Top 10 Movies of 2016

During a mish-mash year of motion picture releases, I have still managed to see 200 plus films including a few titles more than once, plenty of direct to DVD movies and selected international features at various film festivals. Blockbuster sequels, prequels or revamps were again the main order of the studio executives, some worked, some did not and many sat borderline watchable to above average.

Superheros are close to burnout or embarrassment but show no signs of going away. We also had a twenty years too late sequel to Independence Day nobody asked for and an update of a beloved retro classic Ghostbusters unjustly written off before it even screened. Not to mention an appalling duo of cinema released Australian films Spin Out and Down Under – only Hacksaw Ridge and The Daughter worthy of locally produced accolades.

In no particular order, here are my 2016 cinema picks.

TOP 10

Nocturnal Animals
Maggie’s Plan
Hail Caesar
Love & Friendship
Arrival
Hell or High Water
Queen of Katwe
La La Land
Florence Foster Jenkins
Zootopia
*Honorable mentions – Sully, The Witch, Mustang

BOTTOM 5

Grimsby
Ab Fab The Movie
Dirty Grandpa
Gods of Egypt
Sausage Party

GOOD MOVIES PEOPLE MISSED

Bigger Splash, Midnight Special, Everybody Wants Some, Cafe Society, Eye in the Sky

SURPRISE PACKETS

The Shallows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Doctor Strange, Eddie the Eagle, Nice Guys

HALF GLASS FULL

Suicide Squad, Girl on the Train, Batman Vs Superman, Neon Demon, Ben Hur

2017 MOST ANTICIPATED *omitting Star Wars Episode 8.

Trainspotting 2, Beauty & the Beast, War of the Planet of the Apes, Rings, Dunkirk, Blade Runner 2049, Alien Covenant

Shane A. Bassett

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