Every 2023 Film Ranked Epilgoue

#3: Guardians of the Galaxy 3'

As mentioned with Barbie, I had to say goodbye to many people and opportunities. Little did I know it would extend to franchises since the first Guardians Film. James Gunn has had the most consistent run when it comes to Capeshit. Each Guardians film has been a treat, and his departure from the DCU makes this hit even harder.

From the second one, you can tell this would be a different experience, not only in its shift in focus to Rocket but also in its darker tone. Much of the popping color palette and psychedelic visuals of the first two films have been stripped back for grimmer visuals. You can also see this in the music, with the extensive 70s- 80s soundtrack for more modern tracks like Creep and the Dog Days Are Over.

Despite this, despite a current trend of MCU projects with rushed CGI work, GOTG is one of the best-looking MCU films. Framestore's stellar VFX work, combined with the use of practical effects, makes this whole movie jaw-dropping to look at.It's also one of the most emotional too. Unlike the high-stakes conflicts of the first 2, GOTG 3 feels incredibly isolated in far more emotional strife.

Ronan and Ego's machinations would've claimed multiple worlds in due time, but the High Evolutionary claims an isolated earth obsessed with perfection/creativity he can't find. Chukwudi Iwuji portrays this dichotomy perfectly, acting his ass off over the strongest this cast has ever been.

This film has almost every Guardian operating at their strongest. You truly feel this group's connectivity with each other in their frequent insults and care for one another. While I don't think every Guardian gets their due screentime (Adam Warlock being the most prominent example), it leads to this trilogy's themes ending feeling the best. Despite almost everyone here being rejected from distant worlds, it doesn't mean they're worthless.

It doesn't mean they should be ashamed of who they are, nor does it mean they have to stay that way. Looking at the process that way makes the ending easier to swallow. Peter Quill stops running from his past; Mantis makes her own decision; Drax can start a family; Rocket finally comes to terms with who he is, and Groot ... is Groot. It's a bittersweet ending to arguably the MCU's most consistent trilogy but an earned one above all else.

#2: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse'

Regardless of how 2023 was going to turn out. I count on Across the Spiderverse as one of the year's best moments. And nearly a year later, I'm glad I was damn right. Talking about everything I love about this movie would have us here for a week, but I promise to be expected. Into the Spider-Verse has changed animated films forever through its unique use of frame rates and stylized 3d animation.

Across raises the bar again and shows why they initially innovated the genre. This movie does what every great film should do: recontextualizing everything we know of the first feature while evolving every aspect. It's been months since it premiered with thousands of videos, and I still get mesmerized by every bit of animation here. Almost every shot in this movie could be a fire wallpaper.

Between Gwen's abstract mood board dimension, the high-speed metropolis of Nueva York, 42's dark noir setting, etc., all such fun, dynamic locations that make the multiverse feel grand compared to other recent properties featuring it. Of course, if this feast for the eyes isn't enough to please the senses, how about the banging soundtrack?

In a sea of great bops, Spider-Verse 2 creates a list of consistent earworms rotting my brain as we speak. Metro Boomin and Daniel Pemberton are so good that I find myself replaying both in an infinite loop on numerous occasions. All these aspects genuinely add so much to our beautiful cast and characters. Despite being such a long movie, this film still takes ample time to strip things back to Gwen and Miles.

Both are young teens who feel directionless while maintaining their secret identities yet still choosing their destinies, which is excellent. With a movie all about the endless chaos of creation, they still managed to employ some of the most personal drama I've seen in animated films, and it feels like they've grown up with their audience.

This praise for our main leads also goes double for the primary antagonists. Spot's abilities are being reimagined in such a creatively stimulating way, especially with the darker tone he adopts later on, which is genuinely haunting. Miguel's ferocity and his noticeably flawed belief in holding together a stalwart path are surmountable odds.

While Beyond the Spider-Verse could sour what Across the Spider-Verse lays down, they will not ruin the experience of this movie. What does sour it, though, is how this movie, for all of its praises, is a bit of a mess. While initially marketed as a plus, ASTV's small changes between its theoretical and digital release scream the wishy-washy production that forced creators to hellish production.

Combined with the Animation Guild's motion to try striking around August, I find ASTV to be a genuine summation of the industry I heart to break into one day. It's an animated marvel that pushes the medium forward at the cost of many artists who deserve far better wages and working conditions. I hope Marvel and Sony make it worth the wait, with Beyond already getting multiple delays.

#1: Oppenheimer

Call me a fucking cinema snob, clout chaser, and whatever elitist emblem you want. It doesn't change Oppenheimer being the best movie of 2023 from me. While I definitely will rewatch ASTV, JW4, and GOTG 3 way more due to the accessibility, is this movie worth the hype? Even if Barbie helped with the marketing a little ironically. I'm still glad, though, that this movie exists. Christopher Nolan's name, along damn near anything, would've been enough of a seal of approval, but having the primary inspiration of the film be based on American Prometheus: The Inspiration for the Major Motion Picture was a great place. What I love most about this story is its unique focus on perspective

.Creators are often viewed and valued by their creations instead of the person making them, but Oppenheimer does the opposite, going into painstaking detail about man's life. The movie manages to shift perspectives to an almost dizzying degree, focusing on various points in Oppehehemier's life while looking back at the private security hearing held in 1954 by Lewis Strauss.

The black-and-white view of the court scene appropriately accentuates the moral grayness of everyone involved. Like most of Oppenheimer's starting vision, it is held in almost abstract whimsy, holding on to clean ripples in his mind. However, as ego, national security, and contradiction infect the design, these visions turn ghastly.

While the real-life explosion occurred, I think the scene's actions that blew me away (Pun not intended) was the fallout. Seeing the illicit inventor trying to stroke the Nationalist masses amidst his voice getting drowned by the future corpses in motion, I think, shows more horror than actively recreating Hiroshima or Nagasaki.

The tension of this movie is particularly intense in the latter half, as we see more lines in the sand drawn politically. Ludwig Göransson's inclusion in the soundtrack doesn't hurt either. There's a clear and palpable tension behind even some of the less intense scenes, and I feel like you are doing a great job of creating one of the most haunting final scenes because it represents more than anything how our capacity to create and destroy runs at equal measure.

Epilogue

And. That. Is. It. This needs to be updated, and no one will probably read it. But to those who do, I say thank you, and I promise actually to have this shit out at a reasonable time. 2024, so far, for me, has been a blur, with many challenges and setbacks even when I didn't want them to.

And while 2023 wasn't exactly the most incredible year of my life. It further reaffirms something I wish to share with all of you. Everything is going to be a challenging year. Unfortunately, there will never be an ideal or stable time for anyone. This is why we spend more time getting moving instead of being angry for what little time we have.

At the same time, I can't tell where this path will lead or if it'll matter.I at least know it's better than the alternative. Because nothing changes if you don't take that first step, and until I get my seat at the podium, I'll keep writing about the art that has given my life so much. I hope you get something too. In the meantime, please tell me your favorite 2023 movie or film in general down below. I would love to hear it.