In this reality, 2022 was an uneven year for movies

Somewhere in the multiverse, “TAR” will win the Academy Award for Best Picture on March 12, but it almost surely won’t be in this reality.

While it’s not a sure thing, “Everything Everywhere All at Once” likely will take the top honor.

It’s hard to have a problem with that. Starring the terrific Michelle Yeow and written and directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the film is all kinds of impressive, from its out-of-the-box ideas to its unbelievably strong editing.

That said, and while there certainly is a significant emotional component at the film’s heart, I have, after revisiting “Everything Everywhere” in recent days, now twice had trouble becoming invested in it. To me, many of the movie’s hijinx, as clever as they may be, constantly distract from that emotional core.

Plus, many are downright silly. A reality in which people have hot dogs for fingers? I’ll offer a sarcastic “Wow.”

To be fair, though, I’m just not a fan of storytelling built around the concept of a multiverse, whether it be in “Everything Everywhere” or the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That helps to explain why I preferred the emotionally stirring “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” to “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” as well as to the first 2023 MCU release, “AntMan and the Wasp: Quantumania.”

Hey, guys, what if we told a story in one universe? Wouldn’t that be neat?

Look, as with so many things, this comes down to personal preference. I enjoy many traditional elements of supernatural tales and could do without others. Vampires? Meh. But zombies? I’m intrigued.

In all, though 2022 at the movies was a mixed bag.

There was nothing more fun than returning to theaters en masse for the nostalgia-fueled “Top Gun: Maverick,” after that long-awaited sequel had been delayed a handful of times during the pandemic. Among the best picture nominees, it does NOT belong in that class, but it’s a blast all the same.

Another box-office smash, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” helped remind us, at a time when our TVs have grown larger and more technically impressive, that sometimes you simply can’t come close to matching the theatrical experience. And as frustrating as 3-D movies can be, any time director James Cameron asks us to put on those glasses, we should do so without question.

As for the more serious dramas, some moved me while others did not. My accompanying top 10 films of the year align only so closely with the 10 nominees for best picture.

COURTESY OF PARAMOUNT PICTURES Tom Cruise reprises the role of hotshot pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise) as he takes us through a nostalgiafilled flight in “Top Gun: Maverick.”

COURTESY OF ORION PICTURES Rooney Mara, left, Claire Foy, Judith Ivey, Sheila McCarthy Michelle McLeod and Jessie Buckley appear in a scene from “Women Talking.”

COURTESY OF FOCUS FEATURES Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett) conducts during a scene from “TÁR.”