The Best of 2017: The Best New Movies I Saw

I can't help but think that if more people saw more of the types of new movies I saw in 2017, the world would be a better place.

Yes, I know how naive, foolish, snobbish and vainglorious that sounds.

Yet I really don't mean to suggest my tastes are better than anyone else's, or to condemn blockbusters about superheroes or space battles.

I enjoy several of those myself.

But I liked how the crop of new films I saw this year depicted real people facing identifiable issues.

Such as the British pensioners fighting cold bureaucracy in I, Daniel Blake, the Hasidic widower trying to retain custody of his child in Menashe, the Native American couple coping with tragic loss in Wind River, the Iranian theater director seething after an attack on his wife in The Salesman, African-Americans facing abject brutality in Mudbound and Detroit and aiming to rise above it, the Georgian (the country, not state) woman searching for appreciation & peace of mind in My Happy Family, the teenagers discovering young love, sometimes with those of the same sex, in Lady Bird and Call Me By Your Name.

Hence, the idealist lefty in me can't help think that if more people saw--at least onscreen--others they presumed were nothing like them, but who faced similar struggles, heartbreaks, etc., we wouldn't be besieged by so much bigotry and xenophobia.

And with that I move onto my rather standard disclaimer my selections below do not adhere to Academy Award eligibility for "2017," but rather include any films that first played at a movie theater or TV screen near me over the past 12 months.

I've decided to list out My Favorite Documentaries separately, and actually will do so right here:

1. I Am Not Your Negro
2. Chasing Trane
3. Pearl Jam: Let's Play Two
4. One of Us
5. Loving Vincent
6. Joe Cocker: Mad Dog with Soul
7. Long Shot

As in years past, after my list I will include the Top 10 of my friend Dave, who tends to see a wider swath of art films than I do.

I won't take the time to spell out which films are still in theaters, on Netflix or other streaming service, rentable or whatever else, but have found an app called Just Watch is quite valuable in this regard. 

Best New Movies Seen in 2017
(F = Foreign; A = Animated; 16 = Officially a 2016 release)

1. Dunkirk
2. I, Daniel Blake

3. The Salesman (F, 16)

4. Lady Bird

5. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

6. Wind River

7. Mudbound

8. Call Me By Your Name
9. Silence (16) 
10. The Shape of Water

11. Molly's Game

12. Okja

13. Menashe

14. Detroit

15. My Happy Family (F)
16. Darkest Hour

17. Coco (A)

18. Hidden Figures (16)

19. Logan
20. Everybody Loves Somebody

Honorable Mention (in preference order)

Baby Driver

Columbus

The Lost City of Z

Colossal

Get Out

20th Century Women

Wonder Woman

The Big Sick
Their Finest

Beauty and the Beast

Good Time

Notable 2017 Movies Not Yet Seen
The Florida Project, The Square, All the Money in the World, The Disaster Artist, I Tonya, The Post, Phantom Thread, Wonder, It, The Ornithologist, God's Own Country, A Ghost Story, Blade Runner 2049, Battle of the Sexes, American Made, Logan Lucky, War for the Planet of the Apes, A Quiet Passion, Last Flag Flying, Thank You For Your Service, Marjorie Prime, Brigsby Bear, Brad's Status

Notable Movies Seen But Not Cited Above
The Meyerowitz Stories, Megan Leavey, Graduation, A United Kingdom, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Spiderman Homecoming, Split, Paterson, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, John Wick 2, Atomic Blonde, Mother

Dave's Top 10 Movies of 2017

1. Baby Driver
2. The Salesman (F)
3. Lady Bird
4. Dunkirk 
5. Julieta (F)
6. The Square
7. The Big Sick
8. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
9. The Florida Project
10. Frantz (F)

The Best of 2017: Some Most Memorable Meals

As is pretty typical in a given year, in 2017 I ate over 300 meals out-of-home.

Most of these were fairly pedestrian: hot dog stands, fast food, Bakers Square, etc.

But I can enjoy a good meal at these types of places--including a couple that opened this year in Skokie, where I live--and occasionally at places considerably nicer.

In this list for 2016, I cited my favorite places in various food categories, and in 2015 I delineated by the level of restaurant as best I could.

Many of those selections still remain valid, so I think I'll make this a much simpler, multifaceted list aimed at highlighting some of the more unique, delicious and perhaps new restaurants & meals I savored.

Restaurants I Especially Enjoyed in 2017
Not in ranked order. Primarily based on food and perhaps setting & ambiance; not factoring in companions, occasions, etc. Restaurants are in the Chicago area except as noted.

● Sea Lounge - Mumbai, India. In August I traveled to India, partially with a tour group mainly eating buffet style. Some of these were very good, as cited below, but my best meal in India was at this restaurant in Mumbai's famed Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, where I stayed for a night. There was a special menu to celebrate India's 70th Independence Day, and I greatly enjoyed my salmon dish and much else.
● Pierpont's - Kansas City. An excellent steakhouse in KCMO's Union Station. A generous "tasting menu" combo deal provided filet mignon, crab cakes, bisque and creme brulee, and the server was memorable as well.
● Culver's - Skokie. The Wisconsin-based fast-food chain opened a location in Skokie, and
was probably where I ate the most in 2017. Not exactly health food, but I love the sourdough melt, pot roast sandwich, pork tenderloin sandwich, cheese curds and custard of many varieties.
● Taco Diablo - Evanston. I've long enjoyed Taco Nano, something of a posh taqueria in Northfield, and noticed, visited & wrote about several similar taco stands that exist in Chicago's North Shore suburbs (Trendy Taco, Taco Lago, Stacked & Folded, The Otherdoor). Taco Diablo is somewhat different, as it has wait service, but I really enjoyed the tacos I got there, and the range of options. 
● Savory Crust - Morton Grove. A small joint with literally one table, but their fresh empanadas are wonderful.

● Cosme - New York. Every time I go to NYC, I try to find a fancy restaurant to splurge at, though relatively inexpensively (typically for lunch rather than dinner). Cosme fit the bill, as it is ranked #40 on the World's Best Restaurant list and is owned by a chef of a place I liked in Mexico City (Pujol). But getting just tacos (featuring Cobia, a fish) and dessert, it didn't cost a fortune.
● Las Fuentes - Morton Grove. Still my "go-to" Mexican restaurant near home, and I haven't tasted better Mole sauce (on the enchiladas) anywhere else.
● Shahpura House - Jaipur, India. The fanciest restaurant on the Gate 1 "Golden Triangle" tour of Delhi, Jaipur and Agra. A bit of tummy queasiness prompted me not to indulge in the buffet quite as much as I might have liked, but still quite a memorable excursion, including rooftop appetizers and entertainment before our main meal. 
● Real Urban Barbecue - Skokie. I've enjoyed their restaurants in Highland Park and Vernon Hills, so was glad when one opened this year on Touhy in Skokie. Between their Burnt Ends sandwiches and fine baby back ribs, it was better BBQ than I had on a trip to Kansas City.
● Monastero's - Chicago. This family-owned Italian restaurant has been a Chicagoinstitution for 55 years. Though I'd been to a friend's wedding in the banquet hall some years back, I didn't ever eat in the restaurant, until a week before it closed forever. My sister and I took my mom for her birthday and we all really enjoyed it.
● Rojo Gusano

- Chicago Located along Ravenswood, I went here during Chicago Restaurant Week back in February, and still fondly recall the ceviche.
● Riobamba Latin Kitchen - Glenview. A bit after my taco exploration mentioned above (under Taco Diablo), I discovered this place and feel it deserves mention.
● Ess-a-Bagel - New York. The line was out the door, but I circumvented it by getting just one bulk "everything" bagel with nothing on it, to eat as I walked down 51st Street toward Rockefeller Center. It may be the best bagel I've ever had, and I consider myself a connoisseur.
● The Exchange - Novotel Aerocity, Delhi, India. By far the best of several hotel buffets enjoyed on my Indian adventure.
● Prime & Provisions -  Chicago. A Restaurant Week meal here with good friends supplied the best steak I had in Chicago in 2017. 
● The Noodle - Wilmette. A selection on past lists, but with pasta made and cut fresh in front of one's eyes, this remains my favorite restaurant close to home. 
● Poochie's - Skokie. Still my favorite hot dog stand anywhere. 

The Best of 2017: Sights Seen and Photos Taken (and a few brushes with fame)

This is not a competitive category.

The photos--all taken by me except for those of me--are shown in the order taken throughout the year.

They aren't ranked in terms of quality, and may not really be the best photos I took.

Some are chosen for photo quality, but most to show sights I saw, events I attended, people I encountered, etc.

In none of these regards is the post meant to be comprehensive. And though it largely leaves out--intentionally--photos with family & friends, this isn't to suggest those moments weren't special.

Me with the Cubs World Series Trophy, at Naperville City Hall. See more in this post.

The legendary Buddy Guy holds court at Buddy Guy's Legends. See this post.

The exterior of a now-closed hardware store in a building that once held a famed jazz club. See this post.

A mural from the old Sunset Cafe / Grand Terrace Cafe. See above.

The American Toby Jug Museum in Evanston, IL. See this post.

The Best of 2017: The Best New Albums I Heard

If there were any albums released in 2017 bound to be considered classics--at least in a rock vein, with apologies to Kendrick Lamar and Run the Jewels, acclaimed and respected but not to my tastes--I am either unaware or unappreciative.

Certainly, the paucity of my CD purchases has much to do with my preponderant listening via Spotify--for which I have a premium subscription--but I still can be compelled to buy a physical album.

Yet I did so only for the new U2 (Songs of Experience) and Taylor Swift (Reputation) albums, neither of which I cared for nearly as much as hoped.

 Sure, it was nice that some old favorites--Robert Plant, Ray Davies, Blondie, Billy Corgan, Paul Weller--put out some decent material, but it didn't really come close to their best work.

The same can also be said for more contemporary favorites like Arcade Fire and Maximo Park.

And while there certainly were albums I listened to during the year, particularly to prep for concerts I attended--and there were several stellar ones of those, per a list coming soon--for the most part the list below is culled from what I liked best in a barrage of listening over just the past few weeks.

My #1 album was released in January but I only first heard it in December. It's by an artist I've never much cared about before. Yet I found it to be the most exciting and consistent album of the year.

So make of this list what you will.

It's likely I may not much remember, or champion, these albums in years to come. And perhaps I'll discover some works I missed or undervalued that would significantly change the ranked order.

But in a year that once again saw the passing of far too many rock greats--Chuck Berry, Tom Petty, Chris Cornell, Gregg Allman, Chester Bennington, Walter Becker, Grant Hart, Gord Downie, Malcolm Young, Tommy Keene, Fats Domino, Pat DiNizio--these were:

My Favorite New Rock Albums of 2017

1. Cloud Nothings - Life Without Sound (Spotify link)

2. The National - Sleep Well Beast (Spotify link)

3. Robert Plant - Carry Fire (Spotify link)

4. Arcade Fire - Everything Now (Spotify link)

5. Maximo Park - Risk to Exist (Spotify link)

6. Ray Davies - Americana (Spotify link)

7. Lorde - Melodrama (Spotify link)

8. Blondie - Pollinator (Spotify link)

9. Mavis Staples - If All I Was Was Black (Spotify link)

10. Gorillaz - Humanz (Spotify link) 

11. Billy Corgan - Ogilala (Spotify link)

Honorable Mention

Paul Weller - A Kind Revolution (Spotify link)
War on Drugs - A Deeper Understanding (Spotify link)
The New Pornographers - Whiteout Conditions (Spotify link)
LCD Soundsystem - American Band (Spotify link)
Liam Gallagher - As You Were (Spotify link)
Father John Misty - Pure Comedy (Spotify Link)

Special Mention

As in 2016, the new "albums" I listened to and liked the most this year aren't represented on the above list. I am a huge Bruce Springsteen fan, and while the Boss didn't release any new music in 2017, via live.brucespringsteen.net he put out official recordings of all of his February concerts in Australia with the E Street Band, as well as several archival live sets.

These are the ones I bought--as downloads, though CDs are also available--and I love them all:

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
● Brisbane 2/14/17
● St. Louis 8/23/08
● Helsinki 7/31/12
● Albany 2/7/77
● Rochester 2/8/77
● New York 7/1/00
● Stockholm 7/3/88

If you only want one, I'd recommend St. Louis 8/23/08.

Pearl Jam has also long released official bootlegs of their concerts--which can be found here--and though long-delayed, their two Wrigley Field shows in Chicago (August 20 & 22, 2016) are now available and quite good.

Metallica likewise releases all their shows, and though their setlists in 2017 were pretty static, I enjoy having a recording of the Chicago / Soldier Field concert I attended on June 18. (LiveMetallica.com)