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The Best Films of 2016

10. Swiss Army Man: This bizarre, off-the-wall film boasts a number of unexpectedly moving stretches that elevate it beyond typical indie quirk.

9. De Palma: Filmmakers Noah Baumbach and Jake Paltrow take a tour through Brian De Palma's admittedly erratic body of work in a documentary that's as fascinating as it is compelling.

8. Me Before You: Sure, it's pure Hollywood cheese virtually from start to finish, but it's difficult to recall a more potent tearjerker in recent memory.

7. Disorder: Director by Alice Winocour manages the seemingly impossible and delivers a seamless blend of low-key drama and nail-biting suspense with this under-the-radar festival favorite.

6. 10 Cloverfield Lane: This pseudo-sequel to Cloverfield tops that movie in almost every way, with the inherently suspenseful scenario heightened by a trio of absolutely flawless central performances.

5. Indignation: First-time filmmaker James Schamus delivers an often enthralling adaptation of Philip Roth's novel that's beautifully acted and perfectly paced.

4. Nocturnal Animals: Tom Ford proves that A Single Man was no fluke with this adaptation that's often as emotionally wrenching as it is electrifyingly thrilling.

3. Finding Dory: This absolutely delightful Finding Nemo followup bests its predecessor in every way imaginable, and boasts a scene-stealing periphery character named Gerald that doesn't have a single word of dialogue and yet is more memorable than 95% of film protagonists.

2. Manchester by the Sea: This wrenching drama runs well over two hours and yet remains riveting throughout, with the movie's engrossing atmosphere perpetuated by a career-best performance by Casey Affleck.

1. Gleason: Quite possibly one of the most emotionally devastating documentaries ever made, Gleason, which is certainly not an easy sit, is an important piece of work that chronicles the impact ALS has on a former athlete and his astonishingly patient wife. A completely captivating piece of work.


The Worst Films of 2016

10. Silence: Martin Scorsese's downward trajectory reaches its nadir with this plodding and generally unwatchable drama, with the absurdly overlong running time (160 minutes!) certainly not helping matters.

9. Doctor Strange: The Marvel machine cranks out its least interesting and most annoying adaptation yet with Doctor Strange, with the heavy, heavy emphasis on action and special effects transforming it into an ordeal virtually from the outset.

8. Independence Day: Resurgence: Something went horribly wrong in the 20 years since the original film's release, as this ranks as one of the worst sequels to come around in quite some time.

7. Bad Moms: Bad Moms panders to the lowest common denominator for almost the entirety of its bloated running time and it's worth noting, too, that the film is hopelessly lacking in any real laughs (or even chuckles).

6. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: Tim Burton hits rock bottom with this often interminable adaptation Ransom Riggs' novel, and it does seem exceedingly unlikely that the once-great filmmaker will ever recover his long-lost mojo.

5. Ghostbusters: This needless Ghostbusters remake didn't ruin my childhood, but it did prove that Paul Feig needs to go away. Now.

4. The Witch: A New-England Folk Tale: There's no denying that filmmaker Robert Eggers is talented, and yet you'd never know it based on this comically experimental, unreasonably pretentious cinematic trainwreck.

3. Knight of Cups: What's left to say about Terrence Malick? He's long-since crawled up his own ass and couldn't care less if you're entertained.

2. 13 Hours: Just when you thought Michael Bay had reached the bottom of the barrel...

1. High-Rise: Ben Wheatley cements his place as one of the least competent filmmakers of his generation with this aggressively annoying and thoroughly interminable drama. The worst of the worst, truly.

© David Nusair