I’m just going to say, 2017 was one of the best years for movies. So many amazing movies came out and they easily outnumbered the bad ones (even though there were still a lot of terrible movies). From independent movies getting even more attention than they usually do to one of the best years for horror movies in a long time, 2017 has been a phenomenal year for movies.
Today I’m here to countdown the best movies to come out in 2017. This is easily the hardest top 10 list I’ve ever written! There were so many movies that I wanted to include but they just didn’t make it in the final 10.
There were also a lot of movies I’m still yet to see that I know I would love. So if you don’t see a movie on this list that you liked and you feel like it deserved a place on this list, it’s probably because I haven’t seen it or it wasn’t good enough to be included on this list.
As always I have some honourable mentions to give out. Most of these movies were in my top 10 list at certain points in the year, but another movie would come along and knock one out of the top 10.
Wonder Woman: Easily the best DC movie since ‘The Dark Knight Rises’, this was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me and Gal Gadot showed us why she is the best part of the DCEU.
Spider-Man Homecoming: The movie that made us love Peter Parker/Spider-Man yet again, this was the best Spider-Man movie since ‘Spider-Man 2’ and one of the best MCU movies ever.
War for the Planet of the Apes: The emotionally charged conclusion to the Planet of the Apes trilogy, this was a perfect send-off to one of the best movie characters of the decade. Although I still feel like the title should have been different.
Gerald’s Game: This adaptation of a Stephen King novel is a psychological horror movie that I like to call, “A f#@&$@ up version of Fifty Shades of Grey.” Seriously though, the degloving scene will stick with you for months.
John Wick Chapter 2: A sequel that managed to improve upon its amazing predecessor in every way, this was one of, if not the best action movie of the year.
Mother: Easily one of the most decisive movies of the year (another decisive movie is in the top 10), this was one of most unique movies of the year and it stuck with me long after the credits rolled. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen!
(T2) Trainspotting 2: This nostalgia filled sequel was everything you would want from a Trainspotting movie. The social commentary was as great as it was in the 90s.
Beauty and the Beast: The live-action remake of the Disney classic was yet another huge surprise for me. It was faithful to the animated classic and it managed to be even better, which still shocks me.
Split: If James McAvoy doesn’t get nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his amazing performance as a man with multiple personalities, I will be shocked.
It Chapter One: 2017 was a great year for Stephen King adaptations and this adaptation of the horror classic proved it. It’s a great mixture of ‘The Goonies’, ‘Stand By Me’ and ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ and it makes me keen for Chapter Two in 2019.
Free Fire: Who would’ve thought that a 90-minute shootout would be so entertaining?
The Big Sick: This true story of the early relationship between comedian Kumail Nanjiani and his wife is one of the best romantic comedies of the decade.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer: This is the kind of psychological horror that will mess with your mind and make you feel uneasy for hours after the credits roll. It’s phenomenal.
Now, let’s begin!
10. Wind River
Starting off the list we are heading off to the wintery landscape of Wyoming. With Writer/Director Taylor Sheridan at the helm (considering he wrote the amazing screenplays for ‘Sicario’ and ‘Hell or High Water’), you could say that I was excited about this movie. Not only was I happy with this movie, but it also managed to be a lot deeper than I expected it to be. With it going into the lack of justice that Native Americans receive when it comes to murders/missing people, ‘Wind River’ managed to be one of the most thought-provoking mysteries of the year. Also, Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen gave their best performance to date.
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Now, I can imagine that some of you are surprised that I have included this on this list. Probably because I can imagine that some of you might have hated this movie like a lot of people did when it came out a couple of weeks ago. It’s easily the most decisive movie of the year and I can’t see why people are calling this the worst Star Wars movie of all time. First of all, this is the best Star Wars movie since ‘Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back’ and it contains some of the greatest Star Wars moments of all time. Personally, I feel like director Rian Johnson did an amazing job with this movie and from all the character development and unexpected plot directions that happen here, this is a Star Wars movie that will be talked about for years.
8. Get Out
Talk about unexpected masterpieces. This directorial debut from Jordan Peele is one of the best horror/thriller/dark comedy/satire movies ever made. Going into ‘Get Out’, I thought that I would get a solid horror/thriller movie. I didn’t expect to find some great comedy and some of the best social commentary of the year. What I also loved about ‘Get Out’ was that it had an original plot and it managed to become psychologically terrifying. It also benefitted from the terrific script and excellent performances, especially Daniel Kaluuya as Chris. Everything about this movie was excellent and I can already see this becoming a classic of the genre.
7. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
I was a very happy man when I got the chance to see the newest movie from Writer/Director Martin McDonagh, who also made the brilliant dark comedies ‘In Bruges’ and ‘Seven Psychopaths’, which are some of my favourite movies of all time. So, you could say that I was excited about this movie. ‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’ is one of the most original, unpredictable dark comedies in years. It’s also a near-perfect movie. With Frances McDormand as a grieving protagonist (easily her best performance to date and one that I hope she gets the Best Actress Oscar for) to Sam Rockwell as a racist deputy, the characters are amazing. But as I said, the writing is the real star of the movie. With witty dialogue and an unpredictable plot, you wouldn’t be surprised if this was a script written by Quentin Tarantino. If you want an excellent dark comedy with an unpredictable plot, you should definitely check this near-perfect movie out!
6. Raw
Easily the most talked about foreign movie of the year, ‘Raw’ is a horror masterpiece. It’s a movie that made me feel sick during it and long after the credits, but it made me love it even more. It takes a genre that is really controversial and turns it on its head. The thing that will be talked about the most is the violence in ‘Raw’ since there are cannibal aspects here. It’s a very violent movie, but it’s not overdone like most horror movies. The scenes of gore happen few and far between and it results in a more cohesive movie and a very watchable one at that. From the terrific performance by Garance Marillier to the beautiful direction, this is a foreign film that every horror fan should watch.
5. Logan
I still can’t believe that this was the last time Hugh Jackman will ever play the character of Wolverine, but damn was this a perfect send-off to him. ‘Logan’ came out early on this year and I still love it as much as I did when I first watched it. It’s the dark, gritty and ultra-violent version of Wolverine that many of us have wanted for years and it was utter perfection. Hugh Jackman gave his best performance to date as a dying Logan and it was just perfect. Sir Patrick Stewart was also amazing as Professor X, who ends up becoming one of the most heartbreaking movie characters in years. It’s not just a perfect superhero movie, it’s also one of the best modern Westerns of all time. It will also make you cry so be prepared.
4. Dunkirk
When I watched ‘Dunkirk’ for the first time with a friend in July, we were both on the edge of our seats for the whole movie. It was one of the most intense movie experiences we’ve ever experienced and we felt like we couldn’t relax for a few hours after it finished. But after I watched it for the first time, I knew that Christopher Nolan made yet another masterpiece. Based on the 1940 evacuation of Dunkirk, this is an almost silent War movie and an excellent one at that. What I mean by almost silent is that there is little dialogue here. If I had to guess, I’d say there would be about sixty lines of dialogue overall. The music and sound effects make this movie and it has what is easily the best use of a ticking sound I’ve ever heard. If you want a perfectly directed war movie that also happens to be a great horror movie, then you should definitely watch this epic. Also, the drowning scenes here make the drowning in ‘Titanic’ seem like nothing.
3. The Disaster Artist
I could quote ‘The Room’ all day. From ‘Oh hi Mark’ to ‘You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!’, ‘The Room’ is one of the greatest worst movies of all time. ‘The Disaster Artist’ is based on the book written by Greg Sestero, which was based on the making of ‘The Room’ and is directed by James Franco, who also stars as the mysterious and infamous Tommy Wiseau. This was one of my most anticipated movies of the year and it didn’t disappoint me. First of all, this is one of the funniest movies of the year as well as one of the most heartbreaking. It humanises a man who is still very mysterious to this day (he still hasn’t revealed his date of birth) and this makes him a very relatable character. ‘The Disaster Artist’ has some of the best performances of the year, as well as a great script and a lot of rewatchability. This is an excellent movie and it made me want to watch ‘The Room’ again, which isn’t exactly a bad thing.
2. Baby Driver
Oh, Edgar Wright, you’ve done it again! ‘Baby Driver’ is the best musical of the year, even though many wouldn’t call it a musical. It is a movie that I still talk about fondly to date as it really took me by surprise. I went into it knowing that it would be an enjoyable movie, but I never knew that it would become one of the greatest movies I’ve ever seen! It was the most fun I had at the cinema this year and there are so many reasons why. First of all, the soundtrack and use of music/sound are perfect. Everything from gunshots to car sounds is matched to the beat of the music, which just blows you away every time. This is because of Edgar Wright, who managed to make this his best movie to date and he hasn’t even made a bad or average movie yet! His direction is brilliant and it’s some of the best directing of the decade. I could talk about ‘Baby Driver’ forever but I’ll just summarise by saying that if you haven’t seen this masterpiece yet, get your hands on a copy right now and watch it. I’m yet to know of a person who hasn’t enjoyed this movie.
1. Blade Runner 2049
If you know me than you should have seen this coming. This was my most anticipated movie of the year and you could say that I was nervous leading up to its release. I was worried that it wasn’t going to live up to the ridiculously high standards set by its 1982 predecessor. But when I sat down and watched this almost three-hour sci-fi epic, I was blown away. I was speechless at first. I couldn’t believe that I had just watched what could be the greatest sci-fi movie of the 2000s. I have to start by talking about the perfect direction from Denis Villeneuve, who is shaping up to be one of the greatest filmmakers of this generation. He respected the Blade Runner universe and made a sequel that ends up being better than the original, which is already a masterpiece. It also does something that a lot of modern day sequels don’t do. It doesn’t set up a sequel or a series of sequels. It tells its own story from start to finish and for that I respect it. It also includes magnificent performances from Ryan Gosling, Jared Leto, Ana de Armas and a career-best for Harrison Ford. The cinematography from Roger Deakins is also the best of the year. Overall, everything in ‘Blade Runner 2049’ is perfect and it all results in the best movie of 2017.
There you have it, the top 10 best movies of 2017 done and dusted. I hope you enjoyed reading it and as always if there was a movie that you liked and didn’t see it here. Please, feel free to comment below and let me know. Thanks!
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