It’s okay to say this: 2024 was not a banner year for film. None of my favorites will end up on the Sight and Sound list. On the other hand, reports of the death of cinema have been greatly exaggerated. There’s a practical reason we didn’t get as many great films this year; the writers and actors strikes of 2023 put a dent into the production schedule, and many films planned for release got pushed to 2025.
Even with those delays, we were graced with numerous films that convey the grand possibilities of the form. Here are 10 films that captured my imagination:
10. Civil War
Alex Garland’s dystopian thriller was much-criticized upon its release this spring for refusing to take political sides, but that’s what gives the film its power. A journey through an imagined America torn apart by domestic conflict, “Civil War” takes us one small step into the future, enacting our worst national nightmares to rob them of their oneiric power. Jesse Plemons dazzles in a one-scene performance.
9. Good One
This indie drama hints at the tropes of a thriller before revealing itself as a drama of aggressions both micro and macro. The teenage Sam (a brilliant Lily Collias) goes on an overnight hiking trip with her dad (James Le Gros) and his longtime buddy (Danny McCarthy). It captures the slow-creeping dread of a young woman alone with two men — even if one is her father.
8. Will & Harper
At a time when trans individuals in America feel less safe than ever, “Will & Harper” is an important documentary that gives visibility to an ever-marginalized group. It’s also a road movie, a Western, and the funniest Will Ferrell movie in years. Ferrell and his recently-transitioned friend Harper Steele take a road trip to all of her favorite places. Learning and laughing ensue, but it’s also a chronicle of the new American frontier. The two friends hang out at bars, race tracks, and steakhouses — places where a trans person might not be welcome — testing the values and laws of a nation.
7. In a Violent Nature
What if a slasher movie showed us what the villain does in between kills? That’s the conceit of “In a Violent Nature.” The answer is both banal and surprisingly mesmerizing: He trudges through the woods looking for his next kill. There are echoes of Terrence Malick in the film’s naturalism — you half-expect the killer to rush his hands gently through a wheat field — but the approach also subverts the tropes of the genre to a stunning effect.
6. Anora
Sean Baker’s “Anora” spins laughs and tension out of its story of an exotic dancer who marries the son of a Russian oligarch and then must fight to keep what she has gained. Baker’s commitment to realism has always been overstated. “Anora” is less a hard look into the realities of sex work than a smart, character-driven comedy about how little has changed for women since the days of Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott. Marriage is still an economic proposition.
5. We Live in Time
Romantic weepies are not for everyone, so “We Live in Time,” a drama that chronicles the courtship, marriage, and tragedies of a young British couple played by Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh, might not be your cup of Earl Grey. There’s something refreshing, however, about a film that trusts its actors to convey the drama, romance, and human complexity almost entirely on their own, without resorting to genre conventions. Garfield and Pugh are a perfect match here, with his warm vulnerability melting her icy exterior. I could have watched them for a lifetime.
4. A Different Man
Sebastian Stan gives the performance of the year in “A Different Man,” and Adam Pearson is not far behind. Stan plays Edward, an actor with severe physical disfigurements who undergoes a procedure that turns him into, well, Sebastian Stan. Pearson is another disfigured, more confident actor who comes along to show Edward that his problem wasn’t his outside. The film reflects our shame and insecurities back onto us, while somehow remaining compulsively watchable.
3. Babygirl
Let’s have a toast to movies you absolutely should not watch with your parents. Nicole Kidman is a married CEO. Harris Dickinson is an intern with a kink for domination. The two initiate a torrid affair, with Dickinson holding all the cards. If he reveals their affair, her life is over. Somehow, that makes the whole thing even hotter. It’s so rare to find a film this smart, sexy, and grown-up. It’s a true heir to the great erotic thrillers of the ’80s and ’90s.
2. My Old Ass
Aubrey Plaza shows up for a few minutes at the beginning of “My Old Ass,” as the 39-year-old version of teen Elliott (Maisy Stella), who in a twist of cosmic fates, gets to meet her older self. From then on, the film belongs to Stella, anchoring one of the funniest and most heartfelt teen movies in years. Director Megan Park approaches teenagers without a whiff of nostalgia, as she did in her 2021 school shooting drama “The Fallout.” It will remind you what it is to be young, vulnerable, and open to love.
1. Love Lies Bleeding
A crime boss, a fitness center, steroids, love at first sight, and a murder. These are the ingredients for a great crime story, and director Rose Glass (“Saint Maud”) blends them perfectly. Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brien are indelible as the two young lovers, while a supporting cast that includes Ed Harris and Dave Franco lend credibility to every frame. Glass may be a true successor to the Coen brothers, who crafted gritty, literary neo-noirs. “Love Lies Bleeding” gives me hope for the future of cinema.