This year’s hits were hard to find. So many movies seemed to fall flat. Even Marvel, DC, and Disney seemed to lay some real eggs with movies like Ms Marvel, Aquaman, and Elemental. Even the latest Indiana Jones and Ant-Man were disappointing in more ways than one. Some might argue that 2023 was a historically bad year for Hollywood, but the last couple of years haven’t been much better. At least they had good reason with COVID shutting so much of everything down. That said, there were some hits! Here’s our list determined by good reviews, ticket sales, online views, and our own personal opinions.
Here’s the Top 10 (in no particular order)
- Cocaine Bear – Who saw this coming? A movie based very loosely on a true story about a bear that does cocaine and the people who try to recover it or escape from it. It’s not for the faint of heart, but it still was way better than it had any right to be. Instant cult classic people will be watching for years.
- Oppenheimer – No real surprise here, but Christopher Nolan took a story that almost everyone knows (or at least the ending) and turned it into a blockbuster hit with solid storytelling and cinematography that was supported by award-winning acting. The only thing it needed was an intermission due to the 3+ hour length.
- Barbie – We hate to admit it, but this was actually a very entertaining movie if you take it for what it was. Just a good chick flick that even guys with a sense of humor could be entertained by. Ryan Gosling might have stolen the show, but Margot Robbie cemented her star status with this one.
- Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 – It’s hard to believe Tom can still do it, and maybe we still just have leftover love from the Maverick movie, but the impossible reached again with another Mission Impossible hit. The stunts, the car chase, and the edge-of-your-seat train ride at the end have us excited for Part 2.
- Godzilla Minus One – We want you to see the best movie no one is seeing. Seriously, this classic black-and-white Japan Godzillla meets brilliant storytelling with compelling acting everywhere. It has all English subtitles with the movie in Japanese, but any and every true movie lover needs to see this movie now.
- Theater Camp – This is Parks and Rec meets Glee with several up-and-coming stars. It’s laugh-out-loud funny with lines you’ll be repeating to friends for ongoing laughs for years to come. This is well-written and intelligently executed silliness at its highest level. Please give us a sequel.
- Tetris – This crazy true story of the Tetris game’s international origins will leave you shaking your head in disbelief as you sit on the edge of your seat, wondering what will happen next. It also seems quite timely with Russia’s current status in the world. The impact of the game, as well as the story, will shock you for sure. Great movie to watch with your kids or even in an entrepreneur-style classroom.
- The Holdovers – Although hard to watch at times, this movie has fantastic character development with several twists and turns that aren’t necessarily surprising but rather well done in their execution. All the lead actors seem born to play their roles and bring to life characters you find yourself truly invested in.
- Spider-Man Across The Spider-Verse – This was the best Marvel movie of the year and ends with more than a cliffhanger than we’d like. Still, it seems to have the perfect combination of complex storytelling balanced with easy-to-follow characters. It will make you feel all the feelings.
- American Fiction – This movie is smart and sophisticated, with room for us all to laugh at ourselves no matter what our race is. It both opens our eyes to new realities as well as makes us want to close them rather than watch where some people still live with stereotypes. Great cast, a few surprises, and plenty of laughs.
Honorable mentions include Poor Things, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, Iron Claw, The Color Purple, Leave the World Behind, and Megan.
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