Best Movies of 2024: Best of the Techs
The 2024 cinematic year is officially over; now, it is time to look back at the best movies, performances, and achievements of the year. I am going to start by looking at the best technical achievements of 2024. I will be looking at the best screenplays, cinematography, production design, score, and other technical categories. Like every year, each category will have five “nominees” (a.k.a my personal top five) with my “winner” (my favorite) in bold, followed by short reasoning as to why I chose it as the best of the year. Here are my picks for the best of the techs of 2024.
Best Original Screenplay
Ghostlight
- Kelly O’Sullivan’s best work to date is a layered look at a family coping with tragedy and the power of theater and the arts that is loaded with heart, humor, and raw human emotion.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Conclave
Hit Man
- There were a lot of great adaptations this year, but Richard Linklater and Glen Powell taking Skip Hollandsworth’s article and turning that story into one of the most entertaining movies of the year was a great feat of writing and adaptation.
Best Ensemble
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
It’s What’s Inside
Nickel Boys
- Dune Part II had the most stars, and Conclave was the showiest, but the ensemble of Greg Jardin’s directorial debut is full of talented up-and-coming actors and is an integral part of the film’s success.
Best Cinematography
Dune: Part Two
Nickel Boys
Strange Darling
- Beyond its gorgeous look, director RaMell Ross and cinematographer Jomo Fray’s decision to shoot the film from a first-person point of view and show the story through the eyes of two young Black boys was a bold and masterful decision.
Best Production Design
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
The Brutalist
Dune: Part Two
Gladiator II
Nosferatu
- It might be because I miss the old Tim Burton, but seeing him work with practical effects and real sets again was a breath of fresh air and a large part of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s success.
Best Costumes
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Hit Man
Nosferatu
- The outfits and armor of George Miller’s prequel look amazing and authentic and add to the lore of the Wasteland and the Mad Max world.
Best Make-Up and Hair
A Different Man
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
Dune: Part Two
The Substance
- Watching Demi Moore’s Elisabeth descend from a workout model to a lumpy, hunch-backed monster will be seared in my brain for years to come.
Best Editing
The Brutalist
Challengers
Dune: Part Two
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Nickel Boys
- Brady Corbet’s three-and-a-half-hour runtime American epic flew by as I was watching it. I was never bored and was always riveted, which is impressive for a film of this length and complexity.
Best Original Score
The Brutalist
Challengers
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
The Wild Robot
- Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ pulsating score is the one I’ve listened to the most over the last year.
Best Visual Effects
Dune: Part II
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Nosferatu
- Denis Villeneuve’s outstanding sequel is a visual stunner thanks in large part to the incredible visual effects that make the world of Dune: Part II seem endless.
Best Stunts
Bad Boys: Ride or Die
Civil War
Dune: Part II
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
- The War Rig ambush is one of the most exhilarating action sequences in years and a true feat of stunt work and masterful filmmaking.
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