The best movies of 2022

How we've grouped data:

• releases are placed from top to bottom, from highest to lowest, and in alphabetical order;
• the data is current as of early January 2023. With more reviews, the layout may change;
  
• only films with at least 9 reviews are taken into account. The only exception was “My Imaginary Country”, which currently has 7 reviews;
  
• we also recommend that you read the best movies of 2021.

Aftersun — 95 points (dir. Charlotte Wells)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: Sophie goes through her own memories — real and mixed with fiction over the years — of a beach vacation she spent with her father two decades ago.

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed — 91 points (dir. Laura Poitras)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: the confrontation between artist and activist Nan Goldin and the Sackler family, who had a hand in the opioid epidemic in the United States.

Tar — 91 points (dir. Todd Field)
Genre: drama, music
What is remarkable: Lydia Tar, a talented conductor and composer, becomes the first woman to be trusted to conduct the Berlin Orchestra.

No Bears — 90 points (dir. Jafar Panahi)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: two independent love stories, above which public stereotypes and the state of power rise.

Hit the Road — 90 points (dir. Panah Panahi)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: parents, accompanied by their two young sons, travel to the province of modern Iran, a country with a rich past, but with a painful present and an uncertain future.

The Worst Person in the World — 90 points (dir. Joachim Trier)
Genre: drama, romance, comedy
What is remarkable: a comedic drama about a troubled girl that starts on her 20th birthday and ends 10 years later.

Great Freedom — 89 points (dir. Sebastian Meise)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a portrait of post-war Germany that loudly reminds us that widespread simplicity and lack of halftones are the best support for totalitarianism.

Mr. Bachmann and His Class — 89 points (dir. Maria Speth)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: a German teacher creates a special atmosphere in his lessons so that students who have moved to Germany from other countries can find a new home.

The Quiet Girl — 89 points (dir. Colm Bairead)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a family mired in squabbles sends one of their daughters to spend the summer with relatives who, despite their friendliness and external well-being, take care of their own injuries.

Three Minutes: A Lengthening — 88 points (dir. Bianca Stigter)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: in 1938, David Kurtz spent three minutes filming Polish Jews who were about to face the Holocaust. Decades later, these fleeting images hold an impressive story.

Return to Seoul — 88 points (dir. Davy Chou)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a 25-year-old Korean woman who grew up in a foster family in France travels to her homeland to find her roots.

A Night of Knowing Nothing — 87 points (dir. Payal Kapadia)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: a pile of letters addressed to a fictional Indian Film Institute student is intertwined with archival footage, creating a new reality.

The Banshees of Inisherin — 87 points (dir. Martin McDonagh)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: two obstinate Irish men who have been friends for many years suddenly end their relationship.

Descendant — 87 points (dir. Margaret Brown)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: the rich history of the Clotilde, the last known ship that ferried African slaves to the United States.

My Imaginary Country — 86 points (dir. Patricio Guzman)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: understanding the 2019 protests in Chile, when more than a million resentful citizens took to the streets of the capital alone.

All That Breathes — 86 points (dir. Shaunak Sen)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: in New Delhi, one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, two brothers care for black kites that fall from heaven all too often.

Playground — 86 points (dir. Laura Wandel)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: elementary school brutality hits a defenseless girl when she learns that her older brother is being bullied by her classmates.

One Fine Morning — 86 points (dir. Mia Hansen-Love)
Genre: drama, romance
What is remarkable: during a visit to her sick father, a single mother meets an old friend who suddenly arouses romantic feelings in her.

Happening — 86 points (dir. Audrey Diwan)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a young French woman becomes pregnant, but changing diapers is not part of her plans, so she decides to have an abortion. The catch is that in 1960s France it is illegal to do so.

In Front of Your Face — 85 points (dir. Hong Sang-soo)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: the former actress visits her sister in Seoul, where they discuss the present over a light drink and inevitably face the past.

To Leslie — 85 points (dir. Michael Morris)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a single mother suffering from alcoholism wins a large sum in the lottery, but the money instantly dissolves at the bottom of the glass. When a woman wakes up, she tries to atone for her own stupidity.

Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America — 84 points (dir. Emily Kunstler, Sarah Kunstler)
Genre: documentary
What is remarkable: a mix of interviews, anecdotes, and lectures in which attorney Jeffrey Robinson talks about racism in the United States.

The Fallout — 84 points (dir. Megan Park)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: after a tragic shootout at school, young Wada reinvents herself, changing her perspective on family and friendship.

Decision to Leave — 84 points (dir. Park Chan-wook)
Genre: mystery, thriller, romance
What is remarkable: a detective investigating a man's death quickly falls in love with his widow, even though she is the prime suspect.

The Fabelmans — 84 points (dir. Steven Spielberg)
Genre: drama
What is remarkable: a semi-biographical story of Steven Spielberg's childhood and youth, in which he understands the power of cinema.