Best Movies 2023

Critics Consensus: Oppenheimer marks another engrossing achievement from Christopher Nolan that benefits from Murphy's tour-de-force performance and stunning visuals.

Synopsis: During World War II, Lt. Gen. Leslie Groves Jr. appoints physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer to work on the top-secret Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer and a team... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon

Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Critics Consensus: With world-threatening stakes and epic set pieces to match that massive title, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One proves this is still a franchise you should choose to accept.

Synopsis: In Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg

Directed By: Christopher McQuarrie

Critics Consensus: Enormous in runtime, theme, and achievement, Killers of the Flower Moon is a sobering appraisal of America's relationship with Indigenous peoples and yet another artistic zenith for Martin Scorsese and his collaborators.

Synopsis: Based on David Grann's broadly lauded best-selling book, "Killers of the Flower Moon" is set in 1920s Oklahoma and depicts the serial murder of members... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Lily Gladstone

Directed By: Martin Scorsese

Critics Consensus: Just as visually dazzling and action-packed as its predecessor, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse thrills from start to cliffhanger conclusion.

Synopsis: Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga, an epic adventure that will transport Brooklyn's full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man across the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Oscar Isaac, Jake Johnson

Directed By: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson

Critics Consensus: Barbie is a visually dazzling comedy whose meta humor is smartly complemented by subversive storytelling.

Synopsis: To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you're a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon

Directed By: Greta Gerwig

Critics Consensus: John Wick: Chapter 4 piles on more of everything -- and suggests that when it comes to a well-dressed Keanu Reeves dispatching his enemies in lethally balletic style, there can never be too much.

Synopsis: John Wick (Keanu Reeves) uncovers a path to defeating The High Table. But before he can earn his freedom, Wick must face off against a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, Laurence Fishburne

Directed By: Chad Stahelski

Critics Consensus: A fact-based drama that no one will dunk on, Air aims to dramatize events that changed the sports world forever -- and hits almost nothing but net.

Synopsis: From award-winning director Ben Affleck, AIR reveals the unbelievable game-changing partnership between a then-rookie Michael Jordan and Nike's fledgling basketball division which revolutionized the world... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Viola Davis

Directed By: Ben Affleck

Critics Consensus: A remarkable debut for writer-director Celine Song, Past Lives uses the bonds between its sensitively sketched central characters to support trenchant observations on the human condition.

Synopsis: Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are wrest apart after Nora's family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, John Magaro, Seung-ah Moon

Directed By: Celine Song

Critics Consensus: Effervescent and refreshingly frank about the travails of puberty, this long-awaited adaptation does full justice to Judy Blume's seminal novel.

Synopsis: For over fifty years, Judy Blume's classic and groundbreaking novel Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. has impacted generations with its timeless coming of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Rachel McAdams, Abby Ryder Fortson, Elle Graham, Benny Safdie

Directed By: Kelly Fremon Craig

Critics Consensus: Beautifully bittersweet, The Holdovers marks a satisfying return to form for director Alexander Payne.

Synopsis: From acclaimed director Alexander Payne, THE HOLDOVERS follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa, Carrie Preston

Directed By: Alexander Payne

Critics Consensus: With its unique visual style and a story that captures the essence of the franchise's appeal, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is an animated treat for the whole family.

Synopsis: After years of being sheltered from the human world, the Turtle brothers set out to win the hearts of New Yorkers and be accepted as... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Hannibal Buress, Rose Byrne

Directed By: Jeff Rowe

Critics Consensus: Unapologetically silly and all the more entertaining for it, M3GAN is the rare horror-comedy that delivers chuckles as effortlessly as chills.

Synopsis: M3GAN is a marvel of artificial intelligence, a life-like doll programmed to be a child's greatest companion and a parent's greatest ally. Designed by brilliant... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Ronny Chieng, Brian Jordan Alvarez

Directed By: Gerard Johnstone

Critics Consensus: With intelligence as sharp as its humor, BlackBerry takes a terrifically entertaining look at the rise and fall of a generation-defining gadget.

Synopsis: 'BlackBerry' tells the story of Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, the two men that charted the course of the spectacular rise and catastrophic demise of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jay Baruchel, Glenn Howerton, Matt Johnson, Rich Sommer

Directed By: Matt Johnson

Critics Consensus: An infectiously good-spirited comedy with a solid emotional core, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves offers fun fantasy and adventure even if you don't know your HP from your OP.

Synopsis: A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Regé-Jean Page, Justice Smith

Directed By: Jonathan M. Goldstein, John Francis Daley

Critics Consensus: With a gripping story and impressive practical effects, Talk to Me spins a terrifically creepy 21st-century horror yarn built on classic foundations.

Synopsis: When a group of friends discover how to conjure spirits using an embalmed hand, they become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sophie Wilde, Miranda Otto, Otis Dhanji, Alexandra Jensen

Directed By: Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou

Critics Consensus: Soulfully exploring thought-provoking themes through a beautifully animated lens, The Boy and the Heron is another Miyazaki masterpiece.

Synopsis: From the legendary Studio Ghibli and Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) comes a new critically-acclaimed fantasy adventure. After losing his mother during the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Luca Padovan, Christian Bale, Dave Bautista, Gemma Chan

Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki

Critics Consensus: Wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top, Poor Things is a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for director Yorgos Lanthimos and star Emma Stone.

Synopsis: From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Christopher Abbott

Directed By: Yorgos Lanthimos

Critics Consensus: A smart, solidly crafted procedural that's anchored in family drama, Anatomy of a Fall finds star Sandra Hüller and director/co-writer Justine Triet operating at peak power.

Synopsis: For the past year, Sandra, her husband Samuel, and their eleven-year-old son Daniel have lived a secluded life in a remote town in the French... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sandra Hüller, Swann Arlaud, Milo Machado Graner, Antoine Reinartz

Directed By: Justine Triet

Critics Consensus: Stepping out from Rocky Balboa's iconic shadow at last, the Creed franchise reasserts its champion status thanks to star Michael B. Jordan's punchy direction and a nuanced heel turn by Jonathan Majors.

Synopsis: After dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed (Michael B. Jordan) has been thriving in both his career and family life. When a childhood friend and... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, Jonathan Majors, Wood Harris

Directed By: Michael B. Jordan

Critics Consensus: Poignant and profound, Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie offers a captivating inside look at the life and career of a beloved entertainer.

Synopsis: The film, which will incorporate documentary, archival and scripted elements, will recount Fox's extraordinary story in his own words -- the improbable tale of an... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michael J. Fox, Tracy Pollan, Andrew Barber, David Diamond

Directed By: Davis Guggenheim

Critics Consensus: With engaging human stories anchoring the action, Godzilla Minus One is one kaiju movie that remains truly compelling between the scenes of mass destruction.

Synopsis: Japan is already devastated by the war when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster.

Starring: Ryûnosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka

Directed By: Takashi Yamazaki

Critics Consensus: Swaddling its difficult fact-based story in a blanket of campy humor, May December is a seductively discomfiting watch.

Synopsis: Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, Gracie Atherton-Yu and her husband Joe (twenty-three years her junior) brace themselves for their twins... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, Cory Michael Smith, Charles Melton

Directed By: Todd Haynes

Critics Consensus: Smart, funny, and above all entertaining, You Hurt My Feelings finds writer-director Nicole Holofcener as sharply perceptive as ever.

Synopsis: From acclaimed filmmaker Nicole Holofcener comes a sharply observed comedy about a novelist whose long standing marriage is suddenly upended when she overhears her husband... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tobias Menzies, Michaela Watkins, Arian Moayed

Directed By: Nicole Holofcener

Critics Consensus: A galactic group hug that might squeeze a little too tight on the heartstrings, the final Guardians of the Galaxy is a loving last hurrah for the MCU's most ragtag family.

Synopsis: In Marvel Studios "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" our beloved band of misfits are looking a bit different these days. Peter Quill, still reeling... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan

Directed By: James Gunn

Critics Consensus: A quirky tale of star-crossed lovers, Fallen Leaves is a life-affirming gem from Finnish filmmaker Kaurismäki.

Synopsis: In modern-day Helsinki, two lonely souls in search of love meet by chance in a local karaoke bar. However, the pair's path to happiness is... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Alma Pöysti, Jussi Vatanen, Janne Hyytiäinen, Alina Tomnikov

Directed By: Aki Kaurismäki

Critics Consensus: All of Us Strangers examines profound grief and love through a fantastical lens that is always grounded on human emotion.

Synopsis: One night in his near-empty tower block in contemporary London, Adam (Andrew Scott) has a chance encounter with a mysterious neighbor Harry (Paul Mescal), which... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Andrew Scott, Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, Claire Foy

Directed By: Andrew Haigh

Critics Consensus: A hard-hitting horror film whose surface-level frights are just as engaging as its thematic concerns, When Evil Lurks marks a viscerally unsettling addition to the possession horror canon.

Synopsis: When brothers Pedro (Ezequiel Rodríguez) and Jimmy (Demián Salomón) discover that a demonic infection has been festering in a nearby farmhouse -- its very proximity... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ezequiel Rodríguez, Demián Salomón, Silvina Sabater, Virginia Garófalo

Directed By: Demián Rugna

Critics Consensus: Elevated by a remarkable Franz Rogowski performance, Passages adds another smart, deeply humanistic film to director/co-writer Ira Sachs' estimable filmography.

Synopsis: Celebrated filmmaker Ira Sachs (Love is Strange) makes a breathtaking return with PASSAGES, a fresh, honest and brutally funny take on messy, modern relationships, starring... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Franz Rogowski, Ben Whishaw, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Erwan Kepoa Falé

Directed By: Ira Sachs

Critics Consensus: TAYLOR SWIFT: THE ERAS TOUR delivers exactly what it promises: A smoothly directed, impeccably performed documentary capturing the concert event of the year.

Synopsis: The cultural phenomenon continues on the big screen! Immerse yourself in this once-in-a-lifetime concert film experience with a breathtaking, cinematic view of the history-making tour.

Starring: Taylor Swift

Directed By: Sam Wrench

Critics Consensus: A tribute to parental devotion and a testament to Teyana Taylor's talent, A Thousand and One presents a heart-wrenching portrait of perseverance in the face of systemic inequity.

Synopsis: A THOUSAND AND ONE follows unapologetic and free-spirited Inez (Teyana Taylor), who kidnaps six-year-old Terry from the foster care system. Holding onto their secret and... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Teyana Taylor, Aaron Kingsley Adetola, Aven Courtney, Josiah Cross

Directed By: A.V. Rockwell