It was a fantastic year for Australian and New Zealand Cinema, with each film I saw knocking it out of the park. Some works held up a mirror to society, those that explored Indigenous voices, and those that brought the action to a new level.
This list will look more at the locally made Australian and New Zealand productions/co-productions and not just films filmed in those countries.
Our Highly Commended Films in 2024 are: Better Man, The Convert, Force of Nature, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, Nugget is Dead & Runt
Our Highly Commended TV in 2024 are: Buried, Nautilus & Population 11
So, without further ado, these are the best of Australian and New Zealand Cinema in 2024. Be warned that there will be significant spoilers ahead.
The Nominees Are –
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is always bombastic, thoroughly engaging, and Australian to the core, where Chris Hemsworth might be giving his best every performance.
How to Make Gravy
How to Make Gravy made a fascinating choice to take a medium venerated by parts of the population to make a film all about the dangers of generational trauma and toxic masculinity. It was indeed a bold choice.
The Moogai
The Moogai brought an Indigenous perspective to the horror genre and was fundamentally better for it. Getting to watch the film with a predominantly indigenous audience and some of the filmmakers was probably my best cinema experience of the year.
The Mountain
The Mountain is a film that ninja strikes you with emotions two minutes into the proceedings and will have you laugh-crying for the rest of the runtime.
The Rooster
The Rooster is a moody film in its setting and narrative as it explores two very broken people find some semblance of normal in the unforgiving bush.
And the Winner is!!!!! – The Mountain
Directed by – Rachel House
Written by – Rachel House & Tom Furniss
Never has a film provoked such a strong reaction out of my in such little runtime. They bring you completely into the lives of its protagonists in minutes which would have taken other films hours. You understand these kids so completely in those opening minutes that you are right behind them on their quest up the mountain. This is Rachel House’s directorial debut, but you would not no that given how well it is crafted. Elizabeth Atkinson, Reuben Francis & Terence Daniel all give such wonderfully complex performances that would be difficult for actor decades older to pull off. There are few films where you walk out feeling grateful that you had just witnessed it, and The Mountain is 100% one of them. What are your favourite Australian and New Zealand works from 2024? Let us know in the comments below.
By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.
What are your favourite cinematic moments from 2024?, let us know what you thought in the comments below, feel free to share this review on any of the social medias and you can follow us Here. Check out all our past reviews and articles Here, and have a happy day.
Credits – All images used were created by the respective studios and artists of each film
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