Top Movies of 2022 (Part 2)
It’s January here at Do You Know What I Love The Most?, and that means it’s time to sum up the last 12 months with Year End Lists! I’ll be devoting the rest of this month to rounding up and discussing the various media released in 2022 that meant the most to me — just like every other website on the internet! Isn’t that special?
Today we’re going to talk about the best movies of 2022. As always, this is in no way a definitive list, because I cannot and have not watched every film out there to watch. These are simply my favorite movies I saw this year — all released in 2022, all (except one) that I saw in the theater, and all that I loved — in no particular order. Enjoy!
Due to size restrictions for these emails, we discussed the first half of this list in Wednesday’s Part 1.
The Menu
When I walked out of The Menu I tweeted “A Ratatouille/The Menu Double Feature,” and I wasn’t joking. The Menu is in many ways a dark mirror of Ratatouille, a film about what happens when a passion for art becomes twisted; Ralph Fienne’s Chef Slowik is just Anton Ego if he had never eaten that Ratatouille and had decided to kill all his readers instead. All (non) joking aside, I was legitimately blown away by how much I liked The Menu. I was expecting a tense, slightly campy little thriller, and yes, I certainly received that in spades, but even the silliest bits of its premise work because they’re treated with such conviction. But as someone who fancies himself as both a critic and a bit of a creator, what fascinates me the most about The Menu is what it has to say about making art. It’s a movie that draws a stark line between creators and consumers, that zooms in on the dangerous creator worship that comes with so much art, and that explores all the ways money destroys art and the people who make it by trying to commodify a form of personal expression and tying quality to profit rather than merit. It’s a deceptively complex set of themes that compliments The Menu’s story perfectly. Unusually, I’ve only seen the word of mouth surrounding this film pick up more and more in the months since its release, and in this case, the fans are not at all wrong. This is a meal you’ve got to experience for yourself.
Bros
I am not going to address any of the ‘discourse’ surrounding Bros, except to say that it is, perhaps, poorly named. Billy Eichner is a polarizing figure even within the gay community, but he struck real gold with Bros, a film made out to be about two stereotypical gym bro gay dudes falling in love in its trailer, but which turned out to be about two very differently stereotypical gay dudes interrogating their own toxic masculinity and their complicated relationships with their sexualities, hook-up culture, and the queer community that surrounds them, and becoming capable of truly being in a relationship with each other because of the work they’ve done. The title is meant to be a bit ironic; Bros is a much smarter film than I think most people give it credit for, while also being wickedly funny, and with a specific touch that lets you know it was written by and for queer people, not pandering in any way. No film can be for everyone, even within a marginalized group, and nobody should see anything they don’t want to, but I think a lot of people dismissed Bros unfairly. It’s very much a diamond hidden in the rough.
One Piece: Film Red
One Piece: Film Red is a legitimately good film. Not good for a One Piece movie or good for an anime movie, but like, an actual piece of art with something interesting to say that I think could appeal to viewers entirely unfamiliar with One Piece or anime, if given the chance. The film’s central character, Uta, is a famous singer who wants to use her magical music powers to rid the world of the vicious pirates that terrorize her fans; through Uta, Red explores some really fascinating ideas about the way art and artists interact with the world. It’s about the dangers of parasocial relationships with celebrities; Uta’s fans, having found metaphorical salvation through her music, now seek literal salvation through her as well, putting remarkable pressure on Uta. It’s about the limits of art’s ability to change the world, and about the impossibility of true utopia; Uta’s plans unravel, in large part, because even her most devout fans have lives outside their fandom and aren’t willing to give up everything they love for her vision, even if it would mean true peace. Red just taps into the conversations our culture is having about art right now in a way I find absolutely fascinating. That said, of course, Red is still a pretty great anime movie, with dazzling animation and a top-notch soundtrack, as well as a terrific One Piece film, giving every character something interesting to do, furthering longstanding relationships, and introducing a brand new character with ties deep into the series’ long history without destroying the Canon, which is actually quite a remarkable feat for a series entering its 25th year. As a hardcore One Piece fan, I walked into Red expecting to have a great time, but I never expected to be this blown away. What a rush.
Nope
Never bet against Jordan Peele; Nope is yet another unforgettable entry into Peele’s instant classic horror canon. This story of siblings trying to run their late father’s ranch who encounter a strange creature living in the sky above their home is an incredibly taut thriller, stuffed to the brim with haunting imagery; Barbarian may have shocked me, but nothing had me on the very edge of my chair more than the “Gordy” sequence in Nope, or unsettled me more than the reveal of what “Jean Jacket” is actually doing to its victims. Those are moments that reverberated deep into my gut, and that will forever be seared into my memories — what brilliant horror. Again, like all of Peele’s films, Nope is also quite profound, a striking and pointed fable about the unapproachable power of nature and the respect it should command, and how humanity’s desire to profit off nature endangers both man and beast alike. It’s also just a really human film, with Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer’s sibling characters sharing a complex and lived-in dynamic filled with love and resentment in equal measure. Palmer, especially, puts in what should be a star-making performance, switching from a charming motormouth comedic persona to pure action hero mode at the drop of a hat and absolutely killing it in both modes. Nope actually manages that same switch with just as much ease, treating us to an absolutely riveting, nail-biting action conclusion that nearly had me leaping out of my seat in celebration by the end. Nope really is just a remarkable film; say “yup!” to Nope!
Glass Onion
With his second entry into the Knives Out franchise, director Rian Johnson has established that his series of Benoit Blanc mysteries are going to be about the kind, smart, and powerless triumphing over the rich, stupid, and powerful; God, what a timely and cathartic theme! There are several scenes in Glass Onion that are just Blanc intellectually shredding a thinly-veiled Elon Musk stand-in to pieces, and hot damn did I need to see that way more than I realized. That’s worth the price of admission alone, but Glass Onion is also a stylish, funny as hell, incredibly well constructed mystery in its own right, stacked with a top-notch cast who elevate every scene they’re in with incredible comedic timing. Dave Bautista, Kathryn Hahn, and Edward Norton all in the same movie?! Then there’s Kate Hudson’s Birdie, an utterly loathsome woman I would watch six full seasons of television revolving around if I could. And Janelle Monáe is absolutely stunning, a consistently striking presence from beginning to end, but also, they have the range! They can really act! A movie star is born! Glass Onion is also, so far, the only piece of media I’ve seen that actually uses Covid to its advantage, or at least made me laugh rather than roll my eyes when it popped up as a plot point. Seriously, Glass Onion is a goddamn delight, without a doubt the most fun I had at the theater this year.
Everything Everywhere All At Once
Where do I even begin with this phenomenal movie?! Despite its “simple” premise — a laundromat owner discovers she’s been chosen to save the multiverse from total annihilation — Everything Everywhere All At Once is, true to its title, a little bit of everything. It’s a prestige family drama, a kung-fu flick, a surreal sci-fi tour of the multiverse. It’s about intergenerational trauma, the immigrant experience, a queer child struggling to be understood by her parents, and the gulf that can form between mothers and daughters. It’s about love, about paths not taken, about what truly brings happiness and a well-lived life. It’s about people with hot dogs for fingers, about a raccoon who wants to cook, about Chekov’s buttplug; and it’s about all these things in a cohesive way, in the sense that life — all of our lives! — is a rich, wide, wild tapestry of every person we’ve ever loved and every choice we’ve ever made. Yet, it’s also a movie about everything in the sense that it’s about what it’s like to live in a world where we can know everything there is to know in the time it takes to unlock our phones, and the feelings of helplessness and uselessness that can come from this. It’s in a way a movie about nihilism, about knowing that everything means everything yet nothing at the same time and how that can either rob us of a purpose or make us realize that we have to make our own purpose. More than anything, I suppose, it’s a movie about holding on to what matters to you most even when it does seem like nothing matters in the entire universe, and about how in a multiverse filled with infinite possibilities, there’s still nothing better than just sitting at home doing your taxes with someone you love. It’s a goddamn beautiful movie, strange and silly and sweet and just packed until it’s about to burst with so, so, so much love. 2022 gave us an abundance of incredible films — as this list can attest to! — but Everything Everywhere All At Once is my favorite of the year, without a doubt, no contest, in any universe.
Do You Know What I Love the Most’s “Best Of 2022” series:
2022 In Review
2022: A Playlist
Top Comics of 2022 (Part 1)
Top Comics of 2022 (Part 2)
Top Television of 2022 (Part 1)
Top Television of 2022 (Part 2)
Top Movies of 2022 (Part 1)
Top Movies of 2022 (Part 2)
Top Albums of 2022
And for more, check out last year‘s “Best of 2021” series!:
2021: A Playlist
Top 10 Newsletters of 2021
Top Television of 2021
Top Comics of 2021 (Part 1)
Top Comics of 2021 (Part 2)
Top Albums of 2021
As well as our “Best of 2020”!:
Top 10 Newsletters of 2020
Top Television, Podcasts, and Movies of 2020
Top Books and Comics of 2020
Let’s Talk About Substack
2020: A Playlist
Top Albums of 2020
ABOUT
“Do You Know What I Love the Most?” is a newsletter from Spencer Irwin about his relationship with the stories he loves. Spencer is an enthusiast and writer from Newark, Delaware, who likes punk rock, comic books, working out, breakfast, and most of all, stories. His previous work appeared on Retcon Punch, One Week One Band, and Crisis on Infinite Chords, and he can be found on Twitter at @ThatSpenceGuy. If you like this newsletter, please subscribe and share with your friends!