Since 2011, I have been pulling together a list of the best movies of the year according to the Brisbane-based critics who I run into regularly at preview screenings. Films to have topped prior year lists have been Drive in 2011, Argo in 2012, Gravity in 2013, Boyhood in 2014, Mad Max: Fury Road in 2015, La La Land in 2016, Get Out in 2017, The Favourite in 2018, Parasite in 2019, Nomadland in 2020, and Nine Days in 2021.
To come up with an overall top 10, I’ve used a simple points system and applied it to the list of each critic. It is as follows:
- 3 points for the top film on each list.
- 2 points for the films ranked between 2nd and 5th on each list.
- 1 point for the films ranked between 6th and 10th on each list.
If two films finished on the same score, the film that appeared on the greater number of top 10 lists is ranked higher (as an indication of wider approval). If that's the same, it goes to an average of the individual rankings of each film.
The 10 list includes movies released in Australian cinemas and also those made available on streaming platforms.
There were 3 standout films which appeared on more than 50% of lists. Topping the table this year was Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin which was released in Australia in Boxing Day and has since picked up 9 Academy Award nominations.
Rounding out the placings were the surprise hit Everything Everywhere All at Once, and the action blockbuster Top Gun Maverick. They too have been showered with love this awards season.
Four non-English language films earned spots in the top 10 – Drive my Car from Japan, Decision to Leave from South Korea, Petite Maman from France, and RRR from India.
An interesting mix of genres rounded out this year’s list. We have a “neo-Western science fiction horror film” Nope, the dark comedy The Menu, the superhero movie The Batman, and the documentary Fire of Love.
As always, it’s a great list of movies. Hunt them down on streaming services if you missed them in cinemas.
On that note, here are the top 10 movies of 2022 according to Brisbane critics…
Brisbane Film Critics - Top 10 of 2022
1. The Banshees of Inisherin
2. Top Gun Maverick
3. Everything Everywhere All at Once
4. Nope
5. Drive My Car
6. The Menu
7. The Batman
8. Petite Maman
9 (tie). Decision to Leave
9 (tie). Fire of Love
9 (tie). RRR
You can view a table of all the votes and final scores by clicking here.
A big thanks to all who submitted their lists. If you're a Brisbane critic would like to contribute in future years, please reach out to me on social media.
You can check out information on all the Brisbane critics (along with their choices for the best and worst of 2022) below.
|
 Matthew Toomey
Born in Brisbane, Matt Toomey was introduced to the world of cinema when he landed a job at a video store fresh out of high school in 1995. A few years later, he started his own website and reviewed movies regularly on a community radio station. In 2005, he joined the team at 612ABC and can be heard reviewing the latest releases every Thursday morning. He can also be heard weekly on regional ABC throughout Queensland.
Website: thefilmpie.com
Twitter: @ToomeyMatt
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 2. |
Lost Illusions |
| 3. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 4. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 5. |
Flee |
| 6. |
C'mon C'mon |
| 7. |
Quo Vadis, Aida? |
| 8. |
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande |
| 9. |
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom |
| 10. |
Full Time |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| Blaze |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Flee |
| Best Documentary: |
| Flee |
| Best Performance: |
| Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once) |
| Worst Film: |
| Moonfall |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Barbarian |
 |
|
 Sarah Ward
Sarah Ward is a film critic, arts and culture writer, and film festival organiser. She is Concrete Playground’s film and TV editor and critic, Screen International’s Australia-based critic, a writer for the Goethe-Institut Australien’s Kino in Oz, and a contributor to Flicks Australia, SBS, SBS Movies and the Alliance of Women Film Journalists. Her work has been published by the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, AACTA, Birth.Movies.Death, Junkee, FilmInk, Lumina, Senses of Cinema, Broadsheet, Televised Revolution, ArtsHub, ScreenHub, Metro Magazine, Screen Education and the World Film Locations book series. She is also a film critic for ABC radio, and has worked with the Brisbane International Film Festival, Queensland Film Festival, Sydney Underground Film Festival and Melbourne International Film Festival.
Websites: concreteplayground.com
screendaily.com/sarah-ward/1100859.contributor
goethe.de/ins/au/en/kul/sup/kio.html
flicks.com.au/author/sarah-ward/
sbs.com.au/guide/person/sarah-ward
sbs.com.au/movies/person/sarah-ward
awfj.org/blog/author/wardsarah/
Twitter: @swardplay
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Decision to Leave |
| 2. |
Moonage Daydream |
| 3. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 4. |
Drive My Car |
| 5. |
Petite Maman |
| 6. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 7. |
Nope |
| 8. |
Bones and All |
| 9. |
Red Rocket |
| 10. |
After Yang |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| The Stranger |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Belle |
| Best Documentary: |
| Moonage Daydream |
| Best Performance: |
| Tang Wei (Decision to Leave) |
| Worst Film: |
| Father Stu |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Ambulance |
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Fire of Love |
| 2. |
Moonage Daydream |
| 3. |
The Northman |
| 4. |
Parallel Mothers |
| 5. |
The Stranger |
| 6. |
Nightmare Alley |
| 7. |
Amsterdam |
| 8. |
The Eyes of Tammy Faye |
| 9. |
Official Competition |
| 10. |
The Batman |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| The Stranger |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Puss in Boots: The Last Wish |
| Best Documentary: |
| Fire of Love |
| Best Performance: |
| Viola Davis (The Woman King) |
| Worst Film: |
| Moonfall |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| The Gray Man |
|
 Peter Gray
Peter Gray is a Brisbane based, Rotten Tomatoes certified freelance entertainment writer specialising in film. Currently the entertainment reporter/film reviewer for QNews, Queensland’s largest LGBT publication, head film critic for The AU Review, and regular contributor to Brisbanista, CRPWrites and This Is Film.
Website: rottentomatoes.com/critic/peter-gray/movies
Twitter: @ratedPDG
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 2. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 3. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 4. |
Nope |
| 5. |
Glass Onion |
| 6. |
Cha Cha Real Smooth |
| 7. |
The Batman |
| 8. |
Red Rocket |
| 9. |
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande |
| 10. |
Causeway |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| Sissy |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers |
| Best Documentary: |
| Omoiyari: A Song Film by Kishi Bashi |
| Best Performance: |
| Emma Thompson (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande) |
| Worst Film: |
| Morbius |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Orphan: First Kill |
|
 Ella Donald
Ella Donald is a writer, change and communications professional, and PhD candidate. She has written for publications like GQ magazine (Australia, Middle East), CNN, The Guardian, and ABC.
Website: elladonaldwriter.wordpress.com
Twitter: @ellafdonald
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 2. |
Petite Maman |
| 3. |
C'mon C'mon |
| 4. |
RRR |
| 5. |
Bergman Island |
| 6. |
Elvis |
| 7. |
Red Rocket |
| 8. |
Matilda: The Musical |
| 9. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 10. |
After Yang |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| n/a |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Turning Red |
| Best Documentary: |
| Flee |
| Best Performance: |
| Austin Butler (Elvis) |
| Worst Film: |
| n/a |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Matilda: The Musical |
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 2. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 3. |
Decision to Leave |
| 4. |
The Menu |
| 5. |
Drive My Car |
| 6. |
Nope |
| 7. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 8. |
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent |
| 9. |
Bones and All |
| 10. |
Parallel Mothers |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| The Drover's Wife |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Strange World |
| Best Documentary: |
| The Sound of 007 |
| Best Performance: |
| Tang Wei (Decision to Leave) |
| Worst Film: |
| Ambulance |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Bones and All |
|
 Rob Hudson
Rob Hudson is the editor of popular culture website modmove.com and reviews film, theatre and music.
Website: modmove.com
Twitter: @modmove
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Prey |
| 2. |
The Woman King |
| 3. |
The Menu |
| 4. |
Nope |
| 5. |
The Duke |
| 6. |
Mrs Harris Goes to Paris |
| 7. |
Nitram |
| 8. |
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever |
| 9. |
Kimi |
| 10. |
Glass Onion |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| Nitram |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Turning Red |
| Best Documentary: |
| Vinyl Nation |
| Best Performance: |
| Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans) |
| Worst Film: |
| Blonde |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| The Good Guys |
|
 Baz McAlister
Walkley Award winning journalist Baz McAlister is a writer and deputy night editor at The Courier-Mail and The Sunday Mail, and co-hosts 'Force Material', a podcast about the secrets, history and influences of Star Wars.
Website: bazmcalister.wordpress.com
www.forcematerial.com
Twitter: @bazmcalister
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
RRR |
| 2. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 3. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 4. |
All Quiet on the Western Front |
| 5. |
Belfast |
| 6. |
Fresh |
| 7. |
Barbarian |
| 8. |
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent |
| 9. |
X / Pearl |
| 10. |
Clerks 3 |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| The Stranger |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Lightyear |
| Best Documentary: |
| Nalvany |
| Best Performance: |
| Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin) |
| Worst Film: |
| Unchartered |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Fall |
|
 Nick L'Barrow
Nick specialises in 60 second movie reviews on his Instagram profile - covering all the major releases and indie films that hit Australia. Nick is also a featured reviewer for Novastream Network and Film Notions.
Website: instagram.com/nicksflicksfix
Twitter: @NicksFlicksFix
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Top Gun Maverick |
| 2. |
Cha Cha Real Smooth |
| 3. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 4. |
Jackass Forever |
| 5. |
The Batman |
| 6. |
The Stranger |
| 7. |
Nope |
| 8. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 9. |
Armageddon Time |
| 10. |
The Black Phone |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| The Stranger |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio |
| Best Documentary: |
| My Old School |
| Best Performance: |
| Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once) |
| Worst Film: |
| Texas Chainsaw Massacre |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Smile |
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
Drive My Car |
| 2. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 3. |
Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone |
| 4. |
Fire of Love |
| 5. |
The Souvenir: Part II |
| 6. |
De Humani Corpis Fabrica |
| 7. |
Because We Have Each Other |
| 8. |
Petite Maman |
| 9. |
Both Sides of the Blade |
| 10. |
Crimes of the Future |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| Because We Have Each Other |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Puss in Boots: The Last Wish |
| Best Documentary: |
| Russia 1985-1999: TraumaZone |
| Best Performance: |
| Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin) |
| Worst Film: |
| Avatar: The Way of Water |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| De Humani Corpis Fabrica |
|
 Jacob Richardson
Jacob Richardson runs Film Focus Magazine. His reviews can be found there, as well as in local Brisbane publications My Village News, and a series of NSW newspapers.
Website: filmfocusmagazine.com
instagram.com/filmfocusau
Twitter: n/a
|
| |
| Top 10 Films: |
| 1. |
The Banshees of Inisherin |
| 2. |
Avatar: The Way of Water |
| 3. |
Spencer |
| 4. |
The Menu |
| 5. |
The Northman |
| 6. |
Everything Everywhere All at Once |
| 7. |
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish |
| 8. |
The Phantom of the Open |
| 9. |
Full Time |
| 10. |
The Batman |
| |
| Best Australian Film: |
| Sweet As |
| Best Animated Film: |
| Puss in Boots: The Last Wish |
| Best Documentary: |
| Running with the Devil |
| Best Performance: |
| Ralph Fiennes (The Menu) |
| Worst Film: |
| Moonfall |
| Most Surprised To Enjoy: |
| Puss in Boots; The Last Wish |
Garry Williams
David Edwards
Hannah Grzesiak
