Best Drama Movies 2023

Best Wide Release and Best Movie winner Oppenheimer completes its trifecta of Golden Tomato Awards with a win in the Best Drama category, edging out a number of critical darlings that includes Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon and Best Limited Release winner BlackBerry.

#1

Oppenheimer (2023)
Tomatometer icon 93%

#1
Adjusted Score: 122587%
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... [More]
Directed By: Christopher Nolan

#2
Adjusted Score: 120377%
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... [More]
Directed By: Martin Scorsese

#3

BlackBerry (2023)
Tomatometer icon 97%

#3
Adjusted Score: 108785%
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... [More]
Directed By: Matt Johnson

#4

A Thousand and One (2023)
Tomatometer icon 97%

#4
Adjusted Score: 103707%
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.... [More]
Directed By: A.V. Rockwell

#5

Monster (2023)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#5
Adjusted Score: 104977%
Critics Consensus: Gently devastating in its compassion, Monster is a masterpiece of shifting perspectives that surprises to the end.
Synopsis: When her young son Minato starts to behave strangely, his mother feels that there is something wrong. Discovering that a... [More]
Directed By: Hirokazu Koreeda

#6
#6
Adjusted Score: 112670%
Critics Consensus: Dispassionately examining the ordinary existence of people complicit in horrific crimes, The Zone of Interest forces us to take a cold look at the mundanity behind an unforgivable brutality.
Synopsis: The commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife Hedwig, strive to build a dream life for their family in... [More]
Directed By: Jonathan Glazer

#7

All of Us Strangers (2023)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#7
Adjusted Score: 111070%
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... [More]
Directed By: Andrew Haigh

#8

Fremont (2023)
Tomatometer icon 98%

#8
Adjusted Score: 101959%
Critics Consensus: Brought to life by the empathetic efforts of a talented cast and further distinguished by striking black-and-white cinematography, Fremont takes a thoughtful -- and wryly funny -- look at the immigrant experience.
Synopsis: Donya works for a Chinese fortune cookie factory in San Francisco. Formerly a translator for the U.S. military in Afghanistan,... [More]
Directed By: Babak Jalali

#9

Full Time (2021)
Tomatometer icon 98%

#9
Adjusted Score: 100572%
Critics Consensus: Led by Laure Calamy's gripping performance, Full Time serves as a sobering reminder that just staying financially afloat can sometimes feel like a white-knuckle thriller.
Synopsis: Single mother Julie (César award-winning actress Laure Calamy) works a grueling job as a head chambermaid in a five-star Parisian... [More]
Directed By: Eric Gravel

#10

Blue Jean (2022)
Tomatometer icon 96%

#10
Adjusted Score: 101792%
Critics Consensus: Bridging times past with issues that are still current, Blue Jean resonates intellectually and emotionally thanks to thoughtful direction and authentic performances.
Synopsis: England, 1988 -- Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government is about to pass a law stigmatizing gays and lesbians, forcing Jean, a... [More]
Directed By: Georgia Oakley