The (global) best (and worst) of 2023
A so-so year for the world (except the stock market), and a so-so year for film. Not a lot of film makers take risks these days, the studios play it safe to the point of boredom, there's a lot of escapism to make audiences forget the considerable perils they face. The movie of the year is therefore indubitably a documentary that shows the harsh reality. Europe's subsidized film industry has given us even more complex character dramas than last year, South India is still going strong in entertainment value, and the greatest master of animation has given the world a final (?) gift from Japan. Which is however also studio-wise the source of the most annoying film of the year. "Poor Things" is missing because it hasn't been released in my territory yet.
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- DirectorMstyslav ChernovStarsMstyslav ChernovEvgeniy MaloletkaLiudmyla AmelkinaAs the Russian invasion begins, a team of Ukrainian journalists trapped in the besieged city of Mariupol struggle to continue their work documenting the war's atrocities.This reminder of why we are (albeit non-acknowledged) at war with Russia is probably the best documentary ever made, by staying close to the subject of war while avoiding to add anything extra. The US will likely drop their support for Ukraine in 2024 meaning Putin will probably get away with his aggression - this film will serve as testimony why this would be a mistake, and that conflict may hit more and more of us seemingly out of nowhere in the years to come.
- DirectorNikolaj ArcelStarsMads MikkelsenAmanda CollinSimon BennebjergThe story of Ludvig Kahlen who pursued his lifelong dream: To make the heath bring him wealth and honor.Yet another career high for Mads Mikkelsen in my favorite European film of the year. Period dramas usually gloss over the massive social inequalities of the past, this one addresses them head on. Meticulously well researched, it would be perfect if the villain was a tad more restrained. Read my review if you like.
- DirectorKiranraj KStarsRakshit ShettyCharlieSangeetha SringeriDharma is stuck in a rut with his negative and lonely lifestyle and spends each day in the comfort of his loneliness. A pup named Charlie enters his life and gives him a new perspective towards it.The best dog film of all time is the most engaging tear jerker of the year (don't look it up on doesthedogdie). While most dog films are annoyingly calculated and lazy, this one makes an effort to develop its characters and arrive at a real conclusion. I know, we dog people are horrible selfish loners for some, except that we are not, and dogs make us care more for each other as much as we care for them - this film brings that across brilliantly.
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsCillian MurphyEmily BluntMatt DamonThe story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.Of course it's going to bag the Academy Award for Nolan and Murphy and it is one of the most brilliant biopics of all time, but I was familiar with the man, so I felt slightly unsatisfied what with the villainy among physics professors. I wish it had been a little harsher on Truman, and had commented on the fact that we are now closer to nuclear Armageddon than during the entire Cold War.
- DirectorJustine TrietStarsSandra HüllerSwann ArlaudMilo Machado-GranerA woman is suspected of murder after her husband's death; their half-blind son faces a moral dilemma as the main witness.The winner of the Palme d'Or features the best female performance of the year by a German actress of all the impossible things. Sandra Hüller brings a convoluted script to life in a deceptively simple story about the power of appearances, which is also brilliantly photographed. I'm not sure whether I will still like it in a year, though.
- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsSoma SantokiMasaki SudaKô ShibasakiIn the wake of his mother's death and his father's remarriage, a headstrong boy named Mahito ventures into a dreamlike world shared by both the living and the dead.Miyazaki once again proves that he is peerless in the history of animation, and the 7-year production time of this psychological fantasy which demands more than one viewing could make this his swan song. Although he has retired from retirement for good. It's hard to describe a children's film with the original title "How do you live". It's an experience, more so than Miyazaki's earlier films. It will leave a lot of people confused, for sure, but even they won't be able not to admire its artistry.
- DirectorMakoto ShinkaiStarsNanoka HaraHokuto MatsumuraEri FukatsuA modern action adventure road story where a 17-year-old girl named Suzume helps a mysterious young man close doors from the other side that are releasing disasters all over in Japan.The other animated masterpiece of the year by Miyazaki's generational successor Shinkai is a more accessible fantasy yet still a remarkable tour de force compared to the increasingly dull efforts of Pixar Disney. They are both on a par but working for different audiences, and Shinkai is on familiar territory while Miyazaki veers off course quite a bit.
- DirectorRamkumar BalakrishnanStarsHarish KalyanM.S. BhaskarIndhuja RavichandranAn elderly man and a youngster who are tenants sharing two different floors of an individual house fight over a parking space.Surprise of the year for me would be this Tamil thriller about two tenants increasingly malicious fight over a parking space. What sounds trivial actually screams Hollywood remake. This once again shows how superior (South) Indian screenwriting has become, and that simple starting points can deliver great plot twists.
- DirectorRatheesh Balakrishnan PoduvalStarsKunchacko BobanGayathrieRajesh MadhavanA reformed thief's fight for justice when an innocent act to defend himself places him in loggerheads with the high and mighty of society.The same is true for this courtroom satire which sets a streetwise ex con against a corrupt politician, my favorite Malayalam film this year. It wouldn't work without a strong cast, I wonder why Kerala of all Indian states produces so many great actors.
- DirectorGanesh K. BabuStarsKavinAparna DasBhagyarajA couple in love, accidentally become teenage parents. Unpleasant situations make them fall apart. Manikandan, left alone with his son, struggles as a single teenage father. Fate owns him, bringing Sindhu back into his life.This would be my nod for best screenplay, a very different take on parenthood that challenges conventional gender roles without preaching. Could have been my movie of the year with slightly better production values and a tighter direction. Still, another proof for why bother with Hollywood when you can have India.
- DirectorVidhu Vinod ChopraStarsVikrant MasseyMedha ShankrAnant JoshiThe real-life story of IPS Officer Manoj Kumar Sharma and IRS Officer Shraddha Joshi.As for inspirational stories this year, none quite match this Hindi true story of surviving long years of exam hell to make it from the bottom to, well, middle class. If there was an international actor's award and Mads Mikkelsen hadn't made a film, Vikrant Massey would deserve to win it - a name to watch out for.
- DirectorJonas KarasekStarsGregor HoloskaZdenek GodlaHelena KrajciováGrumpy handyman Laco loses everything to a group of mobsters. Now wheelchair-bound and with his life spiraling, it's his new friend Gabo, a local Roma who helps Laco see things with a new perspective. Revenge is sweet.My favorite East European film of the year would be Slovakia's biggest hit ever, a pitch-black satire once again pitting a little guy against a corrupt politician - but much more violently. It's a deranged farce which demands a little bit of knowledge of the country but is great Tarantino-esque fun on its own right.
- DirectorPaul NegoescuStarsIulian PostelnicuAnghel DamianVasile MuraruIlie (late 30s) enjoys the easy life of a village policeman. His passivity during a series of violent events soon turns him into an accomplice to murder. Tension accumulates in the village, forcing Ilie to make a final decision.Another great Eastern film would be this modern day Western, also about a little guy standing up to a corrupt politician. There's a lot of corrupt politicians in film this year, almost as many as in real life. This one is less over the top, kind of Kaurismäki meets Mungiu.
- DirectorEmilis VelyvisStarsIngeborga DapkunaiteVytautas KaniusonisAinis StorpirstisCommissioner Gintas must undertake the investigation of a series of heinous murders, a dangerous task that could expose the many dirty secrets of several prominent members of the social elite of a small Lithuanian town.Another belated discovery was this Nordic noir from Lithuania which could have been shot in Sweden yet features violent deaths reminiscent of the Coen Brothers. The plot centers, you guessed it, around corrupt politicians.
- DirectorMakbul MubarakStarsKevin ArdilovaArswendy Bening SwaraHaru SandraA young man working as a housekeeper in an empty mansion. When its owner returns to start his mayoral election campaign, the young man bonds with him and defends him when his campaign is vandalized, setting off a chain of violence.My favorite Asian film of the year is this brooding almost pitch black coming-of-age story involving yet another corrupt politician (who is however worse than those before). Interesting in terms of style although there are no surprises in the chain of events.
- DirectorFerit KarahanStarsSamet YildizEkin KoçMahir IpekSet over the course of a tense day at an isolated boarding school, this moral drama follows a boy's desperate fight to save his sick friend in the face of a rigid bureaucracy.My favorite belated discovery is proof of the resilience of Turkish directors amidst hyper inflation and nationalist media control. Following its Berlin premiere it remained unreleased for two years and was then only shown in Germany since it could be interpreted as government criticism (which it hides as best as it can).
- DirectorMatteo GarroneStarsSeydou SarrMoustapha FallIssaka SawadogoA Homeric fairy tale that tells the adventurous journey of two young boys, Seydou and Moussa, who leave Dakar to reach Europe.Perhaps the most relevant film of the year but it is also very much trying to be. It is the perfect refugee film and might bag the foreign Academy Award if 20 Days of Mariupol only wins best documentary. For my taste it is a little too polished and I don't know how relevant it will be in 5 years.
- DirectorAli AbbasiStarsAlice RahimiDiana Al HussenSoraya HelliA journalist descends into the dark underbelly of the Iranian holy city of Mashhad as she investigates the serial killings of sex workers by the so called "Spider Killer", who believes he is cleansing the streets of sinners.Most audacious film of the year if the director ever sets a foot on Iranian soil again. Zar Amir Ebrahimi won the Palme d'Or for her performance and received over 200 death threats.
- DirectorMaryam TouzaniStarsLubna AzabalSaleh BakriAyoub MissiouiA middle-aged tailor and his wife find their relationship challenged by the arrival of a handsome new apprentice.My favorite queer film of the year would be this atmospheric love triangle made by Nabil Ayouch's wife Maryam Touzani, Morocco's most award-winning yet vilified couple. Needless to say, it couldn't be exhibited in its homeland because of angry fanatics, which doesn't make it less relevant and elegant.
- DirectorFerzan ÖzpetekStarsLuisa RanieriGreta ScaranoLoredana CannataTwo 25-year-old men who meet by chance, fall madly in love, and are then separated due to an unexpected event. For the next thirty years they pursue the hope of finding each other again.My other favorite queer film is this gorgeously made period drama which is director Özpetek's masterpiece. A bit too polished for some perhaps, but if you are from that generation, prepare for nostalgia fits.
- DirectorGoran StolevskiStarsThom GreenMatthew PageElias AntonIn the summer of 1999, a 17-year-old Serbian-born Australian amateur ballroom dancer experiences an unexpected and intense 24-hour romance with a friend's older brother.And one more queer film, more low budget and in real time, lives from the atmosphere between its leads like most Aussie queer films. As a woman you might find it non-flattering.
- DirectorD. SmithStarsDaniella CarterDominique SilverKoko Da DollA raw depiction of the lives of four black trans sex workers as they confront the dichotomy between the black community and themselves.The best queer docu which would probably win that category at the Academy Awards if "20 Days in Mariupol" didn't exist. It addresses the endangerment of black trans sex workers by their fragile customers in surprisingly deep comments. One of them was killed after filming.
- DirectorMilad AlamiStarsPayman MaadiAmirali AbanzadAhmed AbdullahiIman and his family flee Iran and end up in a hotel turned into a refugee center in Northern Sweden. Iman maintains his role as family patriarch but he breaks promise to his wife and joins local wrestling club. Rumours spread, Iman's fear and desperation begin to take a hold.And a final queer tip would be this semi true story about coming out as a refugee. Lead Peyman Moadi tries hard to give his character dimension but he's not believable as a wrestler.
- DirectorVictor CanacheStarsMaia MorgensternMarius BodochiRazvan IlinaSecluded from the world, a single mother of three must defend what's left of her family from a cold-blooded killer, at all costs.Best horror film for me is this gory folk tale adaptation which gives you an idea about the desolation of my Transylvanian homeland, and explains fairy tales with psychological disorders.
- DirectorTakashi YamazakiStarsMinami HamabeRyunosuke KamikiSakura AndôPost war Japan is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, baptized in the horrific power of the atomic bomb.Best action piece of the year is this reboot of the world's longest-running monster franchise. What makes this popular is the lack of parody which marred the last installments. The F/X is considerably better, giving the destruction scenes more oomph.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioRobert De NiroLily GladstoneWhen oil is discovered in 1920s Oklahoma under Osage Nation land, the Osage people are murdered one by one - until the FBI steps in to unravel the mystery.Given the subject matter and production cost, I wish I could have liked Scorsese's epic more, but like "The Irishman", it left me a bit detached and wondering how many good films could have been made with that kind of money. It's too haphazard and the resolution doesn't come with any suspense. And the Osage come across as passive nitwits which seems a tad disrespectful in a movie trying to do them justice. Still, most impressive production design of the year.
- DirectorEmmanuelle NicotStarsZelda SamsonAlexis ManentiFanta GuirassyDalva is 12, but she dresses and lives like a woman. One day, she's taken away from her house. Dumbfounded at first, she later meets Jayden, a social worker, and Samia, a teen with a temper. A new life seems to start for Dalva.Continuing with good but not great dramas, this is a fairly gutsy look at child abuse survival but also rather calculated for effect.
- DirectorKhadar Ayderus AhmedStarsOmar AbdiYasmin WarsameKadar Abdoul-Aziz IbrahimIn times of misfortune, Guled and his family have to push themselves to the limits in order to reunite with their family.First Somali film I've ever seen, low budget yet unfamiliar cultural references.
- DirectorGabriel MartinsStarsCícero LucasCarlos FranciscoCamilla DamiãoA lower middle class family undergoes a series of challenging and profound changes, reinventing themselves and their family ties along the way.Better than most US black-themed film, this one deals with everyday family issues in a realistic fashion and rather tells their story than try to educate.
- DirectorJafar PanahiStarsJafar PanahiVahid MobasseriBakhtiyar PanjeeiTwo parallel love stories in which the partners are thwarted by hidden, inevitable obstacles, the force of superstition, and the mechanics of power.Panahi's latest is one of his introverted psychological studies of the effects his isolation has on him. Last film before his prison term started.
- DirectorDmytro Sukholytkyy-SobchukStarsOleksandr YatsentyukStanislav PotiakSolomiia KyrylovaPamfir wants to be a decent family man, but challenging circumstances force him to give up honest breadwinning to help his family.Fascinating if a bit hard to believe smuggler's story with lots of Carpathian folklore, shot before the war started.
- DirectorAlejandro Loayza GrisiStarsJosé CalcinaLuisa QuispeCandelaria QuispeIn the Bolivian highlands, an elderly Quechua couple has been living the same daily life for years. During an uncommonly long drought, Virginio and Sisa face a dilemma: resist or be defeated by the environment and time itself.Beautifully shot old age drama, again with many folklorist elements.
- DirectorDevanStarsVijay BabuRaghu Subhash ChandranIndransA heartwarming love story of two dogs, Tomy and Amalu, whose owners are in disapproval because of their religious differences. The dogs decide to elope, embarking on an adventurous journey replete with many challenges.The other great Indian dog film this year, cheesier than Charlie but with interesting characters.
- DirectorMichael A. GoorjianStarsMichael A. GoorjianHovik KeuchkerianNelli UvarovaCharlie escapes the Armenian genocide as a boy by fleeing to the United States, but he returns as an adult and is arrested. He watches an Armenian couple from his prison cell, finally learning about his homeland.A US Armenian actor's dream project, nice to see those come true at a time when the country is again under threat of disappearing.
- DirectorTarik SalehStarsTawfeek BarhomFares FaresMohammad BakriAdam, the son of a fisherman, is offered the privilege to study at the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, the center of power of Sunni Islam. Adam becomes a pawn in the conflict between Egypt's religious and political elites.Terrorist thriller by an expat in Sweden has an interesting story but doesn't quite bring the culture of Egypt across.
- DirectorVíctor EriceStarsManolo SoloJose CoronadoAna TorrentA Spanish actor disappears during the filming of a movie. Although his body is never found, the police conclude that he has suffered an accident at the edge of a cliff. Many years later, the mystery returns to the present day.First film by legendary Spanish director Victor Erice in 30 years feels like time travel and is intended that way.
- DirectorJerzy SkolimowskiStarsHolaTakoMariettaFollows a donkey who encounters on his journeys good and bad people, experiences joy and pain, exploring a vision of modern Europe through his eyes.Skolimowski's fable has a brilliant concept but is too short and insufficiently connected.
- DirectorThien An PhamStarsLe Phong VuNguyen ThinhVu Ngoc ManhA man returns to his hometown, where he's haunted by past memories and desires.Winner of the Camera d'Or, this is the first Vietnamese film of any interest in about 25 years, but rather demanding.
- DirectorLaura Mora OrtegaStarsCarlos Andrés CastañedaDavison FlorezBrahian AcevedoFollows five young men and about the marginalized, excluded humanity who seeks a place in the world.Colombian coming-of-age drama about post-war social rearrangement has its moments but exaggerates its symbolism sometimes.
- DirectorMaryna Er GorbachStarsOksana CherkashynaSergey ShadrinOleg ShcherbinaAfter flight MH17 crashes in eastern Ukraine, violent tensions disrupt the lives of an expecting couple living in Donetsk.Shot before the 2022 war, this is about the 2014 war's passenger plane take down and the ensuing cover-up but kinda loses its story along the way.
- DirectorOleh MalamuzhOleksandra RubanYevheniy YermakStarsSarah NatochennyMarc ThompsonMike PollockMavka must choose between love and duty to protect the Heart of the Forest.Also from Ukraine comes this highly successful animated fantasy which is unfortunately too derivative of Disney.
- DirectorAbdullah Mohammed SaadStarsAzmeri Haque BadhonAfia Jahin JaimaKazi Sami HassanAn assistant professor at a local medical college, finds herself in a difficult position after witnessing a sexual assault where she knows both the victim and the perpetrator.A woman's attempt to report the sexual harassment of another backfires and screws up her own life. Very different from any other Bangladeshi film I've seen.
- DirectorMichal BlaskoStarsVita SmachelyukGleb KuchukIgor ChmelaIrina lives with her son Igor in a small Czech border town. When she discovers that Igor has been assaulted by three Romas her whole world comes crashing down. As times goes on, Irina begins to spot inconsistencies in his story.Social drama about the accidental incitement of racial hatred starts out strong, then becomes anemic.
- DirectorEmerald FennellStarsBarry KeoghanJacob ElordiRosamund PikeA student at Oxford University finds himself drawn into the world of a charming and aristocratic classmate, who invites him to his eccentric family's sprawling estate for a summer never to be forgotten.Totally over the top and unbelievable yet with great photography and support cast. Read my review if you like, it's fittingly vitriolic.
- DirectorAlejandro MonteverdeStarsJim CaviezelMira SorvinoBill CampThe incredible true story of a former government agent turned vigilante who embarks on a dangerous mission to rescue hundreds of children from traffickers.Most over-hyped film of the year, this is not a bad thriller but loses itself in the messianic zeal of its lead who apparently never overcame playing Jesus once. There are better films about this subject, read my review if you like.
- DirectorCeline SongStarsGreta LeeTeo YooJohn MagaroNora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are wrested apart after Nora's family emigrates from South Korea. Twenty years later, they are reunited for one fateful week as they confront notions of love and destiny.The other most over-hyped film of the year is a fairly standard Japanese style tale of hindered romance, which only drew so much attention because it's American Korean. Not bad, not special either.
- DirectorSam WrenchStarsTaylor SwiftMike MeadowsMax BernsteinExperience the Eras Tour concert, performed by the one and only Taylor Swift.I just don't get the appeal. It's a generational thing, I grew up with Prince, Whitney Houston, Annie Lennox, Tori Amos and saw all these geniuses perform. I don't dislike Swift but it's a mystery to me how this long show full of average similar songs can mesmerize so many people. Maybe we GenXers were just blessed with an abundance of fantastic music.
- DirectorGareth EdwardsStarsJohn David WashingtonMadeleine Yuna VoylesGemma ChanAgainst the backdrop of a war between humans and robots with artificial intelligence, a former soldier finds the secret weapon, a robot in the form of a young child.Most annoying mess of an action film where opulent visuals fail to mask the complete absence of story and in which the son of a brilliant actor once again proves that he does not even remotely have the same talent.
- DirectorAri AsterStarsJoaquin PhoenixPatti LuPoneAmy RyanFollowing the sudden death of his mother, a mild-mannered but anxiety-ridden man confronts his darkest fears as he embarks on an epic, Kafkaesque odyssey back home.Most horrible viewing experience story-wise, this is an atrocious self-indulgent pseudo-Freudian drivel which will make me avoid anything with Joaquin Phoenix or by Ari Aster for the remainder of my life.
- DirectorJoaquim Dos SantosKemp PowersJustin K. ThompsonStarsShameik MooreHailee SteinfeldBrian Tyree HenryMiles Morales catapults across the multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. When the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles must redefine what it means to be a hero.This made me literally throw up. Constant movement and sickening light effects intend to mask the absence of any coherency, and while the CGI is less boxy than before, it strikes me as ugly and RPG infested (well, it's a Sony). The multiverse concept is lazy and has been parodied by South Park as "pander-verse". There's an entire universe consisting of Brixton and another of Mumbai - am I the only one who thinks that's silly on a planet with 7000 languages? If illogical roller coaster rides are the films of the future, I'd rather dwell in Miyazaki's hand-drawn past.