2024 proved to be an exceptional year for movies, offering a plethora of remarkable stories, stunning visuals, and unforgettable performances. With such a high bar set, narrowing down the best films to a top 10 list was a challenging task. Here are the top picks, along with a few honorable mentions that deserve recognition.
Honorable Mentions
Before getting into the top 10, let us first note a few films worth highlighting that just missed your list. Small Things Like These, Wicked Long Legs, Deadpool and Wolverine, Superman: The Christopher Reeve Story, Odity: Look Back, The Brutalist, Anora, Nosferatu, Nickelbys, etc can all be said to contain wonderful narratives and artistry.
If you’re looking for something more detailed, there is an impressive selection of 32 standout films from 2024 ranked on Letterboxd.
Top 10 Films of 2024
10. Perfect Days
The film Perfect Days is entertaining right from the start and due to its unique simplicity, it is by no means a typical cut of what slice of life films normally would look like, having slow or dragged out plot development. Always good with portraying joy, Koji Yakusho adds a little touch of sadness with his art. This film, to the audiences’ surprise, ends with an exceptional shot which is one of the best ending captures of the year.
9. Memoir of a Snail
After 15 years, Adam Elliot came back with this stunning stop-motion animation film- Memoir of a Snail. This film combines the texture of animation art with strong feelings which is a great experience for the audience. This was visual as well as emotional excitement.
8. Love Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass followed up her acclaimed debut Saint Maud with Love Lies Bleeding, a stunning sophomore effort. Katie O’Brien’s star-making performance, combined with exquisite editing and sound design, made this film unforgettable.
7. The Substance
Not for the faint of heart, The Substance is an audaciously grotesque and wild ride. Fargeat’s sophomore feature somehow manages to balance its bloody chaos with an unexpected level of depth and contains the most memorable opening shot so far this year.
6. Furiosa
George Miller’s Furiosa delivers everything fans could want from a Mad Max prequel. Packed with breathtaking action sequences and unparalleled visual creativity, Miller proves he’s still at the top of his game.
5. Dune: Part Two
The follow-up from Denis Villeneuve went beyond expectations since it brought along new dimensions in cinematography and canon to the predecessor. Dune: Part 2 was a complete film in terms of plot development which left fans thirsty for more.
4. The Wild Robot
Esteemed by viewers across generations, this life-enhancing drama is about the effort of the sub-oriented patrol. Delving into the nuances of parenting the Wild Robot combined strong narrative structure and sentiment with their own childhood memories from the mid 2000s.
3. Sing Sing
Emphasizing the impact of art, Sing Sing’s exploration of joy and meaning in pain goes much further than one’s expectations. It reminds audiences how significant of a role art can play even in the most difficult of situations.
2. The Wild Youth
This coming of age drama presents the youth struggle from a heartwarming and nostalgic perspective.Parallely exploring the alienation and the search for belongingness, The Wild Youth is soft as well as deep sorrow’s child.
1. Hundreds of Beavers
Hundreds of Beavers takes the prize. A black and white slapstick mix that combines originality with a do it yourself zeal. As much as it is a funny film, it is a message to all people on how creative they can be. Watching it in a cinema with a group of people makes the amusingness so much more better thus its a film for everyone who loves films.
A Celebration of Inspiration
Movies capture the essence of what a theater experience is meant to bring: rekindling life, inspiration, and the great art of narration. Hundreds of Beavers is one such movie that obsolesces the question as to why cinema exists.
As 2025 comes around, let us focus on the films that moved us, that entertained us, and that captured our inspiration throughout the passing year and why not the ones that the following year has in store for us as well.