Every year I try to go to the movies as much as possible. It’s my main hobby. I keep track of my thoughts/scores throughout the year, along with all of my ticket stubs. In theaters, I saw: 5 movies in 2015, 9 movies in 2016, 146 movies in 2017, 162 movies in 2018, 192 movies in 2019, 44 movies in 2020, 86 movies in 2021, 270 movies in 2022, 325 movies in 2023, and 298 movies this year. This doesn’t include rewatches, but those are pretty rare for me (7 this year). This is my 7th year doing this ranking on r/movies.

I have a subscription with AMC’s A-List, Regal’s Unlimited, and Cinemark’s MovieClub. I’m also a member of the Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and Toronto film societies.

I attended 8 film festivals this year, for a total of 117 films. I attended 24 World Premieres, 11 North American Premieres, 7 US Premieres, 10 East Coast Premieres, 22 Southeast Premieres, 4 Canadian Premieres, and a few Florida/Georgia Premieres.

96 of my screenings had cast and/or crew present for Q&As/intros.

I do these rankings and reviews/random thoughts for fun. It’s not meant to be taken super seriously. I just like movies, and I like ranking them.

Red Rooms - 10/10 - The most gripping psychological-thriller since The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Extremely disturbing and unsettling at times, but also stylish and sleek. The courtroom scenes and vampire-movie-like score stick with you for a long time. Juliette Gariépy puts in the best performance of anyone this year. There's so much amazing stuff happening with French-Canadian cinema recently and this is another great addition. Best movie of the year. One of the best movies of the past decade.

Dune: Part Two - 9/10 - Sci-fi doesn't get much better than this. I have the seemingly-unpopular opinion that the first movie is better than the second, but both are near-perfect. Everything that can be said about Dune 1/2 has pretty much already been said.

Anora - 9/10

Civil War - 9/10

Nosferatu - 9/10 - Gothic horror is so back. Lily-Rose Depp does things in this movie physically that I've never seen before on the big screen. Extremely impressed with her performance (and with Hoult/Dafoe/Skarsgard/Corrin as well). A great ensemble surrounded with perfect set design, direction, and cinematography. Loved the scenes in the castle that almost appeared black-and-white. Robert Eggers has not missed for me so far, and this is my favorite of his.

Challengers - 9/10

Sing Sing - 9/10 - Colman Domingo, give that man his Oscar [John Malkovich Rounders voice].

The Substance - 9/10

You Are Not Alone - 9/10 - Part La La Land, part Under the Skin, part Eternal Sunshine. A beautiful and hypnotic sci fi love story with a slight horror edge and with layers upon layers of metaphor. It has a lot of interesting things to say about mid-20s loneliness/thoughts of suicide/love/etc.

Didi - 9/10 - I'm a sucker for coming-of-age dramas set in recent times. Give me more of this and mid90s-type movies pls.

The Order - 8/10

We Live In Time - 8/10 - I went in expecting heartbreak (which I got), but I didn’t expect how funny/sharp it would be. Florence and Andrew have 10/10 chemistry. Only thing keeping it from a higher score is the goofy Super Bowl of Food or whatever scene near the end. The scene at the beginning in the parking garage might be one of the most heart wrenching and well-acted scenes of the entire year. Top-tier score as well.

Love Lies Bleeding - 8/10 - I would watch a 2-hour movie montage of Katy O'Brian working out beneath a highway underpass. A violent & twisted mess of sweat/blood/sex/tears/ungodly bodily noises. A real wicked fun time.

The Goldman Case - 8/10 - French courtroom dramas, so hot right now. An insanely smart and water-tight screenplay with engrossing performances. It reminded me a lot of Anatomy of a Fall then I realized the co-star (Arthur Harari) in this film is the co-writer of Anatomy.

The Beast - 8/10 - A movie that's almost impossible to describe but I'll try: Dystopian-future-sci-fi, period-drama, modern-incel-breakin-thriller, all while staying completely original and beautiful. Extremely layered story and performances. Lea Seydoux and George MacKay are 2 of my favorite actors and they pulled this off with extreme precision and care. One of more harrowing final scenes of the year for sure.

Conclave - 8/10

Saturday Night - 8/10 - Frenetic, engaging, and a really fun time. Flies by. I wanted more. So much energy.

September 5 - 8/10

The Brutalist - 8/10 - I have some problems with the ending, feels like it undid a lot of what was experienced, but otherwise an impressive monster of a movie. Brody and Pearce are outstanding.

Io Capitano - 8/10

Fremont - 8/10 - I love movies that flow like light poems, like Petite Maman or Journey to A Mother's Room. It was a very sweet and cozy. The psychiatry sessions in particular were hilarious, and the bit where the diners are reading their fortunes in the restaurants were perfect. One of my favorite lines of the year is when the old lady fortune cookie writer dies at her desk, and the boss says “she was getting too old to write about the future anyway”. The lead and Jeremy Allen White were only onscreen together but their chemistry was infectious

Seagrass - 8/10

LaRoy, Texas - 8/10 - A hilariously-dark Coen Brothers throwback with wonderful performances from Steve Zahn and John Magaro (who I was lucky enough to meet prior to the screening). It's bloody and smart, and that's a rare combination.

A Quiet Place: Day One - 8/10

The Last Showgirl - 8/10 - Apart from a few awkward line-deliveries and questionable dialogue in spots, this was a very lowkey, engaging drama with a career-best performances from Pamela Anderson and Dave Bautista. Very dreamy and light.

Friendship - 8/10 - It's so fucking stupid. Absolutely no plot to speak of. There's no character development. It's barely even a movie. It's basically a 90-minute sketch. All that being said, it's so goddamn hilarious. Non-stop laughs. Most I've laughed since Red Rocket probably. It's a can't-miss for any Tim Robinson fan and a can't-miss for any fans of laughing. Kate Mara was the perfect foil character.

The Wild Robot - 8/10 - Yes, I cried, what of it?

Relay - 8/10 - A very solid, tight, throwback to the type of paranoid corporate-thrillers they don’t really make anymore. A super fun twist that I didn’t see coming at all, and a standout turn from Lily James. It slightly loses its way near the end.

Good One - 8/10 - Familiar and lowkey, but with a dark edge that slowly reveals itself, and a superb breakout role from Lily Collias. Great debut film from director India Donaldson.

A Complete Unknown - 8/10 - There's definitely a lack of plot but at the end of the day we all just want to see Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits performed by a generational talent in Timothee Chalamet and it definitely delivers in that aspect.

Midwives - 8/10 - One of the more stressful movies I’ve seen in a while. My anxiety was through the roof, especially in the first half. It’s so realistic and graphic at times (and some of it has to be real, some birth scenes especially) that you almost get a sense that it’s a documentary. Totally nails the landing too, making you feel real anger/empathy about how Midwives are treated in France (and other places I assume).

Hellbent On Boogie - 8/10

Alien: Romulus - 8/10 - Put Cailee Spaeny in anything and I'll watch it.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga - 8/10

The Old Oak - 8/10 - British realism cinema at it's finest. Just another classic added to Ken Loach's resume.

Longlegs - 8/10

Babygirl - 8/10

One Life - 8/10 - I'm not a huge movie-cryer but I was absolutely balling my eyes out near the "moment". You know it's coming and it's still hit. Impressive when a movie can do that. Last movie that hit me like that was probably Tori and Lokita, and before that Moonlight. This was up there in terms of tears. Did not really expect it going in. Devasting. Anthony Hopkins kills these types of roles, he has a way of showing bottled up regret/sadness that not many others can.

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare - 8/10 - Over-the-top violent fun time. Totally ridiculous but it doesn't take itself seriously and that's what keeps it from veering into. Also, Eiza Gonzalez. That is all.

Strange Darling - 8/10

Los Frikis - 8/10

Suncoast - 8/10

Drive-Away Dolls - 8/10 - I want more unapologetically horny movies like this. Loved all of Beanie Feldstein's bits and the slow, sleep-deprived descent into madness of the henchmen especially. Not too sure abou the weird-cheap transitions and trippy scenes though. "You're a day late and a penis short" and "Suki that's your wall dildo!" are two of the funniest lines of the year, within context. Give me more fast-paced 75-minute movies.

In A Violent Nature - 8/10 -This made me feel physically nauseous several times, would strongly recommend. Some of the gnarliest kills I've ever seen on the big screen.

A Real Pain - 8/10

Abigail- 8/10 - As a French-Canadian, big shoutout to Kevin Durand for his on-point Quebecois accent. Also, "Sammy, those are fucking onions" was one of the best/funniest line deliveries of the year. Really entertaining gory vampire flick. Dan Stevens is straight up having a fun time this year and I'm enjoying it every time. Melissa Barrera is now competing with with Mia Goth and Samara Weaving as top Scream Queens.

Deadpool & Wolverine - 8/10

Bring Them Down - 8/10 - I love me a slow-burn family feud drama that slowly snowballs into something dark and sinister. Christopher Abbott is one of my favorite working actors today and he does incredible work here, especially with the accent/Irish/body language. Disclaimer: Not recommended to people sensitive to animal violence/cruelty. There's a lot of that.

The Piano Lesson - 8/10 - As far as Denzel Washington-produced, August Wilson adaptations are concerned, this is way above Fences. Felt less like a straight-up filmed play. The supernatural element and amazing Danielle Deadwyler performance (give her an Oscar soon pls) make this more layered and interesting. Bonus: I was sitting with/near the cast/crew for this one, 5-10 feet away from Denzel/Danielle/John David/Malcolm/Corey Hawkins/Ray Fisher/Michael Potts. Amazing experience.

Nickel Boys - 8/10

Fresh Kills - 8/10 - A really solid mob-drama told from the perspective of a mob boss' daughter, which I appreciated. It's rare you see this story from that angle. Emily Bader's scene with her dad near the end. Holy. Fucking. Shit.

Between The Temples - 8/10 - Carol Kane was absolutely magnetic and a joy to watch in this, and Jason Schwartzman was her perfect endearing counter. Lovely movie, that makes you want to curl up into a ball and cringe to death near to end, in a good way. The most painful-to-watch family reunion/dinner since Shiva Baby.

Problemista - 8/10 - I stand with Bank of America. Julio Torres is kind of a revelation in this. His facial expressions (and hilarious run-walk thing) are perfect. Absurd, funny, and sweet comedy with so much flair and uniqueness. Some fun little details that got good laughs out of me, like Tilda's character always having her phone light on. Chaotic in all of the right ways.

Sisterhood - 8/10

Days of Happiness - 8/10

The Apprentice - 8/10 - It's not breaking any new ground but Sebastian Stan is a pleasure to watch transform into Trump as the movie goes on. Grimy and gross like the streets of New York in the 80s.

Wil - 8/10

Naked Ambition: Bunny Yeager - 8/10

Soul - 8/10 - I didn't get to catch this during it's original run due to COVID so I'm glad it came back. My favorite Pixar movie in a little while.

Femme - 8/10

I Saw the TV Glow - 8/10

Heretic - 7/10 - A fun horror with sharp dialogue and an incredibly-hammy Hugh Grant performance.

Emilia Perez - 7/10 - Some amazing musical numbers, especially the opener and "El Mal", and Zoe Saldana has an amazing performance where she carries the entire thing (Gomez and Gascon are getting lots of praise but I didn’t see it), but it just felt like it never fully came together to reach full potential.

Mountains - 7/10 - A very small and warm movie about the very big and cold issue of gentrification and the real estate crisis in South Florida. Monica Sorelle is a director to watch for sure.

Skywalkers: A Love Story - 7/10 - Other than a few moments that seemed a bit scripted (mostly the relationship drama), this is the most thriller documentary since Free Solo.

Ghostlight - 7/10

Shoshana - 7/10 - Israeli true-life spy-thriller, a bit Bond-like. There's a few kills in here that are insanely brutal and the explosions/gunshots catch you by surprise. It had me jump a few times.

The Dead Don't Hurt - 7/10- Extremely slow, don't go in expecting an action-packed Western, but Viggo has a really good eye for beautiful backgrounds and settings. Vicky Krieps is top-tier as always. This movie doesn't work without her. I like slow Westerns.

The Fall Guy - 7/10

Thelma - 7/10

Twisters - 7/10 -Natural disaster flicks just work for me. Getting to look at Daisy Edgar-Jones for 2 hours never hurts as well.

Cuckoo - 7/10 - Insanely impressive and physical performance from Hunter Schafer. Cool visual style and flair, but ultimately dragged down by a total clusterfuck of a plot. I was confused throughout. Hilarious German accent from Dan Stevens

Peak Season - 7/10

Kneecap - 7/10 - Some of the funniest one-liners of the year ("Look who it is, Bone Thugz and no harmony", "I feel like I discovered the Beatles, if the Beatles were shit."). The whole RRAD storyline kept it from greatness though, that was a bit too goofy for its own good.

Wolfs - 7/10 - I went in wanting Pitt/Clooney banter and that's exactly what I got.

Blink Twice - 7/10

My Old Ass - 7/10

Better Man - 7/10

Nightbitch - 7/10 - Your mom's favorite movie of 2024. The awful first trailer didn't do it justice, this was solid, it just doesn't get dark like you'd hope it would.

Out of Darkness - 7/10 - Saw this during a Mystery Movie Monday and was pleasantly surprised. Pretty brutal, atmospheric, and violent. Some cool overhead shots and a nice score. One of the better Mystery Movies I've seen.

We Grown Now - 7/10

The End We Start From - 7/10

Kinds of Kindness - 7/10 - Not the best Yorgos but deliciously-freaky and daring filmmaking nonetheless.

Babes - 7/10

Fancy Dance - 7/10

MaXXXine - 7/10 - Definitely the weakest of the trilogy but still a solid slasher with a very interesting setting. Mia Goth has great moments like in the first two.

Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1 - 7/10 - I don't care, the montage at the end was sick. I really hope Costner gets to fund as many of these as he wants.

Wicked - 7/10 - Pretty good, not great. Ariana Grande was the standout. There were only 2 songs that were really catchy though, wish there were more.

Juror #2 - 7/10

Fly Me to the Moon - 7/10

The End - 7/10 - Gorgeously-shot, super well acted, beautiful set design and production, but way too long and had no reason to be a musical. The songs were all exactly the same and pointless and there much so much time in between that you would forget it was even a musical. George MacKay kills it.

Being Maria - 7/10

Cabrini - 7/10 - Maybe a bit overlong but honestly not bad. Surprised it's from the same director as Sound of Freedom, it's quite a step up from that. Much larger and ambitious in scope, and the lead actress was really really great. It solidly panders to its intended audience but it’s well made enough that you can just gloss over the eye-rolling moments.

In the Land of Saints and Sinners - 7/10 - The best Neeson action-flick in a while, so that's something. Kerry Condon as the big villain was awesome. Need more of her in stuff.

Y2K - 7/10 - The single-funniest death scene of the year was the skateboard scene. Laughed so hard, made my night. Audience really dug this one too, good atmosphere. Fred Durst.

The Queen of My Dreams - 7/10 - I was getting massive Deja Vu with The Persian Version last year. Extremely similar story and vibe, equally fun/honest/heartfelt.

Speak No Evil - 7/10

Immaculate - 7/10 - Sydney Sweeney stepping out of her comfort zone and doing a nun-horror is cool. Long take near the end was sick.

Gladiator II - 7/10 - Doesn't hold a candle to the original but it was still an entertaining sandals & swords story. Fred Hechinger is so awful in this though. Man, that took me out of it.

Back to Black - 7/10 - This movie is conflicting. In a vacuum, ignoring Winehouse's actual story, it's a solid music-biopic carried by a powerhouse breakthrough performance from Marisa Abela and an amazing soundtrack (obviously). On the other hand, it's a disgusting whitewash by her estate to downplay her truly awful father. The fact that he had final approval over this movie, and will financially benefit from it, is just gross and hard to ignore. The 2015 documentary does a better job telling Amy's whole story in an emotional way, and that doc made my blood boil (and is one of my favorite docs ever).

Coup! - 7/10

The Hypnosis - 7/10

The Last Stop in Yuma County - 7/10

Your Monster - 7/10

Blitz - 7/10 - The cartoonish villains and improbably scenarios the kid kept finding himself in took this down a notch for me. Could've been great, but it didn't quite get there. How much bad shit can happen to one kid in 24 hours? Find out with Blitz. On a technical level it had a lot going for it though.

In the Summers - 7/10

Maria - 7/10 - Jolie kills it and it looked gorgeous but a really big step down from Jackie/Spencer for Pablo Larrain, a big 'style over substance' movie and weirdly disrespectful to Jackie Kennedy as well for some odd reason. Very weird structure.

Lost Soulz - 7/10

The Girls Are Alright - 7/10

All We Imagine As Light - 7/10 - With all the hype I was expecting to be blown away. It was good but kind of a let down.

Girls Will Be Girls - 7/10

Ezra - 7/10

Young Woman and the Sea - 7/10 - An inspiring sports-biopic with a very old-school and authentic feel. The Remember the Titans of swimming movies. It hits all of the cliches and it's super cheesy, but in all of the right ways. It just works. Daisy Ridley was great, and as far as swimming movies are concerned, it's definitely ahead of Nyad.

Hundreds of Beavers - 7/10 - It's funny and original, I just wish it was a bit shorter. Some of the bits definitely outstay their welcome after a while. I really like the grassroots campaign they've built around this movie though, everything from the independent theatrical showings to the support of physical media. A great success story for indie film this year.

The Idea of You - 7/10

Crossing - 7/10

Sleep - 7/10

Monkey Man - 7/10 - Solid action flick for the first and third acts, but dragged down by a super boring 2nd act (where it loses all of the momentum it built) and lots of sloppy/confusing editing, especially during chase sequences. Credit for the Terrence Malick-like flashback scenes with narration/sweeping music/shots of nature/etc, pretty cool to throw those into an action movie.

The Color Purple - 7/10

The Damned - 7/10 - You're hanging out with the soldiers on the frontier of the American Civil War and almost nothing happens for the entire runtime except you learn about the characters and their thoughts on life/god/religion/etc. I enjoyed it.

Mean Girls - 7/10

Driving Madelaine - 7/10

Late Night with the Devil - 7/10

Snack Shack - 7/10 - Aside from the needless death at the end that tries too hard to squeeze tears out of your eyeballs, I thought this was a fun, raunchy, summer-y throwback comedy. This would've been one of my favorites in middle school probably.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice - 7/10

Joker: Folie a Deux - 7/10

The Outrun - 7/10 - Less a compelling story and more a showcase on Saoirse Ronan's acting abilities. The camera basically doesn't move from her for a single second and she completely carries it. She's the best.

Flow - 7/10

Black Box Diaries - 7/10

Queer - 7/10

The Return - 7/10

New Life - 7/10 - I really respect a movie that can pull off a wild genre-switch halfway through the movie. Went in fully blind so it was totally unexpected. Also impressive this tiny movie could license Bob Dylan’s Like A Rolling Stone (played a few times).

Lisa Frankenstein - 7/10 - The ultimate "could've been truly great with a R rating" movie.

Bob Marley: One Love - 7/10 - It does just enough to keep it out of the Super Generic Biopic Genre and any movie that can squeeze a few tears out of me gets an extra point. Sorry, that's just the rules.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes - 7/10

1992- 7/10 - Other than Ray Liotta being written like a ridiculous cartoon villain and some eye-rolling dialogue issues, it actually was a pretty solid crime drama... and Tyrese Gibson was…good? (r/brandnewsentence)

French Girl - 7/10

The Peasants - 7/10 - Visually impressive and a sick score, but a schmaltzy/melodramatic story kinda kept it from the next level.

The Monk and the Gun - 7/10

Bad Boys: Ride or Die - 6/10

Seven Blessings - 6/10

Knox Goes Away - 6/10 - Michael Keaton does his best and commits but the writing & performance of every single side character brings the whole thing down a bit. The cop/ex-wife/son characters are bumbling, distractingly-dumb goofballs that keep the plot from ever grounding to reality, but it ultimately gets dark and violent enough to stay pretty entertaining. The script really could've used some more cleaning up.

Trap - 6/10 - Listen I have a lot (a lot) of problems with this movie but Kid Cudi randomly showing up for 5 minutes and randomly delivering insane lines like "“I specifically said i wanted honey suckle kombucha biiiiitchhhh” made the trip to the theater worth it.

Small Things Like These - 6/10

Sometimes I Think About Dying - 6/10

Kidnapped - 6/10

Asphalt City - 6/10 - Standout performance from Tye Sheridan but this leaned a bit too much into misery porn for my liking. Every single day is the absolute worst day on the job. Extremely stress-inducing first hour. Mike Tyson being cast as the medic chief was certainly a choice...and it worked somehow?

Eden - 6/10 - Had trouble getting past the awful accents and the sinking feeling that this was missed potential. I was at the World Premiere for this and someone in the audience had a medical emergency, they had to pause the screening and turn the lights on while the person was carried out on people's shoulders. Jude Law/Sydney Sweeney/Ana de Armas/Ron Howard were all there wondering what was going on. Kind of a crazy situation.

Land of Bad - 6/10

Unstoppable - 6/10

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - 6/10 - Skull Island's bland and less impressive/memorable little brother. Thumbs up for Baby Kong and the Rio de Janeiro destruction sequence, thumbs down for the lame story and unlimited amounts of annoying human characters.

Bad Shabbos - 6/10

Inside Out 2 - 6/10

Firebrand - 6/10

A Different Man - 6/10 - I didn't connect to this as much as most people did. Sebastian Stan is great as usual but the whole thing didn't do much for me.

Love Me - 6/10 - 10/10 for the attempt, 4/10 for the execution. There's a really good movie hidden in here somewhere, but there needed to be some cuts made to the animated portions of the film for sure.

Shell - 6/10

Housekeeping for Beginners - 6/10

Totem - 6/10

The Fire Inside - 6/10

Widow Clicquot - 6/10 - This starts off really really really slow but then finds its footing late and ends on a solid note. Career-best performance from Haley Bennett, she really carries this.

Tuesday - 6/10

Piece by Piece - 6/10

The Cut - 6/10 - Standout turns from Orlando Bloom and Caitriona Balfe, brought down by some weird editing choices. The neon-green hallucinations were a wild choice. I sat next to Katy Perry for this movie, AMA.

Memoir of a Snail - 6/10

The Romano Twins - 6/10

Mufasa: The Lion King - 6/10

Film Geek - 6/10

Self-Reliance - 6/10 - Pretty cute movie with a few laughs, but the ending lost its focus and felt rushed. The Andy Samberg bits were great. I wanted more from the relationship with Anna Kendrick's character, feels like there was more to explore there. "This an intervention." "For me?" "No, we're just all facing the wrong direction."

Queen of the Ring - 6/10

Coup de Chance - 6/10 - It's nowhere near peak-Woody Allen but it's a passable return to form since Rifkin's Festival, Wonder Wheel, and A Rainy Day In New York (all 3 awful, with Rifkin's Festival being rock bottom for Allen's filmography). The one thing it was missing was humor. I can always trust an Allen film to at least have a few funny/witty lines (even the bad ones), but this was very cut and dry. Could've used a few more good lines.

Sasquatch Sunset - 6/10 - I was excited for the premise and there's a few sweet/funny moments, but most of it ends up being mindless shitting/pissing/fucking. Credit for the unique idea and great views.

Bird - 6/10 - One of the more disappointing films of the year. Even after the lukewarm reception at Cannes, I had super high hopes because I’m a huge Andrea Arnold fan, but the surrealism in this movie just didn’t work. It threw off the whole balance and wasn’t at all what I expected/wanted. Nikiya Adams and Barry Keoghan were both very solid, and the scene where the group sang Coldplay’s Yellow to the frog was amazing.

Omni Loop- 6/10

Here - 6/10 - A valiant attempt but ultimately kind of a hot mess. A few good moments keep it watchable. Some real uncanny valley shit in there too though.

Queen Rock Montreal - 6/10

Turning Red - 6/10

Scrambled - 6/10

The Book of Clarence - 6/10 - LaKeith Stanfield was great and committed as usual (although I don't like twin dual-roles), and James McAvoy and Cumberbatch chewing on scenery was fun, this movie had a lot of trouble figuring out what it wanted to be. I really wish it leaned more into the funny/satire and less into the serious Mel Gibson/Jim Caviezel-type biblical drama. Cool that a movie like this can be made/funded and released in theaters though.

Booger - 6/10

Irena's Vow - 6/10 - Great story, extremely generic period drama.

A Great Divide - 6/10

Riff Raff - 6/10 - A bit outdated and mean-spirited, this would've slapped in 2006, but Bill Murray and Pete Davidson as the incompetent mob assassins makes it worth a watch.

Rosalie - 6/10

Skincare - 6/10

Yellow Bus - 6/10

Arcadian - 6/10 - It's fine and stretches its tiny budget so its absolute limit but it's basically a Dollar Store A Quiet Place. The monster design and animation was hilariously-bad though, like an Asylum knock-off movie. I'm also now convinced that Nic Cage is contractually obligated to have his face smothered in fake blood for any movie.

Nutcrackers - 6/10

The Invisibles - 6/10

Riley -6/10

Rob Peace - 6/10 - A well-shot movie with great direction and performance from the supporting characters (Mary J Blige and Chiwetel Ejiofor) completely dragged down by an awful lead performance by Jay Will. Also the script was a bit silly, they were trying way too hard to make him 100% infallible.

Christmas Eve in Miller's Point - 6/10 - I liked the hectic atmosphere of the crazy Christmas family party that we've all been at, and the very scratchy look of the camera.

Rumours - 6/10 - I can appreciate what Maddin was going for, and there's some moments that work (mostly with Cate Blanchett and Charles Dance, they were awesome), but overall surreal-absurd-fantasy-comedy like this just doesn't work for me.

Fallen Fruit - 6/10

Birthrite - 6/10

Crumb Catcher - 6/10

Anselm - 6/10

Scapegoat - 6/10

Seeds - 5/10 - There’s clearly heart and maybe a great movie in here somewhere, but it’s such a tonal mess that it’s hard to find anything to love.

Sujo - 5/10

The Beekeeper - 5/10 - This is the Rebel Moon of Jason Bourne movies. A few cool kills and classic Statham one-liners keep it from being a total loss, but it's not very good.

Unsung Hero - 5/10

Jeanne du Barry- 5/10

Treasure - 5/10

A Sacrifice - 5/10

The American Society of Magical Negroes - 5/10 - All over the place and it gave a constant feeling of "missed opportunity" (a la Book of Clarence). Justice Smith is straight-up not a convincing lead. An-Li Bogan was the standout, and I saw her end twist coming from a mile away so I got that going for me which is nice.

La Syndicaliste - 5/10

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - 5/10

The Watchers - 5/10

Borderlands - 5/10 - Went in expecting a 1/10, got a 5/10. Nice. Life is all about the little wins.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire - 5/10 - Just give this franchise a permanent rest. It wasn't awful in any particular way, but it was totally soulless and heartless. It felt like nobody really gave a shit except Kumail Nanjiani. Safe, sanitized, studio slop. They couldn't even fully commit to the one interesting thing (the gay ghost love story).

National Anthem - 5/10

The 4:30 Movie - 5/10 - Kevin Smith jerking himself off for 80 minutes. Would make a fun double-feature with Snack Shack though.

Universal Language - 5/10 - This had a lot of hype of out Cannes and it's Canada's submission for the Oscars so I had a lot of hope, but it just didn't do much for me. Surreal-absurdism just isn't my cup of tea. The only real standout scene was the one with the Quebec democrat. A rare case of the Q&A being more interesting than the movie itself.

Kraven the Hunter - 5/10

Time Still Turns the Pages - 5/10

Upgraded - 5/10 - Basically a Great Value The Devil Wears Prada. Good as rom-com-background-nois. Marissa Tomei is awful in this. One of the worst performances of the year.

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot - 5/10

Out of Season - 5/10

Miller's Girl - 5/10

Latin for All - 5/10

Argylle - 5/10 - How a movie like The Creator can be made for $80M but something so awful-looking like this needs $200M blows my mind.

I.S.S. - 5/10 - I love a good sandwich-making climax as much as the next guy, but what a painfully awkward ending. The first 25 minutes made me think something decent could be happening then it derails hard and never recovers. The worst thing to happen to the space program since Challenger.

Get Away - 5/10

Brothers - 5/10

Life's a Bitch - 5/10 - France's (bad) answer to Yorgos Lanthimos. A dry, twisted, gross, weirdly-sexual, anthology film with a lot less nudity but a lot more dogs than Kinds of Kindness. Kinda loses its way comedically and becomes a chore after the first chapter.

Azrael - 5/10

Monster Summer - 5/10 - Like a G-rated IT, with Mel Gibson for some reason (?)

Kung Fu Panda 4 - 5/10

Garfield - 5/10

Villains, Inc - 5/10 - It had a certain cheap charm but an overwhelming sense of "SNL Digital Short sketch stretched way too thin".

Excursion - 5/10

Sleeping Dogs - 5/10

Notice to Quit - 5/10 - The kid actor was really good but I'm just a bit over following an extremely unlikeable lead around doing shitty things to people.

Reunion - 5/10

The Boy in the Woods - 5/10

Paradise - 5/10

Karaoke - 5/10

It Ends With Us - 5/10

Poolman - 4/10 - The ugly, boring, confused lovechild of Inherent Vice and Under the Silver Lake.

Avenue of the Giants - 4/10

Arthur the King - 4/10 - Marky Mark has really devolved as an actor honestly, really tough performance from him here. It's like he's completely forgotten how to convincingly deliver lines. Right from the GoPro scenes at the beginning I knew it was gonna be a rough time. This movie is like 85% exposition.

Janet Planet - 4/10 - Bookended by 2 great scenes, but filled with mostly pointless garbage.

Dandelion - 4/10

By the Stream - 4/10 - I enjoy Hong Sangsoo movies in very small doses. This dose was just way too big.

Venom: The Last Dance - 4/10

Red One - 4/10

Oh, Canada - 4/10 - Dreadfully confusing, and Jacob Elordi puts in one of the worst performances of the year, but at least that Phosphorescent soundtrack kept me engaged.

Slingshot - 4/10

Adios Buenos Aires - 4/10

Humane - 4/10

Some Other Woman - 4/10

My Daughter, My Love - 4/10

Madame Web - 4/10 - Slop.

IF - 4/10 - Not really for adults, not really for kids/teens. Who was this movie even for?...

Freud's Last Session - 4/10

Werewolves - 4/10 - So much lens flare. I am now blind.

Ramona at Midlife - 4/10

The Last Front - 4/10

My Penguin Friend - 4/10

Augure - 4/10

Which Brings Me To You - 4/10 - Looking back over this ranking, I'm gonna be honest and say I have no idea what this was. Don't remember. To producers out there: please stop making your movie titles random vague sentences.

Mai - 4/10

Meanwhile on Earth - 4/10

Lizzie Lazarus - 4/10

Or Something - 4/10

The Way We Speak - 4/10

Cult Killer - 3/10 - Antonio Banderas shows up for like 5 minutes and then nopes the fuck out. Total paycheck movie.

The Feeling that the Time for Doing Something Has Passed - 3/10 - There were some funny lines (especially the 9/11 dating profile bit) but this was so painfully dry and slow that I could never really connect. If desert-dry, awkward, deadpan delivery, with an absurd amount of BDSM-sex-stuff thrown in is your thing, you might find a few things to like. I could not.

Never Let Go - 3/10

The Throwback - 3/10

The City - 3/10

Rats! - 3/10 - This would've worked well as an edgy Youtube short in 2012.

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever - 3/10

He Went That Way - 3/10 - Half roadtrip comedy with a chimp, half brutal serial killer drama. Tonally all over the place. The kind of movie you'd expect Jacob Elordi to try to bury (a la Dicaprio with Don's Plum) and fire his agent over before it sees the light of way. Baffling decisions made by everyone here.

Megalopolis - 2/10 - I went in expecting a mess but I was still not prepared for how bad this was. It’s Neil Breen with an unlimited budget. It felt like 6 hours. It looked so cheap and awful. A mix of Lifetime movie and a middle school play. I refuse to believe it’s bad on purpose for comedy. The only thing keeping this from a 1 is that Adam Driver/Coppola/Nathalie Emmanuel/Giancarlo Esposito were at my screening for Q&A (god bless their sweet little souls for having to seriously promote this hot mess). "What do you think of this boner I got right here?” is a line 85 year old Jon Voight actually says in a real movie in the year of our lord 2024. My therapist will hear about this.

A Boy Who Dreamt of Electricity - 2/10

Isle of Hope - 2/10 - Sometimes I wonder why I do this to myself.

Chosen Family - 1/10 - This was borderline unfinished and full-on embarrassing. The production value of a daytime soap opera mixed in with the sound editing of a local high school play. It's impressive how much filler (drone shots of surrounding neighborhood) can be squeezed into 84 minutes of movie. Sitting a few seats away from Heather Graham was a nice bonus (with Q&A), but it couldn't come close to making up for this disaster.

Unranked (Re-Releases and/or TV Series):

Dune (Re-Release) - 10/10

Interstellar (Re-Release) - 10/10

Ex Machina (Re-Release) - 9/10

The Shawshank Redemption (Re-Release) - 8/10

Bound (Re-Release) - 8/10

Mr. & Mrs. Smith Episodes 1 & 2 (TV Series) - 7/10

Possession (Re-Release) - 7/10

But I'm A Cheerleader (Re-Release) - 7/10

The Acolyte Episodes 1 & 2 (TV Series) - 6/10

Society (Re-Release) - 6/10

Black Christmas (Re-Release) - 6/10

Apples Never Fall Episode 1 (TV Series) - 6/10

Maniac Cop 2 (Re-Release- 6/10

The Room (Re-Release) - 5/10

Cruel Intentions Episode 1 (TV Series) - 5/10

La Maquina Episode 1 (TV Series) - 4/10

After Annecy (Short Film) - 3/10

Maniac (Re-Release) - 3/10

Mother (Re-Release) - 3/10

Stats:

Multiple Viewings:

• Dune: Part Two (x2)

• Babes (x2)

• Deadpool & Wolverine (x2)

• Sing Sing (x2)

• Back to Black (x2)

• The Wild Robot (x2)

• Anora (x2)

Theater Distribution by Venue/Chain:

• AMC - 96

• Regal - 66

• Silverspot - 18

• Cinemark - 8

• Landmark - 1

• Other/Festival/Independent - 109 (Including: Arsht Center, Autonation IMAX, Cinema Paradiso, Classic Gateway, Coastal Creative, Coral Gables Art Cinema, Enzian Theater, Hard Rock Ballroom, Koubek Center, TIFF Lightbox, Lucas Theater, Miami Theater Center, Movies of Delray, O'Cinema South Beach, Princess of Wales, Roy Thomson Hall, Royal Alexandra, Savor Cinema, SCAD Museum, Scotiabank, Tampa Theater, Trustees Theater)

Film Festivals Attended:

• Toronto International Film Festival - 30 Movies in 8 Days

• Savannah SCAD Film Festival - 20 Movies in 8 Days

• Miami Film Festival - 20 Movies and 1 TV Series in 10 Days

• Florida Film Festival - 19 Movies in 6 Days

• Miami Jewish Film Festival - 10 Movies in 7 Days

• Popcorn Frights Film Festival - 7 Movies in 4 Days

• Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival - 6 Movies in 4 Days

• Gasparilla International Film Fstival - 5 Movies in 2 Days

Theater Visits by Month:

https://i.imgur.com/sKQYFp9.png

• January: 32

• February: 17

• March: 27

• April: 54

• May: 18

• June: 18

• July: 12

• August: 24

• September: 38

• October: 23

• November: 22

• December: 13

Theater Visits by Day of the Week:

https://i.imgur.com/xC7pt1S.png

• Monday - 25

• Tuesday - 23

• Wednesday - 23

• Thursday - 49

• Friday - 64

• Saturday - 67

• Sunday - 47

Notable Missed Movies:

https://i.imgur.com/iPhOD5s.png

Cast/Crew/Filmmaker Q&As/Appearances:

• Part 1 - https://i.imgur.com/a6JsfR0.png

• Part 2 - https://i.imgur.com/YQIJZUl.png

• Part 3 - https://i.imgur.com/9cyEkKY.png

Favorite Performances:

https://i.imgur.com/Sfv5OZB.png

Past Rankings:

• 2018 (162 Movies)

• 2019 (192 Movies)

• 2020 (44 Movies)

• 2021 (86 Movies)

• 2022 (270 Movies)

• 2023 (325 Movies)

I was lucky enough to watch 65 movies that were released in 2024. When I compiled my scores into an ordered list, it surprised me a little, but feels right in it's entirely subjective way. I expect most other people's lists would look quite different -- which is one of the things I love most about art.

Here's about what each score means to me:

5.0 - Truly rare masterpiece
4.5 - Fantastic, top-shelf, personal favorite
4.0 - Loved it
3.5 - Really liked It
3.0 - Liked It
2.5 - Okay / meh
2.0 - Didn't really like it
1.5 - Really didn't like it
1.0 - Actively disliked/annoyed by it
0.5 - Angry at it

~~TOP TEN~~

1 - Challengers (2024) - 4.5/5

Challengers is electric and kinetic and ridiculous and thumping and smashing and mean and confident. Are we still talking about tennis?

There are moments it almost starts taking itself too seriously, then some clever camera work or the fantastic Reznor/Ross score or an absurd amount of trash blowing around in a storm releases the dramatic tension enough for the pulsating style and sensuality to remain the driving heartbeat of the film.

2 - The Substance (2024) - 4.5/5

An excellent satirical film looking at the strained relationship between bodies and beauty. At a certain point, this movie goes insane, and it works. If you have the chance to watch with a group, do it.

3 - Small Things Like These (2024) - 4.5/5

A quiet, unadorned movie about empathy and strength in the face of heartless, institutional, patriarchal oppression, with an interesting and important subversion of typical portrayal of gender roles within. Indeed, this film is more important than it seems to want to be.

4 - Dune: Part Two (2024) - 4.5/5

Remarkable achievement to maintain an epic interplanetary scope along with a personal struggle to own one's destiny amid strong political, cultural, and familial influences. Awesome visuals and sounds, winning performances, and an unsettling moral through line that invokes deep questions without easy answers.

5 - Exhuma (2024) - 4.5/5

Brilliantly taps the difficulty and danger of struggling against strongholds in places deep and old, and truths that must be exhumed and rectified if there is to be any healing.

6 - The Wild Robot (2024) - 4.5/5

Gorgeous, fresh, funny, sweet, and a little daring. It's hard not to invoke Pixar for comparison, and with all due respect to Inside Out, The Wild Robot is a reminder of what Pixar used to be capable of.

7 - Chime (2024) - 4.5/5

A worthy spiritual successor to Kurosawa's Cure, Chime is an unnerving short film with unexplained acts of casual violence and a slipping grasp of what it means to be a human in the modern world. The alienation of characters from their work, their passions, and those around them, along with the rising sense that not everything we see is what we think, gives the film a feeling of an off-kilter piece of cursed media.

Kurosawa is excellent behind the camera, and is matched by the wonderful cinematography and sound design.

8 - The Apprentice (2024) - 4.5/5

It takes its time, but once this movie reveals itself, it's absolutely captivating. Full of terrific, evolving performances. Looks right and sounds right. At the heart of the film is a terrifying idea: maybe these dark sociopaths know what America really is, and the rest of us are just deluded idealists.

9 - Love Lies Bleeding (2024) - 4/5

Immediate and tactile, immersive and intense. The weight of the film grows as the lives of the main characters intertwine. A complementary marriage of surrealism and authenticity. Excellent performances. Looks and sounds fantastic.

10 - Nosferatu (2024) - 4/5

Mostly faithful, with meaningful minor tweaks. Impossible not to compare to Eggars earlier films. Nosferatu is more arresting but not as haunting as The VVitch, and more approachable but less bold than The Lighthouse. May be the sweet spot for many. Unfortunately the projector at the theater for my viewing was not bright enough to do the visuals justice. Seek out a screen that is up to the challenge.

~~THE MIDDLE~~

11 - Smile 2 (2024) - 4/5
12 - My Old Ass (2024) - 4/5
13 - The Fall Guy (2024) - 4/5
14 - Conclave (2024) - 4/5
15 - Monkey Man (2024) - 4/5
16 - Immaculate (2024) - 4/5
17 - Alien: Romulus (2024) - 4/5
18 - Oddity (2024) - 3.5/5
19 - Saturday Night (2024) - 3.5/5
20 - The First Omen (2024) - 3.5/5
21 - Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) - 3.5/5
22 - Thelma (2024) - 3.5/5
23 - Longlegs (2024) - 3.5/5
24 - Rebel Ridge (2024) - 3.5/5
25 - Cuckoo (2024) - 3.5/5
26 - Civil War (2024) - 3.5/5
27 - Juror #2 (2024) - 3.5/5
28 - I Saw the TV Glow (2024) - 3.5/5
29 - Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) - 3.5/5
30 - Blink Twice (2024) - 3.5/5
31 - Look Into My Eyes (2024) - 3.5/5
32 - Heretic (2024) - 3/5
33 - Milk & Serial (2024) - 3/5
34 - Frankie Freako (2024) - 3/5
35 - Abigail (2024) - 3/5
36 - Twisters (2024) - 3/5
37 - In a Violent Nature (2024) - 3/5
38 - Carry-On (2024) - 3/5
39 - Joker: Folie à Deux (2024) - 3/5
40 - Lisa Frankenstein (2024) - 3/5
41 - Bad Boys: Ride or Die (2024) - 3/5
42 - Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) - 3/5
43 - It's What's Inside (2024) - 3/5
44 - Transformers One (2024) - 3/5
45 - Lowlifes (2024) - 3/5
46 - Caddo Lake (2024) - 3/5
47 - Road House (2024) - 3/5
48 - Speak No Evil (2024) - 3/5
49 - The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (2024) - 3/5
50 - Bob Marley: One Love (2024) - 3/5
51 - V/H/S/Beyond (2024) - 2.5/5
52 - A Quiet Place: Day One (2024) - 2.5/5
53 - Apartment 7A (2024) - 2.5/5
54 - MaXXXine (2024) - 2.5/5
55 - Trap (2024) - 2.5/5

~~BOTTOM TEN~~

56 - Snack Shack (2024) - 2.5/5

This movie almost works because of the chemistry and energy of the three central actors, despite the grating nature of much of their dialog. In the end it’s too long, has too many contrived dramatic moments, and fails to evoke nostalgia either for any certain time or age.

57 - Terrifier 3 (2024) - 2.5/5

Not scary or disturbing, sometimes comical, occasionally boring. I wish I was having as much fun as everyone else with these movies, but they just aren't a fit for me. There are some gross scenes, but not in a evocative way, just mildly playful gore.

58 - Godzilla × Kong: The New Empire (2024) - 2.5/5

There's something great about the audacity of putting a giant transformer-looking gauntlet on Kong's arm. Too much pseudo-spiritual weirdness in a bizarre attempt to add lore where it's not needed. Nothing makes any sense, but I guess the gung-ho attitude is appreciated.

59 - Emilia Pérez (2024) - 2.5/5

There is a lot to admire, but the film wobbles and waffles on what it’s really about until it ends up reducing itself into something shallow.

60 - Brothers (2024) - 2.5/5

A bad movie in which good actors can't find their characters but still somehow manage to keep things just watchable enough to get the audience through it.

61 - Salem's Lot (2024) - 2/5

The things the film does well are completely overshadowed by clunky writing, acting, and editing.

62 - Azrael (2024) - 2/5

A little too opaque without payoff. It's choices in storytelling make it withholding, likely with the intent of keeping it simple. Instead it ends up tedious and uninteresting. Even the monsters seem bored.

63 - Wolfs (2024) - 2/5

There might be a movie somewhere in this Clooney and Pitt bromance, but one would need a high tolerance for their flirty banter to bother sifting it out.

64 - MadS (2024) - 1/5

Obviously a lot of careful planning and teamwork goes into making a one shot film, but the end product here is excruciating to watch, and not in a good way. It’s tempting to nitpick some of the style and story choices, but those aren’t what makes this movie an unbearable wreck of unlikeable characters screaming and running away from nowhere in particular to nowhere in particular. The visuals are constantly ugly, and the sounds are often grating.

65 - IF (2024) - 0.5/5

A cynical and heartless commercial product parading around as a heartwarming tall-tale family movie. John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds need to do some self-reflection. This is the opposite of art and deserves contempt.

And of course, there's still a bunch of 2024 releases that I look forward to watching in the future. Happy to hear any recs for features I missed.

Previous Years

2023 - 2022

This is now my third year doing something like this, and I really enjoyed talking to people last year about where my movies fell versus where they felt things needed to land. There were definitely a few criticisms last year that I'd like to clear up beforehand:

• I do view myself as a "typical moviegoer" and don't see myself as a cinephile at all.

• My wife and I tend to go during the weekends at daytime hours, it's just our preference, which does limit us sometimes with movies that aren't as popular and are in their 3rd-4th week of a run.

• There are a lot of movies we'd like to see but don't get around to just because a smaller release happens during a time where we're very busy and don't get to the theater for a few weeks.

• Many of you were critical of the fact that I often took small naps during movies - It never bothered me, but I did find out that I was vitamin D deficient early this year, and taking vitamins has helped out a lot

• This list does include movies from 2023 that I either saw at the beginning of 2024, or we saw in 2023 after releasing my list last year.

A Quick Note on Categories:

Other than "Favorite of the Year" I don't particularly have other categories ranked top to bottom in terms of favorite. There are movies in the "Enjoyed it, but Probably Wouldn't Watch Again" category that I liked better than movies in the "Enjoyed it and Would Watch Again" category, but I prefer fun and more relaxed movies for multiple viewings.

Favorite of the Year [Ranked in Order]

• My Old Ass: I expected to like this one, as a comedy. . .But I came out of the theater with tears in my eyes. Yea sure it's about a drug induced romp [on the surface], but as I get older I feel this one really spoke to me on a deeper level.

• We Live in Time: I don't know if I'll ever watch it again. It doesn't strike me as the type of movie that I am going to want to watch a second time, just because of the subject nature and how deeply sad it is. . .But it moved me pretty significantly as is the second time I've ever found myself crying at a movie theater.

• Lisa Frankenstein: I was surprised to learn some people really hated this one, because I think it was the perfect amount of fun. . and weird. . .and campy.

I Enjoyed it and Would Watch Again

• Deadpool & Wolverine: It's just a fun love letter of a movie, right? I don't go to a Deadpool movie expecting everything to make sense. I just want a good old fashioned 4th wall breaking bromance, and this movie delivers.

• Saturday Night: The movie has a very frenetic energy to it and didn't give me a lot of breathing room to process different things going on, which is something that I typically don't enjoy. For some reason [maybe it's the fact that I do watch SNL and kind of have that expectation anyway] it just works, and I'd probably want to watch it again to see what nuances I might pick up on.

• Inside Out 2: Inside Out 2 does a far better job [in my opinion] of being a fun Disney sequel than Moana 2 does. I think I'd need to watch both entries of this franchise back to back to really decide which one I like better.

• Heretic: I don't know if I ever thought I'd see Hugh Grant in a horror movie like this. It hits all the notes that I expect from the genre, but I really liked the Book of Mormon x Horror vibe, and the almost chess like mentality his villain hits throughout the entire movie.

• Fly Me to the Moon: We live in a time where people just make shit up, so even though this takes place before the moon landing, it still sort of felt topical. . .Except it's also a very funny comedy.

• Speak No Evil: I'm writing this after writing a few other similar thoughts further down the list - Once again, another movie that feels totally ruined by the trailers. . Why do they keep doing this to us? Except it honestly doesn't even matter. The movie just works. . I'd watch it 10 more times just to see if I pick up on anything in the background.

Enjoyed Far More Than I Expected

• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes: I saw and enjoyed the first remake but have become disillusioned by the movies with each passing sequel. I really didn't think this would be very interesting, but was happily very surprised.

• Civil War: Given the political climate of The United States around the time that this started to promo/release, I was very nervous as to this one having a bullshit political agenda [for either side]. Given that it did not, and took steps to really make sure the audience couldn't try to pull an agenda out of it, I was able to fully enjoy the romp.

• Gladiator II: I'm getting sick of these 20 years later sequels and really had very low expectations for the movie. I don't think it's the amazing film my wife thinks that it is, but I was definitely. . .Entertained.

• Trap: I was really annoyed by the trailers for this movie, which seemingly gives away "the big reveal" and ruins the entire thing - Except they pull back that curtain very early in the movie, and it's a non issue. Really enjoyed this way more than I expected to.

• The Fall Guy: This is one of those movies I went into ready to be annoyed, because I had seen promos for it way too many times and was just sick of seeing that stupid trailer over and over again. I just had zero expectations going in and was pleasantly surprised. At the time of this blurb I think I've seen it 3 times, which is unusual for me.

• Wicked: Coming off the heels of Mean Girls. . And Dear Even Hanson. . And pretty much all modern Broadway movies, I had almost no expectations at all for this one. I love Broadway, and was ready to nap my way through it. . .Though Wicked definitely proved me wrong, that you can do a musical correctly.

• The Iron Claw: If you told me I'd ever feel bad for a jacked up Zac Efron I would have laughed at you, and yet here we are. The only thing that stops this from being a top contender for me is that technically it came out last year, though I saw it after that list.

• Alien: Romulus: I know I'll be crucified for saying this, but I've never seen a full Alien movie all the way through. It just wasn't ever my thing, though we both really enjoyed it. I have since wanted to make my way through a chronological of the entire series, though have found myself lacking time to get around to it.

• I Saw The TV Glow: This is a movie that I didn't expect very much from, other than having a weird nostalgia feel to it. I really enjoyed most of it, but as it started to get really trippy towards the end it lost me.

• Twisters: On the list of movies that I ever thought would get a sequel this far down the road? I mean Twister seems like an easy enough candidate with a very generic premise, but I never really imagined it would happen. . .And yet it works. . .It works because it's no more a sequel of Twister than any generic disaster movie is [not] a sequel to another generic disaster movie of the same disaster. . . Does that even make sense? I don't know, but it was fun.

Enjoyed it, but Probably Wouldn't Watch Again

• Here: The movie is just different, unlike anything I've ever seen before. I don't know if the gimmick is worth a second viewing, but it captivated me on the first one.

• Red One: Generic holiday action romp, we've been getting a bunch of these in the last few years. Glad I saw it, don't regret the time spent. . .Might get 2-3 minutes of my time if I'm ever flipping through channels and it happens to be on.

• A Real Pain: If I wasn't limiting myself to 3 movies in "Favorites of the Year," this would probably be number 4. . Though The ambiguity of the ending feels pointless [there really isn't much to think about in that regard].

• Arthur the King: This is probably the first movie that has ever made me legitimately cry. I walked out of the theater nearly bawling. I give it props for that, but I have no desire to subject myself to it again.

• American Fiction: I'd say the first 2 acts of the movie are almost perfect, but I really didn't care for the way they did the ending in multiple paths. Like. . I got it from an author perspective, but I just don't feel like it worked.

• Challengers: I think my wife has probably seen this 5 times since it came out. I don't know if I can watch it again. Its a slower moving film, which isn't really my thing - I enjoyed it, I liked it a lot actually, but I don't think I'll be returning to the couch to see it again.

• Babes: It's funny in the same way all of those comedies about a very specific situation being dramatized for comedy are funny. The movie works because its a premise that I haven't seen before. But I don't think the magic will work a second time.

• Dune: Part Two: Look, both Dune movies are very good. . And yea I've read the source material, but they're also very long and slow. I'm glad I saw it, but I don't need to watch it again.

• The Bikeriders: I'll be honest - I write these things at the end of the year, because I want to focus on the feelings of my experience, and not really the plot itself. . .And while I remember enjoying it, I also remember thinking it was very long; but other than that I couldn't give you much else.

• Blink Twice: Blink Twice covers some rough themes that people don't typically want to think about, but the movie works as a crazy drug induced thriller. There's a decent revenge payoff, and I go home happy.

• Bob Marley: One Love: No idea how accurate the movie is, but it's a fun ride.

• Sonic The Hedgehog 3: It's cute, just like the first 2. The story is pretty basic but I appreciate it's the type of movie that is made for kids, but the writers didn't forget that Sonic is a 90s icon, and that its older fans would be watching it too.

The Mediocre Movie I Expected it to be

• Beetlejuice Beetlejuice: It hits a lot of the notes you need a sequel like this to hit, but I also felt like everything was reductive and surface level. We went with the in-laws, who loved it, but I didn't think it was that great.

• Venom: The Last Dance: Just like Venom 1 and 2 it has its moments - I'm not sure if 2 or 3 is the weaker movie, and I almost certainly will never watch it again, but I don't regret the time. . Or the laughs.

• It Ends with Us: I might be biased because my wife dragged me to this on the same weekend I dragged her to Borderlands, which maybe artificially props up my feelings of it - But I didn't totally hate it.

• A Quiet Place: Day One: Is Day One necessary? Probably not. But I think it's definitely a better entry into this mythos than the sequel was.

• Monkey Man: Indian John Wick. . .It's decent, but nothing I haven't seen before.

• Longlegs: The movie isn't scary, and it's not really much of a thriller, but it certainly is creepy and Nicholas Cage has always played the weirdo card really well. . .Or that's just who he is.

• Abigail: It's just fun - There's nothing special about it - The reveal in the end isn't anything interesting, hell the ending itself is confusing with all the back and forth. But there are vampire ballerina kids, and that's just the kind of silliness we need sometimes.

Expected More and Left Disappointed

• MaXXXine: Two years ago X was one of my top movies of the year. And even Pearl with all of its Wizard of Oz whimsy felt like a pretty strong movie. It's not that MaXXXine is a bad movie, I just expected more than a semi-generic horror/thriller. It felt as though the movie itself was written to be its own thing and the X mythos was just tacked onto it before shooting.

• IF: I don't really know what I was expecting with this one. . .But I always sort of hoped it would be some kind of Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends x Ryan Reynolds movie. It sort of just felt like too much was going on, and not enough was going on. . All at the same time.

• Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire: Afterlife may have been really reductive of previous Ghostbusters movies, but it was enjoyable and fun. Frozen Empire was just flat the entire time and at 2h4m it felt about 45 minutes longer than necessary.

• The Book of Clarence: I can't quite tell if this movie just wasn't for my particular audience, or if it just wasn't very good. But it felt very long and confusing the entire way through.

• Imaginary: Generic gimmick horror movie is generic gimmick horror movie. Nothing special, move along.

• The Watchers: I don't know why I expected more, that's stupid of me. I don't actually hate The Watchers, but I do think the whole ending is kind of stupid.

• Y2K: I wasn't expecting a masterpiece with this one, but I thought it would be a fun nostalgia trip. I do think the first 20-30 minutes are super solid, but once we start getting into the "AI takes over the world" problem the whole thing sort of just falls apart, and none of the payoff feels earned.

• Moana 2: The original is a true favorite of mine, but this one feels like it's exclusively for the kids. And that's totally fine, just wasn't for me.

Didn't Expect Much, and Got What I Expected

• The Crow: I've actually never seen the original The Crow [I know] but I typically don't expect much from remakes/reimaginings anyway. There were parts that I "didn't hate" but overall it fell flat for me.

• Mean Girls: Mean Girls, the Broadway Show, is really good. This entire movie felt flat with a lot of the songs pushed into more monotone registers to makeup for hiring talent that didn't have very high vocal range. . Other than Renee Rapp. I also felt like a lot of the nods to the original movie were done in an "ok fine we have to" way, instead of honoring the source material.

• The Front Room: I didn't expect much. . Actually I don't know what I was expecting. . .Certainly it wasn't a seemingly ancient woman shitting herself constantly. It felt like The Front Room kept building to something that never paid off.

• Immaculate: Sydney Sweeny starring in "i'm hot, oh but also I'm a nun that fucked up." The movie has no substance to it and I was grateful when it was over. The only thing saving it from Worst of the Year is just how bad some of those movies are.

Worst of the Year

• Night Swim: I liked the premise of this one and really wanted to like it, but it just felt like it was missing pretty much everything a good horror movie needs.

• Madame Web: This movie doesn't deserve my thoughts or punctuation

• Borderlands: I didn't expect Borderlands to be a good movie at all - It's one of my favorite game franchises and I had no hope that Hollywood wouldn't screw it up, but I was at least hoping for something that made sense and might hit the "so bad it's good" point. The movie is just bad, and oddly the one casting choice everyone thought made no sense [Kevin Hart] is the one casting choice that I felt actually worked.

• Argylle: This may be the worst movie I've ever seen, and I used to make a point to watch some of the worst movies [as reviewed on IMDB] as a fun group activity with friends. At no point in its incoherent rambling did Argylle make any sense, and I wish it would be erased from my brain.

Note: At roughly $23/m for the AMC subscription that means I spent about $5/ticket to see each movie. My wife sometimes do buy concessions [sometimes with points, sometimes without], maybe next year I'll track that too, just to see how expensive a hobby this actually is.

Movies we will probably see in the next week:

• Mufasa

• A Complete Unknown

• Nosferatu

• Babygirl