2022 is over, which means the time of ranking 2022 films is at its peak. This process will continue through the Oscars, at which point we’ll have already had Sundance and the whole circus will begin again.
I don’t really believe in choosing favorites, or in ranked lists, but I do like to finish an annual Top-10 list, as it serves as an interesting snapshot of the year.
So I’ve dutifully compiled this year’s list. It was a particularly interesting one for me, as I felt incredibly solid on my top 5, but really wasn’t sure about 5-10. There are often films that I am fascinated by (Elvis), and want to include due to the way their messiness has caught my attention. There are films that have hugely impacted my personal sphere of pop culture (Barbarian), but aren’t actually moving in terms of story or craft. There are films that were blissfully enjoyable to watch (RRR), but I don’t feel I have the cultural knowledge to fully grapple with and understand on its own terms. There are films that may have premiered in 2021, but didn’t make their way to theaters near me until months in 2022 that I’m including because they were a key part of my 2022 experience. And then, of course, there are the dozens of films I have yet to see (After Yang and All the Beauty and the Bloodshed amongst others) that would likely change my mind but are going to have to remain in my “to-watch” list for a while longer.
It’s also interesting to see how often my assigned star ratings in my film diary (which I keep on Letterboxd, if you’d like to follow me or keep track of your own movie watching) differ from how I feel about the films months later. Films that felt undeniable in the moment sometimes fade, while others have staying power that increases my estimation of them. Again, I have to mention Elvis here, because months later I can recall entire sequences of that film with near-perfect clarity— so that film, a 3-star joint based on my initial notes, may not have stuck the landing but it sure was on to something.
That’s probably enough of my philosophizing, but the thing is… I love movies! I love thinking about them, our experiences with them, the way they tell stories through the slightest movements and shadows. I love how looking back at my film diary reminds me of the experiences I had before and after the movies, of who I was with, of what I was preoccupied with that day. In a year that, in my personal life, had very high highs and low lows, I love the context that my year in movies gives to me, and I’m grateful for the comfort that many of these films have provided.
Anyway, here it is— my top 10 films of 2022.
10. Crimes of the Future
While the body-horror/gross-out aspect of David Cronenberg’s latest was probably oversold, this surreal noir is a beautiful continuation of the director’s favorite themes: the commodification of our bodies and the inherent violence of modern life. The film’s proddings into “inner beauty,” a phrase which Cronenberg first used years ago in Dead Ringers, feel more prescient and urgent than ever for our over-regulated bodies living in a decaying world.
9. Nope
Jordan Peele’s latest is not as overtly metaphorical as his first two films, but still features all of the things that have made his previous films great. To me, the key to this film lies in the flashbacks of Gordy the chimp and his violent episode on the set of a TV sitcom, which gives us a preview of what happens when people oppress others to serve capitalism.
8. Decision to Leave
Park Chan-wook’s thriller dips its toes into the “erotic thriller” category without fully jumping in— which is because Park’s characters don’t experience the erotic the way most of us do. Obsession, fascination, stalking, providing a mystery— that’s the way these characters romance each other— and the finale features an “I Love You” that is perverse, yes, but even more tragic. After all, how does a person express love when they’ve never given or received it before?
7. Everything Everywhere All At Once
A film so big that it literally spills into other universes is the right size of film in which Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, and Stephanie Hsu should star. Thematically, it lives up to its title— it’s a bit of everything all at once. That’s a lot to take on, but the film’s ambition turns into adrenaline which turns into a big, mushy, tearful hug. I love a film that reminds me to hold my loved ones closer.
6. Petite Maman
Fully understanding that your parents were once children—and in many ways still are— is a formative experience in everyone’s life, and an experience with Celine Sciamma brings to life with a tenderness and patience reminiscent of Miyazaki. This 72-minute film is so gentle that its impact sneaks up on you, revealing just how monumental everyday experiences can be.
5. Top Gun: Maverick
Sometimes a movie is crafted so impeccably that it is absolutely undeniable. Tom Cruise is a weird guy, I don’t deny it, but he’s also one of the only filmmakers working today who understands Hollywood flicks on a molecular level, if not deeper. The story works, the emotions land, the tension rises, the plot rewards, the stakes are high, and the payoff is utterly intoxicating. This is a movie-movie— one that celebrates the experience of sitting in a theater with popcorn and a carbonated beverage, hooting and hollering in a moment of communal audience bliss.
4. The Fabelmans
It’s selling this film short to view it as Spielberg’s origin story. To me, it’s more along the lines of Mike Mills’ Beginners and 20th Century Woman— it’s a filmmaker looking at his parents with the empathy a whole life of experience has granted him, contextualizing their faults and their love with the knowledge of how hard living really is. Every moment of this film is imbued with love— love for film, for laughter, for hardship, for weirdness, and most of all for family.
3. Memoria
Regardless of spiritual or religious leanings, connection is a powerful source of the sublime. Memoria is the story of a connection across time and geography and reality. The main character’s pursuit of a strange noise’s origin leads her to discover a shared memory far beyond the scope of imagination. This films pulls you into its world via silence and stillness, a mesmerizing experience that primes viewers to understand why we can still hear the echoes of humanity’s past and beyond.
2. TÁR
Have you ever listened to a piece of music or read a passage of poetry or seen a piece of art that bowled you over with such force that you’ve had to acknowledge the unworldly talent of its creator? That’s what it’s like to watch Cate Blanchett in TÁR. Here genius and cruelty and narcissism and beauty and love and obsession all coexist in writhing, boiling interconnectedness, and not once does Todd Field take the easy way out. I cannot wait to watch it again.
1. Aftersun
I think film’s greatest power is the ability to communicate the things we can’t say with words… and that is Aftersun’s essence. This intimate little drama, about a girl on the cusp of puberty and her loving-but-lost father, speaks to the smallest pains and realizations of life, and the ephemeral nature of… well, everything. Life is short and moments pass by all too quickly, which makes living really, really hard… and also beautiful.
That’s it! What did I miss? Do you agree or disagree with my choices? Let me know by leaving a comment or replying to this email. Happy new year!