Given that it's the last day of the month and I don't have a ton of time to write, we'll see how much of last year's round-up I'm able to get to. I'm hesitant to resort to last year's three-part approach, but that may just be necessary to write at least one thing this month.
Without additional ado, behold the movies I watched in 2024!
The PsychoCinematic Year in Movies
2024 Edition
1. Dumb Money (5)
2. The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (4)***
3. Good Grief (3)
4. Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood (3)
5. Anyone But You (2)****
6. The Italian Job (2)
7. The Donut King (5)
8. A Haunting in Venice (3.5)
9. Dune: Part 2 (3)
10. Ricky Stanicky (3.5)
11. Turning Red (2)***/****
11. Bridget Jones’s Diary (1)***
12. Serendipity (3)
13. Babes (3.5)
14. Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles (2)
15. Brats (1)
16. American Fiction (5)
17. Twisters (4)*
18. Jackpot! (4)
19. The Pez Outlaw (4)
20. Red, White and Royal Blue (3)
21. Sing Sing (5)*
22. Bottoms (5)
23. Wicked Little Letters (5)
24. Unfrosted (2)
25. Inside Out 2 (2.5)
26. Go West (4)
27. Conclave (5)
28. Single All the Way (4)***
29. A Real Pain (4)
30. Hot Frosty (2)
As a reminder, the occasional extra notations indicate the following:
* = got nauseated
** = fell asleep
*** = rewatch
**** = didn't finish
As you can see, I just barely accomplished last year's adjusted annual movie-watching goal of watching 30 movies. But at least I did it!
I'm glad to reflect on the multiple very good movies I saw in 2024, which is evidence that I wasn't exhausted the entire time last year. They are also the result of having more consistent childcare coverage on weekends by the last quarter of the year, so I was able to actually go see movies sometimes. Which was SO GOOD.
That said, given the average amounts of energy and free time I had last year, it honestly makes sense that it was a reach to meet even this reduced target. My overall general exhaustion throughout much of 2024 is evident in several of the lower-rated entries--sometimes I just wanted to watch something and I affirmatively wanted that something to be at best fine. Also, there was some real bad shit going on last year, so despite whatever the circumstances of my life were, we were all entitled to a little tune-out time and grace.
And on that note, let's talk about the absolute worst movies I saw in 2024. In the interest of time, instead of my usual more inclusive list with both 1- and 2-rated movies, I'll just single out the 1-rated movies from last year. They were:
For being a beloved classic in my memory but upon revisitation being all-around quite awful:
Bridget Jones’s Diary (2016)***
For being boring and exhaustingly self-obsessed:
Brats (2024)
Between these two, my least favorite movie from last year was:
This movie includes so many crappy, problematic, harmful, and fully unnecessary ingredients that the whole exploit is spoiled for me. It really is a shame, because I remember finding the movie kind of fun and fresh at the time--but that makes it seem all the worse now given all of the bigotry it sugar-coats.
And now, rushing onward to: the BEST movies from 2024!
They were:
Dumb Money (2023)
The Donut King (2020)
American Fiction (2023)
Sing Sing (2023)*
Bottoms (2023)
Wicked Little Letters (2023)
Conclave (2024)
Aw man, these movies are all so good and they're so different! They span different time periods, genres, and tones, yet each feels really special.
"Dumb Money" was a fun fictionalization of the GameStop stock market shenanigans in early 2021.
"The Donut King" is an inspiring and twisty documentary about the man who jump-started the niche industry of Cambodian-owned donut shops in California.
"American Fiction" feels like "Stranger Than Fiction" (2006) mixed with "Sorry to Bother You" (2018) and doesn't pull its emotional punches.
"Sing Sing" tells the true story of a prison-based theater troupe.
"Bottoms" is a bizarre romp through teenaged friendships and high school hierarchies.
"Wicked Little Letters" pursues a mystery born of sexism.
"Conclave" is a stunning feature-length bottle episode reminiscent of "Twelve Angry Men" (1957) or "12" (2007), but lushly costume- and set-designed.
Reflecting on each of these films, they all hold a warm and unique place in my heart.
But there's a standout. It tells a beautifully-acted, raw, heartbreaking, humble yet triumphant, fragile yet enduring story about people working together to make something precious, fleeting, vulnerable, healing, brave, and greater than the sum of its parts, made even better by the fact that it's based on things that actually happened. And it's really saying something to claim this one as my favorite movie of last year given that it (thankfully briefly) made me motion sick.
My favorite movie watched in 2024 was:
We did it, all in one fell swoop!
I'm excited to tell you about the movies I've watched so far this year. Onward!
{Heart}
