Last updated March 2024
Itching to watch Best Drama Movies 2023 ? We compiled a list of 30 must-see Best Drama Movies 2023 you can start watching immediately. Rated highly on IMDB and by our own users, these Best Drama Movies 2023 represent the best of the best. Lend a hand by voting for your favorites so other Best Drama Movies 2023 fans can benefit from your good taste! We thank you for your contributions.
Godzilla Minus One (2023)
Plot Summary:
In postwar Japan, a new terror rises. Will the devastated people be able to survive... let alone fight back?
Duration: 124 min
IMDB Rating: 8.5/10
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Country: Japan
Plot tags: godzilla, kaiju, monster, giant monster, airplane, post war japan, world war two, ocean, giant, island, escape, water, death, running, hospital, orphan, mine, post war, boat, baby, photograph, city, kamikaze, disappearance, little girl
Oppenheimer (2023)
Plot Summary:
The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II
Duration: 180 min
IMDB Rating: 8.4/10
IMDB Votes: 548000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: nuclear, american politics, world war two, atomic bomb, physics, quantum physics, historical event, moral dilemma, guilt, sex scene, based on real people, betrayal, husband wife relationship, top secret, scientist, politics, male protagonist, jewish american, female nudity, desert, president, secret laboratory, communist, brother brother relationship, mastermind
Past Lives (2023)
Plot Summary:
Two childhood friends are separated after one’s family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one week as they confront notions of destiny, love and the choices that make a life
Duration: 105 min
IMDB Rating: 8.0/10
IMDB Votes: 48000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, South Korea
Plot tags: coming of age, friendship, meaning of life, childhood, pain, facebook, childhood friend, ferry, korean american, immigrant, love, travel, city, interracial relations, memory, nostalgia, language barrier, regret, retreat, playwright, fate, children, life, writers, reincarnation
The Holdovers (2023)
Plot Summary:
A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually, he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker — and with the school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam
Duration: 133 min
IMDB Rating: 8.0/10
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: boarding school, alcoholism, christmas, vietnam war, holiday, mental illness, teacher student relationship, grief, cooking, teacher, mental institution, depressed man, winter, troubled youth, loss of son, new year, football, school, loneliness, food, doctor, book, boy, teenage girl, taxi
Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
Plot Summary:
A woman is suspected of her husband’s murder, and their blind son faces a moral dilemma as the sole witness
Duration: 151 min
IMDB Rating: 7.9/10
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France
Plot tags: snow, boy dog relationship, law, courtroom drama, bisexual woman, lawyer, trial, winter, lgbt, mother son relationship, bisexuality, autopsy, dog, investigation, food, violence, writers, death, boy, suicide, adultery, photograph, female writer, anger, blood
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
Plot Summary:
When oil is discovered in 1920s Oklahoma under Osage Nation land, the Osage people are murdered one by one—until the FBI steps in to unravel the mystery
Duration: 206 min
IMDB Rating: 7.9/10
IMDB Votes: 121000
Genere: Crime, Drama, History, Mystery, Romance, Western
Country: USA
Plot tags: courtroom, murder, genocide, greed, native american, oil, interracial marriage, oil field, fbi, diabetes, poisoning, true crime, hunting, corruption, interwar period, money, wedding, investigation, wealth, fbi agent, serial murder, american indian, modern western, interracial romance, hired killer
The Boy and the Heron (2023)
Plot Summary:
While the Second World War rages, the teenage Mahito, haunted by his mother's tragic death, is relocated from Tokyo to the serene rural home of his new stepmother Natsuko, a woman who bears a striking resemblance to the boy's mother. As he tries to adjust, this strange new world grows even stranger following the appearance of a persistent gray heron, who perplexes and bedevils Mahito, dubbing him the "long-awaited one."
Duration: 124 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Animation, Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy
Country: Japan
Plot tags: world war two, bullying, spirituality, poverty, courage, education, teenage boy, traumatic childhood, coming of age, magic, school, ghost, king, sailor, student, life, shipwreck, death, mother, meteorite, beach, bird, fire, father, power
Sound of Freedom (2023)
Plot Summary:
The story of Tim Ballard, a former US government agent, who quits his job in order to devote his life to rescuing children from global sex traffickers
Duration: 131 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 89000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, Mexico
Plot tags: rescue, children, dangerous mission, brother sister relationship, vigilante, spy, pedophilia, slavery, mission, little boy, race against time, gay, kidnapping, scam, child kidnapping, sex maniac, undercover, brothel, christian, social problems, fighting crime, controversy, conservative, smiling, computer
Nimona (2023)
Plot Summary:
A knight framed for a tragic crime teams with a scrappy, shape-shifting teen to prove his innocence
Duration: 101 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 35000
Genere: Animation, Action, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: shapeshifting, magic, teenager, knight, monster, lgbt, medieval, lesbian subtext, werewolf, metamorphosis, shark, gay, dancing, dragon, strong female lead, fight, mutant, train, heroes, warrior, castle, kingdom, technology, villain, weapons
Guy Ritchie's The Covenant (2023)
Plot Summary:
During the war in Afghanistan, a local interpreter risks his own life to carry an injured sergeant across miles of grueling terrain
Duration: 123 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 144000
Genere: Action, Drama, Thriller, War
Country: UK, Spain, USA
Plot tags: taliban, war in afghanistan, military, shooter, translator, jihad, ambush, soldier, sniper, friendship, helicopter, brotherhood, rescue, war, revenge, mountain, reconnaissance, cia, desert, us military, muslim, weapons, hospital, world war three, traitor
Saltburn (2023)
Plot Summary:
Struggling to find his place at Oxford University, student Oliver Quick finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton, who invites him to Saltburn, his eccentric family's sprawling estate, for a summer never to be forgotten
Duration: 131 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: male masturbation, college, sex, teenage boy, student, butler, drug use, college student, male nudity, obsession, university, brother sister relationship, sexual content, lgbt, suicide, mental illness, lust, country house, gay subtext, gay interest, mental health, eating disorder, bisexual man, boys love, male pubic hair
Tetris (2023)
Plot Summary:
In 1988, American video game salesman Henk Rogers discovers the video game Tetris. When he sets out to bring the game to the world, he enters a dangerous web of lies and corruption behind the Iron Curtain
Duration: 118 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 75000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Plot tags: cold war, biopic, economist, video game, salesman, business, game, friendship, designer, puzzle, computer, job, engineer, corruption, father daughter relationship, translator, legal, disco, father son relationship, japanese schoolgirl, husband wife relationship, male protagonist, surveillance, contract, kgb agent
Air (2023)
Plot Summary:
Discover the game-changing partnership between a then undiscovered Michael Jordan and Nike's fledgling basketball division which revolutionized the world of sports and culture with the Air Jordan brand
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 153000
Genere: Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Plot tags: business, biopic, past, economist, gambling, athlete, casino, basketball, baseball, golf, breakdance, midlife crisis, profanity, ghost hunter, skateboard, telephone call, rookie, male protagonist, cheerleader, therapist, craps, based on real people, moses, shoes, arrival
BlackBerry (2023)
Plot Summary:
Two mismatched entrepreneurs – egghead innovator Mike Lazaridis and cut-throat businessman Jim Balsillie – joined forces in an endeavour that was to become a worldwide hit in little more than a decade. The story of the meteoric rise and catastrophic demise of the world's first smartphone
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 29000
Genere: Biography, Comedy, Drama, History
Country: Canada
Plot tags: rise and fall, travel, business, technology, anger, cell phone, male protagonist, meeting, yelling, mobile phone, satire, biopic, silicon valley, life, businessman, marketing, job, profanity, arrogance, office, telephone, smartphone, private plane, iphone, business executive
A Million Miles Away (2023)
Plot Summary:
The life of engineer and former NASA astronaut José M. Hernández, the first migrant farmworker to go to space
Duration: 121 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: Mexico, USA
Plot tags: astronaut, nasa, underdog, migrant worker, space program, cigarette smoking, farm hand, based on real people, mexican american, mud, covered in mud
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023)
Plot Summary:
When her family moves from the city to the suburbs, 11-year-old Margaret navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 19000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Plot tags: menstruation, puberty, mother daughter relationship, adolescence, coming of age, grandmother granddaughter relationship, religion, female friendship, christianity, insecurity, love, school, life, studying, mother, faith, church, boy, father, neighbor, summer camp, father daughter relationship, grownups, parents, city
Ponniyin Selvan: Part Two (2023)
Plot Summary:
968 AD. The Pandyan assassins gather once again to destroy the Chola dynasty. Now the mighty Chola princes must fight the Pandyas, the Rashtrakutas and other Chola enemies who have joined forces. Also, at play are the rumours of Ponniyin Selvan’s death at sea, the powerful Pazhuvettarayar’s betrayal, and the tragic destiny of Aditha Karikalan, whose heart was long lost to the vengeful Nandini
Duration: 164 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama
Country: India
Plot tags: heir to the throne, fight, king, violence, sword, empire, chase, decapitation, flashback, action violence, regicide, hand to hand combat, historical epic, axe
Rye Lane (2023)
Plot Summary:
Two twenty-somethings, both reeling from bad break-ups, connect over the course of an eventful day in South London – helping each other deal with their nightmare exes, and potentially restoring their faith in romance
Duration: 82 min
IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: UK
Plot tags: breakup, accountant, ex boyfriend, ex girlfriend, art exhibition, love, life, couples, male female relationship, partner, crisis, karaoke, black british
Gran Turismo (2023)
Plot Summary:
The plot is undisclosed at this time; the project is based off of the popular video game series
Duration: 134 min
IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sport
Country: USA, Japan
Plot tags: car, superhero, conflict, racing, economist, teenager, professional, teenage boy, son, young boy, love, race, airplane, game, police, life, racecar driver, death, car race, car chase, gamer, mother, coach, motor sport, career
Missing (2023)
Plot Summary:
When her mother disappears while on vacation in Colombia with her new boyfriend, June’s search for answers is hindered by international red tape. Stuck thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, June creatively uses all the latest technology at her fingertips to try and find her before it’s too late. But as she digs deeper, her digital sleuthing raises more questions than answers... and when June unravels secrets about her mom, she discovers that she never really knew her at all
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 54000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: missing person, missing woman, found footage, mother daughter relationship, kidnapping, past, teenage girl, surveillance, amateur sleuth, cat, investigation, disappearance, mysterious disappearance, female protagonist, teenage protagonist, fbi, abuse, young woman, mother, internet, domestic violence, single mother, interracial relations, telephone call, interracial marriage
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023)
Plot Summary:
Years before he becomes the tyrannical president of Panem, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow sees a chance for a change in fortunes when he mentors Lucy Gray Baird, the female tribute from District 12
Duration: 157 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 52000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller, War
Country: USA, Canada
Plot tags: fight to the death, death, murder, mentor, arena, dystopia, love, snake, betrayal, singing, television, execution, survival, fight, snow, academy, riot, teenager, supernatural, battles, president, creature, exploration, forest, water
Jesus Revolution (2023)
Plot Summary:
In the 1970s, aimless teenager Greg Laurie searches for all the right things in all the wrong places until he meets Lonnie Frisbee, a charismatic hippie/street preacher. Together with local pastor Chuck Smith, they open the doors of a languishing church to an unexpected revival
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: hippie, god, faith, christianity, community, counterculture, beach, hospital, baptism, father daughter relationship, single mother, self discovery, military academy, high school, hitchhiker, vietnam veteran, preacher, concert, culture clash, flashback, drug overdose, evangelist, moon landing, faith healing, prayer
A Good Person (2023)
Plot Summary:
Allison's life falls apart following her involvement in a fatal accident. The unlikely relationship she forms with her would-be father-in-law helps her live a life worth living
Duration: 128 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Canada
Plot tags: addiction, overcoming, car accident, soccer, death, orphan, singing, drug addiction, forgiveness, piano, grief, teenage sexuality, vietnam veteran, sex talk, trauma, life, friendship, mother, father, accident, profanity, alcoholics anonymous, rebel, rehabilitation, ex cop
Elemental (2023)
Plot Summary:
In a city where fire, water, land, & air residents live together, a fiery young woman & a go-with-the-flow guy will discover something elemental: How much they have in common
Duration: 101 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 102000
Genere: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Fantasy, Romance
Country: USA
Plot tags: city, interracial romance, earth, water, journey, land, fictional city, teen romance, fire, immigrant, father daughter relationship, life, mother daughter relationship, cultural difference, anthropomorphism, love interest, love, train, motorcycle, forbidden love, flood, racism, romantic relationship, beach, underground
Animal (2023)
Plot Summary:
A son undergoes a remarkable transformation as the bond with his father begins to fracture, and he becomes consumed by a quest for vengeance
Duration: 204 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 44000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: sex scene, bare chested male, domestic violence, misogyny, father son conflict, killer, revenge, fight, murderer, nature, obsession, death, murder, tough guy, battles, hotel, father, gunfight, graphic violence, brutality, profanity, retribution, wife, vengeance, smoking
May December (2023)
Plot Summary:
Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under the pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past
Duration: 117 min
IMDB Rating: 7.0/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: statutory rape, child sexual abuse, sexual abuse, pedophilia, female pedophile, female rapist, father son relationship, infidelity, actress, child rape, female nudity, older woman younger man relationship, pedophile, existentialism, baker, sex, snake, life, twins, marijuana, restaurant, computer, singer, teenage girl, family relations
The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die (2023)
Plot Summary:
In the wake of King Edward's death, Uhtred of Bebbanburg and his comrades adventure across a fractured kingdom in the hopes of uniting England at last
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 33000
Genere: Action, Drama, History
Country: UK
Plot tags: viking, medieval, kingdom, king, battles, crown, warrior, exploration, treachery, fight, death of king, heir to the throne, war, horse, combat, army, prince, betrayal, castle, weapons, sword, sword fight, fire, pagan, father daughter relationship
The Wandering Earth II (2023)
Plot Summary:
A prequel to The Wandering Earth
Duration: 173 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: China
Plot tags: myth, space, space travel, space station, life, young
Pathu Thala (2023)
Plot Summary:
An undercover cop goes into the big bad world, a place taken over by a don, where his safety may be compromised
Duration: 151 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: India
Plot tags: business, police officer, tamil
The Creator (2023)
Plot Summary:
Amid a future war between the human race and the forces of artificial intelligence, a hardened ex-special forces agent grieving the disappearance of his wife, is recruited to hunt down and kill the Creator, the elusive architect of advanced AI who has developed a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war—and mankind itself
Duration: 133 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 89000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: robot, space station, ex special forces, artificial intelligence, technology, u.s. army, killer robot, laboratory, future war, secret laboratory, nuclear explosion, interracial marriage, humanoid robot, nuclear bomb, husband wife relationship, human versus robot, fictional war, space shuttle, escape pod, love, dog, tank, combat, fight, cyberpunk