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Five Things from the Film Industry I'm Thankful For this Thanksgiving

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1. Pixar's Coco
I can't overstate how much this film meant to me. To finally be able to see my culture being represented on the big screen in an accurate and loving way was overwhelming in the best way possible. I've seen this film twice now and both times I was overcome with a sense of pride at seeing a film being able to perfectly capture the essence of Mexican culture. Every single aspect of this film, from the behaviors to the music, was treated with dignity and respect. I didn't realize how much this film would affect me, but I'm thankful that Coco was made and that it is getting the amount of love that it is. In my eyes, this is the best Pixar film ever made.

2. Horror is Killing it This Year
Image result for losers club 2017Horror has always been my favorite genre in film and to see how hugely successful horror movies were this year has been awesome. Films like It and Get Out made huge amounts of money, but more importantly, they were excellent films that people wanted to see over and over again. In Get Out, we saw a socially relevant story that used racism as its main tool. It gave us a coming-of-age horror film that had more heart than most movies could ever hope for. There are so many other great horror films this year, though. Films such as Raw, It Comes At Night, Better Watch Out and Annabelle: Creation were all great quality films. 2017, in my opinion., has been one of the best years in recent memory for the horror genre.

3. Big Year for Superhero Films
Image result for logan 2017When Logan opened up the year for superhero films, I didn't think any other superhero movie this year would even come close to being as good as Logan was. This was the first superhero film since The Dark Knight that you could seriously talk about possibly contending for some big awards at the Oscars. Yet as the year kept going we got other amazing films like Spider-Man: Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2, Thor: Ragnarok, Justice League and, Wonder Woman, another very possible Academy Award contender. Unlike previous years, there wasn't a single superhero film this year that you could point to say, "That was a horrible film". Comic book films show no sign of slowing down, either, as 2018 promises to have many more amazing films including Black Panther, Venom, and Avengers: Infinity War.

4. Women are Taking Over
Related imageWonder Woman. Battle of the Sexes. Lady Bird. Girls Trip. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. The Beguiled. The Florida Project. Annabelle: Creation. Gerald's Game. Mother! All of these films have strong women at the lead. Wonder Woman shattered record after record on it's way to becoming the best reviewed film of the DC universe and is a legit contender for Best Picture/Director at the Academy Awards. Lady Bird is sitting at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes with 157 reviews and is also going to be an awards contender. Girls Trip was a huge financial and critical success and became the first comedy of 2017 to make $100 million at  the box office. This years Best Actress race is already ridiculously stacked and will be incredibly difficult to narrow down to just five. Women are having quite the year and it's about damn time.

5. Getting Rid of the Trash
As great as 2017 has been, there has also been some truly horrible moments. By now, most people know about the various sexual assault allegations thrown in the direction of some of Hollywood's biggest names. I hate that there are so many of these stories out there but I am thankful, proud and in awe of every single person who has spoken up about it. I'm also thankful that this community has stood behind every single one of the victims and supported them through these very difficult times. Doing this sort of thing is never easy and supporting each other can make a huge difference. I am thankful for everyone that has ensured that monsters like Harvey Weinstein, Andy Signore, Louis C. K., Brett Ratner and Kevin Spacey are no longer allowed to keep being placed in positions of power where they can hurt others.


If there's anything film-related that you are grateful for this year, let me know in the comments!
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