Top 10 Movies of 2024

We've reached the end of 2024 and it's time for me to rank my Top 10 Movies of the year!  There were a lot of great movies this year and it was tough to cut some movies from my Top 10.  And the Top 3 are all absolute bangers with 1st place being one of the best cinematic experiences I've ever had.  Let's take a look!


#10: Longlegs



Longlegs made me think a lot of Silence of the Lambs combined with The X-Files. This is a police procedural following FBI agents in the pursuit of a serial killer.  Pretty straightforward on paper, but this is a movie that goes off the rails with its story and a fantastic performance from Nicolas Cage.  The direction and cinematography are both fantastic, but I do think the movie missed a few opportunities to get even scarier.


#9. Lisa Frankenstein



A love story between a teenage girl and the corpse she brings back to life.  I think I definitely liked this movie more than most people.  It's a total vibe movie that I really dug.  The music, lighting, and general style of the movie are very specific, which is right up my alley.  The performances from both Kathryn Newton and Cole Sprouse are fantastic and Newton really manages to own the dialogue from Diablo Cody, a task that not every actor is up for.  The movie has some structural issues thanks to the bizarre writing, but I think that the writing helps more often than it hurts the film.  This is how I like my horror-comedies.  I think Lisa Frankenstein gets the balance just right.


#8. The Fall Guy



A criminally underseen movie and my favorite comedy of the year.  The Fall Guy follows a stunt man who is returning to work after suffering a nearly career-ending injury.  To complicate things, he's in love with the director of the movie.  When the movie's star goes missing, the heroic stuntman goes off in search of the star.  This movie is simply a lot of fun.  It was a blast to watch thanks to the fantastic stunts and the awesome chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt.  I wish more people had gone to see this one.  Those that didn't missed out.


#7. Dune: Part Two 



Better than Part One and, I hate to admit it, but a better movie than David Lynch's Dune.  This movie continues the epic saga of Paul Atreides which reaches some strong emotional depths and has a phenomenal 3rd act.  There are aspects I wish the movie had expanded upon more, but that's because the world of Dune is just so interesting.  The performances are excellent from everybody and the film is a technical masterpiece.


#6. Nosferatu



This remake of Nosferatu, which was an unauthorized film adaptation of Dracula gives us the Dracula movie that I've always wanted.  It's unapologetically dark and horny.  It's a movie full of misery and hopelessness and the movie isn't afraid to wallow in said misery.  Only bad things happen here and I'm sure that will make the film unappealing to some, but I loved it.  Bill Skarsgård completely loses himself in the performance to the point that I wouldn't have known it was him.  He does as incredible job, as do Lily-Rose Depp and Willen Dafoe.  Robert Eggers is the man!


#5. Wicked



I knew very little about Wicked going into the movie.  I knew it was a sympathetic backstory to the Wicked Witch of the West and I knew it showed that Glinda isn't quite as good as she seems.  That's it.  I had no idea just how insane and sinister this story was going to go.  This movie has incredible music, performances, and dance choreography.  Everyone absolutely brings it to this movie.  This was one of the most emotional movies of the year for me, and I'll never forget how I felt when we learn what's actually going on in Oz.  That anxious pit in my stomach was something else.  I don't know where the story goes next, but I'm way more excited for Wicked 2 than I ever thought I would be,


#4. Furiosa: A Mad Max Story



This is another movie I wish had done better at the box office.  I love all of the Mad Max movies and this origin story for Furiosa fits in with the rest of the series perfectly.  It simply kicks a ton of ass!  It could have been a bit shorter, but it's obvious that George Miller is the GOAT of directing action.  Everyone does a great job, but Chris Hemsworth is perfect as the villain and brings a lot of life to a character who wouldn't be out of place in a cartoon.


#3. The Wild Robot



A film about a robot that gets lost in the wilderness and it made me cry.  The animation and music were simply stunning and made me want to fly.  I just found The Wild Robot to be so pure and joyful.  The story is wonderful and all of the voice actors give perfect performances.  


#2. Twisters



So, I have to admit, I am completely biased here.  The original Twister is my all-time favorite movie.  I was completely obsessed with tornadoes and storm chasing when I was a kid and watched Twister almost every day in 1st grade.  I was nervous when Twisters was announced.  I knew it could never be better than the original, but would it be a worthy sequel?  I was so relieved when I watched the movie.  As soon as Glen Powell launched fireworks up the funnel of a tornado, I knew we were in good hands.  All three lead actors do an awesome job, the tornado sequences are terrifying and thrilling, and the movie doesn't get lost in doing too many references to the original film.  The movie focuses on being its own thing.  We definitely could have used more Van Halen in the soundtrack, but that's my only complaint.


Finally, before we get to the best film of 2024, here are some honorable mentions that just missed the cut. 

Strange Darling

Maxxxine

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Immaculate


#1. The Substance



The most bat-shit insane movie of the year follows an aging celebrity played by Demi Moore.  She starts using a mysterious drug that creates a younger version of her and she can switch her consciousness between the two bodies.  I'm not sure what I was expecting from The Substance, but it wasn't this.  We get some of the best body horror I've ever seen and Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley both need to win Oscars this year.  They both kill their performances to perfection.  I don't want to say much more about the film because if the trailer doesn't give much away, than neither will I.  This is simply a disgustingly-creative film that I hope gets all the praise it deserves.

So that's my list!  What do you think?  Am I dead wrong or did I nail it?  What's your favorite movie of the year?  Let me know!      

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