Musings & Reviews

A year has passed since I last posted on this blog… ah, the dreams and intentions I had of posting far more regularly. Yet sometimes an entire year can pass us by, a year of work, projects, trips, personal moments, joy, pain. Ah well. It is very much my intention to post here more frequently in 2025. I have no major projects planned and thus I want to focus on myself, my writing, my creative outlets, and my love and appreciation of that which inspires me most: art.

2024 was a strong year for cinema, as all years tend to be. There are hundreds upon hundreds of films released each year in all kinds of genres and with all kinds of budgets. I haven’t even begun to scratch the surface in fully exploring what the year had to offer, but I have seen a good number and enjoyed many of them. I am structuring this list a little differently this year than I did last year. My top 10 will be ranked and expounded upon, however instead of attempting to continue to rank the films beyond that (which is ultimately both a stressful and arbitrary exercise) I am presenting 15 other films in alphabetical order. Call them my honorable mentions if you like! Perhaps I will consider them all tied for 11th place, because the sort of picayune distinction that would occur from ranking them further isn’t particularly important to where my mind is at right now.

A few other notes: there are many films beyond these 25 that I enjoyed in 2024 and a film not being mentioned here does not mean I didn’t enjoy it. There are also tons of films I haven’t seen, but at a certain point I like to lock this in to serve as a reflection of where my cinema watching in a concrete period of time landed. If I were to re-do this list in a year, or two, or ten… it might look completely different.

Finally, before we dive in, here are the 2024 films that I saw and enjoyed the least: Deadpool & Wolverine, Civil War, If, Heretic, and Y2K.

Honorable Mentions (Or, 15 films presented alphabetically all tied for 11th place)

All We Imagine as Light (Dir: Payal Kapadia)

A Complete Unknown (Dir: James Mangold)

Conclave (Dir: Edward Berger)

A Different Man (Dir: Aaron Schimberg)

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (Dir: George Miller)

Hit Man (Dir: Richard Linklater)

Inside Out 2 (Dir: Kelsey Mann)

Lisa Frankenstein (Dir: Zelda Williams)

Nickel Boys (Dir: RaMell Ross)

The Order (Dir: Justin Kurzel)

A Real Pain (Dir: Jesse Eisenberg)

Sing Sing (Dir: Greg Kwedar)

Smile 2 (Dir: Parker Finn)

Strange Darling (Dir: JT Mollner)

The Wild Robot (Dir: Chris Sanders)

The Top 10

(10) La Chimera (Dir: Alice Rohrwacher)

A note: although this film had a very brief awards qualifying run in late 2023, it was released in earnest in the US in March of 2024 and thus I have deemed it eligible for this list. Rohrwacher’s work here is indelible and indescribable, taking on a surreal, dreamlike quality that becomes completely intoxicating. Josh O’Connor, acting almost entirely in Italian alongside a delightful cast of Italian performers, is both roguish and warm, searching for a lost love, lost treasures, lost memories of the past. There is a jaunty and joyous quality that marries perfectly with the more ethereal elements – this film is a trip of magical realism (in both the literal and metaphorical fashion) that I intend to take again and again.

(9) Flow (Dir: Gints Zilbalodis)

Flow is a testament to the potential power of visual storytelling. Ostensibly a silent film (or, at the very least, dialogue free), we join a cat in a post apocalyptic world meeting friends and struggling to survive a flood (that serves as a cogent metaphor for our climate crisis.) It is a tender, gorgeous film, overflowing with visual splendor (the animation blends various styles that have an almost painterly impact) and a lovely surreal quality. Glints Zilbaoldois is some kind of genius – he directed, wrote, produced, edited, and co-wrote the wonderful score – but more than that he has a pure heart. This is a powerful story of found family and sacrifice, immersive and bold in its approach, that shows we don’t always needs words to tell a great story.

(8) Challengers (Dir: Luca Guadagnino)

Electric filmmaking from Guadagnino, who is in complete control of every moment, every beat. Challengers is riveting, sexy, stylish, sweaty, and incredibly smart. Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, and Mike Faist are all remarkable, as they play games both literal and figurative with and against each other. The chemistry in this film overflows every frame. The Reznor/Ross score is propulsive and synth-fueled, adding to the immense pain, passion, and anxiety of this absolute firework of a film.

(7) I Saw the TV Glow (Dir: Jane Schoenbrun)

Sometimes a film so specifically speaks to your experiences and worldview that it feels like a filmmaker has tapped directly into the annals of your brain in order to reveal things that you didn’t even necessarily know about yourself. This is a horror film, an exploration of the pain and power of nostalgia, and as per Jane Schoenbrun themself a study of gender dysphoria and the trans experience. Owen (Justice Smith) is afraid to be different, afraid to be themself, succumbing to the trappings and boxes that society often demands of us. How deeply relatable. Schoenbrun’s tone and mood, their creation of the fictional tv show The Pink Opaque (that I, a massive fan of Buffy to this day, would absolutely love) resonates deeply. Who among us hasn’t been haunted by Mr. Melancholy? Who didn’t have (or wish we have) a friend like Maddy to introduce us to the cool shit we end up loving? What a thing.

(6) Anora (Dir: Sean Baker)

I have been a fan of Sean Baker since Prince of Broadway back in 2008, and it has been a joy to watch him achieve an increasing level of mainstream success while still holding on to the specificity and approach that made him such an interesting filmmaker from the start. Anora is a thrilling romantic comedy, a sharp distillation of class and the American dream, a deliciously chaotic romp, an empathy bomb. It is utterly engaging, hilarious, tragic, and brilliant. Mikey Madison is sensational, a bold crackerjack of a performance that is my choice for actress of the year. She is met with a wild array of brilliant support, no more tender, vulnerable, and impactful than Yura Borisov as Igor, a performance that is almost entirely dependent upon his facial expression and his eyes. As Anora’s hilarious and tragic journey reaches its close, we are left with a scene that has not left my mind or my heart, and it speaks to the deep humanist undercurrent that Baker brings to all of his films. He gives a voice and a life to those among us who are so often overlooked or disregarded.

(5) Dune: Part 2 (Dir: Denis Villeneuve)

I loved Dune back in 2021 and this follow up (not a sequel but rather a direct continuation that adapts the second half of Frank Herbert’s classic novel) is, remarkably, even better. This is epic science fiction filmmaking with a level of scale, scope, and spectacle we so rarely see. The lived in world-building and tangible feel is a testament to the incredible production value on display, in cinematography, production and costume design, and Hans Zimmer’s extraordinary score. Villeneuve crafts hugely entertaining action scenes but never loses sight of the characters or storytelling. The entire ensemble delivers excellent work as we explore religious fanaticism and imperialism all while deconstruction the myth of the hero. The ending left me shaken and in awe. Perhaps it is Denis who is Lisan al Gaib after all.

(4) Wicked: Part 1 (Dir: Jon M. Chu)

No film this year surprised me more than Wicked, not because I don’t love musicals or the source material but because I love musicals and the source material so very much. I was hesitant about the casting, the visuals, the decision to split the musical in to two parts. I was wrong. Period. Wicked: Part 1 is a glorious musical epic that I ended up seeing 8 times in theaters (tied with Barbie last year, natch.) This movie is lush, magical, and full of so much personality. The world-building and production design are immaculate. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande are simply perfect, their chemistry, vocals, and depth of feeling illuminating shades of the characters the stage musical simply never had the time to do. I have never felt the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda more clearly. Christopher Scott’s choreography is so fun and joyous, never better than in “Dancing Through Life” in which Jonathan Bailey gets to show that he has more charm and charisma than perhaps anybody else alive. It’s such a cliche but this film made me laugh, it made me cry, it had me tapping my toes, and it proved that splitting the musical in to two was the absolute right decision. By taking its time and allowing the character beats to breathe, iconic musical moments are gorgeously translated from the stage to the screen with immense impact. Jon M. Chu absolutely nailed it.

(3) Nosferatu (Dir: Robert Eggers)

My favorite horror film of the year is also the year’s most visually stunning film, though I admit its tone and approach speak directly to my own specific sensibilities. I am a huge fan of Robert Eggers, who burst on the scene with the terrific The Witch, and his commitment to gothic horror has never been more pointed. The tone achieved in Nosferatu is stunning, each frame spilling over with dark beauty, immense dread, and pure obsession. Jarin Blaschke’s cinematography and use of light and shadow is stunning. This film features perhaps the best nighttime cinematography I’ve seen in many, many years. Robin Carolan’s score is appropriately haunting and romantic. The entire cast is perfectly aligned with Eggers’ approach, none more so than Lily-Rose Depp, who frequently took my breath away. This film is not for the faint of heart. It’s gross, lurid, chilling, and unrelenting. That’s a good thing. It commits and delivers an utterly transfixing cinematic experience.

(2) Ghostlight (Dir: Kelly O’Sullivan & Alex Thompson)

This film broke me and put me back together, again and again and again. It is so small and quiet, so empathetic and pure, so honest and palpable. Made with a small budget on an approved waiver during 2023’s SAG strike, directors O’Sullivan and Thompson (partners in work and life) have created a film that simply feels… real. The casting is a stroke of genius. Keith Kupferer is wonderful and heartbreaking as Dan Mueller, but it is Keith’s real life daughter and wife (!!!) who play his daughter and wife in this film that allows for a rare and profound alchemy of performance. Dolly de Leon is the perfect vibrant antidote to the pain of the Mueller family. Ghostlight is a potent study of grief and the affect it can have on a family, but more than that it is a lovely ode to the therapeutic and healing power of live theater for both the actors and the audience. Of course it hit me right where it counts.

(1) The Brutalist (Dir: Brady Corbet)

A 3 and a half hour long (with intermission) American epic shot almost entirely on VistaVision (the first feature film to do so since 1961) about the immigrant experience in post World War II America? And it absolutely nails it? Yeah, this is a masterpiece. The film is a soaring, soulful examination of obsession, the legacy we leave behind, the immigrant experience, capitalism, art, Judaism, and the folly of the American dream. It manages to be both intimate and grand, using its beautiful and smart structure to make each moment of its very long running time count. The film feels like a new literary classic in ambition, language, and intelligence. Corbet (a former child actor who continues to grow and impress as a filmmaker) imbues it with an indelible elegiac quality. The gorgeous cinematography, editing, and score make for a truly arresting experience. Adrien Brody is monumental, complimented by a ferocious Guy Pearce

I believe this is a film that will be loved and studied for many years to come. It has made its mark on the landscape of classic American epics almost immediately upon its release, and I hope more audiences consider giving it the time it deserves. It is never once dull or boring but instead overfilled with life, thought, and feeling. I was lucky enough to see the film projected on 70mm film, a remarkable experience that serves as the single greatest theatrical experience of my moviegoing year. Simply incredible.