
Would it be a cop-out if I were to concede and say that there were simply too many exceptional films this past year? So many, in fact, that even ranking a top 10 is quite near impossible for me? Because in forming this list (which you’re likely eagerly scrolling through to the bottom only to see my number one choice), I’ve had to not only sacrifice a number of extraordinary films, but have also infinitely gone back and forth on where each of these movies fit into the order. Really, in a year with less competition, each of my top six choices could have easily sat atop a year-end list at the number one spot.
As always, I wasn’t able to catch every film that I wanted to — although I did make it out to theaters over 50 times this past year. And it’s because of that that I can safely say that 2017 was the best year for film in recent memory; I was consistently amazed week after week by the incredible work reaching into theaters and beyond. Before we get to the official list, I have included a handful of honorable mentions as well.
Honorable Mentions:
- Logan – Dir. James Mangold
- It Comes At Night – Dir. Trey Edward Shults
- Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri – Dir. Martin McDonagh
- The Disaster Artist – Dir. James Franco
- I, Tonya – Dir. Craig Gillespie
Now that those good (but just not good enough) films are out of the way, below you will find what I consider 2017’s absolute greatest output in terms of motion pictures: