BEST (and worst) Films of 2023

With the Oscars (and 2023 Film Awards Season) officially over, it’s time now for the only list of top films of 2023 that matters:

THE BANKOFMARQUIS PRESENTS: The Best (and Worst) Films of 2023

Let it be known that the BankofMarquis did NOT see (as of this writing) such 2023 films as FERRARI, THE BOYS IN THE BOAT, TETRIS, WONKA, ARE YOU THERE GOD, IT’S ME MARGARET, THE BOY AND THE HERON and FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S, so you will not be seeing them here.

THE TOP 10 FILMS OF 2023 – 2 of which are Guy Ritchie films!

HONORABLE MENTION: SALTBURN, ANATOMY OF A FALL, THE ZONE OF INTEREST, M3GAN and DUNGEONS& DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES

10).  GUARDIANS OF THEGALAXY, Vol. 3:  The Best MCU film in quite some time – and a strong send off for the Guardians (at least as we have come to know them).

9).  OPERATION FORTUNE: RUSE deGUERRE:  This Guy Ritchie action/comedy was viewed on an airplane and is just now on the Streaming platforms (you can currently rent if for $3.99 on Amazon Prime, for example).  It’s a throwback to action/comedies like TRUE LIES and, just might be, the start of an action/comedy franchise…and that would be fine with the BankofMarquis.

8).  GODZILLA: MINUS ONE:  Or should I say Oscar winning GODZILLA: MINUS ONE.  One of the pleasant surprises of 2023.  This monster movie had something that previous Godzilla (and monster) movies lack – strong characters, story and heart.

 7).  SPIDER-MAN:ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE:  An engaging 2nd act to a (soon to be) trilogy that really captures the feel of reading a Graphic Novel while watching an animated film on-screen.

6).  MISSION IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING (PART ONE): Just when you think Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt can’t top the stunts and thrills of his earlier missions, he tops it…

5).  GUY RITCHIE’S THE COVENANT:  The 2nd Guy Ritchie film in my top 10 of 2023.  This film should have had more Oscars love, but since it was released last spring, it had already started to fade from memory. Which is too bad…if you haven’t seen this one, check it out.  It’s more than just a war/action film.  It’s a study of friendship under fire.

4).  BARBIE:  Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Kate McKinnon and the best monologue in a film in 2023.

3).  AMERICANFICTION:  The biggest (happy) surprise in doing the Oscars’ homework.  This wry satire is perfectly performed by Geoffrey Wright.

 2).  THEHOLDOVERS:  Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine JoyRandolph were superb in this age-old tale of 2 opposites coming together.  It’s not the desitination, but rather, the journey that counts here – and what journey!

 1).  OPPENHEIMER:  The Academy got this one right.  Not only in honoring the film, but the Director and the performances.  It’s the type of old-school spectacle that has been missing recently.

And now…for the bottom of the barrel.  8 out of the 10 of them are either sequels or remakes…

10).  EXTRACTION 2: A sequel to a middling straight-to-Netflix action flick? 

9).  BLUE BEETLE: Based on the DC comic.  This one had potential, but that was squandered as is usually the case with a DC film.

8).  THE LITTLE MERMAID:  The live action remake that was not necessary– or needed.  Halle Bailey was flat in the title role, which is surprising as she was VERY GOOD and exciting in the COLOR PURPLE.

7).  THE COLOR PURPLE:  Too bad the rest of the film didn’t match up to Bailey’s work early in the film nor did it rise to the level of Danielle Brooks’ performance at the end of the film.

6).  HYPNOTIC: Roberto Rodriguez wrote and directed this thriller that starred Ben Affleck.  So why did it go straight to streaming?  Watch it and you’ll see why.

5).  ANT-MAN AND THE WASP: QUANTUMANIA:  The film that was supposed to rescue the floundering MCU and make a Major Villain out of Kang – and a major star out of Jonathan Majors (no pun intended).  None of that happened.

4).  HAUNTED MANSION:  Disney has been trying to make a good film based on their Theme Park rides since the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN franchise.  They almost succeeded with THE JUNGLE CRUISE.  They did NOT with this one.

3).   MEG 2: THE TRENCH:  The first MEG film was an overly-CGI’d schlock-fest and a ton of fun.  This is just an overly-CGI’d schlock-fest…and a boring one at that.

2).  SHAZAM! FURY OF THE GODS:  Not even Helen Mirren could save this bomb.  When it came out just about a year ago, I thought “there is no way that there will be a worse film – and a bigger disappointment – than this…”

 And then came –

 1).  AQUAMAN AND THE LOST KINGDOM:  By the time this movie was ½ way through filming, the DC had given up on the DCEU – and the results show.

 And…that’s a wrap on 2023.  We’ll see you at the Cineplex in 2024.

And you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)