Off Topic: 2016

[Llewellyn_Wells 47]

There were a few "are movies Dead/dying" articles last week...even though this year is shaping up to be a hell of a year for movies.

 

What are everyone's favorites thus far?

 

I just got out of Hell or High Water and I thought it was absolutely fantastic. The performances were stellar, and I didn't find a dull moment in the film.

 

I could name 10/12, but I want to hear everyone's favorite so far.

 

A few I'm looking forward to this fall: Arrival, La La Land, Hacksaw Ridge; The Handmaiden.

 

Which 2016 films got you excited? Which are you looking forward to and hope we may be discussing in a few years?

 

(For the sake of this, I count films wide release, not festival debuts for the year, i.e. The Lobster; The Invitation)

[Threshold 93]

I think people confuse the summer season with the whole year. It should be fine; and I'm beyond keen for La La Land, i'm more excited about that film than i've been for any other film in recent memory.

[NathanGordon 1096]

I still haven't seen anything as magnificent as last year's The Duke of Burgundy.

 

The Lobster of course was fucking fantastic. Weirdly romantic and sweet beneath its bizarre artifice, with a humanist touch that I think some people miss in Lanthimos. He just gets more and more confident, and unlike many foreign directors, didn't compromise his vision at all in his English language debut. The more I think about it, the more I love it.

 

High Rise was not what I expected from Ben Wheatley, but an elevation of his talents to meet the material he adapted. Terrific performances in this film that seems like it's getting buried; there's been zero marketing, it's hardly been shown anywhere, and was released without fanfare to VOD in May. Something I've loved about Wheatley is the distinctly British perspective he brings to his films, whether it's the paganism of the Isles or the politics of Thatcher. Hiddleston is good in this but Luke Evans is amazing and must be seen.

 

The Wailing aka Goksung is a good ol' batshit insane Korean horror film. There's murder, ghosts, demons, exorcism, and enough rain and mud to feel like you're being buried in the muck yourself. It's completely unhinged almost from the get-go and embraces its lunacy in a way that films like I Saw The Devil or HK classic Ebola Syndrome do. Dark, dirty fun.

 

Weiner is amazing, brings up so many questions, and will be relevant forever. Go see it! And thank god Huma finally dumped that idiot. There's not a lot of technique in this but the content is unbelievable.

 

Krisha is a tiny film that played festivals last year and some arthouse theaters this year, but I haven't read much about it online. Which is a shame, because it's one of the best independent films I've seen in a while. Naturally acted -- some of the cast are family -- and writing that feels lived-in and authentic. I know there are a lot of family dramas about alcoholism and addiction, but so few of them really get it right -- I say this as an alcoholic with 13 months of sobriety. This film captures the tragic reality of too many alcoholics who can't stop relapsing, and the family that finally gives up on them.

 

The other crazy thing about Krisha is the look and style of it. It's not showy, but it's far more assured than you'd expect from a debut film. The director, Trey Edward Shults, interned with Terrence Malick on Tree of Life and did some camera work on his newest film. One can only assume Malick's influence is at work in Krisha. Go see it!

[CarlosFerreira 20]

I haven't been all that much to the cinema this year, and certainly have not seen anything that shades last year's Ex-Machina, Fury Road or even Inside Out. 2015 was fantastic for mainstream-ish quality cinema.

 

That said, two films have stood out for me so far. I thought High-Rise was fantastic, and a fine addition to the canon of alt-Brit films (see also: Dead Man's Shoes, 28 Days Later, The Sightseers). It is extremely stylish and designed to within an inch of its life, to the point that at times I wondered if I was watching a Kubrick film. The cold deliberateness in everyone's performances just underlines the Kubrick comparison. And yes, Luke Evans steals the show.

 

The second was Zootropolis (is it Zootopia in the US?). If back in January you had told me that an animated buddy-cop movie with 3 directors, 6 writers and a further 2 screenwriters was going to be one of my favourite movies of the year I would have laughed you out of the room. But in fact it is one of the most coherent films I have seen in ages. Yes, the message is not so much ladled as poured in like concrete, but I had no problem with that whatsoever. Shame the theme song was not up there with the best.

 

I am very much looking forward to Hell and High Water, hopefully will watch it this weekend.

[Threshold 93]

Weiner is amazing, brings up so many questions, and will be relevant forever. Go see it! And thank god Huma finally dumped that idiot. There's not a lot of technique in this but the content is unbelievable.

 

Weiner's amazing- and Huma is gorgeous- you just wanna hug her the whole time during the film.

 

Also if we're talking fucked up docos; Tickled is a great mystery doco that is only going to get more relevant as the internet grows.

[phred2321 57]

Hunt for the Wilderpeople is my favorite of the year so far. Other favorites (in no particular order): Swiss Army Man, The Lobster, Captain America: Civil War, Midnight Special, Last Days in the Desert, Knight of Cups, the Neon Demon, The Witch, and OJ: Made in America

[ZZZ 63]

My town just got its first art house theater a couple of months ago and it's already closed.

[Marsellus_H 118]

Let's see. I'm from a backward mountain-layered country in central Europe (yes, that place still exists! Yay!), so international films come out pretty late or not at all. This is important, because I couldn't see The Witch, that everybody (except for Amy) seemed to like... it sounds like something right up my alley. The best film I've seen all year was The Neon Demon, closely followed by The Lobster. A german-speaking indie film I'd recommend whole-heartedly is Toni Erdmann.

 

 

I wasn't impressed from watching High Rise, which contains some great designs and decent performances, but desperately would have needed an editor. To me, it's closer to the great-looking empty mess that is Blade Runner, rather than comparing it to a Kubrick film.

[ArlenAHarrow 3]

The Witch is a best of the year pick for me. Loved Green Room, Civil War obviously, and I think Triple 9 and The Shallows deserve a shout out. Still waiting for a Fury Road or Creed to knock my socks off. But the year isn't over.

[gene_shallot 79]

You know it's been a disappointing year when even the Coen Bros film doesn't really rank. Indies truly have been the saving grace (but LOTS of potentially good stuff looks to be in store).

 

As far as mainstream films, yeah, Zootopia was surprisingly great. Laughed a lot at Popstar. I guess, uh... The Nice Guys was pretty fun?

[ZZZ 63]

Force Majeure is a couple of years old now but it's my favorite movie in recent memory.

[kubrickshines 15]

Green Room is the film of the year. No contest.

 

It's a Carpenter-esque parable about tribes, warfare, and prejudice featuring the TMNT vs. the Gestapo. In red laces, no less.

 

But, yeah, that talking animal movie was good too.

[ForestTaylor 16]

I'm not sure if this counts as a 2016 release, but I really loved Embrace of the Serpent. It was easily the best film I've seen in 2016 so far. I also really liked The Witch, The Nice Guys and Sing Street and I'm looking forward to Hell or High Water and La La Land.

 

 

Also, as a dumb guilty pleasure, I really enjoyed Hardcore Henry. I wouldn't call it the best movie of the year, but I had a lot of fun watching it.

[CarlosFerreira 20]

And we have a new entrant! Finally watched High or High Water yesterday, and it's great. A story for the ages, great visuals and wonderful music...

 

...in a world where there are no women. Strange.

 

It is a very good film, though.