While we don’t want to tell you what to do in the gap between Christmas and New Year, may we humbly make a suggestion? Watch a film.
For 90 minutes (and considerably longer for some of these picks), you and your loved ones do not have to talk. And while Christmas television can be a little dreary, you do not have to leave home to watch a recent flick these days. Another bonus: you can smugly participate in awards conversation throughout early 2024. Below we have listed the biggest films from the past year, from Oscar bait to blockbusters, though in 2023, those spheres have significantly overlapped.
Barbie
Is Barbie – Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie’s billion-dollar foray into a plastic world – a good film? Or a series of good ideas committed to celluloid? Is it the dawn of a terrifying new Mattel universe? You can decide among yourselves this Christmas. Maybe it will cause a fight about patriarchy! So much to look forward to. You can watch Barbie on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
Oppenheimer
Did you miss out on Barbenheimer – watching both Barbie and Oppenheimer on the day they were released – this summer? Perhaps you have a job! It was a Friday! Anyway, you can relive that experience at home quite easily, by following up Gerwig’s pastel-filled opus with Nolan’s very long biopic about the maker of the atomic bomb. For the full experience, don’t allow anyone to go for a loo break. You can watch Oppenheimer on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
Saltburn
Emerald Fennell’s sophomore feature – which Esquire labelled “batshit” – may not immediately strike you as a Christmas film, but it will likely jolt you out of any festive slump. The film follows Oliver Quick’s (Barry Keoghan) slippery ascent into the upper classes through charming Oxford friend Felix (Jacob Elordi) and his charming family (Rosamund Pike is a highlight) and throws in some early 2000s nostalgia and bodily fluids. You can watch Saltburn on Prime Video from 22 December.
Maestro
Bradley Cooper directs and leads this biopic of composer Leonard Bernstein, with Carey Mulligan playing his wife, the actress Felicia Montleagre Cohen. It was a complicated marriage, to say the least. Esquire praised Maestro for exploring “the nuances of the Bernsteins’ unusual relationship with a care and a thoughtfulness that is rare in the movies these days”. And while the film, with its rousing musical sequences, should probably be watched at the cinema – you can do that now – you can watch Maestro on Netflix from 20 December.
Killers of the Flower Moon
Martin Scorsese’s 2023 western true-crime thriller, about a spree of murders among the Osage Nation, will likely be a big-hitter come awards season. Now is the perfect time to soak in its details and be ready for those conversations: mostly about the elegance of Lily Gladstone, who plays Mollie Burkhart, and Leo’s turn as her cowardly husband Ernest. You can watch Killers of the Flower Moon on Apple TV+.
May December
Todd Haynes’ latest film – with a superlative screenplay from Samy Burch – is loosely based on a true about Mary Kay Letourneau, a teacher who engaged in a relationship with a child and later married him. Julianne Moore takes on the Letourneau-esque role, while the revelatory Charles Melton plays her husband. The delicious addition is Natalie Portman as the actress who will be playing Moore’s characters in a film. A thought-provoking, layered title which lingers long after the credits roll. You can watch May December on Sky Cinema and NOW TV.
Past Lives
Celine Song’s decade-jumping love story garnered critical acclaim throughout the summer and has already picked up a few awards nods (Greta Lee is nominated for Best Actress at the Golden Globes). If you feel like ruminating on past love at this contemplative time of the year, you can watch Past Lives on Apple TV+ and Prime Video.
Cocaine Bear
Can you believe Elizabeth Banks’ true story caper about a bear that consumed Class-A drugs only came out this year? For a zippy rush through the wilds of America (though it was filmed in Ireland), you can watch Cocaine Bear on Prime Video and Apple TV+.
