We reviewed a slew of Blu-rays, DVDs and movies in 2024. Time to take a look back at the best of them. While we have seen more movies than the Surgeon General recommends, our list consists strictly of titles which were sent to us for review purposes.
PURR-R-R...THE BEST: We reviewed some good stuff this year, but the following titles were better than taunting a mouse to death:
10) CUCKOO (Decal Releasing) - Cuckoo is a crazy film, and the less you know going in, the more fun you’re likely to have. It benefits from writer-director Tilman Singer’s creepy stylistic touches and disorienting sequences of hallucinatory psychological horror. He never spoonfeeds the audience, instead inviting us to come along for the ride, even if we’re never sure of the destination.
9) DUNE: PART TWO (Warner Bros) - While their overall visual and sonic grandeur is certainly diminished at home, watching Parts One & Two back-to-back on the sofa becomes immersive in a different way. It's a sprawling, complex story that may not always display a lot of heart, but is consistently engaging enough to justify two films and an epic overall length.
8) A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE (Paramount) - Though presented on a grander scale than the first two films, A Quiet Place: Part One is ultimately a personal journey, the smaller moments nicely contrasting all the monster mayhem. Exciting, intense and often touching, it’s more that just another cash-grabbing prequel.
7) THE CHILDE (Well Go USA) - The film is mostly an extended pursuit filled with car chases, guns and bloody, close-quarters fighting, but also has an intriguing plot with plenty of surprises and a tone similar to a Tarantino film. Another winner by director Park Hoon-jung, The Childe wins no awards for plausibility, but it’s the best action movie of 2023.
6) DRIVING MADELEINE (Cohen Media Group) - Driving Madeleine takes the viewer on an entertaining - often revealing - personal journey of two wonderfully realized characters. With a perceptive screenplay, fluid direction by Christian Carion and affecting performances (including Alice Isaaz as young Madeleine), this is an emotional ride worth taking.
5) ACT OF VIOLENCE (Warner Archive) - Running a lean 82 minutes, the film hits the ground running and doesn't slow down, seldom straying from the dark tone established in the very first scene. Featuring tight direction by Fred Zinnemann and aided to a great degree by Robert Surtees’ moody cinematography, Act of Violence is an underseen film noir gem.
4) INTERSTELLAR and PULP FICTION Anniversary Editions (Paramount) - In this writer’s opinion, Interstellar is one of the best films of the 21st Century and among the greatest sci-fi films ever made. For those who feel the same way, the 10th Anniversary Limited Edition is a perfect souvenir. The 30th Anniversary Limited Edition of Pulp Fiction is a wonderfully packaged boxed set intended for those who love everything about the Tarantino classic. A great souvenir commemorating one of modern cinema’s best, most influential films.
3) NORTH BY NORTHWEST 4K (Warner Bros) - This undisputable classic remains as suspenseful, intriguing and funny as it was 65 years ago. On 4K, it has never looked better, and in addition to a big batch of vintage bonus features, a couple of new ones are included. North by Northwest is Alfred Hitchcock’s greatest overall film and remains essential viewing for anyone claiming to be a cinephile.
2) CHINATOWN 4K and ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST 4K (Paramount) - The Paramount Presents series has been getting better and better lately, especially their 4K releases. Chinatown includes new bonus features along with a substantial list of supplemental material carried over from previous Blu-ray/DVD editions. But the cherry-on-top is the Blu-ray debut of The Two Jakes, the belated and maligned sequel. Once Upon a Time in the West is another long-overdue 4K release and a decent upgrade from previous editions. It includes substantial bonus features, a new audio commentary and a brief appreciation by critic Leonard Maltin
1) ALL THE HAUNTS BE OURS, VOLUME II (Severin Films) - Like Volume One, All the Haunts Be Ours Volume Two isn’t for everyone, but for folk horror lovers who've always defined the genre by the likes of The Wicker Man and Midsommar, it's a treasure trove of obscurities. In terms of quantity, comprehensiveness and presentation, this is the best boxed set of the year.
HONORABLE MENTION: They Drive by Night (Warner Archive), The Mexico Trilogy (Arrow), Strange Darling (Decal), Paramount Scares Volume 2 4K (Paramount), Cruel Jaws - The Novelization (Encyclopacalypse), The Lady from Shanghai 4K (Sony), Monkey Man 4K (Universal), American Fiction (Warner Bros), The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (Lionsgate), The First Omen (20th Century Studios), Cemetery Man 4K (Severin), The Beekeeper (Warner Bros), Fear is the Key (Arrow); The Searchers 4K (Warner Archive).
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