The 10 Best Films of 2023 (by Cameron Geiser)
Written by Cameron Geiser
Living in the American Midwest can occasionally be a suffocating experience if you're of the creative sort. Granted, this isn’t always true for everyone, but for large swathes of snow-covered cornfields and forests emptied of their foliage, this is the frosty reality we face when searching for art to consume with our eyeballs. As such I have not seen every film that I'd like to have caught over the last year, so before you’re greeted with my list of the best films of 2023 there is an exhaustive list of the titles I tried to get to, but for some reason or another, could not.
2023 was a good year for cinema. We've finally started to edge into new territory after the slow drip of pre-pandemic films and the films made during that fateful year. This year saw the return of several big-name directors creating truly impactful and memorable films, some exciting surprises that have upturned the last few decades of summer blockbuster omnipotence, and the potential death knell of the superhero genre’s grip on Hollywood. Not to mention the strikes from Hollywood's guilds joining the uproar burgeoning throughout American society as of late. It's been a curious year for Cinema, but one on the right track overall.
Honorable Mentions:
-Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse
-Skinamarink
-Oppenheimer
-Killers of The Flower Moon
-Mission Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One
-The Killer
Films I didn't see or wasn't able to watch for various reasons:
-Perfect Days
-The Zone of Interest
-The Iron Claw
-American Fiction
-Anatomy of a Fall
-All of Us Strangers
-May December
-Past Lives
-Air
-The Delinquents
-Fallen Leaves
-La chimera
-The Royal Hotel
-Passages
-All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
-Poor Things
10. Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny
While sure, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is considered a flop and it's undeniably one of the many studio-backed blockbusters to flail at the box office this summer- but I cannot deny that it put a big stupid smile on my face when I saw it. James Mangold’s take on the aging archaeologist gave Harrison Ford the opportunity to leave the character in a better place than Kingdom of The Crystal Skull did. Seeing the character grimace in disgust at the idea of anyone taking the time to travel to the Moon was a nice touch. Though there are aspects of the film that don't work for me, namely the de-aging of Ford in the first twenty minutes, in my eyes it is all forgiven in the name of the bonkers third act and the villain of the piece played exquisitely by Mads Mikkelsen. Is it perfect? No, certainly not. Is it a delightful bandage for one of the best film series? Yes, definitely.
9. Beau is Afraid
Ari Aster and Joaquin Phoenix should definitely work together again. This is my main takeaway from the anxiety nightmare that is Aster’s twisted rendition of the Hero's Journey. Even though I am fairly unlikely to rewatch this one as many times as the other films on this list, Beau is Afraid has earned its place, almost purely for taking wild creative risks. There are some curveballs thrown at you deep into the film, especially in the attic, but if you can accept the reality-bending nightmare logic that fuels this oedipal odyssey, it's worth checking out. However, I have to warn you, it can be a difficult watch at times. The ‘Birthday Boy Stab Man’ sequence has stuck with me all year long, and now you too can be intermittently aghast at the practical effects required to craft that moment.
8. Sisu
There's something pure about bloody, explosive, and kinetic exploitation films. This is the dark horse of my list as most people either didn't see Sisu, or wouldn't consider it as one of the best films of the year. That being said, when thinking back on this year of cinema, Sisu is one of the few films to consistently bubble back to the surface of my mind and fuel an urge to rewatch the white-knuckled form of courage and unimaginable determination in the face of overwhelming odds that is Sisu. At ninety one minutes of pure, joyful, unrealistic, and ridiculous action I'd say this Nazi killing romp is the most eminently rewatchable film of the year. Give it a shot!
7. Barbie
Easily the most surprising film experience of the year goes to Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach's Barbie. I went into this film fully expecting it to be either laughably bad or miserably awful- and it was neither! Though there were laughs to be had, it wasn't at the movie's expense. Strangely, everything within the film worked- but it worked because the film actually had something to say. Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling were pitch perfect not just for their roles, but for the tone of the film and its self-awareness. To this day I still get the “I'm Just Ken” song lodged in between my ears probably at least once a week. Here's to the indie filmmakers who kept their integrity intact while cashing in on the global phenomenon that is Barbie.
6. Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3
Apologies to the third Ant-Man movie (which, to be fair, I enjoyed), as James Gunn's final film in the MCU, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, is the only superhero film to make this list. With a more focused approach to Rocket Raccoon's story in particular, the trilogy capper of assholes in space is one for the books. Even though it can be emotionally intense at times, Gunn injects enough heart and humor into the rag-tag team’s final outing while tying together disparate story threads from MCU films outside of the trilogy that it all gels together to form a quality end to the series. Not every superhero trilogy can say that, Marvel or not. Though I do wish the villain was a bit more layered and nuanced- it is a small gripe overall. Hopefully, Gunn can bring this same level of quality filmmaking to the upcoming DC Comics films, they could certainly use the help!
5. Asteroid City
This year’s latest film from Wes Anderson is a delightfully charming continuation of his evolution as a filmmaker. Though I may have personally enjoyed his last film, The French Dispatch, more than Asteroid City- I must admit that the latest Anderson flick is tighter, more narratively tidy, and I prefer the visual aesthetic of Anderson’s stage play within a greater story over the vignettes in Dispatch. Especially the opening train sequence and the stop-motion alien. Yes, that is the major event at the center of this tale. In 1950s Americana, the titular small desert town is visited by a creature from another world during an astronomy convention for bright young minds. After the alien quickly, and quietly, departs the scene Asteroid City is quarantined and everyone trapped there has to decide what to do with this globe-changing experience.
*The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Since this isn't really a feature film, this is just a quick mention of Wes Anderson's other cinematic work released this year. A short film released on Netflix, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar is spellbindingly good, possibly even better than Asteroid City. Stylized as an amalgamation of radio programs from the early twentieth century and the television specials of yesteryear, the short dives backward in time through layers of personal stories told to us as each new character is pushed deeper into the story. The real magic is that the film loops back in on itself in the most serene of manners, and I cannot recommend it enough. If Asteroid City gets a Criterion Collection release eventually (I mean, it's seemingly all but guaranteed at this point) they would do well to include this short on the video release just as they did with Hotel Chevalier on The Darjeeling Limited.
4. The Boy and the Heron
As with most of Hayao Miyazaki’s work, the animation is striking, beautiful, fluid, and sensational. This should be no surprise to anyone who's seen a Studio Ghibli film from Miyazaki as he's been doing this for decades. He's also been saying that this film will actually, truly, be his final film. If that's true this time around (he’s retired seven times before) then this will be a magnificent final film. Set during the tumultuous period during the Second World War we follow Mahito, the boy, as he loses his mother early on in the film, after which his father decides to move out into the countryside. Once in this nature-bound setting Mahito is stalked and taunted almost instantly by the heron. This goes on for the remainder of the first act until, like many Miyazaki stories, Mahito is beckoned to another realm through a portal in our world. This film may be the one I appreciate the most this year, simply for existing. With The Boy and the Heron, Miyazaki has crafted a dreamlike and overtly mature discussion about the decisions we make in life, while also being absurdly comedic at times? This is cinematic magic folks, and it's one of the best to come from Miyazaki. I implore you to give this one a watch.
3. Godzilla Minus One
As a lifelong fan of the King of the Monsters, I am overjoyed with the success that Godzilla Minus One has been receiving during its American run. Even though I have mostly enjoyed the American Godzilla films over the last decade, they are of a lesser quality than the Godzilla films from Japan. They just are. Minus One is a standout Godzilla film as it has finally merged the two, usually opposing, factors of your average Kaiju flick. The monster action, and the human storyline. This may be the first time since the original film in 1954 that not only is the cast of human characters strong, but they are relatable, they have nuance, and I actually care about what happens to them! This is monumental in the world of Godzilla. Even Shin Godzilla couldn't quite nail the human storyline as perfectly as Minus One has here. It's also the only period piece of the whole franchise, while simultaneously containing the meanest Godzilla so far! I could go on forever, but trust me, this movie absolutely rules!
2. John Wick Chapter 4
All hail John Wick, king of the action genre. This final instalment of the John Wick franchise finds Mr. Wick taking his crusade to the High Table, previously established in the third film as the true managers of power in this covert assassin world. Though it is Bill Skarsgård as The Marquis who takes on John Wick for the High Table, he is merely the cherry on top of a perfect casting cake. This cast is absolutely amazing, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Clancy Brown, Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane, the late great Lance Reddick, Scott Adkins, and the absolute legend that is Donnie Yen- everyone brings their A game. From massive setpieces that showcase the stunt performers and actors in the best light to the downright brutal and creative new ways they showcase action filmmaking- John Wick Chapter 4 is the new bar for all action films going forward. It's possibly the best new addition to the genre in the twenty-first century. It's that good. Thank you Keanu Reeves and Chad Stahelski (The whole crew really), it's been a hell of a ride and cinema is a better place for having your work as a part of it.
1. The Holdovers
Maybe I'm just a sucker for good writing, but no other film this year impacted me as much as Alexander Payne's The Holdovers. It's a dramedy taking place in the early 1970s with Paul Giamatti starring as a grumpy history teacher at Barton Academy who must chaperone this year's Holdovers- the kids with no place to go over the Christmas break. Were introduced to the core group of students and the few staff remaining on campus grounds while the majority of the school prepares to depart. Though after the first act, the group is splintered off and the film focuses on the three major characters in Giamatti's instructor, Ms. Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) the head chef on campus, and Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa)- the smart and sarcastic little troglodyte who doomed his fellow classmates to a winter break of homework and exam preparation. The thing I love most about the film is that these characters are real people. Paul Hunham (Giamatti) and Angus Tully aren't real people- but you've met people just like them. They have layers, they aren't stereotypes, and just like real people, they have deeper truths and motivations than you might expect. Truthfully I've always enjoyed Paul Giamatti as an actor but this type of role, that of righteous anger through a prism of inner sadness, is the material that works best for him. All three major characters are defined by their losses and how they handle the various versions of injustices that plague them, and what could be more human than being defined by your flaws? As we all are. Happy Holidays, The Holdovers is the perfect cinematic gift to receive, and we are all better off for it.
Cameron Geiser is an avid consumer of films and books about filmmakers. He'll watch any film at least once, and can usually be spotted at the annual Traverse City Film Festival in Northern Michigan. He also writes about film over at www.spacecortezwrites.com.