2023 Film Preview
With only a handful of days left in 2022, it’s worth looking ahead to next year to see what films will be gracing our screens over the course of 2023. This is in no means a comprehensive list, merely things that have caught my eye. I’ve put the list in release date order, barring any unforeseen shuffling. See you at the movies.
1) When You Finish Saving the World — January 20
You put the A24 label on a film, there’s a solid chance I’ll watch it, simple as that. The studio had four spots on my Top 10 Films of 2022 list (including #1), and it looks like they’re starting the new year off early, with “When You Finish Saving the World” due out in January. Jesse Eisenberg steps into the director’s chair as Julienne Moore and Finn Wolfhard play a mother/son pair with a strained relationship; the film looks to be the kind of intimate story about human connection that I love.
2) Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania — February 17
Marvel’s Phase 4 was decidedly hit and miss, but Phase 5 is sure to start off with a bang with director Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man threequel. The gang is back together for more shrinking shenanigans, this time looking to escape from the Quantum Realm and the franchise’s new Big Bad, Kang (Jonathan Majors). Also, Bill Murray is here for some reason.
The thrilling true story of the time a bear went on a cocaine fueled rampage. What more do you want?
4) The Super Mario Bros. Movie — April 7
The jury may still be out on Chris Pratt’s Mario voice (I personally think it’s fine), but the rest of the movie looks great. The animation is fantastic and Nintendo has assembled a truly all-star cast to bring these characters to life. In addition to Mario, we’ve already heard Jack Black’s Bowser and Anya Taylor-Joy’s Princess Peach in trailers, and both sound incredible. This is shaping up to be a very fun time.
Nicolas Cage continues to land just absolutely wild roles, with 2023 seeing the actor suit up as Dracula. The film actually centers on Dracula’s assistant Renfield (Nicolas Hoult of “The Menu” and the X-Men films), who after centuries of abuse, has had enough of his vampiric boss and decides to go on the lam. The film looks to be highlighting the absurdity of the cat and mouse game between Hoult and Cage, with a script from “Rick and Morty” scribe Ryan Ridley and a co-starring role for Awkwafina (“Crazy Rich Asians”, “Shang-Chi”).
6) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 — May 2
“This is the end for us,” James Gunn declared at the start of the year. “This is the last time people will see this team of Guardians.” The merry band of misfits is back to complete their trilogy, and if the trailer is any indication, they are in for a harrowing ordeal. Don’t expect a full pivot to drama, but the stakes look very high and everyone may not get their happy ending.
7) Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse — June 2
Five years after the Oscar winning “Into the Spider-Verse” dominated theaters, writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are back with the sequel, and excitement could not be higher. The two central heroes from the first installment, Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy, return for another romp across the Spider-Verse, where they’re sure to encounter even more spider people, likely set to another fantastic soundtrack.
Alas, despite appearances to the contrary, beloved early 2000s Flash game “Fireboy and Watergirl” is not getting a feature film adaptation. Pixar’s “Elemental” is the studio’s next original outing and though bearing a passing resemblance to the game, any connections are very likely coincidental. This time it’s the classical elements’ (air, earth, fire water) turn to go through Pixar’s trademark anthropomorphizing as we follow fiery Ember and watery Wade as they journey through the world and become friends. On track to be only the second theatrically released Pixar film following the pandemic, “Elemental” has the potential to be a big summer win for the studio, especially if the script can rise to meet the clever premise.
9) Asteroid City — June 16
Little is known about Wes Anderson’s next project, but what details we do have suggest another thoroughly Wes Anderson film from the director. Set in a fictional, midcentury American desert town, the film centers on said town’s Junior Stargazer Convention and its activities. The assuredly quirky town is populated with a traditionally large cast list including Anderson frequent flyers like Ed Norton, Tilda Swinton and Jeffrey Wright. Bill Murray is conspicuously absent (he apparently got COVID just prior to shooting), but as a fan of Anderson’s style, I’m looking forward to this one regardless.
10) Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny — June 30
Set in the 1960s in the midst of the Space Race, Harrison Ford’s final Indiana Jones adventure finds Indy searching for the mysterious, titular Dial in a world that has begun to move beyond him. An aging hero struggling to find his place in the world? That’s right up director James Mangold’s (“Logan”) alley.
“Dial” will also likely be the swan song for legendary composer John Williams. New Williams music for the film includes a theme for Indy’s goddaughter Helena, played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge. He debuted that piece at a Hollywood Bowl concert over the summer, and even in his 90s, the man has still got it. The Helena theme is wonderful.
11) Barbie and Oppenheimer — July 21
No, this is not one wild mashup movie, but Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” and Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” are inextricably linked. After somehow ending up with the same release day, the “Oppenheimer”/ “Barbie” juxtaposition became something of an internet fascination. A true battle of cinema titans, spawning memes of the intense tonal shift from double featuring the films and of groups of burly men asking for tickets to the Barbie movie.
Jokes aside, both films have the potential to be huge summer blockbusters. Nolan’s biopic, whose production included inventing a new type of IMAX camera and using practical effects to mimic a nuclear explosion, will be an intense and sprawling historical epic. Even the trailer for “Oppenheimer” is a thing to behold, featuring Cillian Murphy profoundly monologuing.
Gerwig’s “Barbie,” meanwhile, is a bit more of a mystery. We know that Margot Robie is playing Barbie and Ryan Gosling is playing Ken, along with a cadre of supporting actors in unknown roles, including Simu Liu, America Ferrera and Michael Cera, to name a few. In terms of plot, little is known, though many speculate that given Gerwig at the helm, the film might try to criticize the simplified gender roles often associated with the Barbie doll, lending another layer of intrigue to the anticipated movie.
12) Dune: Part Two — November 3
Another genre follow-up, Denis Villeneuve returns to adapt the second half of Frank Herbert’s classic sci-fi epic. Villeneuve’s 2021 Dune film was widely regarded as the best adaptation of the work so far, and the back half of the book has lots to look forward to, including a larger role for Zendaya’s Chani and the rest of the Fremen and new characters like Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler) and the Emperor played by, no joke, Christopher Walken. Arrakis awaits.
13) The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes — November 17
In a bit of world building, moviegoers will be getting a “Hunger Games” prequel in 2023. Based on original trilogy author Suzanne Collins’ book of the same name, “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” is set 64 years before the rise of Katniss Everdeen. Following a young Coriolanus Snow– the Donald Sutherland character from the original films– as he mentors a tribute in the 10th annual Hunger Games.
The book and upcoming film provide an interesting look and a formative time in both Snow’s life and the evolution of Panem as a country. Snow, played in the prequel by newcomer Tom Blyth, is not yet the craven politician he is in the original trilogy, and his relationship with tribute Lucy (“West Side Story” breakout Rachel Zegler), forms the heart of the narrative. The book was easily one of the best things I read during lockdown in 2020, and I hope the film can live up to that complexity.
14) Untitled Ghostbusters: Afterlife Sequel — December 20
“Ghostbusters: Afterlife” is perhaps the best reboot/sequel combination ever put to film, crafting a compelling new story while treating the past with a healthy dose of reverence and respect. Little has been revealed about the sequel, though based on the first film, a return to the original 1984 firehouse, along with some of the original cast, certainly seems in the cards. A successful modern “Ghostbusters” revival was never on my bingo card, but Jason Reitman just might have done it.
15) Killers of the Flower Moon — 2023, Date Unknown
Much like Wes Anderson and “Asteroid City,” 2023 sees iconic director Martin Scorsese teaming up with the usual suspects for another very on-brand flick. Like many of his prior works, Scorsese’s “Killers” is based on a book, this one detailing the plot to murder members of Oklahoma’s Osage tribe at the turn of the century. The film adaptation finds Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert DeNiro, Jesse Plemons and Brendan Fraser at the heart of the murder mystery.