2024 was a very interesting year for film. We saw many box office-smashing sequels to popular movies from the past, but also smaller, independent films that were sometimes even better. This year I made great use of my AMC A-list membership and saw 61 new releases, many of which were in the theater. Narrowing this list down to my ten favorite movies was quite the challenge, as there were many that I felt deserved a spot. The ten I picked are very different, showing just how diverse this year was for movies. 

10. Wicked dir. Jon M. Chu

Wicked was one of the most popular movies of last year, and it also happened to be genuinely good. As someone who enjoys musicals, both on the screen and on the stage, I knew I would like this adaptation. The reason this movie works so well is because of the chemistry between Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. The movie absolutely would not work without them. In particular, Ariana Grande gave a great performance that was surprisingly funny. I also think that the decision to split this story into two parts was a great choice. The second part, Wicked: For Good, will come out after a yearlong intermission in 2025, and I will be very interested in seeing how they wrap up this story.

You can read Alexis’ review of Wicked here.

9. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga dir. George Miller

I first saw Furiosa kind of on a whim; there was nothing else playing in theaters that seemed interesting, I wanted to do something fun over the weekend, and I had seen the trailer at least a hundred times. What I got was one of the best movies of the year. Although I am not the biggest action fan, this absolutely worked for me. All of the action sequences were spectacular and had me on the edge of my seat for the whole film. Anya Taylor-Joy gives a great performance as Furiosa, but Chris Hemsworth steals the show as Dementus. He is such an amazing villain that I wish we could have seen more of him. This movie also works well as a prequel, as it made me appreciate Mad Max: Fury Road more and instantly made me want to rewatch it. I highly recommend Furiosa, as it is truly one of the most underappreciated movies of 2024.

8. Dìdi dir. Sean Wang

Last year I had the opportunity to attend several screenings at the Seattle International Film Festival, and out these movies, Dìdi was my favorite. One of the best coming-of-age stories I’ve seen in recent years, Dìdi follows Chris Wang growing up in the Bay Area of California. Although all of the young actors do a great job in this movie, the true standout is Joan Chen, who plays Chris’s mother. The relationship between Chris and his mother is truly the backbone of this movie and is the reason why it is so heartfelt. This was also one of the funniest movies I saw this year, however, and it blended the sweet moments with comedy very well, which I think is what makes it so great. I am so glad I was able to watch this in a packed theater, as the laughter from the audience was infectious and made the experience even better. Overall, Dìdi can make you both laugh and cry, which makes it deserving of a watch. 

You can read Harrison’s review of Dìdi here.

7. Dune: Part Two dir. Denis Villeneuve

I will admit to not being the biggest fan of sci-fi, but Dune: Part Two was one of the best movies I saw this year. After not seeing the first part in theaters, I was very excited to see part two in IMAX, and it did not disappoint. I really enjoyed seeing the story unfold, as Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) slowly rose to power, taking advantage of the Fremen who trusted him. Austin Butler was also a highlight; his scene-stealing performance as Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen was both powerful and intimidating. It wasn’t just Butler who made this movie great, however, as all of the acting was phenomenal. Rebecca Ferguson, Florence Pugh, and Javier Bardem specifically stood out. All of these elements combined to make Dune: Part Two one of the cinematic events of the year, as well as one of the best movies of the year. 

6. The Brutalist dir. Brady Corbet

Brady Corbet’s decade-spanning epic, The Brutalist, is one of the most technically impressive movies of the year. The story follows Hungarian immigrant László Tóth (Adrien Brody) as he makes his way in America and develops an interesting relationship with businessman Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce). One of the most impressive aspects of The Brutalist is the length, as with its three and a half hour runtime, it is really able to flesh out its characters, and you get more invested in them. It is also one of the few modern movies to feature an intermission, which I enjoyed as I didn’t have to miss any of the movie to go to the bathroom or get a soda refill. The acting is also great in this movie, as Adrien Brody completely becomes László Tóth, and because of the long runtime, you can really feel him changing over the years. The cinematography was also maybe my favorite of the year, especially the establishing shot of the Statue of Liberty at the beginning. What ties all of this together, though, is Daniel Blumberg’s amazing score. Not many three and a half hour movies have made me immediately want to rewatch them, but The Brutalist definitely did, which is why it was one of my favorite movies of the year. 

5. Nosferatu dir. Robert Eggers

2024 was overall a great year for horror movies, and Nosferatu is certainly a reason why. The film follows Thomas and Ellen Hutter (Nicholas Hoult and Lily-Rose Depp) as they are stalked by Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård). I went into this film expecting it to be good, but I didn’t expect it to be so scary. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the movie and there were several great jumpscares. But that wasn’t all the horror Nosferatu had to offer, as there were several truly disturbing scenes. These elements combined to make Nosferatu a great horror movie, but it is also just a great movie altogether. This is another movie with top tier cinematography as all of the shots looked beautiful, especially at Count Orlok’s castle. The dark, dreary, rainy ambience of this movie just completely worked for me and I think that is why I enjoyed it so much. 

You can read Alexis’ review of Nosferatu here.

4. Challengers dir. Luca Guadagnino

After I first saw Challengers, I thought it would be my number one movie of the year. It may have fallen down to four, but it is still one of my favorite watches of the year. Immediately after I watched Challengers, I wanted to see it again, as it had such a complex story, and it was probably the most entertaining movie of the year. The film is centered around tennis players Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) and Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Conner) and their complicated relationship with fellow tennis player Tashi Duncan (Zendaya). Love triangles always make for a good story, but this one takes place over several years and has so many twists and turns that it is definitely the best one I’ve seen. Besides the complicated romance, the tennis aspect of this movie is also top-notch, as all of the matches have a very high intensity and left me on the edge of my seat. The intensity would not be nearly as high if it wasn’t for Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s energetic score. But perhaps my favorite part of Challengers, and what I think makes it so great, is the way the story is told. The story continuously jumps back and forth between the present and past so we get to watch what happens to Patrick and Art over the course of their careers and how they ended up in their current situations. I always love when movies have non-linear storylines, and Challengers expertly crafts its story with just the right amount of mystery to keep the audience entertained. 

3. Sing Sing dir. Greg Kwedar

Sing Sing feels like the most important movie I saw this year. It tells the story of a real group of inmates at Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York who form a bond after being in a theater group and putting on various different plays. Colman Domingo is absolutely outstanding as the leader of this group, Divine G, but the true magic of this film lies in the supporting cast, who are almost all the real-life members of the theater group the movie is based on. Clarence Maclin in particular, who was the secondary lead, gave an amazing performance, especially for someone who is not a professional actor. The relationship that Divine G and Clarence Maclin build in the movie is truly heartwarming, and the ending between them is truly perfect. This is really a story about friendship and how it can make even the toughest situations a little better, which I think is a beautiful message for a film to have. I recommend everyone give this movie a watch, as it really is phenomenal. 

2. We Live in Time dir. John Crowley

When I first heard that Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield were going to be in a movie together, I was very excited. They are two of my favorite actors working today and they always give exceptional performances. We Live in Time is about Tobias (Garfield) and Almut’s (Pugh) relationship together, including all of the ups and downs. Like Challengers, this movie is also told in a non-linear format which I think is part of the reason it works so well. It makes We Live in Time feel unique and different from other, similar romance movies because a lot of the main plot points are revealed at the beginning. This leads the audience to better understand the characters as we know both their past and their future and I believe it leads to a larger emotional connection being built between the audience and the characters. We Live inTime is a very sad movie, as you may guess from watching the trailers, but it also made me happy to see how much Tobias and Almut cared for each other and everything that they sacrificed for each other. Even though throughout the course of the movie they had their arguments and disagreements, this only made their relationship feel more real, and Garfield and Pugh sold it very well. The music in this movie was also very good, not only the score from Bryce Dessner but also the soundtrack. Each song that played felt like the perfect choice, and I still listen to several of them quite often. Overall, We Live in Time is a heartbreaking romance movie told in an interesting way and it is surely one of the best movies of the year.

You can read Jocelyne’s review of We Live in Time here.

1. How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies dir. Pat Boonnitipat

For a while, I was sure We Live in Time would be my number one movie of the year, at least until I saw How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies. The debut film from Thai director Pat Boonnitipat follows M (Putthipong Assaratanakul) as he tries to build a relationship with his grandmother, Amah (Usha Seamkhum), in hopes of getting her inheritance money. What starts out as a fake relationship, however, evolves into a beautiful story about family. The relationship between M and his grandmother is really the heart of this story, and they have great chemistry. They make each other better people as M becomes less lazy and Amah learns to ask for help when needed, which they help each other learn. The character development that both show in this movie is one of the reasons why it is so great, but another is because of how emotional it is. This movie is predictably very sad, even though it might be easy to see why at the beginning; the ending still hits very hard and will make almost anybody cry. The score also plays a big factor in this, as it was surprisingly one of the best I heard all year. It really added to the emotional scenes, as the piano was perfect in them. Unfortunately, this movie is pretty hard to watch, as it is not streaming anywhere and didn’t get a wide release in theaters. I had to rent the DVD from Scarecrow Video, but it was definitely worth every penny. Hopefully in the future this movie becomes more accessible, and more people will have the chance to watch this truly remarkable film.