Now that I've gotten most* of my "Oscar viewings" out of the way, I feel confident in giving my personal top 10 list. I've gotten to 53 films this year.
Honorable mention: Race, Lion, Moonlight, War Dogs, Sing Street
10) Arrival - Very similar to Interstellar. Well paced and shot. Glad to see a Sci-Fi movie get recognized after Ex-Machina was snubbed last year.
9) Hacksaw Ridge - Andrew Garfield should win best actor, IMO. A similar feel to Saving Private Ryan. I will say Vince Vaughn was miscast.
8) Whiskey Tango Foxtrot - Funny but sobering story of a journalist embedded in Afghanistan. Tina Fey had a great balance of comedy and drama. Martin Freeman, Margot Robbie and Alfed Molina were great, although Alfred Molina's wig was pretty bad.
7) Hidden Figures - Well acted. Nice to see someone fight back against the #WaronMath
6) The Nice Guys - A throwback to 70s buddy cop movies. Gosling and Crowe had really good chemistry. Very funny.
5) Eye in the Sky - This film was criminally under marketed. Helen Mirren plays a British Army Colonel who has to weigh taking out a known terrorist with a drone strike vs the collateral damage to innocent civilians. Extremely tense. Also the last live action performance by Alan Rickman.
4) Hell Or High Water - A seemingly basic bank robber movie, it explores the financial industry and race relations at the same time. Jeff Bridges and Ben Foster were great. GREAT cinematography.
3) Captain America: Civil War - It belongs on the list just for the airport scene alone. The Russo brothers should just direct every Marvel movie.
2) La La Land - In most years, this is a clear #1. EVERYTHING about this movie was well done. The set designs, sound mixing, editing and cinematography were all perfect. On top of that, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling were great. Of course, if you don't like musicals, the singing and dancing will take you out of the picture. But all the details were spot on.
1.) Rogue One: A Star Wars story - Any movie where Darth Vader mows down 10 guys in a hallways will get #1 on my list.
*I still have to see "Fences"