The Best Films of 2016

PopMatters presents a list of the best films that surfaced in 2016 and impressed us with their cinematic visions of where we’ve been.

                                      
Film
    
        'I, Daniel Blake' Wins the Palme d'Or, If Not Popular Favor
    
PopMatters Staff
Kenneth Turan

        23 May 2016
    
Reviews
    
        Cannes 2016: Ken Loach Blasts Britain's Welfare System in 'I, Daniel Blake'
    
Alex Ramon

        13 May 2016
    
Film
    
        Director Spotlight: Ken Loach: The Angels' Share
    
Jose Solis

        15 Apr 2013

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Reviews

September 11

The shorts in this international, 9/11-inspired collection range from masterpieces to messes.

Josh Timmermann

Reviews

The Wind That Shakes the Barley

Ken Loach’s controversial Palm d’Or winner is a work of supreme ambivalence.

Josh Timmerman

Film

The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

Ken Loach's Cannes Palme d'Or-winning film uses a familiar narrative form, it does so in a way that leaves the form itself in doubt, heroizing no one, offering no resolution.

Film

A Fond Kiss (2003)

At the end of A Fond Kiss, Ken Loach's latest film, we are left with a lingering anxiety about the viability of interracial relationships.

Lester Pimentel

Reviews

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'I, Daniel Blake' Wins the Palme d'Or, If Not Popular Favor

Cannes 2016: Ken Loach Blasts Britain's Welfare System in 'I, Daniel Blake'

September 11

The shorts in this international, 9/11-inspired collection range from masterpieces to messes.

The Wind That Shakes the Barley

Ken Loach’s controversial Palm d’Or winner is a work of supreme ambivalence.

The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

Ken Loach's Cannes Palme d'Or-winning film uses a familiar narrative form, it does so in a way that leaves the form itself in doubt, heroizing no one, offering no resolution.

A Fond Kiss (2003)

At the end of A Fond Kiss, Ken Loach's latest film, we are left with a lingering anxiety about the viability of interracial relationships.

A Certain Ratio Return with a Message of Hope on 'ACR Loco'

The Flaming Lips Reimagine Tom Petty's Life in Oklahoma on 'American Head'

Colombia's Simón Mejía Plugs Into the Natural World on 'Mirla'

Bright Eyes' 'Down in the Weeds' Is a Return to Form and a Statement of Hope

Oscar Hijuelos' 'Mambo Kings Play the Songs of Love' Dances On

'Lost Girls and Love Hotels' and Finding Comfort in Sadness

Angel Olsen Creates a 'Whole New Mess'

IDLES Have Some Words for Fans and Critics on 'Ultra Mono'

'What a Fantastic Death Abyss': David Bowie's 'Outside' at 25

Tim Bowness of No-Man Discusses Thematic Ambition Amongst Social Division

Audrey Hepburn + Rome = Grace, Class, and Beauty

Paul Reni's Silent Film 'The Man Who Laughs' Is Serious Cinema

Wolf Parade's 'Apologies to the Queen Mary' Turns 15

PM Picks Playlist 1: Rett Madison, Folk Devils + More

Blitzen Trapper on the Afterlife, Schizophrenia, Civil Unrest and Our Place in the Cosmos

PopMatters presents a list of the best films that surfaced in 2016 and impressed us with their cinematic visions of where we’ve been.

A phrase attributed to Truman Capote might well be applied to Billy Casper and his kestrel, as well: The world is not kind to little things.

The shorts in this international, 9/11-inspired collection range from masterpieces to messes.

Ken Loach’s controversial Palm d’Or winner is a work of supreme ambivalence.

Ken Loach's Cannes Palme d'Or-winning film uses a familiar narrative form, it does so in a way that leaves the form itself in doubt, heroizing no one, offering no resolution.

At the end of A Fond Kiss, Ken Loach's latest film, we are left with a lingering anxiety about the viability of interracial relationships.