FilmBest of 2024

The 50 best films of 2024: No 20 to No 11

We continue our countdown of our favourite movies released in Ireland this year

Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry: Eka Chavleishvili as Etero and Temiko Chichinadze as Murman in Elene Naveriani's film
Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry: Eka Chavleishvili as Etero and Temiko Chichinadze as Murman in Elene Naveriani's film


20

Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry

Directed by Elene Naveriani. Etero (Eka Chavleishvili), a 48-year-old woman living alone in a small village in Georgia, experiences a late and eventful sexual awakening. Read the full review.

19

Red Island

Directed by Robin Campillo. There was much confusion when Campillo’s tale of growing up in 1970s Madagascar was not accepted to Cannes. His revenge was universal acclaim. Read the full review.

18

Crossing

Lucas Kankava and Mzia Arabuli in Crossing. Photograph: Ozan Acidere/Mubi
Lucas Kankava and Mzia Arabuli in Crossing. Photograph: Ozan Acidere/Mubi

Directed by Levan Akin. A Georgian woman’s search for her estranged trans niece forms a lively chronicle of life in Istanbul, a compelling odd-couple road trip and a series of intriguing intersections. Read the full review.

17

The Teachers’ Lounge

Directed by İlker Çatak. You could class this drama about a teacher investigating a theft as a thriller, but that doesn’t quite catch its subtle menace. Asks questions it refuses to answer. Read the full review.

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16

All of Us Strangers

Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott in  All Of Us Strangers. Photograph: Searchlight Pictures/Chris Harris
Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott in All Of Us Strangers. Photograph: Searchlight Pictures/Chris Harris

Directed by Andrew Haigh. Andrew Scott’s screenwriter enters a relationship with a mysterious neighbour (Paul Mescal) and is drawn back to his childhood home, where he finds his late parents, somehow still young. Read the full review.

15

Poor Things

Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. The film-maker pushed the boat out with his take on Alasdair Gray’s Frankensteinian novel and – would you believe it? – ended up taking more than $100 million and four Oscars. Gives you hope. Read the full review.

14

Strange Darling

Directed by JT Mollner. A fever-pitch dream of serial killers and Americana in which mustachioed Kyle Gallner, exuding 1970s-porn vibes, hooks up with Willa Fitzgerald’s The Lady for a night of sadomasochistic role-play and a wild chase. Read the full review.

13

Robot Dreams

Directed by Pablo Berger. Hugely touching animation about a dog and a robot making friends in 1980s New York City. “An homage to music itself,” Berger said of the soundtrack. Read the full review.

12

Evil Does Not Exist

Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. An eight-year-old girl goes missing from a remote Japanese village just as two city slickers arrive with a glamping pitch in this endlessly intriguing mystery. Read the full review.

11

Love Lies Bleeding

Katy O'Brian and Kristen Stewart in Loves Lies Bleeding. Photograph: Crack in the Earth LLC/A24
Katy O'Brian and Kristen Stewart in Loves Lies Bleeding. Photograph: Crack in the Earth LLC/A24

Directed by Rose Glass. A wild exercise in high chutzpah starring Kristen Stewart as a gym manager in love with a drugged-up bodybuilder (Katy O’Brian). Features first-rate grimy Americana. Ends on another planet. Read the full review.