These Are the Best Movies of 2023

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These are the must-see films to check off your list before the end of the year.

All of Us Strangers

When Andrew Scott's Adam meets a neighbor in his otherwise-empty London high rise, things begin to look a little less lonely for him. Harry (Paul Mescal) helps bring Adam out of the insular world he's created for himself, sparking not just a romance but the beginnings of something resembling a real life. But Harry doesn't get all of his attention; at the same time, Adam discovers his own late parents seem to be alive and well, waiting for him in his childhood home and causing both enormous comfort and great confusion. Director Andrew Haigh's film is gorgeous, haunting, exhilarating, and wistful—no wonder it's already sweeping the awards circuit.

American Fiction

Things aren't going so well for Monk Ellison. His teaching career is on the skids, and his life as a writer isn't faring much better. That is, until he decides that perhaps being someone else would do the trick. What unfolds when he writes a book—at first as a joke, but soon enough very seriously—as a fictional author is a funny, blistering look at the way we anoint cultural titans in this modern world, and the havoc that can come with it. The film, written and directed by Cord Jefferson, stars a marvelous Geoffrey Wright and a brilliant cast including Issa Rae, Tracee Ellis Ross, Sterling K. Brown, Erika Alexander, and Leslie Uggams.

Anatomy of a Fall

Did she or didn’t see? In director Justine Triet’s sharp, compelling Palme d’Or winner, a remarkable Sandra Hüller plays Sandra Voyter, a novelist whose husband is discovered dead outside of their home in the French Alps—and whose role in his death is the central question of the film. Anatomy is at once an edge-of-your seat courtroom drama, a portrait of a family in turmoil, and a meditation on guilt, envy, and forgiveness. Also worth noting: the film’s other big moment comes care of a border collie named Messi, who won Cannes’s Palm Dog award for his role as the family’s pooch, Snoop.

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret

Thank God Judy Blume waited over 50 years for an adaptation of her coming-of-age novel.The film, written for the screen and directed by Kelly Fremon Craig, follows 11-year-old Margaret (Abby Ryder Fortson) and her mom, Barbara (Rachel McAdams), figuring life out in the New Jersey suburbs in the 1970s. “It just broke my heart in the best possible way,” Blume told T&C. “It’s the book—no one who likes the book will be disappointed.” Also starring Kathy Bates as Margaret’s grandmother and Benny Safdie as Margaret’s dad, the film captures the honest vulnerability of Blume’s work.

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Cassandro

For all of its pageantry, peacocking, and dazzling costumes, the world of lucha libre wasn’t particularly welcoming to gay wrestlers—at least those who didn’t want to compete as exóticos, performing in drag and almost never winning a match. This funny and touching feature, directed and co-written by Roger Ross Williams, tells the true story of Saúl Armendáriz (Gael Garcia Bernal), an out gay wrestler who wanted to blaze his own path in the industry despite the rules that bound those who came before him. It’s a finely observed, heartfelt look at what it means to find your place in the world, and the grit required to keep it, presented with style, humor, and, of course, some truly incredible moves in the ring.

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Dumb Money

The 2021 GameStop saga is dramatized for the big screen in this smart and very funny retelling of the story, starring Pau Dano, Shailene Woodley, Seth Rogen, American Ferrera, and more. Written and produced by Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo and directed by Craig Gillespie, the movie not only depicts the pandemic-era story of a group of retail investors following the lead of an unlikely internet guru to upend some of Wall Street's supposed greatest minds, but also offers a timeless take on the power of collective action.

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The Eight Mountains

When 11-year-old Pietro spends a summer in a small Italian mountain town and befriends a local boy named Bruno, neither has any idea how it will change his life forever. This stunning gut punch of a film follows the two (played as adults by Luca Marinelli and Alessandro Borghi) over the course of their lives as they grow up, drift apart, and come back together to build a house that becomes the focal point of their ever-changing relationship. Written and directed by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch, and based on a novel by Paolo Cognetti, the film is an emotional look at the nature of friendship, a meditation on man’s relationship with the world, and a wrenching reminder that sometimes the most affecting stories are those without any special effects at all.

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Ferrari

One could say that this latest drama from director Michael Mann is a race car movie, but that would only be part of the story. Instead, his film is about the high-stakes game that Enzo Ferrari, the namesake founder of the Italian auto brand, finds himself play when faced with the very real possibility of losing his company—not to mention his very complicated marriage. Taking place over three months of 1957, the film—which stars Adam Driver, Penélope Cruz, and Shailene Woodley, among others—depicts not only one of the world’s most famous races but also the behind-the-scenes story of how one of the world’s most famous names almost sputtered out.

The Holdovers

It's winter break in 1970, and when one unlucky student (the marvelous newcomer Dominic Sessa as Angus Tully) is left behind at boarding school, he embarks on a strange, formative, and utterly charming series of adventures with the professor (Paul Giamatti) and head cook (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) who've also stayed. It's smart and beautifully filmed—no surprise, given Alexander Payne directs—but also deeply touching, very funny, and relatable for anyone who's ever had to make the best of a bad situation.

Killers of the Flower Moon

Adapted from a book by David Grann, this stunning work from Martin Scorsese tells the true story of a horrifying plot to steal from members of Oklahoma's Osage Nation—by people who'd stop at nothing to take their money, land, oil, and power. The film features remarkable performances from Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Brendan Fraser, as well as a knockout star turn by Lily Gladstone, whose Mollie Burkhart finds herself torn between the forces of love and greed.

Little Richard: I Am Everything

Director Lisa Cortés’s documentary explores the real person behind the persona of the rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Little Richard. While he got his big break at age 14 and became world famous for his unmistakable songs, the artist also faced the stifling effects of bigotry around his race and sexuality. This film helps explain who Richard Wayne Penniman really was, and the massive influence his life and work have had on music and culture around the world.

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Maestro

In his second film as a director, Bradley Cooper tells the story of the legendary composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein in all of its complicated, glamorous, and heart-rending glory. Cooper himself plays Bernstein opposite Carey Mulligan as his formidable wife Felicia and leads an all-star cast chock full of New York theater actors to depict the inner life of a man who seemingly had it all, but nevertheless felt at times unseen. The film follows Bernstein’s professional ups and downs as well as those in his personal life, a famously complicated one that involved a seemingly truly loving marriage as well as not-so-secret relationships on the side, to present a careful and caring look at one of our most stories cultural titans and all the ways that he was also merely just one of us.

May December

Todd Haynes' May/December offers a deeply uncomfortable (though there are moments of levity) look into a notorious couple’s life, as Hollywood actress Elizabeth Berry (Natalie Portman) arrives in town to research her latest role portraying Gracie Atherton-Yu (Julianne Moore) a woman whose marriage to her former student Joe Yu (breakout star Charles Melton) sparked controversy, as their relationship began while he was a teenager. With powerhouse leading ladies paving the way for a complex look at interpersonal relationships and family dynamics, it is Melton’s quiet and devastating portrayal of Joe grappling with becoming an empty-nester at 36 years old steals the show. It’s the kind of film that you just need to talk to someone after.

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One Fine Morning

This film from director Mia Hansen-Løve (Things to Come, Bergman Island) stars an incandescent Lèa Seydoux as Sandra, a woman coping not only with the decline of her beloved father, but the arrival in her life of a very complicated new love interest. It’s a finely observed and stunningly filmed portrait of a complex, difficult existence made with incredible attention to detail and style to spare.

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Oppenheimer

Christopher Nolan’s historical biopic Oppenheimer presents a dense story of the beginning of the atomic age—as the titular character leads the Manhattan Project, and its brain trust, in the pursuit of producing the world’s first nuclear weapon. Cillian Murphy’s performance as J.Robert Oppenheimer is surely one of the best of the year, capturing a complex and fiercely intelligent scientist in the midst of his prolific rise (as well as during the fallout from his success) and, needless to say, the film doesn’t scrimp on the drama.

Past Lives

This debut feature from director Celine Song explores what happens when two childhood sweethearts are reunited decades later and half a world away. Nora (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) grew up together in Seoul, but lost touch until years later when—what else—social media reunited them. This isn't a straight-ahead love story, however; while sparks might fly between the two, their actual reunion comes years later when Nora is already married. What the two experience is more textured and interesting than a long-delayed romance, though—it's a charged, sometimes-awkward brush with what could have been that makes for one of the most affecting films in recent memory.

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Poor Things

To call this latest picture from Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster, The Favourite) a Frankenstein story might make it sound a bit too mundane. Instead, the fantastical film follows Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a young woman reanimated by a mad scientist (Willem Dafoe) who goes out into the world to discover who it is she wants to be. Her misadventures range from the gruesome to the graphic—a stint in a Parisian brothel is among the most unforgettable experiments—and the daringly designed world that Lanthimos depicts helps audiences feel as though they’re seeing it all for the first time as well. It’s a razor-sharp investigation of gender roles and the true price of freedom that, while sometimes verging on avant-garde, delivers unforgettable punch and performances from a cast also including Ramy Youssef, Mark Ruffalo, and Christopher Abbott.

Rye Lane

Director Raine Allen-Miller's romantic comedy—which follows two strangers, both recently heartbroken Londoners, on a long, strange trip throughout the city–is the delightful sort of picture that's more than the sum of its parts. Thanks to top-notch performances from David Jonsson and Vivian Oparah, what could be a traditional (read: delightful if predictable) romcom becomes something more—it's smart and unexpected and manages to lovingly update the genre. Rye Lane, and its marvelous leads, is easily one of the year's most delightful surprises.

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Saltburn

This sophomore feature from writer-director Emerald Fennell is without question of the best looking films of the year, thanks to its incredible sets and Fennell's masterful world-building. But this isn't a case of style over substance; instead the film tells the story of the outsider Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) who finds his way into the family—and sprawling country estate—of his dashing classmate Felix (Jacob Elordi) to some shocking results. It's wickedly funny, brilliantly acted, and sharply focused on its story of haves and have nots, and which is truly which.

STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie

We’ve all seen Michael J. Fox on screen, from TV series like Family Ties and Spin City to films including Back to the Future and Teen Wolf, but we’ve never seen him like this. In the new, Davis Guggenheim-directed documentary, the actor shares a no-holds-barred look at his struggle with Parkinson’s disease, how it has impacted his work, his family life, and the way he sees the world around him. What’s most clear is that Fox hasn’t lost his sense of humor or his desire to help other people; he raises millions through his foundation and, despite the toll it takes, remains a very public face of Parkinson’s in service of others who are struggling. Is the doc a tearjerker? At times, yes, but more than that it’s a portrait of a survivor and the incredible life he’s living.

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You Hurt My Feelings

Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Tobias Menzies star in this charming, insightful dramedy from writer-director Nicole Holofcener—who charts the perils of the well-to-do better than anyone. Here, Louis-Dreyfus's Beth is an author who discovers that her husband doesn't like her latest book, a seemingly small slight that leads to larger questions about loyalty, artistry, and the lies we're maybe supposed to tell for love. It's a keenly observed, very funny exploration of creativity, family, and ego that should be counted among Holofcener's best.

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The Zone of Interest

This year’s submission from the United Kingdom for the Oscars’s Best International Feature category, The Zone of Interest tells the story of a seemingly (and eerily) normal German family whose idyllic 1940s existence runs up against that of their neighbors: the people living in Auschwitz, where patriarch Rudolf Höss works. Directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Sandra Hüller and Christian Friedel, the film (based loosely on a Martin Amis novel) won the Grand Prix prize at Cannes and has buzzed-about chances of taking home more awards as the year rolls on.

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