CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Good not great. That about sums up movies this year. It was a rather disappointing development, coming off a stellar slate in 2023 and the “Barbenheimer” of it all.
Perhaps it was inevitable. Hollywood’s double whammy of strikes a year ago meant lower inventory in 2024. But there was also a dearth in original storytelling, a symptom of the studios’ relentless desire to quench moviegoers’ appetite for sequels and kid-friendly animated fare.
No wonder this year felt a little...
meh. The fallout has manifested itself during awards season, where films like “Conclave,” “A Real Pain” and “A Complete Unknown” -- fine at best, forgettable at worst -- are being hyped as Oscar contenders. Don’t fall for the bait.
Still, there was plenty to love, from Jacques Audiard’s audacious and genre-defying “Emilia Pérez” to the inventive and heartwarming “Inside Out 2.” The fact that neither cracked my 10 Best Movies of 2024 speaks to the strength of the list, even if the overall quality of the 44 movies I watched pales in comparsion to other years. These are my picks for the top films of the year, presented with the caveat that I haven’t yet seen potential Oscar nominees like “Sing Sing,” “Nickel Boys,” “Babygirl,” “The Wild Robot,” “Better Man” and “All We Imagine As Light,” to name a few.
They’re all on my watchlist, so I reserve the right to make edits later. 10. “Civil War” In a nutshell: In a near-future .
