The Top 15 Movies Of 2017

Every year, I debate whether or not to make a year-end best-of list. I hate ranking movies (or giving them grades for that matter), and where a movie falls, or even what’s included, varies day-by-day, even hour-by-hour depending on my mood and what I remember.

'Okja' (2017) Movie Review

Outside of the fact that he makes great movies, my favorite thing about Bong Joon-ho is that you never know to expect from one project to the next. The South Korean director has turned out the greatest modern creature feature with The Host, which is still so much more than just that. His resume also includes murder mysteries (Mother, Memories of Murder), post-apocalyptic sci-fi set entirely on a moving train (Snowpiercer), and even black comedy (Barking Dogs Never Bite). Bong’s latest, Okja, fits into his larger body of work by being both utterly fantastic and unlike anything he’s done before, despite the presence of a fantastic beast.

'Okja' Trailer: Meet The Most Adorable Super Pig

Any Bong Joon-ho movie is worth getting excited about. But when it’s about a little girl trying to rescue her best friend, a best friend that just happens to be a giant pig monster, it has my full attention. The Korean auteur’s latest premieres at Cannes tomorrow, and Netflix dropped a wonderful new trailer for Okja.

Gawk At Jake Gyllenhaal's Snazzy Mustache In Bong Joon-Ho's 'Okja,' Plus Plot Details

Snowpiercer mastermind Bong Joon-ho making a giant monster movie is automatically an event worth celebrating. His The Host is one of the greatest modern creature features, so his upcoming Okja is high up on my list of “oh hell yeah” movies. And if that’s not enough to stoke the fires, hopefully this photo of Jake Gyllenhaal and his delightful mustache will do the trick. (There are also a few other photos and a long, detailed plot synopsis, which are all great, but I’d watch any movie for this particular Gyllenhaal steez alone.)

'Okja' Trailer: Meet Bong Joon-Ho's Netflix Creature Feature

All South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho does is kick out the jams, cinematically speaking that is. And you better believe the idea of The Host director telling the tender story about a young girl and her best friend, a giant genetically altered pig monster, has my full and undivided attention. Netflix just dropped the first trailer for Okja.

It's Going To Be Good: 25 Most Anticipated Movies Of 2017

2016 is in the books and took with it countless celebrities, lingering notions of human decency, and my expectations of not being annihilated in a nuclear war started by a buffoon’s Twitter account. But as we prepare for the impending Mad Max/Red Dawn-style apocalypse, we still have a ton of movies to look forward to between now and imminent death. And here are the ones flying high on my radar.

Bong Joon-Ho's Netflix Creature Feature 'Okja' Digs Up New Plot And Character Details

South Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho is the mastermind behind one of the greatest modern creature features, The Host. So when we heard he’s returning to monster movie territory with the upcoming Okja, we were understandably stoked. Then he put together an incredible international cast along the same lines as Snowpiercer, and we started drooling. Now some new details have slithered out, and we may or may not have started dancing around the office with glee.

Bong Joon-Ho's Monster Movie 'Okja' Is Putting Together The Best Cast

Any time Bong Joon-ho makes a movie, it’s well worth getting your panties in a bunch over. The guy is a goddamned hit factory—Snowpiercer, Mother, The Host. But when he makes a monster movie, one with an insanely great cast, that’s the kind of thing that gets you dancing around the room in giddy anticipation.