10 great screen performers from 2017
The line between film and television continued to blur in 2017 - just look at this year's edition of the much-vaunted Sight & Sound film poll, which names all 18 hours of David Lynch's third season of “Twin Peaks” as the second-best movie of the year.
Widescreen's year-end best list reflects that blur, with my 10 favorite performers from the big and small screens, presented in alphabetical order:
Gal Gadot, “Wonder Woman” and “Justice League”
We've seen her play Diana Prince before, but Israeli-born Gadot became a superstar this summer when she walked across a Belgian battlefield, deflecting enemy fire as the Allied forces liberated a village full of innocents. Gadot's charisma helped propel “Wonder Woman” to an $822 million worldwide gross, and provided a heart that “Justice League” so desperately needed in the wake of the dreary “Batman v Superman.”
Carla Gugino, “Gerald's Game”
This Stephen King adaptation directed by Mike Flanagan (“Oculus”) for Netflix asks Gugino to carry an entire movie while handcuffed to a bed - the title character's (Bruce Greenwood) attempt to spice up his love life ends when he has a fatal heart attack, leaving wife Jessie (Gugino) to find a way out before starvation, a feral dog, or a mystery man claim her life. Jessie's solution is truly shocking to behold, and Gugino triumphs even if King's story, ultimately, does not.
Sylvia Hoeks, “Blade Runner 2049”
Denis Villeneuve's sequel to Ridley Scott's classic exceeded all possible expectations, and the great work from Ryan Gosling, Harrison Ford, Ana de Armas and Mackenzie Davis was exceeded by that of this Dutch actress who explodes onto the screen much like Sofia Boutella did in “Kingsman: The Secret Service.” As a murderous Replicant named Luv, Hoeks steals every scene and takes part in one of the most visually stunning setpieces of recent memory: a fistfight inside a car that has crashed into the ocean.
Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”
Previously best-known for an “American Idol”-inspired episode of “Black Mirror,” Kaluuya provides Jordan Peele's directorial debut with a weary, worldly presence that helped make it one of the year's most important films. The marketing's signature image - Kaluuya's shocked, teary face - comes straight from an instantly classic scene in which one of his tormentors sends him to “The Sunken Place,” a hypnotized state that is the first step toward this film's horrific vision of extreme cultural appropriation.
Jessica Lange, “Feud: Bette and Joan”
Lange reunites with showrunner Ryan Murphy, who made her a star again with “American Horror Story,” in this FX limited series that began as a deliciously snarky behind-the-scenes tell-all but ended as a tragic portrait of Hollywood legend Joan Crawford. Lange is heartbreaking as the actress who never quite achieved the fame and recognition of her “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” co-star, Bette Davis (played here by Susan Sarandon), especially in the final episode's bittersweet hallucination.
Melanie Lynskey, “I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore”
Lynskey's been one of our best and most underappreciated actors since Peter Jackson's “Heavenly Creatures” in 1994, and this quirky Netflix thriller might be her best work yet. A burglary leads Ruth, a perfectly normal nursing assistant, down an unpredictable path alongside a creepy neighbor (Elijah Wood) whose martial arts skills come in handy when things start getting violent. Lynskey gives Ruth a strength that perhaps she didn't know she had.
Ewan McGregor, “Fargo”
Assigned the gimmicky task of playing twins in the third season of FX's anthology, McGregor transcends as the feuding Stussy brothers Ray (a corrupt probation officer) and Emmit (a parking lot magnate under the thumb of a British opportunist). I must give a spoiler to explain how much I loved the characters McGregor crafted here: When Emmit accidentally killed Ray in the sixth episode, I was so upset that I couldn't finish the season. I need to fix that; I owe it to McGregor.
Kenan Thompson, “Saturday Night Live”
The longest-serving cast member in “SNL” history has been its best in 2017, bringing unhinged silliness to a time of political turmoil. Thompson can save a sketch with one funny line, and he can also turn a weird idea into a classic, as he did in the 43rd season premiere with host Ryan Gosling. Their risky, end-of-the-night sketch, “Dive Bar,” depicts a terrible nightclub act that becomes preoccupied with the potential loss of Thompson's “good dark jeans.”
Kelly Marie Tran, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
The eighth episode of the Skywalker family saga has divided filmgoers, but most “Star Wars” fans can agree that Tran - a comedian making her blockbuster debut - is a delight as Rose, a Resistance mechanic who gets swept up in an adventure with former Stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega) and scene-stealing droid BB-8. Tran gets the film's most important line of dialogue in the climactic battle on Crait's salt flats, giving voice to what may prove to be the sequel trilogy's overriding theme.
Finn Wolfhard, “It” and “Stranger Things 2”
The Canadian teen carried the first season of “Stranger Things” as Mike Wheeler, the kid who hides telekinetic hero Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) in his basement, and in 2017 he provided comic relief in the highest-grossing horror movie of all time. “It” was my favorite film of the year (if not the best), and Wolfhard's foul-mouthed Richie Tozier was a big reason why. Wolfhard had a reduced role in the second season of Netflix's smash, but delivered an emotional payoff in the final episode.
Sean Stangland is a Daily Herald multiplatform editor. Follow him on Twitter at @SeanStanglandDH.