Check out the list after the cut for what I saw this year—in theaters, on DVD, or on Netflix.
My top three, in no particular order:
The Fall (2006) – Fun adventure story-within-a-story. It reminds me of The Princess Bride.
Arrival – I was really impressed with how aliens are handled in this story. It’s nice to have a sci-fi movie that is more thought provoking than action scenes. So many articles have been written about Arrival. Check out some (with spoilers) on Birth.Movies.Death.
Midnight Special – Similar to Arrival, Midnight Special is a different take on dealing with the unknown. What struck me in Midnight Special is how quiet and hopeful the movie is.
Here are the rest, organized in categories. Titles in bold are ones I enjoyed.
Watch it for the franchise
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Star Trek: Beyond
Allegiant
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Jurassic World
Superhero movies
Deadpool
Captain America: Civil War
The Incredible Hulk (2008, with Edward Norton)
Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox
Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice
Doctor Strange
Justice League: War
Green Lantern (re-watch)
Time travel/alternate reality movies
Source Code
Synchronicity
ARQ
Movies that surprised me
Blindness
Nightcrawler
Just for fun
Serendipity
The Thirteenth Year (re-watch)
The Martian
The Grand Budapest Hotel
The Giver
Zootopia
Bad Words
The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Grab bag
American History X
The World’s End
Rounders
Begin Again
Can’t Buy Me Love
Shutter Island
Free Samples
Looney Tunes: Back in Action
American Hustle
The Big Short
Rudderless
The Fisher King