Editor’s note: the full list of this year’s Oscars winners can be found here.
By Geoff Daniels
The year 2022 was a fantastic one for cinema, with films such as Everything Everywhere All at Once (Daniels), Top Gun: Maverick (Kosinski), Tár (Haynes), Women Talking (Polley), All Quiet on the Western Front (Berger), and Nope (Peele) making up some of my personal favorites. Yet, the 2023 film season may have it beat.
The creativity and ingenuity present in movies like Everything Everywhere All at Once combined with the overwhelming box office success that was Top Gun: Maverick seemed to indicate a return to form for the movie industry, and a welcome moment of hope for cinephiles everywhere considering the doom and gloom of the years immediately following COVID. However, 2023 surpassed this level of quality and cultural relevance – which shocked me.
Most obviously, Barbie (Gerwig) and Oppenheimer (Nolan) make up the bulk of this driving force. But other award contenders such as Past Lives (Song), The Holdovers (Payne), Poor Things (Lanthimos), Killers of the Flower Moon (Scorsese), American Fiction (Cord), and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Dos Santos, Thompson, Powers) carved out a truly remarkable year for American cinema alone.
This is not even mentioning the incredible pieces of international cinema from this past year.
It truly is a testament that I can immediately recall so many films from the year and each and every one of them is exceptional. So on the heels of the Oscars, I thought it may be fun to do my own version of the awards and share with you what my personal favorites from this film season.
Although the categories listed below are the equivalent to the Academy’s in name and intent, my choices and number of choices stem from a belief that several films are deserving of nominations over some of the nominated choices. It should be noted that I watched as many films from the 2023 season as I possibly could, but of course I couldn’t see everything, so if your favorite performance or film isn’t nominated, I apologize.
While this is a personally ranked list, my primary goal of this review is to share all of the incredible movies that came out this year with you, the reader, and I encourage you to have your own opinion on this year’s films, as a diversity of tastes is an important contributor to a healthy film culture.
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Best Production Design – Nominees:
- Barbie (Winner)
- Killers of the Flower Moon
- Oppenheimer
- Poor Things
- The Zone of Interest
Still from Barbie. Credit: Warner Brothers.
2023 was a great year for production design, as the films nominated crafted brilliantly immersive from the vast plains of 20th century Oklahoma as seen in Killers of the Flower Moon or the hot pink everything dream world of Barbie.
This was a close race, as Poor Things created a truly exceptional depiction of a darkly fantastical Europe, but at the end of the day Barbie’s impressive scale and acutely “Barbie” set designs and costuming contributed to a truly fantastic effort by production designer Sarah Greenwood.
Barbie as a film hinges on the realization of the vision of child’s play being projected onto the screen, quite literally. Greenwood’s execution of this concept through costuming and sets that look like they are straight from Barbie’s Dreamhouse make this a really special film that could have fallen flat had the visual aesthetic of childlike wonder not been adequately represented.
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Best Sound Design – Nominees:
- The Zone of Interest (Winner)
- The Holdovers
- Oppenheimer
- Godzilla Minus One
Again, the sounds of this year were an incredible achievement. From the mighty roar in Godzilla Minus One to the recreated VHS quality foley work done in The Holdovers, sound design was put at the forefront of this year’s films, and we as viewers (and listeners) are all the better for it.
Johnnie Burn’s work on The Zone of Interest is an almost incomprehensible illustration of how effective sound can be in our medium. A truly incomparable piece of sound design, Burn’s work here simply and squarely situates itself as a work to remember due to its earnest depiction of a completely unreal sonic landscape.
The film unequivocally relies on Burn’s work depicting the sounds of the extermination at Auschwitz, which makes it one of the most important pieces of sound design ever put to screen, while also being one of the most physically discomforting in-theater experiences I have ever felt. An exceptional and historic piece of work, I believe this will be lauded as one of the great uses of sound in our medium for many years to come.
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Best Visual Effects – Nominees:
- Oppenheimer
- Godzilla Minus One (Winner)
- The Creator
Still from Godzilla Minus One. Credit: Toho Co., Ltd.
As we exist in a cinematic landscape that continues to rely on exorbitant budgets and copious amounts of digital effects, 2023 was a bit of a reprieve in that we received films with some excellent usage of practical effects along with the crafty use of digital effects without breaking the proverbial bank, which in my eyes is much more impressive than a $150 million dollar VFX bill.
Fifteen million dollars was all it took for writer, director, and VFX supervisor Takashi Yamazaki to create the best looking Godzilla movie in many years. This includes fellow nominee Gareth Edwards’ (The Creator) 2014 rendition of the “king of the monsters,” as even with the access to Hollywood money and VFX, nothing in recent years can compare to the presentation of our favorite atomic breathing lizard as seen in Godzilla Minus One.
Perhaps it is in part due to the deeply emotional and thrilling story being told in the film, but at no point are you questioning the grandness of what you are seeing in Godzilla Minus One, and that is in no small part due to the excellence of the visual effects.
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Best Cinematography – Nominees:
- Rodrigo Prieto Killers of the Flower Moon
- Hoyte van Hoytema for Oppenheimer
- Robbie Ryan for Poor Things
- Fritz Lustig for Perfect Days (Winner)
- Łukasz Żal for Zone of Interest
This is one I truly can’t decide upon. This year’s films were positively gorgeous, with stunning depictions of Los Alamos, the Osage lands of Oklahoma, and the fish eyed perception of Bella’s reality in Poor Things.
Franz Lustig’s work on Wim Wender’s Perfect Days is so full of transcendental and peaceful imagery that it does what the film rarely does: speak. Although it can be a bit far-out to claim that a film’s cinematography speaks for it, in Perfect Days‘ case, it is true.
The contrast of a bustling Tokyo with the simple beauty of the wind rustling through a tree speaks for our rather quiet main character, Hirayama, as his inner expressions are represented through what Lustig’s work delicately chooses for us to see. Ultimately, Perfect Days is a film that implores the viewer to take things slower and look a little closer, and when a film is as beautiful as Lustig’s work is on Perfect Days, that is a welcome task.
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Best Score – Nominees:
- Daniel Pemberton for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Winner)
- Joe Hisaishi for The Boy and the Heron
- Lauren Karpman for American Fiction
- Ludwig Goransson for Oppenheimer
- Naoki Sato for Godzilla Minus One
Even before the earliest days of silent films being accompanied by live musical performances, music has always been a part of the cinematic experience. Once more there are too many great options here, and the composers nominated are either on their way to becoming – or, in the case of the great Joe Hisaishi, are already – legends.
An impossible decision, but I have to consider Daniel Pemberton’s score for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse as the best of the year.
The way in which Pemberton goes about mixing and matching musical styles such as hip-hop and sweeping orchestral movements, and uses these concepts to at each moment perfectly audiate the feelings and visuals of the film is incomparable, and it is that service to the film that makes this the best score of the year.
It also sounds incredible and he managed to record scratch a goose, so for that I can’t help but give it the highest marks.
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Actor in a Supporting Role – Nominees:
- Charles Melton for May December
- Mark Ruffalo for Poor Things
- Robert Downey Jr. for Oppenheimer (Winner)
- Ryan Gosling for Barbie
- Milo Machado Graner for Anatomy of a Fall (Winner)
Once again I find myself saying that this is perhaps the most competitive category of the year, as every single performance here is worthy of an Oscar or any other award, and is most certainly deserving of viewership and praise. For a category as usually non-competitive as Supporting Actor/Actress, this level of excellence is further representative of how exceptional 2023 was.
It’s a tie, and it has to be a tie because I simply can’t choose. When I first saw Oppenheimer, I had an understanding that I was watching Robert Downey Jr. at his absolute best, as he blew me away with his sly, vindictive turn as Lewis Strauss. After seeing Oppenheimer four total times, I became convinced that RDJ was a lock for this award and was going to be remembered as one of the best performances of the year… and then I saw Milo Machado Graner in Anatomy of a Fall.
Milo Machado Graner in “Anatomy of a Fall.” Credit: Neon.
Robert Downey Jr. in Oppenheimer. Credit: Universal Studios.
I was entirely floored by this performance. At only 14 years old, Machado Graner has such a mastery of every line, every scene in this film, displaying all of the conflicting emotions of a grieving son in a way that sat with me much longer than the runtime of the film.
Both of these gentlemen deserve this award, as RDJ’s performance is a career actor at his best, while Milo Machado Graner shows just how incredible even the youngest actor can be.
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Best Supporting Actress – Nominees:
- America Ferrera in Barbie
- Cara Jade Myers in Killers of the Flower Moon
- Da’vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers (Winner)
- Hailee Steinfield in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Da’Vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers. Credit: Focus Features.
This year’s best supporting actress category consists of some of my favorite performances this year, even if there are not a large number of nominees.
Instead of seeing the list below as a lack of depth in the category, I would suggest you to instead see these four as being truly exceptional works in my opinion, standing head and shoulders above almost all of the performances this year, regardless of sex.
For most of the year the supporting actress category was a bit fuzzy, until the truly divine performance of Da’vine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers completely broke open the category. Joy Randolph is truly exceptional in this movie, as she effortlessly captures the complexity of grief while simultaneously being the comedic and emotional core of the film, creating a performance that stands apart from the rest in her (already outstanding) field.
Her depiction of Mary Lamb is a truly special performance, as her subtlety, grace, and ultimately her innate sadness create a character that not only fleshes out the films supporting cast (as much as you can with only three main characters), but also renders the film far more effective.
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Actress in a Leading Role – Nominees:
- Emma Stone in Poor Things
- Greta Lee in Past Lives
- Lily Gladstone in Killers of the Flower Moon (Winner)
- Sandra Hüller in Anatomy of a Fall
How can one even begin with this year’s leading actresses?
Lily Gladstone in Killers of the Flower Moon. Credit: Apple TV+.
The syncopated whimsy of Emma Stone’s Bella in Poor Things, the gut wrenching suffering of Lily Gladstone’s Mollie Burkhart in Killers of the Flower Moon, the complexity of Sandra Hüller’s Sandra Voyter in Anatomy of a Fall, and the existentialist romance of Greta Lee’s Nora Moon (or Na Young) in Past Lives, all cement themselves as some of the best performances of this year.
Period. For all of these performances to come in one year is a truly serendipitous moment of fantastic cinema, which is of course a very welcome phenomenon.
I understand that all of these performances are probably deserving of this award, but when you consider Lilly Gladstone’s performance in Killers of the Flower Moon, I would argue that her character Mollie Burkhart is by far the most important piece of acting of almost any film this year.
Gladstone’s representation of Mollie Burkhart’s suffering serves to more largely represent the Osage nation’s suffering, making her character the emotional hinge of the film. This being understood, that then means all things must go through her in order for the audience to understand the human impact of the horrific actions against the Osage, yet instead of her character being a sort of narrative punching bag, at every moment we see Mollie’s (and therefore Gladstone’s) strength, resolve, and love for her people.
Gladstone’s deeply stoic determination and hauntingly powerful cries create a woman not of victimhood, but of strength, which makes this performance the best of the year.
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Actor in a Leading Role -Nominees:
- Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer (Winner)
- Jeffrey Wright in American Fiction
- Paul Giamotti in The Holdovers
- Koji Yakusho in Perfect Days
- Zac Efron in The Iron Claw
Again, what a stacked category! In what felt like a year for the at times overlooked actors of Hollywood to finally have their true time in the sun, each performance here brings something a little different to the table.
Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer. Credit: Universal Pictures/courtesy of Everett Collection.
That being said, each of these performances represent an exceptional moment for their respective performer, as it is genuinely some of their best work ever put to film.
Who else? Cillian Murphy’s otherworldly performance as “the father of the atomic bomb” J. Robert Oppenheimer was this year’s best performance and one of the best performances of the decade thus far, firmly cementing him as one of our most talented actors today.
His vocal work, the minutiae and subtlety of his expressions, and most of all the intensity of his piercing gaze all make this performance one that will be remembered not only for how well it represents the real figure, but for how captivating one person can be over the course of a film’s runtime.
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Best Director – Nominees:
- Celine Song for Past Lives
- Christopher Nolan for Oppenheimer
- Jonathan Glazer for The Zone of Interest (Winner)
- Justine Triet for Anatomy of a Fall
- Sean Durkin for The Iron Claw
Jonathan Glazer (in red) for The Zone of Interest. Credit: Kuba Kaminski/ScreenDaily
The greatness of this year’s films would have never been achieved without a group of incredibly talented directors.
The director’s job is a pretty herculean task, and each of these director’s managed to maximize the cinematic gravitas of their films while maintaining the highest level of quality, resulting in the masterpieces we were gracious enough to receive this year.
Jonathan Glazer’s precision in walking the line between accurately portraying the incomprehensible horror of the Holocaust while maintaining the dignity of the victims is something I thought undoable. In a piece I read while taking a class on Holocaust film and literature, the author suggested that to read or view accounts of the the Holocaust, one must maintain a certain distance from the writing as empathizing with it past the normal amount of sympathy is deeply misinformed, as no human other than the author themselves could ever know their experience.
Glazer understands this perfectly. The distance this film maintains while simultaneously conveying the suffering on the other side of the wall (in no small part due to the incredible sound design) creates a Holocaust film that doesn’t devalue the experience of the victim or reduce them to an arbitrary number, while simultaneously expressing their plight without a face.
All of this, I believed, was impossible. I thought it unachievable to juggle all of these deeply complex concepts with grace while creating a film, and yet, Glazer does so.
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Best Picture – Nominees:
- American Fiction
- Anatomy of a Fall
- Oppenheimer (Winner)
- Holdovers
- Killers of the Flower Moon
- Past Lives
- Poor Things
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
- The Iron Claw
- The Zone of Interest
Still from Oppenheimer. Credit: Universal Pictures.
Here it is, the “best” movie of the year. Candidly, any of these choices could have handedly won best picture at the Oscars virtually any other year.
And although that is not always the end all be all for how truly great a film is, for all of these films to transpire into the same category will result in an unfortunate lack of mass recognition for how fantastic these films are. So, when writing about the year 2023, I would suggest every writer to properly denote just how fantastic this year was for movies, as to omit this fact would be a shame.
Not only was Oppenheimer one of the great cultural earth shakers (in no small part due to its landing alongside Barbie) of the year, it is a truly exceptional film. To distill the immensity of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s life into a digestible yet just as grand cinematic experience is a truly astounding feat, and it results in one of the greatest spectacles in cinema today.
I think there’s a good chance this film will go down as one of the truly iconic films of the 2020s, while simultaneously being seen as a historical echo of the studio oligarchism of the time it was conceived in. Fantastic performances, a visual marvel, and one of the most tense third acts I have ever seen results in Oppenheimer being the best movie of the year.
Thank you for reading, and here’s looking to 2024!
About Reece Nations
