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Finally, women stepped into the cinematic spotlight in 2017.
Look beyond the lackluster reboots and box office flops and you’ll see 2017 was a great year for movies. Female directors started to get the recognition they deserved (despite the Golden Globes’ hideous oversight) and stories centering on people of color and women are dominating the awards season conversation. Below, we’re counting down the 12 essential movies that defined 2017.
The first big-budget superhero movie directed by a woman has been a long time coming—and Patty Jenkins delivered a record-breaking, boundary-smashing box office bonanza. Eschewing the male gaze in favor of practiced strength and unabashed idealism, Jenkins captures flawed heroine Diana of Themyscira (Gal Gadot) in all her glory, redefining the female lead for a new generation. Though not a perfect film by any means, Wonder Woman is certainly a step in the right direction. Now, more women directors, please.
Stream on amazon.com, $3 to rent or $10 to own. Watch
This formulaic, feel-good historical romance from Belle director Amma Asante positions Seretse, the prince of Bechuanaland (David Oyelowo) and Ruth, the white secretary (Rosamund Pike) with whom he falls in love against his disapproving family, the onerous British government, and the seemingly insurmountable barricade of apartheid. Asante takes the time to detail the nuance in Ruth and Seretse’s relationship and explore the necessary perspective of his suspicious sisters, rendering a multidimensional portrait of a couple willing to chart history.
Stream free on amazon.com with an HBO trial or own for $10. Watch
This sequel to the 1982 sci-fi classic is a gorgeous, worthy follow-up to its predecessor, cleverly expanding its universe—a world where “replicants” (clones) either integrate with humans or face destruction—while retaining the drama and mystery of the original.
Stream on amazon.com, $20 to own. Watch
Jessica Chastain expertly navigates Aaron Sorkin’s speedy dialogue in The Social Network writer’s directorial debut, about the real-life rise and fall of Molly Bloom, “Hollywood’s poker princess.” Idris Elba shines as Molly’s no-nonsense lawyer, Charlie Jaffey.
In theaters now. Get tickets
The current frontrunner for rom-com of the year breathes new life into a stale genre, charting a rocky relationship between Pakistani comic Kumail (Kumail Nanjiani) and Emily, a white grad student (Zoe Kazan). When Emily unexpectedly goes into a coma after their breakup, Kumail revisits their relationship with honesty, hilarity, and a dose of reality courtesy of their respective families.
Stream free on amazon.com with a Prime account. Watch
See all the best new rom-coms of 2017.
Christopher Nolan’s WWII masterpiece drops you into the chaos of the Battle of Dunkirk and doesn’t release its grip for an hour and 47 minutes.
Stream on amazon.com, $6 to rent, $20 to own. Watch
Tangerine director Sean Baker turns his lens on the destitute full-time residents of the motels surrounding Disney World, zeroing in on the experiences of mischievous six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), her troubled mother Halley (Bria Vinaite), and the unexpectedly kind manager (Willem Dafoe) of the motel where they live.
In theaters now. Get tickets
Greta Gerwig steps behind the camera to capture all the angst and melodrama of senior year of high school in compelling, painfully realistic detail. Told from the perspective of the self-styled “Lady Bird” (Saoirse Ronan), a strong-willed, pink-haired teen who just wants to escape her mother (a heartbreaking Laurie Metcalf) and go to college in New York City, Lady Bird will make you want to put Dave Matthews Band’s “Crash into Me” on repeat and call your mom.
Get tickets at fandango.com. Buy tickets
Paul Thomas Anderson weaves of a spellbinding tale of a fashion designer (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his muse (Vicky Krieps) that cleverly subverts the tortured artist trope with thrilling, magnetic tension.
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Bathed in the washed-out light of a sultry summer in the Italian countryside, Luca Guadagnino’s quiet portrait of a clandestine romance between 17-year-old Elio (a transcendent Timothée Chalamet) and the mid-20s grad student (Armie Hammer) spending the summer with his family is a masterclass in sexual tension and first love.
Get tickets at fandango.com. Buy
Director Dee Rees masterfully threads the stories of two families—one black, one white—through the trauma of World War II and its aftermath in racially-divided Mississippi. Mary J. Blige gives a standout performance as Jackson family matriarch Florence, who holds her family together while sending son Ronsel (an excellent Jason Mitchell) off to war.
Watch on Netflix.
Written and directed by former Key and Peele star Jordan Peele, this horror film brilliantly eviscerates white liberalism and the concept of a “post-racial America,” following a young black man (Daniel Kaluuya) as he discerns an unfathomable danger from his white girlfriend’s (Allison Williams) “well-meaning” family.
Stream free on amazon.com with an HBO trial or own for $10. Watch
See all the best new horror movies of 2017.
