It will be fair to reflect on 2023 as the year of Barbenheimer. The dual box office behemoths dominated last summer’s discourse, turned moviegoing into a monocultural event, and all but confirmed the soft erosion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the only kind of storytelling capable of getting butts into plush recliners. But this year was much stronger than just that July portmanteau—in fact, it was arguably one of the best movie years of the last two decades, showcasing work from familiar and revered auteurs and up-and-coming filmmakers and actors, all while forecasting hope for an industry that is still determining when and where to release its art within the fractured streaming and theatrical landscape.
Without further ado, here are my 10 favorite titles of the year, along with a handful of worthy honorable mentions.
10. Anatomy of a Fall
Director: Justine Triet
9. Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse
Directors: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson
8. The Zone of Interest
Director: Jonathan Glazer
7. May December
Director: Todd Haynes
6. The Iron Claw
Director: Sean Durkin
5. Showing Up
Director: Kelly Reichardt
4. Past Lives
Director: Celine Song
3. The Holdovers
Director: Alexander Payne
2. Killers of the Flower Moon
Director: Martin Scorsese
1. Oppenheimer
Director: Christopher Nolan
Honorable Mentions:
The Killer (David Fincher)
A Thousand and One (A.V. Rockwell)
Asteroid City (Wes Anderson)
You Hurt My Feelings (Nicole Holofcener)
Passages (Ira Sachs)
Menus-Plaisirs Les Troisgros (Frederick Wiseman)
Peanuts and Popcorn 