My Top Ten of 2024

As I sit here on the first day of 2025, I always treat this as a day to reflect on 2024 and, more importantly, the films that graced the big screen this year. This is my personal top ten - and emphasis on the person I have not been swayed by the box office success, the critical acclaim or its chances at the upcoming awards season with the following films. These are the films that made me fall in love with cinema all over again and most importantly the cinema-going experience - as that is what this blog celebrates the feeling you get when you watch a film that you love on the big screen on your own - which I did for all these films. So without any further ado, let's get started... 

Number 10: Abigail - a film that came out at the beginning of the year and, honestly, I had a great time with and then forgot about as more releases came through. However, with a recent rewatch, it cemented its place in my top ten - even though it is at ten, it is still one of my most enjoyable experiences at the cinema this year and definitely is number one in terms of blood. This film is a fun, gutsy, bloody time and has a great ensemble headed by one of the bright stars of her generation, Alisha Weir, who delivers an incredible performance as Abigail and has a great future ahead of her. 

Number 9: Heretic - In the true fashion of this blog, we start off with two horror films, and they will definitely make an appearance later on in this list. This really felt like the year that Horror delivered innovative stories, and Heretic was definitely one of them. It not only made you on edge and scared of what was going to happen next but also
made you question your beliefs and challenge your own views. The main reason this has made it to my top ten is because of a stellar performance from Hugh Grant, which makes the film as the main character needs to have the charm which would make these two girls want to go into his house, and Grant has this in abundance - truly an excellent performance. 

Number 8: Anora - This was a film I mainly saw because of its buzz this upcoming award season however after seeing it, I couldn't stop thinking about it and its main performance from Mikey Madison, who is a tour de force in this role and will be hard to beat in the award's circuit. This film actually defined the solo cinema experience, as I saw it in a cinema on my own, which not only helped the film but enhanced it because as the second act comes in, the film takes a turn and becomes a high-stakes adventure and I was able to shout at the screen and react loudly as every twist and turn happened. 

Number 7: Challengers - Like Abigail, this film came out at the beginning of the year and has found itself cemented in a lot of people's top ten's, which speaks to the film itself. The film centres around tennis but is much more than that and follows these three people and their relationship, which comes with its own difficulties and is to the backdrop of an incredible soundtrack. This is one of the reasons that the film has stayed in my mind this whole year, as the soundtrack has been my companion on many runs and is a great motivator! The three central performances are electric on screen and should be discussed more this award season, particularly Josh O Connor who over the last few roles has cemented himself as one of the talents of his generation. 

Number 6: Superman: The Christopher Reeve Story - This is definitely a film I would not have predicted would have made my top ten of the year, I only went to see it as my mum is a big fan of Reeve and wanted to see the documentary so I tagged along and I was floored by this film. If this was a list of the most times I cried during a film this would be number one by a mile. I sadly only knew about Reeve's accident and not much more about him and this is a personal documentary which is led by his children and features many home videos both pre and post-accident. This had to make my list as this was the film th
at stayed with me the most and actually made me change the way I live my life, to live in the present more as we never know what will truly happen next and Reeve's story is the perfect example of that. 

Number 5: Smile 2 - The award for the biggest surprise of the year goes to the film, as the horror sequel can often be a quick way to make money as the first one did good, so they want to continue the story but favour the profit over the substance - but not Smile 2. The stakes are much higher, with the person the demon is possessing being an international pop star played by Naomi Scott. She delivers, in my view, the best performance by a female of the year as she plays the anxiety and fear of her not knowing what will happen to her next so well that you root for her and want her to escape the clutches of this demon. 

Number 4: Speak No Evil - Again, another surprise from Blumhouse, which is becoming a production company that I have such faith in and breathe a sigh of relief when their logo comes on screen. This film was being laughed at as the trailer was shown before every film at the cinema, so when the day came when it was released, people were thrilled that they would not have to see the trailer again. However, the film itself was a tense, shocking thriller that had twists and turns that I didn't see coming and features my favourite male performance of the year with James McAvoy continuing to prove himself as one of the best actors working today. He transforms not only mentally but physically into the character of Paddy which allows him to showcase his natural charisma but also he taps into his menacing side.

Number 3: Inside Out 2 - With every top ten, an animated film has always got to feature on it, as animation is continuing to subvert the genre with every new release, and Inside Out 2 confirms this. It is the film I have rewatched the most on this list, and I continue to pick up on new themes with every rewatch, so it had to make my top three. The ending scene is one that changed me when Riley experiences a panic attack, and many of the lines are what I quote to myself when my anxiety gets the better of me. It has also given birth to my favourite Pixar character which is anxiety - who I see a lot of myself in and when I am feeling overwhelmed a rewatch of this film does soothe me. 

Number 2: The Substance - If you had told me that this would be making my top three of the year, I wouldn't have believed you as going into this film, I was genuinely scared for what I was about to see. As a horror fan, this genre of body horror does take a step too far for me, and the only reason I saw this was because of Genius marketing and feeling like I had to see what happened in this film, and shockingly, I am glad I did. This is by far the most original film I saw this year and benefits from many a rewatch which if you told the scared girl who was about to see this for the first year, she would be very proud of her future self. 

Number 1: Wicked - As someone who has seen the West End show many times, I am so pleased that this film delivered and is my top film of the year. I have now seen the film three times, and it gets better with every rewatch - also, my third time watching was very recently, and it was during that time I was toying between my number two actually being my number one. However, as soon as the credits rolled, I knew it was my top film, as no other film this year has made me feel the way Wicked made me feel. I was overwhelmed by the ending and how it was portrayed on screen and the casting is genuinely the best of the year, as everyone is perfect in their roles which makes the film even more magical - it is true perfection which is why it is my number one!