I watched a ton of movies in 2022!
Whyyyy?
Partly it’s that I was having fun buying DVDs from a junk dealer in Chinatown for SG$1 each and arranging them on the massive new shelf in my living room—and thus of course also wanted to watch them.
Partly it’s that watching a movie every Saturday online with my boyfriend Siqi was an important part of our long-distance relationship. (In December, I moved to China, so now we can actually watch movies together on the same sofa!)
See below for top recommendations and notes on some of the other movies I watched.
It’s not a complete list because I don’t remember much about some of them. It’s actually 2025 now, so these are movies I watched 2-3 years ago. If I don’t remember them, that’s why. Or maybe they’re just not that memorable. Or both.
Top recommendations!
All of these, except the one that came out in 2022, were movies I’d seen at least once before.
The Little Mermaid (1989)
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Aladdin (1992)
These are three of my four favorite Disney films. (Apparently I didn’t watch The Lion King (1994) this year; but I watched it last year.) They belong to the first half of the “Disney Renaissance” era; I’m not the only one to think they’re fantastic. The Little Mermaid is the best of them, IMO.
Speed (1994)
You are on a moving bus. You can’t stop, you can’t slow down, and you can’t get off, or the bad guy detonates a bomb and everyone dies. The concept is simple, but that doesn’t mean the movie is boring! On the contrary, the tension never lets up. It’s genius. One of my favorite Keanu Reeves movies.
Sense and Sensibility (1995)
This is the Jane Austen adaptation that has Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, and Hugh Grant. (And Hugh Laurie, too!) Great stuff. But the DVD cover art is terrible… I once heard someone describe those curls as a helmet, and now I can’t unsee it.
Stranger than Fiction (2006)
This one’s also got Emma Thompson in it. And Will Ferrell. But it’s not a typical Will Ferrell movie; this one is super weird, and dead serious. It’s kind of like The Truman Show, except that the protagonist isn’t unknowingly the star of a TV program, he’s unknowingly the main character in a novel. Does the author even realize his life is in her hands?
How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019)
Trying to prove himself to his father the chief, a geeky Viking boy shoots down a fearsome dragon with one of his inventions. That’s the beginning of the end of the war on dragons—because actually, they make pretty good allies if you treat them well! The sequels have their own solid storylines and characters, but the first movie in the trilogy is unquestionably the best. (Oh, and you can skip the books; they’re totally different.) Interestingly, I noticed that the credits at the end of the first movie include a line that says “In memory of Blake Snyder, with gratitude.”
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
The James Thurber short story of the same name is depressing. The movie is anything but. Walter is an awkward dreamer, susceptible to absurd flights of fantasy, who works on photos for Time. When he loses an important negative (remember those?), he has to go to the ends of the earth to get it back; in so doing, he becomes a more grounded version of himself.
Les Nouvelles Aventures d’Aladin (2015)
The New Adventures of Aladdin: “A pair of losers working as department store Santas plan to rob the place after it closes. When a bunch of kids show up begging for a story, the men launch into an improvised version of the story of Aladdin.” (It’s in French. Don’t watch the dubbed version.)
Top Gun (1986) and Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
Before there was Mission Impossible, there was Top Gun, with its adrenaline-pumping visions of fighter jets roaring over an unforgettable 80s soundtrack. Regarding the 2022 movie, Rotten Tomatoes says: “Top Gun: Maverick pulls off a feat even trickier than a 4G inverted dive, delivering a long-belated sequel that surpasses its predecessor in wildly entertaining style.”
Nostalgia Movies
I grew up with this stuff. Your mileage may vary.
Shaggy Dog (1959)
I love this movie! (I don’t know why! I’m not even a dog person!)
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
I’m nostalgic for the music, but I dislike the source material. Can’t stomach Roald Dahl.
Charlotte’s Web (1973)
Charming, with charming songs.
Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (1986)
This is the 46-minute Tim Burton Faerie Tale Theatre production where James Earl Jones plays not one but two genies. I love it!
The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (1988)
Prince Caspian / The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1989)
The Silver Chair (1990)
This is the BBC miniseries. The lion is amazing! I like the plot of The Silver Chair.
Home Alone (1990)
Classic! I can’t hear “Rocking around the Christmas Tree” without thinking of Kevin’s fake Christmas party. What surprised me this time around is that one of the robbers is my cousin Vinny!
FernGully (1992)
Remember how obsessed we were with the rainforest in the 1990s? I’m surprised there’s never been a Captain Planet movie.
Solid Movies
None of these are my favorites, but I enjoyed watching them.
Robin Hood (1938)
This is the oldest movie I watched this year. Did you know they used real arrows and shot people? The targets wore padding to protect themselves. Movie-making was metal!
Ocean’s 11 (1960)
In this heist movie, stealing is frowned upon. It’s strange to see Las Vegas before it was… tall. And the slot machines took silver dollars!
Die Hard 2 (1990)
Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)
Die Hard 4.0: Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013)
I remember being really freaked out about the infrastructure damage in DH4 when I saw it before; it didn’t bother me as much this time.
The Saint (1997)
This is a sci-fi spy rom-com. It amuses me to see Val Kilmer’s character change personas. Apparently this was a TV series starring Roger Moore in the 1960s.
Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
Ocean’s Twelve (2004)
Ocean’s Thirteen (2007)
These star-studded heist movies make stealing seem cool. But, like, it’s justified stealing, somehow.
Zathura (2005)
Theoretically the sequel to Jumanji, but space themed. Not bad! The DVD special features were interesting.
Thank You for Smoking (2005)
thought provoking
The Golden Compass (2007)
Good, just not as good as the book; and unfortunately for the producers, it had to compete with Narnia at Christmastime when it came out! Since then, it got a TV adaptation that seems to have been well received.
The Big Year (2011)
a comedy, starring Owen Wilson, Jack Black, and Steve Martin, ostensibly about birdwatching but with bigger themes; recommended by my brother
CZ12 (2012)
This is the one with Jackie Chan in a skate suit!!! He says his movie may have prompted the return of two of the real-life Chinese zodiac sculptures.
Sing (2016)
I liked this more than I expected to. Has some good character development.
Baby Driver (2017)
A return to the message that crime doesn’t pay. Posted about it before.
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
The pacing and sound and color made this movie feel intense in an unusual way. I wrote a plot summary.
Dune (2021)
Same director as Blade Runner 2049; similar intense feeling. (I still prefer the book.)
Disappointing Movies
Disappointment depends on quality, but also on expectations.
Gulliver’s Travels (1939)
memorable songs, but very cartoony
Alice in Wonderland (1951)
probably my least favorite Disney movie ever, omg
THX 1138 (1971)
A dystopia. Lucas shouldn’t have gone back and added CGI, like he also did with Star Wars. It’s the constant, intrusive, impersonal sound effects that make this movie memorable, anyway.
The Shaggy DA (1976)
This sequel is absolute trash. Excruciating to watch.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
cool visuals, but meaningless
Robocop (1987)
very violent
Coming to America (1988)
Coming 2 America (2021)
not my kind of comedy
Balto (1995)
too sentimental, ick
What Dreams May Come (1998)
sentimental nonsense
My Favorite Martian (1999)
I disliked it so much I got rid of the DVD.
The One (2001)
a lot of fighting
The Medallion (2003)
not one of the better Jackie Chan movies
I, Robot (2004)
feeds the fear of AI
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
CGI made this remake worse than the original.
Children of Men (2006)
a dystopia with a lot of death (and, to be fair, a bit of hope, too)
Cars (2006)
Cars 2 (2011)
Cars 3 (2017)
These are fun, but rewatching them, I realize Lightning McQueen is somehow actually not a very likeable character.
The Shaggy Dog (2006)
unnecessary remake, totally different from the original
Tristan and Isolde (2006)
Hated the characters. Such bad decision-making. Not romantic at all IMO.
Delgo (2008)
Nope nope nope! Terrible!
Hugo (2011)
I’m confused. What is this movie even about?
Love Never Dies (2012)
not one of the good Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals
Winter’s Tale (2014)
sentimental nonsense
The Book of Life (2014)
tried too hard to be hip
The Secret Life of Pets (2016)
I haven’t seen anything this chaotic since Turbo (2013). (This was worse!)
Ocean’s Eight (2018)
We’re supposed to think the main character’s shoplifting in the opening sequence is clever and admirable, but that’s really the wrong foot to start off on, if you ask me… Then, the characters don’t struggle at all, they just collect plot coupons. Flashy but hollow.
Soul (2020)
Disappointing! I thought it was going to be about discovering personal strengths, but the message is more like “forget about skills and goals, just be in the moment,” which is neither helpful nor inspiring. Yes, okay, mindfulness is great and all, but mindfully do what? Exist? SMH.
Detective Pikachu (2020)
Not as cool as I was led to believe.
The Batman (2022)
I didn’t really like the ending. Batman belongs in the shadows.
Bad Guys (2022)
The third act was completely off the rails. (A zombie guinea pig horde attack??? What even?!)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
I really liked the *first* Doctor Strange movie…
