The Year 2023 in Movies

Continuing with the final part of our year in review, Matt Lynn Digital invites you to look back at the last year in reviews of books, movies, music and television. We look at these with individual categories, one per day through today. Today we share the forty-seven (47) movies from nine (9) decades reviewed by Matt Lynn Digital in 2023.

(The 1972 movie The Godfather).

The top rated movie we watched in 2023 was The Godfather (1972). Earning 4.75-stars on a scale of 1-to-5, the film presented solid exposition of the power dynamics and traditions for the family as established by the family patriarch Vito, along with the command-and-control structure of the working the business.

(The 2023 movie Oppenheimer).

Four movies earned 4.5-stars in 2023, including the movie Oppenheimer (2023). The movie detailed the role American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer had in the development of the atomic bomb. The further movie Gone Girl (2014) was joined by There Will Be Blood (2007) and the movie Mystic River (2003).

(The 2023 movie Killers of the Flower Moon).

The movie Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) leads a dozen movies that earned 4.25-stars from Matt Lynn Digital. The ongoing murders of members of an affluent Native American tribe for profitable mineral rights, under the guise of marriage and love, made for a somber yet at times poignant movie. Other films to earn 4.25 stars included the movie The Banshees of Inisherin (2022), the biopic King Richard (2021), the biopic The Aviator (2004), the animated movie The Incredibles (2004), the pandemic-fueled horror movie 28 Days Later (2002), the alcoholism-fueled movie Leaving Las Vegas (1995), the coming-of-age movie The Breakfast Club (1985), the supernatural comedy Ghostbusters (1984), the political history movie Reds (1981), the independently released Friday the 13th (1980) and, finally, the movie Apocalypse Now (1979).

(The 2022 movie Death on the Nile).

The mastermind detective movie Death on the Nile (2022) leads a group of nine (9) movies to earn 4.0-stars from Matt Lynn Digital in 2023. Other quality movies in this group include the movie The Hateful Eight (2015), the biopic Walk the Line (2005), the historical drama Gladiator (2000), the movie The Big Lebowski (1998), the psychological horror movie The Silence of the Lambs (1991), the comedy Home Alone (1990), the science fiction movie Planet of the Apes (1968) and, finally, the film noir movie The Maltese Falcon (1941).

(The 2019 movie El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie).

Eighteen (18) movies earned the 3.75-stars rating for 2023, led by El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019). That coda to the Breaking Bad (2008-2013) television series spells out what happened with character Jesse Pinkman. Other movies earning 3.75 stars include the science fiction movie Alien: Covenant (2017), the animated movie The Secret Life of Pets (2016), the animated movie Inside Out (2015), the live-action animated movie Paddington (2014), the movie Chef (2014), the supernatural horror movie Oculus (2013), the biopic The Express (2008), the comedic movie Clerks II (2006), the science fiction blockbuster War of the Worlds (2005), the comedy Freaky Friday (2003), the movie Frequency (2000), the science fiction movie The Fifth Element (1997), the crime drama Absolute Power (1997), the family movie Hocus Pocus (1993), the neo-noir movie Blow Out (1981), the dystopian crime movie A Clockwork Orange (1971) and, finally, the animated movie Cinderella (1950).

(The 2021 movie Cry Macho).

A pair of movies led by the western movie Cry Macho (2021) earned 3.5-stars from Matt Lynn Digital. The other is the fantasy comedy Jack Frost (1998).

(The 2023 movie Nefarious).

Alleged demonic possession was in play for the movie Nefarious (2023), which at 3.25-stars on a scale of 1-to-5 completes our reviewed movies for the year. Having felt manipulated by this film to make a political point, our feeling was that we could have enjoyed this movie more if the presentation had taken a different approach.

Matt Lynn Digital appreciates your continued interest in the content we offer. Should you have albums that you’d like us to review, or similar work to that mentioned above, please be sure to let us know.

Matt – Sunday, December 31, 2023

Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Jon Bernthal in the Reinaldo Marcus Green movie ‘King Richard’

Fierce determination for a just outcome in realizing talent against cultural obstacles brings us to the tennis world today. Dramatization of the role Richard Williams, Oracene ‘Brandy’ Price and their family experienced in aiding the rise of tennis players Venus Williams and Serena Williams as successful tennis players is the subject of the movie King Richard (2021).

(From left, Will Smith as Richard Williams and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Oracene ‘Brandy’ Price in the Reinaldo Marcus Green movie King Richard).

The Reinaldo Marcus Green directed movie King Richard focuses heavily on the role Richard Williams, as portrayed by Will Smith, had in parenting his two biological kids with Oracene ‘Brandy’ Price to elite levels in women’s tennis. Price, married to Richard through the period considered by the movie, was portrayed by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor. Williams was single-minded in raising Venus and Serena to be tennis players with as many level-setting advantages as they could get, which included efforts to steer his two biological and at points his three step daughters away from unhelpful elements in their Compton, California neighborhood. Saniyya Sidney and Demi Singleton portrayed Venus and Serena Williams, respectively.

(From left, Saniyya Sidney as Venus Williams, Will Smith as Richard Williams, Demi Singleton as Serena Williams, Tony Goldwyn as Paul Cohen, Christopher Wallinger as John McEnroe and Chase Del Rey as Pete Sampras in the Reinaldo Marcus Green movie King Richard).

While Brandy and Richard were skilled tennis players in their own right, there were thoughts that coaching from professionals with influence in professional, or amateur leading to professional, coaching would be better. This led Williams to bring his young daughters Venus and Serena to a practice Paul Cohen was administering for a pair of professionals on the men’s tennis tour. Cohen, portrayed by Tony Goldwyn, would agree to coach only one of the sisters for free. Venus received the professional coaching as Serena would be coached by Brandy, her mother.

(Five daughters lived in the home of Richard Williams and Oracene ‘Brandy’ Price at the beginning of King Richard. From left, Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew as Yetunde Price, Layla Crawford as Lyndrea Price, Saniyya Sidney as Venus Williams, Daniele Lawson as Isha Price and Demi Singleton as Serena Williams were portrayed in the Reinaldo Marcus Green movie King Richard).

An eventual disagreement over the personal effect that participating in tournaments, as Cohen recommended as the eventual means of the Williams daughters becoming professional, that led to drama within the tennis playing and human upbringing of the Williams sisters. Connecting to Rick Macci, as portrayed by Jon Bernthal, led the family to Florida for training. The strong wills of Rick Macci and Richard Williams would conflict frequently, yet a significant beauty of the King Richard landed for me in how this and the eventual results for the Williams‘ girls were portrayed for the family and in actual life.

(From left, Will Smith as Richard Williams and Jon Bernthal as Rick Macci in the Reinaldo Marcus Green movie King Richard).

The underlying humanity and nuance in the King Richard story worked really well. Credit for this in part rests with the screenplay of Zach Baylin, along with the production of Will Smith and the direction of Reinaldo Marcus Green. Having enjoyed the biography, the sports content, the humanity and the performances of Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, I give Reinaldo Marcus Green‘s King Richard 4.25-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Saturday, June 3, 2023