The Top 100 films of 2024: The Ben Hecht 500 finale
My picks for the best movies of the year, also known as 'The Brutalist' and the other 99.
Thank you for reading to the end of my exhaustive countdown of the more than 500 movies that I saw this year, in my capacity as a critic, essayist, and journalist.
To recap: Here’s my list of the 40 worst films of the year, followed by Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 of the countdown.
I’m listing each film’s streaming availability, mostly going by what JustWatch says as of this writing; those are all subject to change. Also, the ranking comes from my personal running Letterboxd list of the movies I saw in 2024.
And once again, if a film has a plausible claim as a 2024 release, it’s included. It’s movies that got 2024 releases and were part of 2024 awards campaigns, and also movies I saw at film festivals and through other early-access channels, which may not have releases set in 2024. There are also some movies I saw at festivals in 2023 and earlier, that finally came out this year.
And for those of you who are new: This newsletter, The S.S. Ben Hecht, is named after the screenwriter and playwright from the early Hollywood era. The “SS Ben Hecht” was a ship Hecht sent to rescue Holocaust survivors, while “SS” also stands for both my initials, and “Substack.”
Here we go…
100. The Philly Sound ‘Heard Round the World
Dir. Bill Nicoletti, not streaming, review here.
Exhaustive documentary, produced over a long period, about Philly’s Sigma Sound Studios. Debuted at the Philadelphia Film Festival, but no release date is set.
99. Look Back
Dir. Kiyotaka Oshiyama, streaming on Prime Video.
I don’t normally have anything nice to say about films whose description includes the phrase “based on the one-shot web manga.” But I was really into this story of two girls and their long and complicated friendship.
98. Rez Ball
Dir. Sydney Freeland, streaming on Netflix
This sports drama, the fact-based story of an all-native basketball team in New Mexico, is able to overcome all the obvious cliches. This is thanks to a smart script and a great look.
97. Zurawski v. Texas
Dir. Maisie Crow, Abbie Perrault, streaming on Jolt
This infuriating documentary is about legal challenges involving abortion in the state of Texas. The subjects are especially well-chosen.
96. Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird
Dir. Nicolas Jack Davies, not streaming, review here.
Assembled from hundreds of hours of home video footage from the two men over several years, as we see their rise, the change in bands, and the various intersections of drug addiction, their relationships with women, the Church of Scientology, and other topics.
95. Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
Dir. : Nick Park, Merlin Crossingham, coming to Netflix on January 3.
Successful update to the Aardman Animation franchise with everyone’s favorite man/dog duo. As you may remember, these were always shorts, but the franchise has successfully switched to features.
94. The Apprentice
Dir. Ali Abbasi, streaming on VOD, review here.
The first major feature film about Donald Trump, focusing on his New York real estate years, and his relationship with Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong.) Doesn’t exactly have anything new to say, but both performances are excellent.
93. Oh, Canada
Dir. Paul Schrader, now in theaters, review here.
Schrader’s latest is about a documentary filmmaker (Richard Gere) looking back at his life, including when he was a young man played by Jacob Elordi. But really, it’s clearly about the director’s own mortality, as he continues to make outstanding movies in his 70s.
92. Love Lies Bleeding
Dir. Rose Glass, streaming on Max, review here.
Extremely audacious movie about a lesbian gym employee (Kristen Stewart) in a small town, her aspiring bodybuilder lover, and their interaction with the local criminal underworld (led by Ed Harris.) This film’s extremely scuzzy production design should win awards.
91. Red Rooms
Dir. Pascal Plante, streaming on VOD, review here.
This Canadian thriller starts as a stylish but creepy courtroom drama. But it later spreads into having sharp things to say about parasocial true crime fandom.
90. Kneecap
Dir. Rich Peppiatt, streaming on Netflix.
Very enjoyable, fictionalized biopic of the titular Northern Irish band, who play themselves and advocate for the preservation of the Irish language. There’s so much of that, in fact, that the film was eligible for the Best International Film Oscar.
89. The Room Next Door
Dir. Pedro Almodovar, coming to theaters on December 25, review here.
Almodovar’s first English-language film stars the exact two actresses you would think it would (Julianne Moore and Tilda Swinton), in a melodramatic plot about two old friends, one of whom plans to die. Well done, but not quite as go-for-broke as the best of his work.
88. Here
Dir. Robert Zemeckis, streaming on VOD, review here.
Zemeckis has reunited with the whole gang from Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, writer Eric Roth, composer Alan Silvestri). And he’s made film, like Gump, that’s mawkish as hell but manages to pack an emotional punch.
87. Los Frikis
Dir. Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz, coming to theaters December 25.
A fine rendering of an amazing true story, about a group of young people in early 1990s Cuba who knowingly gave themselves HIV to attend a special facility. Also, the characters love rock ‘n’ roll and baseball, and even at one point watch the 1991 World Series.
86. Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressberger
Dir. David Hinton, streaming on VOD
Loving appreciation of the work of the British filmmakers. Plus, it features one of the best narrations of the year, from a big fan of theirs: Martin Scorsese.
85. War Game
Dir. Jesse Moss, Tony Gerber, streaming on VOD, review here.
Not quite a January 6 documentary but rather one depicting, in real-time, a “war game” of a 1/6-type action in which the military is on board with the coup. It also implies, less convincingly, that “sovereign citizens” could ever credibly threaten the stability of the government.
84. Dahomey
Dir. Mati Diop, streaming on Mubi
A documentary that looks like nothing else this year, it explores the return of stolen artifacts from France to Africa. Includes a thought-provoking discussion, as well as a narration like nothing you’ve ever heard.
83. Remembering Gene Wilder
Dir. Ron Frank, streaming on Netflix, review here, feature here.
Straightforward but footage-filled documentary about the life of the late comedy star. It covers it all: The Mel Brooks films, the Richard Pryor comedies, and his time with Gilda Radner.
82. Bill Bradley: Rolling Along
Dir. Mike Tollin, streaming on Max, review here.
Filmed one-man show in which the NBA star-turned-senator tells his entire life story. Very compelling, especially coming from a guy who didn’t used to be known for being good at talking.
81. In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon
Dir. Alex Gibney, streaming on MGM+
Comprehensive, very entertaining doc about Simon’s entire career, from Garfunkel to today. Of Gibney’s two-part docs this year, the Paul Simon one was much better than the David Chase one.
80. It’s Only Life After All
Dir. Alexandria Bombach, streaming on Netflix, review here.
Another fantastic music documentary, about the Indigo Girls, the folk-country-pop duo that was the envy of every single girl I ever went to camp with. And as the doc makes clear: Yes, they’re gay, but no, they’ve never been a couple.
79. Bad River
Dir. Mary Mazzio, streaming on Peacock
Sure, it’s been overshadowed a bit by Sugarcane. But Bad River is a very good documentary about a Wisconsin tribe’s fight for sovereignty.
78. The Truth vs. Alex Jones
Dir. Dan Reed, streaming on Max, review here.
Documentary about the mephistophelian conspiracy theorist, and the lawsuit against him by the Sandy Hook families. If I do my “documentary villains” list this year, Jones goes straight to the top.
77. Daughters
Dir. Angela Patton, Chad Morris, streaming on Netflix
Lovely documentary about daddy/daughter dances, in which the fathers are incarcerated. Not shy about including all the many complexities inherent in those circumstances.
76. Enter the Clones of Bruce
Dir. David Gregory, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Wildly fun documentary about the years after Bruce Lee’s death, when unscrupulous filmmakers produced dozens of films starring Lee knockoffs. Sometimes it went very far, including a whole film that included most of Lee’s funeral.
75. Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa
Dir. Lucy Walker, streaming on Netflix, review here.
This thought-provoking documentary is about the woman who climbed Mt. Everest ten times, her life today, and the not-so-pleasant story of her former husband.
74. Racist Trees
Dir. Sara Newens, Mina T. Son, streaming on PBS, review here.
Documentary about a controversy in Palm Springs, where decades ago, trees were planted to wall off a Black neighborhood. More recently, this was revisited, and became ugly Fox News fodder.
73. God Save Texas: Hometown Prison
Dir. Richard Linklater, streaming on Max, review here.
Linklater had only ever directed one other documentary, but he proved a natural with this, a look at the state prison in Texas. Even though it’s a documentary, it feels in every way like a Linklater movie.
72. Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Dir. Raoul Peck, not streaming.
The director of I Am Not Your Negro has now made a fine doc about Cole, the South African photographer who did a great deal to expose apartheid and then came to the United States. Makes use of a large cache of newly discovered Cole photographs.
71. Two American Families: 1991-2024
Dir. Tom Casciato, Kathleen Hughes, streaming on PBS.
Filmed over more than 30 years, this ambitious film takes a probing look at a pair of struggling American families. Bill Moyers (remember him?) is the correspondent.
70. No Other Land
Dir. Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, not streaming.
An Israeli-Palestinian collective made this documentary, about the Israeli bombardment of a West Bank village. Despite a lack of distribution, it has been awarded by several critics groups and shortlisted by the Oscars.
69. Gaucho Gaucho
Dir. Gregory Kershaw, Michael Dweck, not streaming, review here.
Absolutely beautiful documentary about cowboys in Argentina. The most aesthetically beautiful nonfiction film of the year.
68. I Am: Celine Dion
Dir. Irene Taylor Brodsky, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Career-spanning documentary about the hit-making singer, including her battle with Stiff Person’s Syndrome. The only documentary this year in which the subject has a 6seizure on camera.
67. In the Summers
Dir. Alessandra Lacorazza, streaming on VOD, review here.
It’s the story of an estranged father who is visited by his two kids for four summers in a small New Mexico town. Fantastic performances from all three leads.
66. Dandelion
Dir. Nicole Riegel, streaming on AMC+, review here.
Music-filled drama with Kiki Layne (from If Beale Street Could Talk), as an aspiring musician. More about romance, heartbreak, and struggle, than the usual story of a singer’s rocket ship to success.
65. Wicked
Dir. Jon M. Chu, in theaters now, review here.
Megahit adaptation of the first half of the popular Broadway musical. Flawed at times, but contains quite a bit of old-fashioned movie magic.
64. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Dir. George Miller, streaming on Max, review here.
A serviceable prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, with a fantastic lead performance from Anya Taylor-Joy. But it lives very much in the shadow of Fury Road.
63. The End
Dir. Joshua Oppenheimer, in theaters now, review here.
A post-apocalyptic musical, from the director of The Act of Killing? Something is exciting about a swing this big that connects.
62. Flow
Dir. Gints Zilbalodis, in theaters now.
Gorgeous silent animated film from Latvia. Being considered for both animated and foreign film awards, both very much deserved.
61. The Last Showgirl
Dir. Gia Coppola, in theaters now.
A mostly successful rehash of The Wrestler, with Pamela Anderson as a showgirl in a Las Vegas show that’s on its last legs. A super-strong supporting cast is led by Dave Bautista and Jamie Lee Curtis.
60. Sabbath Queen
Dir. Sandi Simcha DuBowski, in theaters now.
Riveting documentary about Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie, a scion of 38 generations of rabbis, who is now a gay progressive rabbi in New York, with a drag persona. From the director of the outstanding documentary Trembling Before G_D.
59. Flipside
Dir. Chris Wilcha, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Documentary about the filmmaker, making a film about a record store, while also revisiting various abandoned projects from throughout his career. I don’t normally love navel-gazing documentaries like this, but was very much into this one.
58. Black Box Diaries
Dir. Shiori Itō, not streaming, review here.
A great but infuriating documentary by Ito, who tells her own story of how she was sexually assaulted by a powerful journalist. Then she fought, for five years, to have her case heard.
57. Music by John Williams
Dir. Laurent Bouzereau, streaming on Disney+, review here.
Wonderful documentary about the preeminent composer of popular film over the past half-century. The now-nonagenarian composer is still sharp, and the film focuses on his friendship with Steven Spielberg.
56. Will & Harper
Dir. Josh Greenbaum, streaming on Netflix, review here.
Road documentary with Will Ferrell and Harper Steele, his old writer friend who recently transitioned to female. I liked that the film never forgets that these are comedy people, and they approach this project through humor.
55. Jim Henson Idea Man
Dir. Ron Howard, streaming on Disney+, review here.
Nonfiction film looking at Henson’s wonderful, way-to-short life. You’re likely to both laugh and cry.
54. Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story
Dir. Charlie Hamilton James, streaming on Hulu.
I don’t even like nature documentaries all that much. But I was transfixed by this one, the two of two otters in the Shetland Islands.
53. The Greatest Night in Pop
Dir. Bao Nguyen, streaming on Netflix, review here.
A documentary about the night “We Are the World” was recorded, featuring just about every major rock and pop star in 1985 (besides Prince.) The best part, by far, is the recording of the bridge, and Cyndi Lauper’s great moment.
52. Green Border
Dir. Agnieszka Holland, streaming on Kino Film and VOD.
Infuriating but powerful drama looking at all sides of the story it’s telling: About migrants caught on the border of Poland and Belarus.
51. The Old Oak
Dir. Ken Loach, streaming on Kino Film and VOD
What could be Loach’s final film is a slice-of-life story of a group of migrants arriving in a Northern English town, and the resulting tensions, all centered around the titular bar. Approaches the topic with great empathy.
50. The Beekeeper
Dir. David Ayer, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Very fun action movie that also offers righteous anger at scammers and corrupt political figures. Starts off as a small story, but by the end, Jason Statham is beating up representatives of every major national security agency.
49. My Old Ass
Dir. Megan Park, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Film about a young woman meeting her older self from the future has the title and premise of a silly comedy, but has a twist that sneaks up on you. Breakthrough performance from Maisy Stella.
48. This Closeness
Dir. Kit Zauhar, streaming on Mubi, review here.
Drama about three people sharing an AirBnB, that never leaves that small apartment. A throwback to the mumblecore era, except it’s way better than most of those movies were.
47. Strange Darling
Dir. JT Mollner, streaming on VOD, review here.
Super-stylish thriller about a man and a woman, and were meant to question: Is this a one-night stand, is he an abuser, or some combination of both? Great cinematography, by actor Giovanni Ribisi.
46. Between the Temples
Dir. Nathan Silver, streaming on VOD, feature here.
Jason Schwartzman, in one of several outstanding performances this year, plays a cantor, mourning his wife, who comes alive through his old music teacher (Carol Kane) who’s now his Bat Mitzvah student. In a year of very good Jewish Movies, this is one of the best.
45. National Anthem
Dir. Luke Gilford, streaming on Hoopla, review here.
This drama tells the story of an unlikely queer rodeo collective, based on a ranch in the Southwest, and tells that story with beautiful photography of rural vistas (the director is also a photographer.) Finally a great movie role for actress Eve Lindley.
44. The Fall Guy
Dir. David Leitch, streaming on Peacock, review here.
Ryan Gosling gives a movie-star performance in this action comedy about a stuntman pining for the director of his movie (Emily Blunt) while fighting criminals. Was a bit of a flop but deserved better.
43. Babygirl
Dir. Halina Reijn, coming to theaters December 25.
Nicole Kidman and Harris Dickinson in a workplace erotic thriller that’s going to break #MeToo discourse. Just impressive that Kidman is still doing this 25 years after Eyes Wide Shut.
42. Luther: Never Too Much
Dir. Dawn Porter, not streaming, review here.
First-rate documentary about the life and career of Luther Vandross, marked by lots of talent and lots of sadness. Gives its due to both sides of that story.
41. Eno
Dir. Gary Huswit, not streaming, review here.
The year’s most inventive documentary, putting together footage from throughout the life of the great music impresario, only it’s a little bit different every time. Finally getting a wider release next year, including a 24-hour streaming day.
40. Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Dir. Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui, streaming on Max, review here.
Loving examination of the story of Christopher Reeve, going back and forth to tell the stories of his life before and after his accident. The only movie this year that left a room full of critics in tears.
39. A Storm Foretold
Dir. Christoffer Guldbrandsen, not streaming, review here.
An astonishing political documentary about Roger Stone, against the backdrop of January 6 and the end of Trump’s first term, in which Stone is caught on camera saying lot of outrageous things. Somewhat inexplicably, was barely released and got no awards push.
38. Inside Out 2
Dir. Kelsey Mann, streaming on Disney+, review here.
Pixar sequel that, unlike most, is nearly the equal of the original. Also knows how annoying it is to have people think you’re from Michigan, when you’re from Minnesota.
37. Matt and Mara
Dir. Kazik Radwanski, not streaming, review here.
Outstanding Canadian drama about a woman who starts hanging out with an old male friend, bringing about conflicting feelings. Only briefly released in the U.S., this one deserves discovery.
36. Challengers
Dir. Luca Guadagnino, streaming on Prime video, review here.
“The sexy tennis movie” features a dynamite love triangle, a nonlinear storytelling style that works better than most, and wonderful performances by Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor. Tennis hasn’t been this hot since the heyday of Gabriela Sabatini.
35. Juror #2
Dir. Clint Eastwood, streaming on Max, review here.
Old-fashioned, workmanlike courtroom thriller, directed by Eastwood in what could be his final film. Was also barely released, and built up an audience through word of mouth.
34. Rebel Ridge
Dir. Jeremy Saulnier, streaming on Netflix, review here.
This thriller isn’t likely to win many representation awards from the Fraternal Order of Police. But it’s a fun clash between a retired Marine (Aaron Pierre) and corrupt cops (led by Don Johnson.)
33. The People’s Joker
Dir. Vera Drew, streaming on Mubi, review here.
Finally released, almost two years after it was pulled from TIFF, Vera Drew’s revionist Joker film pokes fun at the superhero genre (with love) and the SNL-associated New York comedy scene (with NO love.) I’m glad people are discovering this.
32. Problemista
Dir. Julio Torres, streaming on Max, review here.
One of the year’s best debuts stars Torres as an immigrant with precarious status, who ends up working for a nightmare boss (Tilda Swinton.) The plot makes it sound like an earnest social issue drama, but that’s not what it is at all.
31. Hard Truths
Dir. Mike Leigh, in theaters now, review here.
Leigh’s latest film boasts the single best acting performance in any movie this year, Marianne Jean-Baptiste’s turn as an exceptionally depressed and nasty woman. It’s a successful reunion for the director and co-star of Secrets and Lies.
30. Snack Shack
Dir. Adam Rehmeier, streaming on Prime Video, review here.
Hugely entertaining coming-of-age comedy/drama, set in Nebraska in 1991 and from the director of Dinner in America, about a pair of kids (Gabriel LaBelle, Conor Sherry) who take over a pool snack bar, and fall for the same girl (Mika Abdalla.)
29. The Beast
Dir. Bertrand Bonello, streaming on The Criterion Channel.
Very ambitious sci-fi film starring Lea Seydoux and George MacKay, dealing with A.I., past lives, and various other concepts. Best cinematic use of Roy Orbison since Mulholland Dr.
28. Day of the Fight
Dir. Jack Huston, not streaming, review here.
Yes, it has ever boxing movie cliche in the world. But the film looks gorgeous, is full of great music, and has cameos from half of Huston’s castmates from Boardwalk Empire, including star Michael Pitt.
27. Fresh Kills
Dir. Jennifer Esposito, streaming on VOD.
Underseen drama about a mob family that moves to Staten Island, and a daughter who rejects the family’s values. Emily Bader shines, in particular, as that daughter.
26. A Different Man
Dir. Adam Schimberg, streaming on VOD, review here.
Thought-provoking movie about the grass always being greener. Sebastian Stan plays a man with facial disfigurement who gets his condition cured, only to find another guy with the same condition (Adam Pearson) who has the life he always wanted.
25. Good One
Dir. India Donaldson, streaming on VOD, review here.
One of the year’s best debuts, featuring a teenager (Lily Collias), on a trip with her father and the father’s friend. A wonderfully constructed script, buoyed by Collias’ breakthrough performance.
24. A Real Pain
Dir. Jesse Eisenberg, in theaters now, review here.
Comedy/drama about two Jewish cousins (Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin) who visit Poland as a tribute to their late grandmother. I liked how the two are depicted as very different types of men and specifically very different types of Jewish men.
23. Kinds of Kindness
Dir. Yorgias Lanthimos, streaming on Hulu, review here.
Lanthimos followed Poor Things, his most popular film yet, with something weird and almost nonsensical. A star-studded cast stars in three different vignettes, each one stranger than the last.
22. Exhibiting Forgiveness
Dir. Titus Kaphar, streaming on VOD, review here.
Drama about an artist (Andre Holland) who reconnects with his addict father (John Earl Jelks). The film shows that this type of story isn’t always so neat.
21. Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Dir. Johan Grimonprez, not streaming, review here.
Documentary about the January 1961 assassination of Congolese Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and its aftermath, including a great deal of great music. Thanks to amazing editing, it’s one of the most exhilarating and inventive nonfiction pictures of the year
20. Sugarcane
Dir. Emily Kassie and Julian Brave Noiscat, streaming on Hulu and Disney+, review here.
But the best documentary of the year is this, exploring the history of abuse at residential schools in Canada. Creates a fantastic sense of place and tells its story with tension and beautiful cinematography.
19. Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World
Dir. Radu Jude, streaming on Mubi, review here.
Jude’s follow-up to Bad Luck Banging is another examination of Romanian society, this time through the eyes of a woman who works for an evil company, while live-streaming on the side as an Andrew Tate acolyte. We really need an American Radu Jude.
18. Conclave
Dir. Edward Berger, streaming on Peacock, review here.
Sticks a bunch of great actors, led by Ralph Fiennes, into a drama-filled Papal election. Always entertaining, even if realism isn’t its strong suit.
17. We Grown Now
Dir. Minhal Baig, streaming on Netflix.
Wonderful drama, about two Black boys growing up in the Cabrini Green projects in Chicago in the early 1990s- complete with multiple Ferris Bueller homages. This movie deserved a better shot.
16. Sing Sing
Dir. Greg Kwedar, not streaming, Colman Domingo interview here.
Thought-provoking drama about a group of incarcerated men who participate in a theater group. Domingo is outstanding, as are the rest of the cast, most of them played by former prisoners themselves.
15. The Substance
Dir. Coralie Fargeat, streaming on Mubi, review here.
Body horror satire in which an aging actress (Demi Moore) swaps herself out half the time with a younger version (Margaret Qualley). Kind of a skewed view of Hollywood, which adds to the charm, plus bonus points for a wild, go-for-broke ending.
14. All We Imagine as Light
Dir. Praya Kapadia, in theaters now, review here.
Out of India comes one of the most electrifying movies of the year, the story of three women of different ages who connect. In particular, it does some amazing things with lighting.
13. Eephus
Dir. Carson Lund, in theaters in early 2025, review here.
The best baseball movie in years is this, depicting the final game of a baseball beer league in Massachusetts. Funny throughout, and full of great detail, especially that these all look like the types of guys who would be in this sort of league.
12. Rap World
Dir. Conor O’Malley, Danny Scharar, streaming on YouTube, review here.
Hilarious found-footage mockumentary about a bunch of idiots making a rap album throughout a single night. Includes the funniest smash-cut to a funeral since The Other Guys.
11. Dune Part Two
Dir. Denis Villeneuve, streaming on Max, review here.
The second part of the Dune saga is a nearly complete triumph, despite adapting a book that was thought unadaptable, especially after failed attempts by a couple of great filmmakers. Bigger and better than the first film.
10. The Wild Robot
Dir. Chris Sanders, in theaters now.
A wonderful animated film about a robot who befriends a baby goose. Also inspired the year’s best Letterboxd list:
9. Memoir of a Snail
Dir. Adam Elliot, streaming on VOD, review here.
But the year’s best animated film is this Australian stunner, about a girl named Grace who suffers in numerous ways, before she’s finally granted a measure of, uh, Grace. Not nearly as slick as the Pixar and Illumination stuff, but better than anything they made this year.
8. September 5
Dir. Tim Fehlbaum, in theaters now, review here, feature here.
Extremely tense film about how a team from ABC Sports covered the hostage situation and massacre at the Munich Olympics. Never lets up the tension, even though most people watching will know how it turns out.
7. A Complete Unknown
Dir. James Mangold, in theaters December 25, review here.
Biopic of Bob Dylan features a fantastic 1960s look, a dynamite performance from Timothee Chalamet as Dylan and doesn’t hew as close to biopic convention as you would think. Sure, it’s Boomer History, but it’s done right.
6. I Saw the TV Glow
Dir. Jane Schoenbrun, streaming on Max, review here.
Yes, it’s a tribute to 1990s TV, and also an allegory for trans self-actualization, and it works as both. But this is also a purely successful auteur project from a massively talented young filmmaker.
5. Drive-Away Dolls
Dir. Ethan Coen, streaming on Peacock, review here.
Sure, the Coen brother’s solo feature directorial debut came and went in February without much fanfare, and I’m the only critic on Earth who has it in his top ten. But I loved how this married the style and plot mechanics of vintage Coens with a queer sensibility.
4. Nickel Boys
Dir. RaMell Ross, in theaters now, review here.
Ross’ fiction debut employs a radically unique style of storytelling, in adapting Colson Whitehead’s novel about an abusive and murderous school for boys in the 1960s. This feels like a gimmick, but it’s really not- it’s a nontraditional but extremely effective way of telling this story.
3. Hit Man
Dir. Richard Linklater, streaming on Netflix, review here.
Ludicrously entertaining crime film about a college professor (Glen Powell) who freelances as an undercover cop who poses as a hitman- and gets into a romance with one potential client (Adria Arjona). The two combine for what’s probably the best scene of the year.
2. Anora
Dir. Sean Baker, in theaters now, review here.
A propulsive riff on the Cinderella myth, featuring a stripper (Mikey Madison) who elopes with the idiot son of a Russian oligarch, after which his henchmen attempt to intervene. That section is among the best sequences of any movie this year. In all, it’s another fantasia of Americana, told through the eyes of a sex worker.
1. The Brutalist
Dir. Brady Corbet, in theaters December 20 (and wider later), review here.
But as I may have hinted a time or two around here lately, 2024 is the Year of the Brutalist. It’s a great American epic, about the American Dream, Judaism, assimilation, architecture, Philadelphia, and so much more. And steel. Steel.
Thank you for reading, all week and all year!