2017 Cinema & Stadium Film Awards

2017 Cinema & Stadium Film Awards

With the 90th annual Academy Awards ceremony coming this weekend, it's also time for my own selections of the best achievements in film for the past year.  As in previous years, there are two "rules" which guide my picks:  1) only films released widely in 2017 are eligible, and 2) only films that I've actually seen are eligible.  I'll note who the Academy Award nominees are for each category, too, and when there are differences it's often because of one or both of those rules.

You can find my companion post here, where I name my top 10 films of the year and some other thoughts on the movies I saw.  I hope you enjoy, and please feel free to let me know your own opinions!

Winners in bold
Runners-up underlined


Best Actor:
Steve Carell (Battle of the Sexes)
Ryan Gosling (La La Land)
Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out)
Michael Keaton (The Founder)
Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour)

Oscar nominees not listed:  Timothee Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name), Daniel Day-Lewis (Phantom Thread) - didn't see the films and not released widely in 2017; Denzel Washington (Roman J. Israel, Esq.) - didn't see the film

I want to start things off with an honorable mention for Mark Hamill reprising his role as Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi; I'm skeptical of bringing back classic characters, but he steals the whole movie, in a good way.  Michael Keaton continued his career resurrection in The Founder, creating a charismatic but overly ambitious and ruthless restaurant tycoon.  Steve Carell, despite his reputation as a comedian (whose acting is overlooked), is one of the most talented thespians in Hollywood today; fortunately, he gets to put his full powers of humor to use in Battle of the Sexes, while also creating a surprisingly sympathetic villain.  Ryan Gosling is another top tier acting talent, and he guides his dreaming male lead in a perfect - and equal - partnership with his better half in La La Land.  All eyes are on Daniel Kaluuya in Get Out, a likable but normal young man who suffers first the "ordinary" cruelty of racism before plummeting into a fantastic horror - and makes both of those feel hauntingly genuine.

The top lead male acting performance of the year is Gary Oldman's as Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour.  Despite the enormity of the historical events of the film - Nazi Germany's conquest of western Europe and Britain's decision to wage war - Oldman's iconic role is by far the most interesting part of the film.  The physical transformation is astounding, of course, and Oldman also impressively develops and maintains a body language that buries any possible skepticism.  But the way that Oldman captures the famous man's incredible strengths as well as surprising doubts and weakness, lets you show what's going on in his head and heart, is truly incredible.


Best Actress
Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman)
Taraji P. Henson (Hidden Figures)
Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)
Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird)
Emma Stone (La La Land)
Emma Stone (Battle of the Sexes)

Oscar nominees not listed - Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water), Meryl Streep (The Post) - films not released widely in 2017; Margot Robbie (I, Tonya) - didn't see the film, not released widely in 2017

A little cheating here, with six nominees, but I'm doing this to illustrate the particularly impressive and diverse roster of performances this year.  While not a typical Oscar role, Gal Gadot really embodied her very influential superheroine; she just radiates strength and confidence, while allowing herself to be vulnerable as her character grows.  Frances McDormand is all intensity in Three Billboards, sometimes erupting, yet more often showing it in her fierce and sorrowful gazes.  Emma Stone pulled off two very different yet exemplary performances within a year.  In both La La Land and Battle of the Sexes her characters balance tender, enrapturing romance with the (successful) struggle to achieve professional success; young Emma is already a model of grace and control.  Taraji P. Henson delights audiences in Hidden Figures, the victim of segregation's grievous wounds yet fully capable and determined to forge on as both mathematical genius and loving mother.

Saoirse Ronan rises just above the rest in a significantly different kind of role in Lady Bird.  She utterly disappears into the (nicknamed) title character, an average high school teenager with dreams of something better, all the while battling herself and those around her as she grows by fits and starts.  Just as any person has their own bewildering paradoxes, Lady Bird has her own, too, from moments of searing contempt to others of wrenching compassion (often both for her mother).  That Ronan is able to hold all of it in and keep herself together, from the throwaway moments to the sublime, is a tremendous achievement.


Best Supporting Actress
Ana de Armas (Blade Runner 2049)
Holly Hunter (The Big Sick)
Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird)
Janelle Monae (Hidden Figures)
Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures)

Oscar nominees not listed - Allison Janney (I, Tonya), Lesley Manville (Phantom Thread) - didn't see the films, not released widely in 2017; Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water) - not released widely in 2017; Mary J. Blige (Mudbound) - didn't see the film

In the visually extraordinary and weird Blade Runner 2049, Ana de Armas exemplifies those traits more than any other as a holographic character; sweetly human yet obviously artificial, her constant, slight flickering produces more feeling than anything else in the film.  Holly Hunter is a desperate, stricken mother in The Big Sick, and both her outbursts and grudging acceptance anchor the heart of the film.  Janelle Monae is one cool cat in Hidden Figures, perhaps overlooked by some but crackling with energy, and outstanding in one of the film's quietest, most powerful scenes.  Laurie Metcalf is another movie mother, but she, too, far exceeds that limiting label in her struggles with Lady Bird; she loves her fiercely, and her anger and frustration are shocking yet understandable.  Symbolizing her community's quiet, patient struggle for equality, Octavia Spencer was a perfect choice for her role in Hidden Figures.  Her relationship with a white supervisor is nuanced and powerful, and her benevolent shepherding and ultimate success are genuine and inspiring.


Best Supporting Actor
Kevin Costner (Hidden Figures)
Daniel Craig (Logan Lucky)
Woody Harrelson (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri)
Michael Keaton (Spider-Man: Homecoming)
Chris Pine (Wonder Woman)

Oscar nominees not listed - Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project), Christopher Plummer (All the Money in the World) - didn't see the films; Richard Jenkins (The Shape of Water) - not widely released in 2017; Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards...) - I consider this a lead, not supporting, role

Often this is the most competitive acting category for me; this year it was kind of slim pickings.  Chris Pine is one of today's most enjoyable actors, and a good fit for Wonder Woman: suitably heroic, and funny, but fully makes way for the heroine.  Kevin Costner's NASA boss in Hidden Figures isn't the most subtle character, but his presence is welcome while, again, not overshadowing the real stars. Michael Keaton plays a chilling villain in the freshly revamped Spider-Man, one of Marvel's better bad guys thanks to his relatability.  Daniel Craig is a hoot in Logan Lucky, playing virtually the opposite of James Bond: a hillbilly (also incredibly smart) bomb maker.  Woody Harrelson shines with the highest Oscar pedigree, a down-to-earth cop in Three Billboards who boosts the film considerably.  He provides intriguing complexity (if briefly), and a worthy opponent for Frances McDormand.


Best Director
Damien Chazelle (La La Land)
Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird)
Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures)
Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk)
Jordan Peele (Get Out)

Oscar nominees not listed - Paul Thomas Anderson (Phantom Thread) - didn't see film and not widely released in 2017; Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water) - not widely released in 2017

First, an honorable mention for Taika Waititi of Thor: Ragnarok; he boldly went for broke in the well-established Marvel franchise, goosing Thor with humor and energy while keeping it from falling into parody.  Theodore Melfi maintained a tricky balancing act of his own, illustrating the injustices of the era repeatedly while keeping his film entertaining and appropriately light.  Jordan Peele, a first-time director who wrote his own script, deftly mixes classic chills and horrors with its realistic but unsettling social setting.  Damien Chazelle modernized an entire genre, bringing musicals into the 21st century by dusting off classic themes and injecting them into contemporary society.  Greta Gerwig took a well-known coming-of-age structure in Lady Bird and perfected it, reflecting the rhythms of its teenage lead by mixing carefree and critical moments, joyous and despondent scenes.

The most accomplished director of the year was Christopher Nolan with his instant-classic war film, Dunkirk.  Featuring little dialogue, Nolan instead lets the action on screen - through its thrilling visuals and sound, so real that you can practically feel it - create the terrifying urgency of war.  He uses one of his trademarks, manipulating the chronology of the film to integrate three distinct parts and bring them closer and closer, the tension accelerating throughout the film.  A triumph of the mind and the heart - and the gut - Nolan has created a masterpiece.


Best Screenplay
Rebecca Blunt (Logan Lucky)
Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird)
Adrian Molina and Matthew Aldrich (Coco)
Jordan Peele (Get Out)
Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi (Hidden Figures)


Best Visual Effects
Blade Runner 2049
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Thor: Ragnarok
War for the Planet of the Apes