11 Best Biopics of 2023, According to IMDb

While 2023 saw many of the industry’s usual suspects churning out more and more franchise entries, be it Marvel’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3′ or Universal Studios ‘Fast X’ (the eleventh, yes, eleventh Fast and Furious film), diminishing box office return seems to be on trend when it comes to big-budget-franchise-films. Contrary to this, despite being released surrounded by behemoth projects with established and recognizable characters, the movies that dominated most online film discussion over 2023 were arguably Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’, Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ and Sir Ridley Scott’s ‘Napoleon’.

So, what do these films have in common? Of course, none are from a series, meaning audiences could jump right in without the commitment required by lengthy film sagas. Also, two of the three films are biopics, showing that mainstream audiences still crave human stories that are grounded in reality, a revelation that, when paired with the overwhelming success of Oppenheimer alone, could lead to more and more high-budget biographical films showing up in cinemas almost immediately. Bearing all that in mind, let’s take a look back at 2023’s fantastic run of biopics, each one deserving of a spot on any film enthusiasts’ watchlist.

11 ‘Napoleon’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 6.6/10

Joaquin Pheonix (Joker) charges head first into bloodied war and bizarre romantic entanglements in Napoleon, a divisive blockbuster event from Sir Ridley Scott that details the life of the titular French emperor, Napoléon Bonaparte, and the infamous relationship he shared with his wife, Josephine (Vanessa Kirby).

Shot in just 62 days, Scott’s historical epic attempts to squeeze the many pivotal events of Bonaparte’s life into a tight 2-and-a-half-hour runtime, showing his rise through the ranks during the French Revolution and his reign as Emperor of France, and while it does it well, there is a sense that time is being extremely compressed during Napoleon while it all plays out, an issue that looks to be fixed by a 4-hour-long directors’ cut, rumored to be coming to Apple TV+ in 2024.

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10 ‘Priscilla’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 6.8/10

The iconic filmmaker behind the indie-cinema classic Lost in Translation, Sofia Coppola, presents Priscilla, an in-depth examination of one of rock ‘n’ roll history’s longest enduring love stories, Elvis Presley’s questionable courtship with Priscilla Ann Wagner. While Coppola’s Lost in Translation begins with Scarlett Johansson’s character Charlotte struggling to find herself amid a crumbling marriage, with Priscilla, Coppola flips the narrative, delivering the true story of a woman who grows and becomes herself, before leaving behind the marriage that had until then defined her.

Stylistically similar to Coppola’s earlier work, The Virgin Suicides, Priscilla’s dream-like qualities serve to boost the atmosphere of unease and isolation created by the film’s subject-matter. Add to these stylistic elements the strikingly vulnerable performance delivered by Cailee Spaeny (Pacific Rim: Uprising) as Priscilla herself, and viewers will find a beautifully filmed biopic that respectfully challenges a titanic legacy without forcing an agenda, allowing audiences to decide for themselves how the film makes them feel.

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9 ‘Maestro’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 6.8/10

A generation-spanning love story, ‘Maestro’ chronicles the lifelong relationship between conductor-composer, author and humanitarian Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper) and the Broadway/Television actress Felicia Montealegre (Carey Mulligan).

Despite being directed, written and led by Bradley Cooper, whose hunger for an Oscar-win is on full display throughout Maestro, the cinematography is perhaps the film’s greatest strength. Beautifully captured on film by Matthew Libatique (Black Swan), the camera work joyously transitions between color and black and white sequences, switching aspect ratios as it does, creating a dazzling cinematic experience.

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8 ‘Dumb Money’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 6.9/10

Revealing the bizarre true story of the real people behind the GameStop short squeeze of 2021, an event that saw the video game retailers’ stocks explode in value while making seemingly regular people into overnight millionaires. Directed by Craig Gillespie and hosting a star-studded cast including Paul Dano (The Batman), America Ferrera (Barbie), Nick Offerman (The Last of Us) and more, Dumb Money makes light of one of Wall Street’s stranger moments.

Penned by writing team Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo, who previously worked together on Orange is the New Black, their screenplay is an adaptation of the Ben Mezrich book, The Antisocial Network, which gives a more detailed, beat-by-beat account of how the internet trolls took on Wall Street, nearly broguht it to its knees, and kickstarted a congressional investigation into the practices of so-called “retail brokers.” While there was a lot of comedic moments in Dumb Money, it doesn’t lose sight of the source material its covering, which makes it a true gem to watch.

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7 ‘Nyad’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 7.1/10

From the collaborative genius of Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, the husband and wife film directors, producers and documentarians behind the Oscar Winning documentary Free Solo and The Rescue, comes the incredible true story of Diana Nyad, an athlete who, at the age of 60, commits to achieving a 110-mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida.

Earnestly portrayed by Annette Bening (American Beauty), Diana faces many challenges leading up to her great swim. Whether it’s dealing with the swim’s practical accomplishments or showing the mentally draining ageist condescension that Diana faced almost daily, the film applies weight to each of the story’s dramatic points, while mixing in just the right amount of Hollywood cheese, to make Nyad a rousing film worthy of the story it tells.

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6 ‘A Million Miles Away’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 7.3/10

Starring Michael Peña (Ant-Man) as José Hernández, a young aspiring astronaut whose dream to travel to space launches him from farm life and into the stars, A Million Miles Away is a hopeful biopic that tells the unlikely story of a person overcoming total social marginalization to achieve their almost impossible goal.

Joining Peña is a wellspring of talent that includes his fellow actors Julio Cesar Cedillo (Sicario), Rosa Salazar (Alita: Battle Angel) and Veronica Falcón (Ozark), and behind the camera, the critically acclaimed director/writer Alejandra Márquez Abella (The Good Girls) delivers her best work yet with a mature touch on a person who is willing to see his dream through. A Million Miles Away truly was one of the best biopics of 2023, and is a must-see for anyone looking to be inspired to chase their dreams in the New Year.

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5 ‘Tetris’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 7.4/10

Perhaps the most famous video game on the planet, the classic puzzle game Tetris got its own movie in 2023. Directed by Jon S. Baird (Filth), Tetris shares the unlikely story of Henk Rogers, a gaming entrepreneur whose race to secure the international distribution rights for the video game saw him brushing shoulders with the likes of Russian KGB agents and even the longstanding Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi (Togo Igawa).

A standout among the current Hollywood product-biopic trend, which has seen the likes of films such as Air, Flamin’ Hot​​​​​ ​​and Blackberry all release within the same year, Tetris sports a brilliant cast, an engaging script and an inspired visual style, elements that culminate into a surprisingly entertaining and satisfying watch, even for people who are not fond of the game.

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4 ‘BlackBerry’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 7.4/10

Directed by Matt Johnson (Nirvanna the Band the Show), BlackBerry, like Tetris, is a docudrama that explores the rise (and fall) of a famous piece of technology in pop culture, this time the once-popular cell phone known as the BlackBerry. Co-written by Johnson and producer Matthew Miller, the screenplay is a loose adaptation of Jacquie McNish and Sean Silcoff’s book Losing the Signal: The Untold Story Behind the Extraordinary Rise and Spectacular Fall of BlackBerry.

At first glimpse, the subject might seem uninteresting, but BlackBerry does tell more than a simple ‘how did they do it?’ story. It’s a thrilling and moving exploration of the people behind one of the biggest technological booms the consumer market has ever seen, highlighting both the friendships and emotional rifts forged under the brutal, backbreaking pressure of the free market.

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3 ‘Sound of Freedom’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 7.7/10

In what is probably the most controversial flick on this list, Sound of Freedom tackles the disturbing world of human trafficking, following the story of one man’s eye-opening battle against it. Starring Jim Caviezel (Passion of the Christ) as Tim Ballard, the founder and CEO of ‘Operation Underground Railroad’, a nonprofit United States-based anti-sex trafficking organization, the film follows Ballard as he tries to save as many trafficking victims as possible.

Picking up after Ballard saves a small boy from traffickers, he learns that the boy’s sister is still being held captive. Quitting his job and picking up the trail, Ballard’s journey takes him deep into the Colombian jungle. Directed and co-written by Alejandro Monteverde (Little Boy) on a budget of only $14 Million, Sound of Freedom has been a meteoric success for Monteverde, grossing $248 Million at the global box office.

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2 ‘The Iron Claw’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 8.1/10

Joining the A24 funhouse, The Iron Claw, directed by Sean Durkin (The Nest), is being called by critics one of the greatest sports movies of all time. Chronicling the rise and fall of the Von Erich Brothers, whose immense success at the forefront of the American professional wrestling industry ended after a series of personal tragedies known as the ‘Von Erich Curse’ ended their careers, The Iron Claw is equal parts a timeless American success story and a heartbreaking cautionary tale of success.

Starring performances of a lifetime from Zach Efron (High School Musical), Jeremy Allen White (The Bear) and Harris Dickinson (Triangle of Sadness) as the brothers Kevin, Kerry and David Von Erich, who all underwent incredible physical transformations for their roles, and it showed in their stellar performance. The Iron Claw is a must-watch, and in just is short run, is already considered one of the best films of 2023.

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1 ‘Oppenheimer’ (2023)

IMDb Rating: 8.4/10

Detailing the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian Murphy), the brilliant but equally troubled mind behind the first nuclear bombs, Christopher Nolan’s epic biography Oppenheimer took the world by storm when it was released in June alongside Barbie, quickly becoming one of the years most successful blockbusters. Assembling a collection of the very best talent in the industry, from the critically acclaimed director of photography, Hoyte Van Hoytema (Interstellar, Nope) to a star-studded cast of A-listers, Oppenheimer might just be Nolan’s defining achievement.

Spending the majority of its extensive runtime dedicated to the physicists’ time as the director of the Manhatten Project and the legal proceedings that followed, in which Oppenheimer battled against AEC chairman Lewis Strauss (Robert Downey Jr.) to retain his governmental security clearances, the film is a harrowing thriller that deals with destructive forces with the potential to kill millions, and the moral and ethical struggles of those who are responsible for their creation.

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NEXT: The 30 Best Movie Performances of 2023