1. "Women Talking." I worry about the movies tackling beloved books, especially if they're by the great Canadian novelist Miriam Toews. But writer/director Sarah Polley was the ideal person to craft this searing, disarmingly funny tale of abused Mennonite women who think they must choose between God and their lives.
2. "Marcel the Shell With Shoes On." It must have been tricky to figure out how to transition the star of viral animated shorts into the centerpiece of a feature, but creators/stars Jenny Slate and Dean Fleischer-Camp made a hilarious, moving gem.
3. "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed." The year's finest nonfiction film combines: a portrait of art photographer Nan Goldin, a deep dive into her troubled family, an investigation into the misdeeds of philanthropists/OxyContin manufacturers the Sackler family and a triumphant campaign to get art museums to do the right thing.
