The Top 20 Films of 2016: Revisited
What a difference a year can make.
As we do every year (and as we did on New Year’s Day for the Best Films of 2017), we here at Flickchart publish our list of the best films of the previous year. Unlike most such lists, our rankings are based on the global aggregate rankings of all of our users. As such, the relative rankings of films on the global Flickchart are in flux on an almost daily basis. A year after we publish our Top 20, the list can often look quite different, especially as films released later in the year get seen by more users.
Ten of these twenty films now rank within Flickchart’s global Top 1000, making them Movies to See Before You Die. Five movies have fallen off of our list; has one of your favorites from 2016 helped fill in the gaps? And has the year’s biggest Marvel offering, Captain America: Civil War, held on to its previous #1 spot? Read on to find out.
For comparison’s sake, you can see our original year-end list here. Below is the NEW list of the Top 20 Films of 2016, after a year’s worth of chart movement.
20. Nocturnal Animals
- Directed by Tom Ford
- Global Rank: #1913
Only the second feature film from writer-director Tom Ford (A Single Man), the fact that Nocturnal Animals (nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Michael Shannon) has slipped into the Top 20 means that Amy Adams headlines two of the top films of the year.
19. Swiss Army Man
- Directed by Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
- Global Rank: #1880
- 2016 ranking last year: #18
This first feature film from directors Kwan and Scheinert successfully sold a movie in which one of the main characters is a farting corpse. It also makes Mary Elizabeth Winstead the second actress to feature in two films on our list.
18. The Handmaiden
- Directed by Chan-wook Park
- Global Rank: #1737
The latest from director Chan-wook Park (Oldboy) hadn’t yet found its audience by the time our list was published last year, but it continues to make buzz as it climbs the rankings.
17. Hunt for the Wilderpeople
- Directed by Taika Waititi
- Global Rank: #1347
- 2016 ranking last year: #17
Hunt for the Wilderpeople was no doubt instrumental in getting New Zealand director Taika Waititi the gig directing Thor: Ragnarok for Marvel. It’s an off-beat vehicle for the great Sam Neill, but also notable for the impressive performance of young newcomer Julian Dennison, who will next be appearing in the upcoming sequel to Deadpool.
16. Hacksaw Ridge
- Directed by Mel Gibson
- Global Rank: #1312
Mel Gibson‘s graphic yet moving war film is his first directorial effort since 2006’s Apocalypto. It earned Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Director and Actor for Andrew Garfield‘s depiction of real-life hero Desmond Doss.
15. Zootopia
- Directed by Byron Howard, Rich Moore and Jared Bush
- Global Rank: #1155
- 2016 ranking last year: #7
Slipping a bit from its position last year, Zootopia nonetheless marks the first of three animated films in a row on our list, two of them from Disney Animation, who have certainly shown a marked increase in quality in the last decade.
14. Kubo and the Two Strings
- Directed by Travis Knight
- Global Rank: #1097
- 2016 ranking last year: #12
Kubo is the fourth feature film from burgeoning powerhouse animation studio Laika. Joining the likes of Coraline and ParaNorman, it’s yet another sign to watch out for this creative stop-motion company in the future.
13. Moana
- Directed by Ron Clements, John Musker, Don Hall and Chris Williams
- Global Rank: #1087
- 2016 ranking last year: #16
Aladdin directors Ron Clements and John Musker delivered another hit for Disney. And while Moana has only risen in the rankings, Finding Dory has dropped out of the Top 20, mirroring the recent trend of Disney Animation films outshining animation giant Pixar.
12. 10 Cloverfield Lane
Directed by Dan Trachtenberg
Global Rank: #1041
2016 ranking last year: #8
10 Cloverfield Lane was a massive score for first-time feature director Dan Trachtenberg, and we can’t wait to see what he’ll do next. Meanwhile, another movie in the Cloverfield universe is due to arrive this February.
11. Doctor Strange
- Directed by Scott Derrickson
- Global Rank: #1032
- 2016 ranking last year: #5
Doctor Strange has dropped a bit among 2016 releases, but heck, it’s still Marvel; it’s not leaving the Top 20 any time soon. Benedict Cumberbatch‘s title character will next be seen in Marvel’s everything-and-the-kitchen-sink event, Avengers: Infinity War. Writer-director Scott Derrickson is at work helming the first episode of a television adaptation of Snowpiercer.
>> Read our review of Doctor Strange
10. Sing Street
- Directed by John Carney
- Global Rank: #969
- 2016 ranking last year: #13
Sing Street is definitely the little movie that could. It’s only moved up in the rankings, and is the first movie on this list that has clawed its way into the Top 1000 of all time on Flickchart. “Drive It Like You Stole It”, indeed.
9. Hell or High Water
- Directed by David Mackenzie
- Global Rank: #784
- 2016 ranking last year: #9
Best Picture nominee Hell or High Water holds its position on Flickchart. Writer Taylor Sheridan is earning solid reviews for writing and directing Wind River (currently #18 for 2017), while director David Mackenzie is re-teaming with Chris Pine for Outlaw King, a biopic of Robert the Bruce.
8. The Nice Guys
- Directed by Shane Black
- Global Rank: #770
- 2016 ranking last year: #6
The Nice Guys brought writer-director Shane Black success in the vein of his 2005 pulp thriller Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. Next for the Iron Man 3 director is The Predator, a reboot of the classic Schwarzenegger sci-fi action film, in which Black himself starred. Also, Ryan Gosling marks his first of two appearances on this list.
7. Manchester by the Sea
- Directed by Kenneth Lonergan
- Global Rank: #726
Manchester by the Sea is an excellent example of a film not appearing in Flickchart’s end-of-year Top 20 because of a late release date; it didn’t open wide until mid-December. Kenneth Lonergan‘s drama – only his third feature as a director since 2000’s You Can Count on Me – won Oscars for Lonergan’s script and Casey Affleck‘s lead performance.
6. Deadpool
- Directed by Tim Miller
- Global Rank: #684
- 2016 ranking last year: #3
Deadpool held the #1 spot on Flickchart for 2016 for much of the first half of the year. Though he’s slipped, he shows no sign of dropping out of the Top 10 any time soon. Ryan Reynolds returns as the Merc with the Mouth this June, though David Leitch (Atomic Blonde) has taken the reigns from director Tim Miller.
>> Read our review of Deadpool
5. Moonlight
- Directed by Barry Jenkins
- Global Rank: #660
This is the highest-ranked film that did not appear on our list a year ago, again due largely to the timing of its wide release. Director Barry Jenkins made a huge splash when Moonlight – only his second feature film – won Best Picture at the Oscars. His next project, If Beale Street Could Talk, is currently in post-production.
4. Rogue One
- Directed by Gareth Edwards
- Global Rank: #616
- 2016 ranking last year: #4
Die-hard Star Wars fan Gareth Edwards realized a lifelong ambition when he took the helm of Disney’s first “anthology” film set in George Lucas‘s universe. If this prequel is suffering any backlash from fans, it’s not showing in its Flickchart ranking.
3. Captain America: Civil War
- Directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo
- Global Rank: #442
- 2016 ranking last year: #1
The Marvel machine has given up its top spot to a couple of critical darlings, but #3 is nothing to sneeze at. Look for Marvel Studios and the Russo brothers to rocket up the Flickchart again in 2018; Avengers: Infinity War is just around the corner.
2. La La Land
- Directed by Damien Chazelle
- Global Rank: #325
- 2016 ranking last year: #10
La La Land may have lost the Best Picture Oscar it so briefly attained to Moonlight, but it still outranks the latter film on Flickchart. Director Chazelle made a splash with Whiplash in 2014, and he’s not slowing down now; next up is First Man, a biopic featuring La La Land star Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Armstrong.
1. Arrival
- Directed by Denis Villeneuve
- Global Rank: #317
- 2016 ranking last year: #2
With Blade Runner 2049 currently topping the 2017 Flickchart, this means that director Denis Villeneuve has the top-ranked film for two years in a row. Villeneuve reportedly has yet another sci-fi film in the pipeline: a remake of David Lynch‘s Dune. We can’t wait.
The Fallen
These films appeared on our Top 20 list in January last year, but have since dipped in the rankings. Here’s where they stand now.
Finding Dory
- Directed by Andrew Stanton
- Was: #11
- Now: #23
- Global Rank: #2160
The Jungle Book
- Directed by Jon Favreau
- Was: #14
- Now: #28
- Global Rank: #2328
Star Trek Beyond
- Directed by Justin Lin
- Was: #15
- Now: #24
- Global Rank: #2181
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
- Directed by David Yates
- Was: #19
- Now: #33
- Global Rank: #2699
Hail, Caesar!
- Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen
- Was: #20
- Now: #37
- Global Rank: #3088
Marvel Cinematic Universe is my first choice, and i think “Kubo” is a unique story that made with a little boy story. There is so many lighting seen between mother and children love.
Still despise Rogue One.
“Despise” seems harsh. As of now, at least until I see The Last Jedi again, I slightly prefer Rogue One to it. Even so, The Force Awakens is still easily the best new Star Wars for me.
I’m bummed that Star Trek Beyond dropped out of the Top 20. That’s easily my personal favorite in a good year. (2016 definitely fares better on my personal chart overall than 2017 does so far.)