20 Rotten Tomatoes Predictions For 2023's Biggest Movies
Don't bet on Aquaman 2 being a superior sequel.
For better or for worse, there's no denying the prominence of Rotten Tomatoes in the film industry: a Rotten score can demolish a movie's box office potential overnight, and studios will shout from the rooftops if one of their releases ends up Certified Fresh.
Though for many boiling a movie's perceived quality down to an aggregated number destroys the nuance of film criticism, that monolithic Tomatometer score does nevertheless serve as a barometer for how the critical body had broadly received a new release.
It's always interesting to see a film defy critical expectations, whether soaring far above them or sinking depressingly below, and with 2023 delivering the most stacked cinematic slate in years, we can expect a bevy of shocks and surprises.
So, by pooling our knowledge from trailers, test screening reports, and plenty of gut feeling, it's time to predict how the 20 biggest films of the year will fare with reviewers.
Some films are basically mathematically impossible to fail with critics while others will have a tough time winning them over, but as ever, there are sure to be some major surprises in store...
20. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (77%)
Look beyond the Internet's excessive hatred for Chris Pratt and The Super Mario Bros. Movie seems like a major crowd-pleaser that'll do just fine and dandy with critics.
Even beyond the fact that reviewers tend to be pretty forgiving of animated fare, the Mario film actually looks like a visually stunning effort that's largely faithful to the source material.
You don't need to look far online to find the movie's leaked plot, which sounds surprisingly clever and inspired, so don't be shocked if The Super Mario Bros. Movie categorically breaks the "video game movie curse" by delivering the first Certified Fresh video game film adaptation.
Given that the ever-protective Nintendo has been incredibly hands-on with the project, they should at least ensure it's an inoffensive family comedy - and from what we've seen so far, it could be much more than that.