After the last two years of movie theaters opening and closing, films getting repeatedly delayed, and movies being moved onto streaming services, this was the first year where it felt that movie theaters were starting to get back to normal. I always worry about if this is the year that movie theaters start to close, as convenient as streaming movies at home are, the feeling of going to a theater and sitting down for a couple of hours to be entertained will always be magical. 2022 was a year for movies that were not on my radar at all really surprising me, and movies that I had high expectations for not really hitting the mark. Most of the movies that are in my Top Ten were not movies that I was thinking about at the end of 2021.
Out of the twenty-two movies that I watched that were released this year, cutting the list down to ten was harder than I thought it would be. While they were not included in the Top Ten, I do want to shoutout Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, Smile, and Barbarian as three of my favorite “spooky season” movies this year. All three of the movies were extremely close to making the list because they brought something unique to each of their genres. Now that those have been given their flowers, we can move on to my Top Ten movies that got released in 2022.
10. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
I am shocked that this movie made the list after the tragedy of Chadwick Boseman. After announcing they were continuing with the movie after his death, my expectations were extremely low. It felt like this movie was setup to fail after all the COVID related delays, trouble with lead actress Letitia Wright and her vaccination status and having to rewrite the movie from the ground up. Then the first trailer came out, and completely blew those low expectations away.
The movie itself is a somber story about how to overcome sudden death in one's family, and how to move on while not forgetting the impact the person had on your life. Watching Shuri deal with the anger she feels about her brother being taken away from her and not being able to use her science to save him makes your skin crawl with her raw emotional performance. The scene where she ingests the new synthetic plant created to visit her ancestors and take on the Black Panther mantle only to discover that Killmonger is the one that visits her instead is amazing. The conversation that they have is the best scene in this movie and adds complex layers to her grief.
The best thing that Marvel did was make this movie feel unattached to the grander Marvel Cinematic Universe. This movie would not have been as impactful as I felt it was if it had to keep to an overall bigger narrative. Even if you are not the biggest superhero movie fan, I think this is still great on its own and worth a viewing, especially if you have dealt with the loss of a loved one in the past.
9. Avatar: Way of Water
After thirteen years the follow up to the movie that kicked off the 3D craze finally came out in 2022 and it was fantastic. This is the only movie on this list that I would 100% recommend creating time and go see this movie in a theater, in the nicest screen it offers, and in 3D. You will not get the same experience watching this movie at home on your couch.
If you are coming to this movie expecting a masterpiece of a story, then you will be disappointed. What got this movie in my Top Ten was how visually stunning it was. Even the simplest things, like watching the Na’vi dive in and out of the water as the camera follows them is eye-catching. The fact that this world is completely computer generated blows my mind. The story is serviceable enough and better than the first Avatar and will not hinder your ability to enjoy the visual spectacle James Cameron has created.
8. Three Thousand Years of Longing
This is a film from the beginning of 2022 that was not on my radar at all till I saw reviews and people talking about it on Twitter. This movie is directed by George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road) and is based off the short story “The Djinn in the Nightingales Eye” by A. S. Byatt.
The plot is carried by two wonderful actors: Tilda Swinton who plays a British scholar that suffers hallucinations of spirits and Idris Elba who is the Djinn that Swinton’s character releases from their bottle on a trip to Istanbul. This leads Elba to offer her three wishes, if each one is truly her heart’s desire. Wary of his intentions, Swinton listens to Djinn’s previous stories and how he came to be stuck in this bottle, with the last story moving her so much that she wishes for them to fall in love.
The visuals of this movie are extremely eye catching and have a mystical look about them. The chemistry between Swinton and Elba is well done as the whole movie is dependent on it. This movie did not find an audience when it was released in theaters, only making $19.4 million on a $60 million budget. Hopefully it finds more of an audience on streaming and digital services because I think it is one of the best romance movies of the year. If you like fantasy and romance, then I would recommend checking this movie out.
7. Bullet Train
Another movie that was not on my radar at all till I started seeing its trailers. This movie stars Brad Pitt as reluctant assassin “Ladybug” who has been assigned to procure a briefcase on a bullet train, filling in for another assassin who called in sick. It was directed by David Leitch (Nobody), and you can really feel his direction when it comes to the action. Everything is extremely fast paced and well-choreographed. They really use the small space, with much of the movie taking place on the bullet train. It really feels like Leitch blended his previous works of Nobody and Atomic Blonde combining their comedy and action style.
The movie would be nothing without the great performance from the ensemble cast: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Andrew Koji, Michael Shannon, and Sandra Bullock all do fantastic work. The story does lose some of its steam in the third act of the movie, but that does not derail the overall experience. It was one of the most fun I had in a theater this year and why it is making my Top Ten.
6. The Batman
If you had told me at the beginning of this year that The Batman would not be making it in the Top Five, I would have thought you were crazy. This was hands down the best superhero movie of the year because it did not feel like a superhero movie at all, instead Matt Reeves (Cloverfield) and DC created a dark, gritty detective movie in the vein of Se7en.
Robert Pattinson does a fantastic job of playing a younger Batman, really taking inspiration from the Year One comics. I think he created one of the more interesting takes on Bruce Wayne that we have gotten in the last few iterations of the character. This Bruce is more about revenge and righting the wrongs that he sees in Gotham City and will drive himself to an early grave if he must. Jeffery Wright as Gordon, Colin Farrell as The Penguin, Paul Dano as The Riddler, and Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman are all great performances that really give life to this dirty and gruesome Gotham City. There is also a fantastic take on class and systemic inequality that makes the plot more impactful than your traditional superhero storytelling. Just like with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever even if you are not a fan of the comic superhero genre, give this one a shot.
5. NOPE
Jordan Peele was already on my top director list before this movie, but he has cemented a forever spot after his latest release. NOPE continues Peele’s trend of taking a genre of movie, in this case science fiction/alien to tell a deeper, socially important story. He uses this movie to talk about Hollywood’s history of whitewashing, a problem that is still being felt today.
Daniel Kaluuya returns after starring in Peele’s first movie GET OUT and does another amazing job bringing OJ to life. The real standout performance is KeKe Palmer, who plays OJ’s loud and boisterous sister Emerald. I do not want to go too deep in the story because this movie makes the most impact if you go into it with little knowledge. My best recommendation, just let Peele take you on the ride and appreciate how beautifully shot and framed this movie is. This is not a movie that is going to have you jump like his previous works but will still leave you thinking as the credits roll and wondering what you just watched.
4. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
I was really worried about how this movie was going to turn out. Knives Out was one of my favorite films of 2019 and this follow up had high expectations to live up to. I kept myself away from trailers, reading about it and even interviews with director Rian Johnson before sitting down and watching it. I am extremely happy to report that my expectations were smashed.
Daniel Craig does a fantastic job of returning as master detective Benoit Blanc and is bolstered by, in my opinion, an even stronger cast than in the original film. Edward Norton playing billionaire Miles Bron, co-founder of tech company Alpha does a great job portraying an idiotic con artist who keeps his five friends he invited to his private island around his finger. Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista all do fantastic jobs in their roles. The true standout of the ensemble cast is Janelle Monae, who completely shocked me with how natural of an actor she is playing the character of Cassandra “Andi” Brand, who Bron screwed out of claims to Alpha.
The mystery is well told, does not overstay its welcome and just makes for a fun movie to sit down and grab your favorite snack to watch with.
3. Top Gun Maverick
I am shocked by how much I enjoyed this movie. I thought a sequel to Top Gun would be a mediocre cash grab at best or a dumpster fire at worst, instead we got what is the best action movie of the year.
You can really feel the love and reverence that this movie put into its history, bringing back old characters like Iceman. Tom Cruise does a fantastic job of playing the old man teaching the new, younger kids how to fly these jets like him and Goose did. It is a movie that understands its history, while updating the elements from the 80’s that it needed too. The first thing I thought about when I left the theater was, they do not make action movies like this anymore. In a world where most action movies are of the superhero variety, this stands out even further as an updated throwback to the action of yesteryear. If you are one of the few people in the world that I have not seen this movie, go fix that now.
2. The Menu
Another movie that was not even a thought in my mind till I started seeing the trailers in theaters. The Menu is a dark comedy thriller that stars Ralph Fiennes as celebrity chef Julian Slowik, who runs an exclusive restaurant hosted on a private island called Hawthorn. The story centers around guests that include characters played by Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, Judith Light, and John Leguizamo being hosted on his island to dine at Hawthorn. What was expected to be a night with a splendid fine dining experience turns into a graphic and gruesome commentary on fine dining and the critiquing culture it has spawned.
I think this movie is not going to hit everyone like it has hit me, especially with as polarizing of an ending as The Menu has. This movie is one of two movies on this list that I have not stopped thinking about since I watched it. It has some of the sharpest social commentary in a movie this year, and makes you feel deeply uncomfortable during certain scenes. If you enjoy watching food shows and think you can enjoy a darker look critiquing that world, then I would recommend watching this movie. Because of how strong the story and character performances are; it's number two on my Top Ten of this year.
1. Everything Everywhere All at Once
This is my favorite movie of this year, and I can easily say it is one of my favorite movies of all time. I was glad that when I watched this movie during its theatrical release, that there was only one other person in the theater with me, as the ending brought me to tears in a way that a theatrical story has not done in a long time.
The film incorporates so many different genres including science fiction, fantasy, martial arts films, and comedy to tell a story centered around an absurdist multiverse. The deeper you look however, buried down in all of that and what makes the movie so special is a domestic family drama about an immigrant that is striving to make it and a complicated mother-daughter relationship. The plot also touches on what it means to have everything, because if you have everything then what more is there for you. It is a creative work that can be very nihilistic and explores that feeling using its unique multiverse.
Michelle Yeoh deserves every award that there is to win this year with her performance of Evelyn, who is overwhelmed by her business, her shy husband, and her daughter who she feels does not understand where she came from. The same thing can be said for Stephanie Hsu who plays Joy, the daughter who she thinks that she can do nothing right in the eyes of her mother and becomes Jobu Tupaki in the multiverse and tries to destroy it.
I could talk and write about this movie till I was blue in the face, but you need to experience this movie on your own. I cannot recommend this movie enough; it is a movie that I think everyone needs to give a chance and watch. Everything Everywhere All at Once is a film that only comes around every few years, and because of that is my favorite movie of 2022