Incredible new movies are released every year, and 2024 was no exception to the rule. While the box office had its ups and downs, every weekend had something worth watching, from big budget blockbusters to smaller-scale indie films.
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I watched 61 movies this year, many of which were brand-new titles released in 2024, with these 10 standing out as my favorites. For this list, I’m only counting movies that first premiered in 2024, so films that technically released in 2023 but had their wide release in 2024 are not eligible.
My Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2024
10. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
9. My Old Ass
8. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
7. Deadpool & Wolverine
6. Heretic
5. Terrifier 3
4. Dune: Part Two
3. The Wild Robot
2. Wicked
1. Anora
I have greatly enjoyed the Planet of the Apes reboot films, and while Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes doesn’t reach quite the same heights as its predecessors, it’s still a blast, with impressive action sequences, great performances from the human and ape characters, and a story that’s easy to get emotionally invested in. Other big new releases that stole the show for me in 2024 were: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, which lived up to Fury Road‘s bonkers set-pieces and featured one of the year’s best villains in Chris Hemsworth’s Dementus; Deadpool & Wolverine, which was nonstop fun from start to finish and a fitting send-off to the Fox Marvel films; and Dune: Part Two, a visually-stunning sci-fi epic with some of the year’s best special effects.
Horror movie fans, meanwhile, had a lot to choose from this year, from recent releases like the new Nosferatu to the body horror film The Substance, but the two that stuck with me were Heretic and Terrifier 3. Hugh Grant, Sophie Thatcher, and Chloe East deliver spellbinding performances in Heretic that left me on the edge of my seat for the entire film, while Terrifier 3 was an unforgettable rollercoaster ride of over-the-top blood and gore. A shocking slasher that is unironically now one of my favorite Christmas movies, Terrifier 3 has solidified Art the Clown as one of the horror genre’s greatest icons.
I also greatly enjoyed My Old Ass, the coming-of-age time-traveling movie with Aubrey Plaza and Maisy Stella. While the plot is a touch predictable, the characters are beautifully written, and it puts an interesting spin on the genre. Fans of coming-of-age movies like this should also check out fellow 2024 film Didi, especially if they grew up in the mid-2000s.
My top three favorite movies of 2024 are all very different films. The Wild Robot, an animated family film about a robot befriending animals in the wilderness, left me with tears in my eyes, while Wicked, the film adaptation of the beloved Broadway musical, has me still listening to its soundtrack over a month after its release. Anora, the latest from Sean Baker, is my favorite new movie of 2024. Mikey Madison’s portrayal of the title character is incredible, and the story told here is so engrossing that you don’t feel a single second of its runtime. Anora has some of the funniest and most heartbreaking movie moments in all of 2024, and I think it’s going to be remembered as an absolute classic. I adore Anora and will be seated for all future Mikey Madison films on day one from here on out.