2024 in review
2024: Hollywood Booms and Busts
Awards seasons are always an odd thing for me, considering that the kinds of films that are “Oscar bait” tend to be overly sentimental or uninteresting. I also feel like 2023 had some better films- so trying to be effusively in love with the movies actually made in 2024 is hard to do. The Substance getting an Academy Award nod is at least some understanding from Hollywood that the genre is huge right now for the production value vs profitability equation. So beyond Netflix and other streamers really pushing their services for the best of lists what are we truly left with? Industry infatuation. Demi Moore was awesome in The Substance, but they’re going to need another category for horror and science fiction as trying to shoehorn The Substance into comedy is a struggle- no matter how splatter funny it was.
The first part of the year started out with a strong pace of two films a day- some classic comfort films like Rocky IV and Batman Returns (which continues to be a stunning film to watch around Xmas-New Year’s). The Whale disappointed- although I love Fraser’s performance the film was probably better as the original play. Beau is Afraid was also a miss for me- which seemed like another self referential anxiety interlude like Von Trier’s The House that Jack Built— but without much of a catharsis. So both Ari Aster and Darren Aronofsky of “auteur” status help set the tone for some of the later failures of the year.
Saltburn stood out as a fun grotesque film - Barry Keoghan is confidently fiendish as the film juxtaposes wealth and its relation to friendship.
I also wrote about the Netflix’s failure to really captivate with a shoddy curation of films from 1974, 1984, and I guess 1994? ish? The service never was really able to establish what it was trying to celebrate with that initiative. I assume because it doesn’t really generate anything for them. This is part of the reason that I’ve been enjoying creating more of my own physical collection now. There’s more to say with boutique Blu-rays, but right now there’s a fascinating world out there to explore beyond just the next crappy “Damsel” that had had Netflix fav Millie Bobby Brown. Other skippables: The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Dumb Money, Equalizer 3, Reptile, The Retirement Plan (Cage’s B-movie trend continues), and Freelance. Fast X was also pretty meh- which is to be expected, but somehow I didn’t have as much fun with this one. I was also surprised how much of a shrug I felt about Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning considering I how most of the other modern MI have felt interesting. Master Gardener also fell flat- which coming from Schrader showed his own inability to get out of genre storytelling even as he has been dismissive of horror films.
Other blockbusters that felt mind numbing- Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Eternals, Ant Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and the bland finale of Aquaman: The Lost Kingdom. The decent standout from the MCU was Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3- which at least had a better weaving of narrative and giving moments to these characters than the 2nd film. Rebel Moon Part 2 was even worse than Part 1. I’d really struggle to comprehend why I’d want to watch the longer Director’s cuts… which include whole different plot points apparently but so what? Madame Web struggled to find a reason to exist- but I’m glad that Sydney Sweeney was able to push herself with Immaculate (even if that film falls apart a bit into the ridiculous it has enough of a fun nunsploitation feel). The Beekeeper and The Bricklayer (which felt like a Statham knock-off) were especially forgetful mediocre action movies along with a Jackie Chan Rob-B-Hood. OH ya, and there was a crazy dumb remake of Roadhouse with Jake Gyllenhaal and…. Conor McGregor? For… reasons? I also watched an overlong documentary on the failure of Moviepass..
Generally the first part of the year felt lackluster— which continued into the summer blockbusters for a few films that I was looking forward to. Dune Part Two was the standout highlight for this time period, but then The Fall Guy came out and everyone felt like sky falling for cinema. The film was ok, but generally I feel like there wasn’t much romantic chemistry for the leads- and for a love letter to stuntmen it didn’t have any stunts that felt totally memorable. I skipped watching Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga at the theaters and probably enjoyed more of the Youtube commentary on the flops for the season. A few months later I agree— the movie came out too long after the first- Anya and Chris are a bit miscast, and the pacing of the film is off (having half of it in a pre-prequel weirdness). But you know, nipple pinching makes up for it. Maxxxine was especially disappointing as the previous films actually had some menace and danger to them while it felt like a shallow barely there horror movie.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire was a shoddy cartoon rock ‘em sock ‘em robots that didn’t capture any of the resonate soul of a good monster movie. It’s especially off-putting after both monster “heroes” have had some decent films lately- but I feel like the travesty is comparing this film to the amazing Godzilla Minus One. Minus One really captivates the feeling of dread and human condition for a force of destruction that has weight to it. New Empire makes these figures weightless- both in the physical sense on screen and in the imagination.
Deadpool & Wolverine revitalized some of the box office backlash, but really it was for the nostalgia of these characters before the corporate crams these characters into another reboot. It was at least a bit of a meta commentary on the state of these multiverse jumbled narratives that stop having narrative interest. So we may as well have a slapstick smash of the action figures- more enjoyable for the charisma of Ryan and Hugh’s relationship.
Killers of the Flower Moon felt overwrought to me- still another crime movie fetishization that pushes the narrative from a white perspective (even as Scorsese said he switched the viewpoint). The only difference is that there isn’t a cool soundtrack over the bodies being buried, but it had the same cinematic syntax of his other films. The endpoint of having it be a teleplay about the sensationalism doesn’t prevent the film itself to be the same kind of sensationalism, but perhaps that’s part of the point to be aware of itself.
Boy Kills World was hyperviolent to the point of being gore horror- and generally a meh story. The narration took away from the film as well. Fool’s Paradise was a cute, but generally forgettable film with another character that doesn’t speak. Five Nights at Freddy’s was also oddly meh compared to the greatness of Willy’s Wonderland- as much as I like Lillard he wasn’t used enough.
Alien: Romulus was a decent remix of the highlights of the franchise, if not a bit lacking in creating its own unique weirdness compared to Covenant and Prometheus. David Jonsson as the android brother really made the movie for me though, and I appreciated expanding the narrative to a side story about how people live within a Weyland’s grasp.
Then we have two films dedicated to the hubris of the infatuated artist: Megalopolis and Joker 2. I went to both in theaters, and as much as I really detested Megalopolis, at least it was enthusiastic with itself. Joker: Folie a Deux was basically the artist too afraid of how an audience reacts to being under a system that doesn’t care for the sick- and empathizing with a villain. That’s what makes a good villain though isn’t it? Don’t get me started on the not-Quinn Gaga and drivel musicality while still trying to have some connection of the creation of Two-Face? For reasons…Todd Phillips can fuck off for wasting my time.
Megalopolis has a different problem- that being of some weird dystopian notion that all of society’s (ROMAN EMPIRE AMERICA) ills could just be solved by one brilliant mind, that all resources could simply be magically whisked away to the creative vision of that mind. Hmm, no wonder it’s a Director’s fantasy… and misunderstanding of America through some lens of Italian fascism. It really felt like the cartoon Gotham of Burton’s films. I do love how stupidly crass Aubrey Plaza is in this though. Shia also went there with her. Good for them— but Driver’s character left such a bland impression.
The end of the year picks up with the October/November drive into full on horror. I certainly needed a breather between some films (especially after the especially awful Trap), and fully taking time to appreciate others. December was Beetlejuice Beetlejuice- which was “fine,” but not really something I’d go seek out. Bad Boys: Ride or Die was another garbage film, as was the Santa thriller Red One. Somehow they dropped 250+ Million on that movie.
I was hopeful for Babygirl with Nicole Kidman as a sort of accompaniment film to Eyes Wide Shut, but unfortunately the writer just knows how to daydream at something slightly sexual without embracing a character’s full transformative arc through awakening. It holds itself back.
Juror #2 was another meh streaming output from Clint Eastwood- setting up a shoddy premise around being on a jury for your own possible crime. Lots of leaps of logic here that put this at the low end of legal thriller.
Carry-On being a Die Hard 2 style thriller about an airport security officer set itself as another mediocre film. The constant monologuing by Jason Bateman really dragged away a lot of the tension.
Thankfully Nosferatu was a solid remake for the end of the year. the visual narrative, as well as the overall atmosphere made it distinct from a Dracula movie, while instilling its own point of view from the other versions of the film without totally throwing away the story. The Holdovers and Tokyo Godfathers were also great to watch for the first time around Christmas.
I finished the year with some dreamy- almost Lynch or Ferrara like movies in Personal Shopper and Demonlover. Both of Assayas’ films entangle yearning for something out of reach. I wish they each pushed a bit more into some danger though, as Shopper whittles itself into a meh ending, and Demonlover’s initial corporate conspiracy intrigue around techno-sexual Virtual Reality has an obvious ending.
Cuckoo ended up being a decent horror film, if slightly absurd in its runtime as Hunter Schafer uncovers the mystery of an isolated town in the German Alps. I feel like after a full out gonzo that The Substance brought this year that any other horror movie had to push more than just having a mild scare. As with Luz though, this had Director Tilman Singer playing with the genre.
Another thing that came to me after watching Cannibal Holocaust in early November- much around the world of “transgressive” cinema and what makes a really disturbing film. Holocaust goes more towards the kind of shock schlock that I dislike, and compels Eli Roth’s filmography. Unfortunately his films are more derivative and just focus on the gore “fun” aspect when he does his own torture porn fest like The Green Inferno. Knock Knock is ok, but no where near the suspense filled quality of Death Game that I watched in November. Thanksgiving was a trite movie that I watched earlier in the year- and I forgot he Directed the Box Office failure of Borderlands (which was terribly miscast). There’s more to say on the subject of Category III Hong Kong Style Horror and how creating nausea during a movie is a different experience than being scared. I didn’t review Guinea Pig: Devil’s Experiment during the October Horror because it ended up just being an extended faux-snuff film with just torture for 40 mins while Guinea Pig: Android of Notre Dame felt like a meh version of Re-animator without much of a plot. Cannibal Holocaust tries to differentiate itself from its violence (and showing the US as exploitative) while engaging in the same exploitation in the real production and Italian WWII Nostalgia (modernism is bad, go back to the classic beauty).
As someone that put off watching horror movies for quite awhile because of the shitty torture flicks I feel having the balance of a good story that connects to something about our humanity is probably the kind of film that I like more. For a different mood during the year I enjoyed watching the comedy and slapstick of classic Kung Fu movies. The artistic dance of good choreography makes them almost like silent era movies- big acting and universal appeal. I also watched a few Noir movies too, and though they can sometimes feel so reliant on stereotypes of characters, the plots themselves have more tragic elements that modern movies tend to stay away from.
Halloween/Horrorvember 2024 Tier List (watched Oct-Nov 2024)
Before getting to the Top Line films, I’ll say that Red Rooms (2023) and The Possessed (1965) were both moody, more thriller or atmospheric movies than I felt really could be in a horror list. Red Rooms was especially suspense filled, but never really pushed itself into something that wasn’t more describing something horrific like a true crime movie, while The Possessed was more eerie and atmospheric like having some Cthulhu like elements of first person anxiety. Both are worth seeking out!
Blind Woman’s Curse- Has some supernatural weird elements with Yakuza bloodletting. Interesting genre mix with martial arts and crime, but I would have to watch it again to fully appreciate.
This was also a year for Maika Monroe movies- although it seemed like in a lot of films she’s always the understated character, I do think she’s been in movies that are eccentric and weirdly wonderful. Longlegs jumps some sharks, but there’s a whimsy there too.
Classic Rewatch
I didn’t rewatch many movies this year- The Midsommar Director’s Cut took away from some of the nice ambiguity of the original. Day of the Dead was nice to rewatch and appreciate some of the commentary on living life in spite of all the shit hitting the fan. The Beyond remains one of my favorite surreal horror films, but I also know it meanders in parts. Watching Saw again I could see more holes in the original and the second one may be a better movie? Willy’s Wonderland was a fun rewatch too, if just to see Cage enjoy the fuck out of the role.
Top Line
Deadbeat at Dawn
Death Game
Dr Caligari
Dream Demon
Tales from the Hood
Calvaire
The First Omen
Ganja and Hess
God Told Me To
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person
I Saw the TV Glow
Longlegs
Luz
Revenge
Sisters
Strange Darling
The Substance
Great Films
Dark Water
Driller Killer
Galaxy of Terror
Heretic
Rapture 1979- Arrebato
Gongiam the Haunted Asylum
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
Orgasmo
Oddity
Lips of Blood
A Woman in a Lizard's Skin
Exte: hair extensions
Hellbender
MadS
Marebito
Exhuma
Saw
964 Pinoccio
Mute Witness
We're all going to the World's Fair
Identikit
Arabella Black Angel
Clearcut
Splash and Trash
Cannibal Holocaust
Ebola Syndrome
Meatball Machine
Premutos
Tetsuo: The Iron Man
The Untold Story
2024 Full Year after 336 films or so
Classics
Probably instantly classic, films that should be rewatched: Batman Returns, The Batman (2022), Blazing Saddles, California Split, Chinatown, Conan the Barbarian, Existenz, Footloose, Pulp Fiction, Rocky IV, The Conversation, The French Connection, The Gambler, The King of Comedy, The Prodigal Son, Willy Wonka (1971), Bad Santa, Sunset Boulevard. Watching the Heat Director’s Cut made it feel a bit dated- some of the melodrama with the cops and whole situation felt ridiculous.
Top Line
Body Double
Bloodsucking Freaks- as weird and ridiculous as this name is- a B-movie, smutty bad taste
Daisies 1966
Dune: Part Two - I love the cinematography and whole world that Villeneuve has created
The Executioner- 1974- Chiba fighting and kicking ass with some brutality that only Director Teruo Ishii could bring
The Iron Claw- 2023- Fuck this movie hurts the soul. The suffering of a wrestling family. Some of it strays from all the other bad goings on, but everyone in this is fantastic. I don’t understand how another singer biopic can get an Oscar nod and not this.
Poor Things - an eccentric world, fantastical delving into sexuality and the monster of society- Yorgos continues to be compelling
Kinds of Kindness- feels more like a TV series, but Yorgos pushes what kinds of sacrifices we make in spite of ourselves…
Knives Out- 1&2: Both great murder mystery films- fun for Thanksgiving.
Nosferatu 2024: I do believe this version will stand out on its own with stark images
Parents- Deeply unsettling and wonderful anxiety filled coming of age horror comedy. Highly recommended
Godzilla Minus One- As mentioned, a scorcher of a monster movie, grounded in emotional loss
Giants and Toys- capitalism, joyous in our falseness, the flickering image- beautiful
Poison 1991- Todd Haynes deconstructs the horrors of society and queerness. Much better than some of his other lukewarm work.
Piaffe- An exploration of the senses, of transformation in becoming an animal form, in expression. Needed to push this theme.
Saltburn- Wonderful film, if some of it a bit of a guilty pleasure and nonsensical.
The Strangler (1970)- Suspenseful, pushing on a killer’s view. Very much like a good Hitchcock film
Swallow- Slight body horror about consuming inanimate objects, Depression and coaxing control over one’s space.
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin- simple with some good buildup/needs a better ending. Great Kung Fu training though
Great Films
Alien: Romulus
Detour - 1945- Still a great noir film- set on a down and out unreliable narrator.
The Hitch-hiker - 1953- Noir with a Western feeling- the desolate desert backdrop is amazing
In Fabric and Flux Gourmet— Peter Strickland creates a weird world with these films- both stylistic. Horror adjacent- with the stylism and folklore of In Fabric and comedic elements of food ASMR with Flux Gourmet.
Fire Starter 1984- not bad for a King movie- the pyrokinetic abilities and bad seed elements help it, but not as effective as other King movies.
Cuckoo- 2024- Perhaps if the movie picked up more momentum earlier I’d love the absurdity in this one more.
A Haunting in Venice- Good modern day Poirot
Beverly Hills Cop- Some of this shows its age, but a fun buddy cop comedy
Bottoms- Feels like a comedy tropes kind of film, but decent cast
Caddy Shack- Not as funny as I remember, but 80s comedy classic
Christmas Evil- Wears a bit thin, but this is a nice psycho Santa movie
Crime of Passion- 1957- Barbara Stanwyck and Sterling Hayden make for a great feminist Noir tale of woe
Dead Calm- Kidman, Neil, and Zane— stuck on a boat. Great late 80s thriller
Dragons Forever- 3 stooges kung fu with Jackie Chan
Dream scenario- good Cage weirdness
Drive - 1997- rush hour before rush hour-
Easy Rider- classic hippie culture movie. Very much a hang out movie
Face to Face- Bergman paranoia
Fire and Ice- classic 80s sword and fantasy animation
Fire in the Sky- Weird UFO film that’s great for a 90s horror ride
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3- A decent sendoff- although I wasn’t into the central villain
Hellraiser 2022-Not a bad revamp compared to some of the rest of the series, but Hellraiser could do with another plot device
Immaculate- Oddball nunsploitation. It’s too bad because it starts strong, but ends silly. The First Omen really shows what can be done.
Kate and Leopold- What’s a Meg Ryan movie doing here? Well… Hugh Jackman is endearing and it has some fun costumes
Knockabout-Really great Kung Fu movie, sadly a bit short on the plot side but great action sequences
Legendary weapons of China- seems to mostly be about showing off the various weapons, but I like the supernatural elements
Manoranjan- Way too long for what it is, but I liked this musical that supports sex workers in an oddball romantic comedy
Mansfield Park- 1999-Good Jane Austen romantic comedy
Murder on the Orient Express -1974- classic cast
Oliver Sacks: His Own life- great documentary about the Awakenings Author - delving into gay culture and struggle
Parallax View- Nice political conspiracy film. Feels quaint but still relevant with paranoia.
Prey- A good change for the Predator franchise. Great pacing and a good setup.
Resurrection- Rebecca Hall gives a great performance in a psycho thriller kind of film- Tim Roth is equally creepy.
Return to the 36th Chamber- A silly deconstruction of the first movie’s serious tone.
Ricky Stanicki- Surpringly a good comedic film by Peter Farrelly. Not as much grossout comedy and good pacing with Cena.
Sweet Sugar- 1972 Women in Prison exploitation film that has the women rise up. Has slapstick and B-movie flair.
The Holdovers- I do love Giamatti- some of this feels like force sentimentality but it’s a good Christmas movie
The Little Prince- 1974- fun practical take on the book.
The Rat Catcher- Wes Anderson created a fantastic series of shorts- the menace in this one in particular was fun
The Ring 2002- Naomi Watts— discovering the mystery of an evil tape is so eerie with the Seattle landscape. It’s not outright scary, but the feeling of dread is great.
The Street Fighter- Another Great Sonny Chiba Kung Fu exploitation film- violent and seedy.
Tokyo Godfathers- Satoshi Kon delivers a heartfelt tale of a homelessness and community in time for Christmas.
Top Secret- Goofball 80s silliness. Fun to see Val Kilmer though
Two Weeks With Love-1950s - cute musical with great costuming and coming of age tale.
Vampire's Kiss- Cage really channels some whimsical B-movie weirdness here.
Wicked City- Weird demonic anime with some decent sequences- for the midnight movie crowd.
Wicked Little Letters- Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley wage a war of words. Fun movie
Woodshock- Kirsten Dunst isn’t afraid to make a weird zoned out movie. It’s a tepid, slow movie, with an ending that drifts away.