Best Of 2024: Film
The panelists and Patreon supporters of the Great Pop Culture Debate have nominated their favorite films of 2024. Check out their recommendations below. (Unlike previous years, we did not do an actual episode devoted to Best Of 2024; we’re just doing listicles on the website.) Film discussed include Anora, Challengers, Dune Part Two, Nickel Boys, The Substance, Wicked, and more.
Want to drop your own favorite films? Feel free to share them in the comments.
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Anora is my No. 1 movie of the year. Sean Baker is an incredible director/writer, and this film does a brilliant job of telling this Cinderella story of an exotic dancer who falls for a young Russian man when he comes to her strip club. This film is hilarious, heartbreaking, and just a great time at the movies — I saw it twice in theaters. Mikey Madison is incredible in this lead role, and the supporting male cast is also so talented; my standout is Yuri Borisov. This is a just a great film that reminds me of why I love the art form. (Kevin Dillon)
We had high expectations going into this long-rumored sequel, and we were not disappointed! With macabre camp, pitch-perfect practical fx, and all the celebrity bit parts we could stuff into our little plastic pumpkins, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice proved that the trickster demon still had plenty of treats for us more than 35 years later. (Derek Mekita)
Boy, do I love this film. Luca Guadagnino had two truly unique films this past year. Challengers was supposed to come out in 2023 and launch the Venice Film Festival, but the writer’s strike impacted that plan. Challengers is funny, a great sports film, a great love triangle, and has some good intensity around all of it. Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, and Mike Faist are truly a great trio and all give great performances that drive the energy in this film. Challengers also has the score of the year for me from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, blended with some perfect editing that creates a truly electric back and forth, and makes this film feel like an actual tennis match in every way. (Kevin Dillon)
Deadpool & Wolverine masterfully integrated elements from the Marvel Fox universe, comic-book variants, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, specifically Loki on Disney+ (which I consider one of the best Marvel TV shows). While Multiverse of Madness and Quantumania ended up being duds that added noise to this current, oversaturated MCU phase, Deadpool & Wolverine found the fun in the multiverse and helped move the current phase forward. (Jim Czadzeck)
For anyone who left Dune, Part One feeling that the pace was a bit sluggish and the story hard to follow, the same could not be said for the sci-fi epic’s second modern outing at the box office. This film had us on the edge of our seats, with battle sequences and religious fervor that seemed to jump from the screen. You could feel the intensity and power, with exceptional performances from Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, and Austin Butler. (Derek Mekita)
This loving and informative tribute to the genius (and flawed humanity) of Jim Henson serves as an emotional reminder of everything he gave pop culture, and what an immense loss it was when he died suddenly in 1990. His humor and brilliant artistry continue to touch our hearts to this day, living on in the characters and worlds he created. An absolute must-watch for any and all Henson fans. (Stream it on Disney+) (Derek Mekita)
Film noir is reliably satisfying, but this movie is reliably unpredictable. A gritty crime thriller mixed with an explosive lesbian romance and touches of dreamlike surreality, it kicked off 2024 with a bang. Kristen Stewart is scrappy and feral, bringing energy I never knew she had to the screen, Katy O'Brian is an intimidating star in her breakthrough performance, and Ed Harris is a diabolical vision in that wig. Rose Glass has created a movie built on the heritage of film noir and in the vein of works by the Coen Brothers or John Dahl, but uniquely female and modern. (Brendan Hay)
RaMell Ross really did that! I am writing this after literally seeing this movie in the theater and not being able to move for like 5 minutes. Nickel Boys is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel from Colson Whitehead, and follows two young African-American men in a reform school in Florida. The direction and cinematography from Jomo Fray will be studied for years, and it is absolutely deserving of so many accolades. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor brings the heart in a tremendous supporting performance, too. (Kevin Dillon)
It’s no accident that this movie premiered with little fanfare and disappeared without a trace. In fact, it just backs up the premise of writer/director Ava DuVernay’s story, a sweeping look at how human existence is and always has been defined by hierarchical structures around race, class, religion, etc. — power structures that move quickly and brutally to stifle any opposition to them. Bouncing over numerous time periods and geographic locations to present its central thesis, the film has been accused of being too generalized; that it simplifies incredibly complex socioeconomic historical trends into something easily understood in less than 2 hours and 30 minutes. But where is the lie? I found this difficult to watch, but at the same time, absolutely essential for this moment in history. It’s all held together by the criminally unheralded Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor in the lead role, and memorable supporting turns from Niecy Nash and Jon Bernthal. (Eric Rezsnyak)
I saw The Seed of the Sacred Fig at the 2024 New York Film Festival and was captivated from the jump. Fig is Germany’s selection for the 2025 Academy Awards International Feature category, but comes from Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof, who has been exiled from his home country. The film is set in Iran and follows Iman, who is an investigator for the Revolutionary Court in Tehran — a fact he has hidden from his daughters — which connects him to the machinations and politics in the country around protests and paranoia. The film is brilliantly constructed and takes you down paths you did not expect, dissecting aspects of Iranian culture. (Kevin Dillon)
It it a satire on Hollywood misogyny? A body-horror pic about aging? A monster movie about celebrity? A long overdue tour de force for Demi Moore? A reason to still kinda like Dennis Quaid in this day and age? Yes, to all of the above. My favorite movie of the year, The Substance is a maximalist exploration of being a woman in entertainment, written and directed fearlessly by Coralie Fargeat. I laughed, I winced, I recoiled in relatable pain to that one scene between Demi Moore and herself in the mirror. If possible, watch it with other people so you can all react viscerally together. Five people left the theater while I was watching it, but those of us who remained broke into applause by the end. Oh, and it has the best use of title cards in a movie in 2024. (Brendan Hay)
The gays were seated for Jon M. Chu’s cinematic adaptation of the 2000s Broadway musical, a prequel to the classic Wizard of Oz. But could the sky-high expectations possibly be met? Let’s just say the finished product defies gravity. Flawless casting gave us a heartbreaking Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, a magnetic Ariana Grande as Galinda, a dashing Fiyero in Jonathan Bailey, and Jeff Goldblum wringing every ounce of opportunity out of The Wizard himself. Spectacular musical numbers that arguably improve upon the Broadway originals, costume design that fully realizes the dazzling fantasy of Oz, and riveting direction that fleshes out plot points rushed over in the stage production make this both a commercial and critical smash. For those complaining that the story has been split over two movies: I have absolutely no qualms showing up in the theater next year for 2.5 more hours of this story. (And anyway, that second act DESPERATELY needs room to breathe.) Wonderful indeed, and dare I hope this leads to more cinematic explorations of Oz? There’s PLENTY of source material… (Eric Rezsnyak)
Will & Harper is a Netflix documentary and travelogue following Will Ferrell and his close friend, former Saturday Night Live colleague Harper Steele, on a transformative road trip. Ferrell acts as a friend, interviewer, and support system, accompanying Harper on an adventure she feared undertaking alone. The film blends playful reunions with SNL alumni and deeply moving encounters with trans community members, while also exposing the contrasting realities of trans acceptance across the United States. Ferrell demonstrates how to go beyond allyship by protecting and uplifting Harper without overshadowing her voice. Their journey culminates in Harper confronting a place tied to a dark moment in her past, symbolizing her growth. Harper candidly shares her transition journey, discussing medical care, therapy, and life changes. Will & Harper offers a rare perspective, using Ferrell’s platform to amplify Harper’s story and remind the world that trans lives matter. (Joelle Boedecker)
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