The 10 best movies of 2024: ‘Anora,’ ‘A Real Pain,’ ‘Challengers’

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Joker: Folie à Deux,” “Madame Web,” “Argylle.” They got what they deserve. Oscar winners Francis Ford Coppola and Kevin Costner scored pricey blunders with “Megalopolis” and “Horizon: An American Saga.” After a line of duds, Marvel finally notched a hit with “Deadpool & Wolverine,” but you still can’t help but think that the general public is waving farewell to Superheromania.But, in the midst of the mess, there were some bright spots.

A trio of fabulous performances from women around the age of 60 were bigger talkers than any of their fresh-off-the-boat young colleagues: Pamela Anderson in “The Last Showgirl,” Demi Moore in “The Substance” and Nicole Kidman in “Babygirl.”Cleverly marketed arthouse fare such as “Civil War” and “Longlegs” were able to able to emerge victorious, given the dearth of options, and sell a lot of tickets.And the year-end domestic box office has finally picked up some thanks to “Wicked” and “Moana 2.” But we’re not out of the woods just yet, folks.

Twelve months from now, I suspect exhibitors will be singing a different seasonal carol: “All I want for Christmas is an ‘Avatar’!”Here are the 10 best films of 2024.The best of the year was Sean Baker’s stripper Cinderella tale, starring the incandescent Mikey Madison. “Anora” is the most joyous type of movie experience — just when you think you know exactly what you’re watching, the story of a Brooklyn exotic dancer who spends a whirlwind week with a Russian oligarch’s high-roller son transforms into something altogether unrecognizable and even more wondrous. “Pretty Woman” comparisons are unavoidable, but Baker’s movie throbs with modernity and mines new emotional depth from an old yarn.