2023 has been a year full of movie surprises, from DailyWire+ pointing out the insanity of the transgender athletic movement in “Lady Ballers” to Greta Gerwig bringing the Barbie doll to life in the summer hit “Barbie,” there’s been something for everyone.
Our list of The Best of Movies of 2023 — in no real order — includes not only “Lady Ballers” and “Barbie” but everything from one about quantum physics to a young girl’s religious journey and more.
“Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3”
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The first movie to land on our list takes us to outer space with the conclusion to James Gunn’s final film in the “Guardians of the Galaxy” franchise. In Marvel Cinematic Universe’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” fans learn where Peter Quill i.e. “Star Lord,”played by Chris Pratt, ends up and they find out what happened to his band of unique heroes.
“Still reeling from the loss of Gamora, Peter Quill rallies his team to defend the universe and one of their own — a mission that could mean the end of the Guardians if not successful,” a description on IMDb read.
In 2018, Disney initially fired Gunn, the director of the two prior Guardians films, over past tweets deemed offensive. He was rehired in 2019 and finally in 2023 fans got to see the final story hit the big screen.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 won 2023's Golden Issue Award from @ComicBook for Best Comic Book Movie!https://t.co/ARl3oPZCKe pic.twitter.com/t5KiYVOQu3
— Phase Zero – MCU (@PhaseZeroCB) December 18, 2023
It’s ranked as one of the best films of the year, with critics giving it an 82% freshness rating and audience members a 94% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
One critic wrote, “While not as engaging or fresh as the first two films ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ still had the usual James Gunn combination of dazzling CG environments, enjoyable action and great dialogue, so it was still a fun way to spend an evening.”
Opening weekend the film scored $118 million, putting its earnings ahead of the franchise’s first film — which had an opening domestic box office total of $94 million in 2014 — but less than “Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 2,” which opened with a $146 million weekend in 2017, Variety noted. In the end, the movie made $359 million domestically to date.
“Barbie”
JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP via Getty Images
“Barbie,” which became Warner Bros. biggest global hit ever and completely dominated the box office over the summer following its release in July, lands next on our list.
“Barbie suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and her existence,” a description on IMDb about the Margot Robbie-led feminist fantasy read.
While some called out the film’s “preachy,” “man-hating” message, it was liked by many critics and movie goers alike. Movie reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes gave it an 88% certified fresh with an 83% audience score.
One critic wrote, “Greta Gerwig has created a coming-of-age feminist self-aware masterpiece in Barbie with a heart of gold that both subverts and matches expectations.”
“Barbie“ has earned $636 million domestically to date after having an incredible opening weekend of $162 million in mid-July.
“Sound Of Freedom”
Sound of Freedom | Angel Studios
One movie that surprised even Hollywood gets the third spot on our list and that’s the independent film from Angel Studios, “Sound of Freedom,” which deals with the horrors of human trafficking.
Based on a true story, Jim Caviezel plays Tim Ballard, a federal agent who quits his job and embarks on a dangerous mission to rescue a young girl from sex slavery in South America.
“Sound of Freedom” comes from the same studio responsible for the popular faith-based television series “The Chosen.”
Despite critics giving it a 57% on Rotten Tomatoes, movie goers loved it and gave the film a 99% audience score on the site. One critic wrote that the movie,” is a thought-provoking and emotionally charged film that is both socially relevant and artistically impressive.”
The film opened in select theaters across the country on July 4 and ended up being the sleeper hit of the summer. Opening weekend the movie earned $19 million at the box office and beat out the highly-anticipated “Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny” from Disney.
In the end, “SOF” took home $184 million domestically and today is ranked in the Top 10 Domestic Box Office films of the year by Box Office Mojo. Its success also makes it the highest grossing independent film since 2019’s “Parasite.”
“Lady Ballers”
DailyWire+
Fourth on our list is the DailyWire+ original and first-ever feature-length comedy from the company, “Lady Ballers.” It not only brilliantly mocks the recent and controversial phenomenon of men competing in women’s sports, but it harkens back to a time when movies were made without being politically correct or woke.
“Lady Ballers” “tells the story of one down-on-his-luck former high school basketball coach, Rob — played by Daily Wire co-founder Jeremy Boreing — who will do anything to win, which in this case means teaching his team of men radical modern gender theory and leading them to identify as women in order to brutally dominate multiple women’s sports,” a description read.
“Lady Ballers” debuted December 1st exclusively on the DailyWire+ streaming site and was widely praised by audiences who took to social media to celebrate the “fresh return to humor.”
One reviewer wrote, “‘Lady Ballers’ was awesome! I knew it would be funny, but I hadn’t considered Daily Wire’s ability to tell stories with good values and morals, (which of course is the case) The end was phenomenal! Way to go [Daily Wire]. You knocked it out of the park!”
“Lady Ballers” landed at the top of the most popular streamers list on Rotten Tomatoes and became the number one most popular movie to stream in the country. The film also earned a 96% audience score despite critics giving it a 60% on the movie review site.
“Oppenheimer”
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Sometimes biopics have trouble on the big screen, but that was no problem for our fifth best film, “Oppenheimer.” Directed by Christopher Nolan, the movie tells the true story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the “father of the Atomic bomb.”
“Oppenheimer” is “the story of American scientist, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and his role in the development of the atomic bomb,” a description on IMDb read.
The three-hour long thriller takes movie watchers on an emotional rollercoaster. Nolan previously talked about the reaction some had to his film as feeling “absolutely devastated” and more.
“They can’t speak,” the director told Wired. “I mean, there’s an element of fear that’s there in the history and there in the underpinnings. But the love of the characters, the love of the relationships, is as strong as I’ve ever done.”
IMDB. Photo by Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pic/Melinda Sue Gordon – © Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
It’s ranked as one of the best films of the year on the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes, with critics giving it 93% certified fresh and movie goers an audience score of 91%. “Oppenheimer” also landed at the top of the American Film Institute’s (AFI) Top 10 films in 2023.
The movie dominated the box office this summer after scoring $82 million domestically opening weekend in July. And to date, earned $326 million domestically, Box Office Mojo noted.
“Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse”
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In the animated world, many films struggled this year, primarily ones from Disney. However, one movie found huge success and that was Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” gaining the next spot on our list.
“Miles Morales catapults across the multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence,” a description on IMDb about the film read. “When the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles must redefine what it means to be a hero.”
The sequel was a favorite of both critics and movie goers alike on Rotten Tomatoes. It scored a 95% approval by movie reviewers and a 94% audience score by movie goers.
One critic wrote, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a brilliant film with empathetic writing and characters we care about, not to mention a visual masterpiece. It transcends genre to be one of the most enjoyable and engrossing releases of 2023.”
It had a monster opening weekend of $120 million and to date has made $381 million at the domestic box office. In comparison, Disney’s Pixar “Elemental”-with a lead non-binary character-struggled its opening weekend with $29 million domestically and Disney’s “Wish” has seen a similar fate, earning $19 million its debut weekend.
“Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret”
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Rounding out our list, is the film adaptation of the popular Judy Blume coming of age book, “Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret.” While Hollywood tends to ignore stories of faith, Lions Gate Film’s movie popularity sent a powerful message that there is an audience for these stories.
“When her family moves from the city to the suburbs, 11-year-old Margaret navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence,” a description on IMDb read.
Critics raved about the film, on the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes, giving it a 99% certified Fresh, with audience members giving it a 95% audience score.
One critic wrote, “The film’s theology is muddled, to be sure, but it’s refreshing to see a child’s pursuit of God occupy such a central role in a mainstream movie.”
The film did not earn as much as some of the other movies in this list, bringing in only $6.7 million its opening weekend and earning $20 million domestically to date. However, entertainment sites like IMDb and IndieWire agree it’s a heart-warming story that touches everyone, young and old, and deserves to be on our list.