A24 is a New York-based production company that started up back in 2016. Since its inception, they’ve pumped out some fantastic films such as Academy Award-winning Room (2015), Hereditary (2018), The Green Knight (2021), and most recently, The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021). Anybody familiar with A24 films will say that they have a certain aesthetic, or “vibes” that you can’t quite put your finger on. Is it the exquisite cinematography? The incredible writing and acting? The creation of an immersive atmosphere? The foreboding ominous feeling that grows in the pit of your stomach while you watch the characters make all the wrong decisions?
“A24 vibes” has developed into a bit of a running joke amongst avid movie aficionados, but sometimes that’s the simplest way to put it.
The recipe for almost any A24 film will always have a combination of the following ingredients:
- Music and/or score play such a large role that it’s almost as if there’s another character on the screen.
- Bold cinematography choices allow the film to “show” you what’s going on instead of relying solely on the actions or written dialogue to “tell” you.
- Intense continuous-shot monologues that leave you clinging to the speaker’s every word.
If you’ve seen any of these movies, you might have even found yourself thinking “this movie has some serious A24 vibes…”
Gretel & Hansel (2020)
A classic German folk tale, this movie focuses on the original tale from the Brothers Grimm, “Grim” being an understatement when it comes to any of their tales. This Oz Perkins film brings a lot of A24 vibes to the screen. It has a hauntingly beautiful “blue vs. orange” color scheme that is prevalent throughout the movie, along with an 80s vaporwave aesthetic score that pulsates as we watch a simple childhood story transform into a suspense-filled horror masterpiece.
If you liked The VVitch (2015), then Gretel and Hansel should be right up your alley. Both movies utilize the iconic A24 slow-burn style that makes the audience cling to every droplet of information provided to them; whether it be through dialogue, imagery, or haunting dream sequences that build dread as each scene passes by.
Promising Young Woman (2020)
Despite the bright colors of this movie, the plot is surprisingly dark. Written and directed by Emerald Fennell, this movie follows Carey Mulligan as a woman who regularly puts herself in dangerous situations. The pop song and dancing bodies in the opening scene give the audience a fun atmosphere to get started but when we see Mulligan’s character, Cassie, slumped over in her seat, things turn ominous.
Promising Young Woman delivers delightful dread, wrapped up in a rainbow-colored bow, slowly driving the audience as insane as the main character. Pairing a great soundtrack to the upbeat and cheerful color scheme, it really goes to show that things are not always as innocuous as they seem.
Her (2013)
Set in the not-too-distant future, this movie features Joaquin Phoenix as Theodore, a quiet man experiencing loneliness in a world where technology simultaneously connects and isolates everyone. Written and directed by Spike Jonze, this film showcased its A24 vibes with a somber examination of the inherent human element involved in the creation of artificial intelligence.
Her draws focus to the pros and cons of humanity’s ever-growing reliance on technology as Theodore develops romantic feelings for an Operating System, voiced by Scarlett Johannson. The line is constantly blurred and challenged when it comes to what determines a “real” relationship is defined by between a human and artificial intelligence.
As an audience, we are left pondering the implications on how technology can be such an incredible tool for humanity as well as its detriment.
Parasite (2019)
This Korean dark comedy thriller swept the Oscars in 2020, forever changing how many people viewed foreign films. When Parasite won the award for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, it led to a significant number of film fans taking notice of Korean cinema. The writing by Han Jin-won and Bong Joon Ho (the director) captivated audiences and drew them into the story of how a low-income family slowly ingrained themselves into the household of their employers through uniquely deceitful methods.
The stylistic decisions of the cinematographer Hong Kyung-Pyo powerfully emphasized the difference in the caste-like societal standards of living in South Korea, but what shows off the A24 vibes most in this movie is the dialogue between the family members as they plot and scheme their way into a life of luxury. This combination delivered a solid A24 feel to Parasite as viewers became immersed in code-switching and Korean culture without even realizing it.
Whiplash (2014)
Whiplash focuses on a young jazz percussionist named Andrew (Miles Teller) and the challenges he faces during his first year at a Julliard-level musical academy in New York City. His instructor, Terence Fletcher (J.K. Simmons) is rude, aggressive, and downright violent towards his students, but pays special attention to the drummers. Fletcher pushes Andrew to his physical and mental limits under the belief that the extreme pressure he applies to his pupils has a direct correlation with producing the next “great one.”
Gritty, visceral, and emotionally charged, this psychological drama will have viewers gasping out loud as the explosive events of the movie unfold.
The Guilty (2021)
The Guilty features a 911 operator Joe Baylor, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, who finds himself caught in an anxiety-inducing situation when he answers a call from a woman (voiced by Riley Keough). He learns that she has been abducted and is calling from the back of a white van. She hangs up before he can get any more identifying information from her, kicking off the plot. This movie is actually a remake of the Danish film by the same name, released in 2018.
Director Antwan Fuqua keeps the on-screen cast limited and the shots focusing mainly on Gyllenhaal’s character in the call center. This creates an intimate and slightly claustrophobic atmosphere, which forces us to focus on the subtleties in the writing and acting. The narrative exposition is where we really pick up on A24 vibes, as background information on the main characters is slowly revealed to us throughout the movie, ultimately changing how we may have originally perceived each of them.
Mother! (2017)
It should go without saying that almost any Darren Aronofsky movie could make this list, but Mother! takes the cake. The movie starts off with a writer (Javier Bardem) and his wife (Jennifer Lawrence) taking on the massive project of renovating his childhood home, which had suffered serious damage from a fire. They find themselves burdened by allowing a man and woman to stay as houseguests (Ed Harris and Michelle Pfeifer) that quickly wear out their welcome with Lawrence’s character. Despite voicing valid concerns to her husband, he is insistent on letting them stay and things get out of hand quickly.
Aronofsky’s decision to leave the characters nameless helps to contribute to the viewer’s empathy towards the frustration building in Lawrence’s character. Filled to the brim with symbolism, this movie will have viewers returning to the movie several times to spot things they might have missed the first time around.
Last Night in Soho (2021)
Last Night in Soho is a psychological thriller starring Thomasin McKenzie (Jojo Rabbit) and Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen’s Gambit). The movie follows a young fashion student, Ellie (McKenzie), as she chases her dreams at the London College of Fashion. Upon renting a room close to campus, she begins to have wild and vivid dreams that she is a young woman named Sandie (Taylor-Joy) in the 1960’s.
At first, the dreams are a source of excitement and exploration for Ellie, as she adores and utilizes 60’s era fashion in her design classes. It doesn’t take long for the dreams to turn into nightmares, however. There are many elements from this movie that give it a strong A24 feel, such as the vivid neon lighting or the music selection, but the thing that stands out the most is the storyline itself. It can be hard to limit labeling an A24 film to one specific genre, but writer and director Edgar Wright navigates this with grace, keeping audiences captivated (and horrified) with each twist and turn.