Halfway Mark 1: Fav Films & Miscellaneous Achievements of 2022 (thus far)

by Nathaniel R

The following list honors films released between January 1st, 2022 and June 30th, 2022. Obviously studios save the bulk of their perceived "prestige" pictures until the back half of the year but we always hope that lists like this will remind them they don't need to and to remind audiences that there's good stuff all year round. These are not official nominees for our own film bitch awards but they do function as reminder lists as we compile year-end stuff later on. If every Academy member and critic did this, awards season would be far more varied and film culture would be more robust because people would be seeing movies all year round and not cramming in only a small heap of them at year's end. 

Okay off of the soapbox and on to the favourites of 2022 (thus far) in alpha order by category. The pictures do not indicate winners as they're all winners. This is just an appreciation for these artists and movies...  

PICTURE

AFTER YANG © A24

• After Yang (Kogonada) A24
• Downton Abbey: A New Era  (Simon Curtis) Focus Features
• Elvis  (Baz Luhrman) Warner Bros
• Everything Everywhere All At Once (The Daniels) A24
• Fire Island  (Andrew Ahn) Searchlight Pictures
• Great Freedom (Sebastian Meise) The Match Factory
• Happening (Audrey Diwan) Wild Bunch
• The Northman (Robert Eggers) Focus Features
• Official Competition (Mariano Cohn & Gastón Duprat) IFC Films
• Turning Red (Domee Shi) Disney/Pixar

also recommended: Dog, Good Luck To You Leo Grande, Playground, RRR, and Top Gun Maverick 

DIRECTOR 

Daniel Scheinert & Dan Kwan. Photo © Rich Furry/Getty Images

• Audrey Diwan, Happening
• Robert Eggers, The Northman
• Kogonada, After Yang
• Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Sebastian Miese, Great Freedom

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH © AppleTV+

• Cha Cha Real Smooth  - by Cooper Raiff
• Everything Everywhere All At Once - by Dan Kwan & Daniel Scheinert
• Good Luck to You Leo Grande -  by Katy Brand
• Great Freedom -  by Sebastian Meise & Thomas Reider
• Official Competition -  by Mariano Cohn & Andrés and Gastón Duprat

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

HAPPENING © Wild Bunch

• After Yang - Kogonada based on the short story "Saying Goodbye to Yang" by Alexander Weinstein
• The Bob's Burgers Movie - Loren Bouchard and Nora Smith based on the Bouchard's tv series
• Downton Abbey: A New Era - Julian Fellowes based on his tv series 
• Fire Island - Joel Kim Booster inspired by "Pride & Prejudice" by Jane Austen
• Happening  - Marcia Romano & Audrey Diwan based on the novel by Annie Ernaux

CINEMATOGRAPHY

THE BATMAN © Warner Bros

• The Batman - Greig Fraser
• Elvis -Mandy Walker
• Great Freedom - Crystal Fournier
• The Northman - Jarin Blaschke
• Top Gun Maverick - Claudio Miranda

COSTUME DESIGN

DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA © Focus Features

• The Batman - Jacqueline Durran and Glyn Dillon & David Crossman
• Downton Abbey: A New Era - Anna Robbins & Maja Meschede
• Elvis - Catherine Martin
• Everything Everywhere All At Once - Shirley Kurata
• The Northman - Linda Muir

PRODUCTION DESIGN

CRIMES OF THE FUTURE © NEON

• After Yang - Alexandra Schaller
• The Batman - James Chinlund
• Crimes of the Future - Carol Spier
• Elvis - Catherine Martin & Karen Murphy
• The Northman - Craig Lathrop

FILM EDITING

GREAT FREEDOM © Match Factory

• After Yang - Kogonada
• Everything Everywhere All At Once  - Paul Rogers
• Great Freedom - Joanna Scrinzi
• Happening - Géraldine Mangenot
• Top Gun Maverick - Eddie Hamilton

MAKEUP AND HAIR

ELVIS © Warner Bros

• The Batman - Mike Marino and ?
• Crimes of the Future -  Alexandra Anger, Monica Pavez, and ?
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness -  Elizabeth Yianni-Georgiou and ?
• Elvis - Mark Coulier and ?
• The Northman - Maralyn Sherman and David White ?

VISUAL EFFECTS

DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS © Disney/Marvel Studios

• After Yang
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Northman
• Top Gun Maverick

ORIGINAL SCORE 

• After Yang - Aska Matsumiya
• The Batman - Michael Giacchino
• Crimes of the Future - Howard Shore
• Everything Everywhere All At Once - Son Lux
• The Northman - Robin Carolan & Sebastian Gainsborough

ADAPTED SCORE (a mix of new and repurposed music)

FIRE ISLAND © Searchlight Pictures

• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness - Danny Elfman plus various composers
• Downton Abbey: A New Era -  John Lunn reworking his own scores, plus standards
• Elvis - Elvis Presley, Elliott Wheeler, plus various artists
• Fire Island - Jay Wadley plus various pop artists
• Top Gun Maverick - Lorne Balfe, Harold Faltermeyer, Hans Zimmer, Lady Gaga, etc...

UPDATE: RRR should have probably been here but was screened after this posting. 

SOUND

TOP GUN MAVERICK © Paramount Pictures

• After Yang
• The Batman
• Elvis
• The Northman
• Top Gun Maverick

ORIGINAL SONG

TURNING RED © Disney/Pixar

• "1 True Love" - Turning Red
• "Hold My Hand" - Top Gun Maverick
• "Nobody Like You" - Turning Red
• "U Know What's Up" - Turning Red

UPDATE: "Naatu Naatu"  - RRR

HERO OF THE YEAR

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE © A24

• Batman (Robert Pattinson) in The Batman
• Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
• Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) in Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Maverick (Tom Cruise) in Top Gun Maverick
• Meilin (Rosalie Chung and animators) in Turning Red

VILLAIN OF THE YEAR

AMBULANCE © Universal

• Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe) in The Lost City
• Colonel Tom Parker (Tom Hanks) in Elvis
• Danny Sharp (Jake Gyllenhaal) in AmbuLAnce
• Jobu Tupaki (Stephanie Hsu) in Everything Everywhere All At Once
• The Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

DIVA OF THE YEAR

THE NORTHMAN © Focus Features

• Bri Loves (Jane Bender) in Senior Year
• Jobu Tupaki (Stephanie Hsu) in Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Lola Cuevas (Penélope Cruz) in Official Competition
• Maverick (Tom Cruise) in Top Gun Maverick
• Queen Gudrun (Nicole Kidman) in The Northman

SEXPOT OF THE YEAR

FIRE ISLAND © Searchlight

• Elvis (Austin Butler) in Elvis
• Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack) in Good Luck to You Leo Grande
• Olga of the Birch Forest (Anya Taylor Joy) in The Northman
• Selina Kyle (Zoe Kravitz) in The Batman
• Will (Conrad Ricamora) in Fire Island

MUSICAL SCENE IN A MUSICAL (OR PERFORMANCE HEAVY PICTURE) 

ELVIS © Warner Bros

• breakout performance - Elvis
• "If I Can Dream" (protest) - Elvis
• "Suspicous Minds" (opening night) - Elvis
• "Trouble" (riot) - Elvis
• "Tutti Frutti" (watching Little Richard) - Elvis

MUSICAL SCENE IN A NON-MUSICAL

SENIOR YEAR © Netflix

• Crimes of the Future  - "it is time to stop speaking"
• Fire Island - "Sometimes" Karaoke
• Fire Island - Will's dance-off
• Senior Year  - "Consent"
• Turning Red  - "U Know What's Up"

UPDATE -danceoff in RRR (which was screened after this list was made

ACTION SEQUENCE 

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE © a24

• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness -  Attack on Kamar-Taj
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness -  Zombie Strange vs Scarlet Witch
• Everything Everywhere All At Once  - entire film (would have to see again to know where one action setpiece ends and another begins)
• The Northman - Volcanic duel
• Top Gun Maverick - Final mission

UPDATE: any of RRR's setpieces, screened after this list was made

KISS

FIREBIRD © Roadside Attractions

• Cha Cha Real Smooth - Dakota Johnson & Cooper Raiff
• Elvis - Austin Butler & actresses as fans
• Firebird - Tom Prior & Oleg Zagorodnii
• Fire Island - Joel Kim Booster & Conrad Ricamora
• Top Gun Maverick - Tom Cruise & Jennifer Connelly

SEX SCENE 

GOOD LUCK TO YOU LEO GRANDE © Searchlight Pictures

• Crimes of the Future - Léa Seydoux & Viggo Mortensen
• Good Luck to You Leo Grande - Emma Thompson & Daryl McCormack
• Firebird - Tom Prior & Oleg Zagorodnii
• Great Freedom - Franz Rogowski & Anton von Lucke
• The Northman - Anya Taylor Joy & Alexander Skarsgård 

OPENING SCENE

DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA © Focus Features

• Downton Abbey: A New Era -  Wedding
• Everything Everywhere All At Once - Chaos in laundromat
• Firebird - Night swim
• Great Freedom - Criminal behavior
• Top Gun Maverick - "Darkstar" shutdown

ENDING

• Crimes of the Future  - the body is ready
• Fire Island - at the dock
• Good Luck To You Leo Grande - the mirror
• Great Freedom - Waiting for the police
• The Northman - Valhalla

CREDIT SEQUENCE / TITLE DESIGN

JACKASS FOREVER © Paramount Pictures

• After Yang  - (opening) dance battles
• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness  (closing) inkblot mirrored
• Elvis -  (opening/closing) rhinestone explosions
• Jackass Forever - (opening) dick kaiju
• Turning Red  -(opening) Meilin's intros

OTHER GREAT INDIVIDUAL SCENES 

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE © a24

• After Yang  -Memory tour
• Crimes of the Future - Autopsy
• Downton Abbey: A New Era - Final scene of movie within movie
• Everything Everywhere All At Once  - The Movie Star Life
• Everything Everywhere All At Once  - Rocks
• Fire Island - Sunset countdown
• Fire Island - Marisa Tomei
• The Northman - Queen Gudrun's confession
• The Northman - Visiting the seer
• Turning Red - 4Town Shakedown

Haven't yet screened: Benediction, Jerry & Marge Go Large, Lightyear, Marcel with Shoes On, Men, Mothering Sunday, Nitram, and Pleasure

Other films screened but not shortlisted in the categories above:  The Adam Project, Alice, Apollo 10: A Space Age Childhood, Dog, Fistful of Vengeance, Fresh,  Jurassic World Dominion , Morbius, and Spiderhead

Comments

[G.Shaq]

omg i haven't many of those
But for villain of the year surely we could find a spot fo Nick Adams

[Finbar McBride]

Now streaming on Netflix, RRR, the 2022 box office hit ($160 million) epic adventure from India, deserves a spot on this list, certainly for action sequence when Ramu Raju thrillingly battles a horde of violent protesters as well as visual effects sequence when the streak of hungry tigers are unleashed on the garden party of the British oppressors.

I loved this movie. So far, it is my favorite of 2022.

[Glenn Dunks]

RRR should definitely be in contention for Best Original Song as well as Nathaniel's musical sequence and action sequence categories. But Best Original Song should be tried to made happen by the pre-Oscars lot.

[jules]

You should check out Kimi starring Zoë Kravitz on HBO Max. It's a very effective thriller.

[David]

God I haven't seen much this year!

Joel Kim Booster for sex pot of the year.

[Yavor]

Just watched Everything Everywhere All At Once.

Gosh... unfortunately it's not a great movie, is it? I had such high expectations. It felt like an ADHD anime that decided to be a live-action film (I still remember how unbearable Paprika was, for example).

There are some absolutely astonishing scenes here. The rocks communication scene truly stands out. But overall, is it a masterpiece? No, I can't say it is.

Far too many action scenes. Also, everything felt too explained.

[César Gaytán]

Where is the acting categories?

Nice to see "Official Competition" in Original Screenplay, after this I'm considering to refer as Óscar 'sharp-tongue' Martínez because he is terrific delivering bitchy punch lines like here, in "El Cuento de las Comadrejas" (The Weasel's Tale) and in a more savage and particular way: "Toc Toc".

[Ryan T.]

All the EEAAO and Fire Island love warms my heart. Would like to submit for consideration Brittany Snow's rendition of Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide" in the movie X for Musical Moment in a Non-Musical. In fact she should also be on the longlist for supporting actress this year so far IMO.