Films Of 2023 Round-Up And 2024 Preview

15. Barbie
Writer/director Greta Gerwig’s accomplishment with Barbie cannot quite be understated, alongside Christopher Nolan’s biographical masterwork Oppenheimer (more on that later), the dual-film ‘Barbenheimer’ phenomenon dominated the summer at the cinema. In an audience-cultivated big screen event that was born of the most fulfilling of things, talented filmmakers making compelling movies! Barbie has to be celebrated in some way on this list, as it took the iconic children’s toy and created a story that spoke to so many audiences in wonderful and even weird ways, and thus became a pop culture craze this year. With tip top performances by Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, it is little wonder that Barbie emerges from 2023 as the year’s biggest box office smash. It really is a Barbie world!

14. M3GAN
A new horror icon was born in the all singing all dancing (literally) Children’s companion robot doll M3gan, in Blumhouse’s early 2023 hit. Becoming the talk of social media, this horror thriller was smart, fun and slick, conjuring some creepy menace from its central character and concept, as well as a cautionary tale about childhood being passed over to AI rather than real parental figures. You have been warned.

13. Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves
Without doubt this fantasy was one of biggest surprises of 2023, as the legendary tabletop game finally received a film worthy of its name. Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Among Thieves was an endlessly creative, full-blooded, exhilarating fantasy caper, with much to offer to fans of this world, as well as newcomers to the lore too. Well acted, charismatic and made with real love, we truly hope that we will get to spend time in the company of these characters again.

12. Saw X
Another huge shock of the year. 2023 was a terrific year for horror all round but Saw X delivered an experience we really did not see coming, namely a horror series in its tenth instalment that somehow managed to deliver a sequel on the level of the original film. Going back to basics, while also delivering a degree of impactful drama and poignant storytelling, this film centralised Tobin Bell’s iconic character John Kramer for the first time in the franchise and it worked a treat. In this grisly, unique and terrific film, that now stands as the best reviewed Saw film ever.

11. John Wick: Chapter 4
Keanu Reeves’ unstoppable hitman’s journey has equated to the greatest American action series ever and this year, John Wick went out with a bang in the fourth and seemingly final (although we shall see) instalment. Stylish, breathtakingly constructed and full of breakneck stunts and action choreography, Mr. Wick’s final stand could not have been any more impressive. Ending in an apt finale that serves as a perfect conclusion, whilst also leaving that one hint of doubt…were John Wick to ever return again.

10. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
DreamWorks Animation delivered hands down the best major studio animated feature release of 2023 with the shockingly amazing Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Changing up the animation style to creative effect and delivering a story that felt meaningful and resonant, Antonio Banderas’ swashbuckling feline hero received a purrrfect sequel, with superb baddies, side characters and a wickedly subversive use of fairytale stories to create a film that stands as the best outing in the Shrek universe in 20 years!

9. Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Seven films in and Tom Cruise is still managing to age like a fine wine. Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One is blockbuster action thriller cinema done right. Cruise's dedication to the cinematic artform is unmatched and rather flummoxing in its scale, and this first act of an epic nailbiting two-parter story is in many ways a tribute to the artform itself, as delivered in human hands. This mission poses Ethan Hunt's most formidable foe yet in a story challenging the imposing shadow of AI tech and centralising heart, soul and morality, over greed, cold robotic calculated decisions and emptiness.

8. No One Will Save You
No One Will Save You is an absolutely incredible alien horror sci-fi, perhaps the best to come along in years. Starting as a home invasion thriller and ending in such bold, potentially divisive, genre-bending fashion, this film is a suspenseful character-driven treat. Practically dialogue-free, writer/director Brian Duffield’s film is immaculately assembled, carrying an eccentric edge but unfolding into a deeply personal story of isolation, grief and regret, and how the resulting anxieties create a world alien enough. Kaitlyn Dever delivers a captivating central performance, which is relatable to many of us whom have felt the world has left us all alone, or who have been damaged by the destructive power of regret or the past.

7. Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving was not only the best of director Eli Roth's work but was one of my favourite films of the year. A throwback slasher reeking of '90s whodunnit excellence, with the extreme gore of the horror of the early 2000s. The kills were inventive, the plot very lively and involving, and some of the narrative beats were truly deranged and dementedly inspired, which all simmered to create a new holiday classic and the most definitive Thanksgiving horror of all time bar none. This deserves to be embraced going forward, as does John Carver as a new slasher icon.

6. TÁR
TÁR deserves every note of praise cast its way. Todd Field’s film is a multi-layered, cinematic coup de maître, which could not be any more stirring. Cate Blanchett leads this film with power, with charisma and with a performance fuelled by humankind’s best and worst passions and desires. She is simply exceptional in every single scene and her supporting players are equally expert. Interestingly shot and often incredibly thrilling, Tár is a towering feat of film, which not only prises open the arts for a fascinating and uncomfortable debate about accountability, cancel culture and the lingering impact of art (sometimes in spite of who created it) but addresses such themes with clear sight of their complexities, never diminishing such debates as simply black and white.

5. Enys Men
Enys Men is a film that provokes very strong opinion. Mark Jenkin's psychological Cornish folk horror is naturally going to be compared in concept alone to The Wicker Man but is a far different beast once you sit and watch it. A disassembly of time, isolation and the voices of the lost, this is a film that some will walk away from shaken, others infuriated, and some troubled. Like tainted soil, the extent of this film's horrors are perhaps not clear until later on, as its psychologically shattering moments have percolated from your eyes and festered in your brain, taking it over like a cinematic cordyceps fungus. Beautifully shot in 16mm grainy colour, this film wonderfully evokes its setting and era better than so many other films that have attempted such feats, and its plot relies on both the details and your patience in burrowing beneath the surface to arrange them, but once you do, the crying of the tormented spirits that populate the frame, may forever stay with you wailing.

4. Killers of the Flower Moon
Killers of the Flower Moon is a searing three plus hour wonder from Martin Scorsese, a true life inspired crime thriller, by way of a western, by way of an eventual courtroom drama. A towering testament to a story of American injustice, success taken, a culture(s) mistreated and history buried, a history thankfully exhumed and shown in all its breathtaking power, heartbreaking loss and excruciating rage. Lily Gladstone, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro are all awards season shoe-ins for their exemplary work here but there is not a bad performance within this varied tapestry of artists. Absorbing from beginning to end. Scorsese remains a master of his craft.

3. Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny
Mistreated massively on release. Indiana Jones’ final outing this year was a magical slice of good old adventure cinema, the kind they just don't make on this kind of scale anymore. Director James Mangold created a film so unmistakably right for the character. Fun, thrilling and with some truly wacky turns, the film has a massive heart to its story, which is a tale of ageing and growing out of whack with the world around you, but with much to say about past, present and future and generational connections. Harrison Ford’s swansong performance in this role he has made legendary, was contemplative, moving, funny and he rolled off the years. Dial of Destiny is pure adventure cinema firing on cylinders old and new, Mangold has done the character, the franchise and its makers proud, and John Williams' score was simply phenomenal. A fabulous, distinctive and fitting finale to one of cinema's greatest heroes, with a pitch perfect ending.

2. Oppenheimer
We previously mentioned the Barbenheimer craze, well meet the other, far darker and different half, Christopher Nolan’s monumental biographical drama was an achievement in cinema. And in a career of accomplishment, Oppenheimer manages to still stand out as a remarkable masterwork from one of our greatest filmmakers. Telling the story of the father of the atomic bomb, this film features an impressive cast all on fine form but Cillian Murphy casts an incredible shadow over the entire movie as the troubled title genius. Painstakingly created, daring in its scale and scope, and deserving of its every unprecedented success, Oppenheimer is a film that showcases the barnstorming power of the big screen experience and its maximisation of the stories it relays. Simply put, a masterpiece.

1. Godzilla: Minus One
A late entry into the year but one that has wasted no time in reducing all others to rubble. The iconic Toho studios unleash their 33rd Godzilla film and it stands as one of the very finest, since the radioactive king of the monsters first stormed into cinemas back in 1954. Godzilla: Minus One is a kaiju classic that takes the Godzilla series back to its thematic roots and offers a film that is as moving as it is crowd-pleasing. Arguably boasting one of the best roster of human characters in the franchise’s illustrious history, this film unleashes a majestic and sometimes frightening Godzilla too. Takashi Yamazaki’s Minus One is a film that shows many modern blockbusters how it’s done visually but even more so narratively, in a thunderous, profound, and exciting cinema experience that is absolutely not to be missed! The film has broken box office records for international cinema, as well as Japanese releases, and received some of the grandest acclaim for any film in 2023 and I can safely say it deserves every inch of it. A spectacle of heart, soul and excitement. All hail the king…and the best film of 2023.

The Holdovers (released January 19th)
Director Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants) returns with a film that some are calling one of his greatest pieces of work. The Holdovers is set in 1970, and follows Paul (Paul Giamatti), an ill-tempered history teacher at a New England prep school, who remains on campus over the Christmas break to babysit the few remaining students with nowhere to go, where he forms an unlikely bond with a smart but troubled teen and the school cook who has just lost her son in the Vietnam war.

The Iron Claw - February 9th
This biographical sports drama from A24 could be one of the dark horse picks for the best movie of 2024. Telling the story of the legendary Texan-grown Von Erich wrestling dynasty, the film looks at the success and the tragedy that followed this family. From director Sean Durkin (Martha Marcy May Marlene), The Iron Claw stars Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Maura Tierney, Holt McCallany and Lily James, among some other professional wrestling stars like Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Chavo Guerrero Jr. Critics have hailed the film as authentic, powerful and stunningly acted.

Dune Part II (released 1st March)
Director Denis Villeneuve finally unleashes his spectacular second part of his blockbusting adaptation of Frank Herbert’s revered (and previously considered unfilmable) sci-fi novel. As Timothée Chalamet returns as Paul Atreides, who faces a choice between saving the universe and the love of his life (Zendaya’s Chani) in this epic second chapter, that is one of the most anticipated films of 2024. Co-starring, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken and Javier Bardem, among many others.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (released 29th March)
Who you gonna call? The Ghostbusters are back in this sequel to Jason Reitman’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire comes from director Gil Kenan and sees Ghostbusters old and new unite once again to save New York from a chilling paranormal adversary who throws the city into deadly frost. Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Celeste O'Connor, Logan Kim, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson return with some more bustin’ to make you feel good!

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (released 12th April)
What a time to be a monster fan! Not only has Too floored us all with Minus One but now the MonsterVerse is back with more kaiju action too, as director Adam Wingard (Godzilla vs. Kong) returns with this spectacular new entry to the franchise that sees the extent of the Hollow Earth unleashed and Kong having to rely on his former foe Godzilla to topple a monstrous new adversary who wants to conquer everything. Co-starring Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Kaylee Hottle and Dan Stevens, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire could be the MonsterVerse’s most incredible and will outing yet.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (released 24th May)
Following the events of the recent outstanding reboot trilogy for the long-lasting simian franchise, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is set nearly 300 years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes, and sees a world governed by Apes, as current leader Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) has distorted the teachings of his namesake to enslave other clans. But Noa (Owen Teague) joins human Mae (Freya Allan) in a fight for a better world for apes and the remnants of mankind alike. If this new instalment is anything like the previous three, we are in for a visually astounding and soulful motion picture experience.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (released 24th May)
Directorial genius and visionary madman George Miller is back with his long awaited prequel to his critically acclaimed masterpiece Mad Max: Fury Road and new spin-off to his incredible Mad Max cinematic universe. Telling the story of warrior Imperator Furiosa, played here as a younger woman by Anya Taylor-Joy, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga shows us how this young woman - snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers - became a legend, as she finds herself in a fight of warlords over the Citadel, all the time as she plots to somehow return home. Co-starring Chris Hemsworth, Tom Burke and Nathan Jones, this prequel aims to floor it and deliver more anarchic post-apocalyptic insanity.

Beetlejuice 2 (released 6th September)
How long have we waited? 35 years? Well, the wait is almost over as our favourite Bio-Exorcist is finally back on the big screen. Director Tim Burton returns to one of his most beloved creations with this sequel that sees Michael Keaton return to the part he made famous, alongside Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara, who are joined by newcomers to the world of the recently deceased Jenna Ortega, Monica Bellucci and Willem Dafoe. Plot details remain firmly under wraps but this film is being hailed as Tim Burton’s mighty comeback, and return to his eccentric and gothic roots, and many of the cast have sung its praises as a return to good old fashioned filmmaking that audiences will absolutely love. Beetlejuice 2 is one of the most awaited releases of the year.

Joker: Folie á Deux (released 4th October)
Joaquin Phoenix returns to his Oscar-winning role of Arthur Fleck, aka Joker, in this sequel to Todd Phillips’ hugely successful 2019 alternative origin story for the titular legendary DC villain. Phllips returns behind the camera to direct what may be one of the year’s most daring films, as this sequel takes the form of a musical and sees Arthur meet Dr. Harleen Quinzel (aka Harley Quinn) (played by Lady Gaga) at Arkham Asylum. This could well be one of the most unique, bold and unhinged films of the year, and one of the biggest risks DC has taken in years.

Venom 3 (released 8th November)
Tom Hardy returns as the ultimate anti-hero as both Eddie Brock and his symbiotic mate Venom in this third and final estaminet in the Venom series. Which is set to be directed by Kelly Marcel and co-stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Juno Temple. We can only wonder what the head-munching symbiote has in store for us in this trilogy capping comic book caper that is another entry into Sony’s Spider-Man Universe. Of course, plot details are currently being kept quite secret.