The 20 best films of 2024

Director: Shawn Levy

Ever since Avengers: Endgame bossed the box office in 2019, Marvel has struggled to make the same impact. Streamer Disney+ pumped out hits (Wandavision) and misses (Secret Invasion) in equal measure – and on the big screen old favourites (Thor, Black Widow) failed to pack out cinemas in the same way. Thanks to the Disney-20th Century Fox merger, however, The House Of Mouse holds a secret weapon: Deadpool, AKA “Marvel Jesus”.

The long-awaited Deadpool 3 is a carefully crafted love letter to the 2000s films that laid the foundations for comic books’ later multiplex empire. Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) returns after his apparent demise in 2017’s Logan to team up with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool for an unlikely buddy comedy. With plenty of cameos, fights and fourth wall-breaking, this is a lore-heavy adventure that refuses to take itself too seriously – and all the better for it.

Did you know? Reynolds’ entire family showed up: nine-year-old James played a “screaming mutant”, seven-year-old Inez was foul-mouthed Kidpool, one-year-old Olin showed up as Babypool, four-year-old Betty is credited as Hugh Jackman’s wrangler and wife Blake Lively voiced Ladypool.

Like this? Try this! Rush Hour (1998), Die Hard With A Vengeance (1995). AS

Director: Nora Fingscheidt

Films about addiction can often fall into the trap of fetishising their subject, ramping up the misery and pain in an attempt to hammer home the heartache that comes with the disease. The Outrun, based on Amy Liptrot’s memoir of the same name, was careful to avoid such mistakes, portraying the alcoholism of protagonist Rona (played by Saoirse Ronan) with a sensitive, gentle touch.

Ronan’s performance as the 29-year-old formed the beating heart of this project, whether capturing Rona as the life of the party knocking back drinks or the sombre soul trying to get better and stick to sobriety. As the film progresses, flashbacks starkly fill in the gaps of Rona’s past, giving hints as to why she might be stuck in this cycle of drinking but declining to prescribe an absolute conclusion. It all fed into the respect given to the story, resulting in a stunningly poignant piece of filmmaking.

Did you know? The Outrun is the first time a film has been shot on the island of Papa Westray, where Rona stays as she tries to get her life back on track.

Like this? Try this! Beautiful Boy (2019), The Light Between Oceans (2016). RD

Director: Wim Wenders

The original title was “Komorebi”, which translates as “sunlight filtering through trees”, but that might have put audiences off almost as much as calling it “how to learn to stop worrying and clean the toilet”, which is just as accurate a description. Wim Wenders’ life-affirming slice of slow-cinema was nothing less than a manifesto for surviving 2024: a new way of looking, listening and finding happiness through detachment. Hirayama (Kōji Yakusho) silently wakes, makes his coffee, tends his plants, plays his tunes (what a soundtrack…), cleans all the piss stains off Tokyo’s public toilets and repeats – his simple, solitary daily chores played out like an epic poem. Other branches of the story grow and twist. Side characters come and go. Things almost get dramatic at one point. But it’s Yakusho’s modern-day monk who teaches us how to take it all in: watching the film stops time.

Did you know? Film fans have become so obsessed with Tokyo’s public toilets that Shibuya city council is now offering guided “toilet tours” to show off their most impressive loos.

Like this? Try this! Evil Does Not Exist (2023), First Cow (2019). PB

Director: Jane Schoenbrun

In Jane Schoenbrun’s second feature, it’s the late 1990s when friendless 12-year-old Owen meets Maddy (Atypical’s Brigette Lundy-Paine) in a deserted school cafeteria. The pair bond over Maddy’s favourite TV series The Pink Opaque, which Owen soon becomes equally keen on.

A horror-flavoured teen mystery ensues when Maddy goes missing and all manner of bizarre midnight images enter the frame. Schoenbrun, a trans, non-binary writer-director has explained that their film is about the “egg crack” – when a person finally realises they are trans. It’s understandably a highly personal work but it takes a clever look at the nature of fandom, with nods to Buffy The Vampire Slayer and stranger TV favourites like Twin Peaks. Phoebe Bridgers makes an appearance to perform the music she contributed to the score while Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst stars as Owen’s father. In a year in which many mediocre films with little to say have dominated, I Saw The TV Glow intrigued in its own unique style.

Did you know? The Smashing Pumpkins’ epic 1995 double album ‘Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness’ was a big influence on the film’s music and visuals. Schoenbrun said “I really wanted something that carried this particular kind of ’90s melodrama that that album captures so vividly.”

Like this? Try this! Love Lies Bleeding (2024), The Substance (2024). LT

Director: Osgood Perkins

Billed as the year’s scariest film, Longlegs’ release was previewed by a series of tense trailers that worked on the premise that, often, the unknown is what terrifies us most. Those teasers refused to show a glimpse of Nicolas Cage’s titular murderous creep and, when the movie arrived in cinemas, it largely followed suit – save for an opening appearance, the Satan-worshipping pile of prosthetics didn’t show face for the film’s first hour.

That initial light touch heightened the horror, making FBI agent Lee Harker’s (Maika Monroe) investigations feel as scary as old embellished folk tales. Clues in the details of the story suggested a deeper link between the officer and the seemingly mythical man, but writer and director Osgood Perkins kept the solution to the puzzle tantalisingly out of reach, until the very end when an almighty twist plunged the plot to new depths of evil.

Did you know? Longlegs’ letters to his victims reference songs by T-Rex and Tommy James & The Shondells.

Like this? Try this! The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015), Watcher (2022). RD

Director: Lee Isaac Chung

Let’s twist again like we did last summer. Back in 1996, a film about killer tornadoes captured the zeitgeist. That might seem odd, but a film about a really fast bus also raced to the top of the box office back then. It was a different time. So, given that the ‘90s revival has lasted way longer than the actual decade, it was inevitable that Hollywood would eventually reboot Twister. And this time: it’s plural.

We met a whole new cast of characters, led by traumatised wild weather obsessive Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones), who fearlessly did battle with Oklahoman tornadoes and tried to tolerate YouTube himbo Tyler (Glen Powell) along the way. Twisters had a surprising amount of emotional resonance for a disaster movie and the set-pieces were simply awe-inspiring. Edgar-Jones’ American accent might have wobbled in the wind here and there – but, really, with a film this spectacular, ambitious and open-hearted, who cares?

Did you know? Tom Cruise made a surprise appearance at the UK premiere of Twisters, perhaps blessing it with his box office magic.

Like this? Try this! Twister (1996), The Wave (2015). JB

Director: Alexander Payne

They say they don’t make them like they used to. Well, Alexander Payne proved otherwise. Reuniting with his Sideways star Paul Giamatti, the director created an instant Christmas classic with his 1970s-set story about a Scrooge-like teacher who stays behind at boarding school to look after the boys whose parents can’t have them home. The Holdovers could have been an overly sentimental work, yet Payne’s perfect balance of compassion and earnestness results in a bittersweet film that feels like it’s been discovered from a VHS gathering dust in someone’s attic, rather than the product of our gloomy post-pandemic world. Giamatti’s on fine form as a curmudgeon teacher whose heart grows three sizes bigger, while Da’Vine Joy Randolph shines in her Oscar-winning role as a cafeteria manager dealing with the death of her son. The perfect film for you and your dad to have a little cry to after a Christmas roast.

Did you know? Payne asked TV writer David Hemingson to script the film after reading his pilot episode for an unmade series about a boarding school. The Holdovers was Hemingson’s first cinema-released film; he was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars.

Like this? Try this! Sideways (2004), Rushmore (1998). JS

Director: Rose Glass

A late Eighties lesbian noir, by way of David Cronenberg’s A History Of Violence, this grimy, grungy crime yarn brought lashings of sex and recklessness to the table – gloriously. Kristen Stewart rocks as Lou, the lank-haired, lonely gym manager. Things spiral when she falls in with opportunistic bodybuilder Jackie (Katy O’Brian), who pit-stops on her way to Vegas, winning a job waitressing at the gun range owned by Lou’s creepy, criminal father (Ed Harris). Increasingly surreal (Jackie’s obsession with steroids leads the film down a very strange path), this tale of murder and mayhem in small town New Mexico oozes danger. British director Rose Glass (Saint Maud) nails the torrid atmosphere with an outsider’s glee, creating a twisted take on the old-fashioned noir, where obsession leads to obliteration. With the cast rocking some serious hairpieces, if you ever wanted to see a pony-tailed Harris munch on bugs in anger, here was your chance. Splendidly lurid.

Did you know? Katy O’Brian, like her character, comes from the world of competitive bodybuilding.

Like this? Try this! Saint Maud (2019), Bound (1996). JM

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

Poor Things was one of the most gloriously odd films of the year. Inspired by the 1992 book of the same name, this quirky tale twisted Dr Frankenstein’s classic struggle between creator and creation into an absurdist rampage of smut, sex and dark humour.

Emma Stone plays Bella Baxter, a corpse with a new lease of life thanks to a brain transplant made possible by mad scientist Godwin. She finds a childlike wonder in her new grey surroundings but soon wants more – distracted from the expected path of doting student by slimy Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo). Despite his best efforts to control her, Bella quickly outgrows this world as well. The stylised world all this takes place in is utterly gorgeous to look at, blooming with colour to match Bella’s continued growth while Stone puts in an Oscar-winning performance that’s somehow powerful, unhinged and tender, all at the same time.

Did you know? Mark Ruffalo was convinced he was going to be replaced by Oscar Isaac when he spotted him on location in Budapest. Willem Dafoe encouraged this by staging a fake ‘sorry, it’s not working out’ meeting with Ruffalo and Isaac (who was actually working on a different film).

Like this? Try this! The Favourite (2019), Mother! (2017). AS

Director: Denis Villeneuve

If there’s one word to sum up Dune: Part Two, it’s “jaw-dropping”. Denis Villeneuve and his crew orchestrated some of the most mesmerising, awe-inducing shots and sequences ever put together in the history of the movies. Big talk? Sure. But you saw the film, yeah? “Jaw-dropping” is the word to use, all right.

Dune: Part Two, an epic of epic-ness, is truly heroic movie-making; landing in our eyeballs as a triumph of cinematic art and craft, with the production design again brilliantly mingling familiar sci-fi elements (spaceships, weapons, costumes) with a true sense of the alien (scale, colour, architecture). Add to this an all-star cast acting their socks off, storytelling with the dramatic depth of a Shakespeare play and we should be thankful in this increasingly depressing world of endless multiverse gubbins, blockbusters inspired by toys and emojis, that Dune: Part Two exists, quite frankly. Sci-fi for grownups – what a concept!

Did you know? Feyd-Rautha’s arena fight, where he kills three House Atreides prisoners, was shot on a modified ALEXA camera made to capture infrared. It gave the scene its otherworldly, eerie quality.

Like this? Try this! Arrival (2016), Blade Runner 2049 (2017). MC

Director: Jonathan Glazer

Shot under the radar, Glazer’s loose adaptation of Martin Amis’ novella re-framed the horrors of the Holocaust in a way you’d never expect. Surveying the family life of Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel), the German SS officer who oversaw the notorious concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, the film unfolds like the most shocking kitchen sink drama. As Höss’ kids play and his wife (Sandra Hüller) tends to her garden, over the wall, just yards away, thousands are being exterminated. Making remarkable use of sound, as screams and cries mix with dog barks and gunshots almost imperceptibly, this is a film that gnaws its way into your subconscious. Examining the banality of evil, and how those that perpetrated the Holocaust did so in an almost business-like fashion, Glazer’s guile left you speechless. Oh, and his Oscar speech, which caused controversy when he said he refuted his “Jewishness” in the wake of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict, was a moment of pure bravery.

Did you know? Glazer shot the film using digital cameras strategically hidden around the set and remotely operated, to aid the cast’s full immersion into the story.

Like this? Try this! Son of Saul (2015), Schindler’s List (1993). JM

Director: Toby L

Most rock docs made with the artist involved tend to paint them as the superhero – not this one. Unflinchingly warts-and-all, To The End finds Britpop legends Blur noticeably older-looking with Damon Albarn deeply wounded by the demise of his long-term relationship. In one of his darkest hours, he turns to his oldest friends for that tonic only they can provide.

Charting the making of 2023’s stellar ‘The Ballad Of Darren’ and the band’s road to Wembley Stadium – can they pull it off? Can their friendship and creaking limbs see them through? – the film mixes live footage and documentary seamlessly. The tunes are a thrill but this is as much a touching portrait of the endurance of brotherhood in the face of mortality as it is a party – for every “WOO-HOO” there’s a “mawww”.

Did you know? No one involved knows the fate of the crewmembers’ Coke can that Graham Coxon pissed into. We’ve asked.

Like this? Try this! Blur: No Distance Left To Run (2010), Pulp: A Film About Life, Death And Supermarkets (2014). AT

Director: Andrea Arnold

From the moment we saw tattooed, small-time hustler Bug (Barry Keoghan) roaring through a Kent town on an electric scooter, Fontaines D.C.’s ‘Too Real’ blaring away on the soundtrack, it was clear that writer-director Andrea Arnold was about to take us on a tour de force. The filmmaker’s sixth feature was an audacious social magical realist fantasy that centred on Bug’s 12-year-old daughter Bailey (Nykiya Adams), who encountered a mysterious, grown-up stranger (Franz Rogowski) named Bird.

There was something different and compelling about this willowy figure, whose singularity would be revealed throughout a journey that saw Arnold bend logic at will. Early reviews were dismissive of the film’s unusual combination of kitchen sink drama, eye-popping aesthetics and increasingly outlandish elements, but it’s just this disregard for the rules that made the movie so exciting. And with Blur and Sleaford Mods jostling with Fontaines on the soundtrack, how could we not love it?

Did you know? Bird featured an impressive bit-part from Mods frontman Jason Williamson, who told NME he admired Arnold’s idiosyncratic way of working: “Mostly it was improvised. There was a script, but we worked loosely with it. She likes you to bring more of a momentary thing to it.”

Like this? Try this! Red Road (2006), Attack The Block (2011). JB

Director: Fede Álvarez

The ninth Alien film (yes, really) revived the flagging franchise by taking it back to its roots. Set between the events of 1979’s Alien and 1986’s Aliens, it comes much closer than you might expect to matching those high watermarks. Rising star Cailee Spaeny is fantastic as Rain, a frustrated miner assigned to a dicey abandoned spaceship, but Industry’s David Jonsson gives an equally stellar turn as Andy, an awkward android who gets a mid-film upgrade. Director Fede Álvarez (Evil Dead, The Girl In The Spider Web) uses CGI relatively sparingly, preferring to rely on gritty practical effects that recall the hellish visions of OG filmmakers Ridley Scott and James Cameron. The result is a properly horrifying blockbuster that mixes sci-fi nostalgia with fresh thrills and spills that are genuinely chest-busting – well, almost.

Did you know? Ian Holm’s ethically dubious posthumous cameo as Rook was created using a mix of CGI and mechanical puppetry.

Like this? Try this! Alien (1979), Evil Dead Rise (2023). NL

Director: George Miller

Although considered a box-office dud that jeopardised the future of the juggernaut post-apocalyptic franchise, veteran Aussie director George Miller’s origin story of the titular one-armed renegade Furiosa nonetheless impressed critics, who acclaimed it as a nitro-powered sensory-assault that demanded to be viewed on a big screen. Whereas 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road was a pedal-to-the-metal chase movie, this sprawling prequel spans years and is a masterclass in world-building. Anya Taylor-Joy (taking over the role of Furiosa from Charlize Theron) effortlessly joined the firmament of phenomenal action heroes, with the powerhouse physicality of her performance adding emotional heft to a character that only speaks around 30 lines of dialogue throughout the entire movie. She was pitched perfectly against Chris Hemsworth’s teddy bear-bedecked despotic Dementus. Add in breathtaking stunt work and you have an epic as souped-up as the customised monster war-rigs that maraud across the screen – one that deserved to be a bigger success.

Did you know? In preparation for the petrolhead thrills, Taylor-Joy was taught how to do a J-turn on her first day of stunt school, despite not possessing a driving licence.

Like this? Try this! Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Children Of Men (2006). GR

Director: Sean Baker

Anora is the story of a 23-year-old sex worker from Brooklyn (played by Mikey Madison) who gets her shot at a fairytale ending when she meets Vanya (Mark Eydelshteyn), the moneyed son of a Russian oligarch. The duo go on a week-long bender in Vegas, culminating, as one often does, with a trip to the chapel. However, their happily ever after is quickly threatened as Vanya’s parents send out a team of gangsters to get the marriage annulled.

The film carefully strikes a balance between darkness and laugh-out-loud comedy – and it’s Baker’s brilliantly written characters, particularly the lead role played by Oscar-tipped Madison, that make the madcap story deeply enjoyable. His commitment to shining a light on sex work in a judgement-free, realistic viewpoint – aided by consultant and author of Modern Whore Andrea Werhun – makes the audience root for Ani throughout the whole ordeal and keeps us thinking about her story for weeks after watching.

Did you know? Mikey Madison not only learned Russian for the film but moved to Brighton Beach a few weeks before filming to immerse herself in the Brooklyn accent.

Like this? Try this! Zola (2020), Spring Breakers (2012). GE

Director: Andrew Haigh

Loosely based on Taichi Yamada’s novel Strangers, this indie ghost story is haunting and harrowing. Andrew Scott gives a poignant performance as Adam, a lonely London screenwriter who falls for his struggling neighbour, Paul Mescal’s Harry, in between visits to his childhood home. During these trips back to the suburbs, Adam reconnects with the ghosts of his parents (Claire Foy and Jamie Bell), who died in a car crash when he was 12. Fortysomething Adam is now older than his apparitional mum and dad, which gives their relationship a strange but inescapable pathos. Directed with a sure hand by Andrew Haigh (Weekend, 45 Years), All Of Us Strangers is deeply moving even at its most ambiguous. And because it unfolds to a fab ’80s soundtrack of Frankie Goes To Hollywood and Pet Shop Boys, moments of nostalgic bliss punctuate its exploration of grief, intimacy and queer identity.

Did you know? The clubbing scenes were filmed at beloved London LGBTQ+ venue the Royal Vauxhall Tavern.

Like this? Try this! Weekend (2011), Past Lives (2023). NL

Director: Luca Guadagnino

Following his earlier triumph with 2017’s Call Me By Your Name, it came as no surprise that Guadagnino’s latest effort is just as stylish, visually pleasing and passionate as expected. With Challengers, the world of tennis becomes a microcosm for the messiness of everyday life. The visceral, euphoric highs and earth-shattering lows are condensed into a back-and-forth power struggle between the three characters at hand. Whether it be in capturing their unwavering desire for professional fulfilment or seeking toxic means of validation, the personalities explored in the film may not be the most amiable but they are real. Beyond the hormone-fuelled relationships at the surface, it is the intriguing timeline shifts that separate the film from other sports flicks. No longer being centred on one character’s struggle for victory – as is the cliché – Challengers instead explores the uphill struggle in a less conventional route, and holds up an unforgiving mirror to human folly.

Did you know? To prepare for her role as the emerging tennis prodigy, Zendaya worked alongside pro tennis player and coach Brad Gilbert for three months.

Like this? Try this! The Iron Claw (2024), Moneyball (2011). LD

Director: Coralie Fargeat

Coralie Fargeat’s hyper-real nightmare fused Cronenbergian body horror with the gothic classic Strange Case Of Doctor Jekyll And Mr Hyde and the infamous real-life crimes of beauty-obsessed Countess Bathory. The result on screen? A wonderfully batshit exploration of aging and social control over women’s bodies, featuring a career-best turn by Demi Moore and a typically superb one from Margaret Qualley.

Elisabeth Sparkle (Moore), an aerobics instructor with a popular morning TV show, turns 50. She loses her lucrative job on the telly, triggering an existential crisis. When she hears about a mysterious black market drug, she takes it, believing it to be a cure for what ills her. And it is… but with one major consequence.

The Substance is about as subtle as cracking an egg with a hammer, but therein lies its OTT brilliance, complete with an ending so gonzo and deranged, it’s only to be applauded for going all the way to crazy town.

Did you know? The gory finale required 30,000 gallons of fake blood. It was blasted out using a fire hose. Ah, the magic of the movies.

Like this? Try this! Society (1989), Countess Dracula (1971). MC

Director: Rich Peppiatt

It’s been quite a year for the Northern Irish hip-hop group. Not only did Móglaí Bap, Mo Chara and DJ Próvaí strike a significant blow for Gaelic rap with the release of their furiously fun second album ‘Fine Art’, but they also snagged an NME Cover and blew the faces off thousands of saucer-eyed ravers at Glastonbury with two raucous, well-received sets. On top of that, the suavely tracksuited trio teamed up with English writer-director Rich Peppiatt to take on the film world too.

Inspired by the three’s experiences growing up in post-Troubles Belfast – as well as their wit and endless imagination – this dark comedy cum docudrama cum fictionalised origin story follows low level drug dealers Móglaí and Mo as they bumble through life getting beaten up by Republicans and Loyalists alike. Eventually, via a drug-induced creative bender, they discover a love for making music and form Kneecap with a local schoolteacher. Cue the funniest and most exciting band biopic since, well, ever. Even Noel Gallagher’s a fan – and he hates everything.

Did you know? It was the first Irish language film ever to screen at the Sundance Film Festival – and, naturally, the first to win an award too.

Like this? Try This! Trainspotting (1996), Human Traffic (1999). AF