If you’re wondering what to watch this weekend, I have some fabulous and fun ideas for you ranging from romantic comedies, to light dramas, and a musical.
What to Watch This Weekend
When it comes to the best movies of 2023, hits like Oppenheimer, Mission Impossible, Barbie, and Killers of the Flower Moon have all the buzz.
Best Feel Good Movies
Those big budget hits can be great, but I’m always looking for the unusually interesting hidden gems when it comes to the movie I’m watching.
The below are my favorite “feel good movies” of late.
Rotten Tomatoes Fresh Status
For the most part, these movies have received the mark of “fresh status” on Rotten Tomatoes.
When at least 60% of reviews for a movie are positive, Rotten Tomatoes displays a red tomato to indicate its “fresh status” –i.e., that it’s good.
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Best Movies 2023
Read on for my favorites –the best movies of 2023!
The Holdovers
I loved this movie. The New York Times refers to The Holdovers as “three sad souls stranded” at a boarding school for Christmas.
Paul Giamatti plays the brilliant lead, a curmudgeonly teacher stuck at school with an arrogant student and the school’s cook, played brilliantly by Da’vine Joy Randolph.
One reviewer said the movie has “heart, humor, and an aesthetic sense so well cultivated you’ll feel like you walked into the year 1970.”
The Holdovers scores a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, and Peacock stream this film.
Past Lives Movie
The movie Past Lives’ reviews are phenomenal, It has a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
I found the plot of Past Lives languorously rich. Spanning three decades, it involves two childhood friends, first together in one country. Later, they are separated, living on two continents.
The plot tracks the children they were into the adults they become.
Past Lives streaming is on AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Paramount+.
She Came to Me
She Came to Me is an American romantic comedy. It’s also a wacky drama lead by a trio of quirky characters.
Anne Hathaway plays Peter Dinklages’s psychoanalyst wife. Dinklage, who writes operas, runs into a character played by Marissa Tomei.
You’ll have to watch the movie to discover the rest.
She Came to Me scored a green tomato (fair rating) on Rotten Tomatoes. AppleTV and Amazon Prime Video stream it.
Theater Camp
The Theater Camp movie is a fun romp –A Chorus Line for the new millennium.
Growing up, I adored the musical A Chorus Line. I saw it on stage in San Francisco and played the vinyl record relentlessly at home.
The cast of Theater Camp includes one of my favorite young actresses. Among the best of her generation, Molly Gordon apparently follows a Paleo Diet!
Theater Camp scores an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu stream this film.
Palm Springs Movie
Palm Springs the movie is a modern twist on the romantic comedy classic Ground Hog Day.
I found this fun drama with a driving plot incredibly enjoyable. It stars one of my favorite comedians, Andy Samberg, along with Cristin Milloti. It is worth the watch.
Palm Springs, the movie scores a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Hulu streams it.
American Fiction Movie
Jeffrey Wright of Westworld fame gets it very right in this biting social commentary!
He plays a novelist who is frustrated with work, culture, and the literary establishment.
Rotten Tomatoes rating for American Fiction is 94%; it is streamed on AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, and Vudu.
No Hard Feelings
The fabulous Jennifer Lawrence carries No Hard Feelings, the movie. She excels here in another one of her quirky leading lady roles.
Her character reminds me of the one she played in Silver Linings Playbook –we adore that award winning romantic comedy.
The cast of No Hard Feelings also stars Broadway phenom Andrew Barth Feldman, along with Mathew Broderick, who plays an odd parent with little to no boundaries.
The movie scored a 70% on Rotten Tomatoes. No Hard Feelings streaming is on AppleTV, Amazon Prime Video, and NetFlix.
Mean Girls Remake
To be quite candid, the remake of Mean Girls was not something I enjoyed. However, many others did, as it scored a 70% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Mean Girls remake is a musical. I am not a huge fan of this genre other than A Chorus Line (as mentioned above), The Sound of Music, and other classics.
Still, I mention Mean Girls here, not to cast aspersions. I do so to highlight that the remake of Mean Girls lead us back to the original dramatic comedy starring Lindsey Lohan and Rachel McAdams.
We loved the original Mean Girls and it has aged very well. It is worth watching again!
Mean Girls (the original) streams on AppleTV and Amazon Prime Video and scores 84% on Rotten Tomatoes.
What to Watch This Weekend?
Do you know what you’ll be watching this weekend? What are your favorite movies from 2023?
Leave a comment and let me know!
Nancy Hildebrandt says
Almost every one of these movies looks way more interesting than most of what I’ve been able to find on my own this past year. Have rented most of them, thanks!
I watched the Rams (the version in Icelandic) a few days ago and immensely enjoyed that. What dos it take to make two warring siblings get along?
Elana says
Nancy, thanks for the rec of the Rams. Just watched the trailer and it has numerous biblical overtones –fascinating.
Geege says
Gabe movie: How Do You Know with Reese Witherspoon. Watched more than once. adorable
Elana says
ck out the trailer right now!Geege, thanks for this great suggestion, going to check out the trailer right now!
Daisy says
Hello how do you deal with the high oxalates in Almonds. We enjoy using almond flour for everything. Thankyou
Elana says
Daisy, many foods contain anti-nutrients like oxalates because they strengthen the evolutionary imperative of the plant. I deal with this by consuming a diet that contains a multitude of foods to avoid any single source of plant that causes body burden. When it comes to almonds I do not eat them every day.