I watched 125 movies in 2024. That total was down from 178 in 2023, and I’m glad for that. The year before felt like too many, too indiscriminate. I took 2024 at a healthier pace, and I feel like my choices were pretty dialed-in. The top ~20% of those 125 are easily recommendable, so I’ll share those.
For the very top tier, I’ll excerpt my previous write-ups. These are the first-time viewings that really moved me, or stuck with me long after, listed in the order I saw them:
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. Coming of age that pays attention to the parents, too.
You see that Margaret is different – or at least that this won’t (only) be a typical coming-of-age/tween romance story – early on when we first see her bedroom. We see maps and star charts, and in her voiceover prayers, a search for place and meaning.
Godzilla Minus One. Melodrama at its finest.
I appreciate this as a period piece, and not just in costume – also works in an orchestral soundtrack, and heightened acting and staging that wouldn’t be out of place in the late 1940s. Fascinated by this idea of Godzilla being a creature known to locals, but barely a rumor elsewhere. Unresolved shame will keep you from love!
Das Lehrerzimmer (The Teacher’s Lounge). Perfect rendition of how our actions can ripple out unexpectedly.
A school community frays when a thief runs loose, frustrations rise, and accusations start flying. This will make my best-of list at the end of the year. But you don’t have to take my word for it: “It’s probably the best thriller of this type since “Uncut Gems,” another movie where just watching realistic characters making bad decisions was so nerve-wracking that it made you want to crawl under your seat.“
Crooklyn. What’s that line about happy families being alike, and unhappy ones in theor own way?
Love the hilarious chaos of a 5-kid household, and the variety of “characters” on the block, and the lively soundtrack, and the shock of travel to foreign lands (Virginia).
Gosford Park. Not sure I’ve seen any movies that juggle a web of relationships as well and as lovingly as this one. Flows effortlessly from scene to scene.
Gossipy upstairs/downstairs intrigue and murder mystery, constantly mocking Americans, Hollywood, buffoon cops, catty elites. Kristin Scott Thomas is a natural at snobbery. Love how it takes huge cast and makes it feel natural. You assemble the collage as you go along.
Hundreds of Beavers. No other movie pushed its ideas as far, and then further, and then a little bit more, and why not, how about a little bit more.
Made me feel alive again! Talk about a palate cleanser. A masterclass in escalation. Zany blend of animation and practical effects, Looney Tunes silliness and an improv troupe’s “why not?” go-for-broke attitude.
Red Rooms. Can’t recall any recent movies that burrowed under my skin like this one. It is true horror in the moral sense. A cautionary tale for the web!
This draws you into the most queasy, vile territory. We never directly see much violence, but we see the harm it does to people who feed on it. Our protagonist is uncomfortably lacking in affect – except a horrifying climax where she participates in an auction.
Here are the other worthy contenders from my watching year. If you told me you were going to watch one of these, I’d be excited for you and curious to hear what you think. Links are to my previous posts, again in order I saw them.
Mark Larson 