Col Needham’s Hidden Gem Movies of 2023
by Col Needham | created - 4 months ago | updated - 4 months ago | PublicI am the Founder & CEO of IMDb. I already shared my Best Movies of 2023 list. This is a list in alphabetical order of 21 2023 titles which I feel have not yet received the recognition they deserve in one way or another. Many titles are yet to be widely released so there is still plenty of time.
All of these are worth seeing IMHO, although, as I am fond of saying, "Differences of opinions about movies make the world go around."
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1. Rose's War (2023)
98 min | Thriller
Based on the life of Rose Dugdale, a former debutante who rebelled against her wealthy upbringing, becoming a volunteer in the militant Irish republican organization, the Provisional Irish Republican Army.
Directors: Joe Lawlor, Christine Molloy | Stars: Imogen Poots, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Lewis Brophy, Jack Meade
Votes: 188
2. Black Dog (II) (2023)
96 min | Drama
Two teenage boys from very different London backgrounds embark on a road trip North together. As they start to open up about their pasts, the boys learn they have far more in common than they first thought.
Director: George Jaques | Stars: Ruby Stokes, Paul Kaye, Jason Flemyng, Hattie Morahan
Votes: 55
3. The Book of Solutions (2023)
102 min | Comedy, Drama
Follows a man, a director who tries to vanquish his demons, which are oppressing his creativity.
Director: Michel Gondry | Stars: Pierre Niney, Blanche Gardin, Françoise Lebrun, Frankie Wallach
Votes: 2,056
4. The Dead Don't Hurt (2023)
R | 129 min | Drama, Western
Two pioneers fight for the survival of their lives and their love on the American frontier during the Civil War.
Director: Viggo Mortensen | Stars: Vicky Krieps, Viggo Mortensen, Solly McLeod, Garret Dillahunt
Votes: 206
5. Dead Shot (2023)
92 min | Action, Thriller
A retired Irish paramilitary witnesses the fatal shooting of his pregnant wife by an SAS officer. After outwitting the SAS, now wounded, and presumed dead, he escapes, taking his revenge to the dark and paranoid streets of 1970's London.
Directors: Charles Guard, Thomas Guard | Stars: Aml Ameen, Colin Morgan, Máiréad Tyers, Brian McCann
Votes: 2,572
6. Egghead & Twinkie (2023)
87 min | Comedy
After coming out to her parents, an Asian American teenage girl takes off on a road trip to meet her online crush with the help of her nerdy best friend.
Director: Sarah Kambe Holland | Stars: Louis Tomeo, Deb Roccanti, Bryson JonSteele, Steven Lane
Votes: 147
7. Eileen (2023)
R | 97 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A woman's friendship with a new co-worker at the prison facility where she works takes a sinister turn.
Director: William Oldroyd | Stars: Thomasin McKenzie, Shea Whigham, Sam Nivola, Siobhan Fallon Hogan
Votes: 10,887
8. Knox Goes Away (2023)
R | 114 min | Thriller
When a contract killer has a rapidly evolving form of dementia, he is offered an opportunity to redeem himself by saving the life of his estranged adult son.
Director: Michael Keaton | Stars: Michael Keaton, Ray McKinnon, Cassie Moronez, Paul Perri
Votes: 5,198
9. Maggie Moore(s) (2023)
R | 99 min | Comedy, Crime, Mystery
Police Chief Sanders (Jon Hamm) investigates the bizarre murders of two women with the same name and unravels a web of small-town lies. He meets and quickly falls for Rita (Tina Fey), a nosy neighbor who is eager to help solve the mystery.
Director: John Slattery | Stars: Jon Hamm, Tina Fey, Micah Stock, Nick Mohammed
Votes: 7,356
10. Io Capitano (2023)
Not Rated | 121 min | Drama
A Homeric fairy tale that tells the adventurous journey of two young boys, Seydou and Moussa, who leave Dakar to reach Europe.
Director: Matteo Garrone | Stars: Seydou Sarr, Moustapha Fall, Issaka Sawadogo, Hichem Yacoubi
Votes: 9,922
11. The Persian Version (2023)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
When a large Iranian-American family gathers, a family secret is uncovered that catapults the estranged mother and daughter into an exploration of the past, and to discover they are more alike than they know.
Director: Maryam Keshavarz | Stars: Layla Mohammadi, Niousha Noor, Kamand Shafieisabet, Bijan Daneshmand
Votes: 3,422
12. Polite Society (2023)
PG-13 | 104 min | Action, Comedy
Ria Khan believes she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage. After enlisting her friends' help, she attempts to pull off the most ambitious of all wedding heists in the name of independence and sisterhood.
Director: Nida Manzoor | Stars: Priya Kansara, Ritu Arya, Renu Brindle, Rekha John-Cheriyan
Votes: 10,210
13. Pretty Red Dress (2022)
110 min | Drama
Follows a South London family and how one red dress is the center of their lives.
Director: Dionne Edwards | Stars: Natey Jones, Alexandra Burke, Temilola Olatunbosun, Tsemaye Bob-Egbe
Votes: 495
14. The Promised Land (2023)
R | 127 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of Ludvig Kahlen who pursued his lifelong dream: To make the heath bring him wealth and honor.
Director: Nikolaj Arcel | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Amanda Collin, Simon Bennebjerg, Melina Hagberg
Votes: 16,328
15. The Queen of My Dreams (2023)
97 min | Comedy, Drama
Against the backdrop of a shared obsession with Bollywood fantasy, Mariam, a Pakistani Muslim woman, and her Canadian-born daughter Azra come of age in two different eras.
Director: Fawzia Mirza | Stars: Amrit Kaur, Hamza Haq, Nimra Bucha, Charlie Boyle
Votes: 112
16. Shortcomings (2023)
R | 92 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Follows a trio of young, Bay Area urbanites--Ben Tanaka, Miko Hayashi and Alice Kim--as they navigate a range of interpersonal relationships while traversing the country in search of the ideal connection.
Director: Randall Park | Stars: Justin H. Min, Sherry Cola, Ally Maki, Tavi Gevinson
Votes: 3,310
17. Silver Haze (2023)
102 min | Drama
Fifteen years after she got burnt when the pub where she slept as a child caught fire, Franky (23) seeks revenge because she still hasn't found any answers.
Director: Sacha Polak | Stars: Vicky Knight, Esme Creed-Miles, Charlotte Knight, Archie Brigden
Votes: 651
18. To Catch a Killer (2023)
R | 119 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Baltimore. New Year's Eve. A talented but troubled police officer (Shailene Woodley) is recruited by the FBI's chief investigator (Ben Mendelsohn) to help profile and track down a disturbed individual terrorizing the city.
Director: Damián Szifron | Stars: Shailene Woodley, Ben Mendelsohn, Jovan Adepo, Ralph Ineson
Votes: 37,711
19. Typist Artist Pirate King (2022)
108 min | Drama
The growing friendship between two women as they hit the road in an electric car looking for endings and reconciliation.
Director: Carol Morley | Stars: Monica Dolan, Kelly Macdonald, Gina McKee, Kieran Bew
Votes: 173
20. Unicorns (II) (2023)
119 min | Romance
It follows a queer South Asian nightclub performer living a double life, and a young, single father who works as a mechanic. When they meet, a search for identity is sparked.
Directors: Sally El Hosaini, James Krishna Floyd | Stars: Ben Hardy, Hannah Onslow, Madelyn Smedley, Sagar Radia
Votes: 114
21. Woman of the Hour (2023)
89 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Rodney Alcala was a killer in the midst of a killing spree when he brazenly took part in, and won a date on, the popular TV game show "The Dating Game."
Director: Anna Kendrick | Stars: Anna Kendrick, Tony Hale, Kelley Jakle, Jedidiah Goodacre
Votes: 97
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