My 2024 R-Rated Movies at Home Ranked: First Watch Edition Part 3
I saw 56 R-rated movies for the first time at home in 2024. Here's the best!
Welcome to the best of the best as I rank all of the R-rated movies I saw for the first time at home in 2024. Have you seen any of these? Let me know in the comments!
56 is a lot, so I’m breaking this up into three parts:
1. 18 Movies rated 0 - 2.5 out of 5
2. 15 Movies rated 3 - 3.5 out of 5
3. 23 Movies rated 4 - 5 out of 5 (YOU ARE HERE.)
My 2024 R-Rated Movies at Home Ranked: First Watch Edition Part 3
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) 4 out of 5 Finger Tenting Moves
I finished this movie and first thought wow, I should’ve seen this ages ago and hey, why didn’t they make more? There’s a series on Netflix that I have yet to watch, but I hear it’s great. Any opinions out there?
The Menu (2022) 4 out of 5 Fraudulent Tortillas
I was bummed to miss this in the theater and I caught it as soon as it went to streaming. This is a very fun movie. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and you are best served by going in cold on this one, trust me!
You Hurt My Feelings (2023) 4 out of 5 Overheard Awkwardness
This movie is made for people like me: I appreciate a good family drama play and I know there are good family drama TV shows, but I don’t get around to either, and yet I need a good story like this. While Julie Louis-Dreyfus kicks it, I also want to give it to the rest of the cast, who aren’t familiar to me, they’re great! And yes, those writing workshop scenes are lovely! Read more here:
Poor Things (2023) 4 out of 5 Sullen and Cranky Mark Ruffalos
I hadn’t seen this until the Oscar nominations came out and I wanted to see all of the Best Picture nominees, and I may have put it off otherwise. This meandering tale isn’t an easy watch, but it is fascinating. Many of you, Dear Reader, know that I like going to the movies with my kids. My oldest saw posters and trailers for this and really wanted to see it. Let me tell you now: no. Just… no!
Renfield (2023) 4 out of 5 Arm-Swingin’ Hootenannies
I saw this for the first time and then showed it to my family shortly thereafter and we all enjoyed it. As far as I can recall, this is our kids’ first exposure to Nicholas Cage (beyond seeing most of Face/Off) and there are worst ways to meet him! As one of the top fans of About a Boy, I enjoy watching Nicholas Hoult emerge from child actor to a just plain great actor. If you like comedy and vampires and lots of blood, this one is for you. Save your Awkwafina complaints for someone who cares. She’s great!
Whiplash (2014) 4 out of 5 Double Time Double Crosses
Okay, this is good and a hard watch. JK Simmons plays music teacher guru Fletcher as a “He’s awful but he’s good so it’s okay” guy like no other, and I’m sorry, but no stepping stone in your career or passion is worth putting up with his character. Yet, I was caught up in Andrew’s desire to push himself no matter what. Don’t watch this while filling out your college applications.
The Big Short (2015) 4 out of 5 Life-Ruining Garbage Moves
Wow. Who do you root for in this one? The guys who took everyone for everything they had, or the guys who tried to do that first but with a heart of gold even though they had basically the same plan? What a well-made tale of a garbage time in our nation.
My Cousin Vinny (1992) 4 out of 5 Independent Rear Suspensions
It’s true, this was the first time I’d ever seen this and I loved it! Funny, a good mystery, lots of good acting, and a “fish out of water” story that is just delightful. I remember people thought it was cool to rag on Marissa Tomei winning an Oscar for this. I didn’t get that whining then or now. The Academy has a tough time appreciating comedy. They made the right call with her!
Tetris (2023) 4 out of 5 Blocks Open Before You Get a Tetris, Aargh!
Remember that year when we had all of those movies about how products were invented? Guess what? Some of them were great! Much has been made of the drama vs. the historicity but as a movie, this works. You might say the building blocks slide right into place. Yes, I made that joke. Deal with it. And if you’ve seen this, you likely agree!
Horrible Bosses (2011) 4 out of 5 Peanut Shampoo Bottles
Yet another movie I didn’t see because I wasn’t hooked by the premise or the marketing. But I was wrong. I laughed out loud several times and enjoyed how many times the trio got themselves into and out of a jam. Good chemistry for all of these actors, and there are plenty of laughs to be had in watching three doofuses argue the ethics of murder.
Horrible Bosses 2 (2014) 4 out of 5 Worst Live TV Moments Ever
I caught these two back to back in one sitting and liked both, though the first was better. The reviews at the time were not as kind but playing it right after the original, I was able to get into it easier. Always fun to see someone play against type, and that’s clearly where Chris Pine was having fun joining the original cast.
Mi Amor Casa Bonita (2024) 4 out of 5 Sopaipillas
I have a sweet spot in my heart for Casa Bonita and South Park. I went to the restaurant several times as a kid and once with my then-girlfriend now-wife on an early road trip together. The documentary showed just what a labor of love this project was, and I enjoyed watching this shortly after our entire family went to Casa Bonita this summer. Get on that waiting list, people!
Angel Heart (1987) 4 out of 5 Cane Taps
I had never heard of this before and I was pleasantly surprised. Neo-noir meets gothic horror meets mystery procedural in this twisted tale of who is hunting who. If you’re one of those people who only knows Mickey Rourke after The Wrestler, come and see Mickey Rourke in his young rising star days. Oh, and if you ever thought Robert De Niro was evil, you haven’t seen anything yet!
My Old Ass (2024) 4 out of 5 Really Good Hugs
This is a gem. I wish it had played in our local theater a little longer because it’s the sort of movie that deserves some box office. I was captivated not only by the story and themes but also the delivery. Maisy Stella and Aubrey Plaza are so fun to watch together, and the ending really got me. I’ll check out more of Megan Park’s work, and I’ve heard The Fallout is very good.
No Way Out (1987) 4 out of 5 Really Bad Affairs
Not the kind of movie I would’ve sought out or had much access to when it came out, and it was a hidden gem for me. You get Kevin Costner, Sean Young, and Gene Hackman in various places in their careers, all together in a political thriller that doesn’t let up. The best dialogue exchange: “You know I work for Bryce?” “I guess that makes two of us.”
South Park: Not Suitable for Children (2023) 4 out of 5 Oh, Randys
Man, did I laugh at this. A lot. Like the best of South Park, this movie takes several items in the cultural zeitgeist, mixes them all together, and sees what happens. In this case, it’s one of the funniest South Park outings I’ve ever seen. Line of the show? “Stan, take Daddy’s gun and shoot that MILF!”
South Park: The End of Obesity (2024) 4 out of 5 Still-Terrible Cartmans
I was nervous about this one when I saw the title. Thankfully, obese people are far from the brunt of the joke in this one. Rather, it’s the health care industry, and how they make obese people bear the brunt of the joke that is their broken system. Come for the jokes, stay for the brilliant commentary, truly.
South Park: The 25th Anniversary Concert (2022) 4 out of 5 Wish You Were Heres
A concert at Red Rocks? With the creators of South Park? And Primus? And Ween? What would Brian Boitano do? He’d watch this movie through and through, that’s what Brian Boitano’d do!
We’re the Millers (2013) 4 out of 5 Family Portraits
Yet another R-rated comedy from around 10-15 years ago that flew completely under my radar which I found hilarious. Yes, we all love Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso, and here he is playing a very different character with great comic timing. If you skipped this one like I did, come back to it like I did.
Anatomy of a Fall (2023) 4.5 out of 5 Good Questions Without Good Answers
One of my favorites of last year, a compelling drama that had me riveted. The performances are stellar and I liked a courtroom drama set in a different nation’s courtroom; it’s similar but not quite the same, and that added to the intrigue. I still don’t quite know what happened in the end, though I have my suspicions. Like the best mysteries, it’s best to go in as cold as possible.
American Fiction (2023) 4.5 out of 5 Furrowed Jeffrey Wright Brows
Wonderful satire, it felt like a new wave Bamboozled. In this, Monk writes a “Black book” of stereotypes to make a point, only for it to be a huge hit. Likewise, Pierre Delacroix creates a minstrel TV show of stereotypes to make a point, only for it to be a huge hit. The big difference is the media and cultural landscape between 2023 and 2000, and American Fiction plays much more as a comedy. Both are excellent.
Hacksaw Ridge (2016) 4.5 out of 5 Torsos
Yet another movie that didn’t interest me at the time, but a little clip on social media made me say, oh okay, let’s go for it. I’m glad I did, because it’s a great character study set in a well-made war zone production. Andrew Garfield was fully believable and my heart went out to his Desmond Doss. I see the documentary it was base on, The Conscientious Objector, is streaming on Tubi, so I’ll check it out.
The Holdovers (2023) 5 out of 5 Missed Helicopter Rides
The one! I really, really wanted to watch this in the theater but it was one in an instant, in my area. I loved every minute of it. Alexander Payne and Paul Giamatti can make movies together for the rest of their lives. Please, please, please.
Your turn!
That wraps up all of the R-rated movies that I watched for the first time in 2024. What did you think of any of these? Next up, a glance at the movies I’m looking forward to seeing in 2025. If you have recommendations, I’m all ears.
It's great to see "Angel Heart" on this list. I think the director, Alan Parker, is very under-rated. The mood and sense of dread he creates in this movie is intense, to say the least. I also think it's one of Mickey Rourke's best performances too.