Somehow, if you can believe it, 2023 is half over. I am sitting here on July 4th (Happy Birthday, America! Although I don't much feel like celebrating) utterly baffled and overwhelmed that half of the year has passed. 2022 feels like yesterday. Hell, 2019 feels like yesterday! Time is an amorphous blob that makes little sense (and is an ultimately arbitrary human creation, anyways) and we have to do our best to set goal posts to meet so that life has some semblance of structure and meaning. Anyways!
Although 2023 is not at this point of the year as overwhelmingly impressive as 2022 was in terms of cinematic output - and perhaps, to be fair, this is partly the result of how many films released in early 2022 were meant to release earlier but were delayed due to the pandemic - there were certainly a fair amount of films I’ve enjoyed this year, from action/adventure to sci-fi to animation to horror to comedy to indie thrillers to a surprising number of films about products and brands, and while it’s always possible that as time goes on my thoughts on certain films may change or I’ll catch up on those I missed, these 5 films below are the films released in the first half of 2023 (Jan-June) that have most stuck with me. They entertained, they enlightened, they inspired, they moved me. I adore all 5 of these films (and others from 2023, to be sure) and cannot wait to revisit them in the future and see how they end up resonating in 6 months when the year comes to a close.
I would also like to note that (spoiler alert!) my top 3 of the year so far are all directed by women. Women have never gotten the same appreciation and respect as filmmakers that men have (the ratio of men to women that have won the Best Director Oscar is disgusting) and although this was not at all by design, it is a heartening fact for me to realize.
Let me know what films you’ve most enjoyed and what you may need to catch up on in the comments below!
Without further adieu:
5. Asteroid City (Dir: Wes Anderson)
Wes Anderson has long been one of my favorite filmmakers, and his newest film is one of the most thoughtful and self-reflective in his catalogue. I have long called him a cinematic curator, and Asteroid City is no different. Each item of clothing, each shot selection, each piece of music, each and every movement, whether by a performer or the camera, is meticulously curated for maximum effect. And sure, it has become easy to parody Wes Anderson. But thus is the reflection of an artist whose work is so singularly identifiable. Utilizing a nesting doll structure that comments on the very nature of storytelling, this film is so charming and funny, so rich with character and humanity, and so thoughtful in its commentary on the work of the artist and and the impact art and performance can have on the individuals creating it. It also serves as an exploration of existential dread, a meditation on grief, and a sci-fi wonder. The emotions hiding underneath the surface are some of the most potent in Wes' career, and I know this is a film that will only grow in my esteem as I am able to watch it again and again.
4. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Dir: Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson, & Kemp Powers)
How does one follow up a film that was as inventive, as emotionally resonant, and as purely entertaining as Into the Spider-Verse? By not only doubling down on everything that worked in the first but by going for broke, taking wild swings, and enriching the entire experience. This is a stunning work of modern art (playing this film on loop at the MOMA would not be out of the question) that stretches the boundaries of animation with immense artistry, imagination, vision, and music. The utilization of a variety of animation techniques - whether hand drawn or CGI, whether affecting a water color or minimalist or pointillism style, whether Lego (!!) - is an audacious artistic choice that pays off beautifully. The film is a hugely compelling, emotional, beautifully voiced story of sacrifice and identity, with deft writing and character work. I wish all superhero movies were as ambitious and thoughtful as this one. This is the stuff modern mythopoeia is made of.
3. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret (Dir: Kelly Fremon Craig)
I remember reading this book with my Mom when I was a kid, and although traditionally I suppose Judy Blume's novel is more popular for those who were born as women, I had 4 older sisters who adored it and it only felt natural for my family to pass it on. Gender is a societal construct anyways, and one that needs to be broken! I digress. This is a gorgeous adaptation that deepens the characters and is filled with such warmth, empathy, and intelligence. It is a paean to the struggles of adolescence, of exploring one's identity and place in the world, and understanding their own identity. It's also a terrific period piece, capturing the early 1970s in loving fashion. There are of course certain elements that I can't personally relate to, but I found them portrayed with such insight and understanding, and thus the film makes specificity feel universal. The entire cast is absolutely wonderful, but Rachel McAdams? This may be her finest work yet. She brings so much humanity, depth of feeling, and indescribable motherly magic to her work. Between this and The Edge of Seventeen, Kelly Freom Craig has cemented herself as the modern master of the coming of age movie.
2. Rye Lane (Dir: Raine Allen-Miller)
I have often reflected on how the romantic comedy is all but dead in modern cinema, at least the very traditional romantic comedy (think Meg Ryan or Julia Roberts) and thus when a good one comes along it is cause for celebration. When a great one comes along? One that serves not only as a great romantic comedy but a vivid, fresh, contemporary, delightfully alive work of moviemaking? Hand me the confetti canon - it's time to celebrate. Rye Lane is that movie. The amount of sheer, overwhelming joy this movie brings me is nearly unparalleled. It takes as much inspiration from Before Sunrise as it does Notting Hill, while also exploring a neighborhood and a culture that feels relatively untapped in cinema. Its depiction of two young Black people walking and talking in South London, getting to know each other, exploring their past breakups and their dreams, is almost revelatory. Raine Allen-Miller instills such verve and energy to the film. The stylistic approach manages to be both patient and zany, with a winking all-knowing approach to the humor and visual gags that is absolutely hilarious. And rest assured, this film is visually stunning. But ultimately it is the performances of David Jonsson and Vivian Oparah that make this film soar. They are so natural, so empathetic, and so charismatic that they feel like real people that you and I might know. It is the absolute lack of artifice in their chemistry and their choices as actors that allows the magic of Rye Lane to linger in your head for days, producing a massive smile that simply refuses to quit.
1. Past Lives (Dir: Celine Song)
As the credits on Past Lives rolled, with tears still streaming down my face and a gulp in my throat, I knew I had seen something special. Perhaps special isn't even the right word. Perhaps that's not strong enough. Celine's Song's film made me reflect on my own past experiences in a way that felt almost intrusive, almost shattering. I shouldn't be allow to feel this much. It isn't healthy! This is a gorgeous work of what ifs, of glances, of questions. Although the writing and dialogue is immaculate, it is a testament to the power of silent communication. Our faces convey our truths, whether we like it or not. We cannot hide. This is a soulful romance that's about what we can endure over time, what we don't forget, how those moments or people we once knew can linger on in our hearts and our memories, and also how different our lives could or would be if we made different choices. The Korean notion of In-Yun, whereas there is an element of fate to our lives inspired by past lives we have lived and what we may have meant to each other in those past lives, is an oddly comforting notion that resonated profoundly within my own worldview. Past Lives is impeccably performed (Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, and John Magaro are all sensational,) composed with overwhelming elegance, grace, and authenticity. It is a masterful work of cinematic poetry that I will treasure forever.
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