Before I suffer an injury patting myself on the back for coming out of retirement to actually review two films (Oppenheimer, May/December balconyblues.com), this year, I must apologize for being so late on catching up with 2023 releases. Below is just a partial list of films I still haven’t caught.
Three of my top ten films (Past Lives, A Thousand And One, American Fiction) are first films—indicative of 2023 heralding fresh new talent. And while more and more of us are streaming at home (I’ve enjoyed streaming from Sundance and other film festivals) let us not forget some films are essential to experience in a theater and many more simply come off better that way.
- Poor Things …in theaters
- Past Lives …streaming
- The Taste of Things …in theaters
- Killers Of The Flower Moon …streaming
- A Thousand And One …streaming
- Anatomy Of A Fall …in theaters
- May/December …Netflix
- American Fiction …in theaters
- The Holdovers …streaming
- Oppenheimer …streaming
- The Blind Man Who Did Not Want To See The Titanic ..streaming
- Master Gardener …streaming
- Sanctuary …streaming
- Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning …streaming
- Rye Lane …streaming
- No Hard Feelings …streaming
I still need to watch: The Zone Of Interest, Ferrari, Beau Is Afraid, All Of Us Strangers, Fallen Leaves, Passages, Pacifiction, The Killer
Honorable Mention:
- How To Blow Up A Pipeline …streaming
- The Boy and The Heron …in theaters
- You Hurt My Feelings …streaming
- Afire …streaming
- Tori and Lokita …streaming
- Barbie …streaming
- Teacher’s Lounge …in theaters
Best documentaries:
- 20 Days In Mariupol …streaming
- Beyond Utopia …steaming
- A Still, Small Voice …in theaters
- The Eternal Memory …streaming
- Immediate Family ..streaming
- Little Richard: I Am Everything …streaming
Overrated (the overblown): Asteroid City, Saltburn, Eileen; (the tedious): All Dirt Roads Taste Of Salt, Monster
Best Actress – Emma Stone, Poor Things; Natalie Portman, May/December; Sandra Huller, Anatomy Of A Fall; Teyana Taylor, A Thousand And One; Jennifer Lawrence, No Hard Feelings; Juliette Binoche, The Taste Of Things,
Best Actor – Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction,; Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer; Paul Giamotti, The Holdovers; Leonardo DiCaprio, Killers Of The Flower Moon; Benoit Magimel, The Taste Of Things
Best Supporting Actress – Julianne Moore, May/December; Margaret Qualley, Sactuary; Sigourney Weaver, Master Gardener; Paula Beer, Afire;
Best Supporting Actor – Robert DeNiro, Killers Of The Flower Moon, Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer; Charles Melton, May/December; Ryan Gosling, Barbie