Best Films Of 2024
From what I've seen so far.
List activity
306 views
• 17 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
33 titles
- DirectorDev PatelStarsDev PatelSharlto CopleyPitobashAn anonymous young man unleashes a campaign of vengeance against the corrupt leaders who murdered his mother and continue to systematically victimize the poor and powerless.You Must Destroy, In Order To Create Space For Something New...
To me, this is probably the greatest feature film directorial debut in all of the world since David Lynch's absolutely mind-blowing, Eraserhead. Which is well, roughly as old as the original Star Wars. I was a kid when those films came out.
I would also say that this is easily among the greatest revenge films ever made. In fact overall, I feel this is the best film I've seen from the last 7 years combined.
The John Wick comparisons are mostly mindless. Sure, John Wick's name is even brought up in the film, however the film has little resemblance at all to any of the Wick films. In fact, this film makes the Wick films seem like they were written by children, especially the sequels.
This film reminded me a decent bit of the great cult classic Joshû 701-gô: Sasori, AKA
Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion, because somewhat like that film, this is both brutal to some degree, and yet it is also quite a beautiful film overall.
At this point, it just makes me laugh to see how many critics have called this film's story, simple. This film without doubt has many levels to it, far beyond what any of those clowns were able to notice. I'm not even against simple to begin with, sometimes simple can be incredibly beautiful. However here, these critics are just entirely clueless. This film has it all in my view. Underneath, it's actually a strong political statement, and at the same time, it's a timeless tale that never ends. Films can't be about more than this. It has soul, it has primal energy, it has emotion, it has intelligence, it has a great rawness and grit that is so genuinely captured, and it has a sort of light poetry Terrence Malik, Peter Weir like feel to it as well. I could go on and on. Though, remember what many of the critics said. A very simple and standard story. Who are these clowns? And are they deaf and blind? Mentally, probably!
As far as most of the critics go on this film, or the Oscar's that I see some saying this film deserves. Let me just tell you the honest truth on this. Most of the people voting for Oscar's and writing reviews on this film are not nearly thoughtful enough to even come close to fully appreciating, or even understanding a film such as this. Forget the Oscar's, and forget the critics.
Even the many critics who have given this film very strong reviews, (Because there have been quite a few.) have almost ALL entirely missed the truer depth of this film on some levels. During my first viewing, I also thought that the underlying story wasn't entirely cohesive, but I still thought the film was brilliant. However upon watching it a second time, I noticed how many little things I missed during my first viewing. The story here is far more ambitious and deep than almost every single critic has noticed. It also is quite a wonderfully cohesive story, even the deeper spiritual aspect is if you pay extremely close attention, and even more so of course if you have a reasonable understanding of the Hindu ancient wisdom.
Very few filmmakers out there right now are making art that even comes close to this in my view. This was a spectacular film. I think I'm honestly going to go see it for a third time in the theatre next week. And as much of a theatre junkie as I am, I actually haven't ever gone to see a film 3 times on it's original theatre run. I saw all of the Dune's twice, even Lynch's version in the 1980's when I was young, and I have seen Denis' first Dune film in the theatre 3 times now, but I saw it for the 3rd time just recently, before seeing Dune 2.
I'm in love with this film. It has some great action sequences, it has amazing depth to the story, it also has a good dose of humor. Even myself, a person who studied religions for decades, I found myself noticing even more depth to this story the 2nd time I saw it. Once is nowhere near enough for this beauty!! According to Dev, he spent 8 years writing this. While most of the critics are completely lost on how, I can entirely see the how and the why, and I'm entirely enjoying the result. There are not many action films out there that could be called real jewels or gems of the genre, but in my view this one certainly fits.
I have heard some say that this is a leftist film because it does have some transgender characters in it. I do not agree with that assessment whatsoever. In fact on a political level, Dev (The writer) never goes there at all in terms of modern political debate around any gender issues. I was sort of wondering if he was given more money to fund this project, if he had some transgender characters in the film, some type of modern DEI incentive. I don't know the answer to that, but I absolutely thought what he did with the transgender characters was somewhat brilliant and even somewhat funny at times. Personally, I would rather die than be considered closely associated with either the modern right or left in America. However I have no qualms about being called a lover of this film. This truly is arthouse action as another reviewer here wrote. A stunning and brilliant film.
9/10 - DirectorRichard LinklaterStarsGlen PowellAdria ArjonaAustin AmelioA professor moonlighting as a hit man of sorts for his city police department, descends into dangerous, dubious territory when he finds himself attracted to a woman who enlists his services.Mostly it's a fun little film that doesn't take itself too seriously. However the more serious psychological and philosophical aspects it playfully toys with help take it over the top and make it a very strong film. Linklater has crafted here another very fun and interesting addition to his catalogue.
8/10 - DirectorRich PeppiattStarsMóglaí BapMo CharaDJ PróvaiWhen fate brings Belfast teacher JJ into the orbit of self-confessed 'low life scum' Naoise and Liam Og, the needle drops on a hip hop act like no other. Rapping in their native Irish, they lead a movement to save their mother tongue.A well crafted film bursting with energy and self-assuredness within the chaos of human life. An inspired film that is also very hilarious at times. The film also has some interestingly relevant and timely political aspects to it, (And by no means just relevant to Ireland.). The spirit of Voltaire is strong in this one. This film in its own odd way is a celebration of life, and of the freedom to live it in our own individual ways in which we so choose. It's also an irreverent middle finger to those who don't agree.
8/10 - DirectorPaula OrtizStarsLiev SchreiberMatilda De AngelisJosh HutchersonSet in post-World War II Italian Venice, war-torn U.S. Army Colonel Richard Cantwell is a true hero who faces the news of his illness with indifference.This film is actually quite great. A beautiful Hemingway novel nicely translated here. It's a rich and beautiful film, but unlike most Hollywood films that attempt to aim for similar results. Thanks mostly to the original writer, this one is also very true to life, it's very down to earth. You can really feel the humanity and the characters in this film. The acting and direction are also mostly very strong. This is a story that has been in the works to be a film many times. Finally it's here, and it really is a rewarding result. This was entirely worth seeing on the big screen, as the Venice setting and the cinematography are stunning throughout much of the film.
8/10 - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametZendayaRebecca FergusonPaul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.Hopefully, The Middle Piece Of A Grand Epic!
Saw this opening day and I'm already drooling for the 3rd and final Dune film from Denis. I strongly recommend everyone to see both of the Dune films in IMAX, as they were truly meant to be seen.
All that said, at the same time I really don't agree at all with the hype around this film. Obviously I did enjoy it a good bit and do appreciate it greatly, as I gave it an 8. However to me this is actually quite easily Denis Villeneuve's least interesting feature film in about 15 years. Nonetheless, I feel the final installment will only ad to how great this film series is overall, and I truly feel that this film on its own is not as good as the first Dune. To me, it just wasn't nearly as interesting of a film. It was so much more spectacle, than it was anything else. Anyhow, together the Dune films by Denis are great, and as said, I greatly await the final installment which is likely still years away.
8/10 - DirectorJon GunnStarsHilary SwankAlan RitchsonEmily MitchellInspired by the incredible true story of a hairdresser who single-handedly rallies an entire community to help a widowed father save the life of his critically ill young daughter.Far better than most dramas of this sort, and mainly because the overall execution is very strong. The writing, acting and direction here are all quite wonderful. I was surprised and delighted by how funny and interesting the film actually is. Most dramatic films with similar stories, I find tend to get somewhat monotonous by the end. As of course stories such as this are to some degree quite predictable in a fairly major sense. Here however the pacing is exceptional, and the writing is easily good enough to keep the viewer fully involved for the nearly 2 hour ride. This really is a beautifully inspiring family drama. Bravo to all involved. Films like this also help reassure thoughtful people, that it doesn't always have to be about some big payoff at the end. In fact, it's often far more about the entire journey.
I'd also like to note here after reading a few responses from critics. To me it looks like some of them may have skipped this film altogether, and just wrote their review based on the trailer alone. It's easy to see this, because the film looks very standard and predictable in the trailer. However that is not really the feel I got whatsoever while watching the entire film. I decided to take a chance on seeing this because of a couple of factors, and the trailer was definitely not one of them. I in fact almost didn't go see this because of how generic the trailer made the film seem. However this is not at all a generic feeling film because of how well it's put together by the many people involved. So, boo to those critics, and another cheers to all of those who chipped in to bring us this surprisingly excellent film.
8/10 - DirectorChristy HallStarsDakota JohnsonSean PennMarcos A. GonzalezA woman taking a cab ride from JFK engages in a conversation with the taxi driver about the important relationships in their lives.Easily better than most modern Hollywood films. Even though it's basically just two people having a conversation for most of the film, it's also far less boring than most modern Hollywood films.
7.5/10 - DirectorCameron CairnesColin CairnesStarsDavid DastmalchianLaura GordonIan BlissA live television broadcast in 1977 goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation's living rooms.In my view, far better than most modern horror films.
7.5/10 - DirectorReinaldo Marcus GreenStarsKingsley Ben-AdirLashana LynchJames NortonThe story of how reggae icon Bob Marley overcame adversity, and the journey behind his revolutionary music.It does feel like there's some missed opportunity in this film. Yet at the same time, I also really liked quite a few things about it. Overall I think the film does a pretty good job of capturing a real person, rather than just creating an idealistic vision of his legend. I was surprised to see a few critics call this film "hero worship", which I feel is entirely untrue. In fact one of the things I did love about the film, is that Bob is not shown as anywhere near a perfect person.
This, like all biographical films is really just a glimpse at a person, and far from the entire story of their life. All in all I think the film is a pretty decent entry point to discovering Bob, though of course his music itself, is really the best avenue in.
I was actually somewhat hesitant about this film ever since I first saw the preview. I worried that they would overdo the film. I was happily surprised that the story presented seems to be a fairly genuine and reasonably wide view of Marley. In my view they did quite a good job here with an important and highly influential figure.
7.5/10 - DirectorWes BallStarsOwen TeagueFreya AllanKevin DurandMany years after the reign of Caesar, a young ape goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he's been taught about the past and make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.Not as good overall as the last couple of Planet of the Apes films in my view. Nonetheless I liked it for the most part.
7/10 - DirectorChris WeitzStarsJohn ChoKatherine WaterstonKeith CarradineThe Curtis' family is selected to test a new home device: a digital assistant called AIA. AIA learns the family's behaviors and begins to anticipate their needs. And she can make sure nothing - and no one - gets in her family's way.Overall, A Worthy Effort In My View
3 September 2024
I decided to go see this film mainly based on the fact that I noticed how polarized the IMDb viewers reviews are here so far. Quite a few people have loved it, quite a few have hated it. When I see that, I often feel there is strong potential that it's a thought provoking film that only works well for certain types of viewers. And well, I also NEVER give much of any merit to what the critics say, ESPECIALLY when it comes to intelligence. Have you seen the kind of crap they mostly claim is good or even great these days?
If you enjoy thought provoking AI films, then this is actually well worth a look in my view. Personally I can not for the life of me understand why anyone would EVER hire a security company or any company to monitor their homes. So for me, this film in a sense is right up my alley. I also feel that we are already trusting technology far too much in terms of bank accounts, etc, and the abuse we are all enduring regarding online privacy/corporate information gathering, etc, and a whole host of other similar issues. So ad in the advanced AI aspect that is becoming more and more a thing in our world. For me this film was definitely well worth the watch.
I'm sad to see that the critics have murdered it already, especially when I consider the mind-numbing junk they're often saying is passable. The viewers have mostly disliked it too it seems, but I think that is mostly coming from the youth so far, which I think is definitely understandable from them. For one thing, young people are much more familiar with the idea of AI being dangerous. So for them, I feel like this film may just be too familiar to their generation.
The film is certainly not great overall. However the scenario and ideas presented all work pretty well for a reasonably thought provoking and relevant to our times film. For me, despite some weak aspects here and there, the film mostly does work quite well. I do think that perhaps the younger people may have already seen too many similar TV shows and films by now. For most people over 30 with some interest however, I would definitely recommend a viewing of this. It may be far more important than many currently believe. In my view on the AI subject, it's not just about runaway AI, to me the more dangerous aspect is certainly not the AI itself, but definitely the humans that are behind the AI programs that are more of a concern as we head into the future...
Note: I also saw M3GAN (2022), but I just felt that film was far too regurgitated in terms of what it presented. It's all been done better previously. There was little to nothing thought provoking in it to me at all, (Mainly because I've seen the same basic plot before in other films.). However the critics mostly liked that very stale and fairly silly film. Personally, I gave it a 4/10 here. For me, this film was a good bit more interesting and thought provoking. I would agree that AfrAId is not really a scary horror film, not in a traditional sense anyway. However it is a film that presents a scary scenario that is some serious food for thought on our real present day world. In that sense, it is a good and somewhat scary film.
7/10 - DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerSienna MillerSam WorthingtonChronicles a multi-faceted, 15-year span of pre-and post-Civil War expansion and settlement of the American west.Strong in ways, silly at times too however. It also seems as if they could've used more time to put this film together. There are some glaring weak areas here and there, including in the subtitles themselves which didn't always even make it onto the theatre screen entirely. I've never seen anything like that in the theatre before.
6.5/10 - DirectorGeorge MillerStarsAnya Taylor-JoyChris HemsworthTom BurkeThe origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before her encounter and teamup with Mad Max.As is the case with the last couple of Mad Max films, it's silly, but at least this one is fairly entertaining. In my view, this film is easily better than Fury Road actually, but not by all that much. I can't say I'm much of a fan. I only really enjoyed the first two films in this franchise, the 3rd, 4th and 5th mostly just amount to cartoon like action films with little brains. Only a touch of that slipped into the first 2 films, but thankfully not much. The first two films are much more gritty and grounded overall, and can actually suspend your disbelief to a reasonable degree for the duration of the films; And because of this I feel they're just more exciting and interesting. The following three films really don't come close to achieving the same. They're just overly fanciful been there and done that action films for the most part.
6/10 - DirectorJustin FolkStarsMatt WalshRobin DiAngeloRegina JacksonA man investigates diversity, equity, and inclusion practices, exposing absurdities through undercover social experiments.As I've said on this site a few times previously, I would rather die than be closely associated with either the American Republican or Democratic parties in modern times. However I thought I'd check this film out nonetheless, as I pretty much love anything that can challenge the way I think/perceive.
Let me just say this about the film, and I won't say much about it in particular. I will let you people make up your own minds about it. However as a person who has been an avid theatre goer since the early 1980's, I have honestly not seen a theatre crowd laugh this much in the theatre since at least Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which came out about 16 and a half years ago (2008). That in a sense is quite sad, and frankly just another terrible reflection of modern Hollywood film in general.
Myself and a North American native friend of mine sat in the back of the theatre and mostly laughed our way through this film along with everyone else. My friend happend to be the only person in the entire theatre who was at least by visual appearance, not a white person. One of my favorite things about seeing this film was seeing how much he enjoyed it, and how he could not take the racial alarmists at all seriously. But then again, who really could take them seriously unless you either live in a terribly impoverished area, where racial tensions seem monumental? Or, you live in certain rural areas in the US where racism has been long engrained mostly due to segregation, or perhaps if you're one of these people who just let the corporate news tell you how to think and perceive reality. In most of our cities, racism is not a major issue today as most people seem to agree, and almost endless statistics back this up.
Anyway, the film is certainly worth seeing for most people in my view, black, white, liberal, conservative or otherwise. I wasn't huge on every aspect of it, and personally I would rather it be taken much further. However, I also get how the further you go into a topic like this, the less exposure your film will likely get these days. The somewhat more subtle approach this film often takes was probably the right choice here.
6/10 - DirectorEthan CoenStarsMargaret QualleyGeraldine ViswanathanBeanie FeldsteinJamie regrets her breakup with her girlfriend, while Marian needs to relax. In search of a fresh start, they embark on an unexpected road trip to Tallahassee. Things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals.As Coen films go, this is probably most reminiscent of Raising Arizona because it's also a very quirky film. While I didn't love this film, or like it as much as Raising Arizona. I still felt it was worth the watch.
6/10 - DirectorGreg BerlantiStarsScarlett JohanssonChanning TatumWoody HarrelsonMarketing maven Kelly Jones wreaks havoc on launch director Cole Davis's already difficult task. When the White House deems the mission too important to fail, the countdown truly begins.It felt like this film was 3 hours long. For the most part, it's terribly unfunny and unbelievably boring. Thankfully at least Scarlett is enough to keep the audience awake. I don't think I've ever rated a Scarlett film this low, but this one was a real dud. Woody was great in his role and Scarlett is hard to not watch as always. The one great highlight of the story was the way they portrayed advertisers as con artists. That was refreshingly honest for a Hollywood film. Other than that however, the writing was fairly weak, especially in terms of the jokes/comedy aspect.
3.5/10 - DirectorJeff NicholsStarsAustin ButlerJodie ComerTom HardyAfter a chance encounter, headstrong Kathy is drawn to Benny, member of Midwestern motorcycle club the Vandals. As the club transforms into a dangerous underworld of violence, Benny must choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club.Standard, unimportant, mostly a bore. Snore me a river. Written by a child?
3.5/10 - DirectorOsgood PerkinsStarsMaika MonroeNicolas CageBlair UnderwoodIn pursuit of a serial killer, an FBI agent uncovers a series of occult clues that she must solve to end his terrifying killing spree.An Overly Predictable Bore
I went in nearly blind as I usually like to. All I knew about the film was that it was a horror about a serial killer, and that Cage was in it. Within a very short time, I saw exactly where this film was going without even trying to figure it out. Every little surprise was just spelled out for me it seemed, long before each reveal happened. That's how badly thought out this story/script is. There's nothing new at all in this film, other than the somewhat creepy and interesting performance by Cage, who has about what, 6 minutes of screen time or something like that. Everything else feels like a paint by numbers supernatural horror basically.
I see people here talking about atmosphere. What atmosphere? This was so basic feeling in nearly every scene, it was ridiculous. There were a couple slightly creepy moments, the very start also had me into it as I'm a huge T. Rex fan. However the film didn't take long to throw me right back out of it, as it just feels so much like a film. There actually is a somewhat reasonable horror story here, however it's not delivered with any kind of originality, suspenseful feel, or any good surprises. Like most Hollywood horror films in recent years, this was mostly just a yawner.
3.5/10 - DirectorBenjamin BrewerStarsNicolas CageJaeden MartellMaxwell JenkinsA father and his twin teenage sons fight to survive in a remote farmhouse at the end of the world.Good for a while but it gets entirely silly, as in it becomes entirely nonsensical.
3/10 - DirectorMichael MohanStarsSydney SweeneyÁlvaro MorteSimona TabascoCecilia, a woman of devout faith, is warmly welcomed to the picture-perfect Italian countryside where she is offered a new role at an illustrious convent. But it becomes clear to Cecilia that her new home harbors dark and horrifying secrets.Not all bad, but mostly bad.
2.5/10 - DirectorM. Night ShyamalanStarsJosh HartnettAriel DonoghueSaleka ShyamalanA father and his teen daughter attend a pop concert only to realize they've entered the center of a dark and sinister event.Not everything here is terrible, but for the most part this is just a ridiculous film.
2/10 - DirectorNikhil Nagesh BhatStarsLakshyaRaghav JuyalTanya ManiktalaDuring a train trip to New Delhi, a pair of commandos face an army of invading bandits.The production level here is very similar to your average Lifetime film, and the script quality is also very similar. That's basically what it is, a Lifetime film in Hindi with a decent amount of blood. We've also already seen many different versions of this same action film previously released out of Hollywood, and most of them were certainly better than this in terms of both story, and in overall execution. However this was at least in my view slightly better than Statham's last action film, but barely. 2/10
- DirectorDavid AyerStarsJason StathamEmmy Raver-LampmanBobby NaderiA kind-hearted landlady commits suicide after falling victim to a phishing scam, leading former "Beekeeper" operative Adam Clay to set out on a brutal campaign for revenge upon those responsible.Ultra generic junk.
2/10 - DirectorJared CohnStarsKatherine GibsonPhillip Andre BotelloShaun HolmesWhen a psycho killer becomes obsessed with a beautiful girl, he does everything he can to win her over, including killing everybody in his way. This is a study of a psycho killer, his prey, and how far he is willing to go.Zzzzzzzzzzz 2/10
- DirectorJosh MargolinStarsJune SquibbFred HechingerRichard RoundtreeWhen 93-year-old Thelma Post gets duped by a phone scammer pretending to be her grandson, she sets out on a treacherous quest across the city to reclaim what was taken from her.Terrible in so many ways. Most of all it's just an overly predictable bore. Real life is at least 10 times funnier than this. Don't bother wasting your time. As is often the case with Hollywood films these days, the trailer is far more fun than the actual film is.
2/10