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Cinema, Classic Film Reviews, Reviews

THE CINEMA FIX: 10 FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2023!

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THE CINEMA FIX: 10 FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2023!

Happy New Year and welcome to 2024!

Thankfully 2023 was less turbulent year on the cultural landscape than the previous years impacted by THAT virus. Nonetheless, we remain in an era where streaming platforms continue to thrive. I have lost count how many there are now and have now drawn a line under the number of subscriptions I have.

Apple TV, BBC iPlayer, BFI, Channel 4 online, Disney+, MUBI, Netflix and Sky Movies subscriptions are enough!

I still have my ODEON membership and do attend the cinema too though.

So, here are my favourite TEN films of the year containing choices watched both at home and in the cinema. If they are new releases and I saw them in 2023, they qualify.

Obviously, I have not seen every new release from 2023, so if there are any glaring omissions from my list please recommend away! 

As an aperitif I include my ten favourite films of 2022. Good luck and bon voyage in 2024!

TEN FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2022!

THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN (2022)
BONES AND ALL (2022)
CODA (2021)
DECISION TO LEAVE (2022)
DOCTOR STRANGE AND THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS (2022)
ELVIS (2022)
EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE, ALL AT ONCE (2022)
THE MENU (2022)
RRR (2022)
TRIANGLE OF SADNESS (2022)

TEN FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2023!

ANATOMY OF A FALL (2023)

“. . . Anatomy of the Fall (2023) is an extremely complex film, both intelligent and thematically powerful. The courtroom exchanges between Sandra, her son Daniel, Samuel’s psychotherapist, the prosecution and defense lawyers are brilliantly written and acted. The flashback arguments between Samuel and Sandra are gut-wrenching and all too familiar to anyone who has been in or witnessed the crumbling of a marital or parental relationship. “

ASTEROID CITY (2023)

“. . .Asteroid City (2023) proves once again Wes Anderson is one of the most original filmmakers of this generation. Will he gain some more converts to his particular set of cinematic bag of tricks? Who knows. What I do know is that I was completely immersed in the colour, movement, pace, humour, aesthetics, performances and themes with the film. “

BROKER (2022)

“. . . Broker (2022) arguably has too many intertwining subplots as it strives to redeem all of the complex characters, but the wonderfully believable performances and a brilliant screenplay really grabs you and rarely lets you go. Kore-eda’s direction is, as usual, masterly and assured as he balances the various tones confidently. Overall, this film makes you laugh, cry and is really moving as it highlights that family units can be lovingly born from collective experience, as well as blood. “

MAY DECEMBER (2023)

“. . . what unfolds is a superbly acted and understated drama which really gets under the skin and into the mind. While watching the ever-shifting points-of-view and identification with the characters May December (2023) became so compelling to me. . . Acclaimed director Todd Haynes directs this tonally awkward story with a deft touch drawing on the constant grey areas of drama so expertly. “

OPPENHEIMER (2023)

“. . . Where the film truly blooms is when Oppenheimer makes his scientific breakthrough, builds his team of geniuses and the actual construction of the nuclear weapons at Los Alamos. There is palpable suspense (even though we know what happens) in the race with the Germans to make the bomb first. I mean, imagine if the Germans had won the race. It does not bear thinking about. The history of the world would have been irrevocably altered beyond comprehension. “

PAST LIVES (2023)

“. . . Without explosions, or car chases, or superheroes or fast-paced cutting or extraordinary heroes defeating powerful foes, Past Lives (2023), is one of the most impactful and memorable films of this year. Celine Song achieves this with a delicate hand in the writing and direction, plus a purposeful naturalistic cinematographic palette delivered by Shabier Kirchner. Above all else Song creates two characters who you root for from the start, willing them to be together, as the one feels the romantic electricity build on the screen. ”

SALTBURN (2023)

“. . . I cannot recommend Saltburn (2023) enough for its fantastically witty script, devastatingly brilliant cast and some quite disgustingly explicit, but contextually justifiable, character moments and scenes. Fennell takes the setting and structure of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited and turns it upside down, spinning a devious tale of infatuation, love, privilege and social climbing. Through the character Oliver Quick, and I really don’t want to give anything away, there is a powerful and jaw-dropping character arc of upward mobility. Rosamund Pike’s and Keoghan’s performances are both amazing and award-worthy. “

TAR (2022)

“Tár (2022) is a film which works on many genre and narrative layers. It is a psychological drama, an absorbing character study, a backstage musical, a complex morality play, with suggestions of hallucinatory horror during the final act of the film. It is a triumph of filmic brilliance expertly delivered by Todd Field. It is incredible to think this is only the third film he has directed. “

TOTALLY KILLER (2023)

“. . . I realise Totally Killer (2023) seems so contrived and derivative, but I found it to be an absolute blast. The script is clever and knowing with energetic and fun characters. Kiernan Shipka as Jamie is especially brilliant with great comedy timing and delivery. The filmmakers embrace the joy of time-travel and horror film tropes, and there’s also some excellent set-pieces involving the obligatory 1980’s false-faced psycho with a grudge. “

THE WONDER (2022)

“. . . Is there a better actor around than Florence Pugh? I am not so sure. She is formidably brilliant in every role I have seen her in. I think that Pugh is so clever, emotional and magnetic in her screen performances, none more so than in this intense period drama. Rich in themes including religious control, Catholic guilt and the English stranglehold over Ireland between the dramatic lines in an intimate epic, anchored by Pugh’s dominant force-of-human-nature performance.”

Cinema, Reviews

Hirokazu Kore-eda Film Reviews: AFTER LIFE (1998) and BROKER (2022)

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BROKER (2022)

Directed and written by Hirokazu Kore-eda

Produced by Eugene Lee

Cast: Song Kang-ho, Gang Dong-won, Bae Doona, Lee Ji-eun
and Lee Joo-young.

Cinematography: Hong Kyung-pyo

Arguably Japanese director’s Hirokazu Kore-eda’s most accessible film to date is the slice-of-life comedy-drama, BROKER (2022). Elements of Little Miss Sunshine (2006) meets Parasite (2019) meets Juno (2007) as kind-of-likeable and empathetic criminals create a dysfunctional family unit around stealing orphans and finding them families to makes ends meet. Lighter than many of his other brilliant human dramas, there is much to savour here from one of the best filmmakers working today.

There’s a lot going on in Broker (2022) as the duo of Sang-hyeon (Song Kang-ho) and Dong-soo (Gang Dong-won) work a grift of taking the unwanted babies, a police thriller involving murder, an impromptu road movie in a camper van, a cute kid looking for a surrogate father and a mother, Moon So-young (Lee Ji-eun) battling the dilemma of whether to sell or keep her child. A lesser filmmaker could have struggled balancing the many story, character and tonal shifts but Kore-eda manages it with aplomb.

Broker (2022) arguably has too many intertwining subplots though, as it strives to redeem all of the complex characters, but the wonderfully believable performances and brilliant screenplay really grabs you and rarely lets you go. Kore-eda’s direction is, as usual, masterly and assured as he balances the various tones confidently. Overall, this film makes you laugh, cry and is really moving as it highlights that family units can be lovingly born of collective experience, as well as blood.

Mark: 9 out of 11

AFTER LIFE (1998)

Directed and written by Hirokazu Kore-eda

Produced by Masayuki Akieda, Shiho Sato

Cast: Arata Iura, Erika Oda, Susumu Terajima, Sayaka Yoshino, Takashi Naito, Kei Tani, etc.

Cinematography Yutaka Yamazaki

What a delightful, surreal and beautiful film. AFTER LIFE (1998), is easily one of the most imaginative and human films I have watched in a long time. It is set in an administrative centre somewhere between the realms of life and death. Here the staff of the office, kind of social workers, welcome recently deceased people and ask them to recall their life and choose a single memory. After which the filmmaking staff will recreate the memory, shoot this scene and the souls will be able to re-experience this moment forever in heaven.

To me this is a mind-blowing concept for a feature film and I am surprised that it has not been remade (and probably ruined) by Hollywood for either cinema or TV. What makes it so great is, that despite the high concept idea, the design and delivery is so down-to-earth. The offices where events confirmed are not presented with any of the usual angelic or heavenly cliches. Instead, Hirokazu Kore-eda, of which this is only his second feature film, and his production team, decide that the after-life is an unglamorous place run by kindly bureaucrats.

One of the many strengths of After Life (1998) lies with the human representations, both the people who have passed and the office angels who counsel them. The love, humour and emotion derived from the various interviews given by many of the characters are full of joy, sadness and longing. Along with the soulful characters coming to terms with their recent passing, the narrative also focuses on two “young” counsellors, Takashi (Arata Iura) and Shiori (Erika Oda), who must overcome their personal conflicts while helping others. Overall, After Life (1998) builds slowly and beautifully weaves so many fantastic human stories. When the filmed memories are revealed my heart melted, as Kore-eda delivers cinematic moments that will stay with one eternally.

Mark: 10 out of 11