My favorite movies of 2016
by EmilyGlassman | created - 26 Jan 2016 | updated - 20 Feb 2022 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Moonlight (I) (2016)
R | 111 min | Drama
A young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.
Director: Barry Jenkins | Stars: Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris, Trevante Rhodes, Alex R. Hibbert
Votes: 332,033 | Gross: $27.85M
You must see this movie. Period.
2. American Honey (2016)
R | 163 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance
A teenage girl with nothing to lose joins a traveling magazine sales crew, and gets caught up in a whirlwind of hard partying, law bending and young love as she criss-crosses the Midwest with a band of misfits.
Director: Andrea Arnold | Stars: Sasha Lane, Shia LaBeouf, Riley Keough, McCaul Lombardi
Votes: 46,471 | Gross: $0.66M
Now that Moonlight has connected with an audience and is receiving the critical acclaim it so richly deserves, American Honey is the next gem I hope audiences will discover/embrace (it's streaming now). Such an original vision/story. You will not be disappointed.
3. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
PG-13 | 133 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire's ultimate weapon of destruction.
Director: Gareth Edwards | Stars: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen
Votes: 686,851 | Gross: $532.18M
Revolutions are built on hope. It's the Star Wars films we've all been waiting for since Return of the Jedi.
4. Manchester by the Sea (2016)
R | 137 min | Drama
A depressed uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies.
Director: Kenneth Lonergan | Stars: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler, Lucas Hedges
Votes: 314,005 | Gross: $47.70M
If you liked Ordinary People, or any rich drama that assumes its audience is intelligent enough to follow a plot that is not spoon fed and predictable, this is a movie for you (and let's be honest, smart adult dramas are damn hard to find these days). And this film also boasts the single best scene of the year -- a master class in acting.
5. Captain Fantastic (2016)
R | 118 min | Comedy, Drama
In the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a father devoted to raising his six kids with a rigorous physical and intellectual education is forced to leave his paradise and enter the world, challenging his idea of what it means to be a parent.
Director: Matt Ross | Stars: Viggo Mortensen, George MacKay, Samantha Isler, Annalise Basso
Votes: 235,206 | Gross: $5.88M
First saw this at Sundance and am so happy that it remains standing firmly in my top 10 now that we've reached the end of 2016. Don't miss it. Streaming now.
6. La La Land (2016)
PG-13 | 128 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
While navigating their careers in Los Angeles, a pianist and an actress fall in love while attempting to reconcile their aspirations for the future.
Director: Damien Chazelle | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Rosemarie DeWitt, J.K. Simmons
Votes: 672,075 | Gross: $151.10M
Dancing, singing, Ryan and Emma ... enough said? Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) continues to demonstrate that he is going to be one of the most important filmmakers of his generation.
7. Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
PG-13 | 101 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A national manhunt is ordered for a rebellious kid and his foster uncle who go missing in the wild New Zealand bush.
Director: Taika Waititi | Stars: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rima Te Wiata, Rachel House
Votes: 141,973 | Gross: $5.20M
When was the last time a movie entertained and delighted you, introducing you to unique characters and landscapes that you fell instantly in love with? If it's been too long -- and especially if you need to LAUGH -- don't miss this Taika Waititi film, which is streaming now!
8. A Bigger Splash (2015)
R | 125 min | Drama, Music, Thriller
A famous rock star's vacation in Italy with her boyfriend is disrupted by the unexpected visit of an old friend and his daughter.
Director: Luca Guadagnino | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Matthias Schoenaerts, Ralph Fiennes, Dakota Johnson
Votes: 32,887 | Gross: $1.98M
Sexiest film of the year, gorgeous to watch, complicated. Loved it. Streaming now.
9. Gleason (2016)
R | 110 min | Documentary, Biography
After he is diagnosed with ALS, former professional football player Steve Gleason begins making a video diary for his unborn son, as he, his wife, and their friends and family work to raise money for ALS patients as his disease progresses.
Director: Clay Tweel | Stars: Steve Gleason, Mike Gleason, Scott Fujita, Mike McKenzie
Votes: 3,086 | Gross: $0.59M
Having grown up in New Orleans and currently residing in Seattle, this film GOT to me on a number of levels. It was such a strong year for documentaries, but this is the one that made me laugh and cry and think. And cry some more.
10. Southside with You (2016)
PG-13 | 84 min | Biography, Drama, History
Chronicles the 1989 summer afternoon when the future President of the United States, Barack Obama, wooed his future First Lady, Michelle Obama, on a first date across Chicago's South Side.
Director: Richard Tanne | Stars: Tika Sumpter, Parker Sawyers, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Phillip Edward Van Lear
Votes: 10,138 | Gross: $6.30M
11. 13th (2016)
TV-MA | 100 min | Documentary, Crime, History
An in-depth look at the prison system in the United States and how it reveals the nation's history of racial inequality.
Director: Ava DuVernay | Stars: Melina Abdullah, Michelle Alexander, Cory Booker, Dolores Canales
Votes: 37,689
Required viewing, especially as we enter into the era of Trumputin.
12. Certain Women (2016)
R | 107 min | Drama
The lives of three women intersect in small-town America, where each is imperfectly blazing a trail.
Director: Kelly Reichardt | Stars: Michelle Williams, Kristen Stewart, Laura Dern, James Le Gros
Votes: 15,668 | Gross: $1.03M
Two reasons to watch this film: The performances of Lilly Gladstone (mark my words, she is going to have a HUGE career) and Kristen Stewart.
13. 20th Century Women (2016)
R | 119 min | Comedy, Drama
The story of a teenage boy, his mother, and two other women who help raise him among the love and freedom of Southern California of 1979.
Director: Mike Mills | Stars: Annette Bening, Elle Fanning, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup
Votes: 49,416 | Gross: $5.66M
An exploration of single motherhood and raising your kids with the help of an eclectic tribe.
14. A Monster Calls (2016)
PG-13 | 108 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
Conor, a twelve-year-old boy, encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.
Director: J.A. Bayona | Stars: Lewis MacDougall, Sigourney Weaver, Felicity Jones, Toby Kebbell
Votes: 93,871 | Gross: $3.74M
Not an easy viewing -- but so cathartic if you are grieving the loss of a loved one.
15. Deadpool (2016)
R | 108 min | Action, Comedy
A wisecracking mercenary gets experimented on and becomes immortal yet hideously scarred, and sets out to track down the man who ruined his looks.
Director: Tim Miller | Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, T.J. Miller, Ed Skrein
Votes: 1,126,424 | Gross: $363.07M
16. Hell or High Water (II) (2016)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Toby is a divorced father who's trying to make a better life. His brother is an ex-con with a short temper and a loose trigger finger. Together, they plan a series of heists against the bank that's about to foreclose on their family ranch.
Director: David Mackenzie | Stars: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Jeff Bridges, Gil Birmingham
Votes: 252,671 | Gross: $27.01M
17. Arrival (II) (2016)
PG-13 | 116 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A linguist works with the military to communicate with alien lifeforms after twelve mysterious spacecraft appear around the world.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, Michael Stuhlbarg
Votes: 771,932 | Gross: $100.55M
18. Nocturnal Animals (2016)
R | 116 min | Drama, Thriller
A wealthy art gallery owner is haunted by her ex-husband's novel, a violent thriller she interprets as a symbolic revenge tale.
Director: Tom Ford | Stars: Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Votes: 304,829 | Gross: $10.66M
19. War Dogs (2016)
R | 114 min | Biography, Comedy, Crime
Loosely based on the true story of two young men, David Packouz and Efraim Diveroli, who won a three hundred million dollar contract from the Pentagon to arm America's allies in Afghanistan.
Director: Todd Phillips | Stars: Jonah Hill, Miles Teller, Steve Lantz, Gregg Weiner
Votes: 254,229 | Gross: $43.03M
I included this film because my expectations were low going in, but it was thoroughly entertaining. I don't think it got the attention it deserves this year.
20. The Secret Life of Pets (2016)
PG | 86 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
The quiet life of a terrier named Max is upended when his owner takes in Duke, a stray whom Max instantly dislikes.
Director: Chris Renaud | Stars: Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, Lake Bell
Votes: 217,487 | Gross: $368.38M
21. Belfast (2021)
PG-13 | 98 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A young boy and his working-class Belfast family experience the tumultuous late 1960s.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Jude Hill, Lewis McAskie, Caitríona Balfe, Jamie Dornan
Votes: 92,496
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