Preamble

Hey everyone. I hope you had all had a wonderful Christmas day and continue to be merry through this festive period where all semblance of time and day becomes blurred. Typically, I would use this span of about 4-5 days to catch up on newer films that I have not seen. However, due to a prior writing commitment with a relatively quick turn around, I’ve had to somewhat fast track my top ten list. What are your top films of 2023. Let me know in the comments below.

10) Rebel Moon: Part One – A Child of Fire

Rebel Moon is Zack Snyder’s whirlwind tour through his fantasy and sci-fi inspirations, resulting in an uneven but surprisingly earnest genre picture. Aside from his stylistic signature of creating striking and evocative tableaus being on full display, its theme of the blurred line between guilt and honour surprised me. This is most encapsulated in Sofia Boutella’s character, Kora. Her plan of gathering many figures and a potential army to protect a humble farming planet is an attempt to write the wrongs of her past where she fought and killed for the authoritarian side.

Much like Yul Brynner’s central performance in The Magnificent Seven, Boutella carries the moral convictions of the movie in her expressive and subtle facial expressions that go a long way to painting Snyder’s world in morally grey colours. This aspect is threatened by some of the generic character shading, rote storytelling and clunky exposition. But even with these shortcomings, this big-budget and imaginative blockbuster filmmaking deserves celebrating.

9) Asteroid City

Similarly to Budapest, Asteroid City feels mournful for an era and the type of people that emerged from that point in time.

8) Babylon

Babylon is a film that viscerally celebrates the era of early Hollywood while denigrating its larger-than-life excesses.

7) Barbie

Barbie should not work. It’s at once a sincere and plucky throwback to the grand Hollywood musicals of the 50s. It also has a sardonic post-modern voice that runs the gamut from 2001: A Space Odyssey to the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. And yet, it somehow manages to navigate the tightrope walk of cheery and biting satire with effortless ease.

6) John Wick: Chapter 4

John Wick: Chapter 4 is a moving and thrilling final chapter that works as a Western, depicting the honour and friendship between two longstanding hitmen.

5) Beau is Afraid

Beau is Afraid is one of the most thrilling experiences at the movies this year. It kept me on my toes with its gonzo spirit. Despite its many surreal turns, it has the emotional truth of a Samuel Beckett play insofar as portraying how a human being, against all hope and logic, crashes against the waves of existential turmoil. The fact that Beau can still dream of a better life (despite his circumstances and upbringing) is both moving and absurd.

4) Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer depicts the projections and shadows others cast on his character and creation. In turn, Nolan creates a canvas to project our thoughts on Nuclear weapons through the prism of the various players. There’s as much to say about the creation of the bomb as its subsequent uses. And in its best moments, the same could be said about Oppenheimer himself.

3) Rye Lane

Rye Lane charms with its central couple getting to know each other for a day but delights in showing how exciting the world can be when sharing it with another person.

2) Talk to Me

Talk to Me is a disturbing horror film that proves the indie scene for the genre is still creatively alive. The film’s success is due to the authenticity and weight of its dramatic moments that illustrate a longing for understanding and how we process grief on a fundamentally everyday level.

1) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Across the Spider-Verse is a profound piece of pop art that wrestles with the morality that has shaped comics.