The Most Underrated Movies of the Year
(so far...)
To all of the people complaining online that there are “no good new movies out anymore”, I’m here to prove you wrong. Here are some underrated gems from 2024 that you might have missed in cinemas.
1. Thelma
Credit: Magnolia Pictures (2024)
This is one of the sweetest movies I’ve seen in a very long time, and I see this on so many “comfort watches” letterboxd lists in the years to come. I fell in love with these characters so fast, particularly the titular character, Thelma. She’s a 93-year-old Grandmother, who gets scammed out of $10,000 after receiving a phone call saying that her Grandson was in prison and needed her to bail him out. This movie has everything, from action to comedy, to heartfelt and heartbreaking conversations about ageing. It’s refreshing to see a movie talk about something as taboo as ageing, and having fun with it at the same time as discussing how difficult it can be. I would struggle to find anybody who wouldn’t love this film.
2. Kneecap
Credit: Curzon (2024)
This movie is an absolute whale of a time. I’m extremely disappointed that I missed out on this at the ‘Secret Screening’ run by Odeon and Cineworld a few weeks back, but I was just happy to see this finally. I went into this expecting a 3.5 stars on Letterboxd, but came out giving it a 4.5. I was initially shocked that Ireland had put this forward for their Oscar’s pick, but I was happily disproven as this made it into my top 10 of the year (as of writing this).
The story follows the real-life Irish group Kneecap, who use their music to try to keep the native Gaelic language alive, by exclusively rapping in the language. In 2022, the Gaelic language was recognised as an official language of Ireland when the Identity and Language Act became law. This repealed legislation that banned the use of the Irish Language in courts.
Kneecap has some of the best storytelling of the year, which is even more impressive when you realise this is a biopic. It manages to hold its charm throughout, whilst still being able to talk about Irish politics. On top of this, it has some of the best and most creative editing of the year and is full of personality.
As of writing this, Kneecap is still in cinemas now, so go and see it.
3. Between the Temples
Credit: Sony Pictures Classics (2024)
Before going to see Between the Temples, I was a little nervous. I’d heard a few mixed reviews. I ended up loving this, although I’m a little torn on the ending. The film follows a Cantor Ben, who also prepares people for their Bat and Bar Mitzvah. He runs into his old music teacher, Carol, who decides she finally wants to have her Bat Mitzvah. Ben agrees to give Carol lessons to prepare her for her Bat Mitzvah.
The greatest standout in this film is its editing and cinematography. They might as well be their own characters in this movie. The editing is unique and fast-paced, and the cinematography looks gorgeous. One of my favourite things is when a movie looks older than it is, and this movie achieved those aesthetics perfectly.
4. Janet Planet
Credit: A24 (2024)
“Weird Girl Cinema'“ is alive and well, and don’t let anybody tell you otherwise until you’ve seen Annie Baker’s Janet Planet. This movie is a delicate exploration of womanhood. What does it mean to be a woman? What does it mean to be a mother? These are all questions I had when watching this. The movie is told from the perspective of the child, as we watch her perceive and learn how her mother is treated by different people and why these people treat her that way, with the film split into different sections for each of these people.
This is Baker’s debut feature film, after being a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright.
5. Sing Sing
Credit: Blackbear (2024)
I highly doubt that this will stay “underrated” for very long. As of writing this, it has around 30,000 Letterboxd logs, probably down to the poor distribution that has plagued this film. This movie can, and will, sweep some of the biggest Oscar categories if it wants to. I hope that Blackbear funds the Oscar campaign for this. At the very least, Colman Domingo is winning Best Actor for this.
The one word that I would use to describe Sing Sing would be “beautiful.” There’s a montage in this movie of inmates auditioning to be a part of the play, and it is by far one of the best and most beautiful scenes of the year. This scene packs even more of a punch when the credits roll, and they use clips from this scene alongside the credits reading “X as Himself”. I’m devastated that this movie is having a pretty awkward rollout (especially across the UK), as it deserves its flowers.