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Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Mon, 12 Aug 2024 21:17:21 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 08/13/2024 01:17

FlorianJones wrote:

I rarely log on to this site these days, so I missed the poll, but I'll share my list.

01 Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell

Really is a stunner— glad you liked it FlorianJones 😄 (hoping in time it'll gain some traction... surely bound to be one of the gems of the decade).

cestuneblague wrote:

Great job as always Hayden

And thanks Cestuneblague— I also wasn't sold on how Bottoms ended, but I suppose it reflects how seriously they took the film 🤣 (they're all just having fun).

One thing I will give 2023, no matter what, is that it had a rock-solid, fun summer. I'm not sure what's up with this summer in the slightest. 😐

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

FlorianJones — Sat, 10 Aug 2024 22:54:24 GMT

Author: FlorianJones

Posted: 08/11/2024 02:54

I rarely log on to this site these days, so I missed the poll, but I'll share my list.

01 Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell
02 Past Lives
03 Anatomy of a Fall
04 Poor Things
05 Monster
06 The Boy and the Heron
07 Showing Up
08 Pacifiction
09 May December
10 All of Us Strangers
11 How to Blow Up a Pipeline
12 Return to Seoul
13 The Zone of Interest
14 Fallen Leaves
15 Perfect Days
16 Asteroid City
17 Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning
18 The Holdovers
19 Oppenheimer
20 Killers of the Flower Moon

I saw 56 2023 films, so there are still a handful more I liked, but I'll stop there. I think 2024 was a rock solid year. I really love my whole top 15, and had a good time watching my #16-30 choices. That's a lot of quality movies.

BEA's list also has a few that I wasn't able to see in theatres in my area until mid-summer 2024, so they'll be on my 2024 list (mostly thinking of Evil Does Not Exist).

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

CA Dreamin — Fri, 19 Jul 2024 20:43:03 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 07/20/2024 00:43

cestuneblague wrote:

I just feel like I've kind of lost interest in keeping up to date with a lot of the new releases, a lot of that obviously real-life distractions but also where I saw the ways both the culture around movies and especially the "critical" discussion were going that was becoming a major turnoff. Which is fine, I think catching up with these movies down the line and ignoring the instant-reaction hype is just, now, a more preferable way to experience them, I guess.

I know what you mean, and you're not alone there. It could explain why several BEAers, usually active in the movies forum, sat out this poll. Not sure if there will be one for 2024 after this showing. Though maybe there'd be more interest in continuing with the decades, 50s up next, since we're already familiar and it's less demanding? We'll see. I guess if the 2023 poll is the last one we do, all I have to say is...it's been fun.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

TheKing — Fri, 5 Jul 2024 11:54:53 GMT

Author: TheKing

Posted: 07/05/2024 15:54

Just for fun, this is the breakdown of the (letterboxd) genres of our 2023 list.

Drama: 25
Comedy: 21
Romance: 10
Adventure: 9
Thriller: 9
Fantasy: 7
Science Fiction: 7
Action: 6
Animation: 6
History: 6
Crime: 5
Family: 3
Horror: 3
Mystery: 2
Music: 1

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

TheKing — Fri, 5 Jul 2024 11:30:26 GMT

Author: TheKing

Posted: 07/05/2024 15:30

I can understand that and I have definitely seen the tides changing, unclear if for better or for worse. With the way social media is getting bigger and bigger, to the point that movies started to be treated like a sports match to some people especially during the awards season... It wasn't the most fun. Which probably was my own fault anyway so I stay away from social media when it comes to movies haha

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

cestuneblague — Sat, 29 Jun 2024 19:14:50 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 06/29/2024 23:14

Great job as always Hayden, sorry couldn't really contribute in a meaningful way. I did manage to catch a few films when I was home recently, but wouldn't have made a list even if I was doing more extensive movie-going, with Bottoms (it was fine, at least for the first hour) and Anatomy of a Fall (have supposed "Serious-Minded Thrillers" become this edgeless?), and started Poor Things but fell asleep after the first 15 minutes or so (nothing to do with the movie). Still really wanna catch The Zone of Interest, but when I have a better way of watching than I do now. I donno I just feel like I've kind of lost interest in keeping up to date with a lot of the new releases, a lot of that obviously real-life distractions but also where I saw the ways both the culture around movies and especially the "critical" discussion were going that was becoming a major turnoff. Which is fine, I think catching up with these movies down the line and ignoring the instant-reaction hype is just, now, a more preferable way to experience them, I guess.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

CA Dreamin — Sat, 29 Jun 2024 18:43:17 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 06/29/2024 22:43

Hayden wrote:

I think I made a write up somewhere on BEA regarding my opinions on [Poor Things], but gist was I'm not big on the film's central optics. Most of the plot rubbed me the wrong way... by a lot. Which's a shame, because the artistry was phenomenal, and the performance Stone put on was challenging to say the least. I'll try to find that blurb and edit it in... I found it difficult to side with.

You mentioned on the poll thread you didn't like the plot, but didn't expand on that. If there's a more detailed post somewhere on here, Idk where it's at (if only there was a thread for 2023 films).

Quote:

Was 2023 a good year for cinema?

Hayden wrote:

And I don't know! I was thinking about that question quite a bit during the poll. Overall, I think it was an okay year, and the Barbenheimer phenomenon was fantastic, but it did lack a bit of girth. I doled out quite a few 4/5s, but only three 4.5/5s, and zero 5/5s. Ultimately, I think it was a strong year for comedy, which was well needed. I think 2023 might end up going down in the history books are a jumbled handful of incohesively strung films that are... fairly good. 🤔 😨 — sleeper gems should show themselves in time.

In terms of the movies themselves, I found 2023 pretty good. It was very underwhelming for the first 9-10 months, and I was calling 2023 'Revenge of the Suck.' But man, in Nov & Dec, it seemed like a great movie was coming out every week, and made the overall year better-than-average imo. Anyway, I still can't help but think 2023 was bad year in other ways. I've gone into detail in previous posts about the strikes, the box office flops, the large production budget cuts by the major studios. We're still feeling the effects of those in 2024, and could be for a long time. Some elements may never fully recover. It's hard to say what the movie landscape will be like over the next few years.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Applerill — Sat, 29 Jun 2024 15:27:26 GMT

Author: Applerill

Posted: 06/29/2024 19:27

Yeah, it’s funny, because I have seen even fewer new releases than I did this point last year, but the ones I HAVE seen I’ve been much more positive on.

https://boxd.it/vjIWG

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Fri, 28 Jun 2024 22:24:06 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/29/2024 02:24

Watched The Boy And The Heron.

Not sure how much I liked it 😐

(Art was beautiful though— some frames are among Ghibli's best).

Wasn't sure how it would place on our list, but figured it'd be low due to lack of accessibility. Anyone have any thoughts on the film though? I'd love to hear a BEA opinion from someone who enjoyed it.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Thu, 27 Jun 2024 21:21:32 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/28/2024 01:21

CA Dreamin wrote:

To be fair, Evil Does Not Exist wasn't widely released until May 2024, after many users had already submitted. I think #20 is a solid showing.

That's what I meant... sorry if it doesn't come across (reading it back, I kinda missed)— I'm surprised how high it was because of this. Everyone who watched it most likely only saw it within the last 6-7 weeks.

Quote:

Poor Things at #21 is strange. Looks like it was barely in the top 50 until my list. I wasn't aware Poor Things was divisive. Everyone I know IRL who's seen it has loved it. Someone care to explain?

It is an odd placement, but you're right— it was floating around the low 40s for most of the poll. Quick reminder that Lathimos's last film was our #1 of 2018, and it received give-or-take equal acclaim as Poor Things.

I think I made a write up somewhere on BEA regarding my opinions on it, but gist was I'm not big on the film's central optics. Most of the plot rubbed me the wrong way... by a lot. Which's a shame, because the artistry was phenomenal, and the performance Stone put on was challenging to say the least. I'll try to find that blurb and edit it in... I found it difficult to side with.

Quote:

Was 2023 a good year for cinema?

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

TheKing — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 23:03:15 GMT

Author: TheKing

Posted: 06/27/2024 03:03

I know Poor Things would be divisive but I still expected a few more support thrown its way than we already do

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

CA Dreamin — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 20:24:37 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 06/27/2024 00:24

Hayden wrote:

Unacceptable. BEA does not put up with these sort of errs. Barbie has since been disqualified from contention.

That's fine with me.

To be fair, Evil Does Not Exist wasn't widely released until May 2024, after many users had already submitted. I think #20 is a solid showing. Hit Man, #38, wasn't widely released until a few weeks ago. And The Bikeriders was just widely released a few days ago (which I saw yesterday and was going to edit it into my list but the poll was closed by then). I think more folks will have seen them by next year's poll and they'll have a better showing on the 2024 list (if it even happens).

Poor Things at #21 is strange. Looks like it was barely in the top 50 until my list. I wasn't aware Poor Things was divisive. Everyone I know IRL who's seen it has loved it. Someone care to explain?

Overall, it's a mostly agreeable list.

Most people agree that 2023 was a great year for the Best Picture category. 6 in the overall top 10. 5 made my top 10 (which has never happened), with a sixth just missing the cut at #12.

Was 2023 a good year for cinema? Hmm. It was bad for the box office. Bad for PR due to the industry strikes. Bad for franchise movies. Good for some big-budget originals. Good for prestige/award-type films. So I don't know. It certainly felt like a game-changer, but I guess we'll see how the dust settles.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 18:52:01 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/26/2024 22:52

Olli wrote:

i have not seen: May December, BlackBerry, Evil Does Not Exist, Joy Ride, Rye Lane, Maestro, Riceboy Sleeps, Theater Camp, Shortcomings, How to Blow Up a Pipeline, Hit Man, Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell and Passages.

But that's the best stuff. You've got some good ones ahead of you 😎

I haven't watched 9. Infinity Pool, Dream Scenario, The Creator, The Boy & The Heron, Mission Impossible, Guardians of The Galaxy, Indiana Jones, Talk to Me, and (like you) Beau Is Afraid. I feel a little silly waiting around for The Boy & The Heron, and then all of a sudden the day I decide the close the poll it becomes available, but 🙄 (I'll watch it on the long weekend). Looking forward to it.

TheKing wrote:

I see we have higher cutoff than last year - impressive!

I guess May December and No Hard Feelings making the top 10 aren't really surprising for us - but I'm still surprised, with how close the scores are in that area
Appreciate the amount of love for comedy (or comedy-adjacanet) films this year though I fully expected Asteroid City to be higher still

Yeah! Cutoff was a little tighter, which I like to see. CA's last-minute list helped with that. And you're right— margins were really close. One more little push could've put All of Us Strangers at #2 by all means. I have a few surprises/notes myself, but in general I'm quite happy with our selection.

—Holy Japan! 10% of the list! 😮 (12% if you include Mr. Mario). Excellent showing— 3 in the top 20. Hoping more people watch Perfect Days as it becomes more readily available. I'm still quite confident in placing it atop my list. Beautiful film about cleaning toilets.

—Oppenheimer wasn't always a runaway. At one point it was tied with Barbie, which would've made quite the outcome.

Lower than I figured:
Bottoms (figured this would land the top half... no pun intended)
Anatomy of A Fall (I thought this would've been in the top 3 for sure)
La Chimera (did not make the cut)
Wonka (did not make the cut)
Are You There God It's Me Margaret (did not make the cut)

Higher than I figured:
All of Us Strangers (!!!!— didn't think this would land the top 10, let alone top 5, let alone so close to #2 in terms of points— such a great film... glad BEA is appreciating it)
The Teacher's Lounge (which was in the top 10 at one point)
Evil Does Not Exist (despite Hamaguchi's previous film being our #1 of its given year, wasn't expecting this at #20)
How To Blow Up A Pipeline (didn't think this would place at all)

Surprising:
Poor Things. Placement at #21 is so... oddly mid. Interesting how divisive the film is proving. (Was not on my personal list)

And I'm okay with the placement of Asteroid City. Feels about right. Figured it'd land somewhere in the teens. (albeit, maybe around 14-15, but)

But I'm happy with the selection 😄 I think we whipped up a decent selection from the year (in a decent order too). Hope you find some recs from the list AM 😜

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

albummaster — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 06:35:23 GMT

Author: albummaster

Posted: 06/26/2024 10:35

Nice list, might need to check some of those out 😎

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Olli — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 04:02:05 GMT

Author: Olli

Posted: 06/26/2024 08:02

Wonderful BEA List �'�

Letterboxd talk to me... You’ve watched 36 of 50... 72% 😎

i have not seen: May December, BlackBerry, Evil Does Not Exist, Joy Ride, Rye Lane, Maestro, Riceboy Sleeps, Theater Camp, Shortcomings, Beau Is Afraid, How to Blow Up a Pipeline, Hit Man, Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell and Passages.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

TheKing — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 23:33:50 GMT

Author: TheKing

Posted: 06/26/2024 03:33

I see we have higher cutoff than last year - impressive!

I guess May December and No Hard Feelings making the top 10 aren't really surprising for us - but I'm still surprised, with how close the scores are in that area
Appreciate the amount of love for comedy (or comedy-adjacanet) films this year though I fully expected Asteroid City to be higher still

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 21:55:17 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/26/2024 01:55

Fun Facts / Stats

—Oppenheimer, our #1 for the year, was the only film to appear on every list submitted
—All Best Picture nominees are included on the list
—There are 7 films from Cannes' official competition
—A total of 11 countries are represented in the top 50
—Two of the five composers represented in the score category are predeceased.
—This is the second year in a row BEA's actor of the year is Irish.
—This is the second year in a row BEA's #1 film stars an Irish leading actor.
—The shortest film on the list is Fallen Leaves (81m), and the longest film on the list is Killers of The Flower Moon (206m)

Documentaries: 0
Animated Films: 6

The actress who appeared in the most* films on the list is Ayo Edebiri, with 3.
*Willem Dafoe appears in 2 films, as well as the English dub of The Boy And The Heron.

Might be able to think of some more later 😜

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 21:29:12 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/26/2024 01:29

And that's the list 😁

Feel free to post, discuss, etc. Fun facts/stats coming soon.

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 21:29:00 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/26/2024 01:29

Letterboxd

Re: Best Films of 2023 [List]

Hayden — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 21:26:36 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 06/26/2024 01:26

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

1) Oppenheimer
Dir. Christopher Nolan
Points: 341

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

#1s: 3