The Best of 2023

2023 was the Year I rarely wrote a blog.  But I did see a lot of stuff, so I’m ranking it here.
My top two movies were ones I thought were totally unique. 

I am sadly saying goodbye after 29 years to the monthly Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.  He’s retiring, and I can’t believe HBO (and its new owners) are going to just let that franchise die.  It was always terrific.  Brit Marling came back to TV, but unfortunately it wasn’t with The OA, which joins Firefly as the most prematurely cancelled shows of all time. 

Here's my ranking of everything I saw:

MOVIES

1. Reality – 10
2. Poor Things - 10
3. Theater Camp - !0
4. She Said – 10
5. Anatomy of a Fall - 10
6. Asteroid City – 9
7. Marcel the Shell with Shoes on - 9
8. Past Lives – 9
9. Sharper – 9
10. Reptile - 9

Rustin – 9
Leave the World Behind - 9
The Caine Mutiny Court Martial - 9
The Holdovers – 9
Till – 9
Air – 9
Mixed by Erry - 9
Showing Up – 8
The Silencing – 8
New Order – 8
Full Time - 8
A Man Called Otto - 8
Respect - 8
Pain Hustlers – 8
You People – 8
Creed III – 8
The Trip – 8
The Trip to Italy - 8
Nyad - 8
I See You - 8
No One Can Save You – 8
I Wanna Dance with Somebody – 8
The Mauritanian - 8
Memory – 8
Extraction 2 - 8
Palmer – 7
Empire of Light – 7
Women Talking – 7
Causeway – 7
The Burial - 7
Oppenheimer – 7
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1 - 7
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny - 7
Old Dads – 7
One More Time - 7
House of Gucci – 7
The Mother – 7
To Leslie - 7
Ticket to Paradise – 6
Ghosted - 6
Ambulance – 6
The Road 2 - 4
Heart of Stone - 4
The Killer – 2 

STREAMING/BINGING and What’s left of Network TV

1. Black Snow – 10
2. Chernobyl – 10
3. Fargo – 10 (so far)
4. Cunk on Earth – 10
5. Late Night with Seth Meyers – 10
6. Bad Sisters – 10
7. The Night Agent – 10
8. Suits 10 (so far)
9. Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel – 10
10. Reacher – 10 (so far)

The Last of Us - 9
Hijack – 9
Murder at the End of the World - 9
The Landscapers - 9
Real Time with Bill Maher - 9
Bodies – 9
The Diplomat – 8
The English - 8
Luther:  The Fallen Sun – 8
Pieces of Her - 8
Daisy jones & the Six - 7
Who is Erin Carter? – 7 

STAND UP

Nate Bargatze – 10 (it was his year)
Ray Romano – 7
Ali Wong - 7
Ricky Gervais - 2

DOCUMENTARIES

All that Breathes – 10
The Luckiest Guy in the World - 10
Still:  A Michael J Fox Story – 10
Beckham – 10
Man on Wire – 10
The Insurrectionist Next Door - 10
Stephen Curry:  Underrated - 9
Fats Domino – The Big Beat - 9
Alfred Brooks:  Defending My Life – 9
Call Me Kate – 9
Bob and Don:  A Love Story - 9
Michael Jackson:  Thriller 40 - 9
Music Box – Jason Isbell:  Running with our Eyes Closed - 9
Being Mary Tyler Moore – 9
Quarterback - 9
Pretty Baby:  Brook Shields – 8
The Brothers Warner - 8
Love to Love You:  Donna Summer – 8
Dionne Warwick:  Don’t Make Me Over - 8
Arnold – 8
Wham - 8
If You Are Not in the Obits, Eat Breakfast – 7

CLASSICS

Bone Tomahawk - 10
The Drop – 9
Jeanne Dielman – 9
Elevator to the Gallows – 9
Beau Travail - 8
The Man Who Wasn’t There – 8
Night Train to Munich – 8
Storm Warning - 8
Leave Her to Heaven - 8
One Way Passage - 7
Detour – 7
Storm Fear - 7
Nights of Cabiria – 7
Following - 7
Stormy Monday - 6 

Finally the 2023 Awards

 

The Ozzies

Best Picture:  Reality
Best Actor:  Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
Best Actress:  Emma Stone in Poor Things
Best Director:  Wes Anderson for Asteroid City
Best Supporting Actor:  Charles Melton, May/December
Best Supporting Actress: Jodie Foster, Nyad
Best Screenplay:  Asteroid City

The Lizzies:
Best Series:  Black Snow
Best Actor:  Travis Fimmel, Black Snow
Best Actress:  Juno Temple, Fargo
Best Supporting Actor:  Jon Hamm, Fargo
Best Supporting Actress:  Jennifer Jason Leigh, Fargo