Halfway Mark Pt 2: Fav Films & Craft Achievements (Thus Far)
Tuesday, July 11, 2023 at 6:00PM by Nathaniel R
The Best of 2023 Thus Far: Spider-Verse, Of An Age, Are You There God?, Past Lives, Joyland, and Asteroid City
Somehow it's mid July so it's time to survey the first half of the cinematic year. We worry for Hollywood given the writer's strike and the possibilities of a tepid fall/winter slate (the big titles people are most looking forward to are this very month -- Barbie and Oppenheimer). But regardless we take stock every year at this time, no matter what the future might hold. The following list honors only films released between January 1st and June 30th, 2023. It's our way of insuring we keep track of early favourites so that we don't fall victim to the dread recency bias that generally makes awards-giving bodies look forgetful and lazy. The followlng lists are all in alpha order as its too soon for preferential ballots. Obviously we'd love to hear your own 'thus far' ballots in the comments. (We'll do the acting honors tomorrow).
Okay here we go...