With only one month left in 2023, it’s time for major publications and critics (and, of course, John Waters) to make their annual top 10 lists of the year’s best movies. And as usual, legendary French film mag Cahier du Cinema leads the charge with its ten best films of 2023. But since Cahier du cinema is a continental publication with an iconoclastic bent, don’t expect popular American films from this year like “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer” to make their list.
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Spoiler alert: they don’t, but then neither does Martin Scorsese‘s “Killers Of The Flower Moon” or Wes Anderson‘s “Asteroid City,” which should raise some eyebrows. Instead, Cahier du cinema has Laura Citarella‘s “Trenque Lauquen” atop their list of 2023’s best films. An intriguing choice, considering it premiered at the 2022 Venice Film Festival and only received a small-scale theatrical release stateside. Citarella’s film, a German-Argentinian co-production, is a four-hour mystery about the search for a missing botanist. It’s worth noting that “Trenque Lauquen” had screenings at NYFF last year and made #3 on Film Comment‘s Top 10 Undistributed Films Of 2022 list last year. So it’s worth seeking out, even if it didn’t get wide theatrical distribution in 2023.
Cahier du cinema usually one has two or three films from American directors on their yearly top 10 list, and 2023’s is no different. Just two US films make the cut this year: Steven Spielberg‘s “The Fabelmans” at #4 (which was a 2022 film in this country, but didn’t hit French cinemas until February) and Kelly Reichardt‘s “Showing Up” tied for #10. But there are a couple of other familiar titles on this list from this year’s festival circuit US cinephiles will recognize. Palme d’Or winner “Anatomy Of A Fall” clocks in at #3, while Aki Kaurismaki‘s “Fallen Leaves” lands at #5 on the list. And Catherine Breillat‘s latest, “Last Summer,” also makes Cahier’s list, sitting alone at #9.
The rest of the list may be unfamiliar for those unfamiliar with French cinema or the festival course. “The Spirit Of The Beehive Director” Victor Erice takes the runner-up spot on the list with his latest film, “Close Your Eyes,” which bowed at Cannes in May. Expect that film to get a US theatrical release in 2024. Another Cannes premiere, Pierre Creton‘s “A Prince” ties for #10. Meanwhile, Cyril Schaüben‘s “Unrest,” a film that made the festival rounds last year, takes #6. Radu Jade‘s “Don’t Worry Too Much About The End Of The World” lands at #7 after its world premiere at TIFF in September. And Algerian director Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche‘s “The Temple Woods Gang” rounds out the list at #8.
Check out the entire list below, and stay tuned for more of The Playlist’s end of the year coverage.
- “Trenque Lauquen” dir. Laura Citarella
- “Close Your Eyes” dir. Victor Erice
- “Anatomy of a Fall” dir. Justine Triet
- “The Fabelmans” dir. Steven Spielberg
- “Fallen Leaves” dir. Aki Kaurismaki
- “Désordres” dir. Cyril Schaublin
- “Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World” dir. Radu Jude
- “The Temple Woods Gang” dir. Rabah Ameur-Zaimeche
- “Last Summer” dir. Catherine Breillat
- “A Prince’ dir. Pierre Creton, “Showing Up” dir. Kelly Reichardt