Movies I watched in 2023

[Dave Gray]

This year, I watched exactly 301 new (to me) movies.  The sorting of this list is in watch order, so I'm sorry about that.  I'm happy to talk about any of them, but the list is too huge to do any kind of summary.

The Crowd (1928)
The Bicycle Thief (Ladri di Biciclette) (1948)
The Tree of Wooden Clogs (L'albero Degli Zoccoli) (1978)
Letter From an Unknown Woman (1948)
Secret Beyond the Door (1948)
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022)
Force of Evil (1948)
Spring in a Small Town (Xiao Cheng Zhi Chun) (1948)
Red River (1948)
The Paleface (1948)
The Snake Pit (1948)
The Lady From Shanghai (1948)
Triangle of Sadness (2022)
Rope (1948)
The Red Shoes (1948)
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
Louisiana Story (1948)
Dancer in the Dark (2000)
Blonde (2022)
Toni Erdmann (2016)
Argentina, 1985 (2022)
Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handfull of Truths (2022)
Navalny (2022)
A House Made of Splinters (2022)
Babylon (2022)
Living (2022)
The Docks of New York (1928)
Woman in the Dunes (Suna no Onna) (1964)
Close (2022)
Barry Lyndon (1975)
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (2022)
The Red Desert (Il Deserto Rosso) (1964)
Empire of Light (2022)
Marnie (1964)
Aftersun (2022)
The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)
All That Breahes (2022)
Before the Revolution (Prima Della Rivoluzione) (1964)
To Leslie (2022)
Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
EO (2022)
Black God, White Devil (Deus e o Diabo na Terra do Sol) (1964)
Causeway (2022)
Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (2013)
A Hard Day's Night (1964)
The Quiet Girl (2022)
Tell It Like a Woman (2022)
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies de Cherbourg) (1964)
Gertrud (1964)
Women Talking (2022)
The Demon (Onibaba) (1964)
The Whale (2022)
The Gospel According to St. Matthew (Il Vangelo Secondo Matteo) (1964)
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2022)
Jackie (2016)
The Passion of Joan of Arc (La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc) (1928)
The Deer Hunter (1978)
On the Waterfront (1954)
Chris Rock: Selective Outrage (2023)
The Road (La Strada) (1954)
The Barefoot Contessa (1954)
Les Diaboliques (1954)
A Star is Born (1954)
The Wanton Countess (Senso) (1954)
Silver Lode (1954)
Sansho the Baliff (Sanshô Dayû) (1954)
Carmen Jones (1954)
Johnny Guitar (1954)
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)
Salt of the Earth (1954)
Spring Breakers (2012)
Amores Perros (2000)
Victoria (2015)
An Andalusian Dog (Un Chien Andalou) (1928)
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
I Will Soar (2021)
An Affair to Remember (1957)
Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)
Blue Is the Warmest Color (La vie d’Adèle - Chapitres 1 et 2) (2013)
Throne of Blood (Kumonosu Jo) (1957)
Mother India (Bharat Mata) (1957)
Paths of Glory (1957)
The Seventh Seal (Det Sjunde Inseglet) (1957)
The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
Wild Strawberries (Smultronstället) (1957)
Nights of Cabiria (Le Notti di Cabiria) (1957)
The Super Mario Bros. Movies (2023)
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)
The Cranes are Flying (Letjat Zhuravli) (1957)
The Unvanquished (Aparajito) (1957)
Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Straight Outta Compton (2015)
A One and a Two (Yi Yi) (2000)
Storm Over Asia (Potomok Chingis-khana) (1928)
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Son of Saul (Saul fia) (2015)
A Touch of Zen (Hsia Nu) (1969)
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
North by Northwest (1959)
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
The 400 Blows (Les Quatre Cents Coups) (1959)
Pickpocket (1959)
Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)
Ride Lonesome (1959)
Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro) (1959)
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Shadows (1959)
Draft Day (2014)
The World of Apu (Apur Sansar) (1959)
Rio Bravo (1959)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
Attack of the Doc (2023)
Floating Weeds (Ukigusa) (1959)
Kippur (2000)
All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
Hoop Dreams (1994)
John Mulaney: Baby J (2023)
The Age of Gold (L'Âge d'or) (1930)
The Wall (Deewaar) (1975)
Earth (Zemlya) (1930)
The Thin Red Line (1998)
Little Caesar (1931)
Farewell My Concubine (Ba Wang Bie Ji) (1993)
Freedom for Us (À Nous la Liberté) (1931)
One-Eyed Jacks (1961)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Through a Glass Darkly (Såsom i en Spegel) (1961)
Underground (1995)
The Little Mermaid (2023)
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023)
Viridiana (1961)
Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
The Flash (2023)
Lola (1961)
The Act of Killing (2012)
The Look of Silence (2014)
Splendor in the Grass (1961)
The Exiles (1961)
The Ladies Man (1961)
The Hustler (1961)
The Night (La Notte) (1961)
Chronicle of a Summer (Chronique d'un Été) (1961)
Last Year at Marienbad (L'Année Dernière à Marienbad) (1961)
Ali Zaoua, Prince of the Streets (Ali Zaoua, Prince de la Rue) (2000)
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
Time Regained (Le Temps Retrouvé) (1999)
Limite (1931)
Deliverance (1972)
Red Psalm (Még Kér a Nép) (1972)
Wham! (2023)
Cries and Whispers (Viskingar och Rop) (1972)
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning - Part One (2023)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (Le Charme Discret de la Bourgeoisie) (1972)
Last Tango in Paris (Ultimo Tango a Parigi) (1972)
The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant (Die Bitteren Tränen der Petra Von Kant) (1972)
Fat City (1972)
The Heartbreak Kid (1972)
Oppenheimer (2023)
Barbie (2023)
Frenzy (1972)
Pink Flamingoes (1972)
Sleuth (1972)
In the Mood for Love (Dut Yeung Nin Wa) (2000)
Superfly (1972)
Citizenfour (2014)
Tabu (1931)
The Towering Inferno (1974)
Jim Gaffigan: Dark Pale (2023)
Man of Marble (Czlowiek z Marmuru) (1977)
City Lights (1931)
Ascent (Voskhozhdeniye) (1977)
The Last Wave (1977)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023)
Stroszek (1977)
Ceddo (1977)
The American Friend (Der Amerikanische Freund) (1977)
Suspiria (1977)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)
Sleeping Dogs (1977)
Last Chants for a Slow Dance (1977)
Eraserhead (1977)
Soldier of Orange (Soldaat van Oranje) (1977)
The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
The Captive (La Captive) (2000)
Terrifier 2 (2022)
Leviathan (Leviafan) (2014)
The Public Enemy (1931)
Asteroid City (2023)
A Passage to India (1984)
Elemental (2023)
The Tin Drum (Die Blechtrommel) (1979)
Stalker (1979)
M (1931)
The English Patient (1996)
My Brilliant Career (1979)
Life of Brian (1979)
The Marriage of Maria Braun (Die Ehe der Maria Braun) (1979)
Real Life (1979)
Breaking Away (1979)
Being There (1979)
Manhattan (1979)
All That Jazz (1979)
The Jerk (1979)
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Nine Queens (Nueve Reinas) (2000)
Ida (2013)
Love Me Tonight (1932)
Lucía (1969)
The Million (Le Million) (1931)
Nashville (1975)
The Vampire (Vampyr) (1932)
No One Will Save You (2023)
The Creator (2023)
Air (2023)
A City of Sadness (Beiqing Chengshi) (1989)
Breaking the Waves (1996)
Goodbye Children (Au Revoir les Enfants) (1987)
Brightness (Yeelen) (1987)
Project A, Part II ('A' Gai Waak Juk Jaap) (1987)
Withnail and I (1987)
Wings of Desire (Der Himmel Über Berlin) (1987)
A Chinese Ghost Story (Sinnui Yauman) (1987)
Broadcast News (1987)
Babette's Feast (Babbetes Gaestebud) (1987)
Wall Street (1987)
Red Sorghum (Hong Gao Liang) (1987)
The Dead (1987)
Housekeeping (1987)
The Gleaners and I (Les Glaneurs et la Glaneuse) (2000)
I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (1932)
Sherman's March (1986)
Boudu Saved from Drowning (Boudu Sauvé des Eaux) (1932)
Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
Shanghai Express (1932)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Scarface: The Shame of a Nation (1932)
Fitzcarraldo (1982)
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
After Yang (2021)
Past Lives (2023)
Me and My Gal (1932)
The Actress (Yuen Ling-Yuk) (1992)
No Hard Feelings (2023)
The Ice Storm (1997)
Nyad (2023)
Hana-Bi (1997)
Funny Games (1997)
Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control (1997)
Open Your Eyes (Abre Los Ojos) (1997)
Taste of Cherry (Ta'm e Guilass) (1997)
Happy Together (Cheun Gwong Tsa Sit) (1997)
The Wind Will Carry Us (Bād mā rā Khāhad Bord) (1999)
American Hustle (2013)
Mother and Son (Mat' i Syn) (1997)
Kundun (1997)
The Killer (2023)
Deconstructing Harry (1997)
The Sweet Hereafter (1997)
The Butcher Boy (1997)
42nd Street (1933)
The Asthenic Syndrome (Astenicheskij Sindrom) (1989)
Footlight Parade (1933)
The Boat (Das Boot) (1981)
The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1933)
Man of Iron (Czlowiek z Zelaza) (1981)
She Done Him Wrong (1933)
War Horse (2011)
Duck Soup (1933)
Napoleon (2023)
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Zero for Conduct (Zéro de Conduite) (1933)
Paris, Texas (1984)
Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
Strange Days (1995)
King Kong (1933)
The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (Zangiku Monogatari) (1939)
The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band: Eine Deutsche Kindergeschichte) (2009)
Land Without Bread (Las Hurdes) (1933)
The Holdovers (2023)
20 Days in Mariupol (2023)
Faces (1968)
May December (2023)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
If... (1968)
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
David Holzman's Diary (1968)
Memories of Underdevelopment (Memorias del Subdesarrollo) (1968)
High School (1968)
Hour of the Wolf (Vargtimmen) (1968)
Shame (Skammen) (1968)
Targets (1968)
Maestro (2023)
The Producers (1968)
The Color of Pomengranates (Sayat Nova) (1968)
Poor Things (2023)
All About My Mother (Todo Sobre mi Madre) (1999)
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
Fast X (2023)

[Phishfan]

I've seen 13 from the list.

[masterfins]

Wow, new to you!  You have a couple of my favorites on your list - The Deer Hunter, The Towering Inferno, The Hustler, Deliverance; along with quite a few other good movies like Wall Street and Broadcast news.  I've been wanting to watch the Deer Hunter again, as I haven't watched it in probably a decade.

Did you have any favorites?

[bsmooth]

That is a lot of ass time on the couch.

[Dave Gray]

Did you have any favorites?

It's really hard to answer, because a lot of the movies are more educational and they aren't really "enjoyable" by traditional standards.  I can also get enjoyment just by the nature of being shocked or disturbed.

As you mentioned, the Deer Hunter had some truly twisted scenes that really stuck with me.
I also really liked Deliverance because I think it asked "what would you do in this situation" and there really wasn't a right answer.

I really enjoyed The Holdovers (2023).
Although it's not traditionally recommendable, I thought a German film called The White Ribbon (2009) was a masterpiece, but I think a lot of people would watch it and think it boring as shit.
The Act of Killing (2012) is a documentary that absolutely messed me up....it has a moment I'll be thinking about for the rest of my life.

Barry Lyndon (1975) was a movie I'd always heard about and was glad I saw.
Das Boot (1981) is like....the definitive submarine movie. 

There are a lot of these films, like The Incredible Shrinking Man -- I'm not suggesting that everyone run out to watch an old-ass movie, but when I see it, I can definitely appreciate how clever the special effects are and how disturbing the plot is.  Those old sci-fi films don't pull punches in their concepts.

There are lots of other good ones.  I also feel like movies that I saw that were released in 2022-2023 need to be evaluated on a completely different scale.

[CF DolFan]

Wow ... You watch so many movies that I would think it would be hard to engage and fully enjoy. Kind of like how porn or drugs become boring after a while and you have to find the next fix. You definitely missed your calling as a movie critic.

[Dave Gray]

You watch so many movies that I would think it would be hard to engage and fully enjoy.

You are definitely correct about this, but it's not really because of the amount of films, though maybe that's part of it.   1 film every night or so isn't all that crazy.

But most of these films aren't traditionally enjoyable.  I do see a lot of mainstream movies from America and I engage in those.  But what I'm doing is going through film history and watching important films.  Sometimes they're totally inaccessible and confusing -- even if I understood the plot (which I don't), it's an allegory to a conflict from two countries I've never heard of in the 1920s....then told through a lens of their own specific folklore...stuff like that.

I use wikipedia to try to keep track of it, but that's even hard.

Tonight, I'm watching literal Nazi propaganda.  It's not traditionally enjoyable and makes me feel a little bit icky, but I'm learning about propaganda and this is like THE film of that genre.  It's helps you understand some things about the modern world.  This is one a few that is really pretty deplorable in its content, but a lot of them are just kinda boring.  Foreign films also lag in the quality of technology, so some of these really old films from like Bangladesh are hard to get behind.

Once in a while, though, you find something truly special.  Sometimes it's just a shot and you think -- holy crap, that must've been an amazing thing for the time.

I was really amazed by this shot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIOTElYpurU&t=30s  Start at 30 seconds and is just the first 20 or so seconds of the film...

It's the opening of a 1924 silent German film called The Last Laugh.  It's nothing by today's standards, of course, but when I started watching from as far back as 1902, you see the progression.  At first, cameras didn't move and directors were essentially filming plays.  So, this opening where a camera is coming down and elevator and into a lively lobby was like "holy shit!" It was such a step up from the other things I'd seen to that point.

I'm not suggesting anyone go out and watch that movie for funsies, but that's the kind of value that I'm getting from a lot of this stuff.

[Sunstroke]

I watched so few movies the past year, that I feel a bit behind.

Wow, new to you!  You have a couple of my favorites on your list -

I'm, with mf on this one...hard to believe this is the first time you're seeing some of these classics. Dr. Strangelove, Deer Hunter, The Hustle...wow, some truly great films

[Pappy13]

There are a lot of these films, like The Incredible Shrinking Man -- I'm not suggesting that everyone run out to watch an old-ass movie...

Ok, I will. If you haven't seen this movie you really should. Gave me nightmares when I was kid. Sure the special effects are ridiculous by today's standards, but back in the 60's? Truly groundbreaking. You don't have the movies of today without movies like this one that dared to be different.

There are lots of other good ones.  I also feel like movies that I saw that were released in 2022-2023 need to be evaluated on a completely different scale.

I too am a little shocked at some of the movies you haven't seen, but that's probably because you watch so many movies that I just would never watch. You've probably seen a ton of good movies that I haven't seen so it's to be expected you've missed a couple great movies along the way. Also I think it may have to do with our age difference to a degree. Some of the movies were considered great movies the year they were released, but if those movies were from before your time or maybe just weren't something you were interested in watching at that point in your life, I can see how you could miss it. For example seems like anyone that has at least an interest in the war in Vietnam would have watched the Deer Hunter by now, but maybe that wasn't you. For someone my age to not have seen it, would almost have to be that they purposely avoided watching it.

[Dave Gray]

If you haven't seen this movie you really should. Gave me nightmares when I was kid. Sure the special effects are ridiculous by today's standards, but back in the 60's? Truly groundbreaking.

I agree, but we're not in the 60s.  If you recommended movies to modern day people back from nostalgia you had when you were a child, they wouldn't listen to you for long.  I think you have you specifically look for movies that still hold up.

What is it that you're surprised I haven't seen?  I think I have a pretty robust history of things, for the most part.

[Pappy13]

What is it that you're surprised I haven't seen?  I think I have a pretty robust history of things, for the most part.

From this list...

The Deer Hunter (1978) - One of the best Vietnam movies ever made. Have you seen Platoon (1986)? Casualties of War (1989)? Born on the 4th of July (1989)? Absolutely everyone should see these movies at least once unless they actually lived it and then I could see not wanting to watch any of them.

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) - I see this being played on regular cable TV at least once a month. How have you not seen this up till now?

Rio Bravo (1959) - Classic John Wayne movie? I mean have you not see the Green Berets (1968) or True Grit (1969) either? C'mon man, it's the Duke. Just read a bio of him and watch all the movies that he's known for, can't go wrong.

The Towering Inferno (1974) - Classic "Disaster" movie. Have you seen The Poseiden Adventure (1972)? These movies helped define the "Disaster" genre.

I'm pretty sure that all of these you mentioned below were mentioned at the oscars that year. The fact that you had them all listed together sounds like you basically took this list from the best movies of 1979. Am I wrong here? Ok, maybe these were a bit before your time, but I'm surprised you haven't seen any of them as you tend to watch movies from the oscars, don't you? What happened to '79 that you missed all of these great movies?

Life of Brian (1979)
Breaking Away (1979)
Being There (1979)
All That Jazz (1979)
The Jerk (1979)
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

Wall Street (1987) - This one might be a little more of a stretch but still one of the best movies of Michael Douglass' career. One of Charlie Sheens best movies too along with Platoon.

[Dave Gray]

Im not really understanding.  I have seen all those movies.  Are you saying that you were surprised I hadn’t seen them until this year?

If so, it’s all because of age.  I wasn’t watching war and adult drama when I was 2, in 1979.

You just gotta give me time.  I watch a lot but there’s a ton of stuff released 30 years before I was born.  That’s a tough standard to meet, in addition to keeping up with the new stuff.

[Pappy13]

Im not really understanding.  I have seen all those movies.  Are you saying that you were surprised I hadn’t seen them until this year?

If so, it’s all because of age.  I wasn’t watching war and adult drama when I was 2, in 1979.

You just gotta give me time.  I watch a lot but there’s a ton of stuff released 30 years before I was born.  That’s a tough standard to meet, in addition to keeping up with the new stuff.

Gotcha. For me, I would expect me to have seen a movie from the 60's (born in '63) over something from the 40's or 50's for example but maybe that's not true for you. Maybe you're just as likely to watch a movie from the 40's or 50's as something from the 70's or 80's which just doesn't happen much for me. That's probably the biggest difference between you and I, however I don't watch nearly as many movies as you either, so it's still somewhat surprising to me to see movies that many consider "classics" to have been missed by you. I mean some of these movies like the Deer Hunter you must have seen mentioned a dozen times as a "Classic", no? Yet you never got around to watching it? But you'll watch these movies that I've never heard of? I guess what I'm having a hard time with is how you decide what to watch? Seems like you would start with those movies that are considered "Classics" by many and then move away from that list a bit, but perhaps the movies that are considered "classics" by movie buffs like yourself are a lot different from what the average movie watcher would consider a "Classic". Maybe that explains it.

Now I have a seperate unrelated question. Do you ever rewatch movies? With this list, I wouldn't have time to ever rewatch any movies that I've already seen and this is a missed opportunity in my opinion. I sometimes pick up things in movies when I rewatch them that I didn't pick up the first time through it. Have you ever had that happen to you? Do you even have time to rewatch movies and do you have to look at your list to know if you've watched it already? Sometimes I'll start to watch a movie and realize I've already seen it, but not that often. Unless you've been keeping this list for some time seems to me that would happen to you a lot.

[Dave Gray]

I started watching movies "like this" for probably 5 years, which is a crazy pace and only possible now that I'm working from home.  Prior to that, I did still watch a decent amount of movies, but it was just whatever genre stuff I was into or popular comedy movies or whatever was in the popular cultural zeitgeist.

In my 30s, I rewatched a ton of stuff and almost made it my business to give a movie education to my friends and nieces and nephews.  I would rewatch a ton of movies that were on my 100 movies list, that I posted not to long ago.

In my 20s was probably when I did what you're describing, going back and really drilling into my life's early movies, but for me that was the 1980s.  Like, The Terminator came out in 1984.  I was 7.  ...far too young, but I went back and picked up all that stuff: Terminator, Alien, Robocop, Predator, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Blade Runner, etc. -- all that stuff we take for granted I have watched and rewatched ad nauseum.  I've seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off more times than I can count.

I do rewatch things, but it's much more intentional.  I make it a point NOT to unless I'm really going for something.  I recently went through and rewatched the Tarantino catalog, some Scorsese stuff, and a bunch from the Apatow-verse.  I actively try not to do this out of boredom, though.

I know it sounds crazy, but I really don't watch much more than other people, it's just that I don't waste time.  It's not a matter of having time.  I just use my free time to watch the next thing on my list at a leisurely pace -- I don't really watch movies with my wife where it would slow the pace.  I watch in parts.    I don't really watch random sports like I used to.  My time is just much more "constructive".

I used to just sit down and watch a 3 hour football game of two teams I didn't really care about on Monday Night.  Now I can watch two movies in that same span.

It's funny that you mention not picking up things the first time though.  Yes, that happens.  In many cases, I can tell that it's happening when I'm watching the movie, where I like it but feel like I need to see it again to pick up what I'm really watching: Spotlight, Zodiac, The Social Network -- I felt that while watching Oppenheimer recently, where I felt like I needed another go at it.

As for the list, my brother gave me a book in about 2004 and I started just slowly working through it.  I hit it hard just a couple of years ago.  I have a spreadsheet where I track it closely now.  I have closely tracked every movie going on 4 years.  Back when I worked in an office, I had a little movie club with a big board and I'd make a category with a bunch of films once a week and everyone who participated had to pick one film off of the list that they'd never seen.  I did that for a while, too, and it was just a way to catch up on a bunch of movies I'd always heard referenced or knew were influential, but I'd never seen.  That was cool, but what I'm doing now is much more structured.

[Pappy13]

I know it sounds crazy, but I really don't watch much more than other people, it's just that I don't waste time.

Oh trust me you watch a TON more than I watch though. I watch TV about 5 hours a week I would say. My TV is barely on. I watch maybe 2 movies a month if that. I don't watch any series. I watch maybe a couple sports events a month. The rest of my time is spent on the internet. I spend hours on Reddit. I do spend some time on youtube, but even adding that time it's maybe 10 hours a week. I play a lot of video games, they eat up the majority of my entertainment time.

You might be right about my wife who does consume a huge amount of TV from sports to movies to serials, etc, but me it's next to nothing. If I watched 2 movies a week, that would take up most of my normal TV watching time. Besides, I have a hard time finding 2 movies a month that I WANT to watch. Lately I've found that I'll start watching a movie and turn it off 15 mins into it because it's failed to interest me. The most time I spend watching TV is probably on the late show with Stephen Colbert. I like his monlogues, but when the guests show up, I typically turn the TV off and go to sleep.