A list of movies I’ve seen released theatrically or to streaming in 2022.

1. Holy spider, directed by Ali Abassi (9/10)

A conventional serial kill film set in an unconventional place that goes in an unconventional direction in its third act. Really worth your time. The best film I saw at TIFF in 2022. Read the review of Holy Spider.

2. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, directed by Laura Poitras (8/10)

A distinct, compelling documentary that is half biography and half indictment. Read the review of All the Beauty and the Bloodshed.

3. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, directed by Rian Johnson (8/10)

I thought this was as good as we could expect, given expectations. It’s also prescient given that it was made before Elon Musk bought Twitter. Read the review of A Knives Out Mystery.

4. The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves (8/10)

Is this the second best Batman film? I think it might be, despite its length. Read the review of The Batman.

5. Triangle of Sadness, directed by Ruben Östlund (8/10)

Extremely funny but badly needs an editor. Way more fun than a nearly 150-minute movie ought to be. Read the review of Triangle of Sadness.

6. The Banshees of Inisherin, directed by Martin McDonagh (7/10)

Obviously, given the rating, I didn’t like this as much as a lot of people. I did get it (I swear) but I found the tonal shift at the end to be too extreme. Very funny until it gets there. Read the review of The Banshees of Inisherin.

7. R.M.N., directed by Cristian Mungiu (7/10)

Includes one of the best scenes of the year, but: what was with the bears? Read the review of R.M.N.

8. Bodies Bodies Bodies, directed by Halina Reijn (7/10)

A fun horror comedy that feels like it’s wearing out its welcome, until the reveal. Read the review of Bodies Bodies Bodies.

9. Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist, directed by Ryan Duffy, Tony Vainuku (7/10)

Essential watching if you remember the story but don’t know the details. Read the review of The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist.

10. White Hot: The Rise and Fall of Ambercrombie and Fitch, directed by Allison Klayman (7/10)

A fascinating story. Read the review of White Hot.

11. Skandal! Bringing Down Wirecard, directed by James Erskine (7/10)

A story I somehow missed while it was happening. Read the review of Skandal!

12. Free Money, directed by Lauren DeFilippo, Sam Soko (6/10)

A UBI documentary which is probably too high on this list. Preaching to the choir. Read the review of Free Money.

13. Emily, directed by Frances O’Connor (6/10)

A reimagining of the life of Emily Bronte. Read the review of Emily.

14. The Lost City, directed by Aaron Nee, Adam Nee (6/10)

Entertaining riff on Romancing the Stone. Read the review of The Lost City.

15. Thor: Love and Thunder, directed by Taika Waititi (6/10)

Not as good as the third film, but better than the first two. Read the review of Love and Thunder.

16. See How They Run, directed by Tom George (6/10)

A pretty well-executed, silly little murder mystery comedy. Read the review of See How They Run.

17. Untold: Operation Flagrant Foul, directed by David Terry Fine (6/10)

Necessary in-depth reporting on this story, but they allow their talking heads too much time to speculate about possible conspiracies. Read the review of Operation Flagrant Foul.

18. X, directed by Ti West (6/10)

A pretty fun spin on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre that has a pretty fatal flaw. Read the review of X.

19. The Bobs Burgers Movie, directed by Loren Bouchard, Bernard Derriman (6/10)

I love the show but can’t say this is much better than any other 22-minute animated show’s film. Read the review of The Bobs Burgers Movie.

20. Bullet Train, directed by David Leitch (6/10)

Extremely derivative but reasonably entertaining. Read the review of Bullet Train.

21. Untold: The Rise and Fall of AND1, directed by Kevin Wilson, Jr. (6/10)

This is interesting but too short. Read the review of The Rise and Fall of AND1.

22. Jennifer Lopez: Halftime, directed by Amanda Micheli (6/10)

More interesting than I thought have thought. Read the review of Halftime.

23. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, directed by Aitch Alberto (5/10)

Accidentally watched a YA film at TIFF. Oops. Read the review of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.

24. Project Wolf Hunting, directed by Hong-Sung Kim (5/10)

This is one of the bloodiest movies I’ve seen in some time. It’s probably the bloodiest movie I’ve seen in years. It also doesn’t make much sense when you think about it. Read the review of Project Wolf Hunting.

25. Poker Face, directed by Russell Crowe (5/10)

A different spin on the “billionaire invites friends to a remote location” trope. Read the review of of Poker Face.

26. All the Old Knives, directed by Janus Metz (5/10)

If this story is told in chronological order, there isn’t much of a mystery. Read the review of All the Old Knives.

27. Hellraiser, directed by David Bruckner (5/10)

So I’m not sure what to do here. I missed the first 20-30 minutes of this movie minimum, but watched the entire rest of it (as I was sick in bed in a hotel room). Reviewing it feels unfair but I actually watched most of it.

I don’t find these films scary and I don’t think find their internal mythology to make much sense. But the production values are quite good for a horror film and I guess it’s creative. Maybe it should be lower down but I don’t feel like I can 100% say that without watching the beginning.

28. Untold: The Race of the Century, directed by Chapman Way, Maclain Way (5/10)

I would like to know more. Read the review of The Race of the Century.

29. The Redeem Team, directed by Jon Weinbach (5/10)

A TV-quality sports documentary. Read the review of The Redeem Team.

30. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, directed by Sam Raimi (5/10)

One of the more incomprehensible Marvel films. Read the review of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

31. Spiderhead, directed by Joseph Kosinski (5/10)

One of the best performances of Chris Hemsworth’s career is wasted on this mess adapted from a story by one of my favourite contemporary authors. Read the review of Spiderhead.

32. Travellin’ Band, directed by Bob Smeaton (5/10)

An attempt to shoehorn a too-short concert into a brief biography of CCR and a tour film. A bit of a mess. Read the review of Travellin’ Band.

33. My Best Friend’s Exorcism, directed by Damon Thomas (4/10)

A missed opportunity. Read my review of My Best Friend’s Exorcism.

34. Black Adam, directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (4/10)

Perhaps the most derivative comic book movie I’ve yet seen. Read the review of Black Adam.

35. Chevalier, directed by Stephen Williams (4/10)

A ridiculous biopic that makes up stuff instead of telling what is likely an extremely interesting story. Read the review of Chevalier.

36. Death on the Nile, directed by Kenneth Branagh (4/10)

Makes the 1978 version look like a masterpiece. Read the review of Death on the Nile.

37. Moonfall, directed by Roland Emmerich (3*/10)

I’m cheating here, as I never finished this movie. I was in a hotel room, I was sick, and I guess I gave up and went to sleep. But what I did watch was typical Emmerich garbage. A nonsense, fake scenario and an unbelievable solution, with a cast that is way, way too good for the material.

38. Space Wars: Quest for the Deepstar, directed by Garo Setian (2/10)

Thought this was going to be an all-timer but it turned out to be a little less bad. Read the review of Space Wars.