The Top 25 Movies of 2024
Note: for the second consecutive year, this list has been published on March 1st, way later than it was intended and far too late to have any kind of relevance. For the second consecutive year, I pledge to not let that happen next year.
There was fear that 2024 would be a monumentally down year for movies thanks to the delays and cancellations due to the SAG-AFTRA strike in late 2023. After a pretty significant lull in quality during the first part of the year (especially the summer), 2024 thankfully roared back in its back half, enough so that we can easily call it a pretty good year for movies overall.
The Filmologist was as spotty as ever in 2024 with regard to cranking out consistent content, continuing to struggle with the notion that literally no one cares about yet another voice in an endless sea of online movie conversation. But with the new year comes a new surge of motivation and a slight change in focus. My resolutions for the coming year are simple: 1) regular content without large gaps between reviews, and 2) a renewed concentration on lesser-seen movies that are outside the mainstream bubble. I still love my Marvel movies and Hollywood blockbusters, but they already get way more coverage from the moviesphere than they probably deserve, and there are tons of other movies out there that are worthy of discussion.
So we'll see how it goes! If, by some miracle, you are reading this, thank you. Sincerely.
No. 25 - Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World
The movie largely follows a production assistant (the wonderful Ilinca Manolache) as she drives around Bucharest, running errands, posting to social media, and interviewing various citizens who have been injured due to work accidents to cast one of them in a “safety at work” video. Her social media persona is a vulgar critique of masculinity and capitalism, and those parts wore out their welcome, but still served as ironic commentary on the uselessness of parodying a machine that isn't going anywhere.
That being said, this is probably the movie that best captures what it's like to be alive right now in this late stage capitalist hellscape. We go about our lives, work our meaningless jobs, aware of what is being done to us but still going through the motions. The last 30 minutes is a single take of an injured family trying to shoot a commercial for an international corporation, and it's terribly funny and heartbreaking, as the corporate employees keep cutting more and more things out of the shoot so as not to be harmful to the company while giving lip service to caring at all about the victims. Radu Jude's movies are ugly and sloppy and dirty, but hey, so are we.
No. 24 - La Chimera
"La Chimera" follows Arthur (Josh O'Connor), a young British archaeologist, who we meet as he heads back home to Tuscany after spending some time in prison. His good looks attract stares and giggles from young ladies, but he is unattractively morose and unkempt, dressed in a white linen suit that humorously gets more wrinkled and dirty as the movie progresses. Having no other prospects for work, he reluctantly reunites with his goofy crew of grave robbers, who illegally sell Etruscan artifacts to a fence named Spartaco. Arthur has an unexplained, possibly supernatural ability to go into a sort of trance and locate spots where ancient tombs are buried, and the rest of his crew happily follows him around hoping for the next big score that could make them all rich.
This movie is a real grower, as I was initially cold on it (check that measly three-star review below) but have come around to its charms on a rewatch.
The Filmologist's review of "La Chimera"
No. 23 - A Real Pain
Culkin plays quite a character (and while he shares mannerisms, not at all like his character in Succession), at times charming, energetic and up for anything, but also someone in great pain who often lashes out and becomes entirely unlikeable. His cousin tries desperately to understand this pain while also trying to manage the chaos left in its wake. The two love each other, even if they have drifted apart and don't understand each other. It feels very real and relatable, leading to some truly emotionally raw and powerful moments that a lot of us have experienced some version of. Here's hoping Eisenberg continues to shine his light on characters like this for many years to come.
No. 22 - Kinds of Kindness
The stories are each singularly strange, but all feature more or less the same theme, one that has interested Yorgos for some time: the great lengths that we go to prove ourselves worthy of someone else's love even as that other person controls our perception of worth. Some of those lengths that we go to include some pretty gross and degrading behavior, which means you get lots of weird sex, horrific violence, and a lot of the heightened and absurd dialogue that Yorgos is so well known for. It's all very alienating (and probably purposely so) and can be a bit much to get into, but if you're able to ride the right wavelength, there's a lot here to sink your teeth into.
No. 21 - The Bikeriders
Hardy and Butler lead a clan of dirty but somehow cool and often sexy roughnecks as they slowly commit more and more of their lives to getting into shenanigans with their friends. Caught in the middle is poor Jodie Comer, whose character has fallen helplessly in love with Butler's good looks and dangerous attitude, all while knowing things are destined to end in disaster. And of course they do.
Nichols ("Midnight Special", "Mud") is a director I've always thought should be way more well known than he is, and hopefully it doesn't take him another seven years to get his next project off the ground. He was a real talent for crafting interesting, down-to-earth, mid-budget movies about oddball characters, and "The Bikeriders" is simply just a great hang.
No. 20 - The Beast
Starting in the year 2044 where AI rules because it deemed humanity too emotional to make rational decisions (ouch), people are able to undergo a procedure to remove their strong emotions in order to be more qualified for better jobs. Two candidates, played by Léa Seydoux and George MacKay, meet and become attracted to each other. As part of the emotion-cleansing process, memories of past lives are examined, and we see the couple find each other in 1910 France or 2014 Los Angeles.
The movie warns instructs us to live in the moment and embrace our emotions, fall in love, embrace your fear of rejection, live fully as emotional human beings, otherwise what's the point? The message is hammered home throughout time and space, as Bonello crafts a big, overstuffed ode to humanity and a cautionary tale to a race that gets more mechanical by the day.
No. 19 - Janet Planet
The movie moves along without much of a plot per se, focusing more on little moments between the 11-year-old Lacy and her single mother Janet. It's all captured simply and quietly, with a sense of awkward tenderness that feels incredibly real. Janet is an independent adult trying to get her own life in order, and Lacy is often left alone with her books and her imagination, with no real friends, smothered by her solitary environment in western Massachusetts. She is quirky and introverted, but also incredibly observant, and painfully starts to realize that her mother loves her but cannot give her the attention she needs.
It's incredible how heart-rending the movie ends up being without any giant moments of cinematic drama, which is a true testament to Baker's talent as a filmmaker. A powerful and thought-provoking piece of work that will stay in your mind long after the credit have rolled.
No. 18 - Trap
Certain types of viewers like to try and pick holes in Shyamalan's plot constructions instead of just rolling with it, and Shyamalan seems to be challenging them by constantly upping the stakes and making things more and more ridiculous. This is a pop song, made of pure sugar, inviting you to just sit back and enjoy the ride. Long live Shyamalan, and may he continue on this lighter, more comedic route for a few more movies at least.
No. 17 - The Wild Robot / Flow
"The Wild Robot" is the flashier project from a giant studio (Dreamworks), but it's an earnest, gentle and tear-jerking story about parenthood that gets you in your feelings just like Pixar movies used to do on a routine basis. The visuals feature a more hand-painted look that is simple enough, but is a refreshing change in a landscape of animated movies that features mostly crappy, same-y looking CGI. Overall, it's not a brain-bustingly original project, but it's a well-executed, well-intentioned, original story that the whole family can enjoy.
"Flow" was created in almost completely different circumstances, with a production that lasted five-and-a-half years with a very small Latvian crew using free and open-source animation software. The result is a stunningly effective and equally emotionally affecting movie that features no dialogue, simply following a cat and his friends (a dog, capybara, and ring-tailed lemur) as they roam an apparently post-human world, trying to survive as the water level dramatically rises around them. There are some surprisingly profound moments throughout this simple tale, and the unique animation makes it stand out from a lot of its contemporaries.
No. 16 - Juror #2
Justice isn't simple and morality isn't always black and white. To make matters worse, the systems we have in place to determine the truth and serve out punishment are far from perfect themselves. Hoult plays a family man serving as a juror in a high profile murder trial, but his unexpected connection to the case could be used to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict—or free—the accused killer. Writer Jonathan A. Abrams cleverly leads Hoult's character through a series of tough choices, all due to the mistakes he made in the past and his efforts to keep them quiet and move on with his life. There are no easy answers here as Hoult plays a good man who his trying to do the right thing, but the consequences for himself, his family, and those involved with the case are in the balance. It's the kind of movie that can probably cause a good argument with your friends and family, and have you grappling with how you would react if you found yourself in the same situation.
No. 15 - Hit Man
We're introduced to Powell as Gary Johnson, a Honda Civic-driving, jean shorts-wearing bird enthusiast that teaches philosophy to college students and seems content in his solitary life with his two cats. He's so amiable that he even stays good friends with his ex-wife, who encourages him to get out of his comfort zone and try and meet women. Johnson is also a tech geek, and moonlights with the New Orleans Police Department, helping them arrange and record sting operations with suspects who are trying to hire a hit man to assassinate their enemies or annoyances. When the usual undercover cop that does the actual meet with the suspects gets suspended, Johnson is suddenly thrust into the role of fake hit man, having to convince people that he is a professional killer.
It helps to have the expert hands of director Richard Linklater ("Boyhood," "School of Rock"), who presents all of the violence with sunniness and a smile, giving the movie a goofy tone similar to the best Coen brother comedies. Like most Linklater movies, the point is to have a good time, and that's exactly what this is, keeping the focus on the screwball instead of the shadows."
The Filmologist's full review of "Hit Man"
No. 14 - Rebel Ridge
Jeremy Saulnier ("Green Room", "Blue Ruin") excels at making tight, suspense-building thrillers, and this might be his best work yet. He's aided by a star-making performance by the hulking Aaron Pierre, who plays a martial artist marine trying his best to keep his cool as small town cops unjustly seize the bag of cash he needs to post his cousin’s bail.
Pierre's calm, constrained performance is fairly unique for a leading man in an action movie, as he knows he has to tread carefully in a place where he is perceived as a threat just for existing. He is reluctant to use violence and when he does, it is completely non-lethal, meant only to deescalate. Things simmer for a good hour or so before things start to boil over, and the result is a well-scripted, exhilarating piece of action moviemaking with creative fight choreo and excellent performances across the board.
No. 13 - Civil War
Writer/director Alex Garland (Ex Machina, Annihilation) is smart enough to almost completely avoid any specific real-world reference points outside a few familiar terms mentioned in passing. However, Garland takes it even further by deciding to completely avoid talking about the specifics of the civil war at all. You will not learn how the country got to the point of war in the world of this movie. You won't really know the politics of the parties (or even any of the characters) involved. None of this is a spoiler, because the movie is not, in fact, even about a civil war; the civil war is merely a backdrop for the themes that Garland decides to focus on instead."
The Filmologist's full review of "Civil War'
No. 12 - Love Lies Bleeding
This is just the latest in a long series of roles where Stewart continues to (successfully) distance herself from her uber-mainstream "Twilight" days. Even though she is still very much a strikingly beautiful, A-list movie star, she seems much more at home playing outcasts and quiet loners, inhabiting characters with her own real-life anxious tics and awkward speech patterns, creating an unsettling aura of nervous tension that feels at odds with her level of fame. "Love Lies Bleeding" is the latest example of Stewart leaning into those qualities to great effect, matched perfectly with a script designed to get the most out of her uniquely weird energy."
The Filmologist's full review of "Love Lies Bleeding"
No. 11 - The Substance
Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley are asked to do quite a lot, and are both up to the challenge. Moore in particular gives a vanity-free performance, constantly wearing nothing while being covered in blood, guts, and crazed prosthetics. She also nails the more vulnerable moments, including an incredible sequence where she repeatedly tries and fails to get ready for a date.
It's a bold and gleefully unsubtle movie that is a ton of fun, even if you have to watch some of it between your fingers with your hands over your eyes.
No. 10 - Anora
Even though "Anora" covers similar territory as his past works, it still marks a minor departure for Baker; the increased run time (139 minutes) gives the director room to experiment with different tones, including an extended second act that is basically slapstick comedy. The first act sets up the story of Anora (the also rightfully recognized Mikey Madison), a charmingly foul-mouthed stripper that very quickly marries Ivan (Mark Eydelshteyn), the young and immature son of a wealthy Russian oligarch. They go through a whirlwind week of sex, parties, drugs and assorted shenanigans, until the Russian oligarch sends his men to come collect his son and put an end to the fun and games.
It's oddly sweet to see two young people living out different versions of the same fantasy, wanting nothing more than to be free of the expectations society has already put on them, which makes the inevitable crash-landing back into reality all the more crushing. The movie is enjoyable to watch and easy to laugh at, but there is dark truth behind the comedy, culminating in an ending that has divided audiences and will certainly spark conversation. Baker's comedy is intentional, but it is never at the expense of the characters, who we easily want to root for. It's another deftly-observed modern fairytale from a director at the peak of his powers.
No. 9 - Red Rooms
Juliette Gariépy gives one of the year's breakout performances as Kelly-Anne, a woman curiously obsessed with a man on trial for broadcasting his murder of three teenage girls in a "Red Room", a chat room on the dark web where people pay to watch snuff films. Kelly-Anne is a fashion model that says little, and we go through her daily routine as she lives a monk-like existence while dutifully showing up at the courtroom every day to intensely watch the proceedings. At first, you believe that she is some kind of podcast junkie, attracted to the stories of serial killers (and she in fact meets and temporarily "befriends" a kind of groupie), but as the movie slowly reveals more about Kelly-Anne, you start to realize something isn't quite right.
It's a movie that artfully tackles themes of obsession, idolatry, and loneliness, all wrapped up in a thrilling, classic legal thriller package, at times borrowing (successfully) from David Fincher's modus operandi. You'll feel dirty by the time the credits start rolling, but you'll also be left stunned by Plante's fully-realized vision and execution. If I had watched this a few more times, I have no doubt it would've been higher in the list.
No. 8 - The Brutalist
The truth is, as always, probably some combination of all of those things (and a meta-condemnation of how stupid and hyperbolic online movie discourse can be). I can only say that I watched the movie and came away extremely impressed, head full of ideas, with the movie's blaring musical theme playing on repeat in my brain.
It is certainly a LOT of movie, one that demands multiple viewings to catch everything that is going on. At it's core, it's an immigrant drama about a Jewish Holocaust survivor (the typically fantastic Adrien Brody) who immigrates to the United States to try and achieve the American dream. He runs into many, many hardships: poverty, hunger, creative frustration, racism, the inability to find and bring his wife into the country to join him. It's a story about how the rich feed off of the poor. It's a story about how hard it is to make art without capitulating to your financiers. It's a story about immigration, modern politics, sexual repression, drug addiction, men treating women poorly, it's about America, the muddiest parts.
Corbet and his partner Mona Fastvold have made a true American epic that feels like a massive blockbuster, all for the paltry sum of $10 million. It's an impressive feat of filmmaking any way you look at it, and I will always have time for people taking giant artistic swings like this. I suspect we'll still be talking about "The Brutalist" many years from now.
No. 7 - Challengers
"Challengers," directed by Luca Guadagnino from a screenplay by Justin Kuritzkes, is a deliriously entertaining affair that explores these ideas within a love triangle of impossibly good-looking professional tennis players, each balancing their own motivations and secret desires, often exploding into fireworks on and off the court. It's a nearly perfect blend of sports drama and erotic thriller with everything moving at 135 mph; the camera races back and forth like it's attached to a tennis ball during a volley (quite literally at one point) while the music pulsates at equally high speeds, mixed at a volume just barely lower than the dialogue being spoken, as if hearing the words and seeing the pictures aren't nearly as important as coming away with a visceral feeling. The end result is an expertly-made, energetic blast of entertainment that will have you feeling happily exhausted, like you just went three sets and came out on top.
The Filmologist's full review of "Challengers"
No. 6 - Conclave
It's a gripping story in its own right; the process of electing a new Pope is one that is shrouded in mystery and ancient ritual. Director Edward Berger locks us in the room with cardinals making the decision, and we bear witness to all the political maneuvering, petty bickering and stress-relieving vaping that goes on amongst the very human men making an almost mythic decision.
Berger's dramatic visual style, already showcased in 2022's "All Quiet on the Western Front," is even more impressive here, as he is often simply shooting men speaking in rooms. It helps that they are some downright gorgeous rooms, as various areas of the Vatican are spectacularly recreated and framed with care by cinematographer Stéphane Fontaine. The classical score heightens the drama even further, helping to perfectly balance the seriousness of the situation with the overall silliness of the whole ritual. It's a delightfully fun piece of entertainment with multiple twists and turns, keeping you riveted until the very end.
No. 5 - Nosferatu
Eggers combines elements from all of the classic Dracula stories everyone is very familiar with (including Bram Stoker's 1897 novel "Dracula" and F. W. Murnau's unofficial adaptation "Nosferatu" (1922)), and then cranks the style up to a million, as each frame sears its way into your permanent memory. Eggers and cinematographer Jarin Blaschke create several images that might live forever in cinema history (including a tremendous shot of a shadowed hand blanketing the city), while the costuming and production design meticulously create a world that feels straight out of the history books.
Critics have complained that "Nosferatu" is all style and no substance, but I couldn't agree less. I was on the edge of my seat, rooting for Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) as he braved the demon's lair, worried about Ellen Hutter's (Lily-Rose Depp) soul as she fell further under Orlock's spell. There are several truly chilling moments and an overall creeping feeling of unease that makes it less a "scary" horror movie and more of a deeply unsettling one.
At only 41 years old, Eggers already has an incredibly impressive resume and a style unmistakably his very own. I'll be there opening day for whatever he comes up with next.
No. 4 - Dune: Part Two
Villenueve has a complete grip on how he wants to tell this story, and it's impossible to imagine anyone not wanting him to bring this cast and crew along with him for one more ride. It's a difficult thing in this day and age to put such an authoritative stamp on a big-budget blockbuster franchise, much less pull it off with the approval of audiences, critics, and the box office all at once. "Dune" is the next in the line of beloved movie franchises that capture the imagination of a generation, and thanks to Villenueve, it's also operating at the highest limits of craft and storytelling.
The Filmologist's full review of "Dune: Part Two"
No. 3 - The Count of Monte Cristo
Of course, a "sizable budget" in France (around $45 million) is way less than it would be in the U.S., but filmmakers Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patellière make every dollar count, producing a rich visual spectacle that puts most Hollywood blockbusters to shame. The music, costumes, and production design are all operating at the highest levels, combining with the classic story to give everything a "they don't make them like this anymore" kind of feel.
French actors you've likely never heard of give world-class performances, including Pierre Niney as The Count and Bastien Bouillon as Fernand de Morcerf. Anamaria Vartolomei is particularly stunning as Haydée, and may only increase her stature when she appears later in 2025 in Bong Joon-ho's "Mickey 17."
"The Count of Monte Cristo" is just a smashing good time; no other movie in 2024 left me more excited and optimistic about the future of the medium, which is quite a feat considering it's a classic story that has been adapted so many times. If I had to recommend one movie on this entire list to anyone and everyone, it would be this.
No. 2 - Nickel Boys
The story itself is an adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that follows Elwood Curtis, a young black man growing up in Jim Crow-era Tallahassee, Florida, as he very suddenly goes from being a bright, promising student to an unfairly imprisoned inmate at a notorious segregated reform school. The movie's perspective shifts from Elwood (Ethan Cole Sharp) to his friend Turner (Brandon Wilson), as they do their best to survive their cruel treatment.
The story is told in non-linear fashion, which results in some truly incredible scenes, most notably a reunion of Elwood and another former inmate in a bar many years in the future, as the two catch up and share how they've struggled to integrate back into the world. It's just one of several powerful moments that will have you holding your breath. This could've easily been a by-the-numbers project that went for easy tears, but Ross has created a one-of-a-kind experience that feels exponentially more profound and true.
No. 1 - I Saw the TV Glow
Your friend, who is blossoming at a rate you can only envy, offers you a way out. They say that this world isn't meant for you; it's time to escape, to begin your life for real, and you need to come with them to survive. But you aren't ready. You're too afraid to completely abandon the familiar comfort of your sleepy suburb and your emotionally distant family -- things that don't know you or love you but are at least safe in their predictability. You stay hidden and time marches on.
Jane Schoenbrun's spectacular second feature film is likely to be incredibly familiar to those who have had to deal with this kind of repression, especially those who identify as trans or queer. It's a story that manages to feel both liberating and tragic at the same time, playing out like a horror movie where the characters are trying desperately to escape their old lives, like the suburbs are a haunted house that won't let them leave. Aided by haunting visuals and incredibly effective melancholic, 90s-era musical cues, Schoenbrun has created a coming-of-age story for the current era, exploring the anxieties and dread of self-actualization in parts of the world where people aren't always kind to those who are different.
