Year-End Lists

Robert Christgau: Dean's List 2017

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2010s • 2019 • 2018 • 2012]

1. Dark Matter
   Randy Newman
2. American Epic: The Best of Blues
   various artists
3. A Crow Looked at Me
   Mount Eerie
4. Whiteout Conditions
   The New Pornographers
5. American Epic: The Soundtrack
   various artists
6. 1992 Deluxe
   Princess Nokia
7. Love and War
   Brad Paisley
8. Tackle Box
   Hamell On Trial
9. Out in the Storm
   Waxahatchee
10. Nothing Rhymes with Orange
    Dawn Oberg
11. Trophy
    Sunny Sweeney
12. The Nashville Sound
    Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit
13. Rough Guide to the Music of West Africa
    various artists
14. Chuck
    Chuck Berry
15. Life Will See You Now
    Jens Lekman
16. American Epic: The Collection
    various artists
17. Talk Tight
    Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
18. Rough Guide to Jug Band Blues
    various artists
19. American Teen
    Khalid
20. Step Brothers THREE
    Starlito & Don Trip
21. Andalusia of Love
    Marcel Khalife & Mahmoud Darwish
22. La Voz Indómita
    Mariem Hassan
23. Triple Fat Lice
    Aesop Rock & Homeboy Sandman
24. The Night Took Us in Like Family
    L'Orange & Jeremiah Jae
25. République Amazone
    Les Amazones d’Afrique
26. 50 Song Memoir
    The Magnetic Fields
27. DAMN.
    Kendrick Lamar
28. Ladilikan
    Trio Da Kali & Kronos Quartet
29. Oversleepers International
    Emperor X
30. Electric Trim
    Lee Ranaldo
31. 1999
    Joey Bada$$
32. The Bob's Burgers Music Album
    various artists
33. Key To The Kuffs
    JJ DOOM
34. Veins
    Homeboy Sandman
35. City of No Reply
    Amber Coffman
36. Fake Sugar
    Beth Ditto
37. 20 Years in a Montana Missile Silo
    Pere Ubu
38. Sleep Well Beast
    The National
39. The Underside of Power
    Algiers
40. Celebrate Ornette
    Ornette Coleman
41. Bloodlust
    Body Count
42. Cashmere
    Swet Shop Boys
43. Recitative
    Robt Sarazin Blake
44. The World of Captain Beefheart
    Nona Hendryx & Gary Lucas
45. Seekers and Finders
    Gogol Bordello
46. 4:44
    JAY-Z
47. The Iceberg
    Oddisee
48. Resolution
    The Perceptionists
49. Thawing Dawn
    A Savage
50. Under Cöver
    Motörhead
51. Above Ground Fools
    Matt North
52. Tribute to Ndiouga Dieng
    Orchestra Baobab
53. You Want It Darker
    Leonard Cohen
54. War Surplus
    Becky Warren
55. Culture
    Migos
56. Home Counties
    Saint Etienne
57. Gentle Giants: The Songs of Don Williams
    various artists
58. Ad Out
    Dylan Hicks
59. Brick Body Kids Still Daydream
    Open Mike Eagle
60. Macgregor Park
    Fat Tony
61. Need to Feel Your Love
    Sheer Mag
62. Zonkey
    Umphrey's McGee
63. Fin
    Syd
64. Pollinator
    Blondie
65. Made in the Manor
    Kano
66. Antisocialites
    Alvvays
67. Can We Still Hang
    Daddy Issues
68. Big Fish Theory
    Vince Staples
69. Deer Tick, Vol. 2
    Deer Tick
70. Life Without Sound
    Cloud Nothings
71. Rock & Roll Music: Songs Of Chuck Berry
    various artists
72. Devil Is Fine
    Zeal & Ardor
73. So You Wannabe an Outlaw
    Steve Earle & The Dukes
74. NOW That's What I Call 90s Pop
    various artists
75. Wrangled
    Angaleena Presley
76. Underworld USA
    The Paranoid Style
77. Playboi Carti
    Playboi Carti
78. Sufi La
    Swet Shop Boys
79. American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story
    Kevin Abstract
80. Changer
    Fred Thomas
81. NOW That's What I Call Tailgate Anthems
    various artists
82. 24 Classic Blues Songs From The 1920's: Vol. 15
    various artists
83. We're All in This Together
    Hard Working Americans
84. Salutations
    Conor Oberst
85. Around Félicité (Original Soundtrack)
    Kasai All Stars
86. Battle Hymns
    various artists
87. Deep Dream
    Daddy Issues
88. Drool
    Nnamdi Ogbonnaya
89. Up to Anything
    The Goon Sax
90. South Texas Suite
    Whitney Rose

Dan Sallitt: Favorite Films of 2017, of those “that played at least one week in Manhattan for the first time in 2017, in approximate order of preference”

[see also 2010s • 2019 • 2018 • 2012]

1. Staying Vertical
   Alain Guiraudie
2. The Unknown Girl
   Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne
3. Mister Universo
   Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel
4. How Heavy This Hammer
   Kazik Radwanski
5. Downsizing
   Alexander Payne
6. i hate myself :)
   Joanna Arnow
7. Hermia & Helena
   Matías Piñeiro
8. The Wedding Plan
   Rama Burshtein
9. Marjorie Prime
   Michael Almereyda
10. Slack Bay
    Bruno Dumont
11. Paulina
    Santiago Mitre
12. A Ghost Story
    David Lowery

Alex Balk: Favorite Books of 2017, as published by The Awl

• Priestdaddy
  Patricia Lockwood
• Other Minds

  The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness
  Peter Godfrey-Smith
• Shrinking Violets

  The Secret Life of Shyness
  Joe Moran
• O Sing unto the Lord

  A History of English Church Music
  Andrew Gant
• The Secret Life of the American Musical

  How Broadway Shows Are Built
  Jack Viertel
• Border

  A Journey to the Edge of Europe
  Kapka Kassabova
• No Friends but the Mountains

  Dispatches from the World’s Violent Highlands
  Judith Matloff
• Pale Rider

  The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World
  Laura Spinney
• Asia’s Reckoning

  China, Japan, and the Fate of U.S. Power in the Pacific Century
  Richard McGregor
• The Future Is History

  How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia
  Masha Gessen
• Istanbul

  A Tale of Three Cities
  Bettany Hughes
• The Attention Merchants

  The Epic Scramble to Get Inside Our Heads
  Tim Wu
• Admissions

  Life as a Brain Surgeon
  Henry Marsh
• Behave

  The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
  Robert M. Sapolsky
• Why Buddhism is True

  The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment
  Robert Wright
• Beyond the Self

  Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience
  Matthieu Ricard and Wolf Singer
• My Favorite Thing Is Monsters
  Emil Ferris
• Hostage
  Guy Delisle
• Fear City

  New York’s Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics
  Kim Phillips-Fein
• Uncommon People

  The Rise and Fall of The Rock Stars
  David Hepworth
• The Best We Could Do

  An Illustrated Memoir
  Thi Bui
• Bunk

  The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News
  Kevin Young
• The Illustrated Dust Jacket, 1920-1970
  Martin Salisbury
• Peach
  Emma Glass
• Red Winter
  Anneli Furmark
• Victorious Century

  The United Kingdom, 1800-1906
  David Cannadine
• God Save Texas

  A Journey into the Soul of the Lone Star State
  Lawrence Wright
• Dancing Bears

  True Stories of People Nostalgic for Life Under Tyranny
  Witold Szablowski
• Amiable with Big Teeth
  Claude McKay

Peter Labuza: Favorite Films of 2017 (as discussed on The Cinephiliacs)

[see also 2022 • 2016]

1. Twin Peaks: The Return
   David Lynch
2. Ex Libris: New York Public Library
   Frederick Wiseman
3. Rat Film
   Theo Anthony
4. Good Time
   Ben Safdie and Joshua Safdie
5. The Work
   Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous
5. Nathan for You: Finding Frances
   Nathan Fielder

Keith Uhlich: Favorite Films of 2017 (as discussed on The Cinephiliacs)

[see also 2019 • 2018 • 2016 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Twin Peaks: The Return
   David Lynch
2. Song to Song
   Terrence Malick
3. First Reformed
   Paul Schrader
4. Call Me by Your Name
   Luca Guadagnino
4. BPM (Beats Per Minute)
   Robin Campillo
5. Mosaic
   Steven Soderbergh

Daniel Kasman: Top 20 Films of 2017, as submitted to the annual Senses of Cinema World Poll, limited to films that were “new in cinemas.” See also his lists of older films and films not yet released.

[see also 2018]

• On the Beach at Night Alone
  Hong Sang-soo
• Brawl in Cell Block 99
  S. Craig Zahler
• The Challenge
  Yuri Ancarani
• Ex Libris: New York Public Library
  Frederick Wiseman
• Get Out
  Jordan Peele
• Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back
  Tsui Hark
• In This Corner of the World
  Sunao Katabuchi
• The Lost City of Z
  James Gray
• The Death of Louis XIV
  Albert Serra
• Our Time Will Come
  Ann Hui
• Nocturama
  Bertrand Bonello
• Personal Shopper
  Olivier Assayas
• Princess Cyd
  Stephen Cone
• A Quiet Passion
  Terence Davies
• Rat Film
  Theo Anthony
• Resident Evil: The Final Chapter
  Paul W.S. Anderson
• Song to Song
  Terrence Malick
• Split
  M. Night Shyamalan
• Ta’ang
  Wang Bing
• Tempestad
  Tatiana Huezo

Brian Darr: Top Ten Feature Films of 2017 of commercial US releases, as submitted to the annual Senses of Cinema World Poll, listed alphabetically by original-language title.

See also his “Top Five features undistributed in the USA and first screened in San Francisco in 2017,” “Top Twenty single-channel film and video works of less than feature length,” and “Top ten expanded cinema presentations of 2017.”

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013]

• Graduation
  Cristian Mungiu
• By the Time It Gets Dark
  Anocha Suwichakornpong
• Dunkirk
  Christopher Nolan
• Ex Libris: New York Public Library
  Frederick Wiseman
• Good Time
  Ben Safdie and Joshua Safdie
• Wet Woman in the Wind
  Akihiko Shiota
• Kedi
  Ceyda Torun
• Lady Bird
  Greta Gerwig
• Nocturama
  Bertrand Bonello
• Tony Conrad: Completely in the Present
  Tyler Hubby

Jim Fusilli: Best Albums of 2017, as published by The Wall Street Journal

• Hot Thoughts
  Spoon
• Prisoner
  Ryan Adams
• The Lonely, The Lonesome & The Gone
  Lee Ann Womack
• Painted Ruins
  Grizzly Bear
• The Temple of I & I
  Thievery Corporation
• The Iceberg
  Oddisee
• Black Origami
  Jlin
• Aromanticism
  Moses Sumney
• I See You
  The xx
• Slowdive
  Slowdive
• Fake Sugar
  Beth Ditto
• Reflections of a Floating World
  Elder

David Wiegand: 10 Best TV Shows of 2017, as published by The San Francisco Chronicle. This year it “includes only shows that premiered in 2017.”

[see also 2016]

• The Long Road Home
• The Handmaid’s Tale
• The Deuce
• I Love Dick
• Ozark
• The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
• The Vietnam War
• GLOW
• Legion
• One Day at a Time

Scout Tafoya: Favorite Films of 2017, with a capsule review of each one

[see also 2021 • 2018 • 2016]

1. Phantom Thread
   Paul Thomas Anderson
2. Twin Peaks: The Return
   David Lynch
3. Lady Bird
   Greta Gerwig
4. The Rider
   Chloé Zhao
5. Zama
   Lucrecia Martel
6. A Cure for Wellness
   Gore Verbinski
7. Call Me by Your Name
   Luca Guadagnino
8. The Young Karl Marx
   Raoul Peck
9. Éternité
   Tran Anh Hung
10. Contemporary Color
    Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross
11. Behemoth
    Zhao Liang
12. My Happy Family
    Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß
13. Wormwood
    Errol Morris
14. Voyage of Time: Life’s Journey
    Terrence Malick
14. Song to Song
    Terrence Malick
15. Faces Places
    Agnès Varda and JR
16. Alias Grace
    Mary Harron
17. Coco
    Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina
18. Beach Rats
    Eliza Hittman
19. The Rape of Recy Taylor
    Nancy Buirski
20. Marjorie Prime
    Michael Almereyda
21. Tour de Pharmacy
    Jake Szymanski
22. Sleep Has Her House
    Scott Barley
23. Dawson City: Frozen Time
    Bill Morrison
24. Mimosas
    Oliver Laxe
25. Slack Bay
    Bruno Dumont
26. I Called Him Morgan
    Kasper Collin
27. The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)
    Noah Baumbach
28. Let the Sunshine In
    Claire Denis
29. The Untamed
    Amat Escalante
30. Good Luck
    Ben Russell
31. In the Fade
    Fatih Akin
32. Blade of the Immortal
    Takashi Miike
33. Stronger
    David Gordon Green
34. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
    Martin McDonagh
35. Pilgrimage
    Brendan Muldowney
36. The Beguiled
    Sofia Coppola
37. Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982-1992
    John Ridley
38. Lady Macbeth
    William Oldroyd
39. Operation Avalanche
    Matt Johnson
40. On the Beach at Night Alone
    Hong Sang-soo
41. Loveless
    Andrey Zvyagintsev
42. Endless Poetry
    Alejandro Jodorowsky
43. Dark Night
    Tim Sutton
44. The Other Side of Hope
    Aki Kaurismäki
45. Whose Streets?
    Sabaah Folayan and Damon Davis
46. Strong Island
    Yance Ford
47. Good Time
    Ben Safdie and Joshua Safdie
48. Landline
    Gillian Robespierre
49. The Square
    Ruben Östlund
50. Split
    M. Night Shyamalan
51. Hello Destroyer
    Kevan Funk
52. Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer
    Joseph Cedar
53. Afterimage
    Andrzej Wajda
54. Godless
    Scott Frank
55. Guerrilla
    John Ridley and Sam Miller
56. Ex Libris: New York Public Library
    Frederick Wiseman
57. Princess Cyd
    Stephen Cone
58. Thelma
    Joachim Trier
59. Jungle
    Greg McLean
60. Before We Vanish
    Kiyoshi Kurosawa
61. Wasteland No.1 – Ardent, Verdant
    Jodie Mack
62. BPM (Beats Per Minute)
    Robin Campillo
63. The Labyrinth
    Bram Ruiter
64. See You Yesterday
    Stefon Bristol
65. Alien: Covenant
    Ridley Scott
66. The Salesman
    Asghar Farhadi
67. The Assignment
    Walter Hill
68. Top of the Lake: China Girl
    Jane Campion and Ariel Kleiman
69. Berlin Syndrome
    Cate Shortland
70. Ismael’s Ghosts
    Arnaud Desplechin
71. T2 Trainspotting
    Danny Boyle
72. Lucky
    John Carroll Lynch
73. Paint It Black
    Amber Tamblyn
74. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
    Rian Johnson
75. Gunpowder
    J Blakeson
76. It
    Andy Muschietti
77. All the Money in the World
    Ridley Scott
78. The Big Sick
    Michael Showalter
79. Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold
    Griffin Dunne
80. Logan
    James Mangold
81. Get Out
    Jordan Peele
82. Logan Lucky
    Steven Soderbergh
83. Wind River
    Taylor Sheridan
84. Patton Oswalt: Annihilation
    Bobcat Goldthwait
85. The Wall
    Doug Liman
86. Horace Tapscott: Musical Griot
    Barbara McCullough
87. Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
    Angela Robinson
88. Nathan for You: Finding Frances
    Nathan Fielder
89. Girls Trip
    Malcolm D. Lee
90. Okja
    Bong Joon-ho
91. American Fable
    Anne Hamilton
92. Paris 05:59: Théo & Hugo
    Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau
93. Kojo
    Michael Fequiere
94. The Event
    Sergei Loznitsa
95. Pumpkin Movie
    Sophy Romvari
95. It’s Him
    Sophy Romvari
96. The Daughter
    Simon Stone
97. The Great Wall
    Zhang Yimou
98. First They Killed My Father
    Angelina Jolie
99. Annabelle: Creation
    David F. Sandberg
100. The Commune
     Thomas Vinterberg