Best of 2013

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It was a pretty damn good year for movies, and I managed to see almost everything I wanted to. So without much more preamble, here's the list:

The Worst Movie I Saw This Year:

Star Trek Into Darkness - What may have been passable, dirt-dumb blockbuster entertainment outside of the Star Trek franchise is instead an insultingly wrong-headed entry in the long-running series.  That it manages to pervert the entire mission-statement of Star Trek by making it a weak 9/11 parable and cautionary tale about the woes of Big Government, AND an embarrassingly lazy use of the series greatest villain, is almost impressive. 

The Runners-Up: 

The Wolf of Wall Street, American Hustle, The Conjuring, Side Effects, Spring Breakers, Stoker, Gravity, Crystal Fairy, The Spectacular Now, Iron Man 3, Pacific Rim, Dallas Buyers Club, Furious 6, Touchy Feely, The World’s End, This Is the End, Behind the Candelabra.

The Best:

10. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - Big-budget franchise filmmaking doesn’t get better or more subversive than this, and the visual upgrade from director Frances Lawrence raises the weakest book to a new level. Sharp performances from newcomers Jena Malone, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright and Sam Clafin add to the already impressive cast.

9. Enough Said - A wonderful examination of our inability to get out of our own way, with a great lead performance from Dreyfus and a warm, lived-in turn from the late Gandolfini.

8. Nebraska - After a slight detour into more conventional storytelling with THE DESCENDANTS (which is still plenty good), Alexander Payne makes a thoroughly Alexander Payne movie, with the biting humor, creeping sadness and mundane detail that make his movies so unique.

7. The Act of Killing - The most harrowing filmgoing experience I’ve had this year, this documentary may not be an easy sit, but it features a few of the most powerful, disturbing and gut-wrenching scenes I’ve ever seen in my life.

6. Before Midnight - Another beautifully naturalistic chronicle of Celine and Jesse at a turning point in their relationship. This one may be a bit more contentious and bruising than the last 2, but it’s a fantastic look at the hazards and joys of a long-term relationship… and a reminder that all love stories look like this at some point.

5. 12 Years a Slave - The most immersive and engrossing portrayal of slavery I’ve ever seen. Chiwetel Ejiofor has long been a favorite of mine, and here he’s given a role worthy of his talents. That one of the most indelible moments is a 2-minute shot of his face as he takes in his surrounding is a testament to his acting and Steve McQueen’s restraint as a filmmaker.

4. Blue Jasmine - This is why we just shrug and let go when one of Woody Allen’s movies is a miss, because we know he’s still capable of movies like this. A hilarious, frustrating and timely look at a woman on the edge that manages to walk an insanely tricky line of making Jasmine a monster that we somehow root for. Blanchett’s performance is one for the history books, and she’s ably supported by Sally Hawkins, Bobby Canavale and, of all people, Andrew Dice Clay.

3. Inside Llewyn Davis - The Coens most emotional movie, well… ever, what at first looks to be another wry puzzle from the Brothers slowly reveals itself to be an in-the-moment examination of grief and the unbearable cycle it can throw you into. That the Coens gave Oscar Isaac the kind of break-out role he’s been on the brink of for years is just the cherry on top.

2. Short Term 12 - A beautiful, naturalistic look at a foster-care facility, and the people that run it, is an even more effective look at our buried pasts and how they can be drudged up when you least expect them. Brie Larson reveals a whole new depth of talent here in a commanding and heart-breaking lead performance.

1. Her - What could easily have devolved into a cautionary tale of the dangers of our reliance on technology or an easy joke is instead a revelatory examination of loneliness and melancholy that still manages to be one of the warmest movies I’ve seen in years. Joaquin Phoenix is the big, bruised heart at the center, and as fantastic as he is, he is consistently matched by Scarlett Johansson (who’s never once on screen) and Amy Adams. Spike Jonze manages to create a fully realized not-so-futuristic society that seems totally lived-in, and doesn’t ever pass judgment on the way they live their lives, but uses it as a backdrop for this singular, beautiful movie.