Artwork by Chloe Leeson

This year I didn’t watch a lot of movies.

But the ones that I did watch, all left a mark in me, all helped me grow and understand the world, and myself, a little bit better.

I hope you’ll enjoy reading about my favourite movies of 2017, and here’s to an even better 2018!

xxx

-ESZTI

10.) Good Time (dir. Benny & Josh Safdie)

The best way to describe Good Time is just as you would taking a never ending, exhilirating ecstasy trip. The Safdie’s Brothers film is truly something else.

Good Time revolves around Connie, who desperately tries to help and save his mentally ill brother, in every way he can, no matter how dangerous or reckless those methods may be, and in the end, sacrifices everything for him.

From start to finish, it never stops moving, throwing new twists and turns at you every single minute. A lot of people compare it to an anxiety attack, but it gave me a much more positive feeling. Because this film, on the surface, might seem like a typical heist-gone-wrong movie, but it’s so much more than that. You feel connected to Robert Pattinson’s Connie and Benny Safdie’s Nick from the moment they are introduced.

The familial bond and unconditional love is what drives this film, and that’s why it’s one of my favourites this year.

9.) Get Out (dir. Jordan Peele)

Get Out is undoubtedly one of the most important films of this year, dare I say, decade. A very cleverly thought out concept that brutally turns upside down today’s reality. It was impossible to not include it in my list!

Jordan Peele is a mastermind, and I can’t wait to watch whatever he comes out with next!

I cannot talk about this film without giving away major spoilers, so see it for yourselves, but one little hint: you’ll never look at fruitloops the same again.

8.) Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond (dir. Chris Smith)

This movie is the definition of meta.

Personally, I wasn’t familiar with Andy Kaufman or Man on The Moon before I saw this doc, but it didn’t matter. So don’t be discouraged if you’re in the same boat that I was!

I always admired Jim Carrey, he inspires me endlessly, and it was truly magical to see inside his mind a bit. This year I started watching documentaries, and out of all of them, this was my favourite.

I would also strongly recommend What The Health & Gaga: Five Foot Two.

7.) Wonder Woman (dir. Patty Jenkins)

I do not like superhero movies. In fact, up until this year, I hated them. I found them stupid, meaningless and boring. (Except Tobey Macguire’s Spider Man trilogy, that was awesome!) But this drastically changed once I saw Wonder Woman this June in the theater.

In fact, I was WAITING for this to come out! I was so excited! And let me tell you, it did not dissapoint. Watching Diana be a badass, but at the same time the most caring and the most positive person made me so so happy! I still listen to the soundtrack!

Steve and Diana’s romance was funny, beautiful and heartbreaking. This kind of film has been due for a long time, and I’m really glad we get to live in a world where little girls can look up to someone like Wonder Woman.

6.) Paddington 2 (dir. Paul King)

“Prison sweet prison!”

Surprisingly enough, I’ve seen almost every single animated feature that came out this year, because of my 8 year old brother. And I have to say: Paddington 2 is the most wonderful animated movie I’ve ever seen!

I originally went in because the style of it reminded me of Wes Anderson’s work (who’s one of my favourite directors of all time, by the way!), but it’s so much better than what I expected! Heartfelt, warming, loving, sweet, and joyful, with a dash of Olaf inspiration sprinkled in there in Hugh Grant’s Phoenix Buchanan.  Now it’s time for me to go back and watch the first one!

5.) It Comes At Night (dir. Trey Edward Shults)

While Get Out is the most important horror of this year, It Comes At Night is the definitely the best one.

Controversial choice, maybe. I know many people did not like this film at all. I was lucky enough to have not heard anything about it, haven’t seen any of the trailers for it, so I went in totally blind.

Now, this film is like a never ending nightmare, and for the character of Travis, it literally is. The plot is intentionally vague. We’re just dropped into this apocalypse, where a virus is spreading, and everyone lives in the woods, trying their best to survive. Two families end up living together, and soon, everything changes.

It Comes At Night revolves around the basic concept of ‘nothing’s thicker than blood’, and sticks to until the very end. Mixing with coming of age, and striking brutality, director Trey Edward Shults has made something I’ve never seen done before. And he wrote it in three days!

If you’re one of the few ones who loved this film as much as I did, then I think you’ll really enjoy Osgood Perkins’ films as well: The Blackcoat’s Daughter & I Am The Pretty Thing That Lives In This House

4.) Star Wars: The Last Jedi (dir. Rian Johnson) 

Does this need an explanation?!

No, but in all seriousness, this became my favourite Star Wars movie. (Although II is still up there with it.) I chose The Last Jedi not only because of it’s iconic importance, but because it has the best visuals of all time. It was competing with Valerian and The City of A Thousand Planets for a while, but this just had to win.

The character development of Ben Solo/Kylo Ren was done really efficiently, and it will keep me on my toes until 2019 comes around.

3.) Mother! (dir. Darren Aronofsky)

Perhaps the most controversial movie of the year, and at first seeing it, I hated it. And then one hour later, I loved it. The next day, I wasn’t sure what to think. So two days later, I went back and watched it again. I don’t do this often, in fact, in 2017 this movie was the only one I went in for twice.

Funny story: My mother, who I went with, instantly fell in love with it, now this is her favourite film. Ever since she saw it, she became such a film snob, it’s hilarious!

I suggest seeing it multiple times, because in this film, the importance lays in the details, that can sometimes be really minor; for instance, you must watch the end credits carefully.

In mother!, nothing is simple, everything has a hidden meaning, the entirety of it is a metaphor in itself. Darren Aronofsky is one of the most intelligent directors out there, and I’m glad I can enjoy his visions come to life.

2.) Okja (dir. Bong Joon Ho)

This is the most personal film on this list for me. In April, I became vegan. And as I was going through all the vegan documentaries and studies I could find I came across Okja. I couldn’t stop sobbing for it’s last thirty minutes.

Okja has a childlike, endearing quality; given it’s main protagonist is a super pig, but under the layers, it’s an eye opening film. It breaks your heart and lifts you up at the same time.

1.The Bad Batch (dir. Ana Lily Amirpour)

And, here we are: The Best Film Of 2017. It’s a big title, but this film deserves it.

Ana Lily Amirpour, the kickass director of this film is like an alien; she takes us to places we’ve never seen before or thought about.

The Bad Batch dares to go to places others would find too uncomfortable, too much or too different.  It doesn’t shy away from the brutality and disgustingness that this story demands. You can’t take your eyes off of this film, even if you’d want to.

The story follows Arlen (played by Suki Waterhouse), a girl who wanders off to a deserted land called the Bad Batch. Along her terryfing journey, she comes across cannibals (led by Jason Momoa’s Miami Man), a drugland owner who goes by the name “The Dream”, and countless other extraordinary characters.

There’s not a lot of speaking in this film. It mostly relies on music and sounds, which just makes it that much better!

It falls into the category of the ‘Either You Love or Hate Them’ movies, and for me, the decision was simple.

This film taught me that as an artist, you don’t have to be afraid of anything, and you have to be willing to try out everything. Because sometimes the most fucked up ideas can create true masterpieces.

by Eszti Jaszfalvi

Eszter Jászfalvi is a 17 year old femme from Budapest, Hungary, who’s a self-proclaimed perfectionist, a budding actress, a bibliophile and a beginner cook. Her favourite films include The Virgin Suicides, Marie Antoinette, Psycho, Donnie Darko, The Imitation Game and Brokeback Mountain. She’ll watch anything that Tim Burton and Wes Anderson makes, and whatever Dane Dehaan and Mia Wasikowska acts in. She’s also a serious binge watcher of all the good shows, such as Mr. Robot, Gossip Girl, American Horror Story, Bates Motel, Reign, also Black-ish. You can find her on Instagram @esztisworld, on Tumblr at esztiiscreatingherself.tumblr.com, and also on letterboxd here.