Obviously, this list is going to contain some award contenders, but there’s more to life than the Oscars. The best movies should surprise, relate and inspire thought, and it’s that direction that led us to this somewhat eclectic bunch of films.
1. La La Land
Believe the hype. It’s impossible not to love this charming musical from writer/director Damien Chazelle (the 31-year-old wunderkind behind 2014’s “Whiplash”). Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are reunited as a pair of dreamers, struggling to make it in Los Angeles. They sing, they dance, they fall in love—but they also navigate the very real hardships of relationships and compromise. “La La Land” is uplifting without being sugary—a treat for the soul in 2016.
2. Moonlight
Based on the play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue” by Tarell Alvin McCraney, this haunting film explores the coming of age of Chiron, a gay black man. The movie is divided into three sections, following Chiron as a child (Alex Hibbert), a teenager (Ashton Sanders) and an adult (Trevante Rhodes). The performances are seamless, the direction is masterful and the story is aching and raw. A triumph in every sense.
3. Everybody Wants Some!!
This under-the-radar film is the latest from Richard Linklater (“Dazed and Confused,” the “Before” trilogy) and follows a college baseball team in 1980 the weekend before classes start. Very little happens, but the movie is a joyful and hilarious meditation on identity and male bonding. Drop your plot expectations and soak up the witty life observations and team dynamics instead.
4. Manchester by the Sea
The movie takes a hard look at grief and what it does to us. In a stellar performance, Casey Affleck plays Lee Chandler, a Boston janitor summoned back to his hometown when his brother dies and leaves him custody of his 16-year-old nephew, Patrick (Lucas Hedges). Despite the depth of sadness in the family, “Manchester by the Sea” is full of sharp humor and realistic human interaction, keeping life messy rather than forcing it to be clean.
5. The Edge of Seventeen
Before you peg this one as just another whiny high school comedy, take another look. Hailee Steinfeld plays Nadine, a junior still recovering from the death of her father when her popular older brother starts dating her best (and only) friend. It’s a dark comedy aided by killer performances from Steinfeld (who got nominated for a Golden Globe) and from Woody Harrelson as her snarky history teacher. If you have siblings, it’ll be hard not to recognize some of your family life in the dynamic at play. If you’re an only child, sorry.
6. Sing Street
It’s a timeless story: Boy meets girl, girl has boyfriend, boy starts band to get girl’s attention. A 15-year-old kid in 1980s Dublin deals with the typical teen issues of family problems, bullies and a girl who seems out of his league, but creates bonds and forges a sense of self through music. While “Sing Street” may seem to walk a well-tread path, the movie has plenty of interesting and poignant things to say about brotherhood, art and identity. The band’s songs are also unbelievably good (seriously, 15-year-olds don’t sound that great), making for a killer soundtrack.
7. Don’t Think Twice
Who knew you could take the bleak outlook of potentially giving up your dreams in your 30s and turn it into a hilarious comedy? “Don’t Think Twice” is about an improv comedy troupe in New York City that begins to disintegrate when one of them gets a job on “Weekend Live” (an “SNL” parody). Growing up is hard, and “Don’t Think Twice” doesn’t try to make it easy, but it’s an entertaining film rooted in strong friendships and asking when it’s really time to move on.
8. Arrival
A beautifully shot film that gives Amy Adams room to do her thing, “Arrival” makes a timely plea for communication. Adams plays a linguistics professor recruited to help communicate with a pod of aliens trying to get their message across, but the film pushes deeper into love, loss, the passage of time and how everything affects the choices we make as individuals. As the mysteries of “Arrival” begin to get their answers, the explanations might seem a bit far-fetched, but holding on to your suspension of disbelief keeps the film emotionally poignant.
9. Fences
The third directorial effort from Denzel Washington brings August Wilson’s 1983 play to the screen. Washington and much of the cast appeared in a revival of the play in 2010, and the film certainly feels like a theatrical production onscreen. Washington plays Troy, a middle-aged waste collector having to come to terms with his life as the world moves on without him. Viola Davis packs an emotional punch as his long-suffering wife, Rose, and the whole thing aches with familial miscommunications and resentments in the way real families do too.
10. The Nice Guys
Everyone always forgets that Ryan Gosling can really do comedy, but he’s at his best opposite Russell Crowe in “The Nice Guys.” They’re a pair of private eyes in the 1970s unraveling a conspiracy that involves the Hollywood and motor industries, but the real draw of the film is their banter and tough guy-schmuck dynamic. Things get pretty funky.
@lchval | laurenchval@redeyechicago.com
