David Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future, Jerzy Skolimowski’s EO, and Charlotte Wells’s Aftersun took the top spots among films released in 2022 on Film Comment’s annual end-of-year survey. Of the films that screened at festivals worldwide but have not announced stateside distribution, David Easteal’s The Plains, Bertrand Bonello’s Coma, and Laura Citarella’s Trenque Lauquen received the top rankings.
The top 20 films of 2022 were unveiled at a special live talk with critics Bilge Ebiri, Alissa Wilkinson, and Inney Prakash, moderated by Film Comment’s Co-Deputy Editors, Devika Girish and Clinton Krute; the lively discussion is now available on the Film Comment Podcast. Following the talk, attendees were treated to a surprise screening of Film Comment’s #1 film of 2022, Crimes of the Future. The complete lists of released and undistributed films are included below.
“That the winner of this year’s poll is a strange, gory, apocalyptic film about a future where art and humanity are both on the precipice of extinction is a striking reflection of what we’re seeking from cinema in 2022,” said Girish. “And it’s exciting to see so many first and second features in the top 20—that’s an invigorating prognosis for the art form!”
“This year’s list is satisfyingly eclectic, reflecting the varying sensibilities of our contributors as well as the wide range of quality films released in 2022,” said Krute. “The same is true of our best undistributed list, which features a remarkable selection of films from around the world that we hope more people are able to see in the future.”
Film Comment’s Top 20 Films Released in 2022
1. Crimes of The Future David Cronenberg, Canada/France/Greece/United Kingdom
2. EO Jerzy Skolimowski, Poland/Italy
3. Aftersun Charlotte Wells, U.K.
4. Saint Omer Alice Diop, France
5. The Eternal Daughter Joanna Hogg, U.K.
6. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed Laura Poitras, U.S.
7. In Front of Your Face Hong Sangsoo, South Korea
8. Nope Jordan Peele, U.S.
9. The Novelist’s Film Hong Sangsoo, South Korea
10. The Cathedral Ricky D’Ambrose, U.S.
11. TÁR Todd Field, U.S.
12. Decision to Leave Park Chan-wook, South Korea
13. The Girl and The Spider Ramon and Silvan Zürcher, Switzerland
14. The Fabelmans Steven Spielberg, U.S.
15. One Fine Morning Mia Hansen-Løve, France
16. A Night of Knowing Nothing Payal Kapadia, India
17. Stars at Noon Claire Denis, France
18. Il Buco Michelangelo Frammartino, Italy
19. Armageddon Time James Gray, U.S.
20. *TIE: We’re All Going to The World’s Fair & Benediction Jane Schoenbrun, U.S. & Terence Davies, U.K.
Film Comment’s Top 10 Undistributed Films of 2022
1. The Plains2. Coma Bertrand Bonello, France
3. Trenque Lauquen Laura Citarella, Argentina
4. Queens of the Qing Dynasty Ashley McKenzie, Canada
5. Mutzenbacher Ruth Beckermann, Austria
6. The Adventures of Gigi the Law Alessandro Comodin, Italy/France/Belgium
7. The United States of America James Benning, U.S.
8. Afterwater Dane Komljen, Germany/South Korea/Spain/Serbia
9. It Is Night in America Ana Vaz, Brazil
10. A Woman Escapes Sofia Bohdanowicz, Burak Çevik, and Blake Williams, Canada/Turkey