In the third year of COVID the landscape of movie-watching has changed irrevocably.

The impact streaming services, pandemic apprehension, and the cost of living have had on cinema attendance has been huge. There is a 20% increase each year in the number of films released around the world, both theatrically and on digital platforms.

With my own home and work commitments - Life - it’s been very hard keeping up appearances. As such, this year I managed just two full reviews and another two short reviews. Sigh. Very disappointing.

My actual movie-watching ratio wasn‘t that impressive either. Double sigh. But, I managed to see enough to still throw my two cents worth into the EOY lists, as I have been doing with Cult Projections since I started the site nearly ten years ago.

Of course there were numerous films I really wanted to see, but didn’t get to, which may, or may not, have made my final selection for the year, including The Menu, Megalomaniac, The Banshees of Inisherin, The Fabelmans, Flux Gourmet, Millie Lies Low, and, perhaps, All Jacked Up and Full of Worms. I’ll get to them all eventually.

So, here then, in no particular order (or maybe they are?), my twenty favourite movies I saw in 2022, some in the cinema, some on streaming platforms, some featured in international festivals, and some were on general release down under. It felt like it was a good year for horror flicks. I have honorable mentions too.

Seek them out.

ZEBRA GIRL

AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER

FOLLOW HER

WHAT JOSIAH SAW

FEED ME

PREY

SISSY

EVIL EYE

YOU WON’T BE ALONE

THE STRANGER

I LOVE MY DAD

ALL MY FRIENDS HATE ME

YOUR LOVE IS MINE

NANNY

MOONAGE DAYDREAM

THE elderly

SMILE

BARBARIAN

PIGGY

X

Honourable mentions: Fresh, Elvis, Blonde, The Batman, Curse of Aurore, The Harbinger, Dashcam, Two Witches, The Ones You Didn’t Burn, Emily the Criminal.