Silver Screen Riot’s Top Ten Films of 2016

January 3, 2017 by Matt Oakes Posted in Lists, Most Popular Tagged 10 Cloverfield Lane, Arrival, Don’t Breathe, Green Room, La La Land, Moonlight, Sing Street, Swiss Army Man, The Lobster, The Witch, Top 10 Movies of 2016 3 Comments

2016. What a year. As rock ‘n’ roll gods and Princess Leia were smote from the surface of the earth, Trump and Suicide Squad and the Zika virus emerged. But through the muck and the mire emerged a slew of films that rocked socks and reminded us that the movie theater is more often than not a safer space than CNN. As always there were a huge number of films in contention for a limited number of spots and making room for some meant dashing the hopes of others. So before we get to the top ten, let’s run through some very laudable runner-ups. Read More

The 25 Best Films of 2016 (So Far)

June 24, 2016 by Matt Oakes Posted in Lists, Most Popular Tagged 10 Cloverfield Lane, Anomalisa, Demolition, Don’t Breathe, Don’t Think Twice, Everybody Wants Some, Green Room, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Indignation, Krisha, Love & Friendship, Manchester by the Sea, Midnight Special, Rams, Sing Street, Swiss Army Man, The Birth of a Nation, The Nice Guys, The Witch, Transpecos 1 Comment

The year is just about half way through and with three film festivals under the belt, it seems appropriate to recount what have been the best of the year to date. We know there’s six more months of cinema coming down the drain and a lot of late arrivals usually have significant dominion over our end of year Top Ten list but we want to take the time to acknowledge what has already come and gone, to celebrate 25 marvelous films which unfortunately most people probably haven’t seen. Some of these have only played festivals and will get a wide release later in the year so keep your eyes peeled while others are already ready and waiting on Blu-Ray or DVD for your viewing enjoyment. Do yourself a favor and look into a few of them, won’t you? Read More

Out in Theaters: ‘SING STREET’

April 27, 2016 by Matt Oakes Posted in Most Popular, Out in Theaters Tagged Aidan Gillen, Don Wycherley, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Ian Kenny, Jack Reynor, John Carney, Lucy Boynton, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Mark McKenna, Out in Theaters, Reviews, Sing Street 1 Comment

Sing Street is that rare film that manages to be good to its core. Like Ward Cleaver teaching Wally and Beaver an important life lesson good. Or finding someone’s billfold on the beach and mailing it to them good. Neil Young crooning “Heart of Gold” good. Snuggling a 6-week old puppy good. Pure dictionary definition good. Omnibenevolence bleeds from the very pores of John Carney’s latest singing sensation to create a sharp-tongued crowdpleaser positively dripping with wit and charm that results in an unimpeachably winning film sure to elicit tears and laughs in equal measure. That it’s also a whipsmart, droll and overwhelmingly heartfelt coming-of-age film brimming with 80s nostalgia and upbeat tuneage drives it the extra mile. Read More