Release Year: 2016
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Kubo and the Two Strings
There are films you watch once and forget, and then there’s Kubo and the Two Strings — a 2016 adventure from director Travis Knight that has kept audiences talking long after the credits roll. The film’s own tagline — “If you must blink, do it now!” — tells you almost everything about the tone it’s…
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Zootopia
Every so often an adventure film comes along that refuses to be filed away neatly, and Zootopia is exactly that kind of stubborn, memorable outlier. “Welcome to the urban jungle.” That’s the line the studio chose to sell the film, and it doesn’t oversell it by much. Strip away the craft and the premise is…
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Hacksaw Ridge
Some movies announce themselves with noise; Hacksaw Ridge (2016) prefers to earn its reputation the slow way, one convert at a time. Even the marketing knew what it had: the tagline “One of the greatest heroes in American history never fired a bullet.” sets the mood before a single frame plays. The setup is straightforward…
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Train to Busan
If you’ve never given Train to Busan a fair shot, 2016 is as good a year as any to fix that — Yeon Sang-ho’s film has aged into something like a cult favorite. The film’s own tagline — “Life-or-death survival begins.” — tells you almost everything about the tone it’s going for. The story kicks…
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The Handmaiden
There’s a reason The Handmaiden keeps resurfacing in conversations about the best drama films of its era: it simply refuses to be dated. The film’s own tagline — “You’re the one being tricked.” — tells you almost everything about the tone it’s going for. Here’s the hook, in brief: 1930s Korea, in the period of…
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La La Land
Not every film needs to reinvent its genre to be worth your time, and “La La Land”, a comedy and drama and romance entry, proves the point. It is the kind of film that tends to outlast whatever else came out the same year. Everything the film wants you to feel is right there in…
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Your Name.
Not every film needs to reinvent its genre to be worth your time, and “Your Name.”, an animation and drama and romance entry, proves the point. It does not take long to understand why people keep bringing it up. Everything the film wants you to feel is right there in its tagline: “Separated by distance,…
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Moonlight
When Barry Jenkins sat down to make “Moonlight”, the goal was clearly to deliver something that sticks with an audience long after the credits roll. It is easy to see why it keeps getting recommended long after its initial release. Everything the film wants you to feel is right there in its tagline: “This is…
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Manchester by the Sea
Every so often a film shows up that seems built for exactly one mood, and “Manchester by the Sea”, released in 2016, is one of those titles. It does not take long to understand why people keep bringing it up. Everything the film wants you to feel is right there in its tagline: “I can’t…
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Arrival
Not every film needs to reinvent its genre to be worth your time, and “Arrival”, a drama and mystery and science fiction entry, proves the point. It does not take long to understand why people keep bringing it up. Everything the film wants you to feel is right there in its tagline: “Why are they…