor on that genre this year. I’ve seen some good ones, but nowhere near enough. So please include your favorites in the notes below to help me fill in this gap of knowledge. I’ll let you know if I’ve seen your faves and include some of mine if asked.

 

My favorite feature films

These are in alphabetical order

All my reviews are spoiler-free

 

ARRIVAL

It’s fitting that this comes alphabetically. It’s probably one of my top-3 favorite films of the year. I absolutely love it. My favorite Sci-Fi film of the year and one of my most favorite of the genre in recent memory. Amy Adams was robbed of an Oscar nomination for this. Director Denis Villeneuve is one of the best directors working today. I want to highlight his film ENEMY from 2013 which is amazing but which very few people have seen. And it has a criminally low rating on IMDB which in no way reflects the quality of this modern masterpiece. I look forward to his next 2 films: BLADERUNNER 2049 & the DUNE remake. The last line of dialogue of the film is terrible and caused me a serious face-palm though. But besides that, it’s one of the year’s very best films.

A BIGGER SPLASH

Another big Oscar-nomination-robbed performance is Ralph Fiennes, who bares all, emotionally as well as physically, in this wonderful film. If you’ve ever wanted to see Voldermort’s penis, search no more. Director Luca Guadagnino really let him go wild and ol’ Voldemort hasn’t been this great in a film for some time. Since IN BRUGES, in my humble. Tilda Swinton is amazing as a rock goddess who barely utters a word throughout the entire film due to her character’s recent throat problems. Guadagnino had previously directed her in the great film I AM LOVE, which is basically my reaction every time I watch a Tilda Swinton film. And Matthias Schoenaerts is once again great. He starred in the outstanding film BULLHEAD, which was one of my top-3 favorite films of 2011. I watched the film imagining he was playing the same character as in that film who was on a much-needed vacation, LOL. As I’m a European guy now, I prefer these types of films, shot in exotic locations, which are vulnerable and unpredictable. There were a lot of great American films made last year. But my sensibilities now lean toward this style.

DEADPOOL 

When I met Rob Liefeld, creator and artist of Deadpool, 25 years ago, in Portland, Oregon at their comic-con, I doubt he envisioned that 25 years later, a film based on his creation would end up being the highest grossing R-rated film in American box office history. Nor did I envision that when I bought New Mutants #98, the first appearance of the character in comics, for about $10 around the same time, did I envision that 25 years later it would go for between $400 - $1,000 on Ebay now. For context, my first car, in 1992, cost $500. It was a used Volkswagen Rabbit (Golf in Europe). Just a little personal background for how long I’ve been waiting for a film like this to be produced. Probably my favorite comic film since THE DARK KNIGHT, ‘nuff said, right? Almost. Extremely entertaining and probably the most re-watchable Marvel film since GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY. It has its flaws, to be sure, but still, wow. It turned the genre on its head and hopefully will spawn a lot more R-rated comic films in the near future.

EMBRACE OF THE SERPENT

If you love director Werner Herzog, watch this film. I’m talking about AGUIRRE or FITZCARRALDO Herzog, not documentary Herzog. This film was directed by Ciro Guerra, who is from Colombia, and this is the first film I’ve seen by him. Of these top 10 faves, I think this has the highest rating from critics. It’s hard to dislike this basically perfect film. The best black & white cinematography I saw last year. It’s like Herzog, Pasolini & Jodorowsky teamed up to make a film together. It’s the story of searching for a plant which has the power to heal but which the locals see as sacred and don’t want people to find and exploit. But the search becomes a spiritual journey for two generations of men who pursue it. In a world gone mad with rubber barons protecting their harvest and religious leaders gone mad on power and local brew. Seriously, if you don’t like this film, I’d be amazed. Because this film is amazing.

THE HANDMAIDEN

Probably my favorite Chan-Wook Park film since OLDBOY, which is one of my top-10 favorite films of the 21st century. This film also has one of my favorite trailers of the year. One critic described it as a ‘lesbian potboiler’ which is kinda funny, but also accurate. It’s really a feminist psychological thriller with characters as twisted as the plot. Park is a master of camera movement and editing. He uses a Hitchcock-like mastery of angles, composition and timing to establish his trickery. Which are perfectly suited to tell this type of story which is about manipulation, back-stabbing and lies within lies. It’s more than just a story of sensuality and seduction. Sexuality is used both as a tool for misdirection and deception. But also to undermine a strict patriarchal and criminal society. There’s a lot going on which, I’d argue, demands a second or even third viewing. And with so much delicacy on offer, why wouldn’t you want to indulge again and again? I sure have.

HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE

One of the most ‘entertaining’ and ‘fun’ films in my top-10. It’s also extremely funny. No wonder since it’s by the director of WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS. It’s an ‘on the road’ movie as well as an adventure story. But in this case, the ‘road’ is the New Zealand bush. And the adventure stems from a misunderstanding driven way out of proportion by the zany imagination of the characters. It’s a story where characters can both accidentally go missing and know exactly where they’re going at the same time. And it’s probably the best ‘buddy’ story I saw last year, albeit an off-beat one. Which I love. Kind of like a Wes Anderson film in that regard. And features probably the funniest eulogy scene I’ve ever seen in a film. I’m really looking forward to director Taika Waititi’s next film which will be, surprisingly, THOR: RAGNAROK. So for the first time, I’m planning to see a Thor movie in the cinema and trust that this one, of the three, will finally be good.

MOONLIGHT

Wow, this one is really special. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but I absolutely fell in love with it. This is one of my top-3 favorite films of the year. Moody and atmospheric. Full of Wong Kar-Wai-influenced cinematography. Very personal and poetic, this personal character study is one of the truly ‘one of a kind’ works of cinematic art of the year. And one of the only films that really got under my skin as time went on. It plants a seed in you and blossoms into something fuller and more beautiful like an aging wine. All 3 actors who play character Chiron give career-defining and nuanced performances which are some of the most unforgettable of the year. Director Barry Jenkins has asserted himself as a major new(er) talent who I will be paying close attention to in the years to come.

SING STREET

From director John Carney who made the amazing 2007 film ONCE which was one of my most favorite films of that year. This is a musical comedy / coming of age / romance which normally isn’t my cup of tea anymore. The music isn’t half bad. Dated even now, but if you like 80s music, this film has some decent tracks. I especially love the relationship between the brothers. It’s an emotional and dense evolution of a young man’s love with music and finding his place in the world. Great performances, a great script and it hit me emotionally in all the right ways.

SWISS ARMY MAN

If you like Michel Gondry or Spike Jones films, watch this. It’s that film where Harry Potter is being used as a human jet ski, powered by his farts. But it’s a hell of a lot more than that. It’s AICN’s Capone’s favorite film of the year. This guy is one of my most respected film critics BTW, though we have our differences. This film is amazingly creative. Poignant even. Low-brow humor combined with high-brow existentialism. It divided audiences at Sundance. But I’m on the side of loving it. It’s one of those films that ‘shouldn’t work’ but surprisingly does. And it takes a very special touch by a very special director to be able to do that. In this case, a pair of directors named Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. I look forward to what these guys do next. Because Michel Gondry and Spike Jones just don’t make films often enough to satisfy my craving for such richly creative and original material.

TOO LATE

You’ve probably never heard of this film. I learned about it from one guy’s top-10 list from /FILM, if memory serves. Each of the 5 scenes is shot on a single Techniscope-format 35mm reel of film, about 22 minutes in length each. Which is technically very impressive and unique. And the scenes are not in chronological order, like PULP FICTION. So there’s some thinking involved. There is some clunky dialogue to be sure and it’s a tad over sentimental. But I really fell for this film. It’s a 90s-stylized, neo-noir, psudo-thriller that tips its hat to a handful of films of that era. The aforementioned Tarantino especially. And P.T. Anderson. So although it’s not the most original film on my list, it was refreshingly familiar yet still technically diverse in execution. The acting is pretty good, though like I said, some of that dialogue is cheesy. But I loved the genre exercise and style of this, the director’s debut film. It’s fun for me to watch a director learn their craft. This was shot over 2 years due to funding issues. It’s an extremely competent first attempt. Not one of the ‘best’ films of the year, to be sure, but a guilty pleasure pick. Maybe you’ll appreciate this film too

 

My next 10 favorite features

These are also in alphabetical order

 

CLOSET MONSTER

A very well-crafted coming-out / coming of age film. With some surreal body horror for flavor. ‘The risk-taking confidence with which [27-year-old director Stephen Dunn] weaves in sardonic magical-realist elements, not to mention his unpredictable yet assured approaches to style and tone, make this a most auspicious debut’ Dennis Harvey, Variety. Yeah, basically what he said. I love how the main character, played confidently by rising talent Connor Jessup, aspires to be a movie make-up artist. One of the highlights here is Isabella Rossellini voicing a pet hampster which gave me serious GREEN PORNO thoughts as I was watching this film. Check out all of those videos on YouTube. They’re amazing. But I don’t understand the ending. Where is he? What is he doing there? How can he afford it? Etc... Perhaps you can give me your view after watching it.

ELLE

One of the very best performances I saw all year was delivered by the amazing Isabelle Huppert. I first fell in love with Huppert as an actress in 2001 when I saw THE PIANO TEACHER, which blew my god-damned mind. And she’s been doing that ever since with every film I’ve seen her in. Like 8 WOMEN  and TIME OF THE WOLF. ELLE was directed by Paul Verhoeven, director of ROBOCOP, TOTAL RECALL and STARSHIP TROOPERS. But this film is in French and is a straight-forward drama / thriller. IMDB claims this is also a comedy, LOL. It’s got a wonderful script and is very well-made. Controversial though so there’s a lot to talk about. If you are so inclined. Like most of Huppert’s films. She constantly pushes the envelope with most of the roles she takes. She challenges herself as well as the audience. She’s one of the best living actresses alive and this is one of her very best performances ever.

THE LOVE WITCH

Technically, this is classified as a horror film. By putting it here, I’m not saying that it’s my favorite horror film of the year. There’s just so little of that genre in it that I’m disqualifying it from that category. There is nothing frightening about this unique and one-of-a-kind marvel. Unless you are a misogynistic, sexist and patriarchal idiot who fears strong women. Then this might be the most frightening film of the year. This is one of the most feminine films I’ve ever seen. Completely created by director Anna Biller who spent years putting everything she could in front of the camera. All the design is all her.

It’s also a satire which exploits the genre. It’s a modern day Jess Franco film and owes its greatest debt to that director I think. Playfully so and purposely exploiting him, who was a king of the sexual exploitation genre. It’s also a homage to directors like Terence Fisher who helped popularize the occult horror genre. He was one of the best directors working for Hammer which produced some of the very best horror films of the the 1960s and 1970s. Films starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. It was shot using Technicolor, a process which has basically gone extinct. Granted, my knowledge of all this was probably necessary for my deep appreciation of this film.

When you watch it, it feels like it’s already ‘old.’ Like it could have been made 40+ years ago. And a lot of people won’t ‘get’ this film and what it’s trying to do. I’m really trying not to sound pretentious. But there is a pretense to this style. And hopefully my references will help open your mind to what might be a whole new world of films for you. Films that have given me countless hours of entertainment for the past two decades.

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

Certainly the saddest film in my top-20. So you’ve gotta be in a certain mood to watch it. But don’t miss this one. It’s a heartbreaking story of love and regret and the search for forgiveness. Or, as critic Mark Kermode put it, a character who, ‘wrestles with the ghosts of his past while attempting to deal with an unforeseen future for which no one believes him to be prepared – least of all himself.’ I couldn’t put it any better. I love the script and how the story unfolds. Cutting between flashbacks and modern day to build the story and these characters in a well-balanced emotional way. I have a bit of a problem with the open-ended resolution, but it really fits with Casey Affleck’s rather blunt character. So I guess it’s fitting. I’ve loved director Kenneth Lonergan since his 2000 film YOU CAN COUNT ON ME, which was my second favorite film of that year. And MANCHESTER is only his third film, after his criminally ignored and highly recommended previous film MARGARET (which was shot in 2005 but went through post-production hell until finally released in 2011) and which stars The Hulk and Rogue, both of whom give wonderful performances.

A MONSTER CALLS

I love dark fairy tales for adults. Like PAN’S LABYRINTH. This isn’t that dark, but it’s got its moments. There is some very beautiful watercolor-inspired CGI animation here. And it turns the typical fairy tale on its head by transforming what is typically a black and white moral into the real-life gray of the world we live in. If you like Neil Gaiman stuff, give this one a go. Gaiman had no creative involvement, I’m just relating the material to his typical work. Liam Neeson voices the monster. Classic.

THE NICE GUYS

Another fun and entertaining pick. From Shane Black, who knows how to make a very entertaining ‘buddy’ film. And this film does something that I never thought would ever again be possible - give me a reason to enjoy a Russell Crowe film. Black wrote the LETHAL WEAPON films. And did the best he could directing IRON MAN 3’s terrible script. Don’t get me started on that film. A great 70s throwback to Hollywood. Off-beat and clever. Kinda like a Coen Brothers film, but not that good. Much better than the trailer suggests though. Give this one a chance. You probably won’t be disappointed.

PATERSON

Kylo Ren is settled down, married to an Iranian woman and living in Paterson, New Jersey. He’s a bus driver who writes poetry in his free time. He lives a pretty simple life where nothing much happens. He’s the couple’s bread and guitar winner, enjoys walking his dog to the local pub, where he has to leave it outside because America isn’t as free as the Czech Republic. Despite the fact that he’s warned by some local hoodlums that his British Bull Dog is a breed highly desired by such hoodlum homies and he should keep a close eye on it. He likes discussing the history of the town and sharing his descent, but not great, poetry with us, when we watch this film about him. And seemingly ignoring the advice of local hoodlums. I guess a Sith Lord isn’t worried about such minor inconveniences. He notices that there are a lot of twins in the town which presumably causes him to think about Luke and Leia often, though he never writes a poem about them. The tagline for the film is, ‘If you ever left me I'd tear my heart out and never put it back.’ So I assume this is set before THE FORCE AWAKENS and his wife eventually left him, or perhaps he killed her, and that’s why he’s so Emo when we catch up with him in Episode VII. Anyway, this is a simple but elegant and beautiful film which put me in a very good mood. Keep in mind that this is just my way of looking at the plot and your interpretation might differ slightly if you aren’t a STAR WARS fan.

SILENCE

This time Kylo Ren is in 17th century Japan, playing a Portuguese guy and he brought along Spider-Man, who’s also supposed to be Portuguese, LOL. Qui-Gon Jinn has gone missing in Japan and the Catholics in Portugal are like ‘why don’t he write no more?’ So ‘God’ puts it into Spider-Man’s head that he needs to go find him. Even though the mission might end with their deaths. But Christians just love to martyr themselves to feel closer to their beloved Jebus, as this film shows in some gruesome detail, so off they go. There is some of the most amazing cinematography I saw last year in this film. Especially with the use of fog and natural landscapes. The film is a bit long and drags in the middle. But I quite liked it. This is one of the longest films on my list, clocking in at 2 hours and 41 minutes. Scorsese had been waiting decades to make it. It’s his passion project. So whether or not you like it is secondary to whether or not he does. Which is awesome. Watch a master director do whatever he wants and be amazed by the result.

TONI ERDMANN

This film accomplishes something few have ever done. It shows the German sense of humor actually being funny. One of the two best foreign-language films I saw last year (the other being ELLE). I know people, female and male, who are like the character being played by the great actress Sandra Hüller, who is even greater for having umlauts in her name. Characters who are so ‘career-driven’ that they never slow down to smell the roses. I’ve taught them English and have struggled to enjoy their company. So watching someone like that go through what she does in this film was very refreshing for me. But Peter Simonischek steals the show as ‘Toni Erdmann’ and is very funny. He’s so great in this that Jack Nicholson is coming out of ‘retirement’ to play this character in the unnecessary Hollywood remake. But watch this film the next time you have 2 hours and 42 minutes of free time. It’s well worth it.

WIENER DOG

From director Todd Solondz, who is famous for his uncomfortable black comedies, which this certainly is. He’s the guy who made WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE and HAPPINESS. The trailer seems to suggest that one wiener dog connects all four of these stories. But it doesn’t show you the dog passing from owner to owner. So I’m going to argue that it’s a different dog but that each of the characters here simply has a wiener dog. That’s not really important though. If you like black comedies, watch this one. It has the best dog shit sequence I saw in any film last year.

This list is in order

 

Well, the Netflix series STRANGER THINGS is my favorite horror ‘film’ of the year. If O.J. MADE IN AMERICA gets to be nominated for the best doc Oscar when it’s almost 8 hours long, then I can pick this as my favorite horror movie. Besides this, here are my top 20 favorite horror films of the year.

Some of my friends, especially Czechs, check the IMDB or CSFD rating of a film before they decide to watch it. Which is a problem with many horror films because very often they have a lower rating. Don’t miss any of these films just because of that. Just watch the trailer and take my recommendation into account and give all of these a chance.

Just for fun, I’m going to put my favorite horror films in order this year. It was an outstanding year for the genre. Don’t take the order so seriously though. Every film here is great (or at least pretty good) & regardless of the order, is very entertaining.

GREEN ROOM

More of a thriller than a horror film. But I’m going to include it. Because if I don’t put it at the top of this list, it’ll get mixed up somewhere in #11-20 above and not seem to get the recognition I think it deserves. Jean-Luc Picard and his merry band of neo-Nazi Trump supporters are after Maybe (from Arrested Development) and the late, great Chekov (from Star Trek) who are just trying to get paid for living their dream of playing punk rock and telling the truth. It’s a very dense film for what feels a lot longer than it’s 95-minute run time. So much drama in so little space. That’s due to the great acting, which this film is saturated with. It’s hardly a ‘horror’ film so don’t let that put you off.

THE EYES OF MY MOTHER

Women can sometimes be more frightening than men, especially in a horror film. It feels like it was directed by one, but it wasn’t. I don’t know if this is really my 2nd favorite horror film of the year. But I absolutely love it. It would be a great double-feature with A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT, which was one of my top-10 favorite films of 2014. You tell me which one you like better. EYES is certainly more of a horror film. It’s quite disturbing in it’s simplicity. Both are black and white and are very artistic. The cinematography is beautiful. The sound design is amazing and gives the atmosphere an early David Lynch-like tone which is unsettling. It’s one of the most unique horror films of the year and I hope this high ranking will influence you to watch it. That’s kind of why it’s up here.

DON’T BREATHE

There’s a lot to love about this ‘home invasion’ story. The guy who lives there is blind but a bad-ass so it flips the script there. Then the film re-invents itself again in act three. There is a lot of high-tension and the title is very apt. Director Fede Alvarez is from Uruguay. He’s the guy who made that very violent EVIL DEAD remake a few years ago (which was completely unnecessary but damn, gruesome! I kinda liked it). This is only his 2nd film. Anyway, you’ve probably heard about this film as it’s one of the most popular horror offerings of the year. It gets my stamp of approval. So don’t miss it.

THE AUTOPSY OF JANE DOE

From director André Øvredal, who made the pretty great 2010 film TROLLHUNTER. When actor Brian Cox isn’t experimenting on Wolverine as character Stryker in X-MEN 2, he’s training his son, the Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch) to perform autopsies in a creepy house. And they’re doing it John Carpenter style at times. Lots of classic horror inspiration here. Lots of unexpected plot twists. One of which doesn’t quite make sense (you’ll know it when you see it) but just go with it. Lots of creepy body horror here. This one really surprised me and although there are probably ‘better’ horror films on this list, I really liked this one a lot.

THE VVITCH

The most overrated horror film of the year is still really good. Most critics put this as their favorite horror film of the year and also, often, in their top-10 of the year in general. I didn’t care for it ‘that’ much. But I really did like it. It’s different and risky. You see, I don’t believe in the devil. So I prefer horror films where humans are the threat (see the top-3 above this on this list). With many exceptions of course, like THE EXORCIST (which is one of the best horror films ever made), as well as others on this list. If you are frightened by mythology, this one is an old-fashioned and threatening one. Anyway, great acting, especially by the kids in this film. Great music as well. A lot of string instruments doing that classic unsettling and twitchy thing. This is what America used to be like. And in some places, still is. Frightened by imaginary monsters and fearful of change. It is a good film though. I’ve got to give it to everyone involved.

SHIN GODZILLA

A new Japan-produced GOJIRA film!!! And it’s awesome!!! The first in the new, forth era of the franchise. It’s almost everything I could have asked for. Really the only thing they could have done better was also introduce another kaiju adversary for Godzilla to fight in addition to the Japanese military. Like the American-made one did in 2014, which was kinda good but left me wanting more. This is a new and different Godzilla with amazing new abilities. And the biggest one yet in the Japanese-made series. It takes a cue from the style of Godzilla in 1995s GODZILLA VS. DESTROYAH, in that he’s glowing red. And which I think is still a better film and probably my fifth favorite of them all. But now Godzilla has a whole lot more tricks up his ‘sleeve’ (and tail and back). And that final shot! They’ve set up a brand new approach to this franchise and I absolutely can’t wait for the next one.

HUSH

This is one of two films directed by Mike Flanagan on this list of horror faves. The other is a bit further down. It’s a very simple premise. It uses the ‘gimmick’ of the protagonist being deaf in creative and unsettling ways. But actress Kate Siegel is no damsel in distress. She kicks ass and does the best she can with what she’s got. I guess actor John Gallagher Jr went nuts after three seasons working in THE NEWSROOM so he’s a serial killer now. Obviously, any gun nut out there would immediately say, ‘if she had a gun, this film would be 1-minute long!’ Which is actually true, LOL. Like all those films from decades past in which simply having a mobile phone would easily and simply solve all their problems. Ditto LOL. But there is no gun, just like I don’t own a gun, so it’s a mute point really. Get it? ‘Mute.’ Tritto LOL. Tritto is a word I just made up.

BASKIN

This one is not for the faint of heart. It’s pretty hard-core, especially the ending. It dives deep into Clive Barker territory with it’s depiction of ‘Hell on Earth’ during the Black Mass climax. It starts off a little slow, but trust me, it gets there. I’m actually surprised that a film like this has come out of Turkey. I imagine that country might have stricter censorship laws. But apparently not. This is director Can Evrenol’s debut feature film. One might argue that he tries a little too hard to be shocking and brutal. I wouldn’t say that however. Or that it’s too obscure in the narrative department and too much of it doesn’t make much sense. And that’s fair. What could have been a great story is instead more of an abstract cult film. Which I have absolutely no problem with.

UNDER THE SHADOW

A great horror film out of Iran. It’s a supernatural thriller about a djinn which is an Islamic demon. Though it takes a while for you to believe that. It starts out as a drama with a family caught in a war zone. Where even the house they live in threatens to hurt them. It’s set in the 1980s during the Iraq / Iran war. That backdrop is just as terrifying as the ghost story which develops later. It shows Iran’s sexist, bullshit politics after the failed revolution when the country doesn’t allow our protagonist mother, played wonderfully by actress Narges Rashidi, to return to medical school because she was pro-revolution while at university. Which I find more horrifying than any kind of imaginary djinn actually. As a horror film, it’s not as frightening as many others on this list. But as a well written, acted and developed story, it’s certainly one of the most compelling and accomplished ones on this list. And again, it’s a debut feature film from Iranian director Babak Anvari.

TRAIN TO BUSAN

‘Yeon Sang-ho’s breathless cinematic bullet train boasts frantic physical action, sharp social satire and ripe sentimental melodrama designed to reach into your ribcage and rip out your bleeding heart,’ Mark Kermode, The Guardian. Yeah, basically what he said. Equally action and horror. This is the fastest-paced horror film on this list. Like SNOWPIERCER meets 28 DAYS LATER. It’s a crowd-pleasing zombie film out of South Korea. More exciting than frightening. And like the best zombie films, it exposes the potential stupidity of humans as being equally, if not more frightening, than the zombies themselves.

THE CONJURING 2

It’s not as good as the first one. Let’s just get that out of the way. And although it’s based on a ‘true story,’ the real-life Warrens only visited the family for one day and basically didn’t do shit while there. That being said, director James Wan is one of the very best horror directors working today and this film is very entertaining and frightening. And this sequel is much better than his INSIDIOUS 2. And the nun demon is so great, she’s getting her own film in 2018 which Wan is producing but not directing. If you’ve seen the first one, you know what to expect here. If you haven’t, you can still watch this one first because the stories are completely unconnected except for the same characters.

SOUTHBOUND

I love horror film anthologies. And this is a pretty good one. With a great bookend story which is one of the better tales here. ‘Two men on the run from their past, a band on their way to the next gig, a man struggling to get home, a brother in search of his long-lost sister and a family on vacation - are forced to confront their worst fears and darkest secrets in a series of interwoven tales of terror and remorse on the open road’ IMDB. It’s really cool how each story blends into the next one without warning or explanation. And each of these stories is pretty unforgiving. The setting itself can almost be described as a ‘character’ in the film. One of the highlights is the story with the guy who hits a girl with his car and takes her to a hospital where some seriously fucked-up shit ensues. This is a great recommendation for those horror fans who are quite hard to please.

BASTARD

I think technically this is a 2015 film but it was released in some countries in 2016 so I’m including it. It’s one of the After Dark Horrorfest: 8 Films To Die For entries. It’s a very independent, micro-budget horror film which I found quite entertaining. Especially the soundtrack, which is great. The horror is few and far between, but is quite well done and very gory. And when it comes, it comes suddenly and unexpectedly. If you’re looking for something a little different, check this one out.

THE WAILING

This one isn’t for everybody. A lot of people don’t like really long horror films and this one clocks in at 2 hours and 36 minutes. It’s another one from South Korea, from a director I have a lot of respect for named Hong-jin Na. He made the great film THE YELLOW SEA which was one of my top-10 favorite films of 2011 (and is equally long). The Wailing almost perfectly sums up what this film is about. A ghost comes to a small village to make people crazy, miserable and cause everyone to kill each other. But it’s also a smart commentary on how a crisis sometimes brings out the worst in us despite our good intentions. And it almost has a great anti-racism undertone which I loved throughout the film. Until the ending when it completely fucks that all up by turning out to actually be kinda racist. I won’t say how, but hopefully you’ll try to forgive it for that as I’m trying to do.

THE INVITATION

A fantastic inde-horror treat which has some of the best character-driven drama in any horror film on this list. Which is basically all this is. No supernatural element. Just crazy people in a crazy cult doing crazy shit. A dinner party from hell story. With a very unsettling Twilight Zone-style ending. The casting for this film was very well done and each performance is praise-worthy. Director Karyn Kusama is finally back on track after making some regrettable choices previously (I’m looking at you ÆON FLUX and JENNIFER’S BODY). By the way, it’s a perfect double feature with 2014’s COHERENCE and I’d argue equally great. Don’t miss either of these films. You won’t regret either.

10 CLOVERFIELD LANE

I know some of you LOVED this film. Well, it’s on this list isn’t it? Chill out. It’s only down here so far because I loved the aforementioned films more. Which hopefully says more about those films than it does about my love of this one. Ramona Flowers is driving along (presumably going home to meet boyfriend Scott Pilgrim) when she’s in an accident. She wakes up to find herself held prisoner by John Goodman who says the world outside is now ‘gone.’ WTF? He seems a bit f’ing crazy so she’s like, ‘I’m outta here.’ But he’s like ‘NOPE!’ Drama ensues. Is he telling the truth? Is he lying? Is it a monster? Is it a nuclear thing? Aliens? Has Rosanne Barr tracked him down? You’ll have to watch the film to find out. I’m disappointed that this isn’t really a sequel to CLOVERFIELD. And I’m still not over it.

THE MONSTER

What could have been a very forgettable horror film is completely saved by the two amazing performances by the two actresses - Zoe Kazan (granddaughter of legendary director Elia Kazan) and the younger Ella Ballentine. It’s a very simple premise: car hits animal, breaks down, waiting for help, monster nearby, monster attacks, horror ensues, etc... And the monster is pretty creepy and done with all practical effects. But the performances make us care for these characters who are as flawed and complex as anyone. I hope Zoe Kazan’s career takes off just like Elizabeth Olsen’s did after her ‘breakout’ role in MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE. I think Zoe is potentially equally talented (not just because they look similar).

OUIJA: ORIGIN OF EVIL

Here’s the other Mike Flanagan film (he directed HUSH above). For a film that arguably shouldn’t exist, director Flanagan did a great job and this film is quite well-made. I say that because this is a prequel to 2014’s terrible film OUIJA which is so bad it only managed to land in my cat’s litter box on it’s way towards any kind of substance. But Flanagan took this idea and ran with it, giving us a very creepy child possession film with great performances from everyone involved. Flanagan is certainly a rising star among horror directors and I’m looking forward to his next project, an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel GERALD’S GAME. Early word is that it’s really unsettling and good. Even Henry Thomas shows up to play with the ouija board (little Elliott from E.T.!) playing a priest. One might argue that the ending is a little ridiculous, but it’s also creepy as hell so I loved it.

THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE

A great and unsettling bro-mance film about two dudes trying to help each other out. Character Wyatt has left his fiancee and life to prepare for battle. But against what? He believes there has been some kind of infestation / invasion on Earth and he tries to convince his long-time friend Christian to help him out. Christian struggles with Wyatt’s belief but tries to help him because he knows Wyatt believes it. And what are friends for? A paranoid thriller emerges from this simple premise which is flawed in places, but overall very fulfilling. When eye contact alone can be used to so effectively gain empathy for a character who we’re not sure is batshit crazy or not, you know you’re watching a well-crafted film. This is director Perry Blackshear’s debut film and at only 1 hour and 20 minutes, the shortest on my list.

THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS

Last but certainly not least. This is the most recent addition to this list and my lack of sufficient time with it in my head might be why it’s down here so far. The premise for this film is very disturbing. When you watch it and realize who that girl is, where she comes from and what she represents, it’ll freak you out. Why is she wearing that mask? Why is she standing so casually next to those zombies? I love how the zombie outbreak is caused by a fungus in this film. In too many zombie films, you never learn what causes them. This film is actually mostly about what causes them and how to save humanity. Which is where I have some problems with the script. There is a lot of exposition. And the pacing drags because of it. Especially in the middle. And it’s mostly Glenn Close’s fault (sorry Glenn, I still love you). Young actress Sennia Nanua steals the show as the ‘gifted’ one and it’s a coming-of-age story for her. This is her very first feature film. Scottish director Colm McCarthy has mostly worked in television as the director of many shows including season 2 of the great show PEAKY BLINDERS which I’m a big fan of.

This list is in order

 

 

KUBO AND THE 2 STRINGS

From Laika studios who brought us the amazing film CORALINE, based on the Neil Gaiman book. KUBO is an outstanding mix of stop-motion and CGI which tells a great story. Directed by director and animator Travis Knight who also worked on the animation for the wonderful film PARANORMAN and the unfortunately rather less great THE BOXTROLLS. It takes A LOT of time to make a stop-motion film. I’ve tried to see as many as I can for over 20 years now and I absolutely LOVE this one. All I really want to say is I hope you watch this and love it too. Because if I don’t stop writing now, I might not shut up about it until many pages later.

YOUR NAME

This is one of the best Japanese anime films I’ve seen in a while. Some of the best skies and landscapes I’ve ever seen in an animated film. From master animation director Makoto Shinkai who made the outstanding previous films JOURNEY TO AGARTHA and 5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND (as well as others). It’s now the highest-grossing film in Japan. It’s estimated that one in seven Japanese people has seen this film. The story delves into some pretty great Haruki Murakami territory, if you’re into that sort of thing. A time-travel, body-swap and disaster movie for both kids and adults. No big robots. No monsters. Just a magical human story. Great music by Japanese band Radwimps.

ZOOTOPIA

The most successful animated film of the year, raking in over a billion dollars globally, is pretty great. It’s also a witty and clever commentary on politics, political correctness, race and fear mongering. Rolling Stone half-joked that this might be the most subversive film of the year. They’re kinda right. Kudos to Disney for daring to take a risk with this story. A perfect example of a film which knows both children and adults are watching it and offers equal material for both. Just like Pixar does very often. I didn’t care for the music very much though. That could have been way better. Co-directed by the directors of TANGLED and WRECK-IT RALPH.

MOANA

From directors John Musker and Ron Clements who brought us THE LITTLE MERMAID and ALADDIN. This is a very colorful adventure story about a Hawaiian myth. An empowered Polynesian ‘princess’ defies her elders to ‘save the world,’ as it were. But she’ll need the help of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and his big magic fish hook to do it. He’s a demigod who talks to his tattoos. And there is an idiot rainbow chicken because Disney likes to sell toys. I love the fact that Moana, our title character, doesn’t have a love interest in the film. I also love the coconut pirates, like deadly Pokemon of the sea, because they don’t make any god-damned sense. The scene with them is like MAD MAX: FURY ROAD on the open water. One of my favorite parts is with the giant bioluminescent crab and his shiny song. There sure are a lot of songs in this one. But I didn’t mind that too much. They were written by the great Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote the great stage musical HAMILTON. Moana means ‘ocean’ in Maori by the way.

THE RED TURTLE

Some thoughts about this one-of-a-kind film. An amazing and densely detailed film about the milestones in the life of a human being. Basically just humans trying to survive. But with some magic lending a helping hand. A minimalist mish-mash of hand-drawn animation and CGI. A magical, dreamy survival story. A European flavored story married with Japanese animation style a la Studio Ghibli. An original and unique vision. Etc... There isn’t any dialogue in the film which is very impressive. Be nice to sea turtles, they just might end up being your significant other one day. Don’t miss this one. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry,... all the feels.