The best films of 2024

It's been a great year for movies—don't let anyone tell you otherwise. While it's long felt like the multiplex has only been home to sequels, remakes, and middling prestige dramas, 2024 provided a wealth of great offerings from around the world that took wild formal swings, either as stylistic throwbacks, or as films seeking to re-write cinema's future.

This was also true of American movies, the output of which (at both the studio and independent levels) has been of special remark. Granted, theatrical distribution is in a state of flux, so not all of these might've made it to every corner, but with streaming releases confirmed or pending for most, the chance to watch them may not be far away.

Each film on this list brings something distinct to the table—stylistically, thematically, or otherwise—and whether its focus is current events or people in period costumes, there's a sense of urgency to each story, how it’s told, and why. They exist to preserve the art form in some way, whether by entertaining through familiar flourishes, or by inventing new ones wholesale. Either way, there's nothing quite like them.

First, a handful of honorable mentions:

Sean Baker's propulsive sex worker comedy-drama Anora, an American fairytale with an extended, hour-long slapstick climax.

Clint Eastwood's Juror No. 2, a throwback courtroom thriller that builds tension by unearthing the moral permissions granted by the American nuclear family.

Bertrand Bonnello's The Beast, a deconstructed sci-fi triptych about loneliness and rebirth, with a blood-curdling final scene.

Alex Garland's Civil War, a tactile film about a fictitious American conflict, captured through a political kaleidoscope that centers the poisonous allure of war.

Greg Kwedar's Sing Sing, an exuberant drama in which formerly incarcerated actors play themselves, to tell a story of healing through a prison arts program.

Robert Eggers' Nosferatu, a lush horror-drama that remakes a silent vampire classic and imbues it with nightmarish psychosexual imagery.

And without further ado, on to the list… 

15. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Australia, United States

George Miller's much-awaited prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road—a modern classic comprising a single chase—Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga has the same adrenaline pumping through its veins, but spreads its cinematic delights across a decades-long folkloric saga and tragic love story. In the title role made famous by Charlize Theron, Anya Taylor-Joy steps in as the younger version of the resilient wasteland warrior. Furiosa's fight for survival, in a world of vehicular madness, involves exciting supporting players, from her kind comrade Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke), to Chris Hemsworth's lunatic cult leader Dementus. Each piece helps form a sprawling apocalyptic puzzle of epic proportions, peppered with jaw-dropping action tableaus. A shot in the arm for Hollywood action. (Full review)

Available on Apple TV,  Max and Prime

14. Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat
Belgium France, Netherlands

A two-and-a-half hour documentary that never slows down, Johan Grimonprez channels the rhythms of jazz for his cinematic essay on major historical turning points in the 1960s, and their echoes today. At the movie’s epicenter is the newly independent Democratic Republic of the Congo led by Patrice Lumumba, a pan-Africanist figure who faced deadly opposition from imperial powers. One such hurdle, as it happens, was jazz—or rather, CIA-funded jazz ambassadorships that used popular Black American art and artists as propaganda tools against Black African unity. Few films have ever made footnotes and academic citations feel so riveting. (Full review)

Now in theaters

13. Les chambres rouges (Red Rooms)
Canada

Some movies radiate goodness. Others, like Pascal Plante's icy thriller Red Rooms—about a woman who grows obsessed with a grisly ongoing murder trial—have a toxic, radioactive glow. It's the year's most feel-BAD film, precisely for how it allures and endears its audience towards opaque protagonist Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy), whose daily courtroom trips to observe an alleged Montrael serial killer and digital snuff artist are captured with eerie, unbroken takes that unsettle at-length. The story's contours, at first, seem ill-defined (Plante and Gariépy play Kelly-Anne's motives close to the chest), but they're sketched with invisible ink that, when revealed under blacklight, portrays a chilling reality about the ways in which we see ourselves through the modern culture of true crime.

Available on Apple TV and Prime

12. Cerrar los ojos (Close Your Eyes)
Spain, Argentina

Victor Erice's first dramatic feature in 40 years brings the Spanish maestro full circle, as he aims his camera not only at his own filmmaking career, but at the notion of cinema as fragile memory. Twenty years after actor Julio Arenas (José Coronado) mysteriously disappeared from his set, director Miguel Garay (Manolo Soto) embarks on a journey through abandoned footage, old acquaintances, and numerous imagined possibilities to solve the mystery of Arenas' whereabouts. At 170 minutes in length, Erice's drama bides its time, but gradually opens up titanic emotional worlds, as Garay—a distinctly Erice-like figure—is forced to confront lifelong personal and artistic regrets, as the camera probes what, if anything, can truly be captured and preserved on film. (Full review)

Available on Apple TV and Prime

11. No Other Land
Palestine, Norway

A film by an Israeli-Palestinian collective—directors Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor—No Other Land has yet to find U.S. distribution, despite its numerous accolades. This should come as no surprise to anyone who's seen it. The urgent documentary crafts a furious and necessary counter-narrative to anti-Palestinian propaganda by exposing, in disturbing detail, 21st Century land seizures of civilian homes, by the Israeli military, in the occupied West Bank. However, it never shies away from the political complications of trying to solve such a crisis either, or simply trying to expose it, including the problems posed by its own status as a handshake between occupier and occupied. Israel's Abram and Palestine's Adra are just as much self-reflexive subjects as they are filmmakers, and by turning the camera on themselves, they expose cultural fissures seldom seen on screen. (Full review)

Awaiting U.S. distribution; limited theatrical release January 31st, 2025

10. Bên trong vỏ kén vàng (Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell)
Vietnam, Singapore, France, Spain

A work of grief and regret, Vietnamese drama Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell unravels slowly over three hours, but each minute is hypnotic. Debuting director Phạm Thiên Ân grants, to his existential musings, a distinct visual form as he follows a young man, Thiện (Lê Phong Vũ), whose sister-in-law happens to die in a motorcycle crash right in front of him. The accident leaves her 5-year-old son Đạo (Nguyễn Thịnh) orphaned, but miraculously unharmed. As Thiện wanders the countryside in search of his estranged brother—Đạo's father—the foggy hillsides prove a fitting site for soulful introspection, as Thiện revisits places and people from his past, in languid scenes that become gradually enrapturing. The film imbues physical spaces with ethereal qualities, and doesn't just feel meditative, but like an act of meditation. (Full review)

Available on Apple TV, Hoopla, Kino Film Collection and Prime

9. El auge del humano 3 (The Human Surge 3)
Argentina, Portugal, Brazil, Netherlands, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Peru

To begin with: there's just one prior Human Surge movie—a cross-continental queer documentary—and you don't need to have seen it before diving headfirst into The Human Surge 3. Eduardo Williams’ experimental follow-up is a spiritually gentle but aesthetically madcap work of non-fiction that draws from the language of video games and, of all things, Google Street View. In following its young queer subjects—far-flung residents of the global south divided by language and geography—it employs haunting sound design and a roving 360 degree camera to slowly explore (and blur, and eventually eradicate) the boundaries between people. A peek through the cracks of modern digital technology that offers a glimpse into a gleaming, idyllic future. (Full review)

Available on Grasshopper Film

8. On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
Zambia, Ireland, United Kingdom, United States

The second film by Zambian Welsh director Rungano Nyoni, acerbic comedy-drama On Becoming a Guinea Fowl follows young professional Shula (Susan Chardy), who returns home to Zambia from abroad to discover that her uncle has mysteriously died. As funeral proceedings begin, the other young women of Shula's family respond in markedly different ways, leading to the gradual discovery of community secrets, and a culture of silence that permits sexual impropriety. A deft drama with biting humor in the vein of Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding, its story unfolds through silent implications that pierce through the noise of ritual. It’s led by an impressively self-assured performance from Chardy, who treads a razor-thin line between vulnerability and resilience. Its mere 99-minute runtime offers enormous emotional scope, as it takes a magnifying glass to the bonds of family, and the nuances of patriarchal tradition. (Full review)

Wide theatrical release March 7, 2025

7. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (The World is Family)
India

There are two ways to get unique and challenging documentaries funded in India. The first is seeking foreign backing (as is the case with several great recent films). The second is the shoestring-budget DIY method long employed by Anand Patwardhan, whose Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—or The World is Family—makes for a devastating self-portrait. Through stories recounted by his aging parents and relatives, Patwardhan traces the entanglements between his own lineage and that of India's freedom struggle from British rule. As personal and political threads emerge, it weaves a deeply moving tapestry from old photographs and home videos, turning tangible mementos into a treatise on memory. (Full review)

Awaiting streaming release 

6. Matt and Mara
Canada

Kazik Radwanski's fantastic Canadian indie Matt and Mara is a film about reconnection. It begins with the sudden appearance of successful author Matt Johnson (Matt Johnson) right outside the Toronto classroom of his ex, creative writing professor Mara Walsh (Deragh Campbell), who's now married, and has a toddler. In catching up over several walk-and-talks, the duo's rekindling takes wildly entertaining form, as the boyish motormouth Matt gradually brings the reserved Mara back out of her shell. As unspoken jealousies arise, throwing wrenches in their seemingly well-oiled dynamic, Johnson and Campbell put on a masterclass in building story through nuanced performance, and through fleeting, exciting, conversational moments. Its simplicity is deceptive; the film is remarkably absorbing. (Full review)

Awaiting streaming release

 5. The Seed of the Sacred Fig
Iran, Germany, France

A film with the power and structure of a locomotive, The Seed of the Sacred Fig observes Iranian society through escalations of mistrust. Across nearly three hours, it maps numerous social fault-lines, one after the other, onto a single family—a government prosecutor, his diligent wife, and their two progressive daughters—amid the country's "Woman, Life, Freedom" protest movement in 2022. The story's political critique, and existing charges against dissident writer-director Mohammad Rasoulof, meant it had to be shot in secret, and several key people have either fled the country in recent months, or have been detained. Both the movie and its surrounding context work in tandem to justify boldly speaking truth to power, through a rousing piece of political cinema that takes the form of a domestic thriller, pulling the wider political zeitgeist into the home. (Full review)

Now in theaters 

4. Dahomey
France, Senegal, Benin

In just 67 minutes, Mati Diop's documentary Dahomey dramatizes ongoing debates on modern colonialism—and the restitution of looted artifacts from a French museum to their original home in Benin—in the form of both academic and spiritual conversation. The film oscillates between the grounded and literal—as university students fervently discuss the pros, the cons, and the optics of returning these stolen artifacts—and the ethereal, as Diop grants voice and personality to one of the statues being carefully prepared and shipped. It's great art about art, a haunting work that gets to the root of modern post-colonial identity, and how it remains constantly in flux while at the mercy of political forces, and larger, un-confronted histories. (Full review)

Available on Apple TV, MUBI and Prime

3. The Brutalist
United States, United Kingdom, Hungary

Brady Corbet's immigrant epic is the kind of movie Hollywood hasn't seen in decades. It’s a three-and-a-half-hour saga that harkens back to the likes of The Godfather in the way it both wrestles with the American dream, and presents its drama in operatic hues, scored by equally operatic horns and strings. Adrien Brody plays Hungarian architect László Tóth, a Jewish holocaust survivor who arrives on America's shores after World War II, and becomes entangled in sprawling architectural projects at the behest of a wealthy Pennsylvanian family. The allure of wealth clashes with the sheer power of physical creation, as Corbet's thoughtfully composed Vista Vision tableaus—a kind of celluloid capture not seen in decades—examines American empire and ingenuity alongside probing questions of modern Jewish identity. A film about the physical, and about looking past it, in an attempt to find its soul. (Full review)

Now in limited theaters; wide release January 2025

2. All We Imagine As Light
India, France, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Italy

A tale of sisterhood, Payal Kapadia's narrative debut shares the physical and political texture of her magnificent docufiction piece A Night of Knowing Nothing, but takes a gentler, more wistful approach. It follows three working-class migrant women in Mumbai through interconnected stories of being in love, and fighting for physical space and dignity, in a world with increasingly unrealistic demands for simply existing. Kapadia's radical examination of modern India is reflective and poetic, and provides room—through its precise editing—to reflect and ruminate on each quiet moment, before bursting forth with visual splendor, as it reaches for fleeting moments of joy. (Full review)

 Now in theaters

1. Nickel Boys (tie)
United States

Like Kapadia, filmmaker RaMell Ross also made his narrative debut this year, and takes his cues from his oblique, sociological, and above all sensory documentary Hale County This Morning, This Evening. Adapted from the book by Colson Whitehead—itself based on the horrors of real Florida reform schools—the radiant, 1960s-set Nickel Boys takes a stunning visual approach, tethering the viewer to unyielding first-person perspectives as it constructs (and re-constructs) Black personhood, self-identification and memory through the gazes of other characters. A timely tale of friendship and racist horrors, it's among the most rigorous and radical literary adaptations Hollywood has ever seen, and it propels the medium forward in innumerable ways while remaining deeply affecting. (Full review)

Now in limited theaters; wide release January 2025

1. I Saw the TV Glow (tie)
United States

Part horror, part nostalgia, and entirely avant-garde, nonbinary filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun follows their 2021 tech horror slow-burn We're All Going to the World's Fair with an even more unnerving film that gets under your skin and stays there. In following two young, likely closeted '90s high schoolers over several years—Owen (Ian Foreman, Justice Smith) and Maddie (Brigette Lundy-Paine)—I Saw the TV Glow combines memories of young adult genre television with dreamlike musings on the nature of reality, in a neon-drenched saga dripping with gender dysphoria, and with original songs and performances that hit raw nerves at just the right moments. A transformative piece of art about inertia, anguish, and the horrifying constraints of social stasis. It's impossible not to be moved by it, and to feel it in your bones. (Full review)

Available on Apple TV, Max and Prime