My Top 10 Best Movies of 2024
- Pierce Brenner
- Feb 18
- 6 min read
With the worst of the past year in film out of the way, now it's time to highlight the best. 2024 had a lot going against it, especially the 2023 industry strikes that led to numerous big movies being pushed back at least a year. Still, there were quite a few films released in 2024 that I'm sure will go down in history as landmark titles, to the point where my honorable mentions will be more packed (and possibly more widely acclaimed) than the actual list! I've got everything on my list, from high-minded epics to horrifying gorefests to family-friendly adventures. So, now that I've got you, let's jump in and start with a bevy of movies that were fantastic, but not quite fantastic enough for my personal top 10. Hold your torches and pitchforks, please.
Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order):
Anora
A Complete Unknown
Deadpool & Wolverine
Dune: Part Two
The First Omen
Heretic
Hit Man
Inside Out 2
Late Night with the Devil
Love Lies Bleeding
The Order
Rebel Ridge
Transformers One
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
Wicked
And now, on with the top 10!
10: Nosferatu
Robert Eggers is one of the most interesting filmmakers working today, always delivering incredibly immersive period pieces that make you say "damn, the past was scary!" Nosferatu is no exception. It's a visually gorgeous film with fantastic cinematography, costumes, and production design, and knows how to craft an oppressive atmosphere that keeps viewers on edge even when Count Orlok is offscreen. The movie is also filled with terrific performances, especially Lily-Rose Depp in a career-best turn as heroine Ellen Hutter.
9: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
I've been a big fan of the Mad Max franchise for a long time, and Fury Road was in many ways a high point for the adventures of everyone's favorite road warrior, but George Miller's prequel following that film's breakout character takes thing up a notch. Furiosa is a true post-apocalyptic epic with all the beauty and bloodshed fans want, and while the action sequences may not be quite as innovative as Fury Road's, they still pack quite the punch. Anya Taylor Joy is great as Furiosa, but the movie lets the supporting players make an impression too, particularly Chris Hemsworth as Dementus, whose scenery chewing is some of the most delightful of any villain this year.
8: The Substance
It's great to see a horror movie get so major Oscar love, and The Substance certainly deserves it. Of course the film fires on all cylinders on a technical level, with the musical score and appropriately disgusting makeup being some of the highlights, and it does a great job of mining the aging process for both scares and social commentary. But the thing that makes The Substance so special is the acting from both Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, the former of whom will likely get a richly deserved Oscar win in a couple weeks.
7: Flow
I can't say a Latvian animated film about non-anthropomorphic animals was on my radar at the beginning of the year, but here we are. Flow shows you can still pack a ton of emotion into a dialogue-free story, and does so much to make the characters likable and compelling through their actions, facial expressions, and body language. It also has one of the most unique visual styles I've seen in a while, one in which every frame looks like a painting in motion, and I won't be surprised if it goes on to be highly influential as the years go by.
6: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
A distant sequel set centuries after Caesar led the apes to their promised land, I was always curious about Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, but it blew my expectations out of the water. The previous trilogy is a tough act to follow, but Kingdom adds new layers to the series' mythos while still largely being its own thing. I'm a sucker for a story about underestimated people looking to right their society's wrongs, so I was rooting for Noa every step of the way. It also, like its predecessors, has some of the best visual effects I've ever seen, and should be held up as the gold standard for CGI characters.
5: Longlegs
I know this one hasn't been a universal audience favorite, but I absolutely loved it. Longlegs has everything I love in a horror thriller, including constant suspense, a strong lead performance from genre darling Maika Monroe, and a bleak aesthetic that complements the grim tone. Of course, arguably the most memorable thing about the film is Nicolas Cage as the titular killer, whose eccentricities making him both amusing and disturbing. As someone who wasn't the biggest fan of Osgood Perkins' previous work, anything he does is gonna catch my eye going forward.
4: The Brutalist
The Brutalist feels like a cinematic equivalent of the so-called "great American novel". Not only is it very well made, with one of the best casts of the year, it's an incredibly engaging story with a lot of interesting themes. Protagonist Laszlo Toth has a classic immigrant's story, seeking the American dream with his immense talents, but his tale is also one of a genius refusing to compromise his vision, even in the face of the whole world screaming at him to give up, even when it could destroy his relationships with everyone around him. While the life of an architect may not seem like ripe material for a sprawling epic at first glance, The Brutalist proves that anything is possible with the right script and the right team bringing it to the screen
3: Conclave
Like The Brutalist, Conclave is kind of a miracle movie. On paper, one wouldn't think a story about a papal election would have much juice, but with a rollicking script with lots of twists and turns, a skilled director at the helm, and a thoroughly stacked ensemble cast led by Ralph Fiennes, it's a near-perfect political thriller. While some critics have found the movie overly sensationalistic, it knows to keep the focus on its story and characters, which make it a rewarding watch even for those with no knowledge of the Vatican's inner workings. Also, who doesn't love some catty backstabbing from these guys who are so pious and high-minded on the surface.
2: The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre Dumas' classic novel has had numerous adaptations over the decades, but I think 2024 gave us the best one yet. The Count of Monte Cristo tells the story of sailor Edmond Dantes' quest for revenge after a conspiracy destroys his life, and like all the best films of its kind, it is riveting from start to finish. Even at nearly three hours, it moves at a great pace and never once feels padded. For my money, this is the true best international film of the year, and should've been the French submission for the Oscar instead of Emilia Pérez.
1: The Wild Robot
DreamWorks Animation has been on a roll lately with films like Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and The Bad Guys, but The Wild Robot represents a huge leap forward for the studio. The animation is obviously wonderful, utilizing a watercolor-esque style that sets it apart from the Spider-Verse look so popular lately. But what makes The Wild Robot so special is its emotional resonance. With its themes of motherhood, forgiveness, and cooperation in the face of adversity, the movie is surprisingly mature and hard-hitting, making it equally rewarding to watch with the kids or without. I'm actually softly against the existence of an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, because it's often an excuse to avoid nominating movies like this, even when they truly deserve it.
With my list out of the way, my question is...what are your favorite movies of 2024? I'm sure yours will be quite different, but that's the beauty of it. All art is subjective, and if you love something, you should be unashamed to say so.
Stay tuned for future posts.
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