Top 5 Movies of 2024

Top 5 Movies of 2024

2024 has come to a close, and with it came probably the blandest year to go to the cinema…

I had planned to do a top 10 films again, but I actually felt that because I only had 10 films in consideration for that list, it was a disservice to the films that would be at the top end of the list.

Granted, I’m also not doing a Worst Films List this year, since I only saw 2 films that were terrible enough. I’ll get round to those films, but I didn’t end up seeing a lot of films that were infamous for being disastrous- these include films like Joker: Folie a Deux, Borderlands, and Kraven the Hunter, none of which I have seen or have any intention of seeing.

Likewise with the good films, there are a whole bunch that apparently were really good, but I didn’t end up seeing them, so if something doesn’t make the list, that’s why. I also have to stress I count films that were released to the general public in the last year, so films that were screened only at film festivals earlier but released to the public later like Nosferatu don’t count- but it will definitely be in the shortlist for the 2025 best films!

If I were to make a worst film list of this year, it’s simple: it’s going to Madame Web. The Crow nearly got the worst film of the year just for being a terrible remake (remake is a term I use very loosely here) but that wasn’t as bad as Madame Web, which was a boring mess of a movie which took even more obscure characters from the Spider-Man canon and didn’t do any justice to them whatsoever. It was one of the dullest nothing movies I’ve ever seen, I hated sitting through it and it made me glad that Sony got rid of this Spider-Man cinematic universe that they wanted to build.

That being said, the best films of 2024 were all quite difficult to decide. Not which ones made the list, but which ones would top the list. Some films that were in for consideration were Paddington in Peru, Wicked Little Letters, The Iron Claw, Spy x Family: Code White, and A Quiet Place Day 1. These were all considered but didn’t make it in for various reasons. For example, Paddington 3 nearly made the list but didn’t quite do it because I acknowledge it is still the weakest in the trilogy.

For the actual 5, I went back and forth in the order that they would go in, and if anyone knows me, they’ll know what’s coming in at number 1.

Number 5 – Alien Romulus

Finally, a good Alien movie! I saw this turn up in a few people’s worst movie list, but I don’t know what they were talking about. This film is finally a return to form for the series, there are great special effects, a likeable cast of characters, and it actually has some interesting ideas on moving the Alien formula forwards. It makes for some excellent sci-fi horror again. I know some people were grossed out by some of the horror elements, but that was the idea!

Number 4 – Longlegs

I didn’t review Longlegs when it came out due to scheduling conflicts, but I was assured that I needed to see it, and oh boy I’m glad I did. The director’s next film which is coming out relatively soon will be an adaptation of a Stephen King story, and he will have a really high barrier to reach following on from this film, which I think was the standout horror movie of 2024. It has some really freaky moments in it, this thing will drive you nuts in several regards for what they’re doing, but in a good way! It might not scare everyone, and I will be honest, it’s not higher in the list because there are some pretentious moments, but as far as the storyline goes, it does a really good job and has an excellent twist later on in the story. Really recommend this one!

Number 3 – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

I really did not anticipate liking this film as much as I did, but this prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road was actually really damn good! Anya-Taylor Joy comes in to play a younger Furiosa in place of Charlize Theron, this is actually a really good prequel which does answer some questions that we had from Fury Road, and Miller, once again, does his excellent use of cinematography and practical stunts and effects to really sell you on the post-apocalyptic world that Mad Max is famous for. I would really welcome more Mad Max films going forwards, since this and Fury Road have really gone up in my estimation of films.

Number 2 – The Wild Robot

The surprise of the year for me! It was a DreamWorks animation film that I really enjoyed. It’s probably one of my favourite DreamWorks animated films alongside the Kung Fu Panda and Shrek films. It’s a really interesting film that was clearly made by people who love Studio Ghibli, because its fingerprints are all over this one. It was surprisingly a more mature film than I was expecting. If you have kids, I think that this would be a really good film for them. I hope this team gets to make another film like this one, because I’m really interested to see what they do next.

Number 1 – Sonic the Hedgehog 3

Yeah, you all saw this film coming. The film I was waiting most of 2024 to see and it didn’t disappoint, I didn’t go into this intending for Sonic 3 to win the top spot, especially since it was the last film I saw in 2024, but I had to give it to this, because no film made me happier. The film is excellent for video game fans and the general public alike. Keanu Reeves nails his role as Shadow the Hedgehog, and we have an excellent dual performance from Jim Carrey. Out of all of the Sonic films to date, it probably has the most heart to it.

Thankfully, it did very well at the box office which has secured another sequel (stay for the post-credit scenes, they set up Sonic 4 and possibly some more tv series). This is another case of a Sonic movie that I’ve been waiting all of my life to see, and I’m so glad it exists. I wouldn’t say it’s the best acted or written movie of the year, but I would describe it as the most joyful film of 2024. Of course, I’m a massive Sonic fan, but I did everything in my power to not go in with my bias. I want it to beat Mufasa in just about every regard at the box office.