Top 10 Posts of the Year!

The reviews, commentaries, and essays you all responded to the most!

We had such a great year in 2024, launching our podcast and YouTube channel and we’re so happy you all have embraced these new ventures! It’s bittersweet to be so close to the end of our initial “100”, but we promise we have lots on the horizon to look forward to.

We also hit our goal for 2024 of 1,000 subs, and are continuing to gain new subs every day!

Without further ado, here were our Top 10 most-viewed posts for 2024.

#10: “Prince of Egypt” by Lianna Youngman

“This film is an approachable, powerful, unapologetically good religious movie. It's not sickly sweet, it’s not hitting you over the head with cries to convert- but it does suck you in, mesmerize you with one of the best stories ever put into film, and then leave you to play the soundtrack on repeat for a solid week after.

It's the proverbial foot in the door for anyone who doesn't know where to start on religious movies. It's a source of common ground for the three major religions on this earth, and it's a conversation starter for anyone who appreciates cinema, music, history, and art. (The hieroglyphic dream sequence alone hits on every single one of these points in a manner I can only describe as jaw-dropping)”

#9: “A Catholic Defense of ‘The Chosen’” by Nico Silva

“What The Chosen is doing with its show is not unlike our ancient Christian and Jewish heritage of using Scripture as a jumping off point for the imagination within limits of orthodoxy and reverence. And I challenge anyone who has has yet to finish Season One or finished ONLY the first or second seasons, to push on to Season Three and see the good fruits of what Dallas over four seasons now has been able to do with the creative freedom he’s reserved for himself, and (in my opinion) so far used responsibly.

I won’t belabor the point further. The Chosen is good. It’s good for everyone, but Catholics especially can appreciate this show for its strengths and weaknesses this Lent. So give it a try (or a second look if you’ve given up on it in the past).”

#8: “Cabrini” Review by Joe Wilson

“Overall, Cabrini is an encouraging step forward for 21st century Catholic filmmaking. Monteverde has crafted a truly admirable film, one full of wonderful performances, beautiful visuals, and a strong and compelling story. Catholics must retake the arts if we want the Church to survive in the West, and I for one am very excited to see what projects Monteverde has lined up in the future. Hopefully other Catholic filmmakers will take up the banner as well and craft films as beautiful and excellent as Cabrini.”

#7: “Why You Should Avoid Netflix’s ‘Mary’” by Nico Silva

“The REAL story of Mary is the triumph of humility and the God who “exalts the humble and casts down the mighty from their thrones” (Luke 1:52): you know, like the actual Mary said in her Magnificat in the Gospel of Luke.

However, I doubt that’s enough for our attention obsessed-generation and its superficial, flashy hagiographies that seem to think virtue isn’t a compelling enough subject matter to depict without a bunch of contrived drama, grim near-brushes with death that go far beyond the Biblical texts telling of events (which honestly are enough on their own), and having to make Mary into 1st century Palestine’s “it” girl.

Hard pass.”

#6: “The Mission” by Joe Wilson

“There are really three missions in The Mission, each intertwined with the others. The first mission is Fr. Gabriel’s mission to the Guarani; the second, Rodrigo Montoya’s mission to find redemption; and finally, Cardinal Altamirano’s mission to suppress the missions and allow the Portuguese to occupy their land. Each of these characters represents a different philosophy of love, loyalty, and conscience, some of screenwriter Robert Bolt’s main preoccupations (see his other entries on this list, A Man for All Seasons and Lawrence of Arabia). Each man is totally dedicated to his mission, but they are each challenged by a different loyalty, a deep-seated element of their character, to abandon or redirect their mission. For each, many lives and many souls, including their very own, are at stake.”

#5: “Jesus Thirsts” Review by Joe Wilson

“I am not typically one to gush over every Catholic documentary that comes out. However, this one moved me powerfully through its excellent filmmaking, eye for beauty, and especially the marvelous stories which it tells. It was in theaters for three days last week and I have seen reports that it was so successful that it is coming back to some theaters on June 18 and 19.¹ I highly encourage any Catholic to go see it on those days and truly drink in the beauty and majesty of Christ in the Eucharist that it presents. I think it will deepen your faith in and love of Christ in the Eucharist; it certainly did for me. Jesus thirsts for us to come to Him in the Eucharist; and He is the Living Water which is the only thing that can truly quench the burning thirst within all of us.”

#4: “Am I Racist?” Review by Samuel Morales

“Matt Walsh himself is what makes this work: after watching the film it’s hard to imagine anyone else doing a better job than him at getting the people he interviews to realize the ridiculousness of what they believe (or claim to believe). He never once gets emotional, raises his voice, or goes farther than is necessary in his goal of revealing the truth. All he really has to do is ask the right questions (and find a good disguise) in order to accomplish his mission, and sometimes that means patiently sitting through hours of being told that he is a natural racist just because he is white.

The experience of seeing it in a theater is one that I highly recommend if you are interested in seeing it at all: I seriously can’t remember the last time I sat in a theater and laughed that hard with a bunch of other people who were laughing with me. It’s just as edifying as it is entertaining, and I hope it continues to dominate the box office for the length of its run.”

#3: “A Quiet Place” by Cameron DeLaFleur

“Few would have expected that John Krasinski’s horror thriller A Quiet Place would take the world by storm upon its release in the spring of 2018. Films of this genre tend to come and go with little mainstream fanfare, catering more towards a niche market than broad appeal. I remember first hearing about it through word of mouth and seeing it with some friends on a whim. It was a theater experience I’ll never forget. To this day, I don’t remember a film that had me more on the edge of my seat for the entire experience. A Quiet Place rightly lived up to the hype as an extremely taut and well crafted thriller which explored fresh creative ground in the saturated arena of mid-budget horror.”

#2: “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” by Cameron DeLaFleur

“With a fun and stylish execution, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, offers audiences simple yet profound lessons on the value of seeing the beauty in life’s ordinary moments while simultaneously believing in oneself to make that leap of faith into the unknown. There is no shortage of humorous moments and epic, eye-popping shots which awaken the adventurer in each one of us. A truly good work of art can speak to universal truths, no matter the genre or medium. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty will leave you feeling uplifted and with a smile on your face, perfect for the next family movie night.”

Before we announce our #1, just wanted to state that this was well and above our most-viewed post of the year; not only did it have three times the amount of views as the previous entry, but is officially our second most-viewed post of all time. Huge shout-out to Stephen Hyland and Liz Foeckler for writing this!!

#1: “Two Reviews of ‘Wicked’” by Stephen Hyland and Liz Foeckler

“The energy is there, and despite all my misgivings about Chu’s lack of cinematic vision, I was, at the very least, entertained. There is an element of old-school charm when the cinema world is given another screen musical. It hearkens back to an older era of entertainment that I hope to see more of again. I also hope that future musical adaptations will respect the medium enough to give audiences a full musical in one sitting.” (Stephen Hyland)

“As far as movie-musicals go, I thought Wicked was a very fun, very faithful, and surprisingly un-woke adaptation of what has quickly become, for many musical theatre fans, a ‘classic.’ Does it have all the same charm and charisma as the original Broadway show? No, not quite. But does it have a charm and flair of it’s own? I think Kristin Chenoweth would tell even the musical purists: ‘And though you protest/your disinterest/ I know clandestinely/ you’re gonna grin and bear it/this newfound popularity!’” (Liz Foeckler)

As always, thanks for reading, and we’ll see you next year!

God Bless,

Sam and the Team at 100 Movies Every Catholic Should See