In December, Mubi arrives with big titles. There are fewer arrivals than usual, but more big titles.
So, 5 new releases of the year arrive, not to mention a new collection featuring the year’s best.
Let’s take a look!
New releases of the year
Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point (Tyler Taormina) – 2024 | Streaming exclusively on MUBI December 6
Four generations of the Balsano family gather for what may be the last Christmas in their family home. As they lose themselves in rowdy celebration, cousins Emily and Michelle sneak away to a winter wonderland, where suburban teenagers find their rebellious paradise.
Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point stars Canadian actor Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Juno), and premiered at the Director’s Fortnight in Cannes 2024.
The People’s Joker (Vera Drew) – 2022 | Streaming exclusively on MUBI December 6
An aspiring clown grappling with her gender identity combats a fascistic caped crusader in a surreal and satirical reimagining of The Joker’s mythos.
In The People’s Joker, director and star Vera Drew makes her feverish entrance into the cluttered morass of the DC Comics cinematic multiverse by bursting through a trapdoor. Drew’s crowd-funded film makes its streaming debut following its World Premiere at TIFF Midnight Madness 2022, where it made headlines after being abruptly pulled from the Festival after its first screening, reportedly due to copyright concerns. Despite this, the film gained a cult following for how it manages to weave cultural criticism, a personal coming-out story, and lowbrow genre parody into a cohesive package.
Maria (Pablo Larraín) – 2024 | Streaming exclusively on MUBI in Canada December 11
Academy Award®-winner Angelina Jolie is Maria Callas, one of the most iconic performers of the 20th century in acclaimed director Pablo Larrain’s operatic Maria.
The film follows the American-Greek soprano as she retreats to Paris after a glamorous and tumultuous life in the public eye. Maria reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days as the diva reckons with her identity and life.
Maria is the latest feature from acclaimed filmmaker Pablo Larraín (Spencer, Jackie, No), and had its World Premiere in Competition at this year’s Venice International Film Festival.
Dahomey (Mati Diop) – 2024 | Streaming exclusively on MUBI December 13
Winner of the Golden Bear at the 2024 Berlinale, Dahomey is an immersive and astounding new work of art from Mati Diop (Atlantics).
Taking place in November 2021, the film takes as its subject 26 royal treasures of the Kingdom of Dahomey, which, along with thousands of others, were plundered by French colonial troops in 1892. As these artefacts are due to leave Paris to return to their country of origin: the present-day Republic of Benin, Diop questions how they should be received in a country that has reinvented itself in their absence, using ethereal voiceover and footage of debating students at the University of Abomey-Calavi to offer multiple perspectives.
Short films
An Urban Allegory (Alice Rohrwacher & JR) – 2024 | Streaming December 20
In the Allegory of the Cave, Plato ponders: what would happen if one of the prisoners managed to free themselves from their chains and escape from the cave? What if that prisoner were Jay, a little 7-year-old boy?
An Urban Allegory is directed by Alice Rohrwacher (La Chimera) and marks her second collaboration with photographer JR, after Omelia Contadina. It had its premiere at the 2024 Venice Film Festival.
Mubi retrospective: the best of 2024
2024 was a year full of cinematic wonders. From festival award-winners and indie gems to surprising audience favourites, the films in this collection rose above the crop to astonish audiences through their imaginative artistry and emotional resonance. The collection includes:
