MY BEST FILMS OF 2024 – Part One: The Runner-Ups:
On a given day, several of these films could have made my Top 10. All are exceptional in some way. I didn't do a good job catching up with Documentaries this year, but I included a couple at the end of the list as place-holders of sorts. With Streaming info if applicable. Part II tomorrow - The Top 10
SEPTEMBER 5 (T. Fehlbaum) Palpable you are there real life thriller
RED ROOMS (P. Plante) Shudder The best shocker of 2024. It makes the viewer uneasy from the get go VERMIGLIO (M. Delpero) Beautifully wrought family drama set in the Italian alps
MY OLD ASS (M. Park) Prime Video My favorite 'surprise' in a theater last year, Touching coming of age story with a lite sci-fi twist
DUNE PART II (D. Villeneuve) Max. Well done completion of the first Herbert book with excellent production values
SING SING (G. Kwedar) Uplifting prison drama based on a real program; Colman Domingo leads an ensemble made up of mostly non-professionals
MEGALOPOLIS (F. Coppola) Coppola's grand cockeyed epic takes on nothing less than the future of civilization. It's the kind of 'mess' only a master could summon the courage to take on
EMILIA PEREZ (J. Audiard) Netflix A wild operatic ride combining Neo-Noir, Telenovelas and Musicals that swept me along
EVIL DOES NOT EXIST (R. Hamaguchi) Criterion Channel, rental. A rumination on man versus nature. Devastating
A COMPLETE UNKOWN (J. Mangold) Good vibes in this Dylan bio-pic that is stronger on stage than off (which is the inverse of how these things usually go. Kudos to the talented performers.
A REAL PAIN (J. Eisenberg) Hulu. Sobering road trip film builds as it progresses
MEMOIR OF A SNAIL (A. Eliot) Quirky, sometimes morose but expressive stop-motion animated feature which delivers with wit and a bit of wisdom
THE BRUTALIST (B. Corbet) Ambitious 3 ½ hour exploration of an immigrant's progress after surviving WWII. Toth is a classic rugged individualist inhabited by Brody's strong performance
NICKEL BOYS (R. Ross) Semi-experimental adaptation of an acclaimed novel might get a bit too arty for its own best interests, but Ross displays a strong artistic vision
FLOW (G. Zilbalodis) Rental. An entrancing animated feature which is so simple, yet so profound
DO NOT EXPECT TOO MUCH FROM THE END OF THE WORLD (R.Jude) Mubi, rental. A caustic ramble by an innovative Romanian filmmaker who has a lot on his mind LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING (L. Cortes) Max, Hoopla. One of a couple of fine recent documentaries on one of the pioneers of the rock and roll imagination
FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT (E. Friedler & M. Lurie) Well researched and illuminating documentary of Jerry Lewis' legendarily uncompleted THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED.
On a given day, several of these films could have made my Top 10. All are exceptional in some way. I didn't do a good job catching up with Documentaries this year, but I included a couple at the end of the list as place-holders of sorts. With Streaming info if applicable. Part II tomorrow - The Top 10
SEPTEMBER 5 (T. Fehlbaum) Palpable you are there real life thriller
RED ROOMS (P. Plante) Shudder The best shocker of 2024. It makes the viewer uneasy from the get go VERMIGLIO (M. Delpero) Beautifully wrought family drama set in the Italian alps
MY OLD ASS (M. Park) Prime Video My favorite 'surprise' in a theater last year, Touching coming of age story with a lite sci-fi twist
DUNE PART II (D. Villeneuve) Max. Well done completion of the first Herbert book with excellent production values
SING SING (G. Kwedar) Uplifting prison drama based on a real program; Colman Domingo leads an ensemble made up of mostly non-professionals
MEGALOPOLIS (F. Coppola) Coppola's grand cockeyed epic takes on nothing less than the future of civilization. It's the kind of 'mess' only a master could summon the courage to take on
EMILIA PEREZ (J. Audiard) Netflix A wild operatic ride combining Neo-Noir, Telenovelas and Musicals that swept me along
EVIL DOES NOT EXIST (R. Hamaguchi) Criterion Channel, rental. A rumination on man versus nature. Devastating
A COMPLETE UNKOWN (J. Mangold) Good vibes in this Dylan bio-pic that is stronger on stage than off (which is the inverse of how these things usually go. Kudos to the talented performers.
A REAL PAIN (J. Eisenberg) Hulu. Sobering road trip film builds as it progresses
MEMOIR OF A SNAIL (A. Eliot) Quirky, sometimes morose but expressive stop-motion animated feature which delivers with wit and a bit of wisdom
THE BRUTALIST (B. Corbet) Ambitious 3 ½ hour exploration of an immigrant's progress after surviving WWII. Toth is a classic rugged individualist inhabited by Brody's strong performance
NICKEL BOYS (R. Ross) Semi-experimental adaptation of an acclaimed novel might get a bit too arty for its own best interests, but Ross displays a strong artistic vision
FLOW (G. Zilbalodis) Rental. An entrancing animated feature which is so simple, yet so profound
DO NOT EXPECT TOO MUCH FROM THE END OF THE WORLD (R.Jude) Mubi, rental. A caustic ramble by an innovative Romanian filmmaker who has a lot on his mind LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING (L. Cortes) Max, Hoopla. One of a couple of fine recent documentaries on one of the pioneers of the rock and roll imagination
FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT (E. Friedler & M. Lurie) Well researched and illuminating documentary of Jerry Lewis' legendarily uncompleted THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED.
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