Top 15 movies of 2022

[Dave Gray]

I haven't watched everything yet and there's lots to catch up before Oscar season, but I wanted to highlight some films from the year.  These aren't maybe the best movies, but I think that they bring something worthwhile to the table.  There aren't necessarily in order, but I'll rank as best I can.  Rather than full reviews, I will just highlight why these movies struck me.

#15) Kimi (HBO Max)

This is a throwback to single room Alfred Hitchcock classics like Rear Window, but using the present day, with things like technology, social anxiety disorder, and COVID to create barriers.  It's a murder mystery and detective story that feels like a classic story, but very much set in a modern age.

#14) Smile (Paramount+)

I don't often like scary movies, but this one got my blood pumping.  I like the simple, creepy premise and how a very basic thing, like a character smiling can make the hair on your arms stand up.

#13) The Northman (Prime Video)

This movie lost a ton of money so that you can enjoy it.  It's based on Norse myths, so the characters and story are incompatible with our worldview.  And it took a visionary director to put a bunch of money on the screen and just do it anyway, despite not being marketable to the mainstream.  There may never be another movie like this.

#12) Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off (HBO Max)

I find skateboarders fascinating.  You can fall into thinking that these guys are stoner losers, but at this high level, these guys are meticulous philosophers.  I learned a lot about Tony Hawk, but also a lot about life.  It's about fame without guard rails.  It's about fighting against a system, it's about perceived nepotism, it's about doing what you love because you have to.  Like so many good documentaries, the themes are bigger than the story its telling.  This is something that should be watched by those who have no interest in skateboarding.

#11) Nope (Peacock)

Jordan Peele is one of the few filmmakers alive (Tarantino, Nolan, Wes Anderson) who can sell a movie specifically on the brand of the creator.  This is just a truly original piece of art with something to say about Tik Tok culture and getting your 15 minutes of fame.  Yet, none of that is explicit and it's about an alien encounter.  I'm still left trying to figure out some of the meaning of certain scenes, but I was riveted with the experience.  I love to see something proactive early in a film and wonder how it ties in and this movie does that better than most.

#10) RRR (Netflix)

You just gotta give this a try.  Everything I type is going to turn you off, so just press start.  This is a 3 hour movie from India.  But it's batshit crazy.  It isn't some hard-to-watch foreign film.  It's two huge stars coming together to throw everything at the screen.  It's bromance, it's action, it's a heist, it's romance, it's dancing, but it's also India's perspective on British Imperialism.  The movie is Telegu, considered Tollywood (not to be confused with Bollywood).  It's almost like two evenly divided 1 1/2 hour movies (there is a clear stopping point halfway through).  It's basically a movie and its sequel in one film, so at least check out the first half.  People throw motorcycles at each other, then have a dance-off.  The shit is wild but also super earnest.  Since the original language track isn't available, I recommend watching in dubbed English.

#9/#8) Top Gun: Maverick (Paramount+) & Avatar: The Way of Water (Theaters)

I wanted to list these two films as one entry not to compare their quality, but because I have a feeling that people who like one aren't going to give the other a shot, when I feel that they are great for similar reasons.  Top Gun: Maverick is a simple story for boomers.  An old guy comes back to show the young folks how it's done because the old way is dying.  It's almost a metaphor for Tom Cruise himself.  The characters and story are very straightforward and it relies on nostalgia and a simple premise.  But Tom Cruise understands that you need to be entertained.  It looks incredible, visually, but more than that, it's perfect action.  Action sequences aren't just about being cool.  It's about understanding what is happening and how they affect the stakes.  The final action in TGM is perfect.  You can close your eyes, fully understanding what the mission is, and see in your mind's eye where the players are and what needs to happen.  And it's real.  They filmed it in jets and you can't fake the G forces these guys are dealing with.

Avatar: The Way of Water is going to get shit on by haters for being a simple story, but it's a lot like Top Gun.  The characters are black and white, almost like they're in a parable.  The message is simple and something we can all get behind.  But visually and what the movie does with action is something you just won't see anywhere else.  It's breathtaking and James Cameron is a visionary that isn't putting out half-assed shit.  Every shot is meticulous.  In so many blockbusters, you can tell that they cut corners or rushed the effects to get the movie in theaters.  Not here.  There is no spotty 3D work.  Even things with framerate cutting back and forth to smooth action while grounding dialogue.  You don't know what's CG and what's not.  There is a new sci-fi or alien concept implemented every few minutes.  It's a fully realized visual world.

But both of these movies are primarily bringing you a visual stimulus.  They are movies first and only.  There is not an Avatar or Top Gun novelization that can bring what the movie brings.  It can't be a TV show or a comic.  They use up every bit of their movie format and it's not their story.  It's what they make you see and thus, feel.

#7) Prey (Hulu)

They take Predator and boil it down to what makes it great.  It adds to the lore without stepping in it.  It's well crafted, great action and revives a franchise.  It also uses action to tell a story.  ...each sequence lets us learn about our characters.  It's a great example of using action as a narrative tool, rather than just a break in story to entertain you.

#6) She Said (Peacock)

If you like movies like All the President's Men (1976) and Spotlight (2015), you'll find a lot to like with She Said.  It deals with the Harvey Weinstein situation that kicked off Me Too.  It doesn't drag you through the mud too much and is more about the process of and importance of the journalism that leads to change.  I also felt enriched, because I thought I knew this story, but this very specifically lays out how systemic the rot was and how bad it was.

#5) The Banshees of Inisherin (HBO Max)

This is probably the most Oscar-baity thing on my list.  But what I love about it so much is the stakes.  It's about two friends and one of them doesn't want to be friends anymore because he wants to leave a legacy behind that isn't getting drunk with friends at a pub.  That's it.  It's about a friendship.  But in that, it becomes about such bigger ideas of being remembered and how short a life is and what matters about what we leave behind.

#4) Marcell the Shell with Shoes On (VOD)

There's something about the simplicity of animation, like the opening of Up (2009), where stripping down people lets you feel the emotion more.  Maybe that's what happening here.  This is about a shell that loses his family and lives with his grandma while she ages.  It's cute and quirky, in a documentary style, but it's also really insightful.  This can be a movie for kids, I suppose, but there's a lot to unpack emotionally.

#3) All Quiet on the Western Front (Netflix)

World War I was brutal.  War, in general, is horrific and terrible.  And we lose sight of that.  This movie (and it's soundtrack...holy shit the soundtrack) doesn't want you to forget that.  This is originally in German, but as most of it is experiencing battle, you can watch it dubbed if you want without losing anything.  Some of the most gripping war ever but to film.  Also, it really highlights the gap between people fighting a war and people making the decisions to go to war.  It follows Germans (who we think are the bad guys), but these are just kids, and they aren't out there for any political cause.  ...they're just trying to live.  Don't miss this if you like things like Saving Private Ryan.

#2) Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix)

Like Kimi (2022) above, this is a movie from a different era but told with modern implements.  It channels Agatha Christy mysteries, but is always a step-ahead of you and subverts what you think you're in for.  Also, oddly and coincidentally, it feels like it could have been written this afternoon.  It is also a movie, like Kimi, that is specifically set during COVID, which not only allows for the plot, but you can learn about characters with how they respond to it.  It's got a great cast, great twists, and is just a fun story.

#1) Everything Everywhere All At Once (Showtime)

I've been singing its praises all year.  Great action, great sci-fi concept, funny, absurd, thought-provoking, and it can also make you cry with its humanity.  It really lives up to its title.  It has several of the best performances of the year and I've never seen anything like it.  Please go watch this.
 

[Fau Teixeira]

I just watched Glass onion and i liked it .. I agree with Everything Everywhere all at once being the best movie i watched in 2022.

[Brian Fein]

Good list.  Since I've only seen 3 of the movies on this list, I don't think i can add any intelligent commentary to your discussion, but thanks for putting this together.  I know you saw a lot of movies in 2022 and I appreciate the cumulative summary. 

Just didn't see Bad Boys For Life or Fast 9 on your list... probably because they came out before 2022...  so, understandable

[VidKid]

so far i've seen 1, 2, 7, 11. but where is Morbius???  That's destined to be a classic.

[bsmooth]

I have seen 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9 (Maverick), 10, 11, 13.
You are correct, 10 is batshit crazy. I couldn't finish it.
13 has been stolen by Shakespeare to make Hamlet. I liked it.
I was disappointed by 3. I have read the book and seen the original movie. It glossed over the important message to focus on the brutality. The last death was much more poignant and powerful in the original.
7 was fantastic. Best since the original and comes close to supplanting it.
5 was great. A lot of people missed the allegories to the civil war at the time.
2 was fun, but I think I expected too much after the first one.
1. Was so batshit crazy but in a much better way than 10. It was excellent.
9 He died in the beginning,

[masterfins]

I haven't watched any of these, mostly because the only subscription I have is to Amazon.   But, I've only really heard of two of them, Maverick and Avatar.  Several sound pretty good, thanks for the review.

[bsmooth]

Saw 8 today. Beautiful movie, but too predictable.

[Dave Gray]

Saw 8 today. Beautiful movie, but too predictable.

In a weird way, I think that's kinda the point.

I think the simplicity of the Avatar story is a feature, not a bug.  It's universally understandable by different ages and cultures and also by people who don't watch a lot of movies.  You don't have to have seen a bunch of other things or understand a larger meta-context.  I love movies that are complicated, but it's also nice to see something that is a simple allegory of right and wrong.

[Dave Gray]

9 He died in the beginning,

That's an interesting reading of the material, but I can see how you got there.

[Pappy13]

In a weird way, I think that's kinda the point.

I think the simplicity of the Avatar story is a feature, not a bug.  It's universally understandable by different ages and cultures and also by people who don't watch a lot of movies.  You don't have to have seen a bunch of other things or understand a larger meta-context.  I love movies that are complicated, but it's also nice to see something that is a simple allegory of right and wrong.

Cameron makes movies like this. Is The Titanic a great story? I guess it's an interesting take on the story, but the story was pretty much already there to begin with Cameron just takes the viewer on a ride. Same with most of his other movies. He's a good story teller, the story itself doesn't have to be that great.

[Dave Gray]

Even the Titanic love story is pretty basic.  There isn't all that much new about it or a bunch of nuance.  What he does is pepper the experience with authenticity and care for the surrounding elements and world building.  It's true with Titanic and it's true with Avatar.

[Pappy13]

If you think about it, this is what seperates the great directors from all the rest.

Star Wars is a movie about a guy and his kids.

Jaws is a movie about a shark.

The Titanic is a movie about a ship that sinks.

ET is a movie about an alien.

Alien is another movie about an alien.

Are these great movie plots? No, but they are great movies, because it's not the story that makes the movie great, it's how you tell the story that makes the movie great.

[masterfins]

If you think about it, this is what seperates the great directors from all the rest.

Star Wars is a movie about a guy and his kids.

Jaws is a movie about a shark.

The Titanic is a movie about a ship that sinks.

ET is a movie about an alien.

Alien is another movie about an alien.

Are these great movie plots? No, but they are great movies, because it's not the story that makes the movie great, it's how you tell the story that makes the movie great.

I disagree, with the exception of Titanic, I think all the movies you listed had great plots and original stories.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

If you think about it, this is what seperates the great directors from all the rest.

Star Wars is a movie about a guy and his kids.

Jaws is a movie about a shark.

The Titanic is a movie about a ship that sinks.

ET is a movie about an alien.

Alien is another movie about an alien.

Are these great movie plots? No, but they are great movies, because it's not the story that makes the movie great, it's how you tell the story that makes the movie great.

This reminds me of a humor book that was 2 sentence descriptions of classics.

[Pappy13]

This reminds me of a humor book that was 2 sentence descriptions of classics.

Most of humor is based in truth, just looking at it in a slightly different way.