Nunn's Theater Habit presents Top 10 movies of 2022

Another cinematic year has come and gone following a return to the theater without masks and social distancing in 2022. It was a slow burn for the industry and full of surprises including the rolling out of unexpected release dates. 

Everything Everywhere All at Once debuted in March then kept raking in the dough all year long and now is poised to do well during awards season. Top Gun: Maverick was another one that kept on flying well past a usual release run after several COVID delays.  

Sequels such as Top Gun were everything to fans, everywhere in the summer and all at once with their timing. Some sci-fi genre competing has now caused Black Panther: Wakanda Forever to be washed away by Avatar: The Way of Water" just before more award announcements. The game is heating up with some clear frontrunners.

In 2022, LGBTQ+ content evolved in terms of variety and mass commercialism with more than 10 queer-themed offerings. For me, The Inspection resonated with the bullying subject matter set in the military conveyed by an openly gay Black star and director. Spoiler Alert, Bros and Fire Island all depicted important romance and acceptance. My Policeman was a historical piece about longing and Close took that idea even further while tugging at our heartstrings. 

The Whale could have swum out of the closet a little more to create awareness after the challenge of a straight-identifying director and star who tackle a story powerful story about emotional eating.

There were incredibly strong performances to reflect upon in 2022 thanks to repeat performers Olivia Colman and Florence Pugh who even voiced the same cartoon this year in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Cate Blanchett plays another lesbian on the big screen after 2015's Carol with Tar. Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson remain to this day gifted performers that released some of their finest work this year. Bill Nighy was another English actor who showed that careers sometimes grow better with age in Living. 

Veering away from the artsier fare that many critics lean toward, my top 10 is formulated by movies that are easy to watch and demand more than one viewing.

10 The Banshees of Inisherin

9 The Woman King

8 Till

7 The Inspection

6 13 Lives

5 Elvis

4 Babylon

3 The Fabelmans

2 Armageddon Time

1 Everything Everywhere All at Once

Looking back at 2022's feature films has revealed a diverse list that all the creators should be proud of!

Follow the Nunn to the 28th Annual Critic Choice Awards on January 15, 2023, hosted by Chelsea Handler airing live on The CW from the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, California.