4 Years Later, These Are the 10 Best Movies of 2022
Writing from the Chicagoland area in Illinois, Robert is an avid movie watcher and will take just about any excuse to find time to go to his local movie theaters. Robert graduated from Bradley University with degrees in Journalism and Game Design with a minor in Film Studies. Robert tries his best to keep up with all the latest movie releases, from those released in theaters to those released on streaming. While he doesn't always keep up with the latest TV shows, he makes it a goal to watch nearly every major new release possible. He has been honing his craft and following any and all movie news all his life, leading up to now, where he has a vast knowledge of film and film history. He also logs every movie that he watches on his Letterboxd page, and has hosted a weekly online movie night with his closest friends for over 6 years.
2022 is a largely important year for film history, being the first full year when movie theaters as an industry were back in full throttle following the shutdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic. The year had a lot of great films that helped make the year memorable, from massively successful blockbuster films to widely celebrated indie darlings. However, perceptions and appreciation can shift a lot even in a short amount of time, as the 4 years since 2022 have provided a lot of reflection upon the best films released in the year.
Time has also allowed many of 2022's initially underground yet massively celebrated films to reach wider audiences, where they have been appreciated and grown into classics for both the year and the decade as a whole. It's also had the adverse effect of some films that were initially massively celebrated as the best of 2022 not aging as well in the years since their release. While far from the only great films from 2022, these stand out as some of the highest-quality the year has to offer.
10 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish'
It still feels absolutely wild that the sequel to the Shrek spinoff film Puss in Boots, released 11 years after the original film, was not only great but one of the best films that DreamWorks Animation has ever released. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish utilizes beautiful stylized animation and a surprisingly poignant message about making the most of life to create one of the defining animated movie masterpieces of the 2020s.
The film has massively grown its reputation since its initially lukewarm release at the tail end of 2022, with a lengthy box-office run in the early months of 2023 and massive success on streaming services like Netflix. It stands as one of the defining stylized animated movies of recent memory and helped push forward this movement and evolution of stylized 3D animation in the modern day. While not the best animated movie of 2022, it still easily earns its spot as one of the best cinematic experiences that the year had to offer.
9 'The Northman'
Image via Focus Features
While director Robert Eggers is more prominently celebrated for his exceptional horror films like The Witch and Nosferatu, The Northman utilizes his signature filmmaking charms for a completely different genre: an action-adventure revenge film. It follows a young prince (Alexander Skarsgård) who has his life destroyed when his father is brutally murdered by his uncle, sending him on a path of training to become a hardened Viking warrior, now hellbent on revenge to avenge his father.
The strengths that make Eggers' filmmaking so striking and impactful in the realm of horror work perfectly within this dark, grueling look at the age of Vikings. The production design is immaculate, the choreography and fight sequences are breathtaking to witness, and its central story of revenge is highly engaging to watch unfold. While the film was a box-office disappointment when it first released, time has been incredibly kind to the film, as its strengths are now massively celebrated years later.
8 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio'
Stop-motion has always stood as one of the most impressive forms of animation out there, with breathtaking visuals and impressive craft often making them critically acclaimed darlings. This reputation followed suit for the long-awaited stop-motion adaptation of Pinocchio from one of the greatest fantasy filmmakers, Guillermo del Toro. Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio proves to be much more than just a simple retelling of the classic story, with del Toro's signature dark fantasy style fitting this stop-motion world perfectly.
The film does a brilliant job of combining the classic strengths and joyous charm of the original story while placing it in a darker, more serious world rife with corruption and the rising tides of fascism. It makes for what is easily one of the greatest adaptations of Pinocchio, standing tall as its own standalone experience that can be enjoyed entirely separately from all the other more classical Pinocchio adaptations. The dark fantasy masterpiece has only grown more appreciated with time, especially thanks to being easily experienced as a Netflix original film.
7 'Nope'
Few filmmakers have so dominantly defined the culture and excitement surrounding horror filmmaking in the past decade like Jordan Peele, so it comes as no surprise that his most recent sci-fi horror film, Nope, is the standout horror experience of 2022. Like Peele's previous films, Nope is filled with subtextual brilliance and layers of dynamic thematics that make the experience of rewatching and reminiscing on the film that much more striking.
This allows the film to grow in appreciation and popularity over time, with it now being considered by some to even be on the same level as Get Out. This is on top of all of the elements and strengths that the film was praised for when it was first released, including its great performances, highly engaging mystery, and an exceptional sense of scale that makes use of its blockbuster budget. While audiences have been patiently waiting for Peele's next film, Nope has done a great job of keeping fans occupied until Peele's next masterpiece.
6 'Marcel the Shell with Shoes On'
Based on the fan-favorite YouTube videos of the same name, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is an incredibly endearing story of grief and the beauty of life that has tugged at the heartstrings of those who witnessed it. The emotional animated film soars to great heights thanks to the earnest qualities of its filmmaking, with feel-good whimsy perfectly complementing the real pain and struggles felt by its characters.
It taps into a sense of emotional maturity and joy that is oftentimes lost in many modern animated films, not relying on bright colors and high energy, but instead creating a mellow, feel-good experience that can be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of age. It also helps that the titular shell himself is an absolute blast to watch on screen, not just being a cutesy mascot but having some real depth and personality that makes his misadventures and back-and-forth with Dean a blast to watch.
5 'Decision to Leave'
South Korean director Park Chan-wook has consistently proven himself to be one of the strongest and most prolific voices in 21st-century filmmaking, with Decision to Leave furthering his legacy as one of the best filmmakers working today. This tight-knit romance thriller follows a detective (Park Hae-il) investigating the death of a man who plummeted from a mountain peak in South Korea. While the dead man's wife (Tang Wei) is the leading suspect, the investigation begins to go awry when the detective falls into a web of lies and desire.
With so many moving pieces and intricacies to its story and characters, Decision to Leave is an experience that constantly has the audience guessing as it evolves and expands upon its concepts with pinpoint precision and expertise. Chan-wook's filmmaking style also elevates the film considerably, utilizing modern technologies as a part of the central story better than any other modern filmmaker.
4 'RRR'
A gloriously passionate story of brotherhood and rebellion that broke through cultural barriers and became a global phenomenon the likes of which no other Indian film has ever achieved, RRR is a true masterpiece of spectacle. Throughout its massive 3+ hour runtime, the action epic keeps audiences invested and engaged for the entire runtime, not holding back for a second and delivering pure adrenaline-pumping spectacle on a level few blockbuster action films come close to achieving.
This icon of 2020s action filmmaking is a shining example of how high-budget blockbuster filmmaking has been thriving in regions outside of North America, as RRR helped usher in a new wave of exceptional Indian-language blockbusters to have newfound global appeal and success. Even 4 years removed from the film's release, its level of blood-pumping excitement is still seen as incredibly memorable and one-of-a-kind in its execution.
3 'TÁR'
A powerful story on the corrupting nature of power and the complexities of accountability in the modern age, TÁR navigates these intricate concepts seamlessly, telling a shocking, powerful story that has only grown more relevant in the years since its release. The film follows the story of highly celebrated conductor Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett), who, while in the process of rehearsing for a career-defining symphony, begins to see her life crashing around her due to actions in the past now haunting her in the present.
There's a level of intelligence and seamless self-aware filmmaking within TÁR that has made it one of the quintessential films of the MeToo era. It tells this haunting, sinister story of how those with even the slightest bit of power and influence in their industry will abuse said power over those below them, oftentimes in sinister and truly despicable ways. Even more insidious is how, even after these actions come to life, attempts at retribution can be inadequate and oftentimes even temporary.
2 'Aftersun'
Aftersun was certainly celebrated as one of 2022's best films when it was first released, but the film has received a massive influx of recognition and praise in the years following its release, as one of the biggest tearjerkers that modern cinema has to offer. Charlotte Wells' deeply personal story of memory, paternal depression, and the complexities of grief has grown a monumental reputation for itself in the time since its release.
The deeper, more abstract, and subliminal messaging of the film served only to amplify its appeal to many audiences, as its heartbreaking story of loss lands that much more once all of the pieces are put together. It's one of the clearest examples of a film getting that much better on rewatch as well, further amplifying its stature and growing reputation in the years since its release not just as one of the best films of 2022, but as one of the best films of the past 10 years.
1 'Everything Everywhere All at Once'
On the one hand, it feels rather silly to have Everything Everywhere All at Once at the top of a "Best of 2022" list years removed from its success, as the film was already massively celebrated and showered with awards as the best film of the year. However, time has only proven to solidify the strengths of Everything Everywhere All at Once, with its inherent charms and exceptional filmmaking still leaving a mark on audiences years later.
The action is still incredibly engaging and satisfying; its central characters are still deeply layered and entertaining to watch, and no other film has truly been able to recapture or recreate its signature magic in the years since its release. The film certainly doesn't appeal to everyone, but its also been overwhelmingly loved by the majority who fell in love with its charms and style. It's still one of the most distinct and one-of-a-kind movie experiences that the 2020s have had to offer, as the clear choice for the best film of 2022 and what will easily be considered by many to be one of the best films of the decade.
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