2024 Round-Up
The Good, the Bad and the Okay
Here’s my pick of what impressed me and what made me pull my hair out this year - enjoy!
CINEMA: THE BEST OF 2024
5. POOR THINGS
A great start to 2024, Poor Things was visually original with a bizarre fantasy story which went to all kinds of place - but with a very human connection at its core.
4. CHALLENGERS
This was a LOT of fun: the characters were horrid to each other - but what fun! Brilliantly shot, pulsating with obsession and rivalry, Challengers was an unexpected treat.
3. FURIOSA
The relatively poor box office is baffling considering audiences constantly bemoan lack of originality at the cinema. Okay, Furiosa is a prequel AND a revenge tale, but it is amazing to look at and Chris Hemsworth should have got more praise for his performance. I like it when you can tell an actor is pushing themselves and trying to do something different, and he’s very enjoyable here.
2. WICKED
I hadn’t seen the stage version, didn’t know any of the songs, yet it left me punched in the feelings. Two outstanding lead performers, expertly judged design and direction - all perfectly developed and delivered. Narrowly missing out on the top spot for being a tad overlong, but this is a true old-school Hollywood movie.
1. INSIDE OUT 2 / THE HOLDOVERS
Okay, okay: The Holdovers was released at the end of 2023. BUT: It didn’t get a wider release until pre-Oscars (due to noms for Paul Giamatti and Da’vine Joy Randolph), so I’m including it here. Because it is brilliant. Destined to be a Christmas classic (I’ve watched it eight times in December!), The Holdovers is the perfect antidote to the usual over-sweetened Christmas fare. It’s a movie for those whose Christmasses aren’t great, and commiserates with them - but also shows that good things can come from unexpected situations.
Inside Out 2 (which I saw four times at the cinema!) is just a masterclass in storytelling. It deals with difficult subjects and doesn’t offer up any cheap, glossy answers. From a craft perspective it is so admirable. From a cinema-goer perspective it is like having your emotions played by Mozart: it doesn’t hit a single bum note.
Both films have joined the “I wish I’d written these” list.
Honourable mentions:
There wasn’t a lot of truly great cinema in 2024, but I would also mention Dune 2, which was BIG CINEMA (even if I can’t remember much about it other than I enjoyed it). Also, The Substance was the little film that could: It was overhyped and not quite as brilliant as some say, but there was a lot of silly craziness to enjoy. And Demi was exceptional. Emilia Perez featured some amazing performances (Selena Gomez going for it) and a unique musical framework for a drug cartel storyline.
Much like last year’s release of The Holdovers, this year’s big Oscar-buzz movie Anora has had a VERY limited release where I live: ONE. SCREENING.
Chelmsford isn’t some backwater village - it’s a city, dammit! And it’s frustrating because I know it’s playing wider in other areas (not just London). No doubt they will give it a proper airing just before the Oscars next year! Come ON, Odeon Cinemas!
THE KIND-OF GREAT
5. KINDS OF KINDNESS
Kinds of Kindness had a great opening story followed by progressively weirder and alienating tales. Started off loving it - frustratingly ended up slightly hating it. I liked the concept of using the same cast in different roles, but wished it could have kept a grip on things. Worth checking out for the first tale alone.
4. KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
I’m not a fan of the Apes movies, but I did enjoy this instalment because the story was coming from a place I could get on board with. It felt separate from the previous ape movies, and was free to do its own thing. Enjoyed it.
3. ARGYLE
Big, expensive, derivative, ridiculous, very silly - but fun!
2. HERETIC
This could have almost made it to my favourites list had the second half of the movie lived up to the first, but there’s a lot to savour, notably Hugh Grant revelling in his “Prove Me Wrong, Bro” bad guy role.
1. BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
A proper nostalgia hit: Was it any good? Well… there was plenty not right with it, but the fact that I left the cinema smiling must have meant something positive happened. It was a relief to see Tim Burton doing what he used to do, the main cast stepping back into their roles like it was yesterday. It could never beat the original: instead, it opts for silly fun, and that’s fine by me.
Honourable mentions:
Wicked Little Letters was bawdy fun, whilst Godzilla X Kong was dumb fun and a nice old-school adventure for pre-teens. Civil War was a bleak prophecy, and Abigail was a fun horror throwback rarely seen these days. Paddington in Peru was business as usual, Gladiator II was a thumbs up for Denzel; The Bikeriders had a good look but felt predictable. Despicable Me 4 was nothing new, but still fun, and then there were those movies which had moments of interest tempered with ‘meh’:
IF (Imaginary Friend) was a good attempt at a kids film; Deadpool and Wolverine had a great baddie and it was great to see Wolverine again, but it would have worked better without Deadpool. Horizon: an American Saga pt 1 was another Costner shoot-for-the-moon epic bogged down by ambition (should have been a tv series). Anyone But You summed up the joke/premise in the first five minutes; Garfield was undemanding animation which set it sights low, and Alien: Romulus proved to be the Jive Bunny megamix of Alien films. The Critic had a great performance from Gemma Arterton, sadly let down by the final act, and Transformers 1 was fun if headache-inducing. The Wild Robot looked nice but had no emotional impact on me, Love Lies Bleeding was a decent attempt at refreshing noir but lost me when THAT BIG MOMENT happened (honestly, why???), and Venom: The Last Dance was cooking when it was just Tom Hardy and Venom. The rest was *shoulder shrug*. My Old Ass had an interesting hook about a young woman being visited by an older version of herself; Harold and the Purple Crayon was iffy in parts, fun in other (hello Jemaine Clement). A Quiet Place: Day One was tense with decent performances but with a big whiff of ‘been here before’, That Christmas was amusing in places, nicely animated and very middle-class cosy, Monkey Man was a John Wick-equivalent with the same end result (the Sensation of being bashed over the head for two hours), and finally, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 finished the year with not one BUT TWO fun turns from Jim Carrey, and a nice message about not letting your past hardships change who you are. Aw.
THE STOP IT NOW
5. DRIVE AWAY DOLLS
A brilliant cast, Ethan Cohen directing… what could go wrong? Everything. It really pains me to say this because it had so much potential, but the whole vibe of the film made my brain itch.
4. GHOSTBUSTERS: FROZEN EMPIRE
How can a film be so overcrowded with characters yet give them so little to do? This is a million miles away from the first movie, smugly full of half-baked ideas.
3. JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX
As pretentious as its title, Joker 2 is the cinematic equivalent of peddling snake oil. They should have just made a film about Ga-Ga as Harley Quinn.
2. BEVERLY HILLS COP: AXEL F
Hoped and prayed this wouldn’t be another wasted opportunity. Alas, my pleading fell on deaf ears. Actually made BHC 3 seem not bad.
1. MADAME WEB
Blimey, it has been a while since I’ve seen a film put together with such a “That’ll do” attitude. Imagine having a gold mine handed to you and yet somehow you wake up one morning wondering why you now run a printed t-shirt shop on Etsy. That’s this film.
Dishonourable mentions:
Migration: Endlessly trailed for about a year, only to serve up a dish of repeatedly re-heated leftovers. Mufasa: The Lion King was just dull, and The Fall Guy seemed to think gliding on the charm of its stars was enough. The Meg 2: The Trench was just balls, and Mother’s Instinct was a boiled-over pot with a ridiculous plot. It Ends With Us had a baffling take on the abuser, and Blink Twice had an atmosphere which got under the skin like a panic attack. Twisters was an empty re-tread: lots of wind blew in many ways, and finally Red One threw lots of cash at the screen and none of it stuck.
TELEVISION
5. RIVALS
Expected to loathe it, but I found it to be a gloriously trashy and nostalgic treat: A bit like being served a giant chocolate cake you know you shouldn’t scoff but what the hell… Populated by an array of characters you love to hate, and sweet interactions between Danny Dyer and Katherine Parkinson.
4. THE ACOLYTE
The best cast, the best characters, the best fight scenes in a Star Wars story for a long time… and Disney cancels it after one season. What the hell is wrong with them? Show some backbone!
3. ONE DAY
When I saw this I thought “That’s it, best series of the year!”. It gets right so much of what the film adaptation got wrong, and I’m glad it had the chance to have another crack. Just lovely.
2. FEUD: SEASON 2
How this series has been so overlooked baffles me, especially when it comes to the Golden Globes. It should be cleaning up, and yet… The cast is phenomenal, and everything about it smacks of classy. Capote can be hard to accept initially, but it is the sort of show which makes you care about people whose behaviour is deeply questionable. No mean feat.
1. SLOW HORSES
With the usual wit mixed with 24-style spy antics, Slow Horses hasn’t faltered yet (though the ending of this series seemed a tad abrupt). There are only two more series to come, so enjoy the most entertaining series on television while it’s hot.
Honourable mentions:
It was such an excellent year for television that the following shows could have made it into the top five in any other year! 2024 kicked off with Mr Bates vs. The Post Office, which proved that television has the power to shape government decisions. Yet the fact that it took a television show to wake people up to what was going on remains a sad indicator of the times we live in.
Death and Other Details was an entertaining whodunnit with a great look and fresh cast which was sadly cancelled - which really annoys as it ended on a cliffhanger. Fallout was a brilliant adaptation of the game, balancing fan service, commitment to the source material and making it accessible to those who don’t play console games, and Fargo Season 5 was the best yet. Criminal Record with Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo had an intriguing push/pull between the two main characters, and The Penguin featured another brilliant performance from Colin Farrell wedged into a Sopranos-style gangster tale.
Some series showed signs of creaking: Only Murders in the Building S4 didn’t resolve satisfactorily: They really need to develop the main three characters’ relationships with each other or this is going to die a long, slow death. House of the Dragon S2 went nowhere (which isn’t great so early in), Dune: Prophecy leaned too far in the Games Of Thrones direction and Cobra Kai S6 is ending just in time for a movie (Karate Kid: Legends is released in 2025 with Jackie Chan). At present, I’m still working through Silo Season 2 and Netflix’s Black Doves, both of which are proving to be enjoyable so far.
BBC’s Last Christmas documentary about the making of Wham’s classic was insightful and a pure treat, as was the finale of Gavin and Stacey.
The list of “did not finish” was lengthy: Life after Beth and Extraordinary ran their course within a few episodes, and many others didn’t go beyond episode one: Eric, Smothered, Tiny Beautiful Things, Nobody Wants This, No Good Deed, The Gentlemen, Time bandits, Agatha All Along… I just felt that I had seen what it had to offer and I wasn’t interested. The worst offender was Apple TV’s Dick Turpin.
Then there were the more troublesome: Dramas that had fine actors let down by the story: Channel 4’s True Love had a fantastic cast saddled with an intriguing euthanasia plot which jumped the shark, Marvel’s Echo had a unique central character let down by a dull story, Apple TV’s Dark Matter played it fast and loose with unbelievable character behaviour, Apple TV’s Sugar was stylish, Colin Farrell is the best actor working today, but when the plot took a dive off into a WTF tangent I lost my patience with it. C4’s Alice and Jack had a decent structure let down by a desire to bash the central duo’s heads together. Apple TV’s Disclaimer had a half-decent plot (the flashbacks) marred by the storyteller’s control of the characters and their lack of communication skills (and some choice acting/directing decisions), and HBO’s True Detective S4 was a departure from the other three seasons in a “HUH?” kinda way. Netflix’s Baby Reindeer was my hate-watch: The stalker story had potential, just couldn’t stomach the main character.
I did discover a series on Netflix that I’m incredibly late to called Easy (2016-2019) which I’m loving so far, and partly the reason for this is it’s extremely similar to a project of mine called Short People (my episodes contained shorter stories). Each episode focuses on a handful of characters, some of whom may pop up in other episodes as supporting roles, and it has a nice human behaviour/graphic novel/Adrian Tomine vibe to proceedings.
DOCUMENTARIES
Here’s a list of recommended docs and where to find them:
The Secrets of Hill Song - Disney+
Brat - Disney+
Steve! - Apple TV
Miriam: Death of a Reality Star - Channel 4
Spacey Unmasked - Channel 4
Trump’s Heist - Channel 4
Beckham - Netflix
Robbie Williams - Netflix
Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies and Scandal - Netflix (?)
Sly - Netflix
Will & Harper - Netflix
The Greatest Night in Pop - Netflix
I am Celine Dion - Amazon Prime
Couples Therapy S4 - BBC iPlayer
Eternal You - BBC 4/iPlayer
Boybands Forever - BBC iPlayer
READING
My favourite reads this year, notably all biographies!
The Rickman Diaries - Alan Rickman
Quentin by Tarantino - Amazing Améziane
Cinema speculation - Quentin Tarantino
The Last Action Heroes - Nick de Semlyen
Cher - A Memoir Part 1 - Cher
Finally, here’s my pick of the top releases on 2024 - enjoy!
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