The Seventh Annual Elwyn Awards!

        Hello, and welcome to the Seventh Annual Elwyns Awards, a ceremony (see: blog post) dedicated to celebrating the greatest accomplishments set to film during the past year. This is, of course, my personal chance to play god with the Oscars, righting what I perceive to be the Academy's wrongs, replacing them with my own glorious, irrefutable selections. Sounds cool, right? I knew you'd think so. Some of Oscar's favorite sections (Foreign Film, Documentary, all the Shorts) are missing here, but in their place are a few different categories dreamed up especially for this site's very own awards show. The winner of each category will receive a Collin, the highest honor that this website can offer, and a form of recognition that will be remembered for a lifetime. Let's get to it!

***Note: A special thanks to my sister, Brittany Elwyn, for creating all of the graphics featured in today's post***

Best Picture:
And the nominees are...

20th Century Women
Arrival
Hail, Caesar!
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight
The Witch

And the Collin goes to...

Arrival 
        No 2016 film matched the sheer level of ambition and accomplishment of Arrival, an alien invasion movie that has less to do with extra-terrestrial visitors than language, patience, xenophobia, and embracing life in spite of grief. A truly beautiful piece of film art.

Runner-Up: The Witch

Best Director:
And the nominees are...

Denis Villeneuve---Arrival
‎Jeremy Saulnier---Green Room
Damien Chazelle---La La Land
Kenneth Lonergan---Manchster by the Sea
Robert Eggers---The Witch

And the Collin goes to...

Robert Eggers---The Witch
        In his first feature film, Eggers reveals a depth of craftsmanship that's frankly astonishing, as masterful with tone as he is at working with actors.


Runner-Up: Damien Chazelle---La La Land

Best Actor:
And the nominees are...

Viggo Mortensen---Captain Fantastic

Casey Affleck---Manchester by the Sea

Ryan Gosling---The Nice Guys

Jake Gyllenhaal---Nocturnal Animals

Adam Driver---Paterson

And the Collin goes to...

Casey Affleck---Manchester by the Sea
        It's hard to think of a more challenging role than Lee Chandler, a man who's experienced so much pain that his ability to process tragedy is irreversibly damaged, but is still tasked with gaining audience sympathy. It's one for the ages.


Runner-Up: Ryan Gosling---The Nice Guys

Best Actress:
And the nominees are...

Mary Elizabeth Winstead---10 Cloverfield Lane
Annette Bening---20th Century Women
Amy Adams---Arrival
Emma Stone---La La Land
Anya Taylor-Joy---The Witch

And the Collin goes to...

Amy Adams---Arrival
        Quite possibly the best performance in Adams' ridiculous career, no performer accomplished more in 2016 while doing less. Each subtle movement of her face contains a million unspoken words, and one would be hard pressed to think of a more effective projection of patient, sage-like intelligence.


Runner-Up: Annette Bening---20th Century Women
(Note: Out of the five nominees at the Oscars, I have only seen the films represented by Stone and Portman. My bad is Huppert is as great as everyone says.)

Best Supporting Actor:
And the nominees are...

John Goodman---10 Cloverfield Lane
Ralph Fiennes---A Bigger Splash
Jared Harris---Certain Women
Alden Ehrenreich---Hail, Caesar!
Michael Shannon---Nocturnal Animals

And the Collin goes to...

John Goodman---10 Cloverfield Lane
        Goodman is no stranger to playing characters so agitated that they might just burst into flames, but his Cloverfield performance tops them all through sheer force of will and mania. For an hour and a half, one of Hollywood's most lovable teddy bears couldn't be scarier.


Runner-Up: Jared Harris---Certain Women and Alden Ehrenreich---Hail, Caesar!

Best Supporting Actress:
And the nominees are...

Laura Dern---Certain Women
Imogen Poots---Green Room
Rachel Weisz---The Lobster
Naomie Harris---Moonlight
Ellen Burstyn---Wiener-Dog

And the Collin goes to...

Naomie Harris---Moonlight
        It's a testament to Harris' performance that whenever she's on screen, Moonlight becomes almost unbearable to watch. Her mess of a person is as believable as it is haunting.


Runner-Up: Laura Dern---Certain Women
(Note: Viola Davis is incredible, but I don't believe in awarding bad movies, and Fences might be my single least favorite film of last year.)

Best Original Screenplay:
And the nominees are...

Mike Mills---20th Century Women
Joel and Ethan Coen---Hail, Caesar!

Kenneth Lonergan---Manchester by the Sea
Todd Solondz---Wiener-Dog
Robert Eggers---The Witch

And the Collin goes to...

Kenneth Lonergan---Manchester by the Sea
        A brave, complicated, and challenging script that takes no prisoners, Lonergan looks long and hard at real human suffering and while somehow also cracking some of the best jokes of the year.


Runner-Up: Robert Eggers---The Witch

Best Adapted Screenplay:
And the nominees are...

Eric Heisserer---Arrival
Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely---Captain America: Civil War
Tom Ford---Nocturnal Animals
Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese---Silence
Todd Komarnicki---Sully

And the Collin goes to...

Eric Heisserer---Arrival
        The best aspect of the best movie of the year, Heisserer tells an awfully tricky story without ever losing his audience while simultaneously buttering you up for that final emotional wallop. I wish I could give him next year's award too.


Runner-Up: Todd Komarnicki---Sully

Best Ensamble:
And the nominees are...

Green Room

Hail, Caesar!

Manchester by the Sea

Wiener-Dog

The Witch

And the Collin goes to...

Hail, Caesar!
        The Coen brothers' latest has an absolute embarrassment of talent in front of the camera, yet seemingly no one gets lost in the shuffle. Almost every performance here is memorable, no matter how small.


Runner-Up: The Witch

Best Cinematography:
And the nominees are...

Jarin Blaschke---The Witch
James Laxton---Moonlight
Bradford Young---Arrival
Linus Sandgren---La La Land
Natasha Braier---The Neon Demon

And the Collin goes to...

James Laxton---Moonlight
        Despite being made on a 1.5 million dollar budget, Moonlight looks and feels like its in 3-D. With a gorgeous color palette and a keen eye for detail, Laxton creates one of the most unique, majestic looking movies ever filmed.


Runner-Up: Linus Sandgren---La La Land

Best Editing:
And the nominees are...

Stefan Grube---10 Cloverfield Lane
Jeffrey Ford and Matthew Schmidt---Captain America: Civil War
Craig Alpert, Jamie Gross, and Stacey Schroeder---Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Joe Walker---Arrival
Tom Cross---La La Land

And the Collin goes to...

Stefan Grube---10 Cloverfield Lane
        Cloverfield is 90 straight minutes of pure tension, with Grube absolutely flying from one pressure-filled moment to the next, all without exhausting the viewer.


Runner-Up: Craig Alpert, Jamie Gross, and Stacey Schroeder---Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (Seriously, how the hell did they make an hour and a half long Lonely Island movie without ever getting old in the slightest?)

Best Production Design:
And the nominees are...

Jess Gonchor---Hail, Caesar!
Elliott Hostetter---The Neon Demon
Richard Bridgland---The Nice Guys
Patrice Vermette---Arrival
Stuart Craig and James Hambidge---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

And the Collin goes to...

Jess Gonchor---Hail, Caesar!
        An absolute dream job for any production designer, Caesar packs the aesthetics of about 7 different movies into its tiny frame, and Gonchor deserves credit for fully realizing each new world.


Runner-Up: Stuart Craig and James Hambidge---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Best Original Score:
And the nominees are...

Jóhann Jóhannsson---Arrival
Justin Hurwitz---La La Land
Mica Levi---Jackie
Cliff Martinez---The Neon Demon
Opetaia Foa'i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda---Moana

And the Collin goes to...

Opetaia Foa'i, Mark Mancina, and Lin-Manuel Miranda---Moana
        Step aside La La Land; the musical with the best music from last year was Moana, rocking its island vibes and catchy, funny tunes to straight to the Disney Musical Hall of Fame.


Runner-Up: Cliff Martinez---The Neon Demon

Best Costume Design:
And the nominees are...

Mary Zophres---Hail, Caesar!
Linda Muir---The Witch
Kym Barrett---The Nice Guys
Colleen Atwood---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Madeline Fontaine---Jackie

And the Collin goes to...

Colleen Atwood---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
        Not that Atwood needs any more attention than she's already earned (she currently has 4 Oscars to go with 9 other nominations), but the Beasts outfits are gorgeous and markedly different from previous Potter affairs.


Runner-Up: Mary Zophres---Hail, Caesar!

Best Visual Effects:
And the nominees are...

Captain America: Civil War
Arrival
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
A Monster Calls

And the Collin goes to...

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
        Comparing the effects in Rogue One to those featured in The Force Awakens is almost laughable. Almost 40 years after the first Star Wars, we finally have a modern, pitch-perfect X-Wing experience for fan boys to drool all over.


Runner-Up: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Best Sound Editing:
And the nominees are...

Captain America: Civil War
Arrival
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
La La Land
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

And the Collin goes to...

Arrival
        Editing represents the creation of the sounds featured in a film, and no one's team was as creative and imaginative as Arrival's.


Runner-Up: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Best Sound Mixing:
And the nominees are...

The Witch
10 Cloverfield Lane
Moonlight
La La Land
The Neon Demon

And the Collin goes to...

The Neon Demon
        Mixing is the literal usage of previously created sounds within a film's soundtrack, and The Neon Demon blows you away with its clear, aggressive, and propulsive audio.


Runner-Up: Moonlight

Final Oscar Predictions 2016

Best Picture:
1. La La Land (Previous Ranking: 1)
2. Moonlight (Previous Ranking: 2)
3. Manchester by the Sea (Previous Ranking: 3)
4. Hidden Figures (Previous Ranking: 4)
5. Arrival (Previous Ranking: 6)
6. Hacksaw Ridge (Previous Ranking: 10)
7. Fences (Previous Ranking: 7)
8. Lion (Previous Ranking: 5)
9. Hell or High Water (Previous Ranking: 8)
        The last time the incumbent Best Picture winner felt this assured was nearly a decade ago, when Slumdog Millionaire never showed any true signs of weakness on its 6 month march to the podium. The much-beloved Moonlight is the only real threat to derail the La La Land freight train, but we're talking about a movie that tied the record for most nominations ever and it's about Hollywood, the Academy's favorite subject. Bet the house.

Best Director:
1. Damien Chazelle---La La Land
2. Barry Jenkins---Moonlight
3. Kenneth Lonergan---Manchester by the Sea
4. Denis Villenuve---Arrival
5. Mel Gibson---Hacksaw Ridge
        Copy and paste literally everything I said above but with ever-so-slightly less confidence. A Jenkins win here would be a nice concession to a movie many feel was the year's best, but if La La Land sweeps the technical categories (which is to be expected) how can you not give its director the top prize? The other three are just along for the ride.

Best Actor:
1. Denzel Washington---Fences
2. Casey Affleck---Manchester by the Sea
3. Ryan Gosling---La La Land
4. Viggo Mortensen---Captain Fantastic
5. Andrew Garfield---Hacksaw Ridge
        A short time ago this felt like Affleck in a lock, but sexual harassment scandals are no joke. That said, the one thing that's wise to keep in mind when predicting the Oscars is that 'best' really just means 'most,' and lord knows that Washington ACTED the most of anyone in this category. His SAG win seems to have sealed the deal, but there could still be a late surge from Affleck's camp, or even a Gosling win if La La Land just takes over the whole show. Even Mortensen, who has shown up at every awards gala despite his movie being completely ignored in every other category, has a puncher's chance, but smart money remains with Denzel taking home his third statue.

Best Actress:
1. Emma Stone---La La Land
2. Natalie Portman---Jackie
3. Isabella Huppart---Elle
4. Ruth Negga---Loving
5. Meryl Streep---Florence Foster Jenkins
        Much like Best Actor, Stone is the prohibitive favorite here after winning the SAG, but she's only just emerged after months of being stuck in Portman's shadow. Then there's Huppart, nominated for a little-seen film which is always a sign of strong support. I'm tempted to bump her up to the second spot, but Portman plays a real-life icon, which is always a boost. It's a three-horse race where I simultaneously feel like Stone is in front by a considerable margin, but could still cough up the lead at the last second. Can you imagine how ticked off people would be if Streep won?

Best Supporting Actor:
1. Mahershala Ali---Moonlight
2. Michael Shannon---Nocturnal Animals
3. Jeff Bridges---Hell or High Water
4. Lucas Hedges---Manchester By the Sea
5. Dev Patel---Lion
        This one is tricky because Ali feels very vulnerable for the upset given his limited screen time compared to the other nominees, but there's no one on this list who screams out as the underdog able to pull off the upset. This award almost always goes to an industry veteran with a lengthy resume, which would point to Bridges, but this just doesn't feel like the time to give him a second Oscar. Shannon isn't quite old enough to qualify for that description, but he's a much-beloved actor's actor, and his citation for a movie that missed out everywhere else could mean something. Even Hedges has a shot, given his participation in what voters likely feel is the best acted movie of the year. No way Patel sneaks in. I'm going with the safe money (Ali), but a Shannon or Bridges surprise wouldn't be that surprising.

Best Supporting Actress:
1. Viola Davis---Fences
2. Naomi Harris---Moonlight
3. Michelle Williams---Manchester By the Sea
4. Octavia Spencer---Hidden Figures
5. Nicole Kidman---Lion
        In a year where more categories feel like locks than usual, Davis is as assured as anyone. There's no doubt in my mind that certain voters still feel that Meryl Streep's The Iron Lady win was a straight-up theft from Davis (nominated that year for The Help), and she has enough screen time in Fences to be considered a lead in some people's eyes. Harris is the challenger simply because her movie has so many champions (and because she's fantastic in it), but they're not giving Williams her first for such a tiny role, and there's no way in hell that Kidman or Spencer wins another before Davis nabs her first.

Best Original Screenplay:
1. Kenneth Lonergan---Manchester By the Sea
2. Damien Chazelle--- La La Land
3. Taylor Sheridan---Hell or High Water
4. Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou---The Lobster
5. Mike Mills---20th Century Women
        I hope this category is presented early in the night, because if La La Land wins, we might be looking at it going 14 for 14. Why is this, you ask? Because no reasonable person could claim that Manchester By the Sea isn't by far the better written movie, and if voters are so in love with Damien Chazelle's musical to mark it down in this category, why not just give it everything? I suppose there's a small chance of Hell or High Water sneaking in, given its timely subject matter and broadly awesome dialogue. The other two received their award by being nominated.

Best Adapted Screenplay:
1. Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney---Moonlight
2. Eric Heisserer---Arrival
3. Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi---Hidden Figures
4. August Wilson---Fences
5. Luke Davies---Lion
        Now here it gets interesting. The Writer's Guild awarded both Moonlight and Arrival, somehow assigning the former to the Original Screenplay category (... it's based on a play), making this one of the tougher picks of the night. I'll go with Moonlight simply because I think voters will be looking to honor the movie wherever it doesn't get in the way of going nuts over La La Land, but Arrival is a worthy competitor, and has a real shot at the naked golden man. Hidden Figures is the dark horse, a movie that I believe Oscar really loved, but just can't find a category for. The other two are also-rans.

Best Animated Feature:
1. Zootopia
2. Kubo and the Two Strings
3. Moana
4. My Life as a Zucchini
5. The Red Turtle
        Zootopia cleaned up at the Annie's (animation awards), and has a timely message, especially as the academy works overtime to convince us they're not all racists. Kubo's Special Effects nomination proves that the movie has some real love throughout the voting body, and could potentially be a spoiler given how amazing its animation truly is. I personally don't know how Moana isn't fighting for this prize, but after losing every precursor there's no real reason to have faith. There are somehow always a couple of foreign nominees in this category; they never win.

Best Foreign Language Feature:
1. The Salesman
2. Toni Erdmann
3. A Man Called Ove
4. Land of Mine
5. Tanna
        Writer/director Asghar Farhadi is being compared to Ingmar Bergman; I think that says about all you need to know as to why The Salesman is then obvious frontrunner. Toni Erdmann is still alive and well as a rapturously-reviewed spoiler, especially given that Farhadi has already won in this category (A Separation), but I'll stick with the favorite. The other three movies can take a walk.

Best Documentary:
1. OJ: Made in America
2. 13th
3. I Am Not Your Negro
4. Fire at Sea
5. Life, Animated
        This is a comparatively buzz-filled year for Best Documentary, the top three candidates more than capable of taking home the prize. Negro sports fantastic reviews, while 13th was directed by Ava DuVernay, who might be looking at a make-up win after being inexplicably snubbed for Selma just two ceremonies ago. That said, a slew of critics felt that Made in America was the best movie of the year, not just the best documentary. That kind of passionate following should be enough.

Best Cinematography:
1. Linus Sandgren---La La Land
2. Greig Fraser---Lion
3. James Laxton---Moonlight
4. Bradford Young---Arrival
5. Rodrigo Prieto---Silence
        Here's where we start our infinite plunge into the La La Land deep end. Fraser took home the ASC award, but that's only cinematographers; when we open it up to the whole academy, do you really see enough people voting in favor of the little-seen Lion for it to take Sandgren's award? In my mind, Laxton's work is the single best thing about Moonlight, but it still ranks third due to what was just described. Young will have more chances, and the fact that Prieto was Silence's lone citation should speak for itself.

Best Editing:
1. Tom Cross---La La Land
2. John Gilbert---Hacksaw Ridge
3. Joe Walker---Arrival
4. Joi McMillon and Nat Sanders---Moonlight
5. Jake Roberts---Hell or High Water
        Much like Supporting Actor, this is a category where the favorite seems incredibly vulnerable, but the right challenger is no where in sight. Gilbert is my spoiler simply because war epics tend to fare well in this category, but man, this one feels like a foregone conclusion. Remember, with Oscar, 'best' just means 'most.'

Best Production Design:
1. David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco---La La Land
2. Stuart Craig and Anna Pinnock---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
3. Patrice Vermette and Paul Hotte---Arrival
4. Jess Gonchor and Nancy Haigh---Hail, Caesar!
5. Guy Hendrix Dyas and Gene Serdena---Passengers
        And to think I'm only just beginning with my predictions of La La Land carnage. Beasts somehow won at BAFTA, and qualifies under my most-rather-than-best rules, but handing the award to a Harry Potter spinoff over LLL sounds like a steep hill to climb. Arrival takes the third spot due to its presence in the Best Picture race, and the last two sport a collective .00001% chance. Just give the thing to Wasco and Reynolds.

Best Costume Design:
1. Mary Zophres---La La Land
2. Madeline Fontaine---Jackie
3. Colleen Atwood---Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
4. Consolata Boyle---Florence Foster Jenkins
5. Joanna Johnston---Allied
        Much like Original Screenplay, I don't think La La Land has any business winning this category whatsoever; the only difference is this time I actually think it will. It's neck-and-neck with Jackie, a more traditional choice given its period setting, but that logic is most appropriately applied to Victorian-era flicks. Beasts is a little interesting, but is an obvious third wheel. When in doubt, just write La La Land

Best Original Score:
1. Justin Hurwitz---La La Land
2. Nicholas Britell---Moonlight
3. Mica Levi---Jackie
4. Dustin O'Halloran and Volker Bertelmann---Lion
5. Thomas Newman---Passengers
          It's a freakin' musical. This is the single biggest lock of the night. Moonlight is a Picture nominee, and Levi's nomination is inspired enough to suggest real support, but who are we kidding?

Best Original Song:
1. City of Stars---La La Land
2. How Far I'll Go---Moana
3. Can't Stop the Feeling---Trolls
4. Audition (The Fools Who Dream)---La La Land
5. The Empty Chair---Jim: The James Foley Story
        Or is this the single biggest lock of the night? I have How Far I'll Go in the second slot (because in earnestness it should be the front-runner), and Can't Stop the Feeling in third just incase voters want to kiss up to the celebrity of Justin Timberlake in this category (surprisingly not a common occurrence in Original Song). But in all honesty, you might have just wasted your time reading me pontificate about something so obvious.

Best Visual Effects:
1. Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones, and Dan Lemmon---The Jungle Book
2. John Knoll, Mohen Leo, Hal T. Hickel, and Neil Corbould---Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
3. Steve Emerson, Oliver Jones, Brian McLean, and Brad Schiff---Kubo and the Two Strings
4. Stephane Ceretti, Richard Bluff, Vincent Cirelli, and Paul Corbould---Doctor Strange
5. Craig Hammack, Jason H. Snell, Jason Billington, and Burt Dalton---Deepwater Horizon
        Oh my god! What is this? A tech category without La La Land?!?! This is the perfect place to refer to my best-means-most theory, because as spectacular as the last hour of Rogue One proves to be, The Jungle Book is entirely artifice, and will undoubtably impress some voters due to the omnipresence of its effects. Kubo's shocking inclusion in this category means it also has some deeply-felt support, but there will undoubtably be voters who feel an animated feature has no business in this category. Go with the most.

Best Make-up and Hair Styling:
1. Joel Harlow and Richard Alonzo---Star Trek Beyond
2. Eva Von Bahr and Love Larson---A Man Called Ove
3. Alessandro Bertolazzi, Giorgio Gregorini, and Christopher Allen Nelson---Suicide Squad
        There are three prominent types of make-up, at least as the Academy sees it: Creature, Gore, and Aging. Creature wins most commonly, with Gore seeming to always go home empty-handed. Thereby Star Trek is the clear favorite, with Suicide Squad in second, only there's one problem; Oscar ain't handing shit to Suicide Squad.

Best Sound Editing:
1. Ai-Ling Lee and Mildred Iatrou---La La Land
2. Robert Mackenzie and Andy Wright---Hacksaw Ridge
3. Sylvain Bellemare---Arrival
4. Wylie Stateman and Renee Tondelli---Deepwater Horizon
5. Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman---Sully
        I love that Editing and Mixing are separate categories at the Oscars, but I'm not so sure that voters do. They tend to align more often than not, and also deeply favor war movies, which is why I have Hacksaw Ridge listed in second in both categories. Do I really need to explain my front-runners? It's a musical!!! You think these voters consider it more deeply than that?

Best Sound Mixing:
1. Andy Nelson, Ai-Ling Lee, and Steven Morrow---La La Land
2. Kevin O'Connell, Andy Wright, Robert Mackenzie, and Peter Grace---Hacksaw Ridge
3. Bernard Gariépy Strobl and Claude La Haye---Arrival
4. David Parker, Christopher Scarabosio, and Stuart Wilson---Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
5. Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush, and Mac Ruth---13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi
         Copy/past everything said directly above, without a single deviation.

Hype Starts Here's Top 40 Movies of 2016 (10-1)

10. Green Room
        Writer/director Jeremy Saulnier is not a man of mercy; he is a furious god of wrath who spews hellfire upon his audiences the second the lights go down. His third feature operates with a remarkably simple premise; after electing to play a show at a known White Supremacist hangout, punk band the Ain't Rights witness an act of violence, and are held hostage by its perpetrators in the four walls of the movie's title. To say that Green Room earns its R rating is the ultimate understatement, Saulnier ratcheting up the tension to almost unbearable levels before lashing out into spurts of stunning, stinging violence. Besides being an expert craftsman of sweat-inducing anticipation and mania, the 40-year-old auteur also has tremendous rapport with his actors, each member of the band and the staffers that hold them captive fully realized and believable, while Patrick Stewart stalks the sidelines with the soft-spoken menace of movie-bad-guy legend. Losing Anton Yelchin at such a young age is a tragedy that still stings from the middle of last year, so lets be grateful that he went out in a blaze of glory, face paint on and guns blasting.

9. The Nice Guys 
        Even if you haven't seen The Nice Guys, you really have. Writer/director Shane Black is not only completely disinterested in remaking the wheel, he'd prefer if we'd stopped messing with it way back in the 80's. His latest buddy cop comedy stars Ryan Gosling as Holland March, a Private Investigator tasked with finding a missing pornstar in 1970's Los Angeles, at first deterred and then joined on his mission by the burly, battered Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe). The Nice Guys is all fun all the time, from Black's slick direction and gut-busting script, to the immediate and irresistible chemistry between its leads. Gosling, in particular, gives a performance for the ages, reaching a level of physical comedy genius that we usually only associate with the silent film era. This one goes straight to the One-Liners Hall of Fame, and if there's any justice in the world, the inevitable TNT reruns that it feels destined for will turn more people on to its many charms.

8. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
        And now to the part where I try to explain how I could possibly have an SNL spinoff movie in my top 10 of the year. After years of digital shorts and even a few full-length albums, The Lonely Island finally have their own movie, chronicling the meteoric rise and seemingly endless fall of band leader Conner4Real (Andy Samberg). There is nothing of sustenance in Popstar, only utterly delicious empty calories that manage to never fill you up, and continuously replenish themselves. Clocking in at 87 minutes, the movie would probably collapse under the weight of another 5 minutes, but it would be equally damaged by slimming down by that same number, nearly each and every single gag and cameo completely obliterating its target. What's more, first-time directors Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone (the other two members of The Lonely Island beside Samberg) turn the concert sequences into actual spectacle, shooting an editing them as if they were the real thing while the absurd lyrics coming out of Samberg's mouth work overtime to convince you that they're not. Impressive drama's come out and impress every year, but I honestly can't remember the last time I laughed as consistently as I did through Popstar and its expert skewering of celebrity culture. It's a 'turn your brain off' classic.

7. Hail, Caesar!
        I suppose when you've made as much amazing art over the years as the Coen Brothers have, a few of your winners will sort of slip through the cracks, but I still can't help but wonder if everyone saw the same Hail, Caesar! that I did. Set in 1950's Hollywood, the film follows a couple days in the life of famous fixer Eddie Mannox (Josh Brolin) as he juggles egos, unexpected pregnancies, surly directors, missing persons, and communist blackmailers. The delights of the movie are too numerous to list them all here, but the lavish, note-perfect costumes and production design deserve special attention, as does the outrageously talented cast of household names, all here and ready to make a mockery of themselves. Despite being headlined by the likes of George Clooney and Scarlett Johansson, its newcomer (and impending young Han Solo) Alden Ehrenreich who steals the movie as a stuntman turned most unfortunate actor, though Channing Tatum's 10 minutes of screen time will not be forgotten anytime soon. As much as the movie works as a simple excuse to play in the sandbox of film's yesteryear, it also weaves in a theme of loyalty and faith, equating political and religious beliefs with the all-mighty power of the silver screen. When the Coen Brothers have fun, we all win.

6. 20th Century Women
        In 2011, writer/director Mike Mills gave us the deeply-moving Beginners, a film about the last several years of his late father's life, and the ways that they impacted his worldview. Six years later, he's back with that movie's spiritual sequel 20th Century Women, focusing in on his complicated relationship with his mother (Annette Benning) and the other women who shaped his teenaged paradigm during the 1970's. Mills is the least antagonistic director working today; no one cares as deeply for his characters and wants them to succeed as much as he does. It's this level of warmth and generosity that defines the movie, an overt exploration of feminism through the eyes of a young heterosexual male, and a celebration of the ideas and songs and people that shape a person in the early-goings of life. Benning has never been better, easy-going and nonchalant until pushed out of her relatively small comfort zone, her eyes and face rendering every thought and emotion through the smallest of gestures. There were more impressively made movies released in 2016, but none with a bigger heart.

5. Moonlight
        The dark horse to come in and steal La La Land's Best Picture statue at Sunday's Oscars, Moonlight is undoubtably the most adored film of last year, and it's not hard to see why. Adapted from the play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, the film tells the story of Chiron, a young black kid who grows from boy to man in three distinct passages, each chronicling an important moment in his life. Director Barry Jenkins is an avowed Wong Kar Wai disciple, a fact that is evident in every frame of Moonlight, a film made of eye-popping color, sensual undertones, and repressed passions. James Laxton's cinematography is gorgeous and intimate, just like the story itself, which feels personal to the point of being autobiographical. It brings you in close, declining to make bold declarations, preferring to whisper gently in your ear.

4. Manchester By the Sea
        Manchester By the Sea is like many moody, depressed adult dramas in the sense that it walks right up to the pit of despair. What separates it is that instead of simply gazing down, it does a full-on nose dive straight in. Casey Affleck stars as Lee Chandler, a silent, prickly type spending his days doing custodial work until a phone call beckons him back home to take care of his nephew (Lucas Hedges) whose father (Kyle Chandler) has just passed due to cancer. If that doesn't exactly sound like the easiest premise in the world, you couldn't possibly prepare for the places Kenneth Lonergan's masterpiece of a script decides to go, presenting tragedy in a matter of fact way that strips them of the schmaltz most directors would apply. It's somehow one of last year's funniest films as well, drawing you close with sly humor before leveling you with hard-earned pain. Affleck is a marvel in the role, playing a man who is rudderless and all out of feeling, a zombie forced to deal with the issues of the living. Manchester asks what a person's responsibility is to the rest of the hopeful world after they've completely given up on themselves, and its exploration of the idea is just as fascinating as it is heart-breaking.

3. La La Land
        Tomorrow's all-but-certain Best Picture winner has already and will continue to receive an avalanche of backlash, detractors accurately pointing out its self-congratulatory air, underwhelming vocalists, and white appropriation of black art. I see those things too, but I'll come clean; this one had me at hello. After a couple of chance meetings start to resemble fate, jazz pianist Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and aspiring actress Mia (Emma Stone) fall in love as they follow their dreams out in the city of stars. No really, that's the whole story, but La La Land harkens back to a simpler way of storytelling, one driven by movie star performances, and broad, sweeping emotion. Writer/director Damien Chazelle has obviously studied his classics, every idea and element of his latest film owing their life-blood to the musical boom of the 1950's, from the rich, over-saturated colors to a climax that openly steals from An American in Paris. But the movie's greatest accomplishment is in its approximation of the feeling of falling in love, with its all-powerful pull and invigorating, fool-making sweep. Yes, La La Land has just as many flaws as the next movie, but its ambition and charm are entirely too much for me to resist. Sometimes you're just a sucker.

2. The Witch
        We all know that ghosts and monsters and sorcerers have the capacity to frighten, but that's all surface level stuff. The Witch deals with a much more terrifying notion; what if everything you ever believed in crumbled right before your eyes, and holding fast only made it worse? Set in New England of the 1630's, the movie tells the story of a Puritan family who is forced out of their society and onto the edge of a forest wherein a titular evil-doer might just be lurking. First-time writer/director Robert Eggers is largely disinterested in the jump scares and gory killings that define many modern horror movies, preferring to create a deep-seeded, omnipresent feeling of dread and anxiousness. Awash in ashen shades, the film explores the limits of faith, and just how far a person will go to preserve said beliefs even as their errors present themselves openly. The cast of largely unknowns is powerful and memorable, reciting olde english dialogue as though it was their everyday speech, believable descending into madness. There is a wicked darkness at the heart of The Witch, and enough unsettling questions and ideas to unpack for years.

1. Arrival
        No 2016 film took on more, accomplished more, or meant more than director Denis Villeneuve's latest masterpiece. Trying to talk people into an alien invasion movie as some sort of life-affirming classic isn't exactly the easiest task, but this story of a linguistic expert's (Amy Adams) effort to bridge the communication gap between humans and an extra-terrestrial race that descended on earth with no warning is more than worth your effort. After all, this is a film's whose primary moral is the virtue of patience, and the ways that understanding can emerge from simply withholding judgements. Amy Adams gives what might be the best performance of her already-awe-inspiring career, under-playing every scene in a manner than belies her incredible intelligence, and open-minded curiosity about the ever-expanding universe. The technical accomplishments on hand present an embarrassment of riches, from Bradford Young's sleek, pristine cinematography to Jóhann Jóhannsson's leering, unsettling score, but the main attraction is Eric Heisserer utterly unparalleled script, which balances not only the story described above, but pulls off a twist whose fall out is emotional in nature, rather than a mere plot mechanism. Arrival doesn't suggest that we abandon our fear of the unknown, but rather embrace it, understand it, and make the difficult decision to move past it. Given the present state of the world, I couldn't possibly think of a more timely message.