Favorite movies of 2016

After posting about my favorite reads of 2016, I decided to go through the movies I watched last year (thanks to Netflix, where my ratings are recorded) and post my favorite movies as well. I don't watch as many movies as I read books, so I'm only going to list the top 5.

1. "Rogue One"
I admit that, when I first heard that they were making a standalone Star Wars movie, I was skeptical how it would turn out. Then, when the first trailer of "Rogue One" was released, most of my doubts faded. This turned out to be my favorite movie of the year and one of my favorite Star Wars movies of all time. The fact that I already knew how the story would end didn't diminish my enjoyment of it. I'll also never view the first minutes of "A New Hope" the same way again.

2. "Finding Dory"
I can't count the number of times I've seen "Finding Nemo." Not only did I love the movie, but it was my kids' favorite for a long time too. I was excited when I learned there would be a sequel featuring Dory, and the movie didn't disappoint. It was great to see many of the old characters return for the sequel, but this is really a new story with fresh new characters. Ellen DeGeneres is once again superb as the forgetful Dory.

3. "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them"
Even if you've never seen any of the Harry Potter movies, I think you'll enjoy "Fantastic Beasts." However, as a Harry Potter fan, I appreciated all the little nods to the books found in the movie as well as the chance to see what the wizarding world in the U.S. was like. It also didn't hurt that Newt Scamander is a Hufflepuff like me. :-)

4. "Deadpool"
I didn't expect to like "Deadpool" as much as I did. It wasn't because of the story, which we've seen before. It must've been due to Deadpool's witty commentary, which made me laugh throughout the movie, or the references to other Marvel movies. Although the origin story didn't quite fit the Deadpool character in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine", Ryan Reynolds did a great job in both movies as Wade Wilson/Deadpool.

5. "Zootopia"
"Zootopia" was a cute movie with a nice lesson, especially given the current political climate. Ginnifer Goodwin did a good job bringing Judy Hopps, the protagonist who is a police officer bunny, to life. If you've seen the trailer featuring the sloth at the DMV, that wasn't even one of the best parts of the movie IMHO, so if you liked that scene, you'll really enjoy the rest of the movie.