The Best Movies I Watched In 2023

The year is winding down and everyone is reflecting on the movies they watched in 2023. There were some absolutely excellent films released this year from tiny indies to record-smashing blockbusters.

I watched about 180 movies in 2023, just over half of which were new releases, so narrowing down my selections to just the top five was really difficult. I always want to include a variety of movies that are phenomenally well-made with great performances, screenplays, production design, etc., but also movies that connected with me or clicked with me beyond just being critical darlings.

With that in mind, these were my top five favorite movies of 2023.

Saltburn

Similar to Babylon last year, this has been one of the more polarizing releases of 2023 with most people either loving or hating it. Thankfully, I really enjoyed this one. 

Saltburn is dark and twisted but also packs a heavy dose of camp that makes it a thoroughly entertaining watch. Stars Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi are fantastic, but it’s the supporting performance from Rosamund Pike that steals the show for me.

Oppenheimer

The Barbenheimer phenomenon basically saved movies with audiences enthusiastically lining up to see both films as a double bill. There was no ugly competition, just two great movies from two auteur directors both getting love and support from audiences. You love to see it.

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is an excellent film from the first to the last frame of its three-hour runtime. Boasting an enormous cast of actors all giving some of the best performances of their careers, it’s truly a marvel to watch.

Poor Things

Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things was a last-minute watch that immediately shot to my top five list. This Frankenstein story, based on a novel of the same name, delivered some of the year’s best performances from Emma Stone and Willem Dafoe, but it was Mark Ruffalo who had me cracking up in every scene. 

Visually stunning with a memorable score, Poor Things brings the kind of creativity and imagination I always want to see in movies.

Killers of the Flower Moon

It’s Martin Scorsese, it’s Leonardo DiCaprio, it’s Robert De Niro, and it’s a show-stopping performance from Lily Gladstone that should earn her an immediate Oscar.

One of the few 2023 releases I watched twice, this drama hits hard and just keeps going. I was completely sucked in and emotionally invested for the full three-and-a-half-hour runtime. Killers of the Flower Moon is truly a masterpiece from one of the greatest living filmmakers.

Barbie

It might be controversial to put Greta Gerwig’s hot pink comedy at the top of my list, but this movie delivered the most fun I’ve had at the cinema all year.

The music, the production design, the performances, the humor—everything landed perfectly for me and I could see myself watching Barbie over and over again.

So that’s my top five of 2023 but there are a lot of excellent movies that could have also made the cut. 

What were your favorites of the year? Let me know on TikTok and Instagram or connect with me on Letterboxd.