Despite the overpowering presence of blockbusters, 2024 was a great year for drama movies. It was just more difficult to find them in theaters, as limited releases or direct-to-streaming debuts seem to be the fate of films that aren’t designed to be huge moneymakers. Regardless, a handful of dramas broke out from the pack and they will likely be remembered as some of the top films of the year.
Our picks for the five best drama movies of 2024 include two period dramas, and the film that may close the book on one of Hollywood’s living legends. The other two choices feature an inspiring tale of redemption through the arts, and a film that finds unexpected thrills and drama in the heart of the Vatican.
5. Blitz
Unless you already have Apple TV+, chances are good that Blitz fell completely off your radar after it a had a very limited release last month. Director Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave ) wrote and directed this World War II drama, which centers on a young boy named George Hanway (Elliott Heffernan) and his mother, Rita (Saoirse Ronan).
During the darkest days of the bombing campaign against London, Rita sends George away to the country for his own safety. George, however, decides to embark on a dangerous solo journey back to the city to be reunited with his mother and grandfather, Gerald (Paul Weller).
Along the way, George encounters some surreal individuals who seem like they could have come out of a Charles Dickens novel. Meanwhile, Rita struggles to find some purpose in her life beyond mere survival. This film seems like it could be a contender around Oscar time, and we wouldn’t be shocked if both Ronan and Heffernan get nominations.
4. Juror #2
If Juror #2 does turn out to be Clint Eastwood’s final movie, then it’s an impressive way to go out. The 94-year old filmmaker has been in the industry for seven decades, and he still has a deft dramatic touch. Eastwood doesn’t take a role in this movie, although his daughter, Francesca Eastwood, plays Kendall Carter, the woman whose death sparks a murder trial for her boyfriend, James Michael Sythe (The Night Agent‘s Gabriel Basso).
Nicholas Hoult is the titular juror, Justin Kemp, and he’s facing a major moral dilemma. He knows there’s reasonable doubt that James is innocent because he was present the night of Kendall’s death. Justin may even be responsible for Kendall’s demise, which is a thought that horrifies him. He doesn’t want James to go to prison, but Justin also wants to stay free.
Thus he has to walk a very fine line to convince his fellow jurors to find James not guilty while avoiding an investigation that could destroy his own life. Justin’s plan rests on a flimsy house of cards, and it won’t take much to blow them over.
3. Sing Sing
Between high-profile prestige films like Rustin and The Color Purple and the Netflix original series The Madness, Colman Domingo is having a moment in the spotlight. Sing Sing continues the actor’s hot streak with an affecting dramatization of the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program at Sing Sing Correctional Facility that uses actual graduates from the program in leading and supporting roles.
Domingo plays John “Divine G” Whitfield, an unjustly imprisoned inmate at Sing Sing who embraces the RTA program and encourages other prisoners to join. Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin (who plays himself) is a reluctant recruit whom Divine G initially sees as a potential acting rival. But as the two men bond, they form a deep friendship and let the experience of acting become a transformative force in their lives.
2. The Brutalist
Twenty-two years ago, Adrien Brody won Best Actor at the Academy Awards for his role in the World War II drama The Pianist. Early next year, Brody could very well win another Oscar for his breathtaking performance in The Brutalist. In the aftermath of World War II, Brody plays a Holocaust survivor named László Tóth who feels adrift in America, a country that’s less than welcoming to Jews.
Industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce) takes notice of László’s plight and commissions him to create a building that the latter hopes will be the culmination of his work as an architect and stand the test of time. Unfortunately, Harrison is kind of crazy and he abuses his control over László, which only strains the latter’s sanity and his already fragile relationship with his wife, Erzsébet (Felicity Jones).
1. Conclave
Who knew that an election for a new pope could have so much intrigue and drama? Conclave imagines a very plausible scenario in which the future of the Catholic Church itself may be at stake, depending upon which candidate for pope is chosen. Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is the Dean of the College of Cardinals, and he’s the man who has to help the assembly make their choice.
Cardinals Bellini (Stanley Tucci), Tremblay (John Lithgow), Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto), and Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati) are the four finalists, and they each have very different ideas about where they want to take the church. There are also secrets hidden among this group that can bring down their papal aspirations if they come out.
Each ballot reshapes the election and ratchets up the tension for Lawrence. There are even some moments of surprising levity. The conclusion and the final twist have given the film some detractors, but for our money, Conclave is the best drama movie of 2024.