The top 10 movies of 2022 (so far)
Let’s do a midyear check-in on the state of movies.
A quick programming note: I know I said that after Jurassic World Dominion broke me that I was going to take a brief pause from Franchise Friday and re-start this week with the first entry in the Predator franchise. But here’s the thing: with the schedule I have laid out for FF (I plan it out well over a year in advance), the timeline called for me to include both Alien vs. Predator movies. I’m not sure whether those belong in the Alien franchise, the Predator franchise, or their own weird franchise. I am sure, however, that they are both terrible. And while I’m sure I’ll get to them eventually, I’m choosing not to subject myself to them right now. Plus, I’m doing a bit more business travel next week and then following it up with a brief family vacation, so I’m not quite sure what the output is going to look like between now and the 4th of July.
So, within the next week, there may be a scattered post or two. And then the week of the 4th, we’ll be back in business, with Franchise Friday restarting July 8, with John McTiernan’s Schwarzenegger classic. But I hope you enjoy this Friday’s veer to something different!
This week, we officially hit the halfway point of the year, and it’s the time when critics beginning assessing movies and see how the year in cinema has been lately. I thought it might be a good time to take my own assessment.
I used to refuse to do mid-year lists, mainly because it felt like an early spoiler alert for my year-end list. But the truth is, I do a lot of catch up on my annual viewing in the back half of the year, when many of the year’s films have hit VOD or streaming, and my participation in our local critics society presents access to screeners.
While there’s generally a little overlap between a midyear list and an end-of-year list, that final outcome often looks much different in December than it did in June. Movies that ranked super-high six months into the year might not be included at all at the end of the year; films I thought would easily be best of the year tumble lower on the list as I encounter the prestige films of the year’s later months. So I’ve come to enjoy these lists, as they give me a chance to highlight things I know won’t carry over in December.
Even now, there are a lot of 2022 releases I still haven’t seen. The Northman is sitting in my Peacock queue, and just last week a friend reminded me I still haven’t seen After Yang. I haven’t seen Ambulance or RRR, but I have suffered through Firestarter and The Bubble. And I’ve seen enough good this year so far that enjoyable fare like The Lost City, The Bob’s Burgers Movie and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness already have to settle for also-ran status.
So, consider this just a listing of my movie thoughts as of June 2022; and I’m excited to see what the back half of this year has in store!
10. Scream: Five movies in, we shouldn’t be getting movies this good in the Scream franchise. With screenwriter Kevin Williamson and director Wes Craven out of the picture, a legacysequel that returns us to Woodsboro (again) seemed like a proper way to put one last nail in the meta-horror coffin. And yet, this follow-up is a worthy return for Ghostface that manages to honor the mixture of brains, laughs and scares that the original film was known for, while taking its own smart directions. The script by James Vanderbilt and Guy Busick knows when to lay on the references and when to go with full-throated terror, and directors Matt-Bettinelli Olpin and Tyler Gillet do Craven proud. And it’s the rare belated sequel that both makes the return of the original cast welcome instead of sad and introduces new protagonists who I’d be happy to watch headline their own movie. When this requel was announced, I was skeptical. Now, as the shooting of Scream 6 is underway, I’m pleasantly surprised to find myself excited. (Available for purchase/rent and on Paramount +).
9. Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers: What a weird movie. This Disney+ release (which is funny enough that it should have been theatrical) is Who Framed Roger Rabbit filtered through the Lonely Island’s sensibilities. John Mulaney and Andy Samberg have a lot of fun with this meta take on the characters, who reunite to find their kidnapped friend. Director Akiva Schaffer — who’s already a cult comedy legend for helming Hot Rod, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, and multiple episodes of I Think You Should Leave — delivers a fast, very funny and very bizarre pop-culture mashup, roping in Disney characters in a way that makes you think someone distracted the censors and bringing in non-Disney characters in a way that makes you wonder who bribed the lawyers. This is a movie that went way over the heads of my kids, but I loved every bizarre minute of it. All hail Ugly Sonic. (Available on Disney+).
8. Crimes of the Future: I told a friend last night that while I admire David Cronenberg’s latest examination of the body’s grotesqueries and wonders, I can’t say I liked it. While I’m a big fan of The Fly, Cronenberg’s less-moist films like A History of Violence and The Dead Zone are more my bag. But I can’t deny that there are interesting ideas at play in this noir-ish story about evolution run amok and an art scene that turns autopsies into masterpieces. During a time of year when CGI spectacles bludgeon us on a weekly basis, the tactility of the icky, wet messes on display is something I can say I’ve never seen before, and while the plot elements leave a bit to be desired, Cronenberg is saying something interesting about our relationship to the body, a world in disrepair and the inanity of the art world. All that and add in Viggo Mortensen giving a bleakly comic performance (“don’t spill” might be the line of the year), Lea Seydoux as his assistant and lover who’s looking to break new ground, and Kristen Stewart in prime weird mode, and this is a movie that is never boring, even if it’s never quite decipherable. (Now in theaters)
7. Jackass Forever: Speaking of bodily grotesqueries….I don’t know what it is about the Jackass movies that gets my butt in the seat every time. They are base. They are vulgar. They are stupid. And yet, I’ve never laughed as hard in a theater as I have watching all four films featuring Johnny Knoxville and his idiot friends. Jackass Forever is more of the same. More bodily fluids, more broken bones, more cringe-inducing pranks and more kicks, punches, hooves and baseball bats to the groin than I have ever seen. And yet, the joy with which Knoxville and his friends wade into all this is contagious. At the heart of the Jackass movies is a camaraderie and bond that can only form among dummies who are willing to put their health, safety and comfort at risk for our amusement. With grayer hair and deeper lines on their faces, the crew’s mortality speaks louder than ever…and yet, that only makes the laughs come harder. (Available for purchase or rent and streaming on Paramount +; Jackass 4.5 is streaming on Netflix, because why should any of this make sense?)
6. Kimi: Steven Soderbergh’s latest retirement project is one of the best of this latest period of his work. This high-tech spin on Rear Window is as taut and technically accomplished as anything Soderbergh’s done, anchored by a fantastic lead performance by Zoe Kravitz. The sound design in this film is amazing, and the ideas of surveillance culture, intrusive tech and diabolical corporations feels more vital than ever. And it’s the rare film that captures the COVID-19 pandemic and the anxiety that goes along with it in a way that adds texture but never feels distracting. Another movie that would have played great in theaters that was, unfortunately, a streaming release (Available on HBO Max).
5. Top Gun: Maverick: I don’t even like Top Gun. Tony Scott’s 1986 action-drama is a soulless piece of entertainment that became a cultural sensation because of its cool planes, classic soundtrack and heightened aesthetic. This much-delayed sequel improves on its predecessor by including actual stakes for its pilots, upping the ante on aerial combat cinematography and letting Tom Cruise’s charisma remain its pulsing, thetan-clearing center. Say what you will about America’s strangest celebrity, but he’s still the hardest-working movie star out there, and the clout he’s gained in the nearly 40 years since the original film allowed him to make the sequel his way (which basically means he made it a Mission: Impossible movie). Is it still just a flashy, slick summer movie? Sure. But this time, it actually feels more like a movie and less like a commercial. (Currently in theaters)
4. The Batman: If we wanted to take a decade or two off cinematic Batman stories, I’d be perfectly fine. The character’s been rebooted and recycled so many times in my life that it feels like a generational tradition every time a new actor dons the cowl. And I really am tired of dark, grim and gritty takes on the Caped Crusader, when there are so many other aspects of this character to explore (it’s why The Lego Batman Movie might be my favorite Batman flick). And yet, Matt Reeves found a way to make me interested and enthused about the Dark Knight all over again, even if he chose to go all in on the glum aesthetic. Robert Pattinson is a great, weird Bruce Wayne, a man who looks like it hurts to interact with others when in public but finds his true self when in costume. I love the rich, ugly, rain-soaked Gotham City, and the characterizations of Selina Kyle, Jim Gordon and others. And Paul Dano’s Riddler is a clever and terrifying reimagining of the character, now a Reddit commentator, an Instagram influencer for lonely, angry men that feels terribly of its time. Reeves brings a feeling that marries Chris Nolan’s comic book take with comic book gothicness, and the film’s opening 10 minutes might be my favorite cinematic stretch for the character ever. Honestly, if the series stopped here, I’d be fine. And I really dread another take on the Joker. But I’ve learned to trust Reeves, who might be the best director handling beloved stories these days. (Available to buy or rent, and occasionally on HBO Max).
3. Turning Red: Lightyear might have been Pixar’s return to theaters, but Turning Red was the studio’s return to form. An energetic, strange and very funny coming of age story, its specific focus helps locate some universal truths about adolescent awkwardness, family strife and dealing with your own internal messes. All that, plus a very funny, very Canadian story of boy band obsession. I’ve never been a teenage girl. I’ve never turned into a red panda. But I loved this movie, which might be in Pixar’s top 10. (Disney+)
2. Apollo 10 ½ - A Space-Age Childhood: It’s possible I’m just a Richard Linklater apologist. The man is my favorite working American director, and I’ve mentioned multiple times how the Before trilogy, Boyhood and Dazed and Confused are all-timers in my book. And while this low-key animated charmer doesn’t quite reach the heights of those classics, it is another great bit of musing about time, imagination, brilliance and American life. A semi autobiographical story (with a few fanciful elements it never takes seriously) about growing up in Houston during the Space Race, the film is a love letter to American culture and a celebration of the ingenuity that put a man on the moon, but it also never loses sight of the darker side of the country as war, racial injustice and family strife mingled with hope and awe. The rotoscope-style animation, coupled with Jack Black’s charming narration, makes this feel like one great remembrance of childhood, and it feels authentic and lived in, apiece of Linklater’s other works. (Netflix).
1. Everything Everywhere All At Once: When I left the press screening for The Daniels’ funny, inventive, hopeful and chaotic multiverse masterpiece, I felt a high that I’d only felt a few times after seeing a movie. It was the same feeling I had after seeing The Matrix, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Mad Max: Fury Road. It left me drunk and in love with the possibilities of cinema, where strange ideas and visuals can create an experience that is thrilling and thought-provoking at the same time. From my review
“Everything Everywhere All at Once’s greatest triumph is how it has deeper things on its mind. It’s a story about modern ennui, and the frustration of being paralyzed by too many options. It’s about failure and contentment, and the power of families to heal and break cycles of harm. Most explicitly, it’s about the tension between hope and despair, and the importance of being kind and pressing on even when it feels like nothing matters. It’s the rare movie where a plea for kindness feels radical and world-changing, and where an everything bagel can serve as a powerful symbol for nihilism that can only be defeated by the googly-eyes of hope.
Forget best movie of 2022. This could very well be my movie of the decade.