Movies in 2023

31 Dec 2023

In 2023 apparently all the pent up energy needed to come out and it was time to go to the theater. It looks like I saw ten movies in the theater which is… a lot for me, and certainly coming out of the past few years. Partially I was ready to get out, but also there were just some great movies to go see. I got very tired of that AMC movie quotes intro. Please stop.

Alright, whether in the theater or at home, this is a list of movies that I watched in 2023 that warranted commentary.

Across the Spider-Verse

Into the Spider-verse set new high standards for animation. It’s sequel somehow meets them. The first 20 minutes, which are all about Gwen Stacy, are perfect. I love the difference in her verse’s visual style (something the movie continues to explore in spades as it moves to other verses). I love the small but poignant story told in this opening section. It left me thinking “what if we just stayed with Gwen for a whole movie?” But Miles is great too, of course. This movie goes so many wild places. It’s so so good.

Watched in the theater, now streaming on Netflix

Barbie

Hi Barbie! This movie has heart, and pushes buttons. Buttons that need pushing. I saw it in the theater on the same day as Oppenheimer, and being part of the zeitgeist was fun. Everyone should see this movie.

Watched in the theater, now streaming on HBO

Oppenheimer

This movie is long and we had terrible seats (the cost of deciding last minute to do Barbenheimer). The movie was also so good that these things didn’t bother me. It is incredibly well told story of a time of difficult choices.

Watched in the theater

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

What an amazing year for animation! I had recently watched Across the Spider-verse which was already a gorgeous accomplishment. Mutant Mayhem then follows it with the most incredible animation style. My eyeballs were so incredibly pleased through the entire runtime. I also like how the story is about flawed teenage characters dealing with appropriate sized conflict; much better than all the overblown over-scaled adventures that have become too commonplace.

Watched in the theater

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

This movie is dripping with fan service directed right at me. And I am not sad to be catered to in this way. Yes, I did recognize all those little musical nods, thank you for making them. Not just nostalgia, the whole thing does actually hold together as an enjoyable animated romp.

Watched in the theater, now streaming on Netflix

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

As a player of D&D, I was braced for this movie to be bad. I’m so glad it wasn’t. It had very D&D energy about its stories and characters. Things get silly, stuff happens, don’t overthink it, everyone has a great time. A delightful carefree romp.

Watched in the theater, now streaming on Amazon

Babylon

Margot Robbie is a treasure. From Harley Quinn to I, Tonya to Amsterdam to Barbie… she clearly has range. Babylon is a film about film-making, specifically the transition from silent films to talkies. It’s wild and colorful and engaging, filled with memorable moments. I found it captivating.

Now streaming on Amazon

Barbarian

I was instructed to know nothing about this movie before seeing it, other than it fit into the horror genre. And that was indeed the best context to see it. I didn’t know where it was going, it delivered real tension, it had moments of shock and violence but they didn’t permeate the experience, and overall I enjoyed it.

Now streaming on HBO

Nimona

A dishonored knight works with a shapeshifter to overthrow the unethical regime. It’s a stylish animated movie filled with heart and humor. The mashup of medieval knights and technology gives it a distinct setting. I also read the graphic novel, and they certainly diverge but the adaptations are appropriate for making a better (and more complete) story.

Now streaming on Netflix

Whiplash

This movie was recommended to me so many times before I actually acted on it. It’s a story of a musician in a high intensity band (and by “high intensity” we mean verbally and emotionally abusive). It was extremely hard to watch at times. But also excellent. Meticulous. There was actually a scene from the movie that I had seen as a clip before, which I now realize was taken entirely out of context about the role of teachers and pressure. Oh wow does this movie ask you whether the end justifies the means.

Now streaming on Netflix

Marriage Story

Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver deliver amazing performances about a couple going through divorce. It gets ugly. It’s emotional. It’s very very good.

Now streaming on Netflix

RRR

Thanks to Patrick H Willems for this recommendation (and I recommend his follow-up video about Bollywood. This movie is… over the top. “Man throws a tiger at another man” over the top. It’s also a story of brotherhood and friendship. And there are dance numbers. It has everything. Watching it I realized all the other films I’ve watched have been holding it back. That there is another plane to ascend to. I can’t live there all the time. But it was real nice to visit.

Now streaming on Netflix

And the Rest

Here are some other movies I had thoughts on.

Maybe Yes

• Dunkirk: For a period as well traveled as World War II, I never felt like I had seen this movie before. The mechanism of telling 3 different storylines advancing at different rates (an inevitably combining for the climax) worked really well. Very engaging.
• Three Thousand Years of Longing: dris Elba is a genie in a bottle found by Tilda Swinton. It’s a vibrant movie with Shahrazad vibes of storytelling, magic, and history.
• M3GAN: A horror movie about dolls and technology that’s not terrible explicit on the horror visuals. It worked for me.
• Elemental: I’m not positive the world of elements living together in a city actually makes sense, but that’d be nit picking. It’s a story of immigration and racism, for kids! It’s not going to enter my highest echelon of Pixar movies, but that’s tough company. It was still enjoyable.
• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3: The movie that needed a content warning about animal violence. Which put a dampener on its otherwise traditionally light comedic action vibe. I of course must praise how the movie featured the Zune far more prominently than anyone could have expected. But overall to me the movie didn’t raise to the level of the previous two.

Maybe

• Nope: I’m in for a mystery and monster movie. And this one was fine, but others seemed to have liked it a lot more than me so I’m not sure what I’m missing.
• Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny: This movie was not the disappointment that Crystal Skull was. The young accomplice was decidedly less annoying. And it’s back to fighting nazis. I didn’t have a bad time with it.
• Hereditary: I needed more of a warning before seeing this movie. I was expecting a spooky horror movie, and instead got real life family trauma. The supernatural happenings that follow can’t compete with that.
• The Marvels: This movie just kind of washed over me as okay and not exceptional in any way. There are funny bits. There are cool bits. But it didn’t have enough of a purpose or point of view to punch through.
• The Little Mermaid (2023): I don’t really want to contribute to these live action remakes continuing to be profitable. But sometimes that’s the movie that’s available when it’s time to watch a movie. And… it was fine. The whole first act where things are underwater is too uncanny valley. Prince Eric gets more of an identity and a reason, so that’s cool. Honestly, I’m too attached to the original to give a fair comparison. It was fine.
• Renfield: Nick Cage chews up all the scenery, and that’s appropriate. It’s campy, there is some comedically gratuitous action violence… but it didn’t really land as all that memorable or interesting.
• Strange World: Some interesting visuals but ultimately forgettable. As in I literally had to watch the trailer to remember what happened. It felt very… well-tread.

Maybe No

• Magic Mike’s Last Dance: The first two Magic Mike movies are excellent. This one is not. It has a completely dissonant romantic relationship and loses all of the positive masculinity of the previous film. There is some good dancing, but not enough to make up for its sins.
• Avatar: The Way of Water: Well that certainly looked expensive. Was the story dumb and lazy? Yep. Were the whales cool? Yep. Did the whole thing overstay its welcome? Yes absolutely.
• Licorice Pizza: This is a movie about nothing. And it knows it’s a movie about nothing. But also I didn’t like the characters. And the vibes didn’t land for me. Can’t recommend.
• Jurassic World Dominion: This movie has no soul. It’s preying on nostalgia, marching beloved characters out to tempt us to watch it. I did, and immediately forgot it.
• Morbius: I expected this movie to be bad. And it was bad. If you needed someone to confirm that for you… I’m here for that.