(This article is part of our Best of 2024 series.)
I didn’t see anywhere near as much as I wanted to in 2024. While it was a significant step up from last year, I still have a list as long as my arm to get through. Even horror movies – I haven’t seen The Substance, Longlegs, Oddity or… well, it was a good year for horror. I’m behind, that’s what I’m saying. Anyway, this is kind of a random list. I could have put other things on it – Dune 2, maybe, though I was a bit disappointed. Honestly, I was disappointed in most of the films I saw this past year. So this is mostly a list of films that didn’t disappoint me. Except one – but I still liked it enough to include it. I’ll stop rambling. Check out other people’s lists – they’re great and I think they make more sense.
Hundreds of Beavers
I think it was Jacob’s review that got me to check Hundreds of Beavers out, and man was I glad I did. It was gloriously weird and unlike anything else I saw this year. Hell, it’s unlike anything I’ve seen for decades. It’s full of gags and physical humor, a Chuck Jones cartoon brought to life. I know some folks think it’s a little repetitive, but I was never bored. Not every joke lands, but there’s so much loonyiness stuffed into the film that you’re quickly past any dud moments. The dogs playing poker made me laugh out loud.
Late Night With the Devil
By the time I finally got around to seeing Late Night with the Devil it had already gone through that cycle of having been hyped to the point of never being able to live up to the accolades, and then the inevitable crash and dismissal. I loved the concept – a found footage movie based around a demonic possession on a ‘70s TV talk show? Yes please! – but just didn’t get around to it until long after people were talking about it. As per usual in these situations, I ended up kicking myself for having missed it. The tone, the humor, the horror and the actors – particularly David Dastmalchian as host Jack Delroy and Ingrid Torelli as the subject, Lilly D’Abo – are all great. I was a little let down by the ending, but that’s par for the course for found footage. I also found Ian Bliss as the James Randi stand-in Carmichael Haig a bit over the top. Not as good as the most breathless reviews, but still damned (pun intended) good.
Deadpool & Wolverine
This was a questionable add to the list, because I was sorely disappointed in Deadpool & Wolverine. I’d heard so much about how good it was and I couldn’t help but go into it expecting some transcendent piece of (admittedly pop) cinema. Much as I love both characters, I think they’ve already had their best moments (the original Deadpool and Logan), and nothing in this film changed my mind about that. I had a hard time investing in the film as anything other than a gag and reference fest, with all the in-jokes and comic book moments any raving fanboy could ask for. After a while, though, I settled into the rhythm of the thing and ended up having a good time. I have a feeling that the next time I see it – unburdened by high expectations – I’ll enjoy it even more.
Alien: Romulus
I had tempered my expectations for Alien: Romulus by the time I got around to it – I’d been spoilered pretty hard about some details – and so I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it when I finally checked it out. Yeah, the “memberberries” are a few too many and too obvious (though not as bad as Star Trek Into Darkness), but I was just so happy to have an Alien movie experience that I didn’t have to justify to myself afterwards. I loved the setting, I loved most of the characters, I loved the set pieces (that whole ‘crashing a space station into an ice ring must have been amazing on the big screen) and I loved being scared of the aliens again. Alien: Romulus is my third favorite Alien film, and one I’m looking forward to seeing again. And for the first time in a while I’m actually looking forward to more entries in the franchise.
Nosferatu
Nosferatu was honestly the only film I saw this year that I can say I enjoyed with no reservations. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. I loved the pace, the colors, the sound, the set design, the editing, the acting, the makeup. It was a gothic nightmare packed with emotion and horror and I was captivated in every moment. I loved the nods to both the original Nosferatu and to Werner Herzog’s 1979 film. I loved Bill Skarsgard’s monstrous take on the Count (and his monstrous mustache) and Lily-Rose Depp’s ability to sweep from hysteria to cold rage. I loved tiny things, like the way you can hear everyone’s breathing and how that compares to the Count’s ragged, forced breath – as if he’s making himself pull in the air and then force it out in words. (And how that changes at the end.) Nosferatu is obviously a labor of love for Robert Eggers, and one of his finest films.
What are your thoughts on the movies that made my top five? Share them down below!
