Box office numbers are a good indicator of how commercial a movie is, but there are other things to consider: fan reactions, critics’ takes and overall memorability. Gulf News tabloid! looks at which films made an impact this year, and which sunk to the bottom of the barrel.
5 HOLLYWOOD HITS
Beauty and the Beast
Disney’s live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast hit the sweet spot by earning positive reviews while also striking box office gold. It’s the 10th highest-grossing film of all time.
Get Out
A searing social commentary on racism and slavery, Get Out, Jordan Peele’s directorial debut, was an instant hit. The horror film generated award buzz, nabbing two Golden Globe nominations.
Dunkirk
Dunkirk has its flaws, but it was a striking cinematic exploration of a lesser known Second World War event, told by director Christopher Nolan. Hans Zimmer’s score was hauntingly resonant, too.
Thor: Ragnarok
Thor: Ragnarok arrived in Q4 of 2017, but it was well worth the wait. Director Taika Waititi revived Marvel’s Asgardian hero in this side-splitting, ambitious and action-packed third instalment.
The Big Sick
Kumail Nanjiani’s romantic comedy The Big Sick, based on his real-life courtship of wife Emily Gordon, was the unexpected hit of the year — touching, funny and gut-wrenching in all the right places.
5 HOLLYWOOD FLOPS
Justice League
Fans had high hopes for Justice League, DCU’s response to the MCU’s Avengers, but the general consensus was that it was patchy and built on a weak premise.
Emoji Movie
Who would have thought an animation about emoticons would elicit the year’s most savage reviews? The Emoji Movie, despite casting big names such as Patrick Stewart, was ripped to shreds.
American Assassin
American Assassin, a tone-deaf political action film, relied on xenophobic undertones to tell a formulaic revenge story. A disappointing showing from Michael Keaton, Dylan O’Brien and Taylor Kitsch.
Geostorm
A lot went into Geostorm, but little came out of it. The disaster movie, starring Gerard Butler and Jim Sturgess, took a critical lashing and was described as a disaster itself.
Ghost in the Shell
Ghost in the Shell self-destructed after casting Scarlett Johansson in the lead and whitewashing the Japanese franchise. The film didn’t survive the backlash, barely turning a profit.
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BOLLYWOOD
Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, a fantasy epic dubbed in Hindi featuring South Indian stars, dominated the Hindi box-office landscape of 2017, and a slew of comedies spread cheer. Here’s a look at movies that was adored and the ones that sank without a trace …
5 BOLLYWOOD HITS
Baahubali 2: The Conclusion
Steeped in Indian mythology, this historical action-adventure set in medieval India smashed all records and collected over $120 million (Dh440.6 million) during its first week. Dubbed in Hindi, this visual spectacle had a steady stream of gallant heroes, enchanting princesses, bloody battle scenes and roaring elephants.
Golmaal Again
The reviews were scathing, but director Rohit Shetty’s supernatural comedy was a big box-office draw with a collection of over Rs2 billion (Dh114 million). Ajay Devgn romancing a younger woman, played by Parineeti Chopra, and the tomfoolery of his gang were the highlights.
Judwaa 2
Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan’s bronzed torso was almost a character in this physical comedy about a pair of long-lost identical twins. A comedy of errors filled with mistaken identities, dazzling song-dance numbers and mindless gags were the takeaways.
Raees
Shah Rukh Khan played the swashbuckling bootlegger in director Rahul Dholakia’s thriller. He is a criminal, but with a heart of gold. What’s not to like?
Toilet: Ek Prem Katha
Here’s a romance that sprung out of unlikely premise, but was lapped up eagerly by movie fans. The valiant efforts of a small-town husband, played by Akshay Kumar, to build a toilet for his bride, who refused to go and do her business in the open farmlands, was the central theme.
5 BOLLYWOOD FLOPS
Ok Jaanu
Even the remix of A R Rahman’s song Ek Ho Gaye Hum Aur Tum couldn’t salvage this Karan Johar film. While the Aashiqui couple, Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor, looked supremely good together, there was nothing else to keep this ship afloat.
Jagga Jasoos
Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif dedicated at least three years of their lives into this ambitious whacky comic caper, but their noble intentions weren’t enough to see this film through. It made for a long, tedious watch.
Sarkar 3
Even the rich baritone of Amitabh Bachchan as a political patriarch couldn’t save this thriller, which reeked of lazy writing and an uninspiring plot. Milking the elements that worked in the first instalment of Sarkar with a third chapter wasn’t a smart idea.
Rangoon
This flawed romantic triangle between an actress, a director and a soldier, set against the backdrop of the Second World War, had little going for it. Made on a budget of more than Rs800 million, the much-anticipated epic only earned Rs200 million making it a colossal disaster of 2017.
Raabta
A love story set against the backdrop of re-incarnation is an idea as old as the hills, and Raabta starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon, failed to thrill. While the chemistry between the lead pair was evident, the story faltered beyond repair.