World Poll 2024 – Part 5 the editors January 2025 World Poll Issue 112 ENTRIES IN PART 4: George Kapaklis Christopher Kearney Max Kleger Rainer Knepperges Botagoz Koilybayeva Gary KramerEugenia Lai Reynaldo Lastre Marc Lauria Richard Leathem Wyeth Leslie Tara Lomax George Kapaklis Cinephile, Naarm/Melbourne Five favourite discoveries and new releases (chronological order): French Cancan (Jean Renoir, 1954) The Tall T (Budd Boetticher, 1957) Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (Sam Peckinpah, 1973) L’Eau de la Seine (Teo Hernández, 1983) TRON: Legacy (Joseph Kosinski, 2010) Merry Christmas (Sriram Raghavan, 2024) Malaikottai Vaaliban (Lijo Jose Pellissery, 2024) Chime (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2024) Miséricorde (Misericordia, Alain Guiraudie, 2024) Meiyazhagan (C. Prem Kumar, 2024) Christopher Kearney Independent Screenwriter, Teaches TV Production an English at George M. Steinbrenner High School in Lutz, Florida Top Ten Best Films of 2024: La passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Taste of Things, Anh Hung Tran, 2023) Straume (Flow, Glints Zibalodis, 2024) La bête (The Beast, Bertrand Bonello, 2023) Conclave (Edward Berger, 2024) Anora (Sean Baker, 2024) Sing Sing (Greg Kwedar, 2023) The Substance (Coralie Fargeat, 2024) The Bikeriders (Jeff Nichols, 2023) Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (George Miller, 2024) Hundreds of Beavers (Mike Cheslik, 2022) Max Kleger Cinephile and former film student living in Denver, Colorado Favourite First Time Watches of 2024 Kumonosu-jō (Throne of Blood, Akira Kurosawa, 1957) Man versus the natural world, and man versus himself in equal measure. The control evinced by Kurosawa is near unmatched, capturing Mifune’s wild ambitions and increasingly homicidal swings while the natural order becomes more perverted. The contrast between actor/character and director, of emotion bubbling into madness and terror set against the eye of the camera and its discreet but firm judgement, embodies the great theme of Kurosawa’s career. Possibly the best adaptation of Shakespeare, although it has been some time since seeing Ran. Kǒngbù Fènzǐ (Terrorizers, Edward Yang, 1986) Floats above the concept of the “network film” through painstaking detail, in both setting and character, and searing emotional violence. A chronicle of misunderstandings, miscommunications, and misapprehensions that stack upon each other in a tragedy of modern living. All of that can just as well describe Yang’s other work, and what makes him so singular is that each film is so rich on their own even without taking in how well they complement each other. One of the great artists of the latter half of the twentieth century, and one whose early loss still hangs upon the film world. Marie Antoinette (Sofia Coppola, 2006) Boredom living alongside excess– with each increasingly resembling the other until they are completely indistinguishable. Coppola captures hedonism’s dulling effects peerlessly, the seemingly endless beauty of life without work or want draining away humanity until all that is left are signifiers of status. Complaints of its lack of political depth miss that is the film’s truest subject; the world outside becomes erased to those who are fed by yet above it, until it comes crashing up to them. A perfect object about the alluring yet deceptive surfaces of living as a perfect object. Blue Collar (Paul Schrader, 1978) A comedy of moving up, until it devolves into a violent portrait of intra class conflict and the impossibility of true solidarity. Schrader manages the shift so deftly as to heighten the emotional impact of the latter half; going from the hijinks of attempting to hoodwink IRS auditors and committing robbery with Halloween masks into brutal murder by paint fumes. With an ending so shocking, yet simultaneously inevitable, that sums up the cynicism of life being lived in the working class. The Straight Story (David Lynch, 1999) The beauty, and strangeness, and grief, and horror, and grace of ordinary life. At once a departure from Lynch’s milieu and an encapsulation of his entire worldview. Riding along the open road besotted with images of twentieth century Americana, our protagonist Alvin Straight encounters people’s capacity for hospitality and kindness side by side with their anguish, grief, and fear. At the end of the road lies emotions that can’t be expressed in words, the possibility of forgiveness underneath the vastness of space. Favourite New Releases of 2024 (US Release) Aku wa Sonzai Shinai (Evil Does Not Exist, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 2023) The film that has grown the most over time since I first saw it at the Denver Film Festival in 2023. Admiration turned into a gnawing feeling that this is the work that best captures modern life: at turns stolid, frightening, and surreal. To my mind features the three most memorable sequences of the year, and an ending haunting and unexplainable. La Bête (The Beast, Bertrand Bonello, 2023) Moves among its three distinct time periods to view how despair, ennui, alienation, and loneliness morph across years and cultures. Plays marvelously as costume drama, Lynchian urban horror, and sci-fi parable, somehow juggling its big ideas in equal measure across each storyline and setting. Ends with an emotional gut punch that reverberates back across the entire film, clarifying the tragedy at its core. Janet Planet (Annie Baker, 2023) A remarkable filmic debut, drawing on a handful of clear antecedents (Reichardt, Denis, Weerasethakul) while also heralding an original new voice. Captures the sense of the temporary nature of certain people in life, and of identity being formed among time and place. Not the first film concerned with the dawning sense of recognizing a parent’s inner life from the perspective of a child, but one of the most unique and rewarding. I Saw the TV Glow (Jane Schoenbrun, 2024) Plays as a horror movie that is entirely internalized with a sense of self being manipulated by invisible hands. Schoenbrun has an extraordinary handle of communicating individuals’ detailed inner lives, even when this interiority is suppressed to the characters themselves. Also boasts a stunning lead performance, handling the tricky task of portraying the sadness and yearning of a soul stunted in its own realization. Nickel Boys (RaMell Ross, 2024) The most formally radical film released by a major studio in this young decade, if not longer. Embodies and expands upon literary concepts of point of view not as a gimmick, but rather as immersion into its historical moment and the dual protagonists’ lives. Astonishing use of archival footage to create a sense of living history, a reminder that things believed to be stuck in the past continue to reverberate into our present age. Rainer Knepperges Filmmaker, Cologne My 9 greatest discoveries in 2023: Mrs. Miniver (William Wyler, 1942) San Diego, I Love You (Reginald Le Borg, 1944) Navajo (Norman Foster, 1952) Jeopardy (John Sturges, 1953) Rummelplatz der Liebe (Carnival Story, Kurt Neumann, 1954) La Rupture (The Breach, Claude Chabrol, 1970) Wunderland der Liebe (Sex Freedom in Germany, Dieter Geissler, 1970) Defekt (Lajos Fazekas, 1977) The Buddy Holly Story (Steve Rash, 1978) My 2024 Number One: Here (Robert Zemeckis, 2024) Botagoz Koilybayeva Film writer, PhD candidate Favorite new releases of 2024 (in no particular order): Black Box Diaries (Shiori Itō, 2024) Kamay (Ilyas Yourish, 2024) No Other Land (Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, 2024) Dahomey (Mati Diop, 2024) Sugarcane (Emily Kassie, Julian Brave NoiseCat, 2024) Dajori (Martin Páv, Nicolas Kourek, 2024) The Substance (Coralie Fargeat, 2024) Nahnou Fil Dakhil (We Are Inside, Farah Kassem, 2024) Sayyareye dozdide shodeye man (My Stolen Planet, Farahnaz Sharifi, 2024) Elskling (Loveable, Lilja Ingolfsdottir, 2024) Gary Kramer Contributor to Senses of Cinema, Salon, Cinaste and other publications; co-editor of two volumes of Directory of World Cinema: Argentina I don’t like to do “Best” lists, because I like highbrow and lowbrow cinema. For me what makes a film great is when I can’t shake it. Here are five films that stuck with me all year after I saw them plus five other personal favorites. I conducted ten interviews for Senses of Cinema in 2024, and one of those films, La Pampa (Block Pass, Antoine Chevrollier, 2024) turned out to be one of my favorite films of the year. This intense drama, which unpacks the friendship between two teen motocross racers in France, really impacted me emotionally. It is difficult to discuss the details without spoiling the reveals, but there is a father/son storyline which always interests me. I saw it twice because I could not shake its power. Moreover, I greatly appreciated the insights by debut director Antoine Chevrollier in our interview. I am anxious to see what he does next. But I also really want to see La Pampa again. Ayeh haye zamini (Terrestrial Verses, Ali Asgari and Alireza Khatami, 2023) One of my favorite experiences in the cinema this year was discovering this remarkable film that showcased nine Iranians trying to resolve simple issues but encounters massive bureaucratic roadblocks. The way the characters tried to subvert an absurd authority figure was inspiring. Beautifully filmed in single takes and marvelously acted–each character speaks in direct address–Terrestrial Verses is exceptional and timely. Mom Inséparable (My Everything, Anne-Sophie Bailly 2024) Laure Calamy, who stars in this poignant drama, has suddenly become one of my favorite actresses. I enjoyed her in the TV series, Call My Agent!, and her turn in Full Time (À plein temps, Eric Gravel, 2021) wowed me. But Mon Inséparable cemented my admiration for her. Calamy stars as a mother who learns that her “slow” son has impregnated his girlfriend. She movingly captures the emotions of a woman who navigates being her son’s ally and at times his obstacle. Her performance is quite moving; we see her considering her actions. This is a film that snuck up on me. On Falling (Laura Carreira, 2024) This film immerses viewers in a week in the life of Aurora (Joana Santos), a Portuguese woman living in Scotland who has a menial job picking products in a warehouse. Director Laura Carreira develops incredible tension following Aurora as she goes about her life. And while she is often poker faced and tries to operate under the radar—viewers understand just how isolated and precarious her life is. On Falling is compelling and heartbreaking throughout because at any moment, something might happen to upset Aurora’s fragile hand-to-mouth existence. I Do Not Come to You by Chance (Ishaya Bako, 2023) I love films that show me a world I would not know otherwise, and this topical Nigerian drama presents the flipside of those internet scammers as a young man named Kingsley (Paul Nnadiekwe) gets in over his head conning folks he emails out of money he needs. Kingsley works for his uncle Bobifance aka Cash Daddy (Blossom Chukwujekwu), who is one of the best screen characters this year. Watching Cash Daddy pass out money to hopefuls like a drunk at a stripper bar is one of the film’s more amusing moments, but the seriousness of Kingsley’s situation resonates as he grapples with personal and professional crises. I Do Not Come to You by Chance is a scrappy film, like its hero, and that is part of what make it so endearing. Five other films I adored and admired this year: L’île rouge (Red Island, Robin Campillo, 2023) Apnées (Alarms, Nicolas Panay, 2024) In the Summers (Alessandra Lacorazza, 2024) Pfau (Peacock, Bernhard Wenger, 2024) The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Mohammad Rasoulof, 2024) Eugenia Lai Cinephile, New York Qingchun: Ku (Youth (Hard Times), Wang Bing, 2024) Miséricorde (Misericordia, Alain Guiraudie, 2024) Republic (Jiang Jin, 2023) Nu aștepta prea mult de la sfârșitul lumii (Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World, Radu Jude, 2023) Refuse Room (Simon Liu, 2024) On Africa (Skip Norman, 1970) Tardes de Soledad (Afternoons of Solitude, Albert Serra, 2024) Lettre de Beyrouth (Letter from Beirut, Jocelyne Saab, 1978) Bushman (David Schickele, 1971) Cheung foh (The Mission, Johnnie To, 1999) Reynaldo Lastre Cuban film critic based in the United States. He is doing a PhD in Hispanic American Culture at the University of Connecticut 1- Anora (Sean Baker, 2024) Sean Baker continues his exploration of American life at the margins with Anora, a poignant and humanistic story. Known for his empathetic storytelling and focus on underrepresented communities, Baker uses Anora to shed light on resilience and the complexities of modern-day survival. The film denies all its references, from love stories to the mafia to car chases, to establish itself as a contemporary anti-genre. The under-appreciated Mikey Madison’s performance becomes an instant gem. It’s a testament to Baker’s unique ability to elevate the everyday into powerful cinematic moments. 2- Perfect Days (Wim Wenders, 2023) Wenders delivers a meditative masterpiece with Perfect Days, merging Japanese minimalism with his signature poetic realism. This film stands as a reflection on memory, time, and the search for beauty in the mundane, showcasing Wenders’ extraordinary ability to bridge cultures and create universal cinematic experiences. Perfect Days tells the story of a man (Kōji Yakusho) who turns away from his past and embraces a job often scorned by others, performing it with unparalleled decorum and dignity. 3- Grand Tour (Miguel Gomes, 2024) Miguel Gomes crafts an evocative journey through history and imagination with Grand Tour. The film unfolds as an anti-tour, immersing viewers in a temporal limbo that bridges the early 20th century and the present. Through meticulously crafted set design and character behavior, the film seamlessly oscillates between these eras in perfect harmony. His innovative storytelling techniques and rich visual style make this film a compelling commentary on cultural memory and the fluidity of identity, solidifying Gomes as one of Portugal’s most important cinematic voices. 4- La Bête (The Beast, Bertrand Bonello, 2023) Bertrand Bonello’s The Beast combines psychological depth with a haunting futuristic vision, exploring themes of love, fear, and destiny. This ambitious film challenges conventional narrative structures, showcasing Bonello’s ability to merge high concepts with deeply personal storytelling. The most remarkable aspect of The Beast is how its meaning and narrative reconstruction are left entirely in the hands of the viewer. While the film explores themes such as the therapeutic potential of artificial intelligence and new approaches to confronting our fears, it does so in such an unconventional manner that audiences can reinterpret the story in ways that diverge completely from this initial premise. 5- The Substance (Coralie Fargeat, 2024) Coralie Fargeat returns with a visceral and provocative work in The Substance. Tackling themes of power, transformation, and bodily autonomy, Fargeat continues to push the boundaries of genre filmmaking, cementing her reputation as a bold and uncompromising voice in contemporary cinema. The fusion of feminism, body horror, and music video aesthetics lends The Substance a unique originality that sets it apart from its cinematic influences, including the works of Cronenberg and iconic films like The Thing (John Carpenter, 1982) and Possession (Andrzej Żuławski, 1981). 6- La Passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Taste of Things, Tran Anh Hung, 2023) Tran Anh Hung crafts a cinematic feast with The Taste of Things, where food and emotion intertwine to tell a story of passion and legacy. This lushly shot film is a sensory experience, celebrating French culinary traditions while delving into the intimate relationships behind them. The duet between Juliette Binoche and Benoît Magimel is possibly the most memorable of the year. 7- Evil Does Not Exist (Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 2023) Following the success of Drive My Car, Ryusuke Hamaguchi returns with Evil Doesn’t Exist, a meditative exploration of morality, nature, and human impact. Hamaguchi’s patient storytelling and profound thematic depth make this a standout work that resonates deeply with contemporary global concerns. Evil Doesn’t Exist, though shorter than the director’s previous works, retains the same ambitious drive to delve deep into the complexities of human nature. 8- The Kitchen (La cocina, Alonso Ruizpalacios, 2024) With La cocina, Ruizpalacios offers a playful yet incisive look at cultural intersections through the lens of food and tradition. Known for his sharp humor and inventive storytelling, he uses this film to examine the complexities of identity and belonging in a globalized world. Particularly striking is the stark contrast between the opulence of the dining room and the chaotic, almost disastrous atmosphere of the kitchen. Equally compelling is Ruizpalacios’ poignant critique, highlighting how the culinary machinery of the American Midwest relies heavily on undocumented migrants—the very individuals the incoming administration plans to expel en masse. 9- Hit Man (Richard Linklater, 2024) Richard Linklater’s Hit Man brings his trademark observational style to an unexpected genre, blending humor, heart, and tension. The result is a refreshingly original take on the crime narrative, proving once again Linklater’s versatility and deep understanding of human behavior. Glen Powell and Adria Arjona, alongside Mikey Madison (in Anora), deliver some of the year’s most daring performances, even incorporating the parody of bad acting as an intentional and integral part of their craft. 10- La Chimera (Alice Rohrwacher, 2023) Alice Rohrwacher continues her exploration of myth and reality in La Chimera, a visually enchanting tale steeped in Italian folklore. One of the film’s distinctive qualities lies in its peculiar visual style, drawing viewers into a mesmerizing world where wealth and love are elusive chimeras, and crime and evil are portrayed with unexpected tenderness. It’s as though the director set out to tell a story about darkness, only to weave it with threads of love and gentleness. Marc Lauria Cinephile. Brisbane, Australia Film annonce du film qui n’existera jamais: ‘Droles de guerres’ (Trailer of a Film That Will Never Exist: ‘Phony Wars’, Jean-Luc Godard, 2023) Qingchun: Ku (Youth (Hard Times), Wang Bing, 2024) Qingchun: Gui (Youth (Homecoming), Wang Bing, 2024) My Undesirable Friends: Part 1-Last Air in Moscow (Julia Loktev, 2024) Intercepted (Oksana Karpovych, 2024) Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (Johan Grimonprez, 2024) Henry Fonda for President (Alexander Horwath, 2024) Zielona granica (Green Border, Agnieszka Holland, 2023) Feng liu yi dai (Caught by the Tides, Jia Zhang-ke, 2024) Le proces Goldman (The Goldman Case, Cedric Kahn, 2023) Richard Leathem Producer and Presenter, Film Scores 3MBS, Melbourne and Arts Writer for The Australian Book Review Favourite new releases of 2024: Conclave (Edward Berger, 2024) Anora (Sean Baker, 2024) Memoir of a Snail (Adam Elliot, 2024) Miséricorde (Misericordia, Alain Guiraudie, 2024) No Other Land (Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, 2024) Favourite first-time watches of 2024: Scenes From a Marriage (Ingmar Bergman, 1974) Onibaba (Kaneto Shindo, 1964) Midnight (Mitchell Leisen, 1939) Harakiri (Masaki Kobayashi, 1962) La maman et la putain (The Mother and the Whore, Jean Eustache, 1973) Wyeth Leslie Local Oklahoman film enjoyer and writer New (based on availability for Oklahoma theaters/streaming) Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (Miller, 2024) Perfect Days (Wim Wenders, 2023) Kaibutsu (Monster, Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2023) La Passion de Dodin Bouffant (The Taste of Things, Trần Anh Hùng, 2023) The Zone of Interest (Jonathan Glazer, 2023) New-to-Me Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962) Election (Alexander Payne, 1999) Lat sau san taam (Hard Boiled, John Woo, 1992) Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2004) Irma Vep (Olivier Assayas, 1996) Tara Lomax Academic writer and educator, Discipline Lead in Screen Studies at the Australian Film Television and Radio School I remain committed to using this yearly poll to document notable franchise installments released each year. I began this approach seven years ago while undertaking doctoral research on blockbuster franchises for a couple of reasons: I like to think that this World Poll has some scope to represent broad expressions of cinephilia that also include bigger-scale (commercial/popular) productions; also, blockbuster franchising is a significant mode of contemporary filmmaking and I think there is benefit in tracing its development over time. The franchise mode has been in a state of change over the last couple of years, particularly as the superhero genre lessens its dominance, so my aim for taking this approach remains more relevant than ever. Below is my non-exhaustive selection of notable blockbuster franchise instalments released in 2024 in order of preference. Wicked (Jon M. Chu, 2024) As an adaptation of a highly-successful Broadway musical – itself an adaptation of a novel that was a revisionist parallel novel series adapted from the initial novel series by L. Frank Baum – Wicked is an outstanding example of cinematic medium specificity. This movie knows what makes cinema distinctive from other media; it uses dynamic shot sizes, fast-paced editing style, and soundscape to delight the senses and add subtle dimensions to theme, character, and storyworld that cannot be achieved in the same way through other media. It also signals an emerging trend towards the musical genre in the franchise mode. Joker: Folie à Deux (Todd Phillips, 2024) The awaited sequel to Joker (Phillips, 2019), Joker: Folie à Deux shows no interest in taking a basic approach to sequalisation, as it merged the art house mode with the musical genre within a (loose) comic book adaptation; it also positioned itself against the staunch fandom that misunderstood the message of the previous instalment. As such, Joker: Folie à Deux has been met with mixed responses, but this release was a highlight for me this year. I really appreciate franchise instalments that are not afraid to push at the edges of what we think a sequel should look and sound like, especially with comic books adaptations. Deadpool & Wolverine (Shawn Levy, 2024) This is the 34th instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the first official inclusion of the X-Men characters Deadpool and Wolverine into the MCU, following Disney’s acquisition of Fox in 2019. Deadpool & Wolverine is also the first R-rated MCU instalment and continues the style of choreographed violence seen in Deadpool (Miller, 2017) and Deadpool 2 (Leitch, 2018), as well as its metafictional humour. Most notable is that the meta-style expected of the Deadpool character enables this instalment to overtly negotiate the creative and narrative complexities of studio mergers and acquisitions; contrary to the approach usually expected of the MCU, Deadpool & Wolverine is less interested in ‘setting up’ the next chapter of the franchise but pays homage to the legacy of Fox’s X-Men and Wolverine movies to recognise their historical impact on the superhero movie genre. It is also notable that Deadpool & Wolverine was the only MCU instalment released in 2024, which clearly signals a must-needed shift away from quantity in Marvel Studios’ franchise strategy; it was also the only successful superhero movie released this year (as opposed to the films released as part of the Sony Spider-Man Universe). Alien: Romulus (Fede Álvarez, 2024) The seventh instalment in the ‘Alien’ franchise (not including the ‘Predator’ crossovers), Alien: Romulus captures the thematic essence of the franchise in its exploration of the monstrosities inherent in human creation. As an interquel that takes place between the events of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), Alien: Romulus firmly positions itself within the history of the ‘Alien’ franchise. Dune: Part Two (Denis Villeneuve, 2024) A continuation of Dune (2021), Dune: Part Two takes a much more classical approach to its narration than its preceding instalment: it is far more coherent and goal-driven than the first part, which allows for a deeper appreciation of its audiovisual aesthetic and a clearer understanding of its convoluted storyworld. This year also saw the release of the ‘Dune’ HBO prequel series, Dune: Prophecy, so there is a clear intention to keep this franchise in active development. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (Wes Ball, 2024) This is the tenth instalment in the ‘Planet of the Apes’ franchise, the fourth instalment in the reboot series, and the first instalment released in this franchise since Disney’s acquisition of Fox. Narratively, it continues from the last instalment in the reboot series, War of the Planet of the Apes (2017), but thematically it is more indebted to questions of human-animal power relations established in the early series. I really appreciated how this instalment represented the environment as an integration of abandoned human infrastructure and nature. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (George Miller, 2024) A spin-off prequel to the critically and commercially successful Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), the narrative of Furiosa sits somewhere between Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) and Fury Road (which really makes it more of an interquel). This instalment seemed to take a different approach to world-building than its predecessor: while Fury Road builds the storyworld on a vertical axis (implied history, minimal exposition, in medias res logic, depth of culture and place), Furiosa takes a more horizontal approach through its vast spread across multiple locations, exposition-drive dialogue, thinly developed characterisation, and long-drawn-out duration. I was uninspired by this approach and generally disappointed with this instalment. A dishonourable mention goes to the three duds released as part of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe this year: Madame Web (S. J. Clarkson, 2024), Venom: The Last Dance (Kelly Marcel, 2024), and Kraven the Hunter (J.C. Chandor, 2024). Perhaps in years to come these films will find cult status, but for now they are a reminder that producing superhero franchise instalments is a craft and success is not in-built with a pre-established brand.