Focus Features Movies That Astonished Audiences in 2024

EDITED FOR STAGE Films that Focus features released in 2024 captured the depth and breadth of the brand. There was eye-opening work from first-time feature directors and powerful stories from established masters, genre-bending comedies, and epic adaptations of classic tales, original documentaries, moving dramas, and musical biopics. We take a look back at 2024 to remember a year of excellent movies.

Nosferatu

Released on Christmas day, Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu has become a run-away critical and commercial success. Adapting vampire tales made famous in early films and stories, Eggers has reinvigorated the horror genre. When Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) is sent to East to close a real estate deal with the ancient Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård), he unknowingly sets off a wave of terror that affects everyone around him, especially his wife (Lily-Rose Depp). The cast includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, and Willem Dafoe, and the film is on 71 of 2024’s best films lists according to Critics Top 10. “Bloodcurdling to the last delicious drop, Nosferatu is extraordinarily compelling, one of the best films of the year, and an unforgettable, phantasmagoric experience for theaters that will astonish,” writes The Playlist.

Nosferatu is now playing in theaters, so get tickets today!

Conclave

Edward Berger’s Conclave about the election of a new pope became one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year. On 123 of 2024’s best films lists according to Critics Top 10, it has been nominated for 11 Critics Choice Awards and six Golden Globes Awards. Tasked with managing the election inside the Vatican, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) must discover the truth about every candidate, no matter how difficult, and find the right person to lead the church. USA Today writes, “The thriller is both a thought-provoking investigation into real-life themes and human flaws but also an undoubtedly entertaining exercise.” AV Club adds, “Conclave is among the very best films of the year. It’s a knockout.”

Now playing in theaters—or watch Conclave at home!