The Poppies of Terra #47 - My Top 10 Films of 2024

This year is already shaping up to be a big one in terms of new film releases, and we’re probably not even aware of a host of productions that will turn out to be spectacular, simply because they haven’t been announced yet.

That certainly applies to last year. At its start I only knew of two of the films I’ve ended up including on my list of top ten personal favorites. So it goes. Blustery advance marketing is pay-for-play, but true quality is play-to-stay.

I’ll note that I considered including Trần Anh Hùng’s The Taste of Things below, because I saw it in a movie theater in 2024, but I believe it’s technically a 2023 theatrical release (in France) and so I left it out. It’s a gorgeous piece of work, though, and if you haven’t seen it I recommend you seek it out.

On to the list:

1. Dune: Part Two – I watched this several times in IMAX during its theatrical run and would happily do so again. Denis Villeneuve’s (Sicario; Arrival; Blade Runner 2049) second Dune installment is a grand yet intimate mytho-poetic space opera for the ages. The attention to detail is as precise as a Hunter-Seeker, the production value as sharp as a crysknife, with a cumulative sensory punch that will penetrate the best Holtzman shield. If Villeneuve’s adaptation of Dune Messiah maintains this level of quality, he’ll have fashioned the greatest science fiction film trilogy of all time.

2. Flow – A cat tries to survive an apocalyptic deluge in a world full of strange markers. From conception to execution, every decision made by Gints Zilbalodis (Away) in the crafting of this utterly singular and spellbinding tale of nature metamorphosing amidst nature foments wonder. There’s no dialogue at all, but the important questions are distinctively asked. Breathtaking.  

3. The Seed of the Sacred Fig – Mohammad Rasoulof’s (A Man of Integrity; There Is No Evil) painstakingly composed saga of familial upheaval and unraveling, which prisms a number of contemporary Iranian issues, doubles as intelligent drama and devastating indictment of theocratic propaganda and misogynistic oppression at large. A modern triumph of cinéma engagé, artfully marrying form and social conscience.

4. The Brutalist – Brady Corbet’s (The Childhood of a Leader; Vox Lux) period historical epic, whose 70-millimeter VistaVision and immersive cinematography by Lol Crawley gloriously bring to life Judy Becker’s  incredibly rich, textured production work, along with all-engrossing performances from Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, and Felicity Jones, is as thematically tapestried as it is technically accomplished. Perhaps the most purely visionary film on this list. 

5. Anora – Red Rocket remains my favorite Sean Baker (Tangerine; The Florida Project) film, but this one is in hot pursuit. With Anora Baker once again proves an expert at modulating tricky tonal changes and interrogating expectations through incredibly naturalistic performances. His last features have been based on collaborative screenplays, so it’s worth noting that this time around he is credited as sole writer; while his directing is rightfully celebrated, we shouldn’t overlook his consummate skills with the pen.   

6. Robot Dreams – Who accompanies the companions? Welcome to an animated alternate 1980s Manhattan where animals rather than humans run the world. It’s hard not to be disarmed by this movie’s inherent charm, as well as its melancholy, as we follow the ultimately poignant story of Dog and his robot pal. The destination Pablo Berger (Blancanieves) has in store is one you won’t expect. And as with Flow, no need for words.

7. The Devil's Bath – Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala (Goodnight Mommy) have superbly crafted a deeply disturbing work of horror inspired by historical research. Slow-drip despair, misery, and unrelenting suffering captured in a hyper-naturalistic tone make this the most viscerally bleak film I saw (out of 370) in 2024. You’ll want to take a bath of the non-Mephistophelian variety after watching this one.

8. Blitz – Steve McQueen’s (Hunger; Shame; 12 Years a Slave) WWII epic of a child’s odyssey back home amid a bomb-carpeted London, anchored by stirring performances from Saoirse Ronan and the central Elliott Heffernan, boasts such visually stunning cinematography by Yorick Le Saux and unforgettable production design by Adam Stockhausen that these become their own characters. Combined with Hans Zimmer’s audacious choices, this film delivers moments of sheer cinematic power.

9. Kinds of Kindness – As far as I’m concerned this black comedy triptych is peak Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth; The Lobster; The Favourite; Poor Things). From its playful title to its pervasive sense of structural, cyclical irony, it is impish, mordant, innovative, austere, provocative and delightfully unsettling all at once. Also, probably not for the squeamish–thumb way up.   

10. Maria – Pablo Larraín’s (Neruda; Jackie; Spencer) affecting portrayal of opera luminary Maria Callas during the last week of her life is a deeply sympathetic and ultimately wrenching one. A highly stylized, dream-like, above all aesthetic rendering of a creative, longing, and sensitive consciousness negotiating the signposts of its own approaching dissolution into silence. Sigh. 

And one feature length documentary I’d like to highlight:

Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story – A moving tribute to a figure who, through his deeds on screen and by his perseverance when faced with shattering personal adversity in real life, inspired, and continues to inspire, countless. We may not need to fly; a breath suffices.

2024 was truly a fine film-going year, with plenty of theatrical outings–Lisa Frankenstein, The First Omen, Civil War, Challengers, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Young Woman and the Sea, Furiosa, Tuesday, Oddity, Strange Darling, The Wild Robot, A Different Man, The Outrun, Smile 2, Conclave, A Real Pain, Queer, Nosferatu, Stopmotion, Problemista, Ghostlight, Cuckoo, Heretic, The Order, Babygirl, Love Lies Bleeding, I Saw the TV Glow, and more–that I thoroughly enjoyed and linger, but which didn’t quite hit me the way the ten films above did. 

Really, a feast for the eyes and the mind.

And now, in mid-January, I can already hear the kitchen staff busily at work on this year’s bounty.