Dune 2 director Denis Villeneuve reveals his favorite films of 2024, from a divisive Netflix musical to Daniel Craig's latest feature

Dec. 9, 2024

Exclusive: The filmmaker shared the movies he’s enjoyed this year, so get these on your watch list

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Villeneuve is quick to admit that he still has many movies to catch up on, but says there are plenty of films that he has really loved this year. So, from these, what were the stand-outs? It’s quite the eclectic list as Villeneuve shared with GamesRadar+: “I really loved Jacques Audiard’sEmilia Perez. I thought that it was very original and inspiring. Jacques Audiard’s movies always give me a boost of energy, he’s one of our best filmmakers.”

Villeneuve continued: “I also loved The Brutalist by director Brady Corbet and Nickel Boys [RaMell Ross] too, as well asConclaveby Edward Berger. It’s been a great year. I’m impressed by many films this year, I just mentioned these ones and I haven’t seen everything yet. Oh, I also loved Queer by Luca Guadagnino which I thought was very inspiring. Daniel Craig gave an incredible performance.”

If you aren’t already familiar with these movies, Emilia Perez is a musical crime drama about a feared cartel leader who enlists a lawyer to help her transition into a woman. Despite releasing to many five star reviews, including from our veryown critic, it’s proven to be divisive with audiences since hitting Netflix.

Nickel Boys meanwhile is a historical drama about two African American boys who are sent to an abusive reform school, The Brutalist is an epic that follows a Holocaust survivor, and Conclave sees Ralph Fiennes play a Cardinal who uncovers secrets during the election of the next pope. And finally, Queer is the latest from Challengers director Guadagnino, telling the story of Craig’s American expat as he becomes infatuated with a younger man.

With all of these films now coming with the Villeneuve seal of approval, if you haven’t seen them already add them to your watch list!

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Dune: Part Two is available to stream now on Max in the US and Sky/Now in the UK. For more films to add to your watch list, check our our recommendations of thebest Netflix moviesand thebest Amazon Prime movies.

As Entertainment Editor at GamesRadar, I oversee all the online content for Total Film and SFX magazine. Previously I’ve worked for the BBC, Zavvi, UNILAD, Yahoo, Digital Spy and more.

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