Every year, come December, cinephiles anticipate the top 10 lists of various publications, critics, and filmmakers. Cahier du cinema kicked things off in 2023, but now it’s John Waters‘ turn to reveal his favorite movies of the year. And like the legendary film mag, Waters’ choices never disappoint; a provocative mix that almost always veers French. Vulture supplies the Waters top 10 list this year, so what sits atop the cult auteur’s list for 2023?
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In a choice that should surprise no one, it’s Ari Aster‘s divisive “Beau Is Afraid.” Waters calls it “a superlong, super-crazy, super-funny movie about one man’s mental breakdown,” and “a laugh riot from hell you’ll never forget, even if you want to.” Not everyone shares Waters’ love for Aster’s latest, but it’s a film firmly in his wheelhouse. So, it’s no surprise it takes top prize for Waters this year.
And then, of course, three of the next movies on the list are French. Pierre Creton‘s “A Prince,” which premiered at Cannes in May, takes the #2 spot, while Éric Gravel‘s “Full Time” takes #3 and Catherine Breillat‘s “Last Summer,” another Cannes premiere, lands at #5. It’s worth noting that Gravel’s “Full Time” premiered on the Lido at Venice in 2021 but didn’t hit US screens until this year. And it’s also worth noting that Creton and Breillat’s films also made Cahier du cinema’s top 10 list for 2023, at #10 and #9, respectively. Waters and the French publication share two more choices, too: Aki Kaurismaki‘s “Fallen Leaves” (at #7 for Waters and #5 for Cahier) and Radu Jade‘s “Do Not Expect Too Much From The End Of The World” (# 10 for Waters, #7 for Cahier).
Waters’ remaining picks all have an auteurist bent to them; again, no surprise there. Paul Schrader‘s “Master Gardener” lands at #3, with Waters praising Sigourney Weaver‘s turn “as a sugar mama with a heart for vengeance,” calling it 2023’s best performance. That’s high praise. Pedro Almodóvar‘s short “Strange Way Of Life” with Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke takes the #8 spot, which Waters calls “a refreshingly unironic new look at gay-cowboy memory, lust, family, and guilt.” And Christopher Nolan‘s “Oppenheimer” resides at #9, which Waters refers to as “a big-budget, star-studded, intelligent action movie about talking.”
And it wouldn’t be a John Waters annual top 10 list without one anomaly, in this case, Ulrich Seidl‘s “Sparta” at #6. “Sparta” was supposed to have its world premiere at TIFF last year, but was cancelled after German news outlet Der Spiegel published a piece about the movie’s controversial subject matter. The film follows an Austrian non-offending pedophile as he teaches young guys judo in a Romanian village. Waters calls the movie “fantastic,” and it sounds like a difficult sit that’s also a trenchant, uncompromising examination of masculinity. It’ll be hard to track this one down, but maybe Waters’ endorsement will help in that regard.
Take a look at the full list from John Waters below, and be sure to look at Vulture’s piece for the auteur’s brief commentary on each film.
- Beau Is Afraid, dir. Ari Aster
- A Prince, dir. Pierre Creton
- Master Gardener, dir. Paul Schrader
- Full Time, dir. Éric Gravel
- Last Summer, dir. Catherine Breillat
- Sparta, dir. Ulrich Seidl
- Fallen Leaves, dir. Aki Kaurismaki
- Strange Way Of Life, dir. Pedro Almodóvar
- Oppenheimer, dir. Christopher Nolan
- Do Not Expect Too Much From The End Of The Word, dir. Radu Jade
