Tag Archives: 2022toptenmovies

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Song of the Day #5,362: ‘Linger’ – Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

Concluding the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…

Best Films of 2022
#1 – Marcel the Shell with Shoes On

Invariably, the movie that ends up at #1 on my year-end list is the one that moved me the most.

Every one of my favorites is well-crafted, featuring excellent writing and direction and memorable performances, but one usually stands out for knocking me on my ass emotionally.

This year, that movie was a partially animated mockumentary based on a series of YouTube shorts about a talking shell.

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Song of the Day #5,361: ‘If You Wanna Be Happy’ – Jimmy Soul

Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…

Best Films of 2022
#2 – The Fabelmans

I find it fascinating that Steven Spielberg — the most successful filmmaker in history, director of some of the most iconic movies of the last half-century — has released two of his best films in the past two years only to see them flop at the box office.

Is the pandemic to blame? Or are we so saturated in superhero culture that adult dramas can’t find an audience even when directed by the greatest of all time?

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Song of the Day #5,360: ‘Pearl Main Titles’ – Tyler Bates

Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…

Best Films of 2022
#3a – X
#3b – Pearl

Here’s where I’m cheating to fit 11 movies on my “top ten” list. But given that Ti West’s horror film X and its prequel Pearl were shot at the same time and released just six months apart it seems fitting to pair them.

I credit X with kickstarting my new interest in horror. In the past I’ve made time for well-reviewed scary movies, within reason. I remember wrestling with the decision to see Get Out in the theater before finally giving in because it was clearly dominating the cultural conversation. But that’s a far cry from a slasher movie that owes its biggest debt to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

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Song of the Day #5,359: ‘Oxytocin’ – Billie Eilish

Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…

Best Films of 2022
#4 – Kimi

Steven Soderbergh is a fascinating filmmaker. Since pioneering the 90s Independent Cinema movement with his 1989 debut Sex, Lies and Videotape, he has directed 34 movies in 34 years.

Among them are micro-budget experimental films featuring only non-professional actors and high-budget blockbusters starring the biggest movie stars in the world. He’s dabbled in coming-of-age films, true crime, sports dramas, martial arts action, historical drama, biopics, and thoughtful dramas about female escorts and male strippers.

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Song of the Day #5,358: ‘Apartment for Sale’ – Lydia Tár

Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…

Best Films of 2022
#5 – TÁR

I was so ready to dislike TÁR.

I missed the film during its initial theatrical run and by the time I got around to seeing it at home I had been subjected to an endless stream of online praise by an often-annoying fanbase.

I also heard a steady drumbeat of predictions that Cate Blanchett was on her way to her third Oscar while never-nominated Michelle Yeoh would have to settle for second place. That didn’t sit well with me either.

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