What a year it’s been for movies. 2024 has one of the most eclectic selections of films in recent memory, especially those with award aspirations. It’s the end of December, and there is no clear-cut Best Picture frontrunner. Anora, Emilia Pérez, and The Brutalist appear to be leading the pack, but it’s still up for grabs.
One genre that always has a strong showing every year is drama. These films tend to win Best Picture, but it’s not guaranteed. While our recommendations below are not all Oscar winners or contenders, they will provide cinephiles with enough drama to ring in the new year. Our picks include a papal thriller, a romantic drama, and an underdog sports story.
We also have guides to the best new movies to stream, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
Conclave (2024)
Who would have thought one of the most thrilling dramas of 2024 would involve the Catholic Church? In Conclave, the College of Cardinals gathers to elect the pope’s successor after his sudden passing. Cardinal Thomas Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is the leader of the conclave, which is the election to pick a new pope.
Several candidates emerge as the frontrunners, including Aldo Bellini (Stanley Tucci), Joshua Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati), Joseph Tremblay (John Lithgow), and Goffredo Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto). Each of the Cardinals’ has their flaws, but one of them holds a secret that could tarnish the Catholic Church. A hundred and twenty minutes of guys talking in a room has never been so campy and invigorating.
Stream Conclave on Peacock.
Before Sunset (2004)
In Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise, viewers watch Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) walk, talk, and fall in love over one night in Vienna. Nine years later, Jesse and Celine meet again in Before Sunset. Jesse is a successful novelist on a promo tour in Paris, reading chapters from the book based on his experiences with Celine. Celine comes strolling into the bookstore, where Jesse is doing a reading.
With time to kill before his flight, Jesse spends his remaining hours with Celine, walking and talking for the second time. Is the love still present? To find out, stay until the end to witness one of the most memorable endings of the 21st century.
Stream Before Sunset on Netflix.
Hustle (2022)
Adam Sandler is famous for showing up to random courts and playing some basketball. Sandler channeled his love for basketball in Hustle, Jeremiah Zagar’s excellent drama set in the world of international hoops. Stanley Sugerman (Sandler) is an aging scout for the Philadelphia 76ers. After years of grinding, Stanley finally gets his shot to be an assistant coach. However, the owner who hired him suddenly dies, and his spoiled son (Ben Foster) renounces the deal and reassigns him to scouting overseas.
On a random walk in Spain, Stanley spots Bo Cruz (Juancho Hernangómez), a talented player with serious potential. Stanley looks at Bo as his winning lottery ticket. If he can turn Bo into an NBA player, Stanley believes he will finally get his chance at coaching.
Stream Hustle on Netflix.
Good Will Hunting (1997)
How do you like them apples? Good Will Hunting is now streaming. Before they were Hollywood royalty, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were two Boston kids trying to succeed in the film industry. Damon and Affleck wrote the screenplay for Good Will Hunting, which won an Oscar and catapulted the duo to stardom.
Will Hunting (Damon) is nothing short of a genius. The South Boston 20-year-old spends his days solving math problems at MIT while working as a janitor. Professor Gerald Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgård) discovers Will’s brilliance and takes him under his wing. To keep Will out of jail, Lambeau sends him to therapy with his college roommate Sean Maguire (Robin Williams). What starts as a joke for Will becomes a breakthrough as he works through his deep-seated emotional issues.
Stream Good Will Hunting on Paramount+.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
According to its tagline, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is “The Feel Bad Movie of Christmas.” It was a stroke of marketing genius for a mysterious, sometimes disturbing, drama released around the holidays. David Fincher directs this adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s bestselling 2005 novel, which had already been adapted into a Swedish-language movie in 2009.
After a libel suit destroys his career, journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) is given a chance to restore his reputation by accepting a job from Swedish businessman Henrik Vanger. Henrik wants Mikael to investigate the alleged murder of his grandniece, who disappeared 40 years prior. While working on the case, Mikael receives help from an unlikely source: Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), a brilliant hacker fighting her own demons as a survivor of abuse.
Stream The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo on Max.