I know, I know. This is starting to become quite a bad habit for me. Every year when I start to organise my top 10 lists, I always plan to release it either January or February at the latest compared to everyone else since I wanted to catch up on some films that I missed from the year in question to se if they are worthy on being on the list. However due to things that come up (whether it be my perosnal life or work), I never get around to posting it until halfway during the following year. This has happened quite a few times now, and this year is no expection. Hopefully one year, I’ll post it earlier as planned. Now that I’ve caught up, I will say over that 2023 was a pretty strong year overall for cinema. There was quite a lot of films I loved and I think that this final list is quite representive of ones that I felt were the very best. Now before I go into my final official top 10 films of 2023 list, here are all my honourable mentions from the year. Enjoy!
NOTE: I’ve only included films that were officially released theatrically, on home media or on streaming platforms in either Australia, the U.K. or the U.S. during 2023. However some films that I saw at film festivals in 2023 won’t be included if they haven’t had a official release in either of those three countries during that year.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS (In Alphabetical Order):
20,000 Spieces Of Bees
Anatomy Of A Fall
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret
Bottoms
Close
Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story
The Eternal Memory
Godzilla Minus One
Guardians Of The Galaxy: Vol. 3
In My Mother’s Skin
The Iron Claw
John Wick: Chapter 4
Knock At The Cabin
No Bears
Past Lives
Poor Things
Saltburn
Satan Wants You
Skinamarink
Society Of The Snow
When Evil Lurks
…And now onto my official top 10 films of 2023…
10. BEAU IS AFRAID
(Dir: Ari Aster)
“While I can definitely see people hating Ari Aster’s latest film, personally I absolutely loved it. It’s an absolutely enthralling piece of cinema that I found to be equal parts ambitious, insane, bizarre, scary, fascinating, bold, surreal and darkly humorous.”
9. MONSTER
(Dir: Hirokazu Kore-eda)
“Yep. Definitely go into this as blind as possible. Hirokazu Kore-eda’s latest work is an absolutely captivating, complex, moving and brilliantly crafted film that you think starts off being one thing, but goes into a different direction as it goes along. I loved it.”
8. FAIR PLAY
(Dir: Chloe Domont)
“I wasn’t sure what to expect from Chloe Domont’s directorial debut when I sat down to watch it, but I didn’t expect to absolutely love it as much as I did. This was a surprisingly captivating, intense and brilliantly acted/made relationship drama that tackles its themes extremely well. ”
7. THE BOY AND THE HERON
(Dir: Hayao Miyazaki)
“Wow. Hayao Miyazaki’s returns to the big screen with a truly exceptional anime that’s definitely up as one of his finest works. It’s breathtaking, bizarre, hilarious, nightmarish, emotional and brilliantly animated. Robert Pattinson deserves all the awards for his unrecognisably insane vocal performance.”
6. OF AN AGE
(Dir: Goran Stolevski)
“I wasn’t sure what to expect from this film, but I loved every minute of it. This was a truly exceptional love story that’s equal parts emotional, tender, funny, heartbreaking and brilliantly made. The cast were fantastic and director Goran Stolevski is definitely a talent to watch.”
5. THE HOLDOVERS
(Dir: Alexander Payne)
“ Without a doubt both director Alexander Payne’s best film in over 10 years and a true return to form. This was an absolutely terrific comedy/drama that’s funny, heartfelt and superbly written. Paul Giamatti, Da’vine Randolph and newcomer Dominic Sessa were all equally fantastic in their roles.”
4. THE NEW BOY
(Dir: Warwick Thornton)
“Wow. Warwick Thornton has made another fantastic piece of work. This was a truly exceptional, visually stunning and beautifully crafted film that explores its complex themes in a nuanced way. As great as Cate Blanchett was in her role here, it’s definitely newcomer Aswan Reid’s film.”
3. THE ZONE OF INTEREST
(Dir: Jonathan Glazer)
“Wow. Jonathan Glazer’s latest is a truly unsettling, haunting and unforgettable slice-of-life holocaust drama that explores the theme of the banality of evil with its less-is-more approach to its story. It’s brilliantly made, strongly acted and the sound design is chilling.”
2. KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
(Dir: Martin Scorsese)
“Another masterpiece from Martin Scorsese. This was a truly exceptional, powerful, shocking and brilliantly made film that grips you from start to finish with its story/themes. As terrific as Leonardo DiCaprio & Robert De Niro are, it’s Lily Gladstone’s fantastic turn that’s the heart of the film..”
1. OPPENHEIMER
(Dir: Christopher Nolan)
“Wow. Just simply… Wow. This is another masterpiece from Christopher Nolan and possibly may be his best non-TDK trilogy work yet. This was absolutely sublime, thought-provoking, complex and brilliantly crafted biopic that has a career best performance from Cillian Murphy. This is a film that lingers with you long after you have watched. Not only do I think it’s the best film of 2023, I can seeing being one of the best of the decade as well.”
Well, there you have it. Those are my official top 10 films of 2023. Agree or disagree? Let your voices be heard in the comments below or on the official Super Network Facebook page!
Article written by Bede Jermyn
The Super Network 