Hello all!
It's that time of year again, when I express my opinion and let you all know that I disagree with every single one of you. Was 2013 devoid of a lot of truly great movies? Yeah, kinda. Did it have a handful of truly great movies? You betcha. Here they are, the ten best and five worst.
Bear in mind this list is kind of incomplete- I haven't seen Her, for example, or Captain Phillips. But if I haven't seen it, odds are you probably haven't seen it either.
Best Movies of the Year
10. Monsters University
Pixar's prequel was good, not great- it wasn't really a necessary story to tell and had a strange ending. But no one can resist Pixar's worlds or characters, especially the lovable Mike and Sulley. Favorite new character: Art, the purple art major with long stretchy leg-arms.
9. The Croods
A forgotten gem. DreamWorks' animated comedy wasn't as good as Shrek or Madagascar, but it had a charm all its own. Let's cast Emma Stone in every movie from now on.
8. Saving Mr. Banks
A feel-good Disney movie about the making of a feel-good Disney movie (Mary Poppins). Strange, yes, but this untold story of behind-the-scenes drama makes for a really compelling story. At times it has a severe case of the cutes, but also gets very serious and sad, justifying its PG-13 rating. Plus, who doesn't love watching a British woman yell at American guys? Tom Hanks is brilliant as Walt Disney.
7. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I absolutely loved this movie. A bittersweet story about a very shy worker drone who escapes his dull life through fantastical daydreams and finally goes on a real-life adventure as he searches for a lost photograph. Predictable, but forgiven because it's such a beautiful film.
6. Man of Steel
The Nolan-ization of Superman was one of the most epic films of the decade. By rewriting his history as science fiction instead of superhero mythology, the man in the red cape was finally made relatable. Was the hour-long, city-destroying climax over the top? Of course. But it was also amazing. Bring on the Justice League!
5. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
About ten times better than the first Hobbit film, this film succeeds where An Unexpected Journey failed: while the first film suffered from a slow pace and boring plot points, the second was pretty much non-stop action! The highlight was the climactic encounter with the titular dragon, who proved worth the wait (and the journey).
4. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
All hail Jennifer Lawrence! While this film is better and more cinematic than the first, its real victory is that it feels very different than anything that's come before it: it's clear you're not watching the typical escapist Hollywood blockbuster, but a world that could potentially be real. The film is a tad long, but I honestly think that serves to make the audience even more uncomfortable watching the carnage unfold.
3. Iron Man 3
A worthy follow-up to The Avengers, one of the best superhero movies ever made. Also a vast improvement over the disappointing Iron Man 2 (it made Popcorn Pick's worst list back in 2010). By destroying Tony Stark's house and super suit, the film strips our superhero down to nothing, forcing him to become a hero all over again. And the genius addition of giving him anxiety attacks finally did what no other film in the franchise has done: it separated the man from the iron.
2. 12 Years a Slave
This generation's Schindler's List. A visceral experience that is difficult to watch (in the theater I was in, one woman was openly weeping), but it's an important film that must be seen. Chiwetel Ejiofor gives the best performance of the year as a free man sold into slavery- we see the movie through his eyes, and we see slavery for the atrocity it was. A painful reminder of America's dark past.
1. Gravity
The best movie of the year looked ahead to the future. Alfonso Cuaron has made a film unlike any other. My first reaction to seeing the trailer was: so, the entire movie is set in space? Well, the answer is yes: the entire movie is set in space. And that's where the film finds its magnificence. With a short running time and a fantastic performance by Sandra Bullock, the audience is put in space right alongside her- and we are made extremely uncomfortable watching it. As backwards as it sounds, you will get claustrophobic watching this movie. Completely believable special effects, and a completely new and thrilling movie experience.
Worst Movies of the Year
5. The Hangover: Part III
Did anyone see Part II? Why did they even bother?
4. The Smurfs 2
More kiddie crap with the little blue people. Neil Patrick Harris is better than this.
3. The Lone Ranger
One of the worst box-office bombs of all time, this is also one of the worst miscalculations ever by a movie studio. Disney figured if they put all the ingredients of Pirates of the Caribbean together again (Johnny Depp, wacky humor, swashbuckling action in a period setting), they would have a hit again. Instead they tried to sell a big Western to kids. And they were surprised when it didn't work.
2. The Counselor
This should have been a good movie. With Ridley Scott directing, actors like Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, and Penelope Cruz in the cast, and the author of No Country For Old Men writing, this had all the ingredients of a great movie. Instead you got a film so convoluted even people who saw the damn thing can't tell you what it's about. Also this is the movie where Cameron Diaz has sex with a car. So, that happened…
1. Planes
Disney's spin-off of the Cars franchise was a direct-to-video film that someone decided to give a theatrical release. No one cared when secret agent cars were out saving the world, so why would anyone care when planes went out to race? Simply a what-were-they-thinking debacle.
Well, that's what I think, at least. Here's to 2014!
