The Top 20 Films of 2017: Redux
A lot can change in a year. That’s especially true with Flickchart’s year-end list of the Top 20 films of the year. As more films become more widely seen, and more users rank them, the global Flickchart morphs with each passing day.
As we do every year (and did on New Year’s Day with the Top 20 films of 2018), last January we presented the Top 20 Films of 2017. That list is a bit different now.
14 of these films are within the global Top 1000 on Flickchart, making them Movies to See Before You Die. All of them are within the global Top 1500.
Has director Denis Villeneuve held on to the top spot with his Blade Runner sequel? What movies have fallen to make room for latecomers? And perhaps most importantly, does your favorite 2017 film (still) make the cut? Read on to find out.
For comparison’s sake, you can find the original list here.
20. Phantom Thread
- Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
- Global Rank: #1375
- Last year’s rank: Below the Top 20
Touted as the final film for three-time Oscar-winning thespian Daniel Day-Lewis, Phantom Thread garnered six Academy Award nominations (including Day-Lewis’s sixth, as well as Best Picture; it won for Costume Design). No word on whether Day-Lewis will stick to his plan of retirement (though there’s no reason not to believe him), and fans of director Paul Thomas Anderson are still waiting for news of his next project.
19. Call Me by Your Name
- Directed by Luca Guadagnino
- Global Rank: #1330
- Last year’s rank: Below the Top 20
This Best Picture Oscar nominee (and winner for Best Adapted Screenplay) is the second film on this list that had not yet made it last year. Director Luca Guadagnino released his remake of Suspiria in 2018, and is currently filming the documentary Salvatore Ferragamo: The Shoemaker of Dreams. A sequel to Call Me by Your Name has been announced.
18. It
- Directed by Andy Muschietti
- Global Rank: #1265
- Last year’s rank: #13
It scored the third highest-grossing opening weekend ever for an R-rated movie (after the two Deadpool films). It: Chapter Two is slated to open this September, with director Andy Muschietti and his young cast returning, as well as actors including James McAvoy and Jessica Chastain playing adult versions of the main characters.
17. Wind River
- Directed by Taylor Sheridan
- Global Rank: #1257
- Last year’s rank: #18
Writer/director Taylor Sheridan saw his Sicario sequel script, Day of the Soldado, released in 2018, and has also co-created the television series Yellowstone, starring Kevin Costner. Meanwhile, stars Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen will be part of 2019‘s Movie Event of the Year, Avengers: Endgame, the follow-up to 2018’s #1 movie on Flickchart, Infinity War.
16. War for the Planet of the Apes
- Directed by Matt Reeves
- Global Rank: #1232
- Last year’s rank: #12
Bringing a definitive conclusion to the modern trio of Apes films centering around Caesar (Andy Serkis), War has been surpassed by a few 2017 films, but maintained a reasonably strong showing in the global rankings. In 2018, star Serkis appeared in the heralded Black Panther and directed Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, which debuted on Netflix in December. War director Matt Reeves has been announced as the director for the upcoming The Batman for Warner Bros. and DC.
15. Wonder Woman
- Directed by Patty Jenkins
- Global Rank: #1038
- Last year’s rank: #10
As the first truly successful female-led superhero movie of the modern era, Wonder Woman created quite a splash. In the interim, Patty Jenkins has directed three episodes of the forthcoming mini-series I Am the Night (with Wonder Woman co-star Chris Pine), and has now re-teamed with Gal Gadot for the sequel Wonder Woman 1984, expected in 2020.
14. The Big Sick
- Directed by Michael Showalter
- Global Rank: #901
- Last year’s rank: #11
This comedy has maintained an impressive presence in the Top 20, dropping only three spots. It’s also the first movie on this list that is within the global Top 1000. Writer and star Kumail Nanjiani has a few projects on the go in addition to his role on the TV series Silicon Valley; he’ll next be heard (but not seen) in Men in Black: International. Director Michael Showalter has been doing TV work, including directing episodes of Love and Grace and Frankie for Netflix.
13. Lady Bird
- Directed by Greta Gerwig
- Global Rank: #741
- Last year’s rank: #15
This coming-of-age drama garnered Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Actress (Saoirse Ronan), Supporting Actress (Laurie Metcalf) and Screenplay and Directing for Greta Gerwig. Ronan and Gerwig are re-teaming for Little Women in December 2019. For her part, Metcalf has been reprising her famous television role of Jackie Harris on The Conners, and is part of the voice cast for the upcoming Toy Story 4.
12. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Directed by James Gunn
- Global Rank: #727
- Last year’s rank: #9
Marvel’s cosmic sequel has maintained a strong presence in the global rankings, but the future of this sub-franchise within the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been put into question since Disney fired James Gunn as director of the third movie. Also, many plot elements of Avengers: Infinity War were rough for the Guardians, so for now we’ll have to wait and see. Meanwhile, Gunn has been tapped to write (and perhaps direct?) a sequel to Suicide Squad for Marvel’s competitor, DC.
11. The Shape of Water
- Directed by Guillermo del Toro
- Global Rank: #715
- Last year’s rank: Below the Top 20
This romantic fantasy took home four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Guillermo del Toro. It was missing from our list last year (but was highlighted as a Blogger’s Pick) mostly because not enough of our users had seen it yet — though it was one of our nominees for Best Picture in the annual Flickcharters’ Choice Awards. What’s next for del Toro? He’s been doing some animation work for Netflix with 3Below: Tales of Arcadia, and has his version of the Pinocchio story expected to be in theaters for 2021.
10. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
- Directed by Martin McDonagh
- Global Rank: #706
- Last year’s rank: #17
This Best Picture nominee has only risen in the rankings. No word yet on In Bruges director Martin McDonagh‘s next project, but this film’s Oscar-winning actors are busy. Frances McDormand is working with Wes Anderson, having offered up her voice for 2018’s Isle of Dogs, and is now starring in his upcoming The French Dispatch. Sam Rockwell played George W. Bush opposite Christian Bale‘s Dick Cheney in Vice, and will next be seen with Taraji P. Henson in the period civil rights biopic, The Best of Enemies.
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
- Directed by Rian Johnson
- Global Rank: #644
- Last year’s rank: #5
Despite some strong backlash, The Last Jedi is still in the Flickchart Top 10 for the year. Rian Johnson is next directing Knives Out, starring Daniel Craig. As for Star Wars, The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams is back to direct Episode IX. Hopefully, he’ll suppress his natural tendencies and actually give us a conclusion to this sequel trilogy.
8. Dunkirk
- Directed by Christopher Nolan
- Global Rank: #640
- Last year’s rank: #7
It’s Christopher Nolan, so of course Dunkirk was a big hit, and it’s maintaining a solid position in the 2017 rankings. There’s no word yet on the Dark Knight director’s next project. Young star Fionn Whitehead appeared opposite Emma Thompson in 2018’s The Children Act, as well as Black Mirror: Bandersnatch for Netflix. Tom Hardy went the super-antihero route in 2018 with Venom and has been starring in the TV series Taboo.
7. Coco
- Directed by Adrian Molina and Lee Unkrich
- Global Rank: #609
- Last year’s rank: #19
Animation super-studio Pixar’s Coco has risen considerably in the rankings since our list was first published. It also took away Oscars for Best Animated Feature Film and Best Original Song. Pixar is currently sitting at #7 on our 2018 list as well with Incredibles 2, and unleashes sure-fire hit Toy Story 4 in 2019.
6. Spider-Man: Homecoming
- Directed by Jon Watts
- Global Rank: #592
- Last year’s rank: #8
Spidey’s first film as a member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was a hit with audiences, and continues a strong showing in the Flickchart global rankings. Despite events in Avengers: Infinity War that would seem to indicate otherwise, Tom Holland will return as everybody’s favorite web-slinger in Spider-Man: Far From Home, hitting theaters this July. Jon Watts is back to direct, and Jake Gyllenhaal has been tapped to play the villain Mysterio.
5. Baby Driver
- Directed by Edgar Wright
- Global Rank: #500
- Last year’s rank: #3
Baby Driver tied with Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri for Best Picture at our annual Flickcharters’ Choice Awards, and scored Oscar nominations for Film Editing, Sound Mixing and Sound Editing. Ansel Elgort starred in Jonathan and Billionaire Boys Club in 2018. Edgar Wright is currently directing an as-yet-untitled documentary, and details for his next project, currently known as Shadows, are still under wraps.
4. Thor: Ragnarok
- Directed by Taika Waititi
- Global Rank: #388
- Last year’s rank: #6
This is Marvel’s highest-ranked offering of the year. Director Taika Waititi made our Top 20 list for 2016 as well, with Hunt for the Wilderpeople. His next film, Jojo Rabbit, will star Sam Rockwell and Marvel favorite Scarlett Johansson… and Waititi himself will appear, as Adolf Hitler. Chris Hemsworth most recently appeared in Bad Times at the El Royale, and will star in Men in Black: International with Ragnarok co-star Tessa Thompson after Avengers: Endgame.
3. Get Out
- Directed by Jordan Peele
- Global Rank: #382
- Last year’s rank: #4
On the short list of horror movies to get a Best Picture Oscar nomination, Get Out took home the prize for Best Original Screenplay for its writer/director, Jordan Peele. Peele’s next movie, Us — another horror film — arrives in theaters this March.
2. Logan
- Directed by James Mangold
- Global Rank: #355
- Last year’s rank: #2
Hugh Jackman‘s final turn as Wolverine maintains its claw-hold on the #2 spot. His post-X-Men career has so far consisted of The Greatest Showman in 2017 and The Front Runner in 2018. He supplies his voice for the animated Missing Link this April. Patrick Stewart can be seen this month in The Kid Who Would Be King, and he will reprise his famous role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in a new Star Trek TV series, while director James Mangold is in post-production on Ford v. Ferrari, scheduled to hit theaters in June.
1. Blade Runner 2049
- Directed by Denis Villeneuve
- Global Rank: #298
- Last year’s rank: #1
As it was then, so it is now. This visually stunning sequel — which took home Oscars for its visual effects and its 13-times-nominated cinematographer, Roger Deakins – holds on the the #1 spot in the rankings for 2017. Ryan Gosling re-teamed with his La La Land director, Damien Chazelle, for First Man (currently among our Top 20 of 2018). Director Denis Villeneuve is focusing his talents on a new sci-fi project: a remake of Dune.
The Fallen
The following films were on our Top 20 list at the end of last year, but have since been displaced. Here’s where they stand in the rankings now.
John Wick: Chapter 2
- Directed by Chad Stahelski
- Was: #14
- Now: #21
- Global Rank: #1451
The Disaster Artist
- Directed by James Franco
- Was: #20
- Now: #23
- Global Rank: #1626
The LEGO Batman Movie
- Directed by Chris McKay
- Was: #16
- Now: #25
- Global Rank: #2091
Rounding out the List
Here’s the rest of the current Top 30 films for 2017 on Flickchart:
21. John Wick: Chapter 2
22. I, Tonya
23. The Disaster Artist
24. The Florida Project
25. The LEGO Batman Movie
26. Paddington 2
27. Logan Lucky
28. Molly’s Game
29. mother!
30. The Death of Stalin