Staying Fit
Photo Collage: MOA Staff; (Source: LEFT TO RIGHT: Eli Ade/MGM, Jeong Park/A24, Murray Close/Lionsgate, Apple TV, A24, Blue Fox Entertainment, Ana Carballosa/Prime)
Want to see a film that’s worth your time? Use our biannual must-see list to make sure you don’t miss a winner. Here are our picks for the best movies released between January and June 2023, available on your favorite streaming platforms or in theaters — or both! (Come back in December for our favorite flicks from the whole year.)
Amazon Studios
Air
Director Ben Affleck’s best movie since Argo (2012) is a funny, stirring, all-American triumph about the intersection of passion and capitalism. Matt Damon, 52, delivers gritty humor and unexpected insight as Nike’s Sonny Vaccaro, who persuades company cofounder Phil Knight (Affleck, 50) that signing Michael Jordan could turn his running-shoe empire into an NBA powerhouse. Viola Davis, 57, understates to perfection as Jordan’s mom, who conjures a business plan that empowers athletes and transforms the industry. The result is a film that salutes and embodies entrepreneurial art. Rated R
Eli Ade/MGM
Creed III
Sylvester Stallone rooted Rocky’s strength and resilience in gritty, unpretentious Philadelphia neighborhoods. First-time director/star Michael B. Jordan roots Adonis Creed’s in the loving, creative life he builds in Bel-Air with his brilliant rock composer wife (Tessa Thompson) and feisty young daughter (Mila Davis-Kent). When Creed’s bitter South L.A. bestie (Jonathan Majors) emerges from 18 years in the slammer to claim the heavyweight title, Creed must honor this street bond while proving that a super-civilized man can be as dangerous in the ring as any jail-hardened bruiser. Rated PG-13
Yogi Berra Museum/Sony Pictures Classics
It Ain’t Over
Slugger Lawrence Peter “Yogi” Berra (1925-2015), who got his nickname for his tendency to sit cross-legged like a yogi and inspired the cartoon Yogi Bear, earned a Purple Heart in World War II, won 10 World Series rings and played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball. He wasn’t pretty, but Berra had a beautiful swing and a penchant for catchphrases, including “It ain’t over till it’s over.” This sturdy sports documentary, filled with game footage, home movies and knowledgeable talking heads, ensures Yogi’s exalted status in the annals of America’s pastime. Rated PG
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Murray Close/Lionsgate
John Wick: Chapter 4
As John Wick, Keanu Reeves, 58, manages to bring a stoner sensibility to a stone-cold assassin. Joining him in the fourth installation are Laurence Fishburne, Ian McShane, the late, great Lance Reddick, Hong Kong action star Donnie Yen and Bill Skarsgård as Wick’s effete Parisian archenemy, the Marquis. In magnificently choreographed, violent set piece after set piece — at the Osaka Continental hotel, and in Paris up and down Sacré-Coeur’s 300ish steps and amid chaotic traffic circling the Arc de Triomphe — the thrills are immersive. Rated R
