Best Movies of 2023 (#25-#11)
There was a lot stacked up against the 2023 movie year. The slow recovery from COVID still takes its toll on the box office, countless “blockbuster sure things” struggled to make back their budget, and the actors’/writers’ strikes rightfully forced studios to come to the table to make a fair deal, halting the industry to a standstill for months. Despite all odds, the creatives at work came together to produce one of the most exciting years at the cinema I can remember.
Whether it’s aging masters like Martin Scorsese or Hayao Miyazaki giving their work new life, or exciting young talent like Greta Gerwig inspiring people to dress up and go to the theater, this year offered plenty of diverse options for movie goers. I saw 95 new movies this year (thank you AMC A-List) and have put together a list of what I considered the best of the bunch. I hope you can find something here you’ll like, and I’d love to hear about what you watched from this list, whether you liked it or not!
(#25) American Symphony
Singer/composer Jon Batiste will likely be known by most for his Grammy-winning album “We Are” or from his work as the band leader on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. American Symphony, the latest documentary produced by President Obama’s Higher Ground company, offers an inside look into the musician’s personal life and creative process.
In the film, Batiste builds towards an ambitious modern take on a symphony that will be performed live for one night only. At the same time, he has privately been supporting his wife, New York Times bestselling writer and activist Suleika Jaouad, in her battle with a leukemia relapse. The documentary is a beautifully personal hyperfocus on Jon and Suleika that examines universal truths on how the artistic process can help to heal. It builds to a powerful crescendo as Batiste leaves all of these feelings on the stage for his American Symphony performance.
Now streaming on Netflix
(#24) The Killer
Director David Fincher (The Social Network, Zodiac, Fight Club) is known for his precise filmmaking process that always turns out exciting results. The Killer is not complex in its narrative of a hit man out for revenge, but it’s technically and tonally exquisite. Fincher seems to be calling out all critiques that said he’s cold and meticulous by saying “Fuck yeah I am. Watch this.”
Although the style of The Killer presents itself as a moody thriller, it’s also secretly one of the best comedies of the year. Michael Fassbender’s nameless main character is a goofball of the highest degree. The inner monologue we’re given through the movie’s narration shows The Killer’s ego with his work, but that doesn’t always translate to success. He messes up, a lot, and that doesn’t stop him from trying time and time again. Hopefully that’s something Fincher continues to do for many more films to come.
Now streaming on Netflix
(#23) American Fiction
I would have loved to be in the room when Jeffrey Wright (Westworld, The Batman) read the script for American Fiction for the first time. It’s a juicy role that any actor of his caliber would be chomping at the bit to get their hands on. He plays Monk, a novelist discouraged with the amount of popular literature that relies on offensive black tropes to get white audiences to pick up a book. To prove his point, Monk anonymously submits an over-the-top story about those same black stereotypes to his publisher. When the book unexpectedly gains real traction in the industry, people start wanting to speak with the writer, so he dons the persona of a criminal on the run from the law.
Director/writer Cord Jefferson and co-writer Percival Everett explode onto the scene with a biting debut that takes no prisoners in its satirization. The humor is great, but it’s the message at the core of American Fiction that will stick with you long after the credits, and probably when you’re watching other movies in the future.
In theaters now; available on Amazon Prime in 2024
(#22) The Boy and the Heron
#22 is the most interesting entry on this list, because I did not like The Boy and the Heron. As you may know, I keep a list of every movie I’ve seen ranked from favorite to least favorite. What’s great about that list is that its personal preference, but I try and keep these “Best Of the Year” lists as objective as possible. That being said, The Boy and the Heron, is one of the most impressively animated films of the year, but its story confounded me.
I’m no Hayao Miyazaki expert (I’d only seen Spirited Away and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind). Maybe I need more exposure to his work to get on the same wavelength, but this is a very complicated movie. Only after reading articles and breakdowns by critics much smarter than me did I come to appreciate the metaphorical genius of The Boy and the Heron. If you’re an anime fan, this is one of the year’s must watches. If you’re like me and are just being introduced to the medium, then I suggest you start with something else and come back to this one later. I’ll be doing my homework before I revisit, and I’ll be excited to see this one again.
In theaters now; likely available on Max in 2024
(#21) May December
May December is a psychological game of cat and mouse from acclaimed director Todd Haynes (Carol, Dark Waters). An actress playing a teacher who started a relationship with a boy when he was 13 years old, blurs the lines between role and reality as she meets the real life couple who are now married with children.
Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman are two of our greatest living actresses. So the fact they are fantastic in May December should come as a surprise to no one. What impressed me the most about this film, however, was the incredible performance from Charles Melton (Riverdale), who should be in contention for an Oscar this year. His role as the young husband has a physicality unlike anything I’ve seen before: somewhere stuck in a limbo between childhood and adulthood. In one scene you’ll be looking at a proud father, and the next a boy reaching out for some kind of connection, all told through the postures of one performance. It’s a tricky story to get right, but thanks to careful tone management from Haynes and unique performances, May December nails it.
Now streaming on Netflix
(#20) Priscilla
Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla is leagues above that other Elvis movie which came out recently… Her film focuses instead on Elvis’ wife, which is a reductive description of her character that fuels the whole movie. Priscilla met Elvis when she was 14 and he was 24. Due to that age difference and how the movie treats their evolving relationship, I view Priscilla as the year’s best coming-of-age movie. Sofia Coppola treats a first kiss in this film with cinematic gravitas that highlights how special that experience can be for a teenager.
The range Cailee Spaeny delivers is astounding as we watch Priscilla grow from a timid young girl into an independent young woman. Jacob Elordi (Euphoria) also delivers an intimidating take on Elvis, focusing more on interpretation than impressions, which I feel works much to the film’s benefit. Sofia Coppola’s previous work, Lost in Translation, is one of my favorite movies, and it’s heartening that she’s delivering consistently great work 20 years later.
Available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
(#19) The Iron Claw
No movie has made me cry this year like The Iron Claw did. Based on the real-life legacy of the Von Erich wrestling family, I’m glad I knew nothing about their story going in. The first half of the film is a rowdy look at the world of professional wrestling through a pack of brothers forced by their father to do whatever it takes to be the best. As the toll of these stresses begin to bear down on the family, tragedy strikes and the film takes a hard turn into one of the most depressing experiences of the year. The story then seems to endlessly spiral further into tragedy, which makes it even harder to watch knowing it all actually went down like that.
The relationship between these brothers comes effortlessly for Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, and Stanley Simons. You believe they’ve been together their whole lives, supporting each other through it all. Zac Efron in particular deserves praise from his best dramatic turn yet. His performance as Kevin Von Erich works as the dam trying to hold his family together, but unfortunately the mounting pressure is bound to break that down sooner or later.
In theaters now; available to rent in 2024
(#18) Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Mission: Impossible is probably the only franchise seven movies in, where each of the last five has been better than the one before. Dead Reckoning Part One reaches new heights for Tom Cruise’s action efforts that I didn’t think were possible after the incredible Mission: Impossible - Fallout and Top Gun: Maverick. Cruise and director Chris McQuarrie know how to stage an action set piece, an art that is sorely lost in most blockbuster fare. This is the most cinematic an MI movie has looked or even sounded thanks to Lorne Balfe’s soaring score.
The latest mission finds Ethan Hunt and his crew taking on their most cunning enemy yet, an A.I. known only as The Entity. Back in the real world, Tom Cruise has been leading the battle to save theatrical releases and move away from streaming models controlled by A.I. of their own. Cruise says he’s going to save cinema, and the madman might just actually do it if he keeps making films like Dead Reckoning.
Available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
(#17) Beyond Utopia
Beyond Utopia is the most important documentary you’ll see this year. The film follows the work of Pastor Kim, a South Korean who devotes his time to getting those in danger out of North Korea. He brings along a film crew for his latest attempt to get a family of five out of the country, giving unprecedented access to the network of smugglers and handlers that work on bribes to help people escape.
The film also uses real footage, no recreations, of life inside North Korea. These videos have been smuggled out of the country at risk of death, and are now available for your viewing pleasure right at home. The contrast between dilapidated life inside the country and how highly those who have now escaped sometimes still revere Kim Jong-un is chilling. It’s only after they’ve been introduced to life in the rest of the world that they can understand how horrible the regime has been. Beyond Utopia offers a similar opportunity to show the world what this “utopia” is really like.
Available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
(#16) Killers of the Flower Moon
Even a middle of the pack Martin Scorsese movie is among the best of its year. Late-stage Scorsese films like Silence, The Irishman, and now Killers of the Flower Moon are slow-moving meditative pieces on the nature of evil. Flower Moon looks at this theme through the lense of a genocide that occurred to the Osage Nation in the 1920s. Once oil is discovered on their land, white men move in to marry their families and take rights to their new fortunes. When Osage people begin to die, not so suspiciously, the F.BI. comes to investigate.
Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, frequent Scorsese collaborators, may be the focus of this film as the “masterminds” behind the plot, but its relative newcomer Lily Gladstone who steals the show. Her role as Mollie, an Osage woman trapped in a marriage to DiCaprio’s Ernest, exudes a solemn powerfulness. Her words are few, but Gladstone uses her face to an impactful extent. While I would love to see a Native American director tackle this work, there’s a shockingly beautiful way in which Scorsese acknowledges the fact that he is the one who has chosen to tell this story.
Available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
(#15) Poor Things
Emma Stone is a chaotic force of nature in Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things. The film’s a Frankenstein retelling with a bit of Barbie mixed in, as Stone’s Bella Baxter comes to understand what it means to be a woman in an unforgiving world. Stone starts the film off essentially as an infant, throwing food and throwing temper tantrums. As her mind begins to mature, and she discovers more & more pleasures to enjoy, the performance evolves into a complex human character that feels the world as if it were new.
Lanthimos is no stranger to the absurd, and he crafts a unique vision of a colorful steampunk world for Bella to explore. I have not been a particular fan of his films in the past like The Favourite or The Lobster, but the innovative production designs and comedic timing in Poor Things works much better than those in my opinion. Lanthimos also knows how to get an ensemble together, with Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Margaret Qualley, and especially Mark Ruffalo delivering stellar performances.
In theaters now; available to rent in 2024
(#14) The Color Purple
The last movie I saw this year was also one of its best. The Color Purple is everything a musical should be. Sweeping dance numbers and songs that will warm even the coldest heart keep coming one after the other. I’ve never seen the original Spielberg-directed film, but it seems like a musical was the best decision to breathe new life into this important story. Director Blitz Bazawule finds a comfortable balance between massive group performances and powerful solos that highlight character.
The Color Purple is a decades spanning epic of family and escaping a cycle of abuse. There isn’t a weak link between the women of this movie who all work together to lift each other up. Fantasia Barrino (who my parents informed me was the American Idol Season 3 winner!) is unbelievable as the older iteration of the main character, Celie. Danielle Brooks (Orange is the New Black, Peacemaker) is another strong singer who gives the most affecting performance of the film. It also helps that artists like Halle Bailey and H.E.R. round out the cast, lending their voices to the film and my car’s speakers for the next few weeks.
In theaters now; available to rent in 2024
(#13) John Wick: Chapter 4
John Wick: Chapter 4 is arguably the best action movie I have ever seen. It is non-stop unrelenting action for 170 minutes, and I wish it was twice as long. Director Chad Stahelski never takes his foot off the gas as John Wick faces his toughest enemy yet: time. With each new fight, Wick finds himself running against the clock, which adds spectacular amounts of suspense as the goons and henchmen seem to appear out of thin air with no end in sight.
The physicality of Keanu Reeves in this role goes under the radar because of the over the top action sequences, but he continues to be the best part of the franchise. With long takes and continuous battles, you can watch the toll it takes on Wick’s body. In a just world, the addition of Donnie Yen (Ip Man, Rogue One) would also earn him an Oscar nomination for his slapstick turn as a blind assassin. With fun old and new side characters coming in, they flesh out the world building even more, which has always been a strong point in the world of Wick.
Available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
(#12) Maestro
If Bradley Cooper continues his streak from A Star Is Born and now Maestro, he may end up becoming one of the greatest actor turned directors. Maestro has been a passion project of Cooper’s for years, and in it he also plays the titular role of Maestro Leonard Bernstein, one of America’s greatest conductors. Both his directing style and performance feel like old-school Hollywood, and not in the Oscar-baiting way I’ve seen some argue. They’re grand gestures of love for the medium and this complicated character.
There’s a recurring theme this year of women behind powerful men being the center of a film’s focus (the pros/cons of which could warrant a full dissertation), and to me, Maestro’s secret weapon is Carey Mulligan as Bernstein’s wife Felicia. The film is told through her eyes, and I would bet there are more scenes with her alone than Bernstein alone. Even stunning sequences, like a performance of Bernstein conducting in a cathedral, end with him rushing over to her. Mulligan is the glue that holds this film together, just as Felicia was that glue for Leonard.
Now streaming on Netflix
(#11) The Holdovers
Just in time for the holidays, The Holdovers came around to become a new Christmas tradition. When Angus (Dominic Sessa) is the only student left at his boarding school over winter break, curmudgeonly history teacher Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is forced to keep him under a watchful lazy eye. Paul also has help from chef Mary, played by Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who gives my favorite supporting performance of the year. As the three of these unlikely compatriots bond over their shared loneliness during the festive season, you find yourself growing with them.
Both the tone and story feel ripped from a 1970s classic film, with a warmth that makes you want to curl up next to the movie with a fireplace and cozy blanket. The Holdovers is in the running for Best Original Screenplay of the year, mostly for the perfect simplicity of its story. Alexander Payne wrote and directed the movie that made me fall in love with movies, The Descendants, so it’s no surprise that I felt his latest lived up to the hype.
Now streaming on Peacock, also available to rent on VOD (Itunes, Amazon, etc.)
