As Las Vegas evolves into a new Hollywood, we take a look at some of the best and worst films of the year.
All year long, we’ve discussed Sin City’s passion for movies, from Vegas-based shoots to a pair of incoming production studios. But what about the films themselves?
VEGAS 411 covers premieres for small independent titles on our official Facebook page. This list will focus on those available to nationwide audiences. Here in no particular order is our first Best-of, Worst-of, and WTF – The Movies!
THE BEST
The Substance – A knockout film and my favorite movie of the year. Demi Moore gives the best performance of her career, Margaret Qualley becomes an instant star, and Dennis Quaid chews the scenery…quite literally. It’s packed with social commentary on aging and relevance.
If you loved Jeff Goldblum in David Cronenberg’s THE FLY, don’t miss The Substance. Not for the squeamish.
A Quiet Place Day One – A prequel with more heart and depth than its predecessors. A Quiet Place Day One introduces far more interesting characters, including an Oscar-worthy performance from ‘Frodo the Cat’ (played by Schnitzel and Nico). Nail-biting visuals, a deeper insight into how the world fell apart, and a heart-wrenching finale that may leave you sobbing. My favorite film of the summer.
Late Night With the Devil – A perfect companion piece to 1973’s THE EXORCIST, Late Night With The Devil creates a scenario in which a possessed girl appears on a ’70s late-night talk show. The period details are spot on, with believable characters and a terrifying performance from Ingrid Torelli as the Devil’s pawn (below).
Hundreds Of Beavers – The funniest film of the year is a triumph of style, simplicity, innovation, and a true passion for moviemaking. Hundreds of Beavers was so popular that it ran at both Downtown Cinemas and The Beverly Theater, where it returned for two encore engagements. Read the VEGAS 411 review here.
Civil War – An all-too-realistic depiction of the battle between a dictator-like President and U.S. citizens. Civil War is timely, uncomfortable to watch, and makes you wonder where we’re headed as a nation.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – The ninth in an amazing series of films, Kingdom has no right to be this good. The original was released in 1968 as a commentary on our obsession with war. Fifty-six years later, we still have a lot to learn.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – A sadly overlooked epic that took the Max Max saga sideways, Furiosa was a grand adventure that delivered a similar message as Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and Civil War. Will the future be this bleak? Check out our Piecing It Together Podcast analysis here.
Twisters – Hardly a work of art, but the perfect popcorn movie. Seeing Twisters in 4DX at Regal Red Rock Theater is a multi-sensory experience far surpassing Postcard From Earth at The SPHERE.
Deadpool and Wolverine – The same assessment I made of TWISTERS applies here. Stupid, thrilling fun.
Oddity – A taut low-budget film from SHUDDER network that fortunately got a mainstream release. Impeccable performances, eerie atmosphere, stunning cinematography, and a script filled with twists and turns. Totally chilling.
Strange Darling – More twists and turns than a ride on Space Mountain, amazing editing, and a story that will make you gasp time and again. A magnificent thriller with stunning acting by Kyle Gallner and Willa Fitzgerald.
Smile 2 – Yet another female-centric thriller with scares, plot twists, and a shocking ending. An all-out performance by Naomi Scott and better than the original. Kyle Gallner (Strange Darling) briefly returns to tie the stories together.
Nosferatu – A beautiful remake of the oft-told Dracula tale. See it in a theater.
Conclave – A suspense thriller involving the selection process for a new Pope? Sounds dull, was anything but.
Wicked Part One – Even the most cynical (myself included) were won over by this prequel to The Wizard of Oz.
THE WORST
Joker Folie À Deux – An absolute dog that took everything you might have enjoyed in the first film, buried it, then took a dump on the grave. Somehow 200 million dollars was wasted on a film that takes place in only two locations with very few characters, no action, and lots of singing and speeches. Warner Brothers took a bath while the stars brought home a bundle.
Why hire Lady Gaga to star, then have her sing as though she’s suffering from throat cancer? This film drags, drags, drags, then spits in your face. For once, audiences and critics agreed. Everyone involved should be ashamed of this cinematic atrocity. There’s no reason for a major film to be this awful. Unless it’s…
Megalopolis – A sad end to the amazing career of Francis Ford Coppola. Three hours of blah blah blah with confusing visuals, erratic performances, an aimless script, and Shia LeBeouf in Roman drag. What the serious fukk?
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire – It was never meant to be high art. Nevertheless, the new Kong/Godzilla matchup took everything wrong with the previous entry and moved it front and center. A mess in every way.
Argylle – Bryce Dallas Howard is miscast as a romance novelist with a secret past. Director Matthew Vaughn tried to replicate his KINGSMAN formula in a barely-connected spinoff. Argylle wasted the talents of Howard and costar Sam Rockwell while giving Henry Cavill a horrible hairstyle for a glorified cameo. Even the CGI cat sucked.
Lisa Frankenstein – Another failed attempt by Diablo Cody (Jennifer’s Body) to blend teen angst with horror and comedy. It didn’t work in 2009 and doesn’t work now. You’ll forget Lisa Frankenstein before the credits roll.
I Saw The TV Glow – A supposed “art film” in which characters whisper, watch TV, whisper some more. then fall asleep. Just like anyone who saw this pretentious waste. Awful lead performance by Justice Smith, appearing confused and oxygen-deprived.
The Strangers Chapter 1 – The first in a new trilogy, this supposed prequel does NOT give any backstory. Instead, it drops two more victims into the same familiar setup. The protagonists are so stupid that you’ll want them to die.
Borderlands – Horribly miscast Cate Blanchett and Jamie Lee Curtis slum for paychecks in a big-screen adaptation of the popular video game. Mountains of money were wasted on a debacle that pleased nobody.
Stream – A cheap, lazy snoozer from the team that brought you the Terrifier series. Outtakes at the end prove it was just an excuse for the filmmakers to goof off while getting paid.
Kraven The Hunter – The final gasp in Sony‘s Spider-villain series. What could have been an exciting free-standing story wound up a confusing mess of plotlines, characters that intersect with no real purpose, and another embarrassing appearance by Russel Crowe. In a film where everyone has powers, why should we care about them?
The much-hyped fitness transformation of star Aaron Taylor-Johnson was all for naught. The star appears shirtless for roughly 45 seconds of screen time…hardly worth the effort. Fans waited an extra two years for this troubled production to hit the screen. Then universally negative reviews poured out and theaters remained empty.
WTF
Love Lies Bleeding – This Kristen Stewart thriller, released in March, was the victim of a curious 2024 phenomenon…fun movies that fell apart in the last fifteen minutes. See also The Watchers, Trap, MaXXXine, and Alien: Romulus.
Gladiator II – Did you know that gladiators fought baboons, rhinos, and sharks in the Colosseum? Ancient Rome also had newspapers, coffee shops, and American accents (we’re looking at you, Denzel Washington).
Immaculate/The First Omen – Two well-made horror thrillers, so why are they on this list? Their plots are nearly identical (an American nun in a European convent faces a supernatural pregnancy). They were released only weeks apart, further confusing audiences.
Arcadian – This Nicholas Cage chiller follows the same plot as A Quiet Place and Halle Barry’s Never Let Go. A family survives in a remote house after monstrous creatures take over the world. The problem? A confusing title that gives no clue as to what the film is about.
Horizon: An American Saga Chapter One – The first in a planned four-part story is three hours of dull setup and character introduction. The movie ends with scenes from part two, scheduled for an August release but yanked after this one failed. Boring, rambling, with nothing new to say.
Here – An attempt to recapture the magic of Forrest Gump, HERE reteams director Robert Zemeckis with stars Tom Hanks and Robin Wright. The entire film takes place in one spot over millions of years from the same point of view. It’s like watching life through a window on the other side of a room.
Volcanoes, dinosaurs, Ben Franklin, native Americans, baby boomers, and yuppies pop into and out of frame. There is no chronological order, and you’ll ask “What’s the point of all this?”.
Queer – If HERE sounds confusing, what about QUEER? Daniel Craig plays a flamboyant, predatory gay addict in 1950s Mexico City. His character persuades a handsome young man to trek with him through the jungle for a plant that enhances psychic abilities. Both are writers, but nothing is made of that connection.
There’s lots of raw sex, nudity, close-up intravenous drug use, vomiting, body horror, and misery. For unknown reasons, vintage automobiles and airplanes are CGI-rendered to resemble toys. Craig waves a pistol and breaks into soft-shoe dancing at random moments. Finally, he’s yanked into space by an unseen hand and falls to Earth two years later in a new suit. It’s all very bizarre.
The James Bond star received a Golden Globe nomination for his work in this fever dream. You’ll be reaching for a barf bag and Tylenol. Critics are sure to award QUEER with a few trophies at Oscar time. Don’t fall for the hype…it’s an incoherent mess.
And that’s my take on the year’s most noteworthy hits and duds. Did any of yours miss or make my list? Drop me a message at samnovak@vegas411.com.