Nathan's Top 25 Films of 2022
The film world seems to be slowly returning to form since the pandemic just about ended the industry as we know it. In many ways, it will be forever changed. While 2022 didn’t offer up any enduring masterpieces, it certainly produced some excellent additions to the 21st-century canon.
Here are my top 25 films of 2022.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood
Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
Chip’n Dale: Rescue Rangers
Speak No Evil
The Lost City
Three Thousand Years of Longing
#25 Hustle
“I'll say one last inspirational thing to you: they can't kill you if you're already dead.”
Sports movies always get me.
Believe it or not, Adam Sandler has a magnetic presence. Whether the movies he’s in are really good, or absolute train-wrecks, you’re along for the ride. Thankfully in this one, Sandler gets to embrace his love of basketball in a sports film that in some ways is paint by the numbers, but ultimately has it’s own unique splashes of color to add to the genre.
Where to watch: Netflix
#24 Prey
“It knows how to hunt. But I know how to survive.”
Prey is full of dope action sequences. While for some, the action sequences won’t be enough to keep them engaged through a somewhat recycled plotline, it’s clear that Dan Trachtenberg knows how to direct in limited space and create high tension in a condensed runtime.
Where to watch: Hulu
#23 The Black Phone
"Hang up the phone.”
This will definitely be an audience-pleaser for years to come. Written by the son of great horror author Stephen King, the film clearly has a lot of heart and effort put into it which goes a long way. For anyone worried about it being scary, it really isn’t particularly frightening, much to the chagrin of anyone looking for a new horror classic. All this being said, this will be a great movie for a group of friends, even if it involves non-horror lovers who are feeling brave.
Where to watch: Prime Video
#22 MEN
“What is it that you want from me?”
This one is not for the faint of heart. It is gorgeous and disturbing all at once. The message of this can seem extremely blunt and on the nose, which may not be a bad thing. Alex Garland is often much more abstract with the themes of his work, so while the pointedness is surprising, it’s not entirely unwelcome.
Where to watch: Available to rent
#21 Pearl
“I’m a star!”
If it isn’t obvious, 2022 was a big year for horror, but perhaps an even bigger year for Mia Goth who found herself at the center of both Ti West films the year had to offer. The master himself, Martin Scorsese, said that the film was so deeply disturbing that he had trouble sleeping. He continued in his review, “West and his muse and creative partner Mia Goth really know how to toy with their audience… before they plunge the knife into our chests and start twisting.”
Where to watch: Available to rent
#20 Babylon
“I want to be part of something bigger than myself.”
Babylon can often feel like 1 step forward, two steps back. For every moment of magic, there are multiple moments that feel hollow and forced. Yet, with it's 3+ hour runtime, there are bound to be ideas that stick and others that fall flatter than a sax player who doesn't practice.
What makes the difference are a couple of full-throttle performances (Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie), and a director (Damien Chazelle) who's willing to swing for the fences. I was a fan of the now controversial finale but felt much of the conclusion leading up to it was a series of threads that simply weren't long enough to tie into a satisfying knot.
This film won’t be for everyone. The average moviegoer probably won’t enjoy it at all (which is why it is currently bombing at the box office). However, it’s all part of what makes me fascinated to see what the reputation of this grows into. Unappreciated in its time, cult classic, or ultimately forgotten?
Where to watch: In theaters
#19 The Menu
“Babe, please don't smoke. It'll kill your palate.”
Ralph Fiennes never misses.
You may know him as Voldemort, or the Bond franchise’s latest M. However, many know him as a former Hollywood heartthrob who did everything from period piece romances like The English Patient to cult classic SciFi thrillers like Kathryn Bigelow’s Strange Days.
Here we find him as a sadistic chef, determined to right his wrongs, no matter how bitter the results may taste. This dark comedy is an extremely fun watch and will almost certainly make you hungry, or at the very least regret how much you spent on your last fancy meal.
Where to watch: HBO Max
#18 Cha Cha Real Smooth
“I feel like there are things that you just, like, don't say to me. And I can't tell whether you're, like, holding back a desire to be close or a desire to be distant.”
Cooper Raiff is living my alternate life currently. Both his films so far, this and Sh!thouse, are the exact kind of movies I always dreamed of making, specifically in their writing. The characters, the ideas, the no-nonsense dialogue that digresses to joke but cuts to the point when it really matters. Everything about his films (other than the plots themselves) are what I would’ve tried to do had I kept pursuing that dream.
So while yes, I’m a bit jealous, I’m mostly thankful there’s a filmmaker out there who shares such a deep love for simple, yet powerful storytelling that reaches us all in one way or another.
Where to watch: Apple TV+
#17 The Northman
“I will avenge you, Father! I will save you, Mother! I will kill you, Fjölnir!”
I think the photo speaks for itself.
Where to watch: Prime Video
#16 After Yang
“The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu once said: What the caterpillar calls "the end" the rest of the world calls a butterfly.”
Kogonada is back. His previous film, Columbus, is one of my all-time favorite films. To say I was excited about After Yang would be an understatement. This is a beautiful film. One that takes its time to tell the story of a father who realizes his life is passing by faster every day. Colin Farrell gives one of his best performances, while still being his second-best performance of the year.
Where to watch: Fubo and Showtime
#15 Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
“NO! It's just dumb!”
While more a puzzle movie than a straight-up murder mystery, Glass Onion manages to follow in the footsteps of its predecessor while still leaving its own mark. With a star-studded cast and more movies on the way, Rian Johnson has seemingly created the perfect conduit for his dark humor and subtle cynicism. However many of these movies he ends up making, stars will be chomping at the bit to be in them, and studios will be paying up to produce them.
Where to watch: Netflix
#14 Guillermo Del Torro’s Pinocchio
“People are sometimes afraid of things they don't know.”
Let me start by saying I'm a sucker for stop-motion animation. This is right up there with Nightmare Before Christmas and Fantastic Mr. Fox for me. The technical achievement and overall design elements are all next-level. I was all in emotionally and found the new elements added by Del Toro to be extremely effective. I was also blown away by the voice acting (most surprising of which was Cate Blanchett supplying monkey noises).
Where to watch: Netflix
#13 Marcel the Shells with Shoes On
“It reminds me I’m not one piece rattling around but part of the whole.”
This film is an absolute delight. More on it here in my review.
Where to watch: Available to rent
#12 Avatar: The Way of Water
“I know one thing: wherever we go, this family... is our fortress.”
An improvement on the original. Not only visually, but also from a story standpoint, there is much more meat on the tulkun bone. There are few people that know how to build a complicated action sequence quite like James Cameron. The last 45 minutes of this absolutely rips. While the long second-act stretch in the water village can get a bit thin, it is a fascinating world that James Cameron has built, and he’s more than happy to make us feel like we’re living in it.
Where to watch: In theaters
#11 The Batman
“When that light hits the sky, it's not just a call- it's a warning.”
I tried to be a little bit objective with this selection. I could’ve put this at #1 because I love Batman and thought this was an excellent addition to the character’s story. Reeves really draws out the detective element that makes Batman such a fun character. Pattinson is also perfectly cast here. Yes, his Bruce Wayne could liven up a little, but hey, you try staying up all night dressed in that uncomfortable batsuit.
While I truly enjoyed this, I can’t help but wonder if my relief at finally getting a great new Batman movie is making me overrate it a bit. So to be safe, I left it at #11. However, even as I type this I’m regretting my decision.
Where to watch: HBO Max
#10 Decision to Leave
“The moment you said you loved me, your love is over. The moment your love ends, my love begins.”
Though somewhat restrained for Park's usual style, this thing is so incredibly beautiful and precise that its most crushing sequence left me sitting silently in my chair for 10 minutes once the credits eventually rolled. For those expecting the hyper-violence of Oldboy, you are in for a much different type of Park Chan-wook movie.
Where to watch: MUBI
#9 Barbarian
“Do I look like some kind of monster?”
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the year. There is a tonal shift in this movie that will be talked about for years to come. First-time director Zach Cregger takes all kinds of horror movie tropes and makes them his own. If you haven’t seen it, make sure you go in blind.
Where to watch: HBO Max
#8 Everything Everywhere All at Once
“The only thing I do know is that we have to be kind. Please, be kind. Especially when we don't know what's going on”
This film is wholly unique. The Daniels really go for it at every level and I’m here for it.
There are hints of the classic “just be yourself” thematic tropes, however, it does a good job of being much more than that, and at the very least approaching some much bigger questions about who we are and why we’re here. They didn’t get it completely right, but I’m certainly glad the questions were there.
Where to watch: Fubo and Showtime
#7 Armageddon Time
“Sometimes kids at school say bad words about the Black kids.”
“What do you do when that happens?”
“Obviously, nothing, of course.”
“Do you think that's smart?”
I’ve always loved James Gray’s films (Ad Astra and Lost City of Z to specify a couple). Top-notch performances, a moving and complicated autobiographical story, and a clear sense of direction from Gray allow Armageddon Time to embrace difficult subject matter with an honesty and complexity that for me, comes across as wholly genuine.
Where to watch: Available to purchase
#6 Top Gun: Maverick
“The end is inevitable, Maverick. Your kind is headed for extinction.”
Is the above quote about Maverick as a pilot or about blockbuster movie stardom in the current film landscape? Recently Quentin Tarantino made headlines by claiming that the actors in Marvel films are not movie stars, because it’s the characters who are famous, not them. It’s interesting to compare that with other actors who have made a name for themselves before the boom of Marvel such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and countless others who sell tickets by name alone. However, when it comes to the blockbuster movie that you have to see on the big screen, no name sells like Tom Cruise.
Just when we thought he was on the decline, here he comes, with jet fuel in his blood.
Top Gun: Maverick is a full-throttle, edge-of-your-seat, action roller coaster that doesn’t spend too much time focused on everything else.
Where to watch: Paramount+
#5 Aftersun
“Sometimes at playtime, I look up at the sky and if I can see the Sun then... I think that the fact that we can both see the Sun, so even though we're not actually in the same place and we're not actually together... we kind of are in a way, you know? Like we're both underneath the same sky, so... kind of together.”
Devastating and moving. Paul Mescal gives a heartbreaking performance as a father on the edge of self-destruction, and Frankie Corio is excellent as his daughter who is simply trying to understand who her father really is or who he really was.
Where to watch: Available to purchase
#4 The Banshees of Inisherin
“I am not putting me donkey outside when I'm sad, okay?”
Both grounded and completely absurd, Banshees of Inisherin offers the same type of screwball madness that the trio of McDonah/Farrell/Gleason trio brought us with In Bruges. A story of loneliness, family, dreams, and phalanges, this film gives us one of if the not the year’s best performance with Colin Farrell as the saddest man in Ireland. The performances across the board are exceptional as each character carries the melancholic overtones the film imbues.
Where to watch: HBO Max
#3 The Fabelmans
“Movies are dreams that you never forget.”
Much more than another Spielberg movie, he puts his own story on the big screen resulting in what feels to be both an intimate and epic portrait of a young artist just trying to find his place in the world. This is ultimately a love letter to cinema. A testament to film's power to heal, imagine, and sometimes reimagine. There are a lot of moments of the old Spielberg that I’ve missed. The humor, the humanity, the groundedness. This has it all, and then some.
Not to mention it has the cameo of the year. Probably of the entire decade eventually.
Where to watch: Available to rent
#2 Nope
“What’s a bad miracle?”
This could easily have been my number one. I had more conversations about Nope than any other movie last year. Whether people loved it or hated it, It always sparked valuable conversations. Everything in Peele’s work, from his themes to his homages, are done with incredible intentionality and attention to detail. You liking it is never a question of the quality, just of taste.
Click here for more of my thoughts on Nope and some of the deeper themes that are at play.
Where to watch: Peacock
#1 TÁR
“Don't be so eager to be offended. The narcissism of small differences leads to the most boring kind of conformity.”
The closest film to a masterpiece that 2022 had to offer. So dynamic and thought-provoking in a way that feels as though director Todd Field is tightening your strings, waiting for the chance to pluck and see which ones will break. While Nope may have been the film I talked about most, this is the one I wanted to talk about most.
Cate Blanchett is a tour de force. I don’t know that there is any other living actress who could’ve carried this in quite the same way. Tar lives her life with an overwhelming ferocity that swallows any who would stand in her way and cajoles any who may fit her needs at any given moment.
This film teeters on a fine line of questioning the current culture we live in. It does so with open hands, asking the audience to consider where we stand. I firmly believe as time goes on, that TÁR will become increasingly relevant and consistently studied by critics and film enthusiasts alike.
Where to watch: Available to rent