2024 was another great year to discover some new favourite films I watched for the very first time.
2024 was another great year to discover some new favourite films I watched for the very first time. My goal for 2024 was to watch 100 movies, and while I didn’t reach that, I still managed to watch 75 movies for the year. I plan on hitting my goal of 100 movies in 2025. All of the films mentioned in this article can be viewed on my First Time Favourites: 2024 list.
Below are some of my favourite first watches of 2024. I hope you enjoy and add some new films to your watchlist for 2025!
The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
The Passion of Joan of Arc was my highest-rated first-time watch of 2024, with 4.5 stars out of 5. The film stars Renée Jeanne Falconetti as Jeanne d’Arc, a woman who is subjected to inhumane treatment and scare tactics by church court officials after being put on trial for claiming she had spoken to God.
While initially intimidated into changing her story, Jeanne eventually decides to stick with her truth, which ultimately serves as her downfall. Her punishment is a famously brutal execution, which transforms her into a martyr. Falconetti does a tremendous job throughout the silent film, captivating the audience with her incredible facial expressions.
Favourite Line: “To save France – it’s why I was born.”
The Iron Claw (2023)
The Iron Claw hurt me way more than I initially thought it would. Working for a wrestling news company, I had heard of the Von Erich brothers before, but I didn’t realize how deep their story was. In the 1980s, the family made history in professional wrestling, fighting through tragedy and triumph on one of the biggest stages in sports.
Zac Efron is the absolute standout in this movie. He plays Kevin Von Erich, the eldest brother who always aspired to lead his family to glory but never really got a chance. His performance is heartbreaking, and one of the film’s last scenes is the best of his career.
Favourite Line: “Ever since I was a child, people said my family was cursed. Mom tried to protect us with God. Dad tried to protect us with wrestling. He said if we were the toughest, the strongest, nothing could ever hurt us. I believed him. We all did.”
Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
Anatomy of a Fall follows a woman who is suspected of her husband’s murder and how she deals with the fact that their blind son was the sole witness. The film is a solid courtroom drama that examines the complexities of relationships and the tumultuous one between Sandra Voyter (Sandra Hüller) and Samuel Maleski (Samuel Theis).
Milo Machado Graner plays their son Daniel, who faces a moral dilemma about what he really heard on the day of the murder. And let me tell you, Snoop deserves an Academy Award for the performance of a lifetime. Tremendous work by that pup.
Favourite Line: “Sometimes a couple is kind of a chaos and everybody is lost. Sometimes we fight together and sometimes we fight alone, and sometimes we fight against each other, that happens.”
The Zone of Interest (2023)
I did a lot of catching up on some Academy Award-nominated films in 2024, which were worth the hype. Sandra Hüller is striking in The Zone of Interest in her role as Hedwig Höss, the wife of the commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel). The pair strive to build a dream life for their family despite the house being right next to the site of one of the worst atrocities during WWII.
The film primarily explores themes of absence and the capacity to disregard one’s surroundings, even in the face of horrific events, yet it concludes with a powerful reminder to never forget what transpired at Auschwitz. The film captures a vision of today, with maintenance workers cleaning exhibits and thoughtful shots of piles of shoes, discarded suitcases and prisoner garments at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum.
Favourite Line: “The life we enjoy is very much worth the sacrifice.”
Challengers (2024)
The editing, the score, the acting; what more can I say about Challengers? The tennis trio of Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) and Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Connor) were friends (and lovers) before Tashi and Art distanced themselves from Patrick. Years later, they reunite when Tashi registers her husband, Art — whom she is also coaching — to participate in a “Challenger” tennis event.
The film moves at a frenetic pace, driven by its dynamic editing style and an electrifying score. I also just started learning to play tennis in 2024, so I really enjoyed the in-game shots sprinkled throughout.
Favourite Line: “You don’t know what tennis is.” “What is it?” “It’s a relationship.”
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
Arsenic and Old Lace had me dying of laughing the entire time. The film follows Mortimer Brewster (Cary Grant), an author known for being against marriage, as he suddenly falls in love and gets married. When he makes a trip home to tell his two aunts, he discovers that his aunts’ hobby could land them in some serious hot water.
Frank Capri does a remarkable job capturing the absurdity of it all, and I thought that Grant was hilarious in his role as the stressed-out and concerned Mortimer. The two aunts, Abby Brewster (Josephine Hull) and Martha Brewster (Jean Adair), were also wonderfully witty.
Favourite Line: “Look I probably should have told you this before but you see… well… insanity runs in my family…” “It practically gallops.”
Out of the Past (1947)
Out of the Past was one of the last films I watched in 2024, and it was a great surprise. Jeff Bailey (Robert Mitchum) goes about his day-to-day as a gas station owner dating a local girl and living a quiet life, when in reality, he has a secret past.
Robert Mitchum is great in every role he’s in, and playing Jeff Bailey was no exception. I also enjoyed how the story wrapped up at the end.
Favourite Line: “You can never help anything, can you? You’re like a leaf that the wind blows from one gutter to another.”
Other Notable First Time Favourites: The Holdovers, Let It Be (the remastered version), Wicked, A Complete Unknown
