The Best & Worst Movies I Watched in 2023
And other "awards"
I watched nearly 120 movies this year. Rookie numbers for yours truly to be honest, and not all of those are ‘new’ — meaning some are films I’ve already seen (and other plenty of times before like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Spider-Man 2, The Dark Knight, and The Emperor’s New Groove). But a majority are new.
With 2023 winding down, it’s that time of year to reflect on the best and worst ‘new’ movies I’ve seen. So, strap in —
The Best 2023 Movie I Saw This Year
My trips to the movie theater were limited. So much so, I might be the only person on planet earth who has not seen Barbie. And I hardly went out of my way to find others released in 2023 (aside from David Fincher’s The Killer). Most of January, I spent catching up on late 2022 releases, like Glass Onion, The Menu, The Fabelmans and Everything Everywhere All at Once.
John Wick: Chapter 4 was an exhilarating ride — but it’s too long, the limited plot threads are not as coherent (like his trip to Japan, while great-looking, opens too many narrative questions), and the world-building isn’t expanded as well as, say, in John Wick: Chapter 2. Meanwhile, The Boy and the Heron is still very fresh as of writing this, and I need more time to reflect on it; however, Miyazaki’s latest is a good return to form — and a much-needed imaginative voice in the creatively bankrupted landscape.
Oppenheimer, on the other hand, should have been a ‘shoo in’: a historical biopic by Christopher Nolan. This film checks many of the boxes for me and what I like. Yet for a dialogue-heavy movie, the music and sound design is too overbearing where it drowns out important character discussions, ultimately becoming a tad frustrating.
So, the best 2023 movie — or at least the one I had most fun with and will likely revisit — is Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1. While it’s flawed in some respects, particularly over-explaining the A.I. antagonist, the Tom Cruise-led adventure doesn’t get bogged down, bouncing from one set piece to the next with such speed and style.
Find my full thoughts of MI: Dead Reckoning here
The Worst 2023 Movie
Without a doubt, this belongs to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. This is one of those times I truly wish I never saw a movie — or wished it existed. The famed archeologist is one of my favorite movie heroes, and this latest installment destroys his heroism and even respect for history. It’s more than boring; it’s insulting to the character’s legacy. Although the Nazis firing machine guns at Roman soldiers is balls-to-the-walls insane — I would have rather seen that movie sans Henry Jones, Jr. or his band of uninteresting side-characters.
Read my full review for Angelus here
The Top 5 Best Movies I Saw This Year
Again, the list below only means movies I have seen for the first time this past year. Otherwise, this would include Casablanca, Gone With the Wind, The Night of the Hunter, Marty, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, Amadeus, and Team America: World Police — to name a few.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
One of the most beautiful movies I’ve ever seen from the 2000s. Grounded by great performances by Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt (this may be his best), this is not a typical western in terms of gun-slinging — though there is a tense and expertly choreographed train robbery scene; however, it more than makes up for it with a deeper exploration into myth-making, akin to The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and Unforgiven. With No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood and this, 2007 was certainly a great year for timeless movies.
Paper Moon
For all the grifting, lying, stealing and so on, Paper Moon is ‘sweet’ at its core — one founded on its bizarre father-daughter relationship (played by the real father-daughter pair, Ryan and Tatum O’Neal). It’s one I will readily revisit.
Silence
After reading the book, Martin Scorsese’s Silence is a mostly faithful adaptation apart from the source material’s more open-ended conclusion. Yet it is true in one showcasing the horrifying persecution of Japanese Christians. That testament of faith has resonated with me since watching it earlier this year (on Feb. 5).
Cape Fear
Robert Mitchum is fantastic. His performance elevates the film above a B-movie thriller to a classic that’s creepy, threatening and anxiety-inducing.
Days of Wine and Roses
Also elevated by great performances, Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick are part of the most disastrous love-story I’ve seen in some time. Both play mostly lovable alcoholics, who cannot truly escape the cycle of their addiction. It never goes over-board on the melodrama, instead vying for a haunting experience.
Honorable Mentions: Everything Everywhere All at Once, Picnic at Hanging Rock, From Here to Eternity
The Worst Movies I Saw This Year
These almost made it into the ‘so bad, it’s good’ category — but they sucked away bits of more soul than brought enjoyment to my hum drum life.
Mark of the Vampire
If it weren’t for my Letterboxd account, I would’ve completely forgotten this movie. And I still don’t remember what happened — or why my mom and I watched it. Nevertheless, my eyes saw things move on screen, but I can’t tell you one thing that happened without looking at the Wikipedia page.
Meg 2: The Trench
The Meg is stupid, but had enough fun bits. Its sequel is simply stupid, without the fun. A boring venture despite Jason Statham on a jet ski with a harpoon! File that under missed opportunities.
No Reservations
This was part of a Bad Movie Night I do with friends and family. The prompt was “What movie your roommate would be embarrassed to be caught watching on a Saturday night in college.” Yes — very specific, indeed. And I can say, I would be embarrassed for any roommate sincerely watching this. No aspect of this movie worked (or didn’t work) enough to be silly. Nearly soul-suckingly tedious.
Dishonorable mentions: The Boston Strangler, The Pale Blue Eye
The Best ‘Worst’ Movie I Saw This Year
Hercules in New York might become a regular viewing. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in his acting debut, this “film” is laugh-out-loud and filled with audible “whats?!” per minute — or even per second. Just when you think the ridiculousness can’t be topped, the movie tops itself, peaking with a Arnold/Bear fight that looks ripped out of a Monty Python or Three Stooges bit.
Honorable Mentions: Moonraker, Over the Top
The Movie I Need to Revisit
Sometimes one viewing of a movie isn’t enough to value its quality. For instance, I didn’t necessarily “get” The Big Lebowski on a first-go-round — but after nearly 10 times, it’s one of my favorite comedies. I get this same sense from Terrence Malik’s The Thin Red Line. It’s beautifully filmed and packed with good actors (although I don’t care for Sean Penn), and it dives into deep theological, philosophical questions. On a first viewing, however, I found it too long and over-saddled with Malik’s narration. But maybe another viewing is needed.
The Most Overrated Movie I Saw This Year
Overrated in this sense does not mean bad. But after watching When Harry Met Sally… the other day, I simply didn’t understand the contemporary hype. It’s fine, but I didn’t find it laugh-out-loud funny or revelatory as critics have lofted it over the years.
Similarly, The Last Picture Show is hailed as one of the greatest movies ever made. It’s well shot, well-acted (especially Ben Johnson) and it had an impact on me, but I generally don’t like explicit sex scenes in movies. And The Last Picture Show had a ton of it.
The Most Disappointing and/or Frustrating Movie I Saw This Year
Not only is Akira Kurosawa’s Kagemusha overrated, but it’s narratively boring. Scenes drag for seemingly an eternity, and go nowhere. Again, the film is lauded as one of Kurosawa’s best — but I simply didn’t see it. The production design, costumes and other aspects are top-notch; however, the characters and story are not. You can see the better movie in Kagemusha, which makes it a more frustrating viewing.
Ridley Scott’s Napoleon falls in similar ways (i.e. great production design), but it takes one of the most interesting people in the past 300 years and makes him boring (Find my full review here). Meanwhile, Flags of Our Fathers is poorly acted at times and a narrative mess with scenes and thematic conclusions feeling out of order; and Brighton Rock misses the central theme of Graham Greene’s great book.
Dishonorable Mention: Glass Onion (don’t get me started on how stupid it is….), Empire of the Sun (it’s not bad, but there’s a better movie in there)
The Most Surprising Movie I Saw This Year
There were several movies I certainly didn’t expect to see, including Gran Turismo, Picnic at Hanging Rock or Three Colours: Blue (the last of which inspired my vacation to France), but the most pleasantly surprised experience I had this year was seeing Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.
Why did I see this movie? I blame my friend and a movie-going pal, Kyle. Yet for a children’s movie, the animated sequel was genuinely funny, heartfelt, scary and deep: dwelling on the main character’s mortality and legacy.
Honorable Mentions: Duel, Chungking Express
Other Movies to Highlight….
Stanley Kubrick’s epic, Spartacus, is not a bad movie — but it was not yours truly cup of tea in the sense of the heavy communistic themes woven throughout. Then again, it was written by a known communist sympathizer, so there’s that. And I found that equating the legendary gladiator to Jesus Christ to be unsettling, if not borderline sacrilegious. Meanwhile, Quo Vadis — an epic movie about the Roman persecution of Christians — is melodramatic to a degree, but made me realize how the Church persevered in its early days. For those martyrs, I am grateful.
Mamma Mia! was surprisingly fun. It’s a silly premise, but the Greek vistas and ABBA’s earworm songs make it a pleasant viewing.
Though not as good as Police Story, Jackie Chan’s Police Story 2 features incredible action sequences. It’s worth watching for those alone.
The Movies I Revisited…On the Big-Screen!
All of these films are great, and seeing them on the big screen made me appreciate them all the more.
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Jurassic Park
Die Hard
Spirited Away
The Big Lebowski
The Wind Rises
Anyway, as a whole, 2023 was not the most memorable in regards to movies released this year. It probably won’t get any better after the recent strikes. But let me know your favorites from 2023! And put in the comments below any suggestions!
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Silly Side-Adventure: Movie Locations I Visited
My friend Aaron (or Gambo) and I vacationed in Paris back in early November, and one night — after a few brews — I remembered that the ending of Something’s Gotta Give (starring Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton) was shot in the city of lights. Along with my sister Mary and friend Steve, we watched it back in June. So he and I decided to visit the spots. (Credit to Mary for the photoshop):
And then the trifecta!
