43. The Gray Man (Anthony and Joe Russo)
Sitting at the top of the pile-of-shit movies this year is The Gray Man. Awful dialogue coupled with subpar action in a big-budget film was just a recipe for disaster. While I found other movies worse than The Gray Man, it’s at the bottom of the list because I had pretty high expectations and it flopped miserably in my eyes.
42. The Man From Toronto (Patrick Hughes)
At what point will people realize that just putting Kevin Hart in a movie doesn’t make it good? The plot was thin and dull-witted, and having Woody Harrelson in this was sad. It felt beneath him. Just an overall bad movie with little to no redeeming qualities.
41. Me Time (John Hamburg)
Me Time was slightly better than The Man From Toronto. Slightly. Again, I have the same sentiment that I do about The Man From Toronto where you can’t just put Kevin Hart in a movie and expect it to be good. Two duds this year from a decently funny comedian.
40. Home Team (Charles and Daniel Kinnane)
Home Team felt like a fever dream of a movie. Kevin James being cast as Sean Payton was horrific, but I understand it from the aspect that you weren’t going to get a serious actor to play Sean Payton in a movie for kids. I surprisingly enjoyed the father-son dynamic of Kevin James and his son in this, but that’s about it.
39. Prey For The Devil (Daniel Stamm)
What a bad film. Prey For The Devil has a short run time, but just felt like you were beating punched in the face with boredom. It’s not that the film meandered and took a while to develop, it was just uninteresting. Jacqueline Byers wasn’t bad in her role, but the movie just really sucked.
38. Where The Crawdads Sing (Olivia Newman)
While I do like Daisy Edgar-Jones and thought some of the shots of the marsh were great, this movie flopped. At one point this summer, I went to the movies and was between this and Elvis. Thank God I paid to see Elvis. There was really no redeeming qualities, and it dragged for a good portion of the film.
37. Spiderhead (Joseph Kosinski)
It wasn’t a bad concept, it was just executed horribly. The movie meandered too much and felt discombobulated right from the jump. I like Miles Teller a lot along paired with Chris Hemsworth and Jurnee Smollett, but this movie just sucked. I was super disappointed.
36. The Invitation (Jessica M. Thompson)
The Invitation felt like the vampire rip off of Get Out, which is a remarkable film. Let’s just say The Invitation was far from remarkable. There were good parts like the dinner scene, but overall I found the film to be boring and didn’t have any performances that made you feel invested. I personally feel like vampires are played out and not an entertaining subject to tackle.
35. The Adam Project (Shawn Levy)
I hate Ryan Reynolds. He’s way too tongue-in-cheek with the camera when he’s in movies and has essentially adopted the Deadpool smugness as his real life personality. With that being said, I didn’t hate The Adam Project. I found Walker Scobell to be very entertaining which is difficult for child actors to do. The action sequences were fun and the run time was proper. All in all, I hate Ryan Reynolds.
34. Emily The Criminal (John Patton Ford)
When I saw Emily The Criminal come to Netflix, I debated just not watching it, but I caved. I wasn’t that disappointed. Aubrey Plaza was pretty good, and I found the plot of her as a secret shopper and scam artist to be really interesting. What I hated was the relationship/love interest factor of this film, because it felt unneeded and forced.
33. The Good Nurse (Tobias Lindholm)
While I found Jessica Chastain to be good and Eddie Redmayne to be outstanding, this movie was really bad. It was an intriguing plot, but meandered too much and I despise films that look like they have a colored tint over the camera like Enemy and even the show Ozark. A nursing killing patients is shocking, but I was more baffled when four time All Pro corner Nnamdi Asomugha was playing a police officer.
32. Don’t Worry Darling (Olivia Wilde)
I definitely think Don’t Worry Darling was over-hated when it released, but it’s not very good. It’s essentially a JV Black Mirror episode that went on for too long. Harry Styles was atrocious and probably should stick to making music, but Florence Pugh was dynamic.
31. She Said (Maria Schrader)
She Said suffered from the fact that a movie like Bombshell came out three years early with a bigger cast and tackled essentially the same topic about another disgusting media personality. Overall, this felt like a poor man’s Spotlight and I don’t think it worked. There was lots of overacting from main characters and poor acting from the supporting cast.
30. Jurassic World Dominion (Colin Trevorrow)
This was a prolonged sequel that was simply not needed. While I do feel like it was a completely useless piece of film in the Jurassic Park/World realm, it had fun parts and decent action. Chris Pratt makes these movies enjoyable and it’s neat seeing Jeff Goldblum in the Jurassic World movies.
29. Father Of The Bride (Gary Alazraki)
I’m a bit ashamed to say that I didn’t hate Father Of The Bride. This film included everything that I should hate–an annoying family that thinks the world revolves around them, a cheesy wedding dynamic, and somewhat poor acting. But something made me keep watching and even laugh a few times. One thing I specifically enjoyed was the setting of downtown Miami.
28. Amsterdam (David O. Russell)
Does David O. Russell look at Christian Bale as his Superman? The Fighter was great, but American Hustle was almost saved by Bale’s performance, but Bale couldn’t save Amsterdam. The loaded cast and boring storyline did nothing for me. John David Washington was pretty good, but I was thoroughly let down.
27. Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist (Tony Vainuku, Ryan Duffy)
While I did enjoy following the story, no new information was presented if you’d read about the debacle prior. What was an interesting play for Vainuku and Duffy was having Lennay, a despicable scumbag, speak in the documentary. It was shocking and interesting, but for Te’o’s sake, I didn’t love glorifying her.
26. Day Shift (J.J. Perry)
When I saw Day Shift was coming out, I was generally excited. Then it came out and I forgot about it. I eventually came around to watching it and found it to be a funny horror-comedy. The dynamic between Jamie Foxx and Dave Franco was good because it felt like a cop comedy where Foxx is the seasoned vet and Franco is the geeky, by-the-book rookie.
25. The Stranger (Thomas M. Wright)
There’s a fine line between a slog and a slow burn and The Stranger really straddles that line. I found it to be more of a slog, but the acting from Sean Harris and Joel Edgerton was quite fascinating. This duo really killed their roles and made this dragged out suspense film bearable to watch. Another positive for The Stranger was that the score was very useful in the sense that it built suspense and made you move to the edge of your seat.
24. Bones And All (Luca Guadagnino)
I’m not a fan of Guadagnino as a director, but I can’t knock him for trying with Bones And All. I wasn’t huge on it because the pacing was not great and the ending was atrocious. Timothee Chalamet was really good, but when isn’t he good? What Guadagnino did do well was making the viewer feel uncomfortable. There were points where I had to look away. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad.
23. Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (Eric Appel)
While I did have fun watching Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, it went very over-the-top with the foolishness. Daniel Radcliffe did a good job portraying Weird Al, and the celebrity cameos like Jack Black and Patton Oswalt were funny. Overall though, I think that parodying a biopic can work when you don’t go too far off-kilter.
22. Jackass Forever (Jeff Tremaine)
Having this lower on the list doesn’t mean that Jackass Forever was bad, it just means that there were a lot of better movies this year. I enjoyed the usage of new age Jackass members and the familiar faces. You really are starting to see the new guard take over. Some of their pranks had me howling in theaters, such as the blackout room and the slip and slide.
21. Thor: Love and Thunder (Taika Waititi)
While a lot of the dialogue was a miss and I didn’t care too much about the Jane Foster storyline, I think that having Gorr as the villain was a A+ decision. Bale in this role really saved a subpar superhero movie. I thought that some of the action sequences were well-done, but overall it wasn’t a great movie. Going into this movie, I didn’t have high expectations so I wasn’t overly let down.
20. Hustle (Jeremiah Zagar)
All I have to say is Anthony Edwards should’ve won an Oscar. Not many athletes can transition to the big screen better than he did. While the story was predictable, and I wasn’t a fan of the father-daughter dynamic, I still enjoyed this movie. Adam Sandler in a serious role has worked the past few attempts. In addition, I feel like they left the door open for a sequel, but I don’t need that. No one needs that.
19. The Fabelmans (Steven Spielberg)
While I did enjoy seeing how Steven Spielberg got into film, I do have some issues with the film. Everything that Sam Fabelman does in this movie makes him look like the good guy. From making his bully look good in the Senior Skip Day film to being ahead of the curve on his mothers affair, he always looks good. I also read that Spielbergs girlfriend in the film was completely farcical. SPIELBERG GETS NO BITCHES. All of that aside, I loved Paul Dano and Seth Rogens performances and the movie was enjoyable.
18. Bullet Train (David Leicht)
Going into Bullet Train, I didn’t have high expectations. I felt as if the film look too farfetched, but there were aspects I really loved. I enjoyed the whole film taking place in one concealed area with as much action as it had. Something I found amusing was that a lot of the characters were relatable and added great doses of humor throughout.
17. Entergalactic (Fletcher Moules)
Entergalactic flew under the radar this year, but it was a very fun watch. It had a Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse feel to it, with the vibrant colors, animation, and killer soundtrack. It’d definitely be cool to have Kid Cudi narrate my life with his humming. It’s awfully peaceful. The neighbor next door, rom-com plot was enjoyable, and there weren’t many unlikeable characters.
16. Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (Guillermo del Toro)
While I’m not a fan of Guillermo del Toros directing, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I never would have guessed that an animated Pinocchio film would derive real emotions of happiness and sadness from me, but del Toro was able to do that. The story line revolving around real life war events was creative and interesting, but my one main gripe is that there was too much of a musical movie to my liking.
15. The Banshees of Inisherin (Martin McDonagh)
I was very intrigued about the release of The Banshees of Inisherin, and it delivered on my expectations. The film incorporated a good amount of shock factor, humor, and a beautifully constructed plot line. While Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson gave good performances, my favorite came from Barry Keoghan as the island’s creepy recluse.
14. Everything Everywhere All At Once (Daniel Schienert, Daniel Kwan)
Many people have hailed Everything Everywhere All At Once as the best film of 2022 and I’d agree that it’s one of the best…just not THE best. I didn’t fall in love with the storyline, but I did fall in love with Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Wang. I’d heard rumblings that she should be the front-runner for Best Actress this year, and I think that it should be between her and Anya Taylor-Joy in The Menu. Another thing I loved in this film was the constant change of scenery where Yeoh is in a beautiful ball gown to watching her daughter get shot. It’s quite magnificent. There’s also a nice shoutout to 2001: A Space Odyssey.
13. The Sea Beast (Chris Williams)
There were a lot of elements from How To Train Your Dragon in The Sea Beast. A lot. I don’t really think that’s a bad thing because I loved the How To Train Your Dragon movies. The premise was cute, and the character development went in a direction I didn’t anticipate with Jacob Holland transitioning from a ferocious hunter to a person that loves and respects the monsters he once hunted. It was a very heart-warming film.
12. See How They Run (Tom George)
This felt like Tom George wanted to direct a Wes Anderson version of Knives Out, and I really enjoyed it. The “who done it?” plot line being centered around a “who done it?” play is a perfect use of redundancy. Performances from Sam Rockwell, Adrien Brody, and Saoirse Ronan only made See How They Run better.
11. Avatar: The Way Of Water (James Cameron)
My most vibrant memory of going to the movies as a child was going to see the first Avatar, so it only felt fitting that I see The Way Of Water in theaters. While I could easily nitpick a lot of the cheesy and telegraphed acting, I’m not going to because that’s not what you do when you see Avatar. You admire how beautiful it is. I enjoyed how the plot picked right back up from the first one even thirteen years later.
10. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (Rian Johnson)
Sequels are tough to execute because you want the second film to be just as interesting and entertaining as the first, without tarnishing the legacy of the first. Rian Johnson did a masterful job on Glass Onion by using an entirely new cast of characters. Daniel Craig was once again fantastic, but I really felt like Ed Norton stole the show. In addition, Janelle Monae was outstanding and the plot of Glass Onion was wildly creative.
9. The Menu (Mark Mylod)
The Menu was a rush. Mylod found a great balance of comedy to interject into this horror film that took an untraditional route rather than using gore and jump scares. He used suspense and shock factor to strike fear into the hearts of his audience. Ralph Fiennes gave an outstanding performance and should be nominated for Best Actor, and Anya Taylor-Joy should absolutely be considered for Best Actress.
8. Elvis (Baz Luhrmann)
Biopics can be tough to master, but Baz Luhrmann proved the masses wrong. Elvis was a really exhilarating theater-going experience, at least for the first half. While I do comprehend that the second half of Elvis’s life wasn’t as glamorous as the first half, the last hour could have been condensed to twenty-five minutes. A positive though is that Austin Butler will almost certainly be nominated for Best Actor and should have a shot at winning the award.
7. Top Gun: Maverick (Joseph Kosinski)
COVID-19 pushed the release of Top Gun: Maverick almost two years, which caused a lot of hype to build up. Amazingly, this film delivered. Seeing it in theaters was a fun and exciting experience. The cast that was picked to be Top Gun candidates was fantastic with Miles Teller, Glen Powell, and Monica Barbaro, along with the casting of Jon Hamm as the Admiral. What doesn’t make this a top-three movie is that it turned into Mission Impossible at the end of the movie. Top Gun is about flying jets, not Tom Cruise performing insane stunts. Overall though, the movie rocked.
6. The Batman (Matt Reeves)
The Batman was pretty close to being perfect. I hated the Ben Affleck Batman and had many qualms about Robert Pattinson, but he played the role beautifully. Paul Dano as the Riddler was fantastic casting, and the way in which Matt Reeves made this more like a detective movie rather than an unrealistic superhero film was well done. What made The Batman “not perfect” was the lopsided pacing. The final hour dragged on a bit, and could have been condensed. While The Batman is a direct ripoff of Se7en, I had no issue with it because I love Se7en.
5. Nope (Jordan Peele)
Even though I’m not traditionally a science fiction fan, Nope was awesome. There was a lot of deep imagery and callbacks to the beginning of the film that I enjoyed, like Gordy the Chimp and the unnamed jockey in “Plate 626.” The visual effects were awesome, and Jordan Peele’s writing once again shined. It’s an outstanding concept that he and the cast of Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun, and Daniel Kaluuya knocked out of the park. What Jaws did for shark watching is what Nope will do for cloud watching in the future, that’s how mind bending this film was.
4. The Whale (Darren Aronofsky)
Darren Aronofsky is a genius and a sick bastard that creates uncomfortable and entertaining films about common people. If you went into The Whale not knowing who Aronofsky is…yikes. This man made Requiem For A Dream and Black Swan. He lives for tastefully over the top and in your face. Brendan Fraser gives the best performance of his entire career and we need to acknowledge that Hong Chau is having an unreal year of outstanding performances with this and The Menu. This film made me laugh, cry hard, and feel true emotions. I didn’t love the ending, but it was done quick and concisely. All around magnificent picture.
3. Babylon (Damien Chazelle)
DAMIEN CHAZELLE IS SO BACK. I thought that he would be a one hit wonder with Whiplash as La La Land was okay and First Man stunk, but he delivered. This felt like Chazelle took a handful of mushrooms and directed a Boogie Nights and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood mix. The entire film radiates a party atmosphere, even when things turn south. I personally believe that Margot Robbie gave her best career performance in Babylon and Diego Calva put his name on the map. Just a wonderful picture.
2. All Quiet On The Western Front (Edward Berger)
All Quiet On The Western Front blew me away. This Edward Berger, World War One film is easily one of my three favorite war movies ever. The way in which Berger shows young men romanticizing the war to be heroes and then have a “welcome to war” moment almost fifteen minutes later was heartbreaking and eye-opening. The score he chose fit the film like a glove, and the cinematography was beautiful.
1. Marcel The Shell With Shoes On (Dean Fleischer Camp)
I’ve seen a lot of movies this year, but none were as good as Marcel The Shell With Shoes On. This movie had me crying in the theater with tears of joy at times and tears of sadness at others. I adored the relationship between Marcel and his Nana so much, and it made Marcel an even more likable and plucky character. No movie in 2022 compares to this Dean Fleischer Camp masterpiece.