The best of Canada in 2023

Read: The 10 best books of 2023

Best TV Shows

Nathan Fielder, the Canadian actor known for his deadpan performance, is back with a dark comedy called ‘The Curse’. Here’s one trailer. It is streaming on Paramount+ Canada. (Mr. Fielder was executive producer of “How To With John Wilson,” another show that critics say is worth watching.)

Read: Best TV Shows of 2023

Best movies

“Past Lives,” the debut film from South Korean-Canadian director Celine Song, is “an exploration of fate, chance, love and the invisible thread that connects one soul to another,” writes film critic Alissa Wilkinson at The Keer. (I enjoyed watching this film at the TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto, which has made it available for rent. You can also watch it via streaming platforms in Canada.)

An honorable mention on the list goes to ‘BlackBerry’ by Toronto-born director Matt Johnson. The film is an adaptation of the 2015 book by Jacquie McNish and Sean Silcoff, two Canadian business writers, and tells the story of the rise and fall of the Waterloo, Ontario company behind the wildly popular smartphone. If you’re interested in an extended version of the film, you can watch the three-part miniseries of “BlackBerry” at CBC gem.

Read: Best movies of 2023

Best songs

Three pop music critics from The Times make their choice for the best songs of the year. A few Canadians made the list of 77.

Allison Russel, “Eva was black”

“The tune could be a tapping Appalachian hoedown. But the blunt, irrefutable statement of the title moves Allison Russell toward hard thoughts about racism, slavery, exploitation, lynching, and sin—and then to an unexpected coda.” – Jon Pareles

Mustafa, “Name of God”

“There are few artists who conjure up a wealth of sadness like Canadian folk singer Mustafa does. Here his singing is beautiful and a little distant, as if he’s shying away from a pain that will never be anything other than raw. – Jon Caramanica

Ken (Ryan Gosling), “I’m just Ken”

“When this extremely sad song from the ‘Barbie’ movie reaches its climax, it channels Dashboard Confessional, Meat Loaf, the Phantom (of the Opera) and maybe even Scott Stapp. Slash plays guitar and salts the melodrama hard. – Jon Caramanica

Drake featuring Sexyy Red and SZA, “Rich baby daddy”

“Exhibit Z that Drake is at his best not when he’s tsk-tsking grown women, but when he’s risking being outdone by inviting them to the track.” – Lindsay Zoladz

Read: Best songs of 2023