Top 10 Bestest Films of 2024
a review by Evan Landon
Before we get to the list, let's remind ourselves of a few things:
This is just my personal list, so take from that what you will. Or just make your own. Fuck it.
There were a lot of movies that came out last year, so no, I did not see every single one.
If I did a review on it already this year, it will not appear on any lists I make because I already did it. If you think I am missing something, it is most likely somewhere in there.
Most lists have a lot of major studio films on their lists, but they get enough promotion or enough shit from everyone else that they don't need mine. Like I just said, it has already been done.
So, after burying some 2024 turds (because there certainly was a lot), here is my TOP 10 BESTEST FILMS OF 2024! Most of these are considered horror, but that should not stop you from checking these out. Unless you are a pussy, in which case you should go back to crime dramas, rom-coms, and Disney animated movies because you probably will never even touch this shit. That being said...
10) TERRIFIER 3 – If you already know about the Terrifier series, you probably already know what to expect with this film equivalent of a “geek show”, so I will not bother you with the details of what exactly happens in this movie. To tell you the truth, I was not even a fan of the first two Terrifier movies. It might sound weird, especially if you know me and the type of movies I enjoy, but the appeal of just straight up gore with no real story does not appeal to me. I just get bored. That is why this one surprised me! Yes, the kills are just as disgusting and creative, with the use of practical effects doing overtime, which is always awesome. This time, however, Damien Leone is able to add a little more story to his franchise that the viewer can actually somewhat grasp on to. Also, word is that the next one sends the nefarious “Art The Clown” (worst & best Halloween costume ever) and the series surviving final girl to Hell and you better bet that shit is gonna be wild!
3.5 Out Of 5
9) MADS – Yknow what is weird about this movie, aside from everything that happens in this taught, French horror thriller? There is hardly any information on it, despite who made it and starred in it, which really begs the question of how many films are just left out to hang by major distribution companies in the United States. That shit has to change because, holy hot damn, this movie was so fucking good! The movie is supposedly shot in one take, but that should not take away from the timeline of how fast this shit moves from scene-to-seen. The movie follows a teenager graduating from college who decides to get some drugs to celebrate. He takes them. Whilst driving home, a woman in a hospital gown gets in his car, then a certain chaos ensues that could only be described by the way newcomer director Davis Moreau can spin. What seems like a “found footage film” turns out to be the drug-addled fuel of three separate stories revolving around the characters loosing their fucking minds. It is not a “found footage film”, by the way. It is shot very much the same way though and that is what makes it great because the loss of perception of each character is what is entertaining. The character of Ana made me laugh for most of the film. That is how good she was!
3.5 Out Of 5
8) STOPMOTION – Stopmotion animation could never have been achieved without the exemplary works of Ray Harryhausen and this movie really delves into that as its achievement. The continuous overuse of computer generated images might also be an underlying theme, but that is why it takes years to achieve create when studios do not have the patience to wait that long. Filmmaker Robert Morgan was able to get the fourth largest amount of production funding from the British Film Institute for 2022 at £905,000 after working for more than a decade of short films, but only after principle photography with the film's actors had begun. The movie follows the story of a woman who desperately wishes to be as great of a stopmotion animator as her overbearing mother after her mysterious accident, but is consistently told by her employers to make whatever they want to make as they take her animation pieces and give her nothing but insults in return. As a young girl enters her life, reality blurs with imagination as the characters begin to take on their own lives. The entire thing is like an acid trip gone bad. If you have ever seen aTool video, you definitely know what to expect when the shit really hits the fan.
4 Out Of 5
7) MONKEY MAN – At first, when I saw the title Monkey Man, I just thought “what a stupid fucking name” without truly knowing what the movie was about. I have seen some Dev Patel films (Slumdog Millionaire, The Green Knight) that I absolutely thought he did a fantastic job in, so for his first outing as director, producer, and director should be something I would sort of expect to see. What I got instead was a John Wick-style movie that is a commentary on the corruption of the caste system, discrimination, and corruption that surrounds the Indian culture told through a story of revenge and redemption in Hindu mythology. If that sounds a little too much to really take in as to not enjoy it, it does not come off that way at all. Beginning in the streets of Mumbai, bareknuckle fighting under a monkey mask to make ends meet, our main character known only as “kid” finds his way to the top of the corrupt hierarchy to exact revenge on his mother's killers, all the while helping the downtrodden rejects that still believe in salvation. It is in subtitles too, but you don't even really need them for everything that happens here. That is how good it is.
4 Out Of 5
6) THE DEVIL'S BATH – This one was a recent one to put on the list because there were so many movies that slipped by, but this one really left a mark on me. It is another one completely in subtitles, but that does not matter in the leastest bit. Pretty much every movie on here could be in a different language and it would resonate the same. This one states, at the very beginning, that it is based off 18th-century German-Austrian lore that has some incredibly questionable themes, as far as the folklore and time period go. Every single scene is teetering on the edge of realism and disbelief, so much so that I cannot even describe any of the scenes to you without you either saying “no, that never happened” and “I cannot believe that is what it was like” and that is one of the reasons it is so damn good. What is incredible is how a single tale of harrowing agony not only embraces the time period, but flawlessly tasks itself with unrelentingly depicting each and every malicious deed to the viewer. Filmmakers Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz made a film that not only brings you into a different reality, but are able to concisely illustrate the very nature of religion and humanity. Many consider this to be “unwatchable”, but that is up to you. I, myself, have already watched it three times.
4 Out Of 5
5) STRANGE DARLING – If you are not a fan of Kyle Gallner, please begin now! Because, holy shit, we have seen this kid take some incredibly interesting roles and just knock them out of the fucking park! When I first saw this, I had no idea what to expect and that is what made it the so good. I implore you to do the same! Willa Fitzgerald also does a fantastic job in her titular role in this extremely stylized example of how to play a vixen who has a malicious intent, but is forever willing to get into the same preferences. Through amazing, inspired storytelling of first time director JT Mollner, the entire structure of the film is split up into pieces at the very beginning that resembles chapters in a book that are taken out of order, much in the same way Tarantino made popular so many years ago. As much as many people consider this to be a horror flick, it is much more in-depth than that. You really have to walk into this magnificent film not knowing anything about it because they certainly were cautious about revealing anything through the trailers or reviews. It is a certainly entertaining surprise of a film, in almost every aspect, and is definitely worth a watch!
4 Out Of 5
4) LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL – Upon first viewing, I knew how much I would love this movie; so much so, that I even kind of held off on it because I knew it would make my bestest of 2025 list. I thought it would be numero uno, all the way up until I saw the three others ahead of it, to which only came out in the last few months of the year. Boy howdy, was I right about this one! Australian brothers Colin and Cameron Cairnes burst onto the scene with 2012's 100 Bloody Acres, then 2016's Scare Campaign that turned a lot of heads, but it was not until last year that they came out with the prolific and austere Late Night With The Devil. I have used the word “inspired” before, but that is the bestest word to describe it because this one is off the rails. Also, I know a lot of people have said this about the film, but David Dastmalchian finally gets his chance to carry a film and yknow what? He fucking nails it! It does sometimes drag, but that is obviously on purpose, and I admire that. Most awesome ideas sound somewhat stupid on paper while terrible ideas sound great. This one sounds absurdly dumb on paper, but it sticks the landing all the way around.
4 Out Of 5
3) SMILE 2 – I know a lot of people do not really remember the Power Rangers movie from 2017, but the character of Kimberly (the pink ranger) was played by a little known actress by the name of Naomi Scott. Holy fucking hell, has this girl come a long way! Carrying a film with such a terrible load as Smile 2 may seem daunting, but Scott does it with such poise and prowess that anybody who is watching the film must be asking themselves where this girl came from. In only his second outing as a feature-length filmmaker, Parker Finn is quickly becoming a stalwart in the field of horror. What I was afraid of was that when this movie came out, if it would convey the thought of the original story: we would forget the fact that it was something that could be easily made into a sequel. Every single scene is worth watching and many compare it to the original and that might be why it did not get the numero uno spot on this list. Welp, ya definitely won the pony here, Parker Finn. What’s next on the menu? Smile 3, or something else? Let it roll, babay!
4.5 Out Of 5
2) THE SUBSTANCE – In movies like this, a lot of times, we forget what “substance” is... I think, that in more words than less, what we consider “The Self” is less of an omission than expository nonsense. Our words are considerably less when they are meant with contempt, yet structure. The friction is that it would never make sense, even if it did. What are emotions? What are age? Even, what is age? The forethought of human emotion is not anymore lessened to me than anyone else, but what is the cost? We, as people, dwell on how other people look to us more than they look at us. That is what The Substance is about: our unfamiliarity with what is capable in ourselves, much less our own bodies, souls, whatevs... All of our world is stuffed with absences of things that could help, but we could easily trade it for another existence that we do not even frequent. I do not even wish to mention how many peeps love this fucking film, but if you know my love for body horror... oh baby, it's got it! I will give you the spellbound on this though: an aging model wants to be younger, takes a drug that will allow her to live as her younger self for a week, then has to transform back into her older self. Chaos ensues when the younger version refuses to switch back. Shout out to Margaret Qualley for becoming the new thirst trap for any fan of horror and to Dennis Quaid & the seemingly ageless Demi Moore for getting involved in this project that must have seemed below them. This is writer/director/producer/editor Coralie Fargeat’s second outing as a filmmaker, so I implore anyone that enjoyed this film to check out her debut, Revenge from 2017. Maybe I will review that one next… Maybe.
4.5 Out Of 5
1) NOSFERATU – yeah, of course it would be this one? Let's just call it a night before I lose my mind telling you about the cinematography, the storytelling, the acting, and just admit that even my bestest of cinemaphile friends also consider this the TOP! Robert Eggers even said that this was the reason he made The Witch, The Lighthouse, or The Northman, yet I promise that all of these movies are definitely worth a watch every single time, so do not discount that! The man shot it all on 35mm film which is not seen a bunch these days, so that is what adds to the already mystifying allure. You really have to understand the story of Dracula for me to really describe it to you, but this is not your usual vampire movie. In fact, it might be much better than I am even letting on, but that is just my opinion. It is about twice as long as the original, but the remake by Werner Herzog in 1979 was very good as well. The first one was a reprise of the Bram Stoker's Dracula by F.W Marnau in 1922, to which was buried under the ashes of not only filmmakers themselves, but licensees and ones that garnered ownership of the protected property. We still find our way back to it though and if'n this is our endeavor, I am all for it. I must give the flowers to Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Willem Dafoe (of course), but I honestly could not see Bill Skarsgård underneath all of that make up and effects, but this is one of the times that it works. Some peeps I know would not pick this one, but make your own opinions (as always). This is the one to see more the others on this list from 2024 alone! You can completely disagree with me on any of these and make your own list. But you should watch all 10 of these 2024 films, in my humble opinion.
4.5 Out Of 5
Happy New Year 2025! I am definitely excited to see what this year brings. Cheers!