5 highest-rated Rotten Tomatoes 2023 movies

❘ Published: 2024-01-01T15:45:51

Some of the highest-rated 2023 movies on Rotten Tomatoes.

Lionsgate/Searchlight Pictures/Toei

At last! Cinema is truly back – here are the top 5 highest-rated movies of 2023, according to Rotten Tomatoes.

Going to the movie theater is officially back in fashion – and 2023 delivered some absolute bangers in terms of films.

From Barbenheimer – that’s Barbie and Oppenheimer for the uninitiated – and Killers of the Flower Moon to John Wick: Chapter 4 and Across the Spider-Verse, 2023 has been a mega year on the big screen.

Having said that, the titles that have ranked the best on Rotten Tomatoes might be surprising to some – here’s a full rundown of the top 5 highest-rated 2023 movies on the platform, in reverse order.

5. Rye Lane – 98%

Unassuming British rom-com Rye Lane was an unexpected hit in 2023, looking to totally change the genre. As a result, it takes fifth place on the highest-rated movies of 2023 list on Rotten Tomatoes.

With a Tomatometer rating of 98%, Rye Lane follows two youngsters reeling from bad break-ups who connect over a particularly eventful day in South London. The movie received critical acclaim on its release, with praise for David Jonsson’s and Vivian Oparah’s leading performances, the film’s direction, style, and originality.

Alison Willmore at Vulture said, “Rye Lane asks you to fall in love with Dom and Yas, but failing that, it will have you hopelessly smitten with its South London setting and with that feeling of having the day open and nothing to do but wander and see what may happen.”

Rye Lane can currently be streamed on Hulu.

4. Godzilla Minus One – 98%

Charging onto the big screen in the final months of 2023, Godzilla Minus One was quickly praised for its human-centered approach and hypnotizing visuals.

With a 98% score, the movie ranks fourth in this year’s batch of movie releases. As expected Japan is already devastated by the war when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster – one that looks like a giant supernatural lizard. Shikishima, now on a personal mission, teams up with a large group of veterans to finally take down the monster known as Godzilla.

Katie Prout at Chicago Reader commented, “Godzilla is the draw, but equally at the wild and monstrous heart of this movie is a surprisingly optimistic exploration of PTSD, shame, survivor’s guilt, and how we are all more than the worst things we’ve ever done.”

Godzilla Minus One currently isn’t available to stream – but is still in theaters now.

3. Blackberry – 98%

Before the domination of the iPhone, there was a little thing called a Blackberry – a story that made its way to film in 2023. Fans liked the movie more than the phone, ranking on Rotten Tomatoes at 98%.

According to its official synopsis, Blackberry follows the incredible growth and tragic collapse of the world’s first smartphone, and how it smashed huge enterprises before surrendering to Silicon Valley’s fiercely competitive companies. Jay Baruchel and Glenn Howerton take on the roles of the company co-founders Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie.

Brent Simon of AV Club reported, “Investing heartily in its story’s personalities, and eschewing myth-making reverence or preciousness, BlackBerry’s makers entertainingly frame their film as a workplace dramedy about industry gate-crashers rudely ejected from a party of their own staging.”

2. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret – 99%

Are you there, God? It’s her, Margaret – angsting her way to being the second highest-rated movie on Rotten Tomatoes. Sometimes, those teenage years really do pay off.

Clocking in with a 99% Tomatometer rating, the adaptation of the classic 1970 Judy Blume novel follows eleven-year-old Margaret, who moves to a new town and starts to contemplate everything in her life. She relies on her mother Barbara, and her grandmother, Sylvia, who are coming to terms with finding happiness in the next phase of their lives.

Alonso Duralde at The Film Verdict wrote “Judy Blume’s landmark YA classic makes it to the screen five decades later, still packed with laughs and poignance and bitter truths and the enduring embarrassments of adolescence.”

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

1. The First Slam Dunk – 100%

The game might be epic, but the movie in pole position might come as a surprise to some, with anime hit The First Slam Dunk being the only film to maintain a certified fresh score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Clocking in with a runtime of just over two hours, The First Slam Dunk is set at The Shohoku High School, with their basketball club facing a match against Sannoh High School. The achievements that each member has earned and the past that they carry collide violently on the court. All in all, it’s a high-stakes animated drama.

Ross McIndoe at Slant Magazine commented, “The First Slam Dunk is able to throw a relentless series of new gambits, twists, and reversals at the screen that will keep even seasoned sports film fans on the edge of their seat.”

The First Slam Dunk hasn’t hit streaming platforms yet but is available to watch in theaters.

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