On December 31, 2017, I published my list of best (and worst) films of the year, and most actors in most of the narrative (fiction) films on my list turned in admirable performances, at the very least, which makes it hard to select a limited number of them as standouts. As I write every year, I see no need to publish a separate “best directors” list since, if the film is good, I credit the director for much of that quality. A few actors and actresses in films which I did not put among my highest choices still made it onto the list, below, since they were so magnetic (to me), even if the film they were in was less so.
If someone is not on this list, it does not mean that I did not like them; I just liked others even more. What counts the most is how different I imagined the film would be without them. Therefore, the actors and actresses listed below are those whose work most stands out within the context of the film they’re in. All movie titles are hyperlinked to my review (if such a review exists) or to the movie’s Rotten Tomatoes page. While last year I listed only 5 actors per category, this year I do 10, since I liked so many performances. For Best Actress, I list 12, since I could not cut it down any more without heartbreak. In alphabetical order, by last name within each category, I give you:
BEST ACTRESS
- Gemma Arterton, Their Finest
- Ana Asensio, Most Beautiful Island
- Olivia Cooke, Katie Says Goodbye
- Caroline Dhavernas, Easy Living
- Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
- Lola Kirke, AWOL
- Marie Leuenberger, The Divine Order
- Danielle Macdonald, Patti Cake$
- Haley Lu Richardson, Columbus
- Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
- Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird
- Rebecca Spence, Princess Cyd
BEST ACTOR
- Claes Bang, The Square
- Timothée Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name
- Harris Dickinson, Beach Rats [link points to my review of films at the 2017 Maryland Film Festival; scroll down past the capsule reviews of documentaries to the #1 fiction film]
- James Franco, The Disaster Artist*
- Brett Gelman, Lemon
*Note from 1/9/18 – recent allegations about Franco’s sexual misbehavior now complicate such a nomination. It’s still a great performance, however compromised the actor.
- Hugh Jackman, Logan
- Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out
- Kumail Nanjiani, The Big Sick
- Eric Ruffin, The Transfiguration
- Adrian Titieni, Graduation
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
- Mary J. Blige, Mudbound
- Lucy Davis, Wonder Woman
- Ana de Armas, Blade Runner 2049
- Bridget Everett, Patti Cake$
- Tiffany Haddish, Girls Trip
- Holly Hunter, The Big Sick
- Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird
- Elisabeth Moss, The Square
- Tessa Thompson, Thor: Ragnarok
- Madeline Weinstein, Beach Rats [link points to my review of films at the 2017 Maryland Film Festival; scroll down past the capsule reviews of documentaries to the #1 fiction film]
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Mamoudou Athie, Patti Cake$
- John Cho, Columbus
- Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project
- Graham Greene, Wind River
- Lucas Hedges, Lady Bird
- Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water
- Beulah Koale, Thank You for Your Service
- Rob Morgan, Mudbound
- Terry Notary, The Square
- Alex Pettyfer, The Strange Ones
chrisreedfilm 