#of course the western black rhino is a tragic extinction but I feel like if you’re gonna say you care about animals you should care about

[soybeenss]

humanity’s biggest crime is letting the syr darya sturgeon go possibly extinct like that was literally the best one

[rswoan]

Seattle International Film Festival 2017 Films Ranked

SIFF 2017 Feature Films listed from best to worst with special emphasis on editing and structure along with content (especially with documentaries):

 The Farthest - history and legacy of the NASA Voyager project. Maybe best talking heads documentary in history of SIFF...

Ethel & Ernest - fantastic animation of the lives of the parents of a graphic artist set against World War 2 in London.

The Net - fascinating story of a North Korean who inadvertently crosses into South Korea.

Becoming Who I was - interesting look at the reincarnation of a Buddhist leader growing up. Stunning filmmaking over course of 8 years.

Secret 1

Dirtbag: The Legend of Fred Beckey - fascinating look at life of legendary climber Fred Beckey.

This Is Our Land - dramatization of how populism can take hold in France or any Western country.

Food Evolution- well edited documentary on GMOs and science.

The Last Animals - trying to save rhinos and elephants from extinction.

American Folk - best of the road trip movies this year as two people thrown together to drive cross country following 9/11.

God of War - well made genre movie. China defends against Japanese incursion against great odds.

Wind River - fantastic murder mystery set on Indian reservation.

At the End of the Tunnel - suspenseful crime caper drama.

Kills on Wheels - assassin in a wheelchair and his helpers.

The Journey - drama of what might have happened to end Irish Civil War.

Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton - well made documentary on Laird Hamilton’s contribution to big wave surfing.

Ivan - former helicopter pilot turned ambulance driver works through personal issues while taking care of young girl.

Better Watch Out - fun horror take on Home Alone theme of kid left alone with his babysitter near Christmas.

The Smuggler and Her Charges - filmmaker’s father’s past as a Jewish child on the run during WW 2 and a woman who helped him. Well made and educational.

Angry Inuk - commercial seal skin commercial trade bans threaten Inuk way of life.

The Odyssey - fascinating story of the life of Jacques-Yves Cousteau.

Mr Long - aspects of various Asian movie styles and themes blended in a cohesive movie.

I, Daniel Blake - drama of people caught up in UK support system bureaucracy.

Ingrid Goes West - social media obsessed woman moves to CA after death of her mother in attempt to reboot her life.

The Oath - doctor tries to rescue his daughter from a life of drug use with her boyfriend dealer.

Secret 3

Kalushi - story of a young man drawn into the ANC militant wing during apartheid.

The Unknown Girl - a doctor tracks down death of an unknown girl who she could have saved.

A Date for Mad Mary - young woman released from prison needs to find date for best friend’s wedding.

Handsome Devil - well executed coming of age as an outsider in high school.

Soul on a String - epic Tibet “western” chase movie.

Chasing Coral - bleaching of the world’s coral and climate change.

Quest - decade in the lives of a North Philly black family.

Finding Kukan - in search of a lost Academy Award winning documentary and the story of the woman behind it.

Afterimage - historical drama about life of a prominent artist swept up by socialist takeover of Poland.

Nowhere To Hide - 5 years in the life of a nurse and his family in central Iraq starting from being outside to becoming engrossed by war.

Cook Up a Storm - fun Chinese cooking competition movie.

Lady Macbeth - solid period drama focusing on indentured wife taking back her life.

Columbus - relationship between man dealing with ill father and young lady dealing with issues with her mother and future.

Gook - a pair of Korean-American brothers selling shoes in LA against backdrop of crime and Rodney King riots.

Entanglement - interesting look at a man dealing with mental illness after suicide attempt.

Feather - Italian teens dealing with pregnancy and life.

Mellow Mud - an orphan brother and sister struggle to make it on their own after guardian dies.

The Wedding Plan - woman gives herself and God 30 days to find a husband after breaking up with fiance.

I Was a Dreamer - unscripted drama based on life of non-actor lead.

Trouble - dysfunctional brother-sister relationship revisits past and changes future.

Wulu - solid crime drama set against the backdrop of turmoil in Africa.

The Midwife - a woman is reunited with her father’s ex during an inflection point in her life.

The Nile Hilton Incident - murder mystery against backdrop of Arab Spring and police corruption.

The Man - artist reunites with estranged street artist son.

The Truth About Love Is… - light hearted comedy regarding family relationships.

New Chefs On the Block - breezy documentary on two first time restaurant owners opening up in Washington DC.

Borders - Murphy's law for 4 women who meet on a cross West Africa journey spanning multiple countries.

Dara Ju - drug addiction and family secrets set against Wall Street and immigration.

Small Town Killers - dysfunctional couples find themselves after hiring assassins.

Napping Princess - enjoyable anime with contemporary themes, fantasy and reality.

Secret 3

The Feels - dialogue improvised, bachelorette party exposes many truths.

Hero - aging actor tries to come to grips with legacy.

The Reagan Show - documentary on importance of PR at beginning of television age.

Bad Influence - coming of age set against conflict between Chile government with native people.

Zip & Zap and the Captain’s Island - fun kids romp mystery movie. Far better than original movie.

Chavela- portrait of an iconic Mexican singer. Great subject but talking heads format is mind numbing during non-performance period of her life.

Moka - mother seeks justice for hit and run death of her son.

Two Irenes - 2 girls with the same name with a shared secret and curious of each other's lives.

A Ghost Story - time and sentimentality.

In the Radiant City - dysfunctional family torn apart by childhood disaster years later.

Whose Streets? - Birth of Black Lives Matter from Ferguson killing and return of citizen activism in a modern age.

Weirdos - coming of age in the face of family secrets.

8 Borders, 8 Days - first hand look at the journey of a Syrian refugee family to Germany.

Tea Pets - animated feature, life of tea pets when people aren’t around.

Death in Sarajevo - scattered look of tragic history of the city through interactions of individuals tied together by a hotel.

What Lies Upstream - water quality in US.

City of Ghosts - poorly edited documentary on incredible citizen journalism of Raqqa Syria.

500 Years - documentary on government genocide against indigenous peoples.

Roberto Bolle - The Art of Dance - ballet equivalent of a concert film.

After the Storm - father attempts to connect with divorced wife and son while dealing with personal demons.

Hedi - life of a Tunisian man getting cold feet before his wedding.

The Winter - life of Argentina sheep ranch foreman.

Searchers - classic western remake set in Arctic with Inuit people.

Goldstone - missing girl mystery in Australian outback.

Paradise - unique way of telling a WW 2 story from perspectives of persecutor and persecuted.

Godspeed - roadtrip drug smuggling story.

The Door - sliding doors what if look at life of a man as a mechanic and successful businessman.

The Landing - what if Apollo 18 wasn’t scrubbed?

Susanne Bartsch: On Top - life and times of a pre-eminent NYC party/club host.

Person to Person - a day in lives of different folks tied together only by NYC.

Manifesto - modern performance art answering question of what art is.

Heal the Living - lives of the families of an organ donor and recipient.

The Girl Without Hands - minimal charcoal like animated Grimm tale.

Come Together - Korean family drama set aside societal norms.

Landline - yet another dysfunctional family drama.

The Beautiful Kokonor Lake - awkward Chinese soap opera of love lost for duty in Communist China.

The Paris Opera - scatter shot look at a year of the Opera. No real narrative, just brief look ins.

Backpack Full of Cash - documentary of how charter schools are destroying public education. Too repetitive.

Rocketmen - campy episodic Seattle based serial.

Gholam - a immigrant/refugee taxi driver affected by a mysterious past that never quite emerges.

Have A Nice Day - animated mobster drama starting with foot soldier stealing money.

A Dragon Arrives! - Iranian mystery, bizarre, unrelatable characters.

Divine Divas - well made documentary of lives of Brazilian transvestite performers. Good if you have connection with subject. I just didn't care.

Footnotes - musical of struggles of shoe factory workers trying to prevent offshoring.

Vampire Cleanup Department - campy movie of team battling strange vampires in HK.

Pyromaniac- character study of a pyromaniac. No real insight just hints never tied together.

The Bloom of Yesterday - grandchildren of those involved in Holocaust still wrapped up in it’s aftermath. Unrelatable damaged characters. Who cares?

Zoology - middle-aged woman deals with having a tail.

It's Only the End of the World - day in life of dysfunctional family with return of prodigal son.

God’s Own Country - gay son finds romance on a rural farm in the UK.

Yourself and Yours - want to be amusing romcom really feels like making fun of mental illness.

Lane 1974 - coming of age set against hippie culture, feels long and sleepy.

The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson - cold case investigation into death of LGBT activist icon.

Anishoara - mind numbing year in the life of a girl in a Moldovan village.

Secret 2

Santa and Andres - a dissident and his government minder develop relationship in Cuba.

Without Name - pointless horror movie.

Terror 5 - a bunch of over the top stories of zombies, snuff films, and partying loosely connected.

Knife In The Clearwater - best described as contemplative meditation on lives of rural Muslim family in China, aka mind numbing days in the life.

Devil’s Freedom - mind numbing talking heads documentary on the Mexican drug wars.

Pendular - pointless character study with gratuitous sex and nudity.

Black Code - important topic feels more like a vanity piece for organization.

Lives With Flavor - this year's chef ego movie. Don't learn much about food or his life really. Lots of food porn though without much explanation.

Lemon - pointless not funny comedy.

Struggle for Life - not funny French slapstick.

Hello Destroyer - predictable character study of a hockey player whose life is destroyed by a dirty play.