The State of the Art: Movies 2024

When I started putting together my final ranking for this year's movies, I became a bit alarmed. While I definitely saw some highly-entertaining films this year, on the whole, the movies of 2024 can be summed up as "Yeah, not bad." There was (almost) nothing as thoughtful and interesting as a Past Lives I feel the need to spread the word about, and definitely not an Everything Everywhere All At Once to light my heart aflame. Part of the reason seems to be me. I've only seen 14 new movies this year, and I still haven't gotten to a couple that have gotten very good word-of-mouth. But part of the reason seems to be Hollywood. The Golden Globes nominations are incredibly dull, and when it comes down to it, I seriously doubt future generations will be heralding 2024 as an incredible year for movies.

That doesn't mean there weren't good movies, though, and the top of my list is a thriller that actually thrilled.

Blink Twice is pretty amazing, especially given that it's Zoë Kravitz' directorial debut. When cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) gets herself noticed by tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) at a party she's working at, he invites her and her friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) to his private island. King has been recently publicly disgraced, and is attempting to work his way back into the public's good graces. The privacy of his island affords him and his guests an opportunity to cut loose, with endless days and nights of incredible meals, and booze- and drug-fueled partying. Frida and Jess are having the time of their lives, but eventually begin to notice that not all is as it appears. And things...devolve. Rapidly.

There are countless thrillers - not to mention the recent spate of social message movies - about how douchey and awful the American upper class is, and it can be really easy for these movies to fall into the trap of being too predictable, too on-the-nose, too hamfisted, and entirely too pleased with themselves. Blink Twice expertly sidesteps those traps, making Frida's plight gripping and tense. I should also make special mention of Adria Arjona, who gives an amazing performance as Sarah, a intimidating fellow guest that Frida clashes with.

Let's get to the full 2024 list!

Blink Twice (B+)

Wicked (B+)

The Fall Guy (B+)

Hundreds of Beavers (2022, 2024) (B+)

Inside Out 2 (B+)

Carry-On (B+)

Babes (B)

Dune: Part Two (B)

I Saw the TV Glow (B)

Welcome Home Franklin (B)

Challengers (B-)

Night Swim (B-)

Tarot (C)

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (C-)

Of course, the majority of the year was spent catching up on movies from the past, so for the pre-2024 ranking:

The Apartment (1960) (A)

American Fiction (2023) (A)

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2022) (A)

River (2023) (A-)

Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (2021) (B+)

Anatomy of a Fall (2023) (B+)

Godzilla Minus One (2023) (B+)

Problemista (2023) (B+)

Hot Fuzz (2007) (B+)

The Holdovers (2023) (B)

Three Minutes: A Lengthening (2021) (B)

Perfect Days (2023) (B)

Under the Shadow (2016) (B)

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023) (B)

Hit Man (2023) (B)

Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022) (B)

Saltburn (2023) (B-)
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra (2001) (B-)

Dream Scenario (2023) (B-)

Being There (1979) (B-)
The Boy and the Heron (2023) (B-)

Drinking Buddies (2013) (B-)

27 Dresses (2008) (B-)

Shrek Forever After (2010) (B-)

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023) (B-)

Zone of Interest (2023) (C+)

All of Us Strangers (2023) (C+)

Cry Wolf (1947) (C+)
Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978) (C+)

Anyone But You (2023) (C+)

Puss in Boots (1988) (C+)

Pokémon: The First Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back (1998) (C+)

7 Women and a Murder (2021) (C+)

Stay Tuned (1992) (C)

Waiting (2005) (C-)

Speed 2 (1997) (D)

Nothing But Trouble (1991) (D)

Madea's Big Happy Family (2011) (D-)

The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee (2020) (F)