Well, with the worst of the year behind us, it’s time to turn our attention to something a little more positive: the best movies of 2024! We’re splitting this list into two articles so we can both bang on about our favourites of the year (though, of course, there will be some overlaps), so make sure to check in tomorrow for part two!
5. Wicked Little Letters
Wicked Little Letters was one of the first new releases I saw this year, and it truly has been on my mind ever since. On paper, it was a movie that seemed made for me – an Olivia Colman, Timothy Spall-starring historical drama-comedy about the most unfathomably rude insults you can imagine. Sometimes, it’s hard for those films to live up to everything I want from them, but Wicked Little Letters did that and more. Sensationally funny, beautifully acted, and with just enough pathos and commentary on the place of women post-war to give it some real bite, it’s a polished little gem of British perfection. And it introduced me to the outrageously charming Anjana Vasan and, consequently, We Are Lady Parts, another favourite of this year, so it’s got that going for it too!
4. Les Chambres Rouges
In an era where it feels like the serial killer story has been done to death (pun mostly intended), Pascal Plante’s ambitious, dark, and utterly disturbing thriller is proof that there are always new ways to approach well-worn stories. Hinged on an outstanding performance from Juliette Gariépy, Les Chambres Rouges is an exercise in restraint, metaphor, and obsession that explores true crime and fandom with an utterly unique sensibility. I’ll be getting into it more in an article later this month, but catch it before it blows up and gets spoiled everywhere.
3. Only the River Flows
You know that I love a good esoteric, weirdo-beardo thriller, and few have done it better in the last few years than Only the River Flows. This Chinese period piece is a striking, ambitious story that invites the viewer to really examine the dark, difficult world that director Wei Shujun creates with his restrained, handsome direction. As much as it’s a gorgeous film just to look at, what has made it such an enduring one this year is how beautifully evasive the story is – there’s just enough to invite you in, but not so much that you can get away without building your own interpretation of this story and these characters. It’s not going to be for everyone, but for me, it’s catnip. Delicious, neo-noir catnip.
2. You’ll Never Find Me
I know I just said that not many movies have done the esoteric thriller better than Only the River Flows, but hey, look – here comes one now! Australian horror-drama You’ll Never Find Me is a simmering slow burn that has scorched itself onto my brain ever since I watched it for the first time earlier this year, and I sincerely hope that it serves as a jumping-off point into bigger things for everyone involved. The small-scale setting and two-handed character-centric story allows for directors Indianna Bell and Josiah Allen total control over every detail, and every inch of the scene-setting, sound design, and script builds towards this brutal, inevitable, and utterly unforgettable climax. Brilliant, bleak, and beautiful.
1. Oddity
Look, I get it – not everyone wants to live in the world of an MR James story. But I do, and that’s exactly what Oddity, a taut, terrifying, and utterly brilliant ghost story from director Damien McCarthy offers, in my eyes. It’s got a gorgeously old-fashioned feel while striking out into its own territory, with killer scares that earned it a spot in our scares of the century list this Halloween. The world McCarthy and his cast create here is dark, deep, and utterly alluring – and it’s one I can’t wait to see more of from this relatively new director.
What were your favourite films of the year? Let me know in the comments, and stay tuned for part two tomorrow!
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By Lou MacGregor
(header image via Sortir A Paris)
No But Listen 