{"id":407,"date":"2018-08-02T19:28:25","date_gmt":"2018-08-02T19:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/?p=407"},"modified":"2022-05-25T12:48:34","modified_gmt":"2022-05-25T12:48:34","slug":"top-ten-movies-of-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/2018\/08\/02\/top-ten-movies-of-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Ten Movies of 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ashley
Ashley Benson, James Franco, and Vanessa Hudgens in Spring Breakers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

2013 brought on an endless supply of great movies from (then-) emerging or already-established filmmaking giants. It is the most recent year for American movies that brings about the most hope for their future.<\/p>\n

This is both encouraging and mildly disheartening, considering that the years since have only contained a few sporadic masterworks each, and especially when you consider the year\u2019s most deserving previous rival would have been 1999 (the year of Fight Club, Magnolia, Being John Malkovich, The Insider, Three Kings, Bringing Out the Dead, American Beauty,<\/em> and many others).<\/p>\n

Aside from the junk (of which there was plenty) in 2013, there was an outpour of unique ideas and dangerous material, found in independent and studio productions, theatrical and VOD releases alike. Chances were being taken, there was a sense of freedom in the air that made it feel like a 70’s throwback was right around the corner (only with films that had better technology, updated themes, and tighter pacing, of course).<\/p>\n

Or, perhaps even more exciting, it felt like we were possibly on the cusp of something new.<\/em><\/p>\n

The five years since are steadily proving years of this caliber are a rarity.\u00a0 That’s not to say plenty of great movies haven’t been made since- we just have yet to see them released in such a steady succession. Perhaps the stars are waiting to properly align. Regardless, take a moment to appreciate this selection of great titles. And, if you don\u2019t agree with the choices from this particular list, remember there are plenty of other titles from 2013 to choose from.<\/p>\n

\"Leonardo
Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

10.\u00a0Th<\/strong>e <\/strong>Wolf of Wall Street<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is the movie Martin Scorsese had to wait to be an orphan to make. While it is full of the filmmaker\u2019s frenzied style of shooting, editing, and popular music choices, it also lacks the filmmaker\u2019s usual stamp of morality, humanity, and introspection.<\/p>\n

Based on Jordan Belfort\u2019s memoir of the same name, The Wolf of Wall Street <\/em>is, quite simply, foul. It\u2019s an unapologetic, nasty piece of satire depicting the illegal schemes of a very successful Wall Street investment company in the 1990\u2019s. Cocaine, casual and irresponsible sex, cocaine, rampant misogyny, midget tossing, and more cocaine are just some of the debaucheries depicted within the film in such a sensationalized manner that you almost feel high while watching it.<\/p>\n

The point to The Wolf of Wall Street <\/em>lies in its absurdly thorough, and often hilarious, depiction of excess (a common theme of 2013 also examined effectively in Pain & Gain<\/em>, Spring Breakers, <\/em>and American Hustle<\/em>). Scorsese created a film that was so intent on depicting that excess that it simply didn\u2019t have any room for a moral barometer.\u00a0\u00a0 Simply put, The Wolf of Wall Street<\/em> is cocaine in cinematic form: pumping you up to obnoxious heights only to leave you feeling hollow and empty, scrutinizing why you were ever having such a good time in the first place.<\/p>\n

\"Tom
Tom Hanks in Saving Mr. Banks<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

8.\/9. (tie). Saving Mr. Banks\/ Captain Phillips<\/strong><\/p>\n

There will never be another movie star like Tom Hanks. He\u2019s better than any special effect, magic in and of himself. You trust him. You believe every word he says- and he always does it simply by being present as Tom Hanks.<\/p>\n

Whether he\u2019s an earnest sea captain negotiating with pirates or a slightly slimy version of Walt Disney trying to manipulate Mary Poppins\u2019 screen rights away from her creator, he exudes decency, humanity, and reality with every role he chooses.<\/p>\n

\"Tom
Tom Hanks in Captain Phillips<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Both Saving Mr. Banks<\/em> and Captain Phillips<\/em>, though supported by strong filmmakers and other wonderful actors, are showcases for Hanks\u2019 ability to engage his audience. They are character-driven and intelligent works in completely different genres (Mr. Banks <\/em>is a biographical comedy\/drama and Phillips <\/em>is a dramatic thriller) that remind us of what makes him such a presence in the first place: No matter the story or the situation, it\u2019s always that much more engaging and relatable when we see it happening to Tom Hanks.<\/p>\n

\"Julia
Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep in August: Osage County<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

7. August: Osage County<\/strong><\/p>\n

Julia Roberts delivers her best performance since Closer<\/em> in August: Osage County.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>The film, not exactly an uplifting one, is something of an amusing and tragic orgy of negative emotions spewed forth from what is possibly the most dysfunctional family represented on movie screens since The Texas Chainsaw Massacre<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The raw, dysfunctional reality of Tracey Letts\u2019 script (based on his own play) is well-served by director John Wells\u2019 inherent understanding of it. The cast of greats (Meryl Streep, Dermont Mulroney, Chris Cooper, Ewan McGregor, Sam Shepard, Juliette Lewis, Abigail Breslin, Benedict Cumberbatch) shines light on the material\u2019s darkest of moments, giving humanity and heart to even the most ragged and damaged of Osage County<\/em>\u2019s inhabitants.<\/p>\n

\"Joseph
Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Scarlet Johannson in Don Jon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

6. Don Jon \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is too good-looking and too talented of an actor to also be a such a promising writer and director. \u00a0But, sadly, his directorial debut, Don Jon,<\/em> is a great movie\u2026 So it\u2019s okay to hate him a little.<\/p>\n

On the surface, Don Jon <\/em>is a standard comedic rom-com.\u00a0\u00a0 By its end, it becomes much more: an extraordinarily insightful depiction of how media has shaped our minds and given us expectations that can never exist in reality- particularly with sex and intimate relationships.<\/p>\n

It’s also very funny and entertaining. And very creatively executed in its direction, cinematography, and editing. Gordon-Levitt is also predictably committed and charming as the lead.<\/p>\n

It really is okay to hate him.<\/p>\n

\"Ryan
Ryan Gosling in Only God Forgives<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

5. Only God Forgives\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Only God Forgives <\/em>is the universally hated Nicolas Winding-Refn\/Ryan Gosling follow-up to their eighties neon and blood-soaked masterpiece, Drive<\/em>.\u00a0 Director Refn delivers the best surrealist narrative feature since David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive<\/em>. \u00a0Most critics weren\u2019t so kind, seemingly united on the opinion that Only God Forgives<\/em> is a visually oriented, stylistic exercise that has no soul.<\/p>\n

Well\u2026 So what?<\/em><\/p>\n

(SPOILER ALERT!)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Any movie that ends with a sex symbol like Gosling cutting open his mother’s womb with a sword just so he can deal with her death cannot be ignored. \u00a0It just can’t. \u00a0Gosling is probably the only major star in the world who could have starred in a film as beautifully twisted and brutal as this one and not have his career annihilated as a result.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong’o, and Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

4. 12 Years a Slave <\/strong><\/p>\n

Director Steve McQueen\u2019s 12 Years a Slave<\/em>, based on the true story of a kidnapped African-American forced into slavery for twelve years, is the kind of movie that just doesn\u2019t get made too often anymore. At least not with the class, character, humanity, artistry, and skill that 12 Years a Slave <\/em>exhibits.<\/p>\n

The film doesn\u2019t preach, nor does it take any easy roads. 12 Years A Slave<\/em> observes. It presents unspeakable horror without telling us how to feel about it. It heightens sadness and pain in the right places, but never lowers itself to emotional manipulation or easy solutions.<\/p>\n

McQueen\u2019s direction of John Ridley\u2019s screenplay (based on Solomon Northrup\u2019s 1853 memoir) is calculated and unobtrusive. \u00a0 Chimwetel Ejiofor\u2019s portrayal of Northrup is the definition of dedicated, as utterly painful to watch as it should be.<\/p>\n

Michael Fassbender gives one of the most terrifying screen performances in recent years as a hopelessly self-righteous and hate-filled slave owner.<\/p>\n

One of the best movies to have any kind of an Oscar sweep (it won Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong\u2019o, and Best Adapted Screenplay) in recent memory.<\/p>\n

\"Hugh
Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in Prisoners<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

3. Prisoners \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jake Gyllenhaal gives the performance of his career (to date) in director Denis Villeneuve\u2019s masterful entry into Hollywood filmmaking, Prisoners<\/em>. There is a bleak, fascinating history on Gyllenhaal\u2019s face, in his mannerisms, and in his voice which mirror the somber mood that dominates the film\u2019s atmosphere. He effectively brings the film and his character, a detective trying to track down two missing girls, to life in a very specific and nuanced fashion that is as effortless as it is masterful.<\/p>\n

The script, by Aaaron Guzikowski, is just as rich and layered with detail, providing the blueprint for a very disturbing, yet painfully human, dramatic thriller that rises above any genre trappings. Paul Dano and Hugh Jackman are predictably brilliant as the prime suspect and the grieving father who will stop at absolutely nothing to find his daughter.<\/p>\n

Villeneuve\u2019s expert execution, combined with Roger Deakins\u2019 beautifully dark and shadowy cinematography, makes Prisoners<\/em> the best American thriller since Silence of the Lambs<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"Ryan
Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes in The Place Beyond the Pines<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

2. The Place Beyond the Pines\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

An emotional powerhouse of a movie (and easily the most overlooked of 2013), The Place Beyond the Pines<\/em> is a three-part story about lineage, absent fathers, and crime. \u00a0 The film’s only flaw is its overly ambitious script, which slightly derails in the second act by becoming too complicated for its own good.<\/p>\n

Ryan Gosling portrays a motorcycle stunt rider who succumbs to robbing banks so he can provide for his newborn son- setting off a chain of events that echo throughout the film\u2019s near two-decade timeline. Even though he only appears in the first third of the film, the presence of Gosling\u2019s character (aided by his masterfully sympathetic portrayal) is felt throughout. \u00a0 The excellent ensemble also includes Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, Ray Liotta, Mahershala Ali, Emory Cohen, and Dane DeHaan.<\/p>\n

With The Place Beyond the <\/em>Pines, co-writer\/director Derek Cianfrance further proves, as he had previously with 2010\u2019s equally devastating Blue Valentine,<\/em> that he is one of the most exciting and uncompromising rising talents working in Hollywood today.<\/p>\n

\"Rachel
Rachel Korine, Vanessa Hudgens, and Ashley Benson in Spring Breakers<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1. Spring Breakers\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Four college girls (Ashley Benson, Vanessa Hudgens, Rachel Korine, and Selena Gomez) conspire in a restaurant robbery to fund their spring break vacation, then get busted for drug use. \u00a0A Florida rapper and drug lord named Alien then bails them out and brings them into the underworld of their American Dream.<\/p>\n

Harmony Korine created a masterpiece with Spring Breakers<\/em>. \u00a0Imagery that is as exploitive and hallucinatory as it is poetic reflects the vapid end to today’s youngsters\u2019 dreams. \u00a0 James Franco delivers a standout performance as the sociopathic, yet strangely innocent, Alien.<\/p>\n

Korine explores the glorious, sexy surface of American spring Break imagery, then uses it against us when the price of its existence is revealed underneath. \u00a0A wild, weird, and wonderful ride. If Terrence Malick directed a Russ Meyer screenplay, it would be something like Spring Breakers<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Honorable Mentions: <\/strong>Man of Steel, American Hustle, Gravity, Mud, The World\u2019s End, Secret Life of Walter Mitty, This is the End, Dallas Buyers Club, Nebraska, Fast & Furious 6, Pain & Gain, Stoker<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2013 brought on an endless supply of great movies from (then-) emerging or already-established filmmaking giants. It is the most recent year for American movies that brings about the most hope for their future. This is both encouraging and mildly disheartening, considering that the years since have only contained a few sporadic masterworks each, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":416,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-columns"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=407"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3071,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407\/revisions\/3071"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=407"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=407"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/otherpeoplesmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=407"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}