CBC's Eli Glasner picks his top 23 films of 2023

Oppenheimer, The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Barbie. After years of super hero domination at the box office, something changed in 2023. Audiences rediscovered a taste for original stories. 

Granted, movies based on famous figures, a doll and a video game aren't exactly independent cinema. But if the supremacy of Barbenheimer proved anything, it's that audiences are hungering for fresh experiences. They want to be challenged, to be taken somewhere new.    

That's why 2023 was a good year for the movies. My first run at this list stretched into the 40s. Scroll down and you'll find queer fight clubs, zen janitors, tech titans and more. Enjoy.

Annette Bening has this look. The gaze of a woman who refuses to give up, who is determined to reach her goal and is willing to sacrifice everything — her health, her friends — all to do this thing they said couldn't be done. Based on the true story of marathon swimmer Diana Nyad, the movie certainly has soggy moments of storytelling, but Bening fully subsumes herself into the role, aided by Jodie Foster's performance as the best friend that's so good she almost steals the show. 

Where to watch: Netflix

Bottoms is the product of an inspired collision between Canadian director Emma Seligman and her muse and co-writer Rachel Sennott. Who knew that after the surprise success of Shiva Baby they would burst out of the gate with Bottoms? A campy teen sex comedy meets combat with the bloody heart of queer longing pulsating at the centre.  

Where to watch: Prime Video 

If Therapy Dogs had a smell, it would be weed, sweat and testosterone. With this visceral guerrilla-style look at high school life, Ethan Eng becomes part of a new vanguard of Canadian filmmakers, clearly influenced by mentor Matt Johnson's mockumentary shooting style. This is filmmaking that should come with kneepads as Eng (who shot this at the age of 17) throws us headlong into the high school experience.

Where to watch: Crave & Hoopla

Rye Lane could be your next favourite rom-com. The feature film debut of Raine Allen-Miller positively vibrates with wit and colour, all driven by a random meeting between awkward, shy Dom and life-of-the-party motormouth Yas. Set in Brixton, England, there's never a dull moment as Yas pulls the poor sad sack moping about his ex-girlfriend out of his shell.

Where to watch: Disney+

If you're looking for signs of an animation renaissance, grab your skateboard and head into the sewer. Brought to life by the mad geniuses at Montreal's Mikros Animation, TMNT:MM is the first turtle toon to use actual teenage actors to voice the characters. Their performances come with an undeniable energy and exuberance that's complimented by a scribble-tastic animation style. Cowabunga indeed.   

Where to watch: Paramount+

All hail Gerard Butler as the new action hero. The rumpled, grizzled star has picked up the torch passed by Bruce Wills, turning in a series of effective (and explosive) films. Who needs Taken when you have Butler as a trapped pilot trying to get home to see his daughter? Buckle up!