As we step into the new year, a plethora of films are waiting to be released from varied directorial voices, with the likes of some legendary auteur filmmakers and some exciting contemporary filmmakers, along with sequels to some popular and critically acclaimed films. Therefore, from a distance, this year, it looks certain that cinemagoers are going to have a blast. Although there will be many films that may not reach great heights, this list will seek to point out some of those which have the potential to be among the greats of 2023 in terms of cinematic excellence and will be based on various aspects, such as the talent associated with the projects. Furthermore, it should be noted that films are listed based on their tentative release dates. So, here are ten upcoming Hollywood films from 2023 that one should keep an eye on:
Oppenheimer
Any list comprising films from 2023 will be totally incomplete if there is no mention of one of the most successful contemporary directors, both critically and even commercially, also quite often known for his mind-bending films: British filmmaker Christopher Nolan. “Oppenheimer,” another magnum opus from our beloved director, will follow the conflicted life of J. Robert Oppenheimer. He was an American physicist who is known to history as the person responsible for creating the world’s most destructive weapon, the atom bomb. Other than that, this marks Nolan’s second film that is based on real-life incidents; he previously delved into that territory with “Dunkirk” (2017), a brilliantly made war film set during World War II. Glimpses from the film look mesmerizing, and it also contains a tremendous ensemble cast of talents like Cillian Murphy of “Peaky Blinders” fame, who plays the titular role, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, and Robert Downey Jr., who will mark his return to helming dramatic roles after years of mainstream success for portraying one of the most popular superheroes.
Beau Is Afraid
“Beau Is Afraid” is directed by one of the most promising and exciting emerging filmmaking voices, Ari Aster, who previously made back-to-back path-breaking films delving into the horror genre with his debut, Hereditary (2018), followed by “Midsommar” (2019). This time he collaborates with one of the finest actors of this generation, Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix, and this is reason enough to get excited. As per reports, this film will be made on a grand scale, with a runtime of over three hours, and revolve around a successful entrepreneur, spanning various decades of his life. From the look of its poster, it seems to be falling under the same nightmarish and eerie approach as seen in films like “Mulholland Drive” (2001) by David Lynch. With names like these associated with a film backed by the production company A24, one can totally expect a very unique yet kind of spooky approach—a treat, especially for those who like a fair share of scares from their cinematic experience.
The Killers Of The Flower Moon
Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who recently turned an octogenarian, is a rare person who, even after making films for over 50 years, remains one of the most exciting voices to look out for. He’s still making great films while many of his contemporaries from the 1970s have faded into obscurity. So, it is quite obvious why his new venture, “The Killers of the Flower Moon,” should definitely be something one should look out for. Even though Scorsese is known for making crime films revolving around some morally dubious characters, for the first time, here he will delve into the western genre. Other than that, this is based on the real-life backdrop of the Osage Murders in 1920s Oklahoma, tracing the absolute nascent years of the FBI. Furthermore, this film will, for the first time, see well known Scorcese collaborators Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio star alongside each other, along with a talented bunch of actors such as Jesse Plemons and Brendan Fraser.
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse
In recent years, there has been an overload of superhero films, where a majority of them act as cash cows without any kind of artistic merit and are more akin to manufacturing merchandise. There came a breath of freshness from the brilliantly animated film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018), which had a very inventive spin on the character of Spider-Man along with the use of the concept of “multiverse”. It was mainly centered around the character of Miles Morales, and the film definitely stood out as one of the finest and most enjoyable superhero films of all time. So, this will be another sequel on the list with a brilliantly promising trailer that looks quite refreshing and will follow the journey of Miles Morales, further brought out in a very fun and quirky way, enriched by a glorious animation style that, in itself complements the vibrant tone, alongside a very comic book-like effect associated with it.
Dune: Part Two
Denis Villeneuve should be credited for finally making a proper adaptation of the Frank Herbert novel, which was quite a cursed one as many greats failed to adapt it for the big screen. One of the major approaches was to divide the film into two parts, and till now, it seems to have worked pretty well with a brilliant first part, “Dune” (2021), which manages to showcase the long-lost art of actual epic filmmaking, having a layered and meditative quality to it, with an example of brilliant cinematic world-building. Other than that, the film also had some really interesting characters, portrayed by a brilliant ensemble cast of actors, which will definitely be worth seeing in the second part in order to experience their respective character arcs. “Dune: Part Two” will further explore the journey of the protagonist, Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, through various obstacles against some menacing forces in this mesmerizingly visual fantasy world of Dune.
The Killer
After making the brilliantly operatic and relatively niche biopic “Mank” (2020), filmmaker David Fincher returns to his well-known genre of thrillers. This is definitely among the major reasons why one should be excited, as Fincher can be called the modern master of thrillers and suspense, even though he made some equally brilliant non-thrillers like “The Social Network” (2010). As of now, the film seems to be in the realm of a noir thriller that revolves around an assassin, which will be portrayed by the acting powerhouse, Michael Fassbender. Furthermore, “The Killer” can be expected to showcase layered and meticulous storytelling that will have the perfect engagement factor for the audience, as seen in his previous films such as “Se7en” (1995), “Zodiac” (2007), and “Gone Girl” (2014).
Mission: Impossible—Dead Reckoning, Part One
One of the most popular film franchises, “Mission Impossible,” kind of lost track somewhere after its first film. But after Brad Bird’s revival through the brilliant 2011 film “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” Christopher McQuarrie perfectly carried on this legacy and cemented a benchmark in terms of cinematic quality with his back-to-back directing of the fifth and sixth installments. McQuarrie, along with his association with the famous Hollywood star Tom Cruise, reprising the role of Ethan Hunt, is definitely a matter of excitement among the viewers. Furthermore, through its trailer, “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Part One” promises to be the perfect old-schools classic style action spectacle, with tremendously choreographed action set-pieces, and breath-taking stunts alongside a tight narrative, that will be worth each and every penny and one not to be missed on the big screen.
Barbie
One should not misunderstand the title with some preconceived mindset about this cultural icon of a doll, highly popular among children. This is due to the fact that it is being directed by “Lady Bird” (2017) filmmaker Greta Gerwig, who is also its writer, along with the acclaimed Noah Baumbach. Earlier, due to character teasers, there remained a constant buzz, and it should be so, but for the right reasons. One of those can be its interestingly conceptualized teaser, which was pretty fun and out-of-the-box, while at the same time paying an unexpected homage to one of the greatest films of all time, “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968). After getting a glimpse at the film’s teaser, it really promises something quite unique, which can go both ways, either being a complete misfire or a really unique cinematic experience, but the bet is on the latter due to the directing and writing talent, along with the association of actors like Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, and Will Ferrell.
John Wick: Chapter 4
Generally, it is quite common that after the first film, the sequels tend to lose their essence and deteriorate gradually. Interestingly, the “John Wick” franchise actually proved this notion wrong, as the quality improves with each and every sequel, with the third one, “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” (2019), being the best of the lot. Hence, expectations are quite high for the fourth installment, as Keanu Reeves is back with his reprisal of the titular character. The trailer, “John Wick: Chapter 4”, promises to be a high-octane, fast-paced, slickly stylized neo-noirish action film that will definitely showcase some visually stunning action choreography along with some twisted and well-written characters, further exploring their arcs that may enhance and elevate the cinematic ability of the film.
Napoleon
Although Napoleon Bonaparte is among the most well-known historical figures, there remains a dearth of films made on him, despite a previous attempt being made by the legend, Stanley Kubrick. Ridley Scott, although he has failed at points, has never shied away from implementing his spectacular vision and has created some of the most incredible worlds through his works. With that in mind, he is at the helm of another historical epic, this time on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte, which will be portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix. That in itself is quite exciting to think about, even though Scott’s films right now are somewhat hit-and-miss. But as far as this generic area goes, Ridley Scott has the upper hand, especially as seen in his recent film, “The Last Duel” (2021), which, though bombed at the box office, was quite an engaging and impressive film, showing the prowess and the directorial flair that Scott still possesses.
Final Words
One can expect these films to be good, but only time will tell their fates, as we have often seen many mammoth projects falter miserably. Other than these ten films, there are a plethora of others that look quite impressive, and hence, this list is made from a birds’ eye view, while various new discoveries are yet to be made other than the well-known ones. The special mentions are “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” (Dir. James Mangold), “Asteroid City” (Dir. Wes Anderson), “Ferrari” (Dir. Michael Mann), “Maestro” (Dir. Bradley Cooper), “MaXXXine” (Dir. Ti West), and “The Little Mermaid” (Dir. Rob Marshall).
