1) Moonlight
My #1 film has been switching between Moonlight and La La Land, but decisions had to be made. Many people will herald Barry Jenkins’ coming-of-age story as the best of 2016, and they will not receive an argument from me. Moonlight made me feel things – real, touching, heartbreaking-and-building things that cinema rarely achieves. Jenkins’ themes and vision wash over like glistening waves as each generational segment advances, dealing with a sexuality dissection that could not be dealt with gentler hands, or with more deft sensibilities.
One scene sums up Moonlight‘s perfect assessment of embracing alternative lifestyles, and asserts Mahershala Ali as a front-runner for this year’s Best Supporting Actor race. As he sits at a dinner table, talking to a young boy named Chiron (Alex Hibbert), he helps the child understand who he is, but also admits to selling his mother drugs. These interactions break down a hardened thug we’ve seen rule the streets, now stripped of morality and reeling from dangerous choices. The king of local underworlds helping a small child find acceptance in his differences – humanity encapsulated like never before. It’s merely just a part of his story, incorporated in personality and never made to be some grand reveal.
Moonlight comes of age with grace, reverence and celebrated growth – a movie that’s still daring and brave even with more accepting social channels.
It’s been a hell of a year for movies, and what a way to close. See you next year, where I’m sure cinema will be declared dead ten times over – and once again, I’ll be there to tell you why that’s bullshit.
Published: Dec 31, 2016 11:10 am