Best Movies of 2024

Today, I’m going to be listing down my 7 favourite movies of 2024. 2024 has definitely given us some great movies, but also some of the worst movies that the world has ever seen. So, before I list down my movies, here are 2 honourable mentions:

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

Personally, I felt that Godzilla X Kong was a massive improvement over its predecessor, Godzilla Vs Kong. It has just as good if not better visual effects, the characters have more development compared to the previous movies. The new monsters introduced are quite cool, especially the main villain, Skar King, who in my opinion, is the best Monsterverse villain so far. However, the characters do still feel generic (even if Dan Stevens is having fun with his character), the plot feels weak, and the movie feels overdrawn at times. I would say that this movie is inferior compared to 2023’s Godzilla Minus One.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

I felt that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a great start to a brand new trilogy. The characters, especially Noa and Mae, don’t feel like carbon copies of their predecessors, Caesar and Nova, and the main villain, Proximus Caesar, is a lot of fun. The story is also quite interesting, and of course, the visuals and motion-capture look stunning. However, the fact that they decided to kill off the great villain that was Proximus Caesar so easily, and some scenes that feel overlong and unnecessary make this movie barely miss my top 7 list.

7. A Quiet Place: Day One

While I don’t usually watch horror movies, a Quiet Place is a rare exception. This franchise, being directed by the Office’s John Krasinski, is incredibly unique with its concept of monsters that hunt down humans if they make sound. Even though the actors and actresses are mostly silent throughout the movie, they are still very compelling to watch. This spin-off, set before the events of the first movie, is directed by Michael Sarnoski, a director who won the National Board of Review’s Best Directorial Debut award in 2021 for Pig, which starred Nicolas Cage. I’ve got to say, he hits it out of the park with this spin-off. The film stars Lupita Nyong’o (Black Panther, Us, 12 Years a Slave) and Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things, soon to star in The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Gladiator II) as Sam and Eric, who I personally feel are just as compelling as the main characters of the original movies. The movie also has great suspense and thriller elements added to the movie, and honestly, Sam’s cat, Frodo, carries the movie at many moments. This movie also doesn’t have a goal, which I appreciated, as it just sees Sam and Eric try to do regular things in Harlem while avoiding the monsters. The ending is also great and tragic, though I won’t spoil what happens. However, I do find this movie to be less scary than previous instalments, which feels slightly strange, as this movie was also written by Krasinski, however it doesn’t ruin the entire movie for me.   

6. Twisters

This movie was the biggest surprise of the year to me. I had not watched the predecessor, Twister, so I had no affinity for this movie originally. I just wanted to find something to watch over the summer, and me and my friends eventually found this. I didn’t expect to like it, as I never really watch disaster movies, however, I ended up really liking this one. The characters are quite likeable, especially Glen Powell (Top Gun Maverick, Anyone But You, Hit Man) and Daisy Edgar Jones’ (Where the Crawdads Sing) characters, who have great chemistry with each other. The story was actually interesting, having many twists and turns. The visuals look great, especially the fire tornado that forms near the end. The movie also has a banging soundtrack to listen to, and the film gives an incredibly accurate depiction of the countryside. However, my main problem with this movie is the side characters. They aren’t very interesting to me, and I only had interest in Powell and Jones’ characters. However, there really aren't any other flaws in this movie. 

5. Inside Out 2

At first, I felt that a sequel to Inside Out was quite unnecessary. Inside Out was one of my favourite Pixar movies of all time, and I felt that they ended the story perfectly there. However, this movie surprised me. While it isn’t as good as the original (it doesn’t have as much emotion near the ending compared to the original), it definitely has a lot of heart. The new emotions (other than Envy) are entertaining and funny, especially Anxiety. Maya Hawke perfectly embodies this character’s awkwardness and embarrassment, but also her insecurities. The original characters are also much more likeable in this movie, especially Disgust, Fear, and Anger, since they weren’t featured very much in the last movie. Joy and Sadness are done very similarly to the last movie, and are still quite enjoyable too.

4. The Fall Guy

I was excited for this movie as soon as the first trailer premiered. It looked like an actually funny movie and the main stars, Ryan Gosling (Barbie, Blade Runner 2049, La La Land, The Notebook) and Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer, A Quiet Place I and II, Edge of Tomorrow)  had great chemistry with each other, and the action looked awesome. When the movie was released, I wasn’t disappointed (mostly). The tribute to stunt actors was heartfelt and great, the use of more practical effects over CGI was a smart choice, and the acting of Gosling and Blunt felt genuine. The comedy was also well timed and smart, though it felt slightly forced at times. However, I have one small problem with this movie, which are the side characters and the villain. They aren’t very interesting and prominent throughout the movie. The villain, played by Aaron Taylor Johnson, is also not very interesting, as he pretends to be kidnapped and is revealed to be the twist villain, which I could see coming as soon as Johnson got kidnapped.

3. Deadpool and Wolverine

Deadpool and Wolverine was the most anticipated movie of the year for me. It was the only movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) that was released this year, it was the first MCU movie that received a R-rating, and it had the return of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. Similarly to my previous article, I felt that this was one of the best MCU movies in a long time. It was heartfelt, had lots of creative and great action scenes, had many cool cameos, and had (what I think) were the best performances from Ryan Reynolds and Jackman in a Marvel movie. While Deadpool still has funny jokes, Wolverine takes a more serious tone and has a much more emotional performance behind him. The movie’s visuals also look great and I love the use of practical and CGI effects. However, there is one small problem with this movie, which is the villain, Cassandra Nova. She has a really confusing motive and isn’t really that prominent throughout the movie until the ending.

2. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

As a massive fan of Mad Max: Fury Road, a prequel based on one of its most popular characters was definitely an interesting choice (I would’ve preferred a sequel, but whatever). From the trailers, I felt that they were keeping a lot of important details from us, which had me slightly worried. However, the film is on par with Fury Road in terms of quality. Anya Taylor Joy (The Queen’s Gambit, The Menu, The Super Mario Bros. Movie) plays Furiosa with lots of passion and seriousness, even if she barely says anything throughout the movie, while Chris Hemsworth’s (Multiple MCU movies, Extraction movies) Dementus is probably his best role outside of Thor (he even plays a good villain as a bonus). The movie also has amazing practical effects, especially during most of the chase scenes, though I can admit some sections do look slightly worse than Fury Road. The set pieces, however in my opinion, have been improved tremendously. They have a lot more spectacle and also feel more impressive in my opinion. However, this movie didn’t appeal to the general public, and bombed at the box office, meaning that this is a more niche pick from me.

1. Dune Part 2

It was quite hard to choose what was my favourite movie, and Furiosa nearly beat this one out. However, I chose Dune 2 based purely on how much of an improvement this is over Dune 1. Dune 1 focused on setting up the characters and the main story, which means that Dune 2 can shine with a much more interesting story and much more action compared to the first one. The visuals are jaw-dropping, especially the sand-worm scenes. The acting is also much more expressive, especially Timothee Chalamet and Austin Butler’s. My only small criticism of the movie is only how I probably have to wait many more years for a sequel, as this movie ends on a twist I don’t want to spoil.