The Movies I Loved in 2022
A top 10 in no particular order.
2022 was one hell of a year. It was the year I saw myself make my dream of becoming a full time film writer become a reality. A year where I was allowed to cultivate my craft into some tangible. A year where I saw my work be published by entities like Netflix and The Academy itself. I built up stronger relationships with Bloody-Disgusting and Fangoria and was even allowed to introduce Halloween III: Season of the Witch for Alamo Drafthouse. Looking back, I’m eternally grateful for the opportunities I was allowed in one of the most turbulent times of human history.
The year also saw the theater become my church. Aside from a few select theater outings, most of my theater trips took place on Sunday mornings more often than not with my father. One of the people in my life that encouraged me to get into the trade I’m in and supported my love for movies. We saw any and everything and I’m gonna be honest with you, 2022 was one of the best years for film I’ve ever had the pleasure to experience. Everything from mid-budget movies, to slasher films, to big grandiose blockbusters, the theater became sanctuary. Something to look forward to after a long work week. Long story short: I learned to love movies again.
This is by no means a complete list but instead some quick thoughts on some of my favorite movies this year and why, if you haven’t seen them, should check them out for yourselves. If you open yourselves up to something new, maybe you too can find a new love for the medium of entertainment that has survived in this beautiful world for so long.
Bones and All
Luca Guadagnino’s newest films is quite possibly one of the most genuine depictions of love I’ve ever seen put to the screen and is ultimately about finding yourself in a world in a world that refuses to accept you. Cut from the same cloth of films such as Badlands and The Sugarland Express, except the spin is instead of outrunning the law our leads are outrunning impulses, family troubles, and mistakes of the past that they deem unforgivable. Sometimes home isn’t a place but someone you love. You’ll always find your way back.
Great gore effects, superb lead performances from Taylor Russell and Timothee Chalamet, emotional score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and some downright jaw-dropping direction. Bones and All had me asking for seconds.
Babylon
Director Damien Chazelle admittedly loses me with some of his projects. First Man is one of the best films of the last 10 years, and La La Land might be one of my most disliked movies. So going into Babylon I was unsure of where I would land on the spectrum of enjoyment. Imagine my surprise when I came to learn that Babylon is one of the most entertaining films in sometime. An excessive love letter to a shifting Hollywood era and a love letter to the debauchery itself, Babylon is an assault on the sense in the best way possible.
Babylon at times feels like a take on Singin’ in the Rain with the energy of a Jackass film but ultimately tells a poignant story about losing your soul for the ultimate dream of stardom and martyrdom. A loving tribute to the movie industry and its obsession with excess on and off-screen and the negativity that comes with that (whether that particular industry wants to admit it or not).
With a standout performance by Margot Robbie and scenes that were so funny my side was literally in pain, I didn’t want Babylon to end.
X
After a nearly decade long absence from the theatrical horror scene, writer/director Ti West returned in a big way with X. One of the most shocking and funniest slasher films I’ve ever seen, X is the absolute smut your parents always worried about you watching at a friend’s sleepover but through the eyes of a filmmaker working at the absolute peak of his craft.
The aesthetic of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre with the vibes of Boogie Nights, X was one of the most fun times I had at the theater this year, witnessing Ti West’s tribute to underdog filmmaking projected on 35mm was an absolute sight to behold.
Nope
If X was a tribute to underdog filmmaking, Nope is a massive tribute to blockbuster filmmaking and the human addiction to spectacle. Jordan Peele accomplishes a lot with his latest outing including capturing the Amblin spirit without all the handholding nostalgia that often comes with it. Nope is a grand scale movie with a lot to say about human condition and is expertly crafted with the quality of a fine-tuned clock. Peele is coming into his own as a filmmaker and I personally can’t wait to see what he cooks up next.
Special shoutout for also featuring one of the most terrifying scenes I’ve seen this year involving the bloody house. Peele’s got the goods to dazzle and terrify his audience at the same time. No easy feat.
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio
(Disclosure: I was employed by Netflix for the first half of 2022)
The long-awaited and long-teased adaptation of Pinocchio sees Del Toro return to his darkened fairy tale roots while delivering an all new spin on a timeless classic. A film about the burdens of grief and love, finding love in a hateful world, and how to cherish and embrace those closest to you flaws and all. Pinocchio is a storybook brought to life in an era where most fables are tossed to the wayside in lieu of the modern tales of superhero films.
This movie broke my heart in so many ways but offered a message of reassurance in its final moments. I’ve never felt so comforted by a film. This was special seeing it on the big screen, which makes it all the more heart-breaking that it’s forever stuck on a streaming service.
Avatar: The Way of Water
The original Avatar changed filmmaking forever when it released all the way back in 2009. The magnum opus sequel from director James Cameron has long been in the works since then and in the time since built up a world of doubters (that still somehow exist post-release). Avatar: The Way of Water fixes nearly issues from the original film and is so expertly paced that its 3+ hour runtime feels like a brisk 90 mins. Featuring gorgeous visuals that escape the uncanny valley that transports viewers into a side of Pandora that has yet to be explored.
Doing all of this while telling an emotional story about family and the strengths and weaknesses that come with it, preserving and fighting for your home, and finding yourself in the mess of life.
Avatar: The Way of Water is easily one of the best sequels of all time and puts most modern blockbusters to shame. Well worth the wait.
Pearl
The unexpected companion piece to X saw Ti West carve out his own slasher franchise. Pearl is a origin story of sorts about the titular character who was the main killer in X. By being an origin Ti West is able to forgo the tradition slasher sequel route and is able to craft a more subdued character study about someone that wasn’t entirely there to begin with being pushed to their absolute breaking point. The film is also a tribute to the technicolor era of filmmaking from the 1930’s and is proof that West is able to pay tribute to the past and apply it to modern filmmaking sensibilities.
Mia Goth absolutely shines here as Pearl and bring a level of mania to the role that justifies my thinking that she should’ve been the lead of 2018’s Suspiria. Really glad she’s able to stretch her genre muscles and people are starting to recognize that.
Triangle of Sadness
Sometimes it feels as though cinematic send-ups of the rich and powerful elite are a dime a dozen. Where Triangle of Sadness stood out to me was in how mean-spirited and unsubtle a jab it actually is.
The furthest from subtle is sometimes entirely especially when you’re having this much fun with your themes and concepts during your entire runtime. Boosted in part by some of the strongest performances this year (Charlbi Dean, who sadly passed away earlier this year, is a notable standout) and one of the best soundtracks in recent memory.
Socalism vs Capitalism, the 1%, being obsessed with fame, and shallow one-sided relationships are all in the sights of director Ruben Ostlund and none are safe as the shit you talk on social media is brought to cinematic life.
Elvis
Baz Luhrmann’s take on the awful genre that is known as the music biopic, I found myself absolutely enthralled with Elvis in many ways that I didn’t expect.
Sensationalizing the King of Rock & Roll’s story was one of the smartest decisions I’ve seen this year and the king of sensation himself, Baz Luhrmann brings his absolute A-game. The cast is all wonderful but I cannot get over how much lead actor Austin Butler really sells the whole thing to the point that I’m not convinced the movie would’ve worked had they gone with anybody else.
Edited like there was a pile of cocaine in the studio, and with an absolutely infectious soundtrack, Elvis had me grinning from ear-to-ear for its entire runtime. God, I love when I’m genuinely surprised by a movie.
Crimes of the Future
Director David Cronenberg’s long-awaited return to the Body Horror genre that he helped popularize, Crimes of the Future at times plays like a self-parody. A world where bodies are a commodity, sex is a performing art, and mankind as we know it is extinct. Cronenberg weaves a tale about the value of art and how other perceive that art despite the true intentions of it. Cronenberg’s world is a cyberpunk dystopia where flesh is the new currency and its brought to life by its three lead (Kristen Stewart in what might be her best performance).
Less graphic than his usual fare, its fun to know that Cronenberg still knows how to play with audiences. Welcome back sir, you were missed.
Unfairly Mangled Movie of the Year: Halloween Ends
A mean portrait of a compassionless world. Halloween Ends broke the mold of the new Blumhouse trilogy by crafting a story that allowed viewers to understand and care about its characters. Taking big swings that don’t always land in the process unlike Halloween Kills that played like a greatest hits of bad Halloween sequels.
Halloween Ends isn’t perfect but is instead fascinating with the themes it plays with. They finally let David Gordon Green make a David Gordon Green film and not an obligatory Halloween sequel. It’s a small scale character study about the darkest corners of humanity (or lack thereof) from the perspective of people broken beyond their limit.
The film’s main fault is that it has the misfortune of being a send-off of a trilogy it at times only feels tangentially connected to. If this film was titled Halloween and was the film we got all the way back in 2018, I’m convinced it would’ve been embraced with open arms. Instead, it has to appease a rabid fan base that doesn’t exactly know what they from a Halloween film.
One of the best Halloween sequels to date, the public opinion will on Halloween Ends will change in about 10 years. Mark my words.
Other Movies I Loved:
Bodies Bodies Bodies
The Batman
Barbarian
The Fabelmans
The Munsters
Jackass Forever
Scream
Deadstream
Terrifier 2