The Best of 2022: Time to Move It Along

 

Let's not complicate things. It was a fine year to watch movies in 2022.

There was much hand-wringing late last year about the decline of mid-budget, director-centric, "prestige" films, a supposed crisis for the movie industry beyond superhero sequels and Disney epics. ("We’re now seeing a grim future for 'cinema' at the movie theater," lamented this thoughtful essay.)

But below you'll find at least 20 very good (even great) movies that won't insult your intelligence, many of which did fine financially (and half of which screened at the independent single-screen Guild Cinema). The problem in 2022 wasn't the bottom dropping out of the market for quality movies; it was a lack of quality movies from the usual suspects who churn out "prestige" films. It's no wonder that it was an epic year for box-office bombs.

We skipped a lot of releases this year, and the main reason was that they looked like navel-gazing slogs, way too long in running time. The poster boy for that is Steven Spielberg, whom we gave up on years ago. His shlocky childhood reverie "The Fabelmans" weighs in at 2 hours 31 minutes. Another pampered storyteller, James Gray ("The Yards," "Ad Astra"), also mined his own childhood, though he managed to do it in just under two hours.

Maybe it doesn't pay to over-indulge mid-career filmmakers and hand them big budgets and unlimited run times. Alejandro Inarritu ("21 Grams," "Babel") has done great work -- "Birdman" was our favorite film of 2014 -- but his 2-hour 39-minute film about a filmmaker having an existential crisis, is no one's idea of a good time at the cineplex. James Cameron's "Avatar" (which we'd never see anyway) surpassed 3 hours, as did favorite son and the epitome of privilege, Damien Chazelle (a B-level director if there ever was one: "Whiplash," "La La Land"), with his repulsive spectacle "Babylon." Others that put us off with their content and/or time-commitment:

• "Everything Everywhere All at Once": Sensory overload-squared, it looked like 2 hours and 19 minutes of numbing mayhem.
• "Tar": Award desperation from Cate Blanchett, from a director (Todd Field) who graces us with his art only rarely; it clocked in at 2:38.
• The Whitney Houston biopic, from the hacks behind "Bohemian Rhapsody," running 2:24.  More voguing: "Elvis" (from the King of Excess Baz Luhrmann) ran 2:39, and the Marilyn Monroe biopic "Blonde" droned on for 2:47.
  
• "Triangle of Sadness," from the overrated Ruben Oestlund ("Force Majeure"), like "Babylon," featured a lot of bodily fluids spewing forth, though the studio managed to rein him in to a mere 2 hours, 27 minutes.
• We miss Jordan Peele's days in front of the camera, and a casual perusal of "Nope" (2:15) revealed another chore of a story to try to keep up with (like "Get Out").
• David O. Russell gets more and more insufferable; his latest, "Amsterdam," was a 2-hour 14-minute bomb.
  
• Me-Too morality play "She Said" looked like a sad stepchild of "All the President's Men," even if, at 2:19, it was 9 minutes shorter than Alan Pakula's masterpiece.
• Pulp Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook slowed things down for a chaste love story, "Decision to Leave," at a relatively snappy 2 hours, 16 minutes. 
• A couple of major disappointments (these we actually saw) from -- yet again -- mid-career auteurs were "White Noise" (Noah Baumbach, 2:10) and "Bones and All" (Luca Guadagnino, 2:10).
  

It was like a year-long "Heaven's Gate" contest.

Which isn't to say that we hold any animus toward mid-career auteurs. That's why it feels good to give our top spot this year to Martin McDonagh, who has bumbled a bit since 2008's "In Bruges" (like with "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri") but who put it all together with "The Banshees of Inisherin," a thoughtful, mature, adult story about two friends going through a break-up. It is smart, funny, nuanced, heartwarming and heartbreaking. And it runs only 1 hour and 54 minutes. McDonagh is a writer-director who gets out of the way of his cast and doesn't overstay his welcome.

Other mid-career filmmakers who are finding fascinating narratives and fresh ways to tell their stories include Europeans Celine Sciamma ("Petite Maman"), Jacques Audiard ("Paris, 13th District") and Joachim Trier ("The Worst Person in the World"). Though that's not to say, either, that popular pulpy movies can't be appreciated outside of the art-houses. You'll find "The Menu" and "Emily the Criminal" in our Top 20. "Top Gun: Maverick" (2:10) was a lot of fun on the Imax screen, and Ti West's hokey horror throwbacks "X" and "Pearl" were worth seeing on the big screen.

Meanwhile, of the 20 films below, 9 of them are debut feature films and documentaries. There are new voices out there, and we needn't go back to the well with old or middle-aged filmmakers whose excesses don't get reined in. (Films below from debut directors are marked with an *.)

There are good movies being made and distributed. If you can cut through the clutter from the pampered favorites of the mainstream, you'll find the gems.

THE TOP 20 of '22

  1. The Banshees of Inisherin: Colin Farrell leads the way in Martin McDonagh's most fully realized film. (This year's best screenplay.) (Stream on HBO)

  2. Petite Maman: Celine Sciamma perfectly executes a wonderful idea about childhood and our relationship with our parents. (Hulu)

  3. Apples*: A droll and melancholy rumination on self and memory. (Mubi)

  4. The Janes: A flawless documentary about the pre-Roe women who set up an underground railroad for those seeking abortions. (HBO)

  5. The Worst Person in the World: Another great movie from Joachim Trier (this year's best director), following along as a young woman (Renate Reinsve) searches for her purpose. (DVD)

  6. Corsage: A fascinating character study and feminist howl. (Theaters)

  7. Who We Are: A Chronicle of Race in America: An eye-opening polemic, simply rendered. (Netflix)

  8. God's Country*: A meticulously constructed and whipsmart back-country thriller. (DVD 2/28/23)

  9. Emily the Criminal*: A compact suspense film powered by Aubrey Plaza's magnetism. (Netflix)

10. The Menu: A fun, smart skewering of the rich and indulgent. (HBO)

11.  Aftersun*: Another debut feature, this one about a father-daughter reverie of a vacation from the '90s. (Theaters)

12. Queen of Glory*: A funny and heartwarming debut film about a young woman dealing with her eccentric immigrant family. (DVD)

13. My Old School*: A crazy-fun documentary about a con man, with a boost from re-enactments and Alan Cumming. (Hulu)

14. Fire of Love: "A fascinating slice of history wrapped in a love story." (Disney+)

15. A Love Song*: A simple, mournful love story featuring a couple of older actors.

16. Paris, 13th District: A keenly observed drama about Millennials navigating their way through relationships. (DVD)

17. Hold Me Tight: We almost walked out; and then we were floored by Mathieu Almaric's narrative daring. (Mubi/Kino Now)

18. Compartment No. 6: Another fascinating young woman, this one sharing space on a train with a rough Russian. (DVD)

19. Let the Little Light Shine*: An inspiring documentary about kids and parents fighting the system to keep their high-performing high school open. (PBS-POV)

20. Playground*: One of the most harrowing, emotionally wrenching movies you can imagine about school life for little kids. And it's only 72 minutes long. (Mubi)

 

JUST MISSED THE LIST

• A quietly affecting story of a boy searching for his father, The Box.
• Tim Roth, compelling as a depressed rich guy, in Sundown.
• Another debut feature, about a teen yearning to escape her small village, Murina.
• A fun fling about actors preparing a film project, Official Competition.
• Cooper Raiff ("Shithouse") pulls off his sophomore effort, Cha Cha Real Smooth.
• A strong debut feature about family dynamics, Hit the Road.
• A luxurious drama about a mother helping her young daughter obtain an abortion, Lingui, the Sacred Bonds.
• The ragtag group road trip movie from Hirokazu Kore-eda, "Broker."
  

 

MORE TOP DOCS

• Moonage Daydream
• Attica
• Accepted
• A Most Beautiful Thing
  
• Sr.
• Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power
• Riotsville USA
• Live at Mr. Kelly's
  
• Cow
  

TOP PERFORMANCES

• Mia Goth, manic in both "X" and "Pearl."
  
• Colin Farrell, backed by wonderful character actors, in "The Banshees of Inisherin."
• Aubrey Plaza, riveting and at her peak in "Emily the Criminal" (with a big assist from co-star Theo Rossi).
• Penelope Cruz, deliriously loopy in "Official Competition."
• Vicky Krieps, powerful in "Corsage."
• Adam Driver, the grown-up in "White Noise."
  
• Renate Reinsve, captivating in "The Worst Person in the World."
• Little Josephine Sanz in "Petite Maman."

 

THE LEFTOVERS

Some 2021 films we caught up with:  "Mass" -- a stunning examination of grief among two sets of parents -- would have made our top ten of 2021 had we seen it in time. ... Paulo Sorrentino turned in a fine, workmanlike job going back to his childhood for the gorgeous and heartwarming "Hand of God."

Wayback Machine:  We ventured to the '60s and '70s to further explore the catalogue of Jack Lemmon, including Billy Wilder's "Avanti." ... We paid tribute to the late Peter Bogdanovich, screening "What's Up Doc," and William Hurt ("Broadcast News"). ... We revisited John Sayles' labor masterpiece, "Matewan." ... We finally braved the mediocre "Godfather 3" and then cleansed our palates with the epic originals, Parts 1 and 2. ... We traveled to France in the '80s for "Loulou" and "36 Fillette." ... There was the Robert Forster double feature, "Medium Cool" and "Alligator." ... And we bade au revoir to Jean-Luc Godard (part of a continuing series).

 

 

GUILTY PLEASURES

• It was easy to overlook the corniness and Tom Cruise-ness and just enjoy the rote storytelling and visual extravaganza of "Top Gun: Maverick."
• Ti West went back in time for some quality horror parodies, and he was lucky to have Mia Goth as his star, in both "X" and "Pearl."
• Jeff Baena gathered some of his stars from 2017's "Little Hours" and got pleasantly silly again with Alison Brie in "Spin Me Round."
  

 

IT'S NOT YOU, IT'S ME

(Well, maybe this time it is you)

• Noah Baumbach, whose movies we've chronicled for more than a quarter century, was out of his depth in the big-budget attempt to adapt Don DeLillo, "White Noise."
  
• Claire Denis scored with Juliette Binoche the last time they teamed up ("Let the Sunshine In") but they bombed together with the tedious "Both Sides of the Blade."
  
• Andrew Bujalski made us start to question his entire Mumblecore oeuvre after his latest fumble, "There There."
• Steven Soderbergh's work was just OK in "Kimi."
• Jean-Pierre Jeunet ("Delicatessen," "Amelie") underwhelmed with the cluttered "Big Bug."
• Luca Guadagnino has two of the great films of the past 15 years ("I Am Love" and "A Bigger Splash") but he made the worst movie I saw in quite a while, the story of young cannibal love, "Bones and All."
  

COMING ATTRACTIONS

Here are a bunch we wanted to see but didn't get the chance:

• Jafar Panahi's latest, "No Bears," not arriving here until late February.
• Sarah Polley's latest, "Women Talking."
• The documentary about photographer Nan Goldin, "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed."
• The documentary "Dear Mr. Brody."
  

Join us in 2023 as we track down those titles and more of the finest movies you wouldn't otherwise think of watching.