I viewed fewer movies this year than usual and thought about skipping the annual top 20 list. Then came the December film rush, the best I can recall in years. Now I have 4 films that I feel deserving of a No. 1 award. So if you don’t like the order of the top four, well, I’m not wild about it, either, only because I think both “Molly’s Game” and “Three Billboards” deserve better. But this is where we stand. And here we go.

1. “I, Tonya” — Can’t begin to describe all the things I like about Margot Robbie’s portrayal of Tonya Harding or especially Allison Janney as her mom, who gives Lady Bird’s mom a strong race for Best Portrayal of the Worst Mother figure of the year. But let me just remind you of one thing — 48.5 and 64.

That was the TV rating and the share that Tonya Harding vs. Nancy Kerrigan produced at the ’94 Winter Games. Those are numbers LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant in Game 7 could never approach. Those are numbers the Cubs in Game 7 of their first World Series in a century did not approach. At the time, it was a higher ranking than all but two of the 28 Super Bowls played. And — AND — this was tape delay of an event held four hours earlier in which many knew the outcome.

To suggest that we were caught up in the drama of Tonya vs. Nancy and the suspicion that Harding was responsible for an attack on Kerrigan weeks earlier is to understate the case wildly. We all knew who Jeff Gillooly was. In fact, as the actor portraying him in the faux documentary film states “I was a verb.”

Robbie is a revelation. She has never looked, well, worse while giving such a perfect portrayal. And beyond all the humor and the craziness, I love how they managed to mic the skating so that you hear the skates slashing through the ice. Figure skating from on high looks like a graceful, beautiful thing to behold, and we forget that it’s three minutes of sheer power, endurance and athleticism on top of all the pressure that hangs on every leap.

This film made an incredible leap to get past the film I was certain I would rank first. Which, of course, was…

2. “The Shape of Water” — Sally Hawkins doesn’t utter a word (except for one dream sequence) and yet you’re cheering for her and the creature to somehow survive, perhaps even share their love somehow although we know it’s against all odds. I would watch and listen to Michael Shannon do almost anything like, say, read a sorority president’s email (oh wait, he DID that) and he is great as the antagonist determined to keep the creature he discovered in South America out of Russian hands in this early-’60s Cold War setting. Don’t sleep on the performances of Richard Jenkins or Michael Stuhlbarg (he will always be Arnold Rothstein to me although the former ‘Boardwalk Empire’ may be the most prolific actor in Hollywood.

3. “Molly’s Game” — One of five films I reviewed for the Dallas Morning News this year, and I didn’t go expecting to love it. I have on again/off again feelings about Aaron Sorkin’s rapid fire dialogue, but it works beautifully with the highly intelligent Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain) and her father (Kevin Costner), not to mention the lawyer she hires (Idris Elba) after the FBI arrests her and cleans out her bank accounts for running poker games that her original lawyer described as “mostly legal.”

4. “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” — Frances McDormand carries the film as the aggrieved mom unsatisfied with the small town police department’s inability to solve the rape and murder of her daughter. But I really hope Sam Rockwell gets recognition in a supporting role, a lousy out-of-control cop who makes a remarkable transformation in the course of the film. The top 4 ranked films here are all driven by women which, in itself, is great. While I have made it clear that I always watch the Oscars but no longer worry about them because they make such flawed decisions on a consistent basis, I am curious about the Best Actress category which will be the key category this year — If Robbie, Hawkins, Chastain and McDormand are nominees, Meryl Streep is probably a lock for “The Post” (not yet in Dallas) and so is Saoirse Ronan of “Lady Bird.” That’s one too many without considering any long shots. I feel for whoever gets left behind, but rest assured it won’t be McDormand, whose intensity is frightening in this film.

5. “Killing of a Sacred Deer” — Give credit to director Yorgos Lanthimos, who never makes it easy on the viewer. I liked the first half of “The Lobster” but thought it lost its way once the characters disappeared into the woods. This strange film about a family of doctors and an odd teenager who has become a friend since his father died in surgery performed by Colin Farrell never loses its way even if it makes you cringe at the conclusion Farrell reaches when forced with the choice of killing a family member in order to save the rest. A film so strange shouldn’t possess moments of unbearable sadness but when the doomed children speak to each other, this one does.

6. “Detroit” — Thought this would do much better at the box office, although I suppose revisiting the Detroit riots of ’68 doesn’t have everyone grabbing the car keys to get to the theatre. Like other Kathryn Bigelow films, it’s intense and overlong and I thought there was a flaw in the key scene in which ruthless Detroit cops are trying to get someone to confess to shooting at them. But you’ll never look at the kid from “We’re the Millers” (Will Poulter) the same way after this film. You can feel the sweat pouring off the cops and the suspects on this hot Detroit night. It’s a reminder of how far we have come (sometimes not very) and how far we still have to go.

7. “Last Flag Flying” — Could have been a glorified buddy pic as three old Vietnam vets reunite for a road trip to bury one of their sons who died in the Middle East. But an over-the-top Bryan Cranston and a subdued Steve Carell prevent any thing of the kind and the ending will surprise you.

8. “Lady Bird” — Coming of age tale, strained mother-daughter relationship…this tale has been told so many times. Has it ever been done with more honesty? Plenty of humor along the way as Saoirse Ronan becomes an actress to watch if she wasn’t already there after “Brooklyn.”

9. “Wind River” — There’s a shootout scene that looks like something from “Archer” with dozens of bullets flying from close range and almost no one getting hit. Put that aside and appreciate the Jeremy Renner performance. Wear a sweatshirt because you’ll feel the Wyoming cold leaking through the screen in this murder investigation that becomes about something much more.

10. “Darkest Hour” — The better Dunkirk movie of the year, Gary Oldman locks down Winston Churchill from the opening scene. After marveling at the make-up job for the first hour, you’ll just enjoy Churchill himself in action the rest of the way and forget that Oldman has anything to do with it. A film that could have been bogged down by talking never does. In fact, there’s one long tracking shot that becomes heartbreaking as we see an English officer reading the telegram from Churchill telling him that no one is coming to save his troops pinned down by the Germans and the camera, after following him through a tunnel of pure mayhem, travels into the sky where the bombs that will seal his and his men’s fate are being delivered.

11. “Battle of the Sexes” — Almost like the Harding-Kerrigan battle, in that younger folks can’t imagine how a country was so riveted in a tennis match between a 55-year-old Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King in her prime in the Astrodome. But the way King saw it, the only thing at stake was the future and viability of women’s tennis. Steve Carell (he had a nice year) and Emma Stone (who would have been an easy Best Actress nominee in a less crowded year) do the signature roles justice.

12. “Jim and Andy: The Great Beyond” — You can catch this documentary on Netflix and marvel at Jim Carrey one more time as he describes in detail all that went into his inheriting the character of bizarre comic Andy Kaufman for the film “Man on the Moon.” Actors talk about staying in character, and what Carrey did here had to be punishing at times for director Milos Forman and others to deal with, especially when he took on the truly unpleasant Tony Clifton character. Great footage here and a chance to get inside the mind of Carrey.

13. “The Big Sick” — I don’t watch “Silicon Valley” so I knew a lot less about the main character than most in the theatre the night I saw this, who were ready to laugh at his every line. There’s a cliche love story at the heart of this but the film battles through it nicely. The performances by his girlfriend’s doubting parents, Ray Romano and Holly Hunter, are gold.

14. “The Hero” — Sam Elliott, who does those memorable Coors voiceovers among other, is an aging actor who does voiceovers here. Not sure another actor could have made this film particularly interesting. I’ve been an Elliott fan since “Lifeguard” and especially since the made-for-TV movie “Murder in Texas,” the adaptation of Tommy Thompson’s terrific “Blood and Money,” the true tale of a murdering doctor in Houston.

15. “Get Out” — Much higher on other people’s lists I know, and there’s not much I dislike about it although I think the complete over-the-top climax diminished the effectiveness of the racism that Jordan Peele so deftly conveyed in the first half of the film. It’s an intriguing film that forces you to rethink why some of the early developments of the film took place, once you know the outrageous outcome.

16. “Dunkirk” — There’s going to be some beautiful sound and photography in any Christoper Nolan film. I’ll watch “Memento” 10 more times before I’ll sit down for another viewing of this confused depiction of the British boats that saved soldiers from the German onslaught at Dunkirk.

17. “Murder on the Orient Express” — Liked this film more than the one I saw in the ’70s that I reviewed for my film class at Richland Junior College (how about that?) but I have one particular issue. In a film peopled with so many recognizable stars and fine small performances, why did every other shot seem to be a close-up of Kenneth Branagh? The film was directed by Kenneth Branagh.

18. “The Disaster Artist” — Surprised to see this score into the 90s both from critics and audience on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s mostly a one-trick joke of a film until the credits roll when you realize the lengths that James Franco, Seth Rogen and Co. went to do a complete recreation of a Hollywood insiders’ cult film most of us know nothing about.

19. “Ingrid Goes West” — Aubrey Plaza deserved better. Movie has you torn — Is this a comedy or what? — most of the way. Mostly it’s sad. I think.

20. “LBJ” — Not easy to play a bigger-than-life character that’s so familiar and has just been brilliantly captured by Bryan Cranston. Woody Harelson, on a heck of a run that reminds you of the one his True Detective pal Matthew McConaughey enjoyed, does an exemplary job in an otherwise small film by Rob Reiner, determined to portray LBJ’s liberal side and leave Vietnam and the rest of his disastrous presidency to others.

This is my 5th (and final?) Top 20 list. I saw only four or five great movies this year but plenty of good ones. I also saw “Cafe Society” which deserves a special place in movie hell, but I’m feeling positive here today, so let’s just get to the top 20.
1. MANCHESTER BY THE SEA — I wouldn’t think that anyone comes out of the theater feeling exhilarated other than by the film-making, the story-telling, the work of Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams and the young Lucas Hedges. There is an unbearable sadness to this film, but not in an after-school special type of way. It’s the waking up every day and hoping that the misery won’t overwhelm you kind of sadness. You know from the previews you have seen that something has happened that disturbs Affleck but you don’t know what it is until maybe halfway through the film. And then you see why it never leaves him, and it is all he can do to get his nephew through the day.
2. ARRIVAL — There are 3 surprises in this film. One is that the aliens are not here (at least it appears this way) to attack us. Two is that a movie about language can keep us on the edge of our seats. Three is that — and I like to use character names, rather than actors’ names (sorry, Michael Stuhlbarg) — Arnold Rothstein parlayed his work in Boardwalk Empire to appearing in almost every movie we see!
The fact that Amy Adams can carry a film is not surprising at all.
3. HELL OR HIGH WATER — A great Texas film (even if shot in New Mexico) with a terrific Mr. Pibb reference. Best soundtrack in a long time, headed by Nick Cave with occasional help from Townes Van Zandt, Chris Stapleton and Waylon.
4. EDGE OF SEVENTEEN — If someone out there has the time to rank best teenage coming-of-age parents-out-of-town movies of all time, all I can tell you is that this is No. 2 behind Risky Business. And I wasn’t smart enough to see that there was anything really special about Hailee Steinfeld in True Grit a few years back. But, man, you can see it here from the first scene with the increasingly great Woody Harrelson.
5. OJ: MADE IN AMERICA — Not really sure where to rank an 8-hour movie that most of us watched in two-hour installments on TV. But when most of us were completely OJ’ed out after the FX series, Ezra Edelman reminded us that if one takes the time (and I mean years in the editing room) to examine this story, it’s probably not so much “Made in America” as it’s simply “America.”
6. DON’T THINK TWICE — Not a big improv fan, even if I have immense respect for people who can think fast in front of an audience or a camera (after 1,600 Around the Horns, maybe I’ll get there), but this is more about people and how we are so much more comfortable with failure than success. And, yeah, it’s hilarious when it needs to be.
7. LA LA LAND — This movie cracks the top 10 because I never thought it would make the top 20. I am not a fan of people bursting into song on screen. Combine that with dancing and you’re really in trouble. On top of that, factor in that Emma Stone isn’t much of a singer and Ryan Gosling can neither sing nor dance. So why do I like this 2-hour-plus movie so much? Why do I (gulp) wanna see it again? Because the 2 of them are so damn likable and because anyone who loves any aspect of LA will embrace the city here. Critics rave about the opening scene which I pretty much hated. The last 10-15 minutes is as good as it gets.
8. BIRTH OF A NATION — I’m not overly interested in the politics that derailed the movie (just as I don’t really have an answer for you on my No. 1 choice and the settlements Casey Affleck reached with female co-workers a few years back). I’m just ranking films here, buddy, and my awards aren’t worth anything. All I can tell you is that Nate Parker who directed and wrote and starred and brought sort of a young Everson Walls vibe to this film was sensational. I liked it better than the overdone 12 Years a Slave. This one didn’t have Brad Pitt riding to the rescue for Nat Turner.
9. MIDNIGHT SPECIAL — Michael Shannon. You need to make at least three movies a year, sir.
10. DENIAL — A court case about a Holocaust denier, you’ll learn more than you expected about the difference between the U.S. and England and their libel laws. There are really good performances here, especially Timothy Spall as the supposedly disgraced historian.
11. MOONLIGHT — My only problem with this film comes in the final third. The first two thirds would probably rank in the top five. Without giving anything away, it’s hard to describe my issues, and in all likelihood they are solely my issues, so go see it, especially if you’re a Remy Danton (House of Cards) fan.
12. JACKIE — Ignore Bobby Kennedy’s all-over-the-place accent and just focus on a great performance by Natalie Portman in the days after the assassination and what that might have been like from the First Lady’s perspective.
13. SULLY — Liked it but wish Clint Eastwood had included five minutes to explain how and why Sully believed he knew the right angle, the proper speed to take to land a plane filled with passengers on the Hudson River. It’s hinted at in Sully’s background, but I saw an easy explanation on the Discovery channel or somewhere and it would have been a nice addition. Regardless, Hanks is great as you might expect. Skyler’s still a little wobbly from all those years with Walter White.
14. EYE IN THE SKY — There are moments where this feels like a pretty good “Homeland” episode but it’s mostly better than that and asks important questions that we pretty much ignore whenever we hear that an American drone (oops) killed a few civilians in some Middle East country we never plan to visit.
15. WEINER — It helps that I saw this in a theater near NYU while visiting my son this summer. Unfortunately, it already feels dated because of Mr. Weiner’s almost unparalleled continuing issues with selfies and his junk. An uncomfortable documentary, Huma Abedin (Weiner’s wife when he was running for mayor when this was shot) never looks remotely pleased to have her life being captured on film.
16. THE LOBSTER — First half of this movie is top 10 for sure. Falls apart a bit when they leave the — let’s call it a hotel. Colin Farrell is fine but if you’re like me and you loved Broadchurch, seeing Olivia Colman (Ellie Miller) in this role is hysterical. Actually I would recommend Broadchurch over most anything on this list, now that I’ve brought it up. Mil-Lah!!!!
17. BILLY LYNN’S LONG HALFTIME WALK — Read the book. Not sure what Ang Lee was thinking, although this is a fairly faithful rendering if you can handle all the extreme close-ups.
18. NOCTURNAL ANIMALS — A film I expected to love, based on the trailer, I saw two people walk out during the credits. The opening credits. Once you weather that and whatever Tom Ford was telling us in his designer way, it’s a mostly fun story-within-a-story but with scenes that take way too long and an over-the-top Aaron Taylor-Johnson performance.
19. STAR TREK BEYOND — Just to let you know I can go to and enjoy an action movie. Occasionally. As long as involves Spock.
20. MAN WHO KNEW INFINITY — Give Dev Patel his due, the man gets around. Interesting movie about math. OK, you weren’t going to see it anyway, but I would still rank it ahead of those that didn’t make the list this year.
Honorable mention: Fences. Free State of Jones. Hacksaw Ridge. Nice Guys. Jason Bourne. Finding Dory.
From The Coen Brothers Make Mistakes Too List: Hail Caesar.
Dishonorable discharge: Cafe Society.
Probation: The Accountant for producing a spellbinding trailer with “Everything in its Right Place” and then never using the Radiohead song anywhere in the film. There ought to be a law.