Best Movies of 2024

We are starting 2025 with talking about the best movies of 2024. We are doing a top 10 list, every single film on this list got either a perfect 10/10 or got really close with a 9.5/10. These are films I felt didn’t have any flaws in their objective elements and then subjectively I enjoyed watching and I feel have real rewatchability factor. These are in no particular order.

Let’s hammer the rewatchability thing home, I’ve seen this film twice in theatres and 4 times since. Dune part 2. Visually, easily one of the most beautiful films of the year. The story was fantastic and I finally get the Timothy Chalamet hype. It’s an incredible film and it's one that reminds me why I love film and love storytelling.

This one makes my musical theatre heart happy, Wicked. I think it was a gorgeous tribute to the stage show, Ariana really surprised me I expected Cynthia to be flawless. I also saw this one multiple times in theatres, this show has been so close to my heart for so long. Genuinely I've been singing this soundtrack most of my life, I’ve seen the stage show 3 times and the movie was brilliant and beautiful and I can not wait for part 2.

Next is the Wild Robot. Every decade or so since Iron Giant we’ve gotten a popular, successful sentient robot movie. Those who grew up feeling for Iron Giant grew up and created Wall-E, those who fell in love with Wall-E grew up and wrote/animated for Big Hero 6, and those who cried during Big Hero 6 inevitably brought us the Wild Robot. They are films that are now an integral part of our society and of childhood. The Wild Robot fits right in with all the greats mentioned and just like all of those it will be passed on to future generations.

I feel very strongly about Ghostlight. It not only had some of the best performances of the year, but the premise and execution was heart wrenchingly brilliant. A father who loses his son to a teenage suicide pact finds himself playing Romeo in Romeo and Juliet. Just go ahead and sit with that for a second. The writing is beautiful, it will make you cry it is one of the most emotionally impactful films of the last decade.

I also feel very strongly about Mothers’ Instinct. The way that this narrative was crafted with so much commentary on motherhood and loss while still maintaining being a thriller was incredible. It was an impeccable balance of so many elements, and having the production design be very stepford to further comment on the expectation of mother’s and women in general UGH it's a brilliant movie and anything with Anne Hathaway in it is going to end up on my best of lists so here we are.

Okay we have to talk about Foe. A lot of people probably missed this one since it didn’t get a wide release anywhere and it just kind of snuck onto Amazon Prime but Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal are INCREDIBLE. It has one of the best narrative twists I have ever seen and I LOVED it.

We started the year with lesbian movies and they were both phenomenal but the one I chose (despite my disdain for Kristen Stewart) is Love Lies Bleeding. I think it was such a great relationship exploration. The effects and cinematography were interesting and beautiful. The story was incredibly well written and the pacing was so great. I was so invested the entire time and as the narrative built there was never a time where the story lagged or lingered too long.

Not leaving this list without talking about Conclave. Obviously the casting was amazing but I think the story was a well crafted look at the hypocrisy of religion and religious leaders. It was tense, it was quiet, it was beautiful to watch. And Ralph Finneas was particularly incredible.

A much quieter entry on this list is Small Things Like These. It slipped under most people's radars because it only got a limited release in the US, that is to say that it was only put in certain theatres. Cillian Murphy stars in and helped produce a subtle and gorgeous film about the kindness of strangers and how one person can change the outcome of your life. And it does that in front of a backdrop of corrupt religious organizations, allowing for commentary about how religion doesn’t dictate morality. It’s just so beautiful.

And last but not least, Lord of the Rings: War of Rohirrim. The animation was gorgeous, the story was incredibly well written. There was just enough ties to the stories we already live and it was just a spectacular visit to middle earth.