Best Films of 2016

2016 was a very good year for cinema. For this list, I will count down my personal favorite films of the year.

#10. Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was such an enjoyable film with a great cast, well-developed characters, and a great way to start off a franchise. As I said in my previous review about it, what I love so much about this film is that it doesn't spend so much time setting up a universe like a lot of films that are built in a trilogy. It also doesn't over-rely on the audience to know the Harry Potter lore to appreciate the film. It spends time developing likeable characters and telling good stories as its own story, as its own film. The only thing I didn't like was sometimes the CGI was noticeably mediocre at times and there was this one noticeable scene that gave me a headache. Other than those moments, I have no problems with the film. 

#9. Manchester by the Sea

Manchester by the Sea was a film that I was fortunate enough to see in my local theaters, and I am glad that I got to experience such a well-realized film. The acting in this film is superb and one of the best performances I've seen from Casey Affleck. This is top-notch, suppressed acting material. The way the story is structured is non-linear, which can be a positive or a negative for some people. Also, the pacing is slow. However, despite some of the flaws I found in this movie, I can say that this is easily one of the best drama films of the year. 

#8. Moana

Moana is beautifully animated. Disney's animated films just keep looking better and better. Very dynamic water animations and vibrant colors. The chemistry between Moana and Maui are great and so are the performances by Dwayne Johnson and Auli'i Cravalho. The songs and the music also sound great. The only flaw I found in this film is that though it's a good animated film, it doesn't do anything special beyond that. I notice it follows some of the same tropes with other good disney films and that's fine. If you're looking for a solid animated film to watch with the family, I strongly recommend Moana.

#7. The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book has some of the best computer generated imagery I've seen. The animals and set pieces look very real and I've found nearly zero things wrong with the CGI. It's one of the rare films where predominantly using CGI in a film actually work well, where in other films, they do not. Other than the stunning visuals, the characters are good and this definitely does the original source material justice. 

#6. Captain America: Civil War

Captain America: Civil War is one of the best movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, arguably THE best. The Russo Brothers in the third installment of the Captain America series, and this film surely did not disappoint. This is a very fun, engaging joyride that will put you at the edge of your seat with excellently well-shot action sequences. Even though the film still suffers the same problem as most other Marvel films, which is their lackluster villains, Civil War still comes out as being one of the best superhero, blockbuster films to date. 

#5. Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo and the Two Strings is one of the best stop-motion animated films I've ever seen. The animation is so seamless, you'd almost forget that you're watching a stop-motion feature. The characters and the narrative are well-written and this is the best animated film I've seen this year.

#4. Deadpool

Deadpool is the funniest movie of 2016 and the best way to do a superhero character justice. Ryan Reynolds nailed it as Deadpool. The comedy is spectacular, blends very well with the action sequences, and well-directed. I love the film's choice of being a hilarious satire of the superhero genre. This is the perfect film for Deadpool fans and for people who are unfamiliar with the character alike. 

#3. Hacksaw Ridge

Hacksaw Ridge is an amazingly well-directed film. I never knew about the story of Desmond Doss, and I'm very glad I did. I'm so grateful to experience this story. This is the best performance I've seen from Andrew Garfield. This film also accomplishes something that I rarely see in films. This film has perfect pacing. In most films, they usually have a certain segment in the movie that drags or rushes. The films depicts of the horrors of war is well-shot; it reminds me of Saving Private Ryan and it covers very interesting themes of staying true to your own convictions and beliefs. I'd most certainly nominate Andrew Garfield as Best Performance. Everybody in this film gave good performances, even from people I didn't even expect to give good performances like Vince Vaughn. 

#2. La La Land

La La Land is probably the best musical ever made. Another film by Damien Chazelle, this film is brilliantly-directed. The performances between Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling were excellent. The music and the songs were excellent. The soundtrack is amazing. The characters are well-developed with a excellently-written story. The film's cinematography looks spectacular with a vintage look with beautiful looking night skies. The film's technical features are amazing. This is another masterpiece from Damien Chazelle, which is why he is one of my favorite directors working today. I can easily nominate Damien Chazelle as the Best Director of the year. 

#1. Zootopia

Zootopia is amazing guys. One of the reasons why this takes my #1 spot is because this type of American-made animated film is something I rarely see nowadays. It's a film that has great story, focuses on character development, and delivers a great moral while also respecting its audience. This type of animation rivals that with Pixar, a studio that I think is losing a bit of its edge and a studio that made these story-rich animation that I grew up with. Zootopia brings back what I always want when it comes to animation. Story, interesting characters, and excellent writing. This arguably the best we've seen from Disney Animation Studios. 

Honorable Mentions

#1. Swiss Army Man

This film is a good social commentary on how we, as human beings, behave around each other. The performances by Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe were great. And one of the things I like about it is that it's unique. I've never really seen film like this before and I appreciate that. This was really close to making my list. I didn't enjoy it as much as Fantastic Beasts and if Fantastic Beasts wasn't so good, I'd probably put this on the list. 

#2. The Accountant

The Accountant is a competent and enjoyable action thriller that I enjoyed. Ben Affleck delivered a solid performance here. However, I don't think it did anything special or wasn't enjoyable enough to make the list. 

#3. Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange is generally a solid movie with the best visual effects from a Marvel movie, but it does pretty much the same things from the standard Marvel, origin film that others did better I think.