The Cinematic Schematic concludes this podcast season by counting down our top 5 movies of 2023. The year featured an impressive line-up of films across genres and budget tiers. From hit blockbusters like Barbie, John Wick: Chapter 4, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse to outstanding indies including Past Lives, Beau Is Afraid, and Blackberry, there was an exceptional choice for everyone. In such a competitive year, which films rose to the top?Meet This Year’s PanelistsJoining hosts Caleb Masters and Laron Chapman for our second annual top 5 movies countdown are No Film School editor and The Cinematropolis contributor Jo Light and GoodTrash Media’s Dalton Stuart.From left to right: Jo Light, Laron Chapman, Dalton Stuart, and Caleb MastersThe Top News Story of the YearTimestamp: 2023 was a hugely consequential year in the film and television industry. It will be remembered for The Writers Guild of America strike, which ran from May 2nd to September 27th (148 days), and the SAG-AFTRA strike, which ran from July 14th to November 9th (118 days). Before awarding any movies, the crew discusses what impact the strikes will have on 2024 and beyond before naming each of their own top news of the year.2023 was a significant paradigm shift in the industry, both for filmmakers and audiences, marked by several notable headlines, including:* “Barbenheimer” was the box office smash hit of the summer* Physical media becomes existentially threatened as streaming services remove programming* Video game adaptations take off at the box office* Everything Everywhere All At Once swept the 2023 Oscars* Comic book movies are dethroned as the preferred movie genre by audiences2023 Honorary AwardsTimestamp: There were so many great films this year that we couldn’t fit all of them into our top five. Our honorary awards for often dubious honors return as part of commemorating the year in movies.This year’s awards include: