If you spent the past four months arguing the merits of Moonlight or La La Land, you may have missed some great movies.
Words by Eric Hillis
We don't have much time for awards season here at The Movie Waffler, for a host of reasons, but chiefly because while a handful of movies hog the limelight for four months, a host of great movies miss out on the recognition they would receive if released at any other time of the year.
That was the case once again this season, so here are 10 great movies released in UK cinemas between November 2016 and February 2017 that you might have missed if you were distracted by the films garnering Awards attention.
20th Century Women
We said: 20th Century Women is a collage of culture, but the nostalgia for a lost era takes a backseat to another type of nostalgia, one based in blood, that of director Mike Mills' feelings for his late mother. A career best Annette Bening is the heart of the movie, portrayed as an angelic figure, but one with very grounded, human concerns.
A Monster Calls
We said: A Monster Calls refuses to wear kid gloves, and is brutally honest about the cruelties of life, yet it's never cynical. It's a heartfelt, humanistic tribute to how we cope with forces beyond our control, as hopeful as it is heartbreaking.
Christine
We said: In his previous films, director Antonio Campos employed experimental techniques to convey his character's psychological states. Here he directs in far more conventional fashion, allowing his inspired leading lady to do all the heavy lifting. It proves a wise choice, as Rebecca Hall really is sublime here, her criminally overlooked performance yet another reason to dismiss the relevance of the Oscars.
The Edge of Seventeen
We said: As Nadine, the narcissistic hero/villain of Kelly Fremon Craig's film, Hailee Steinfeld is a raging fireball of self-destructive energy, both entertaining and uncomfortable to watch. Think a high-school set As Good as It Gets with a 17-year-old proto-hipster in the Jack Nicholson part.
The Fits
We said: Unlike La La Land, whose leads dance as though an offscreen rifle is pointed at their heads, in The Fits, newcomer Royalty Hightower dances like nobody's watching.
Indignation
We said: Director James Schamus has crafted an extraordinary and polished adaptation of Philip Roth’s thoughtful and timeless tale of lost love and innocence. It deserves to be seen.
John Wick: Chapter Two
We said: Accusations of style over substance will no doubt greet its release, but here the style is the substance; this is action as arthouse movie. Often resembling a boutique men's magazine come to life, John Wick: Chapter Two puts a metrosexual spin on a macho genre.
Krisha
We said: In most director's hands, Krisha would likely resemble a talky filmed play, but Trey Edward Shults's film is a cinematic spectacle. His characters are constantly talking, but his story unravels in visual terms; what's said in this troubled home is never as important as how it's heard.
Paterson
We said: There's a park in Paterson, New Jersey devoted to one former native, comedian Lou Costello. It may seem like a laughable idea, but I bet the residents of Paterson are proud of it. They should be proud of Paterson the movie too.
Patriots Day
We said: Earlier in his career, director Peter Berg was compared unfavourably to Michael Bay, but with this and Deepwater Horizon, he's proven himself a skilled craftsman. Berg's never been better than he is here, constructing visceral set-pieces that immerse us in the tense drama.