TOP 12 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2016: #12-10 + Honorable Mentions

2016… was an odd year for film. Now, for the record, I don’t mean that in terms of the films that we got this year. I mean more in terms of ‘how’ people viewed the year in regards to the films that came out. By the time that summer was over, there were countless articles online expressing severe disappointment with this year’s line of summer blockbusters. Now, as I’ve stated before, I thought that this year’s summer film slate was perfectly fine, though, clearly, I’m in the minority on that. But then that negative stance started to go away once this year’s award contenders started to come out. Thus, most of the ‘year in review’ posts that I’ve seen recently are now saying that, overall, this has been a great year for film. I mean, it’s sort of a complete 180 considering what the consensus was like a few months ago, right? Anyway, I too agree that 2016 was a great year for film. But, again, I’m one of those people who thinks that it was great for most of the year, not just the final third. If anything, a lot of these films served as a temporary reprieve for when it came to having to deal with some of the terrible things that happened this past year (e.g. all the major celebrity deaths that are no doubt going to produce the longest ‘In Memoriam’ segment in Oscars history at this year’s show, politics, etc.). So, with all that said, it’s time to end this gut-punch of a year on a good note with my annual ‘Top 12 Favorite Films of the Year’ list. Now for those of you who are new to this site, the reason why I do a ‘Top 12’ list instead of a ‘Top 10’ is simple. While it was originally done as a joke to tie into the fact that I started this site in 2012 (Get it, 12 films for 2012?), it’s basically become my thing ever since. That’s because doing a Top 12 list allows me to cover more of the great films that I saw this year compared to if I had done a Top 10.

As always, though, I must start things off by listing the usual disclaimers that I make every year when it comes to this list. First, I must warn you that this entire list will be one big spoiler post. I will be discussing key moments from these films in considerable detail, so just be sure to tread carefully if you haven’t seen any of these films prior to reading these posts. Don’t worry, I will provide links to my ‘non-spoiler’ reviews throughout these four posts for you to use if you want to avoid any spoiler talk. Second, as with any year, I’ve not seen every single film that’s come out in 2016. So, if you’re wondering why films like Silence, Hell or High Water, or American Honey aren’t here, odds are that either I haven’t seen them or they just didn’t make the list. And yes, on that note, most of the films in my list will be of the ‘blockbuster’ variety. I apologize in advance to those who prefer films from the indie scene, but for now, that’s just not my thing. Don’t worry, though, for I do have a few indie hits here and there on this list, at least more compared to last year’s list which was pretty much all blockbusters. Finally, as always, please be respectful of each other’s opinions. I recognize that some of the choices on this list are going to be rather controversial given their overall critical and audience reception. And that’s perfectly fine; after all, film is a subjective thing. Just don’t be a jerk and give others (or me, for that matter) flak for liking a film that you didn’t like and vice versa. With all that out of the way, it’s time to kick off Rhode Island Movie Corner’s four-part series of my Top 12 Favorite Films from 2016. This is Part 1 of 4 and today I’ll be listing films #12-10.

But first, as always, let’s start with my Honorable Mentions. And because there were a lot of great films this year, I have 7 to mention…

HONORABLE MENTIONS

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE (ULTIMATE EDITION)

Again, let me be clear, the three-hour ‘Ultimate Edition’ of the film that was released on Blu-Ray. I’m not referring to the 151-minute cut that was released in theaters, even though I’m one of the rare people who did like that version of the film. Still, there’s no denying that the Ultimate Edition of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice improved upon many of the Theatrical Cut’s faults, especially in terms of the story. Some scenes in the Theatrical Cut felt rather disjointed in terms of how they were edited and how certain plot-points felt under-developed. Thankfully, that wasn’t as big of an issue with the Ultimate Edition, which adds in the missing scenes that better explained the plot. Granted, the Ultimate Edition won’t change the minds of everyone who disliked the Theatrical Cut. Certain elements of Zack Snyder’s direction that some fans may have been iffy on are still there. However, like Man of Steel, I feel that this film gets way too much flak. Whereas many saw it as a gloomy and messy story, I felt that it was a visually spectacular superhero epic with awesome action sequences and excellent character moments, including the death of Superman and, yes, even the infamous ‘Martha’ moment. Seriously, consider the context of that moment and you’ll see why it’s such an emotionally powerful scene. It’s a shame, then, that the ‘Ultimate Edition’ of the film wasn’t the one released in theaters, apparently because Zack Snyder just didn’t have the clout to have the full three-hour cut be used. Newsflash, Warner Bros, we would’ve been totally fine with having to sit through a three-hour film just so that we could know that this was the version of the film that Snyder intended. If you want your DC Extended Universe to truly succeed following the franchise’s rough 2016, you’re going to need to have more faith in your directors.

THE BFG

The one and only Steven Spielberg gave us an incredibly charming family-friendly adventure this year in the form of The BFG, an adaptation of legendary author Roald Dahl’s classic novel of the same name from 1982. Under the Disney banner, Spielberg does a fantastic job of recreating the delightfully wacky visuals of Dahl’s writing on the big-screen. There’s quite a lot of visual effects in this film and they’re all excellent. And while fans of the book may be disappointed to find that the film doesn’t really embrace the darker elements of the story (I admittedly wouldn’t know having never read the book), the story is still a charming adventure that is full of heart, especially thanks to the lead duo of Sophie and the BFG. Newcomer Ruby Barnhill makes an excellent screen debut as young Sophie while Mark Rylance (in his second outing with Spielberg after his Oscar-winning turn in Bridge of Spies) makes the BFG a character that truly lives up to his title as the ‘Big Friendly Giant’. Really, the only thing holding this film back, in my opinion, is that the villainous giant characters who oppose our two heroes were rather underdeveloped. Plus, the ending in which the evil giants are defeated by the British army also felt rather anti-climactic. But, despite all that, this is easily one of the best family films to come out in recent years. It’s a shame, then, that it didn’t really do so well at the box-office; it made its budget back but just barely. With that said, do yourselves a favor and check out this highly-underrated Disney flick. Speaking of Disney…

PETE’S DRAGON

Of all of Disney’s recent live-action remakes, this one is notable because it’s not based on one of the studio’s animated features. Instead, it’s based on a 1977 live-action/animated hybrid musical that may have initially received mixed reviews but has since gone on to amass a sizable cult following. And I bet that this new version will attract a similar fan-base in the years to come. It’s a different spin on the story of a young orphan named Pete and his best friend, a green dragon named Elliot. For one thing, it isn’t a musical and while that meant that some fans of the original viewed this as ‘Pete’s Dragon in name only’, director David Lowery gives us an endearing fantasy story that mixes child-like imagination with solid themes that older audiences can appreciate. And just like how The BFG benefitted greatly from the lead duo of Sophie and the BFG, the heart of Pete’s Dragon mainly stems from the duo of Pete and Elliot. Oakes Fegley carries a lot of the film by himself as Pete while Elliot proves to be one of the most endearing CG-created characters in the history of film. These two are such a great duo that I guarantee you that the ending, in which the two sadly go their separate ways, will bring a tear to your eye. Pair them with a solid supporting cast that includes Bryce Dallas Howard and Robert Redford and you have yet another great 2016 effort from Disney. Not only that, but this also continued the studio’s hot-streak with their live-action remakes. They managed to go 2 for 2 this year with their big live-action remakes, once again proving that the many upcoming remakes on Disney’s slate do have the potential to be excellent. What about that other one, you ask? Well, that one’s coming up much later in the list.

EDDIE THE EAGLE

This was definitely one of my biggest ‘surprises’ of the year. Eddie the Eagle, on paper, is just your standard sports flick with the usual tropes of the genre; the grumpy mentor, the training montage, the moment where it looks like all is lost but then a miracle happens that allows the main character to keep competing, etc. However, this film is so damn charming that you can kind of ignore the similarities to other sports films. That is because, as cliché as it may sound, this is not your typical sports story. Michael ‘Eddie’ Edwards was not your typical all-star athlete. While he was the first British Olympic ski jumper in nearly six decades, he finished last in the two main events that he participated in at the 1988 Winter Olympics. However, his likability and ‘never say die’ attitude made him a fan favorite and that translates well into the film adaptation, even if it’s not a 100% accurate representation of its true story. Taron Egerton, fresh off his star-making turn in Kingsman: The Secret Service, does an excellent job in the role and makes Eddie an incredibly endearing protagonist. He also works well with Hugh Jackman, who stars as Eddie’s coach, albeit not Edwards’ real-life coach. Together, they form a great student-coach relationship and the film maintains a solidly light-hearted atmosphere throughout with some great bits of humor peppered in here and there. My favorite humorous moments in the film are when Eddie successfully completes one ski jump and then decides to immediately try a larger ski hill after just one jump. In conclusion, Eddie the Eagle may be a traditional sports film but you will find yourself cheering Eddie on once the finale rolls around.

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE

I’m just going to be frank here… I will NEVER forgive the internet for what it did to this film. Despite being the follow-up to one of the BEST superhero films of all-time, X-Men: Days of Future Past, this film got totally shafted by the internet in terms of hype. Yeah, I get that this was the year of Batman v Superman, Captain America: Civil War, and Suicide Squad, but pretty much ever since the internet first started to relentlessly mock the first photo of Apocalypse for looking like the villain from the first Power Rangers film, X-Men: Apocalypse suddenly became the ‘forgotten’ entry in 2016’s superhero slate. And that’s a damn shame because I’d argue the film is great. Is it as great as Days of Future Past? No, but I think that it’s not too far off in terms of quality. It’s just another highly satisfying X-Men adventure with excellent action sequences and great character moments. I don’t really agree with the arguments claiming that this film lacks emotional depth and is too overloaded with action sequences. After all, this film is called X-Men: Apocalypse, not X-Men: Minor Incident. And as for emotional depth, the emotional moments with Magneto (e.g. when he loses his wife and daughter) are quite powerful. Sure, I get why some felt that the story was too predictable for what was the ninth entry in the X-Men franchise, but the always great direction from Bryan Singer (the unsung hero of the superhero genre, I might add) makes up for it. And the excellent new representations of classic characters like Jean Grey, Cyclops, and Nightcrawler proves that this series still has the potential to continue in exciting new directions. Hell, I liked this film more than Deadpool… yeah, I said it!

HACKSAW RIDGE

Mel Gibson returned to the director’s chair this year for the first time in a full decade after his previous effort, 2006’s Apocalypto. And he returned to directing with a bang thanks to the ‘true story’ war film Hacksaw Ridge. The film tells the story of Desmond Doss, an Army soldier who attracted a considerable amount of controversy when he refused to carry a gun into battle due to his religious beliefs. He was branded a coward but he soldiered on (no pun intended) as a conscientious objector and ended up becoming a hero when he saved countless lives during an intense skirmish in the Battle of Okinawa. Admittedly, some parts of the opening are a bit cheesy, namely, the parts where Desmond romances his future wife Dorothy, but that all changes once the action sequences roll around. The battle at Hacksaw Ridge, a tall cliff face that the U.S. Army had to climb to reach the Japanese forces, features some of the best war sequences ever put to film. These super-intense bits of action really showcase Gibson’s talents as a director when it comes to shooting action sequences. But, through it all, the film also gives a great protagonist to latch onto during all this in Desmond. Excellently played by Andrew Garfield, Doss’ convictions make him a sympathetic character through and through. Plus, it could be said that we could all learn from this man who did his duty as a member of the U.S. Army in a way that wasn’t the norm. After all, in doing so, he became the first (and, to date, only) conscientious objector to receive the Medal of Honor. Because of this, Hacksaw Ridge is one hell of a comeback for Mel Gibson as well as being one of the best war films in recent years.

DOCTOR STRANGE

Yes, folks, this is one of the rare occurrences where an MCU film just barely missed out on being in my Top 12. However, that’s not to say that it wasn’t a great film… because it was. Doctor Strange is yet another excellent entry in the MCU. Sure, the story may have been a bit standard at this point in the superhero film genre but, at the same time, the things that it introduces in the Marvel Cinematic Universe tease exciting possibilities for future films. The film serves as our introduction to the mystical side of the MCU and, thus, results in plenty of awesome visuals. The MCU films have always done a great job when it comes to visual effects but with this film, the visual effects team truly went above and beyond with the visuals, producing some of the most surreal but visually beautiful action sequences in the entire franchise. And of course, like with any MCU film, the writing is solid, the humor is well-handled, and the cast is excellent. Benedict Cumberbatch does a fantastic job in the title role and Chiwetel Ejiofor, while perhaps a bit underutilized as Karl Mordo, is set-up terrifically to be the villain that he’s known to be in the comics. Tilda Swinton does manage to overcome a decent amount of the negative buzz that stemmed from the ‘whitewashing’ controversy surrounding her casting in the role of the Ancient One with an admirably dignified performance while Mads Mikkelsen proves to be one of the better MCU villains as Kaecilius. Granted, I wouldn’t say that he’s one of the absolute best MCU villains but he does get more material to work with compared to others, including the one that he almost played, Malekith from Thor: The Dark World. Yeah… he was better off in Doctor Strange. So, in conclusion, thanks to this film, Marvel Studios’ hot streak continued once again and the titular sorcerer proved to be a welcome addition to the MCU.

And now, finally, it’s time to get onto the list. Kicking things off at Number 12 is the second of Disney Animation’s pair of 2016 releases. It’s a rare occasion for the studio to have two major animated films come out in one year and an even greater achievement considering how great both films turned out (and yes, the other one’s coming up later in this list…)

12. MOANA

The best thing about Moana is that it does a fantastic job of representing the primary culture of its setting; Polynesia. It’s very clear that the filmmakers made a considerable amount of effort to accurately translate Polynesian culture to the big-screen and it shows. Moana is brought to us by the duo of John Musker and Ron Clements, the same duo who brought us some of the studio’s biggest hits of the Disney Renaissance, including The Little Mermaid and Aladdin. And while this is their first computer-animated film, the transition that they make from traditional animation to computer animation is a smooth one. The animation is as great as you’d expect from Disney and there are even a few bits of traditional animation thrown in here as well, mostly via Maui’s sentient tattoos. As for the story, it’s an entertaining ocean adventure that’s bolstered by the film’s excellent titular heroine, Moana. Newcomer Auli’i Cravalho makes a fantastic screen debut in the role, making Moana a likable and spunky protagonist through and through. However, I must ask, is it possible for us to praise Moana without crapping on previous Disney heroines in the process, particularly the Disney princesses? I mean, I’ve been seeing this quite a bit in regards to how some critics have been addressing her in their reviews. There’s been a lot of buzz surrounding the fact that Moana is a Disney princess without a love interest. Yeah… so? Elsa didn’t have a love interest in Frozen. Neither did Merida from Brave, for that matter. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great that they let Moana fully be the hero of her own story, and she’s a great protagonist to boot. But just because most of the other Disney princesses ended up in relationships doesn’t mean they’re terrible by comparison.

Anyway, Moana is paired excellently with the film’s other main character, Maui, the charismatic demi-god voiced by the king of charisma himself, Dwayne Johnson. These two work off each other very well, especially when it comes to Moana having to constantly keep Maui’s ego in line. And while Maui does start off as an egotistical protagonist who’s mainly looking to reclaim his former glory, he does learn to become more selfless as the film goes on. As for the film’s side characters, admittedly they’re not as prominent compared to other Disney films because the focus is more on Moana and Maui. Still, there are a few memorable side characters here and there, including a villainous crab named Tamatoa (voiced by Jemaine Clement) who sings an unforgettable David Bowie-esque song called ‘Shiny’. Speaking of music, as one would expect from a classic Disney film, the film’s soundtrack is excellent. In this case, the soundtrack was handled primarily by the one and only Lin-Manuel Miranda (you may have heard of his Broadway sensation, Hamilton) and, dare I say, I think that this soundtrack even managed to surpass Frozen. To name a few of the soundtrack’s best songs, there’s Moana’s solo ‘How Far I’ll Go’, an emotionally-fueled anthem, ‘You’re Welcome’, which perfectly encapsulates the character of Maui and is also pretty much the perfect song for someone like ‘The Rock’ to sing, and, as mentioned before, the glam rock inspired tune ‘Shiny’. With all this in mind, Moana is yet another excellent addition to the Disney animated canon that keeps the studio’s current hot streak running strong. But, if I had to compare this to the other Disney animated film of the year, I’ll admit that I prefer that one by a slim margin. But, again, both films are fantastic.

Ok, I’ll admit, some of you probably guessed ahead of time that this next one would be on the list somewhere…

11. ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

Disney’s new line of Star Wars films started off on a great note last year with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which was a whirlwind success with both critics and audiences (*someone brings up the ‘it’s too much like A New Hope’ argument* I SAID WHIRLWIND SUCCESS, DAMN IT!). But as for this year’s franchise outing, Rogue One, it too had a lot to live up to. It was to be the first installment of a new series of spin-off films set within the Star Wars universe, allowing for new stories that didn’t adhere to the typical story structure of the saga films. Thankfully, this new line of films started off on a great note with Rogue One. Directed by Gareth Edwards, it went into the details surrounding one of the crucial plot-points established in the opening crawl of A New Hope; how the Rebel Alliance acquired the plans to the Death Star. And how did they do it? It was all done by a ragtag team led by Jyn Erso, the daughter of one of the Death Star’s key engineers, Galen Erso. Admittedly, the film takes a bit to get going, namely due to it jumping around to multiple planets quite a few times in just the first few minutes. But, once the main cast of characters is fully assembled, that’s when the film finally starts to pick up the pace. And while I can’t really say that this film has the franchise’s best cast of characters, the cast is still solid throughout. Felicity Jones does an excellent job in the role of Jyn, finding a nice mix between the spunk that Daisy Ridley brought to the role of Rey in The Force Awakens and the roguish nature that always defined Han Solo. She’s backed by a solid supporting cast that includes Diego Luna as Captain Cassian Andor, who serves as a nice contrast to Jyn being the Rebel soldier who is sometimes forced to follow orders that he doesn’t agree with, Alan Tudyk as the film’s main droid K-2SO, a far more sarcastic droid compared to the other major droids of the Star Wars universe, and Donnie Yen as the badass, Force-tuned, blind warrior Chirrut Ȋmwe. He also gets the best line in the film when one of Saw Gerrera’s soldiers puts a bag over his head. (“Are you kidding me? I’m blind!”)

Sure, some characters don’t get as much to work with compared to others, namely the ‘main villain’ of the film, Director Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn), who’s basically just ‘there’ for the most part, but, again, the cast is solid throughout. And while I will give the edge to The Force Awakens in terms of it having a better story and cast of characters, there are some legitimately effective emotional moments in this film. A lot of them come courtesy of Jyn’s father Galen, played by Mads Mikkelsen. There are two specific scenes that I’d like to point out in regards to this. One of these is the scene where Jyn listens to the message in which Galen reveals the secret flaw of the Death Star, a vulnerability in the station’s main reactor that Luke utilized when he destroyed it in A New Hope, while also reaffirming that he still loves his daughter. The other moment is his last scene in the film where he finally reunites with Jyn (his ‘Stardust’, a pet name that comes into play later when Jyn and Cassian use it to find the Death Star plans) but dies soon after. On that note, this film did have a major hurdle to overcome being that it’s primarily set before the events of Episode IV: A New Hope. Considering that none of these main characters appear in that film, it may have been easy to figure out going in that, spoilers, they all die at the end. But, to the film’s credit, it did manage to do just enough to make the ‘Rogue One’ crew an endearing group, particularly during the final battle. You get to see the sacrifices that every character makes so that they can successfully steal the plans to the Death Star, from defecting Empire pilot Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed) having to go out into the action to get the equipment needed to transmit a message to the Rebel Alliance to Chirrut walking out, while right in the middle of an intense fire-fight, to pull the master switch that allows them to transmit said message. 

On that note, for a film that started off on a slow note and had what some may argue was just an ‘ok’ second half, it’s all worth it just for this film’s finale. The final battle on the paradise-like planet of Scarif, in which the ‘Rogue One’ crew embarks on a suicide mission to retrieve the Death Star plans, is easily the best part of the film. If there’s one major advantage that I’d give this film over The Force Awakens, it is that it has arguably some of the best action sequences in the entire franchise. The third act is worth the price of admission alone. These scenes are well-shot, well-edited, and deliver one hell of an epic space/land battle. And then there’s the big scene with Darth Vader. Yes, the iconic Sith Lord makes a brief appearance in this film, an appearance which mainly comes into play during the finale when he boards a Rebel ship and slaughters a whole group of rebel soldiers to try and retrieve the Death Star plans. Some may be disappointed that he isn’t in this more (he’s only in it for like four minutes or so) but, thanks solely to this scene, we can now forget about that one time where he once said that he didn’t like sand… or that time he yelled ‘NOOOO!!!!’… or the other time he yelled ‘NOOO!!!’, bottom line, Darth Vader was made badass again. On that note, some have warned that this film may be too intense for younger viewers, probably due to things like that big Vader scene or the intense results of the Death Star using its weapon. Whereas in A New Hope the effects of the weapon were seen from afar, here we see them up close. In other words, you truly see the devastation unleashed by it. But, if you ask me, I don’t think the action was ‘that intense’. Don’t get me wrong, some of the fire-fights are undeniably intense, particularly during the finale, but not necessarily to the point where they’re graphic or anything. I’d say it’s suitable enough for, I don’t know, kids 8 and up?

Finally, I should probably address the ‘elephant in the room’ that is the CGI-based recreations of characters from A New Hope; specifically, Grand Moff Tarkin, as played by the late Peter Cushing, and a young Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia. This has easily been the most polarizing aspect of the film, with some questioning the ethical nature of bringing back a character as played specifically by an actor who had been dead for years. At first, that was solely the case with Tarkin, given that Peter Cushing passed away in 1994, but with the tragic passing of Carrie Fisher a few weeks ago, now the same question could arguably be raised with Leia as well, However, personally, I wasn’t too bothered by it. The reason why I say that is because we now live in an era where visual effects are fully capable of effectively re-creating actors in a certain state via CGI. Just look at what Marvel Studios did when they de-aged Michael Douglas for Ant-Man. But, also, in the case of Tarkin and Leia, it isn’t like this is anything new. There have been plenty of times in the past where filmmakers had to use CGI to replicate a recently deceased actor. Other cases of this include Oliver Reed in Gladiator and Brandon Lee in The Crow. Granted, those were more cases of having to do it for ‘recently deceased’ actors, which isn’t the case with Peter Cushing as Tarkin, but the point remains. And for the most part, the visual effects used to recreate Tarkin and Leia were solid. Sure, perhaps more in the case of Leia than Tarkin but still a good attempt nevertheless and, in a way, the final scene with Leia now has a touchingly poignant effect to it in the wake of Fisher’s passing. So, in conclusion, that’s Rogue One. It may not be perfect but it’s still a well-made entry in the Star Wars franchise that exemplifies the great potential that these upcoming spin-offs have.

Just a quick heads-up; my Number 10 pick may be a bit controversial given who directed it as well as the real-life event that it focuses on. Just throwing that out there…

10. 13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI

Yep… a Michael Bay film lands a spot in my Top 12 list. Most unorthodox! Well, as I’ve said many times in the past, I am a fan of most of Bay’s films. I’m not one of those many people on the internet who think that he’s the worst director in the industry… far from it. And this film is a prime example of Bay at his best. 13 Hours tells the true story of what happened on September 11, 2012, when an American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya was attacked by Libyan militia. Obviously, this incident attracted a lot of political controversy back here in the States. However, I think that Bay made the right decision by not focusing too much on the political aspect of the incident. Instead, he focuses on those who were there when it happened, namely the six-man security team of Tyrone S. Woods, Jack Silva, Mark ‘Oz’ Geist, John ‘Tig’ Tiegen, Kris ‘Tanto’ Paronto, and Dave ‘Boon’ Benton who put their lives at risk defending those stuck at the compound. And while the film is still very much your usual dose of Bayhem (in other words, the action is focused on more than the story and characters), the six main leads, led by John Krasinski in an against-type role as Jack and James Badge Dale, who’s been a great supporting actor in films like The Walk and Iron Man 3, in the lead role of Tyrone, all work off each other very well. And I’ll admit, there was a legitimate scene where I got a bit teary-eyed; the scene where Tyrone and Glen Doherty (Toby Stephens) are killed during the final assault on the compound. Yes, there’s a tear-jerker moment in a Michael Bay film; you don’t hear that brought up a lot, now, do you? In short, like 2014’s American Sniper, this isn’t a story about the politics; it’s about the men who were there. That needs to be remembered.

That’s the end of Part 1. Thanks for following along and be sure to check back tomorrow for Part 2, in which I’ll be listing films #9-7.

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016) review

Michael Bay… talk about one of the most polarizing figures in the film industry amongst film fans on the internet. I’ve made it clear in the past that I am unapologetically a big fan of most of Bay’s films, even some of his more critically-reviled ones. But when it comes to the rest of the internet, obviously I’m in the extreme minority when it comes to being a fan of his. Because while his films have achieved much success at the box-office, with two of them (‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’ and ‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’) grossing over $1 billion worldwide, almost all of them have been savaged by critics and a lot of film fans consider him to be one of the worst directors working today. I, however, disagree with that notion as there are far worse directors than him out there. And like him or not, you cannot deny that he’s got a style all his own and there’s arguably no one else out there who can shoot action sequences like he can. So what if I told you that his newest film, ‘13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi’, is one of the best films that he’s ever made (which I know many will argue isn’t saying much)? ‘13 Hours’ tells the true story of what happened on the night of September 11, 2012 when Islamic militants attacked the American diplomatic compound, and later the CIA annex building located just a mile away, in Benghazi, Libya. This incident has been a major topic of controversy in U.S. politics but the film mostly ignores the politics of the situation in favor of focusing on the six men stationed there who fought to protect those stationed at both locations, which was definitely the best route that this film could’ve gone.

In late 2012, CIA contractor and military veteran Jack Da Silva (John Krasinski) arrives in Benghazi, Libya, where he meets up with fellow CIA contractors/military vets Tyrone S. Woods (James Badge Dale), Kris ‘Tanto’ Paronto (Pablo Schreiber), Mark ‘Oz’ Geist (Max Martini), John ‘Tig’ Tiegen (Dominic Fumusa), and Dave ‘Boon’ Benton (David Denman), who together form the CIA’s Global Response Staff. At the time of Da Silva’s arrival, the country is in the midst of the aftermath of the 2011 Libyan Revolution but is still considered to be dangerous territory. That is very much proven true on the night of September 11, 2012, the eleven-year anniversary of 9/11, when a group of Islamic militants attack the American diplomatic compound where U.S. ambassador Chris Stevens (Matt Letscher) is currently located. Despite orders from their chief (David Costabile) to ‘stand down’ due to the CIA’s intended covert status in the area, Woods, Da Silva, and their fellow contractors head over to the compound in order to protect those stationed there from their assailants. Soon after this, the fighting moves over to the CIA annex as the team, as well as their fellow CIA associates, find themselves trapped against impossible odds without any real form of backup or air support.

As I noted earlier, there’s been quite a lot of controversy from a political perspective in regards to this incident. The State Department, and particularly then-Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, have been criticized for not providing additional security at the consulate in the time before the attack. But the interesting thing about this film, as well as the book that it is based on (13 Hours written by Mitchell Zuckoff and the surviving members of the Annex Security Team), is that just like ‘American Sniper’, it doesn’t really focus much on the political aspect of its story, which I feel is a good thing in this case. Instead, it makes the smart decision to focus more on the six men who embarked on the most extremely perilous mission of their lives in order to protect those stationed at both the Diplomatic Compound and the CIA Annex. All of this is done with, and I know this is going to really stun some people, a strong level of maturity from Michael Bay. What? Were you expecting anything less from a director who’s had a very strong relationship with the military as evident from the fact that they usually play a part in almost all of his films? I mean sure, at the end of the day this is still very much a Michael Bay film in terms of its overall style. Once the action kicks in, it doesn’t let go and Bay is still fairly excessive when it comes to his run-times, with this film clocking in at nearly two and a half hours long. But in this case Bay doesn’t let his style overtake the humanity of the story and amidst all of the action, he even takes a few instances in between the action sequences to let the audience take a breather, so it’s not like this is nothing but non-stop action for two-and-a-half hours.

All of this helps the film maintain focus on what really matters; those who went through of this. Of the film’s cast, which is mostly devoid of ‘A-listers’, the biggest name of the bunch is John Krasinski in the role of Jack Da Silva. It’s certainly a much different kind of role than what we’ve normally seen from the guy who’s best known for his role as Jim Halpert on the American version of ‘The Office’ but Krasinski handles the role perfectly, giving us a man committed to serving his country while also trying to be a family man back home but always finds himself coming back to places like Benghazi. Leading the way right alongside him is James Badge Dale as the leader of the GRS team, Tyrone S. Woods. Over the past few years, Dale has established himself as a superb character actor with standout supporting roles in films like ‘Iron Man 3’ and ‘The Walk’. Here he finally gets the chance to shine in a lead role and he very much does. A lot of it comes from the strong camaraderie between Dale, Krasinski, and the rest of the GRS squad (Schreiber, Fumusa, Denman, Martini, as well as Toby Stephens, who plays GRS officer Glen ‘Bub’ Doherty). You can definitely sense a strong sense of brotherhood amongst these men that carries throughout the entire film. Hell I’ll even admit that there was one moment in this film that legitimately made me tear up. Yes, I got a bit teary-eyed watching a Michael Bay film of all things.

‘13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi’ is a film that, at the very least, should prove to hardcore cinefiles that Michael Bay can make a mature, story-driven film that isn’t just explosions and CGI characters fighting each other. I mean sure, maybe this film doesn’t really have as much nuance compared to other war films but as far as Michael Bay’s films are concerned, this is easily one of his most subdued efforts when it comes to restraining his trademark style. And sure, the political aspect of this incident can be argued till the cows come home but I feel that the film made the wise decision to not get too much into the politics and instead keep its focus on the six men who were right in the middle of all of this and who put their lives on the line when the s*** hit the fan. I know that when this film was first announced and that Bay would be directing it, some people feared that this would be another case similar to Bay’s previous ‘historical war drama’, 2001’s ‘Pearl Harbor’. While that film did receive praise for Bay’s direction of the attack on the Harbor sequence, it was widely criticized for focusing more on fictional characters and a fictional romance than the real life people who were there when it happened. But that’s not the case here. Aside from what I can assume are only a few minor differences between what happened in reality and what happens on screen, this is an extremely respectful portrayal of what happened that night in Benghazi.

Rating: 5/5!

Top 20 Most Anticipated Films of 2016: PART 1 (#20-11)

As we near the end of 2015, many of us are doing two things; A.) Getting ready for the debut of ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ and B.) Beginning to look ahead to next year, 2016, and the many films that will be hitting theaters over the course of those 365 days. Like any year, there are quite a variety of new films that will be coming out in 2016. Of course you’ll have your superhero films (and for the record, no this list won’t be dominated by those films despite what my obvious love for the genre may suggest) but you also have some interesting new continuations of classic franchises, including ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Harry Potter’. So today, I’ll be presenting you my Top 10 most anticipated films of 2016… actually strike that, that’s not enough. For you see folks, I actually have a much bigger list than that. How about a Top 20 list of my most anticipated films of 2016? Yes I actually did manage to find at least 20 different films that I’m looking forward to seeing next year. So you know what that means? That means this will be a two-part post. So today, I’ll be presenting you films #20-11. In other words, consider these next ten films to be the ‘Honorable Mentions’ to my Top 10, which will be posted tomorrow.

20. RATCHET AND CLANK (April 29)

Starting off these big Top 20 list is… a video-game based film? Yes as many of us know, the genre of video-game based films has never really produced anything great since it infamously got underway in 1993 with the ‘Super Mario Bros’ film. There actually have been some rather decent efforts from this genre over the years, like ‘Mortal Kombat’ and ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’, but for the most part these films end up being pretty darn terrible, from the infamous follow-up to ‘Mortal Kombat’, ‘Annihilation’, to the many, many stinkers from Uwe Boll. 2016, however, could potentially be a redemptive year for the genre as there are quite a few upcoming video-game based films that could end up being rather good. While most of the attention will be going to films like Duncan Jones’ ‘Warcraft’ (which is not on the list only because I’m not too familiar with the franchise, though I do plan on seeing it) and another film that will be appear later on in this list, there is another film that will come out before either of those films; ‘Ratchet and Clank’. This animated film will be based off of the hit sci-fi action platformer series of the same name by Insomniac Games. The film is being produced by Rainmaker Entertainment, the company responsible for the first ever CGI animated series, ‘ReBoot’, who will also be making a film based on the ‘Sly Cooper’ series that may or may not come out in 2016 as well. I’ll admit I haven’t played a lot of the ‘Ratchet and Clank’ games aside from the first one but the trailer makes the film look like a rather fun family-friendly sci-fi adventure.

19. ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS (May 27)

Here’s another potentially controversial entry, namely because it’s a sequel to a rather unpopular film that somehow managed to gross $1 billion when it was released back in March 2010. I’ll admit that I’m still amazed as to how Tim Burton’s 2010 ‘sequel’ to ‘Alice in Wonderland’ managed to join the billion dollar club despite attracting a generally mixed reaction from both critics and audiences. It’s been a while since I’ve seen the film and I recall that I somewhat liked it though ultimately I ended up liking future Disney big-budget fantasy films like ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ and ‘Cinderella’ more. But even with that in mind, I’m willing to give it a re-watch because I’m genuinely interested in the sequel that will be coming out next year. I’m interested in seeing how the filmmakers will be expanding the world of Wonderland (ah-hem, sorry Underland my mistake), particularly through the introduction of Time, both figuratively and literally as the main villain (Sasha Baron Cohen). Ultimately though the key reason why I’m optimistic about this film is because it’s actually being done by a different director this time. While Tim Burton is still attached as a producer, this new ‘Alice’ film will be directed by James Bobin. And while Burton’s recent films have been getting a lot of flak from film fans, Bobin’s recent track record is much more appealing given his work on the last two ‘Muppets’ films. I mean at the end of the day this may just turn out the same way as its predecessor but who knows?

18. BOURNE 5 (July 29)

From 2002 to 2007, Matt Damon kept audiences on the edge of their seats as the amnesiac former CIA operative Jason Bourne. The Bourne trilogy was a solid hit for Universal and each of the three films were highly entertaining and engrossing fast-paced spy thrillers highlighted by a terrific lead performance by Damon. Contrary to popular opinion, my favorite film of the trilogy was actually the first film, 2002’s ‘The Bourne Identity’, directed by Doug Liman. The two sequels by Paul Greengrass, 2004’s ‘The Bourne Supremacy’ and 2007’s ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’, were really good as well (heck I’d even argue that ‘Ultimatum’ is the best of the series) but I wasn’t too big on Greengrass’ shaky cam style that was used during the action sequences. The series then continued under a new direction in 2012 with a ‘spin-off’, ‘The Bourne Legacy’, which focused on a new character, Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner), but took place in the same timeline as the Damon trilogy. Ultimately though, ‘Legacy’ didn’t fare as well as the previous trilogy both critically and commercially and I’ll admit that I too was rather ‘meh’ on it. But 2016 could mark a return to form for the series in the form of a fifth Bourne film. Why? Because it marks the return of both Damon and Greengrass to the franchise after it seemed like they were done after ‘Ultimatum’. It’s unclear at this moment if this film will be based off of one of the ‘Bourne’ novels by Robert Ludlum but it will definitely be interesting to see these two return to their iconic franchise.

17. BATMAN V. SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE (March 25)

If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you know that I’ve been rather critical about this follow-up to 2013’s ‘Man of Steel’, a film that I’ll admit I’ve become more critical towards as well recently due to its rather unwarranted dour tone. My reasons for this have ranged from the film being set to introduce numerous new characters at once like Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and the new Batman to the alleged ‘no joke’ mandate by Warner Bros that is apparently supposed to differentiate the developing DC ‘Extended Universe’ from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Now let me make something very clear… I’m not against darker superhero stories. I’m a huge fan of both Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy and Marvel’s second and much more successful take on ‘Daredevil’ with the Netflix series. What I am against are darker superhero stories for characters that aren’t like that at all. One of the prime examples of this was, as noted earlier, ‘Man of Steel’. While I do commend the filmmakers for crafting a genuinely new take on the character of Superman, the film’s very dour tone and atmosphere really goes against the hopeful and heroic nature of the character. If you want to see what a more fitting modern take on Superman should’ve been like, go check out the new show ‘Supergirl’… it’s far superior. But as for the films, it seems like DC is trying to do a much more serious take on their heroes and quite frankly I don’t see why this is a good idea.

And of course there’s also the fact that this film will be introducing several new main characters to the series… even though this film was originally meant to be a sequel to ‘Man of Steel’. And don’t try and tell me that they weren’t actually going to do another solo ‘Superman’ film. I distinctly remember Zack Snyder once said something about doing another ‘Superman’ film first before getting into anything ‘Justice League’ related. And yet here we are now and ‘Batman v. Superman’ is looking more and more like a ‘Justice League’ film. So yeah, suffice it to say I’ve been rather concerned about this film and the first trailer didn’t do much to change my mind. But then came the Comic-Con trailer and I’ll admit… I was much more positive towards it. I finally got a real sense of the epic scale of the story and I’m glad that the filmmakers are addressing some of the more controversial points of ‘Man of Steel’, namely all of the ‘collateral damage’ that Superman caused during his fight with Zod in Metropolis. With that said, though, the things that make me very hesitant about this film are still around. To be clear, despite my obvious adoration/preference for Marvel, I don’t want this film and the DC Cinematic Universe to fail. I do want to see a ‘Justice League’ film but I’m just worried DC is rushing things just so that they can catch up with Marvel, who at this point has already gotten out two ‘Avengers’ films. I’m hoping for the best, folks.

16. SUICIDE SQUAD (August 5)

Though if we’re talking DC’s 2016 slate, the more interesting of the two would have to be their August release, ‘Suicide Squad’. The big reason for this being that this is slated to be the first major comic book film to focus on a group of villains. Admittedly that does put some pressure on this film because it has to make us like a group of bad guys but it does look like this film is shaping up to be a very insane entry in the superhero genre that, given director David Ayer’s previous work, seems like it’s going to be a more mature R-rated comic book film. Granted, we don’t have much to go off of yet other than a trailer that was released publicly just because it got leaked online during Comic-Con weekend but this film definitely has a lot more edge to it compared to other films of the genre. As for the film’s big ensemble cast, I think it’s safe to say that the two biggest selling points are the live-action debuts of Harley Quinn and the new Joker and I also think that we can all agree that Margot Robbie is perfectly cast as Harley and will no doubt be the film’s biggest scene-stealer. As for the Joker, Jared Leto will be the first to follow in the footsteps of Heath Ledger’s critically acclaimed take on the character. His new look has attracted quite a bit of controversy amongst comic book fans but it does look like Leto is genuinely going to embrace the psychotic side of the character, even more so than Ledger did in ‘The Dark Knight’. So while I’m still very much a Marvel fan, I’m definitely interested in seeing how this particular comic book film turns out.

15. MOANA (November 23)

Just like how Pixar had two releases this year, Disney Animation’s got a double feature of new films slated to come out in 2016. The first of these films you’ll see in part 2 of this post as part of my Top 10 while the second film, slated for release in November, takes the Number 15 spot on this list; Moana. Directed by the duo of Ron Clements and John Musker, who have produced numerous hits for the studio including Renaissance era favorites ‘The Little Mermaid’ and ‘Aladdin’ and, more recently, ‘The Princess and the Frog’, ‘Moana’, the first computer animated film the duo have made, looks like it’s bound to be another big hit for Disney Animation in their second Renaissance era with its unique South Pacific based story and imagery. Plus it’s got the Rock himself, Dwayne Johnson, voicing one of the main characters; an actual demi-god. As I just stated earlier, Disney Animation has been on a great run in recent years thanks to films like ‘Frozen’, ‘Wreck-it Ralph’, ‘Tangled’, and ‘Big Hero 6’ so I think it’s safe to say that we can expect a pair of quality animated films next year from the House of Mouse.

14. ASSASSIN’S CREED (December 21)

And now we come to the previously mentioned big-name video-game based film that could potentially break the curse of the genre; ‘Assassin’s Creed’. As noted earlier, ‘Warcraft’ is technically going to be the first big test of this genre in 2016 but because I’ve never played that game, I’m more interested in the film adaptation of Ubisoft’s ‘Assassin’s Creed’ franchise. I’ve been playing quite a few of the games recently (the Xbox 360 era games to be exact) and have become a fan of the franchise so I’m interested in seeing how this new film turns out, which will wisely decide to take on a new story that is still set in the world of the games. The biggest selling point of the film is easily the casting of Michael Fassbender in the lead role. Fassbender, along with co-star Marion Cotillard, reunite with director Justin Kurzel, after the trio had worked together on this year’s critically acclaimed take on ‘Macbeth’. So with those credentials, along with the addition of other great actors like Jeremy Irons and Brendan Gleeson to the cast, it looks like this film could be a really awesome end-of-the-year release (it is slated to be released on December 21^st, 2016) and one of the first ‘great’ video-game based films.

13. GHOSTBUSTERS (July 15)

You ever have the feeling of wanting a film to succeed just to shut up all of the cynics who bashed it for whatever reason? This is definitely one of those films. Pretty much since it was first announced, this new take on the ‘Ghostbusters’ franchise has been subject to much scrutiny on the internet. And unfortunately, it has primarily stemmed from the fact that the film will be focusing on a female-led group of Ghostbusters. So yes, one of the main reasons why I am looking forward to this film is that I hope it will shut all of the sexist haters up. But at the same time, I genuinely think that this could be really good. It’s being directed by Paul Feig, who has a really solid track record in recent years with films like ‘Bridesmaids’ and this year’s ‘Spy’. Both films also showcase that he and star Melissa McCarthy are definitely at their best when working together. McCarthy stars alongside another Feig veteran, Kristen Wiig, as well as current SNL stars Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones and the film will feature cameos from Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Sigourney Weaver so at the very least this feels like it will be very much connected to the ‘Ghostbusters’ franchise. Again, at the end of the day, I’m rooting for this film to succeed just so that it will prove its biggest critics wrong.

12. FINDING DORY (June 17)

If you ask me, it isn’t a complete year of film without a Pixar release (see 2014 for proof of that) and this year, their new film will be a sequel to 2003’s ‘Finding Nemo’, ‘Finding Dory’… calm down sequel haters, they got that Day of the Dead film coming in 2017... Relax! Director Andrew Stanton returns for this new film along with Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, and a few other characters from the first film. Thankfully this new film isn’t looking like a simple ‘rehash’ of the first film as I initially feared. Instead it sees Dory heading out on a journey to reunite with her parents. New additions to the cast include Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy as Dory’s parents and ‘Modern Family’ stars Ty Burrell and Ed O’Neill. Though of course, I think most of us can agree that the real star of the show is Ellen. She was the most memorable part about ‘Finding Nemo’ and I’m confident that her very lovable personality will once again carry this film. As I pointed out earlier, obviously there are quite a lot of people who aren’t too happy with Pixar’s decision to do sequels to some of their original films, namely after ‘Cars 2’ became the first Pixar film to attract a generally negative response from both critics and fans of Pixar. But this is one Pixar fan who feels that Pixar had never really lost their way; they’ve only had a few misfires. And unless proven wrong, I believe that this will be a solid follow-up to one of Pixar’s most classic films.

11. 13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI (January 15)

Ok now this is one that I’m pretty certain hardcore cinephiles are going to grill me for because A.) It’s a January release and B.) It’s a Michael Bay film. In the eyes of those cinephiles, neither have produced anything great. But if you’ve been following me for a while you know that I’m an unapologetic fan of most of Bay’s work (save for ‘Bad Boys II’, the one that ironically people actually do like), even some of the more derided ones like the ‘Transformers’ sequels and ‘Pearl Harbor’. Obviously the latter film might make some people hesitant about him taking on another true story, in this case the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, but this time around the film was written by the writer of ‘Prince of Thieves’, which spawned Ben Affleck’s film ‘The Town’. Even as a fan of ‘Pearl Harbor’, I agree that the big issue with that film was the decision to focus on a group of fictional characters and their romance instead of the people who were actually involved in the event. This time around, however, it looks like they are focusing on the real people who were there. Plus, the cast is led by John Krasinski in a very much against-type role and standout character actor James Badge Dale. This could be the 2016 equivalent of ‘American Sniper’, another film that was released nationwide in January… or it could be another dumb and loud Michael Bay film. But at the very least, I’m confident that it’ll least be entertaining. I can always expect that from the master of Bayhem.

CHECK BACK TOMORROW FOR PART 2 OF THIS TOP 20 LIST OF MY MOST ANTICIPATED FILMS OF 2016 IN WHICH I’LL BE LISTING MY TOP 10.