The best movies of 2023: Barbie, Oppenheimer and more

It was a great year in film, which featured the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon that shattered box office records, as well as new films from such luminaries as Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott and Wes Anderson.

Wild and surreal projects like “Beau Is Afraid” and “Poor Things” pushed the boundaries of cinematic storytelling, and old-school feel-good movies like “The Holdovers” and “Air” reminded us why we love going to the theater.

While this list may ruffle some feathers, these are our top 10 films from 2023:

1. Dream Scenario

Nicolas Cage delivers a brilliant comedic performance as Paul Matthews, a hapless college professor who inexplicably starts appearing in people’s dreams — even those he’s never met. This horror-comedy from Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli is not just laugh-out-loud funny, but develops into a moving meditation on life, ambition and desire. Some may feel it appears to run out of steam, but the patient unraveling of the film’s back end is what allows it to pack its punch.

2. Oppenheimer

Christopher Nolan’s gripping portrait of the father of the atomic bomb is a monumental aesthetic and narrative achievement, bolstered by incredible performances from Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr. and Emily Blunt. The subject matter is vast, but as Nolan said during his conversation with author Kai Bird at CUNY in October, he didn’t set out to make a biopic; he intended to tell the story of these particular moments in Oppenheimer’s life, which he executes masterfully.

3. Anatomy of a Fall

Justine Triet’s meticulously crafted courtroom drama took home the Palme d’Or at Cannes in May for a reason. The central character, Sandra Voyter, is played expertly by Sandra Hüller, who faces a trial after her husband is discovered dead in the snow by their visually impaired son. Investigators contemplate two possibilities: murder or suicide.

4. Barbie

Greta Gerwig’s vibrant pink feminist creation is an immensely enjoyable and moving experience that appeals to all ages and genders. The magic lies in the performances of Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, who perfectly nail the heightened, doll-like tone, while keeping the story grounded in real human emotion. It also boasts maybe the best dance number and song of the year: “I’m Just Ken.”

5. American Fiction

This feature debut from writer/director Cord Jefferson is a humorous and witty take on how Black creators and stories are portrayed in the media, and how those intending to do good can actually reinforce dangerous stereotypes. Starring Jeffrey Wright as a frustrated novelist angered by the offensive tropes that pervade his industry, the film offers a lively and riveting adaptation of Percival Everett’s book “Erasure.”

6. May December

In Todd Haynes’s “May December,” we get a fictional version of Mary Kay Letourneau, the schoolteacher who had a sexual relationship with her sixth-grade student and eventually married him. But this film, featuring one of the best screenplays of the year from writer Samy Burch, offers so much more to consider than an inappropriate relationship. Charles Melton gives one of the best supporting performances of the year.

7. Air

With a stellar ensemble cast, Ben Affleck deftly directs and effortlessly acts his way through this legendary tale of the basketball shoe that changed history. Matt Damon elevates the film from a cheesy retelling of a sports-junkie’s fantasy to a passionate and inspiring story of belief and teamwork. Viola Davis, as Michael Jordan’s mother, Deloris, doesn’t hurt either.

8. Killers of the Flower Moon

Coming in at nearly four hours, Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon” might be his most ambitious project yet, not because of the runtime but because of the weighty history it retells. The massacre of Osage Indians by white capitalists in the 1920s is the touchy subject Scorsese aims to tackle, and it proves a messy task. The film isn’t perfect, but it showcases one of our greatest living directors as he takes a more self-aware and humane approach to his work. Lily Gladstone as Mollie Burkhart is an early Oscar favorite.

9. Past Lives

Celine Song, a Korean-Canadian playwright and filmmaker, delivers a feature debut that feels incredibly personal and, at times, uncomfortably familiar. It’s a romance that explores the insecurities, dreams and desires every couple deals with in a relationship. Greta Lee and Teo Yoo have incredible chemistry that pulls you in and leaves you yearning for closure.

10. Napoleon

Director Ridley Scott seems to have learned an important lesson from his last film, “House of Gucci”: No accents! Joaquin Phoenix gives a surprisingly human and funny spin on the epic emperor but Vanessa Kirby steals the show in every shot. It’s far from a perfect movie, but its effectiveness is in the liberties taken by the director and the awesome battle scenes.

Honorable mentions:

“Poor Things,” “Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse,” “Zone of Interest,” “Beau Is Afraid,” “Maestro.”