It’s certainly been a busy year for us sci-fi, horror and fantasy fans! There have been epic, original sci-fi movies like The Creator and Rebel Moon, plus some surprise delights for fantasy fans from the likes of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and Barbie and even a new Studio Ghibli film with The Boy and the Heron.
It’s also been a year full of comic book movies (with differing results) like The Marvels, Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Shazam: Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Spider-Man: Across The Spiderverse.
Speaking of established franchises, 2023 also saw plenty of horror sequels/requels/reboots/adaptations with the likes of The Exorcist: Believer, Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, Five Nights At Freddy’s, Insidious: The Red Door, Scream VI, Evil Dead Rise, The Nun 2 and Saw X.
That doesn’t mean we didn’t get some excellent, original horror movies too, with the likes of Talk To Me, Totally Killer, Thanksgiving, No One Will Save You, and It Lives Inside. Independent horror also had a stellar year with the 2023 FrightFest giving us some brilliant chills like Where The Devil Roams, Raging Grace and Cobewb.
With such a brilliant array of genre to choose from, it was a tough job for the SciFiNow team to choose their favourite of the year, but someone’s got to do it! Here’s what the SciFiNow team enjoyed this year…
Talk to Me: Rachael Harper, SciFiNow editor
Considering 2023 was chockablock with horror sequels and the like (some good – Saw X, some bad – The Exorcist: Believer) it was truly a breath of fresh air when Talk To Me landed with a bang back in July. When we were supposed to be out enjoying the sunshine, some of us were enjoying newbie directors Danny Philippou and Michael Philippou’s tale of a demonic hand that allows you to talk to the dead. With some brilliant gore shots (the bit with the eye!), jump scares, horrific imagery and genuine emotional heft (plus, like all good horrors, an ending that will leave you in silenced shock), Talk To Me has to be one of the best original horrors I’ve seen in a while.
Where The Devil Roams: Anton Bitel, SciFiNow contributor
The independent filmmaking Adams family use pure talent and black magic once again to stage a version of themselves in negative, this time as a damaged clan of Depression-era travelling, serial-killing sideshow entertainers, each deeply scarred by the past but finding ways to stitch up their wounds, to cover over each other’s flaws and, impossibly, to stay together. The ensuing period freakshow gradually introduces to its stark dirty realism elements of diabolical fantasy (and a hard-rocking, entirely anachronistic score). In this dysfunctional clan, it is not just love, but perverse fairytale imagination and (dark) art itself, that heals and harmonises, however grotesquely.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse: Burt Peterson, SciFiNow reviewer
Following up 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse was going to be no small feat. The Oscar-winning animation blew everyone away with its unique style and gut-wrenching storyline. But the writing duo of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (this time alongside Dave Callaham) came out swinging in Across the Spider-Verse with a true evolution for each character, from Spider-Gwen (Stacy) and Miles Morales through to the ‘villain of the week’ Spot, voiced by the brilliant Jason Schwartzman. But among the deftly woven emotional story, there’s fan service a-plenty as well. With the flexibility of the Spider-Verse, the creative team has leaned into the craziness, giving Spider-fans a loving look at many niche characters from the world of comics, movies and even TV shows. We know that part two of this will be coming, but it can’t come soon enough.
Godzilla: Minus One: Buffy de Latour, SciFiNow’s anime expert
A powerhouse of a movie from beginning to end, Godzilla: Minus One stomps all over the competition at the tail-end of the year to collect its crown as the rightful king of the movies for 2023. A dark, heavy and emotional watch, it isn’t just one of the greatest Godzilla movies ever made – it’s a masterful piece of cinema that would remain incredibly impactful and impressive even if the titular kaiju wasn’t even a part of it. With knowing nods to the old-school Godzilla movies and a post-war plot that resets the story back to its origins, it’s a perfect monster movie offering for longtime fans and newcomers to the franchise alike. Godzilla: Minus One is an emotional experience that will leave you breathless and hungry for more and the perfect way to celebrate 70 years of the world’s favourite giant monster.
