Previous Rankings
#171-183
#151-170
#131-150
#111-130
#91-110
#71-90
Jon Hamm has seemingly struggled to find his footing post-Mad Men. But I think comedy is what he should focus on. He’s terrific in CONFESS, FLETCH, and I would love to see him make a couple more of these. Millie Bobby Brown is once again awesome in ENOLA HOLMES 2, another super fun mystery comedy. FIRE ISLAND is buoyed by a near-perfect cast, but the jokes can be pretty hit-or-miss. NO EXIT is a well-made mystery thriller with some solid twists and turns. THE BAD GUYS is a fun heist comedy with an excellent voice cast. Really cool, popping animation as well.
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT is a brutal look at the realities of war. I liked it okay, but I’m a little lower on it than most seem to be. Loved the direction PREY took the Predator series and I hope we get one or two more in the same vein. Mark Rylance is just a delight in PHANTOM OF THE OPEN, a movie with some of the most broad appeal of any from 2022. GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO does something not many remakes/adaptations do: brings something new to the story. I don’t think that’s necessary, but it’s great when a director can find a way to do it, and do it effectively. LIVING (review) doesn’t work without a faultless lead performance, and Bill Nighy came to answer that call. A really touching story about finding meaning in your life, no matter how old you are.
LADY CHATTERLY’S LOVER is a good mix of tenderness and sexiness. AMBULANCE (review) aka COCAINE: THE MOVIE, is Michael Bay’s best movie. It rules. Frenzied and non-stop from the jump, this movie is so much fun. Jake Gyllenhaal is fully in his bag here, and it’s awesome. Austin Butler is transcendent in ELVIS (review). It has all the flair you would expect from Baz Luhrmann, and The King seems like a perfect fit for Luhrmann’s style. If not for a horrible Tom Hanks performance, and a weird, ineffective narrative structure, could have been a lot better. Zoey Deutch is in NOT OKAY (review) so it’s automatically good. And it has some smart commentary to boot, plus a never funnier Dylan O’Brien. THE MENU (review) doesn’t cut quite as deep is it wants to, but with Ralph Fiennes and Anya Taylor-Joy leading the way there’s still plenty to love about this biting social satire.
CAUSEWAY takes a simple approach to a serious subject like trauma, with the material elevated by Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry. I was pleasantly surprised by HONOR SOCIETY. It could have been nothing more than a standard issue high school comedy, but has enough originality to prevent that. ON THE COUNT OF THREE is darkly comedic, but still treats his heavy material with a clear amount of care. It’s a tough watch, but worth it. CHIP ‘N DALE: RESCUE RANGERS manages the tricky balance of how much self-referential humor to use, and uses it to great effect. Some cool animation tricks and an engaging enough mystery make for a pretty fun time at the movies. I admire the intentions of BREAKING, but it never quite gets to where it wants to go. John Boyega’s incredible performance helps lessen some its narrative problems. Knowing that it was based on a real life marine makes it all the more heartbreaking.
