You won’t want to miss a thing in this pop song filled documentary ode to one of the world’s most successful hit-makers. Director Bess Kargman’s documentary Diane Warren: Relentless (A-) depicts a fascinating woman who was born to be a songwriting phenomenon. Famously talked about during nearly every Oscars season including this one for her record number of Best Song nominations without a category win — although she recently won the Lifetime Achievement Award statuette — Warren is known publicly for her melodic missives of uplift but authentically opens up about the challenges of her own life which are sometimes far from the stuff of a love ballad. Cher, Jennifer Hudson, Gloria Estefan, Beyoncé, Clive Owen and LeAnn Times are among those who describe the origins of Warren’s breakout early hits like “Rhythm of the Night,” “Nothing’s Gonna Stop us Now,” “I Get Weak,” “Un-break My Heart” and “If I Could Turn Back Time.” But it’s Warren’s own words about her childhood and her L.A. upbringing as a bullied Jewish girl who becomes an outcast, juvenile delinquent and runaway but always finds solace packing a punch through music-making that are the beating heart of the film. Hers is a fascinating chronicle she tells with gallows humor and the wisdom of years, with rituals and proclivities both amusing and beguiling to her celebrity clientele. Her lifelong friendship with now executive assistant Cindy Wiener is a fun foil to the song queen’s droll depiction of some off her own idiosyncrasies, from her refusal to fall in love in real life to her unconventional relationships with a disapproving mother and a doting father. Viewers will play armchair psychologists even if sometimes kept at arm’s length from some of the mysteries of this genius, but the glimpses into her cat-filled halls of inspiration, bathtub guitar sessions and episodes of overcoming emotional impulses to always transcend as a breakthrough balladeer is a wonder to behold. There’s a poignant series of sequences with Lady Gaga ([Diane] “is insane…ly talented,” says the rock star) about pouring one’s soul into a song with unexpected results which gives a singular lens into the subject’s life and ambitions. Her collaboration with Kesha on a new song “Dear Me” feels destined to be the next lauded Oscars darling, incidentally, adding to the meta-narrative. It’s fascinating to watch the writer of “Because I Loved You” and “How Do I Live” still hustle like she has something to prove. In a time of many dramatized behind-the-scenes biopics about musicians, this doc really gets under the surface at why and how its titular subject does what she does so fabulously.
SEE IT: This highly recommended documentary makes its Atlanta premiere at Atlanta Jewish Film Festival on Oscars Sunday, March 2, 2025, at 1:50pm at Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center:
Oscar nominations are tomorrow morning. Here are my predictions for what will make the Academy’s nomination list in all categories for 2024 movies being honored March 2, 2025. Can’t wait to be wrong on some choices! Then phase two of voting will commence!
THE BEST PICTURE TEN All We Imagine is Light
Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
September 5
The Substance
Wicked
BEST DIRECTOR Jacques Audiard, Emilia Pérez
Sean Baker, Anora
Edward Berger, Conclave
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
Coralie Fargeat, The Substance
BEST ACTRESS
Cynthia Erivo, Wicked
Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez
Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hard Truths
Mikey Madison, Anora
Demi Moore, The Substance
BEST ACTOR Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes, Conclave
Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Michele Austin, Hard Truths
Jamie Lee Curtis, The Last Showgirl
Ariana Grande, Wicked
Isabella Rossellini, Conclave
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown
Guy Pearce, The Brutalist
Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice
Stanley Tucci, Conclave
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Emilia Pérez
Nickel Boys
Wicked
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Anora
The Brutalist
Hard Truths
A Real Pain
The Substance
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Nosferatu
BEST COSTUME DESIGN Conclave
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
The Substance
Wicked
BEST FILM EDITING
Anora
The Brutalist
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival (AJFF) will present 50 films celebrating the diversity of Jewish experiences around the globe for its 25th year. From curated feature films with unexpected titles such as Guns & Moses and Sabbath Queen to documentaries about the likes of controversial German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl and Oscars original song favorite Diane Warren, there are movies of a variety of genres in this year’s lineup.
The festival’s opening night event includes the Atlanta premiere of the NYC-set ensemble screwball comedy Bad Shabbos at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Special guests include stars Kyra Sedgwick, Jon Bass, Cliff “Method Man” Smith, Milayna Vayntrub, Meghan Leathers and Theo Taplitz along with director and writer Daniel Robbins and producer Adam Mitchell.
This year’s lineup includes the worldpremiere of Charles Grodin: Rebel with a Cause and the North American premiere of Eid, the critically-acclaimed first major dramatic feature by a Bedouin-Israeli filmmaker. Highlighting themes such as LGBTQIA+ stories, women’s empowerment, world conflicts and intersectionality, the festival explores the global Jewish experience and its connections to diverse communities, welcoming audiences from all backgrounds.
The AJFF Closing Night & Awards Show March 5 at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center will include Jury Award presentations, noshing over a dessert reception and the Atlanta premiere of Brazil’s life-affirming road trip movie Cheers to Life with director Cris D’Amato and producer Julio Uchoa in attendance.
The 2025 festival also celebrates iconic star Jerry Lewis with screenings showcasing his artistic range: the Southeast premiere of the documentary From Darkness to Light,which explores the troubled production of The Day the Clown Cried, the notorious lost Holocaust movie that haunted him for years; and a digital restoration of 1960’s The Bellboy. Jerry’s son, Christopher J. Lewis, will join Q&As and book signings, offering a personal glimpse into his father’s life and lasting influence.
The festival will return to venues across Atlanta, also including Springs Cinema & Taphouse Georgia Theatre Company Merchants Walk, the historic Plaza and the Tara Theatre. An additional 10-day streaming window from March 7-16, 2025 offers access to 21 features and 14 short films, extending reach to all Georgia residents.
Founded in 2000, the AJFF is one of the largest cultural events of its kind in the world, celebrating the power of film to foster understanding, dialogue and collaboration.
Tickets are now on sale to AJFF members and available to the general public Feb. 5. Visit AJFF.org or call the box office at 678-701-6104 for details on all the movies, talk-backs, events and guests planned for the festival.
GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics, consisting of over 500 entertainment critics, journalists and media icons (including yours truly), announced the group’s democratically chosen nominees for its 16th Dorian Film Awards. The Dorians go to both mainstream and LGBTQ-themed content, celebrating what the group calls “the expert Q+ eye on entertainment.”
Leading with an impressive nine nominations is writer-director Jane Schoenbrun’s thought-provoking horror tale I Saw the TV Glow, a film overlooked by many other kudos groups considering 2024’s theatrical and digital releases. Star Demi Moore’s thriller of a comeback The Substance is a close second, with 8 Dorian nods.
From there, the genre-defying trans mobster musical Emilia Pérez and tense ménage-à-trois dramaChallengers each hold six nominations, and Dorian-nominated director Brady Corbet’s artful epic The Brutalist makes more than good with five. Other movies GALECA anointed with multi-nominations: Anora, Nickel Boys and Wicked all with four nods each, and Problemista and Queer with three apiece.
In the per-studio counts, A24 has a whopping 25 nominations. Other outfits posting impressive scores: Amazon MGM with 13 nominations, Netflix: (11) and Mubi (10).
Some notable titles in the group’s trademark races include the inventive slapstick comedy Hundreds of Beavers vying for Unsung Film of the Year, Madame Web and Trap looking at Campiest Flick honors, and The Brutalist, Nosferatu and Dune: Part Two among the cinematic dazzlers aiming for Visually Striking Film.
The group’s Timeless Star career achievement honoree will be named when the winners are announced Thursday Feb. 13. GALECA’s members are tentatively scheduled to toast winners and nominees in a brunch the following Sunday.
Along with its film nominations, GALECA announced it is donating $1000 to The Los Angeles Press Club’s emergency relief fund, the amount earmarked for entertainment journalists directly affected by the historically devastating wildfires that have destroyed vast swaths LA, leaving thousands of residents homeless. Professional journalists whose main livelihood involves entertainment criticism, editing and/or reportage can apply for help at lapressclub.org. Additional donations may be made there as well.
GALECA: THE SOCIETY OF LGBTQ ENTERTAINMENT CRITICS 16TH DORIAN FILM AWARDS LIST OF NOMINEES
FILM OF THE YEAR
Anora (Neon) Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Nickel Boys (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios) The Substance (Mubi)
LGBTQ FILM OF THE YEAR
Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) Emilia Pérez (Netflix) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Love Lies Bleeding (A24) Queer (A24)
DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist (A24) Coralie Fargeat, The Substance (Mubi) Luca Guadagnino, Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios) Jane Schoenbrun, I Saw the TV Glow (A24)
SCREENPLAY OF THE YEAR (Original or adapted)
Anora (Neon) Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) Conclave (Focus Features) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) The Substance (Mubi)
LGBTQ SCREENPLAY OF THE YEAR
Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Love Lies Bleeding (A24) Problemista (A24) Queer (A24)
NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE FILM OF THE YEAR
All We Imagine as Light (Sideshow / Janus Films) Emilia Pérez (Netflix) Flow (Sideshow / Janus Films) I’m Still Here (Sony Pictures Classics) The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Neon)
LGBTQ NON-ENGLISH FILM OF THE YEAR
Crossing (Mubi) Emilia Pérez (Netflix) Queendom (Greenwich Entertainment) Vermiglio (Sideshow / Janus Films) All Shall Be Well (Strand Releasing)
UNSUNG FILM OF THE YEAR —To an exceptional movie worthy of greater attention
Didi (Focus Features) Hundreds of Beavers (Cineverse, Vinegar Syndrome) My Old Ass (Amazon MGM Studios) Problemista (A24) Thelma (Magnolia)
UNSUNG LGBTQ FILM OF THE YEAR
Femme (Utopia) My Old Ass (Amazon MGM Studios) National Anthem (Variance, LD Entertainment) The People’s Joker (Altered Innocence) Problemista (A24)
FILM PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
Adrien Brody, The Brutalist (A24) Daniel Craig, Queer (A24) Colman Domingo, Sing Sing (A24) Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez (Netflix) Cynthia Erivo, Wicked (Universal) Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hard Truths (Bleecker Street) Nicole Kidman, Babygirl (A24) Mikey Madison, Anora (Neon) Demi Moore, The Substance (Mubi) Justice Smith, I Saw the TV Glow (A24)
SUPPORTING FILM PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
Michele Austin, Hard Truths (Bleecker Street) Yura Borisov, Anora (Neon) Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain (Searchlight Pictures) Ariana Grande, Wicked (Universal) Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Nickel Boys (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios) Brigette Lundy-Paine, I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Clarence Maclin, Sing Sing (A24) Guy Pearce, The Brutalist (A24) Margaret Qualley, The Substance (Mubi) Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez (Netflix)
DOCUMENTARY OF THE YEAR
Dahomey (Mubi) Daughters (Netflix) The Remarkable Life of Ibelin (Netflix) Sugarcane (National Geographic) Will & Harper (Netflix)
Flow (Sideshow / Janus Films) Inside Out 2 (Disney) Memoir of a Snail (IFC Films) Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (Netflix) The Wild Robot (Universal, DreamWorks)
GENRE FILM OF THE YEAR For excellence in science fiction, fantasy and horror
Dune: Part Two (Warner Bros.) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Nosferatu (Focus Features) The Substance (Mubi) Wicked (Universal)
FILM MUSIC OF THE YEAR
The Brutalist (A24) Challengers (Amazon MGM Studios) Emilia Pérez (Netflix) I Saw the TV Glow (A24) Wicked (Universal)
VISUALLY STRIKING FILM OF THE YEAR
The Brutalist (A24) Dune: Part Two (Warner Bros.) Nosferatu (Focus Features) Nickel Boys (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios) The Substance (Mubi)
CAMPIEST FLICK
Hundreds of Beavers (Cineverse, Vinegar Syndrome) Madame Web (Sony) Megalopolis (Lionsgate) The Substance (Mubi) Trap (Warner Bros.)
“WE’RE WILDE ABOUT YOU!” RISING STAR AWARD
Jonathan Bailey Vera Drew Karla Sofía Gascón Brigette Lundy-Paine Mikey Madison Katy O’Brian Drew Starkey
WILDE ARTIST AWARD To a truly groundbreaking force in entertainment
Colman Domingo Luca Guadagnino Coralie Fargeat Jane Schoenbrun Tilda Swinton
GALECA LGBTQIA+ FILM TRAILBLAZER For creating art that inspires empathy, truth and equity
Vera Drew Cynthia Erivo Luca Guadagnino Jane Schoenbrun Julio Torres
Formed in 2009, GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics honors the best in film, television and Broadway/Off Broadway, mainstream to LGBTQIA+, via the Dorian Awards. A 501 c 6 nonprofit, GALECA serves to remind bigots, bullies and our own beleaguered communities that the world looks to the informed Q+ eye on entertainment. The organization also advocates for better pay, access and respect for its members, especially those in our most underrepresented and vulnerable segments. GALECA’s efforts also include the Crimson Honors, a college film/TV criticism contest for LGBTQ women or nonbinary students of color. See members’ latest reviews, commentary and interviews, along with looks at entertainment’s past, on Bluesky and elsewhere @DorianAwards. GALECA’s YouTube channel features the group’s past Dorians film and TV Toast awards specials, video chats with filmmakers and performers, plus talks with members about their latest books and more. Find out more at GALECA.org. GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment journalists is a core member of CGEM: Critics Groups for Equality in Media, an alliance of underrepresented entertainment journalists organizations.
Outreach director Jim Farmer and Silver Screen Capture’s Stephen Michael Brown among panelists discussing queer cinema of 2024:
Similar stylistically to the way the under-seen Saturday Night movie chronicled the manic real-time energy and high-stakes high jinks of the first SNL telecast circa 1975, Tim Fehlbaum’s authentic historical drama September 5 (B+) showcases pivotal broadcast news events with panache and expert detail; and in this case the stakes aren’t laughs but lives. This sturdy thriller transports viewers to the titular day in 1972 Munich, Germany, when an ABC Sports crew found itself the makeshift coverage team for a terrorism act in progress as Palestinian militant group Black September kidnaps and threatens the lives of Israeli athletes in Olympic Village. Peter Sarsgaard, equipped with the rapier wit and studied precision he leverages for many of his film characters, artfully plays the president of the TV network’s sports division; he’s at the center of the ensemble, but there are at least three others who make a big impact in their roles. John Magaro is a standout as the head of the control room. Leonie Benesch is authentic and dialed in as the intrepid translator for the crew who singularly understands both German and Hebrew. And Ben Chaplin as the wily head of ABC operations is such a cantankerous chameleon in his role he’s fairly unrecognizable from his bumper crop of ’90s performances. Every detail in the movie feels lived-in: the rows of rotary phones, the coveted “bird” for satellite feeds, the darkroom for printing photos, block letters applied by hand to identify talking heads on the newscasts and lots of black coffee and cigarettes. Real footage is wisely integrated when appropriate for the you-are-there vibe. The film’s topics deeply resonate today as many of the geopolitical conflicts presented certainly still loom large. It’s also an instructive showcase of news judgment; as each imperfect executive, segment producer, camera person or anchor makes tough calls in real time, viewers see the consequences play out before their eyes. The drawback to this format is that you’re not in the room where the real events are happening; but Fehlbaum makes a case for the thrill of the race to go live and to “follow the story where it goes” via the voyeurism of live cameras and a feed to the world. For a film largely set in rooms with men talking and outcomes many will know from real life, Spielberg’s 2005 Munich or the 1999 documentary One Day in September, it’s an engrossing crackerjack production.
Pamela Anderson’s lived-in, wistful and sometimes heartbreaking performance as a veteran dancer in a Vegas spectacular is the standout in the otherwise fairly pedestrian production of Gia Coppola’s The Last Showgirl (C). The long-running “Razzle Dazzle” show is closing after years on The Strip, which means the protagonist must tie up lots of loose ends with characters played by Dave Bautista as the show coordinator, Jamie Lee Curtis as a friend and cocktail waitress and Billie Lourd as an estranged daughter. Anderson’s character has let the lure of beads and feather boas and life on the wicked stage eclipse her sense of direction, but she often proves the emotional center of a ragtag surrogate family. The screenplay doesn’t give others in the ensemble a whole lot to do, which stunts the story’s momentum. Coppola intermingles the backstage and apartment domestic drama with sun-drenched montages of the film’s women interspersed with Sin City’s decaying landmarks, giving the film an occasional veneer of indie aesthetic; but she doesn’t land much of a thesis about what viewers should surmise from the experience of her characters in transition. Many events unfold predictably, and only Anderson’s elegiac and often moving performance survives as a strong takeaway.
It’s hard to get a word in edgewise versus the toxic female powder keg at the center of this family drama: and by bringing to life one of his film catalogue’s most indelible personalities, director Mike Leigh and muse Marianne Jean-Baptiste create a character for the ages and an instantly relatable series of events. Hard Truths (B+) centers on middle-aged British mum Pansy played by Jean-Baptiste and how, stricken by grief, she verbally abuses everyone within shouting range. At first the effect is jarring then a little funny and mostly sad or appalling, depending on the set of characters around her. She’s winning the battle of words, no matter the situation. The actress is incredible in absolutely embodying this woman and still providing shades of gray to make her a character and not a caricature. Kudos to the full ensemble, especially David Webber and Tuwaine Barrett as her long-suffering husband and son and Michele Austin as her sister and cheery polar opposite. These characters are often simply left to wear devastated reactions on their faces and do so with expressive aplomb. Leigh has something to quietly say here though about the simple ways people can treat each other to diffuse or elevate situations and to turn down the temperature when interactions get heated. Because so many of the sequences in the film are dialed up to a delirious decibel, the scenes of quiet and generosity are fittingly touching and sometimes heartbreaking. The movie is as delicate as the flower Pansy is not and quietly observational in its brisk running time about how depression can overwhelm and constrict. While lovely, Gary Yershon’s melancholic music felt a little on the nose for generating the film’s off-kilter mood, but overall this was an effective and absorbing character study with something to say to anyone in the world with that emotional glass half empty or full.
Bad boy Britpop singing sensation Robbie Williams has been such a party animal through much of his adulthood, it’s no wonder director Michael Gracey takes the wild swing of rendering his character as an anthropomorphic allegorical ape for the biopic Better Man (C+). And the ups and downs of fame, self-loathing and addiction prove it’s hard out here for a chimp, even if behind his big hairy audacious goals of showbiz superstardom, he’s achieved oversized celebrity in the UK and cult admiration here in The States. The film shines in big production numbers scored to such hits as “Rock DJ,” “Angels,” and “The One” with clever, kinetic choreographed sequences punctuating lesser passages. Behind-the-music style beats comprising much of the bloated story don’t shed much light on the interior life of the simian songster played with CGI motion capture by Jonno Davies. Rise to fame, romance, rap sheets, rehabilitation, reconciliation and more are on display, along with tiresome hallucinogenic alter egos laced through concert crowds to cast doubt. The film’s occasionally meta presentation wins points with wry, often profane quips but reveals very little about what motivates the character at its center. After a long time in the wilderness hibernation of what can only seem like Cocaine Bear has invaded Pink Floyd’s hotel room, there’s some tidy and redemptive sentiment to cleanse the palette. More cautionary mental health tale than rhythmic romp (a far less fun Rocket Man?), this murky movie monkey business wears out its welcome.
Faithful to its source material about Beat Generation postmodern author William S. Burroughs’ self-imposed exile to Mexico, Luca Guadagnino’s Queer (B) casts Daniel Craig in the central role of the controversial author cruising for sex and coping with a lifelong heroin addiction as he nurtures twin obsessions with romance and magical drugs promising extrasensory perception. Guadagnino is undoubtedly the right match for the off-kilter material, with sumptuous historical period art direction and an uncanny knack for capturing mood. And Craig proves to be a bit of a revelation in a role cast against type from his James Bond image; as “Lee” (a stand-in autobiographical nickname of the author), his every turn of phrase feels like inventing a peculiar new language. The loose, limber and impressionistic narrative gets even more opaque as the film changes venue and the Naked Lunch type imagery gets increasingly surreal. Drew Starkey is solid as the object of the protagonist’s affection. Jason Schwartzman is also memorable as a schlubby fellow bar denizen. There are moments of incredible sensuality and sentiment and many others which may leave casual moviegoers scratching their heads. The film is a must for fans of the iconoclast writer and a sterling showcase for a daring lead actor.
Talk about a circle of lifeless! It’s tough to detect evidence of the artisan touch of acclaimed director Barry Jenkins in a CGI animated prequel that could have actually been improved with AI. Mufasa: The Lion King (C-) tells some backstory of the Simba-verse with an extraneous framing device to ensure all members of the intellectual property can participate, including Timon and Pumbaa. The story follows young Mufasa (voice of Aaron Pierre) who is displaced by flood from his family and adopted into a rival pride with a surrogate brother (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) taking him under his mane. The only improvement on the film’s all-CGI predecessor is more expressive faces on the animals as brotherly rivalry ensues. The production patches together some rousing elements of past Lion King scores and doesn’t showcase Lin-Manuel Miranda’s new songs very well except one romantic ballad. Most of the movie is a tedious and far-fetched adventure including into inexplicably snow-capped parts of the African setting versus a villainous white lion (Mads Mikkelsen). This origin story doesn’t successfully open up or illuminate any special elements of the legend. Some of the nature settings are pretty. Mostly this installment is forgettable.
In the spirit of CODA and Sing Sing, here’s a sleeper indie about how performing arts can rescue a life sliding out of control. Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson’s Ghostlight (B) focuses on a burly construction worker (Keith Kupferer) coping with tragedy. The actor’s real-life wife and teenage daughter Tara Mallen and Katherine Mallen Kupferer play his similarly struggling and idiosyncratic family, and Dolly de Leon (always a delight) is the leader of a theatrical troupe conveniently located beside our protagonist’s work site. Soon a role in a Shakespeare play becomes its own form of therapy. Too many on-the-nose moments of convenience in the first reel bog down the story, but patient viewers will find this is an extremely emotional and fulfilling work. All three actors in the grieving family are superb, and there’s a lead actor performance here worthy of awards. The music is good too, with some nice use of several “Oklahoma!” chestnuts. The colorfully drawn and authentic characters and several engaging final reel subplots help transcend the formula.
These are my favorite films of the year and how to see them. I seem to be the contrarian on a quintet of movies others generally like (Anora, Dune: Part 2, Inside Out 2, Nosferatu and A Complete Unknown didn’t get raves from me); but generally, folks have gotten what I promised with my recommendations. I hope you find some new movies to enjoy going into the new year!
1. The Wild Robot– Lupita Nyong’o voices a discarded AI robot who learns to be a parent in this enchanting and highly emotional animated film set on an island of animals, directed by Chris Sanders; now streaming and back in theatres January 17, 2025
2. The Substance – Demi Moore makes a most unexpected comeback in Coralie Fargeat’s provocative and grisly body horror satire as a middle-aged actress who takes a de-aging serum and shares her body and spirit with a younger version of herself (an equally fascinating Margaret Qualley); available to rent via Prime
3. The Brutalist – Adrian Brody stars as an immigrant architect experiencing the best and worst of the mid-century U.S. experience in two epic, sprawling acts playing out like a great American novel, directed by Brady Corbet; now playing in limited theatrical release as it looks to capitalize on awards season buzz for optimal attention
4. Wicked Part I – John M. Chu’s adaptation of the first act of the Broadway musical is a girl power extravaganza with powerhouse performances by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as witches in college, and the production design and choreography really sell this event movie; still dominating the box office + now available for streaming across digital platforms
5. Hit Man– It man Glen Powell and his introspective director/co-writer Richard Linklater collaborate in the ultimate tale of conflicted identities hidden within a mix-tape of the romcom and thriller formulas; now available on Netflix
6. Flow– Animation reigns supreme as an expressive cat escapes a flood and heads to higher ground with the help of other non-human friends in this moving tale by Latvian director Gints Zilbalodis; playing to packed house in limited theatrical release as buzz for possible Oscar nominations heats up
7. Civil War – Alex Garland’s dystopian tone poem of an America savaged by a mysterious battle as told through the eyes of photojournalists (including Kirsten Dunst and Cailee Spaeny) is one of the most indelible and disturbing films of the year; streaming on MAX and available across video-on-demand sites
8. Will & Harper– Josh Greenbaum’s documentary chronicles a witty and moving American road trip between comedian/actor Will Ferrell and his friend who recently transitioned to womanhood, Harper Steele; available on Netflix
9. Emilia Perez– Jacques Audiard fashions an audacious and polarizing hybrid thriller/musical/domestic drama about a drug cartel leader (Karla Sofia Gascon) who disappears into a new life. Zoe Saldana is her lawyer and Selena Gomez her ex-wife in this exciting and operatic curiosity; also available on Netflix, with big-screen presentations in select markets
10. Challengers – Luca Guadagnino crafts a stylish and sexy three-way drama about tennis, told out of order with a banger of a Trent Reznor/Atticus Ross score, with Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist all bringing their game; available on Prime
11. Conclave – The search for a new pope plays out like a whodunit with a master central performance by Ralph Fiennes and taut direction from Edward Berger; now in theatres and on Peacock
12. Twisters– Dueling storm chasers in Oklahoma including Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, Anthony Ramos and future Superman David Corenswet face off in the ultimate breezy summer blockbuster reboot under the careful guidance of director Lee Isaac Chung; streaming on Peacock and for rent across platforms
13. A Quiet Place: Day One – Lupita Nyong’o gives viewers a reason to tune into this futuristic franchise again with an extraordinary central character dismissing the potential end of the world due to alien invaders with nostalgia under Michael Sarnoski’s surefire direction; available on Paramount+, Prime, Sling TV and more
14. Juror #2– Clint Eastwood’s thoughtful drama featuring a crackerjack legal premise and one of Nicholas Hoult’s best performances as a conflicted deliberator is now playing on MAX.
15. Wildcat– Ethan Hawke directs Maya Hawke as the idiosyncratic writer Flannery O’Connor in a film blending biopic with an anthology of her disturbing Southern gothic short stories; streaming on Prime
16. Deadpool & Wolverine– This is the ultimate meta superhero movie, telling the story of Disney’s takeover of 20th Century Fox via two of its most vulgar and wisecracking characters played by Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman on an adventure together, directed by Shawn Levy; available on-demand or on parental-controlled Disney+
17. Problemista – This surrealist comedy set in the art world chronicles an odd-couple relationship between toy maker Julio Torres (also writer/director)and his nightmare mentor, Tilda Swinton in one of the fiercely off-kilter great performances of the year; streaming on MAX
18. Sing Sing– Colman Domingo joins an ensemble of veterans from a real prison’s theater rehabilitation program for Greg Kwedar’s story about the transforming power of art among the incarcerated; the film is being re-released for a third time in January 2025 to coincide with Oscar nominations before ultimately landing ion Apple TV [Note: this pairs nicely with another 2024 sleeper, Ghostlight, on VOD and IFC Film channel, about a family coping with grief via a community Shakespeare performance]
19. Babygirl – The incomparable Nicole Kidman gives a knockout performance as a CEO undergoing sexual awakening through an age gap affair with her intern (a spry Harris Dickinson) in Halina Reijn’s new work, also featuring fun needle drops by INXS and George Michael; playing now in theatres
20. A Real Pain – Jesse Eisenberg (also writer/director) and Kieran Culkin are a marvelous mismatch as cousins on an odyssey to visit the Eastern hemisphere homeland of their late grandmother in a satisfying dramedy that’s also a take-down of trauma tourism; after a full festival circuit featuring everything from Sundance to the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, this is cascading in limited release into theatres to coincide with awards attention for Culkin in particular
21. Saturday Night – Jason Reitman’s real-time chronicle of the filming of the first 1975 episode of TV’s Saturday Night Live is a frothy, acerbic delight, with Gabriel LaBelle a standout as show runner Lorne Michaels, leader of a bunch of revolutionary improvisational misfits (LaBelle is also great in this year’s coming of age comedy Snack Shack); Saturday Night is ideal viewing for SNL‘s 50th season and is now on most video-on-demand platforms
22. Nickel Boys – Director RaMell Ross takes the year’s biggest swing adapting the story of an abusive reform school in Deep Jim Crow South through point of view cameras representing two Black youth and the result is “you are there” moving; this is playing a limited awards consideration run in theatres
23. The Seed of the Sacred Fig – Mohammad Rasoulof creates the year’s most remarkable protest film with one family’s domestic drama a stand-in for the oppressive Iranian regime; due to worries the Iran government would retaliate against cast and crew, the film is being released through Germany distribution and is playing a limited awards consideration run in global and domestic theatres
24. Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story – Documentary co-directors Ian Bonhote and Peter Ettedgui showcase the superhero actor before and after he is paralyzed, and it’s a compelling and humane – and altogether human – journey through real emotions; now playing on MAX
Honorable Mentions: The Osgood Perkins-directed creepy serial killer Longlegs isn’t as scary as marketed but very effective. And three LGBTIA+ romantic thriller Sundance finds, Ponyboi, Sebastian and Love Lies Bleeding, tell unconventional and memorable adventures.
