Jump to content
DVDVR Message Board

Best of 2016 Film Poll Pimping Poll/Details!


caley

Recommended Posts

2016 feels to me like a really underwhelming year for film.  Even reading 'Best of' lists or watching awards shows, there seems to be a genuine lack of enthusiasm for 2016's output, so much so that I actually considered not running the poll this year (Also because I always seem to get side-tracked and end up doing the results long past the point of anybody caring (2015 was especially bad with me getting knocked for a loop with a bad back injury, then computer problems and presenting the list until October).  But, senselessly, we soldier on!  I'm hoping for lots of weird recommendations because the bulk of the Oscar-y films in theaters hold little to no interest for me.  

Also, I'm going to tag everyone who voted last year, so that they see this thread.  My apologies if any of y'all are not interested!
@Execproducer @Chaos @The Z  @S.K.o.S. @The Natural @Brian Fowler @J.T. @SolidGoldBomb @Control @peterien @caley @Cameron Swift

WHO?: Open to any DVDVR member.  No limits on post counts.  Yeah!
WHAT?: Film poll!  Anything classified as 2016 by Rotten Tomatoes is eligible to be voted for.  Any films you're not sure if they qualify by want to make a case for, let me know in here and we/I'll come up with a decision.
WHERE?: Post your ballots in-thread, submit them to me on here via PM, or email them to me [email protected]
WHEN?: February 17th, 2017.  Will I push the date as always?  Maybe.  But don't count on it.  This year I'm really going to try to get this thing rolled out in a more timely manner before everyone stops caring.
WHY?: Because I don't want to let the tradition die!
HOW?: Make a list of up to 30 films.  Extra weight will be given to your #1, Top 10, and 1 point each for anything from 21-30.

BALLOTS RECEIVED:
-Paco
-Cyanide
-King Leonidas of Sparta

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Man, I don't think i've seen more than 5 movies from 2016, the only ones I can remember seeing in theatres are Captain America: Civil War & Deadpool.  I watched 10 Cloverfield Lane & Hail Caesar on a flight, and I may have seen some of the Nice Guys on in the background at some friend's house.  I guess that's my top 5.

All these new movies can suck it, I've been watching nothing but old movies on El Rey lately.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's quite a bit I still need to see from this year. Of What I've seen, I'm not sure I have a definitive #1. 2016 seems to be a quantity quality year for film, but no true standouts. I may change that as I see more stuff.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

52 minutes ago, caley said:

1. 2016 feels to me like a really underwhelming year for film.  

2. the bulk of the Oscar-y films in theaters hold little to no interest for me.  

3. My apologies if any of y'all are not interested!

point 1: You are incorrect

point 2: wat

point 3: I am very interested

I have a rough top 20, didn't consider much beyond that.  Still need to see a bunch of stuff... Fences, Paterson, Silence, Hidden Figures, Jackie, Loving, Hacksaw Ridge, The Monster...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, S.K.o.S. said:

point 2: wat

 

I should have added that it's the Oscar nominees which are playing locally. Not big on musicals, so gonna give 'La La Land' a pass and 'Fences' just doesn't interest me on any level, probably the previews making every single moment look like the most dramatic thing ever.  'Moonlight' and 'Nocturnal Animals' each only played for a week here before disappearing (I was literally planning on going to see the latter the day it disappeared from local theaters in order to make room for another screening of that new Harry Potter deal that I couldn't be less interested in); while 'Manchester by the Sea', 'Jackie', 'Elle', etc. etc. etc. have not played here or have no chance of ever playing here (Especially after the one local theater which tried to be somewhat arty and devote a screen to Oscar nominees closed down last May, so we're at the mercy of multiplexes deciding whether or not to show Oscar flicks or just throw on another screening of Star Wars).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure if I'll participate, but just want to throw out there that the excellent O.J.: Made in America is considered a film rather than a TV series. It had a limited theatrical run prior to airing on ESPN, and is listed as a feature film on IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes. It'll be in my top 5 if I end up making a list.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's a useful list: IndieWire's Top 50 films of 2016 that are available to watch on Netflix.
http://www.indiewire.com/gallery/50-best-movies-of-2016-stream-netflix/#!1/13th-3/

I've only seen a handful off of there, so far, (And I'm not sure they're all available on non-American Netflix) but I do know that 'Other People' is 100% worth your time (I'll pimp it in due time!).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's quite a bit of stuff on Amazon Instant Video, and I believe Hail Caesar just recently hit HBO Go.

Off the top of my head, stuff I know to be on Amazon Video that has reached acclaim:

The Lobster

The Fits

The Witch

Gleason

Love & Friendship

Green Room

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On ‎10‎/‎01‎/‎2017 at 4:22 PM, S.K.o.S. said:

Still need to see a bunch of stuff... Fences, Paterson, Silence, Hidden Figures, Jackie, Loving, Hacksaw Ridge, The Monster...

Heads up: Silence and Hidden Figures are both 2017 according to Rotten Tomatoes and are thus ineligible for inclusion here.   Works for me, 'cause I ain't seen them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Chaos said:

There's quite a bit of stuff on Amazon Instant Video, and I believe Hail Caesar just recently hit HBO Go.

Off the top of my head, stuff I know to be on Amazon Video that has reached acclaim:

 

Gleason

 

Watched this last night and it's incredible.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2017-01-12 at 10:57 AM, caley said:

Here's a useful list: IndieWire's Top 50 films of 2016 that are available to watch on Netflix.
http://www.indiewire.com/gallery/50-best-movies-of-2016-stream-netflix/#!1/13th-3/

I've only seen a handful off of there, so far, (And I'm not sure they're all available on non-American Netflix) but I do know that 'Other People' is 100% worth your time (I'll pimp it in due time!).

I'm a member of another board who run lists like this one, and the final vote is almost secondary to the discussion that takes place in the "pimping" thread, so why don't we actually talk about some of the films?

I'll give some brief thoughts of the movies I've seen from Indiewire's list.

 

13th Very powerful documentary about the treatment of blacks since the end of the Jim Crow laws, particularly in relation to the high rates of incarceration. If you're an American, you really should be angry and ashamed.

Amanda Knox I knew nothing of the case before watching except for the basic elements (American student kills roommate in Italy) I remember there being a media furore but I wasn't paying attention to any of it, so I had no idea whether she even ended up being convicted or not, so I was shocked when seeing some of the shoddy Italian policework that it would end in anything other than a verdict of innocence. The blurb in the link mentions that Knox herself is about the only person to come out of this whole episode looking good, and she really is. The media in particular were a bunch of horrible, fucking vampires and there's one British tabloid journalist featured here you'll want to punch. When Knox is released and returns to the States, her father is stopped by a journalist outside their home and is told that she needs to get herself out there for interviews while she's a hot item, so she can make money off her 15 minutes. Totally gross.

Barry This features the story of a young Barack Obama, but the movie could be about any mixed race kid trying to work out their identity (The name Barack only gets mentioned once towards the end, and I don't believe Obama gets mentioned at all) He doesn't fit in with the brothers in Harlem, and he doesn't fit in with his white girlfriend's liberal elite family. I checked IMDB after the film, and couldn't believe that this was the lead's first gig, because he was thoroughly engaging throughout.

Captain America: Civil War I'm sure this has it's fans here who can talk about it, but I'm having trouble remembering what happened in this movie. All of these Marvel movies are tending to blend into one for me at this stage.

Jungle Book We took our 7 year old to this in the opening week. He was disinterested and fidgety in the second half, and to be honest, I found it quite dull too, to the point that I was surprised to see many reviews later praising it.

Sing Street A lovely, coming of age story set in 1980s Dublin where a boy asks a pretty girl to be in his music video. When she agrees, he suddenly has to form a band. The resulting song and music video are genuinely funny and catchy.

The Invitation Various acquaintances are invited to a dinner party where things start getting a little weird. It's not hard to figure out where it's all heading, but it's a fun trip.

Under The Shadow Set during the war between Iran and Iraq in the 1980s, a mother and daughter are terrorised by an evil spirit in their home. Bares obvious resemblance to Dark Water, but there's an extra level of subtext here as the home was the woman's only safe place where she could wear what she wants, not cover her head and watch bootleg Western videotapes without incurring the wrath of the authorities, and now she doesn't even have that.

White Helmets A short documentary which focuses on rescue workers during the government bombings in Syria. It's hard to believe what passes for daily life in other parts of the world sometimes. What is shown here is certainly courageous (they rescue a baby from the rubble in one scene), but there are accusations out there (mainly from Syria and Russia) that some of their rescues are faked for the cameras and that they have allegiances to a terrorist group. Hard to know what to believe in that murky part of the world.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Similar question, but lower profile: just happened to stumble over the fact that movies like The Lobster and Eye In The Sky are 2016 releases according to RT, when just about every other source in the world would have them in 2015, and was curious if anyone else had come across any potential outliers like this, and how they're treating the spirit vs the letter of the criteria?

This seems like a common sense thing... but I get hung up on the details, haha.

(Also... speaking of outliers, my tendency to catch up on Oscar season releases via Redbox means I'll have seen a grand total of one movie from the Big Four category nominees when I pull this thing together.  THE SHAME.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Paco said:

Can we get an official verdict on Hidden Figures?

It is a Best Picture nominee for 2016 (and it would fill out my Top 20 ;) )

I tend to feel like if it's Oscar eligible for this year, than it should be eligible for us this year (Except foreign films which are a crapshoot when they're going to get nominated).  If no one else objects to it, I'll just go ahead and say "Hidden Figures is 2016".  If you're against this line of thinking...come at me, bro.

What's interesting about 'The Lobster' is it turned up on lots of 2015 Best Of lists, but ended up getting an Oscar nom. yesterday.  We discussed it a little last year, it's a 2016 film...and weird.  Really friggin' weird.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, caley said:

I tend to feel like if it's Oscar eligible for this year, than it should be eligible for us this year (Except foreign films which are a crapshoot when they're going to get nominated).  If no one else objects to it, I'll just go ahead and say "Hidden Figures is 2016".  If you're against this line of thinking...come at me, bro.

What's interesting about 'The Lobster' is it turned up on lots of 2015 Best Of lists, but ended up getting an Oscar nom. yesterday.  We discussed it a little last year, it's a 2016 film...and weird.  Really friggin' weird.

I want to say The Lobster's main theatrical run wasn't until like April too. (I just looked. May 16, 2016).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, what I've found is that IMDB's date is when the movie first premieres, which could be at a festival with a limited audience, or a release that's limited to just a few major cities.  Rotten Tomatoes' date tends to be when the general public actually has a chance to see the movie.  I think it's based on when the majority of reviews for the movie are published.  I do tend to stick to the RT date as much as possible.  No problem with making an exception for Hidden Figures, though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, S.K.o.S. said:

Yeah, what I've found is that IMDB's date is when the movie first premieres, which could be at a festival with a limited audience, or a release that's limited to just a few major cities.  Rotten Tomatoes' date tends to be when the general public actually has a chance to see the movie.  I think it's based on when the majority of reviews for the movie are published.  I do tend to stick to the RT date as much as possible.  No problem with making an exception for Hidden Figures, though.

 

15 hours ago, caley said:

What's interesting about 'The Lobster' is it turned up on lots of 2015 Best Of lists, but ended up getting an Oscar nom. yesterday.  We discussed it a little last year, it's a 2016 film...and weird.  Really friggin' weird.

Good deal!  Yeah, looking at it a bit more, RT's listing seems like it tends to sync up better with wide/US release, rather than festival debut/local market, so that works for me.

And yes, it is deeply, deeply weird.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...