2017 was a pretty hard year for a lot of folks. But, one area that shined was the cinema. Movies were mostly great in 2017 but it was a culmination of a lot of elements that made motion pictures a truly wonderful medium in 2017.
Here are some reasons why film fans should look back at 2017 as a hallmark year.
Horror Reigns Supreme
No other genre outperformed like horror in 2017. Big horror offerings did well at the box office, but more importantly, horror films had an incredibly high rate of quality this year.
From the blockbuster appeal of IT and Annabelle: Creation to the smaller scale but equally impressive successes like Get Out, Split, and Gerald’s Game, horror has run the gamut this year and delivered a plethora of solid choices for horror fans.
Director’s Cuts
2017 was the year where so many mainstream films felt like unedited director’s cuts. Usually, big tentpole films always have this feeling of being trimmed down by studio notes. Instead, we got movies like War for the Planet of the Apes, Alien: Covenant, Blade Runner 2049, and even Star Wars: The Last Jedi that clearly embodied the fullest possible version of their director’s vision.
Heck, even wacky flicks like A Cure for Wellness (which I LOVE) and The Shape of Water come across as pure translations of what their creators intended. Yes, it might lead to some messy movies. But, they are ultimately far more interesting and discussion-worthy than most of the films we get.
Representation
Above all, representation in cinema got a big boost in 2017. The power duo of star Gal Gadot and director Patty Jenkins made Wonder Woman a shining moment for female representation. Get Out started a fervent conversation about black representation in horror and even larger societal constructs. Coco was such a beloved hit in Mexico that it quickly became the highest grossing film in the country’s history.
Even Star Wars: The Last Jedi made great strides for representation. For a large stretch of its running time, the screen is dominated by a black man (Finn), an Asian woman (Rose), and a Latinx man (DJ). That alone is a huge win for communities who often feel that they don’t see themselves on the big screen enough.
What did you think about 2017 in film? Let us know!
