Maccas Top 10 of 2013

2013 has been a fairly decent, consistent year for film.  Out of 66 movies ive watched classified as released in 2013, 29 of them ive rated as a 7 or better, but only 5 that Ive rated as an 8 or better.  This shows there has been plenty of watchable, decent, fun, enjoyable films but not many that reached any real epic heights.  The real disappointment of the year was with the big budget or big name flicks.  Whilst some lived up to expectation (Mud, Prisoners, Gravity), there were many that missed the mark.  Movies like Elysium, World War Z & Pacific Rim were poor.  Others that I was looking forward to in Only God Forgives, Trance and Now You See Me had promise but failed to deliver on that potential.  It was left up to the lower budget indie flicks to get the job done in 2013 and there was plenty of gold there.  Movies such as Drinking Buddies, Europa Report, Kings of Summer, I Give It A Year were all good lower budget flicks to check out.

MACCAS TOP 10 OF 2013

10: We Are What We Are - Horror

A dark, moody horror/thriller about a family with many skeletons in the closet.  Low budget but this is very well acted, excellent at creating suspense and the director of photography did a brilliant job.  An excellent score as well.  Its a very attractive movie and one that put some bigger name thrillers such as Conjuring & Insidious 2 to shame.  One of the hidden gems of 2013.

9. Mud - Drama 

One of the best dramas of the year.  Matthew McConaughey puts in an outstanding performance as Mud, a fugitive who befriends a couple of young lads who attempt to help him out.  Its complex and hits the right notes.  Excellent acting by the two younger lads.  A lovely film and unlucky to not be higher in the list.

8. The Way, Way Back - Drama

This is a quirky comedy-drama in the same mould as Juno, Little Miss Sunshine and Adventureland.  Theres been a number of coming of age dramedies come out in 2013 and this is the king of them all.  A quiet, awkward teen with a dysfunctional family befriends a waterpark owner and comes of age, growing in confidence as the movie wears on.  Its quirky, its funny, it makes you laugh and makes you sad.  Steve Carrell is excellent, but the real star (as expected) is Sam Rockwell.  You can never go wrong when Sam Rockwell is around.

7. Blue Is The Warmest Color - Romance

This is French.  About Lesbians.  Whats not to love?  Its a controversial romantic drama about a young girl who falls in love and deals with the issues of being in a same sex relationship.  The controversy comes from the multiple sex scenes, one a 10 minute long very graphic lesbian scene which can only be described as an inch away from hardcore porn.  But take away the graphic scene and what is left is a brilliant film that is perfect at making you feel empathy for its characters.  It builds character development like no other film this year.  Its length at 3 hours is the only thing holding this back.  A bit tighter and this would be well up there for film of the year.

6. American Hustle - Drama

Bale, Cooper, Adams, Lawrence, CK and a neat little cameo by De Niro.  A big name cast and it delivers in spades.  Its a crime/heist drama with plenty of comedy thrown in for good measure.  Many have thought it to be too slow through the first half of the movie but I thought its pacing was spot on.  Plenty of exposition and its a complex storyline.  Must.  Pay.  Attention.  Outstanding acting performances.  For me, its the best performances Cooper, Adams & Lawrence have done in their careers. 

5. Byzantium - Fantasy

This is how a vampire flick should be made!  Im not hugely into vampire flicks, but this is so spot on its hard not to fall in love with it.  The cinematography, colour palate and restraint in the acting is perfect.  This leaves big name vampire brands like Twilight & True Blood for dead. 

4. Gravity - Sci-Fi

The best of the big budget, big name movies in 2013.  It really is an incredible film.  How they managed to shoot this and have it look so realistic, I have no idea.  As a general rule I steer clear of Sandra Bullock movies as I cant stand her acting, but this is by far the best thing shes ever done, and the best acting performance she has ever done.  The CG is beyond belief.  Get yourself a big arse tv, a blu ray player, sit back and lose yourself in this.  It not only lives up to the hype, it smashes it out of the park.   

3. The Place Beyond The Pines - Drama

A complex drama with a perfect performance by Ryan Gosling, and an incredibly mature performance by Bradley Cooper.  In fact Cooper is the real star of this and with 2 movies well inside the top 10, you could say he would be my actor of 2013.  Its a long but fulfilling movie and grips you at times like few others did in 2013.

2. Maniac - Horror

This one will polarise people.  Many will hate this, many will like it.  I found it mesmerising.  A thriller/horror about a sociopath who finds, murders and scalps girls.  The real difference in this is that its shot in first person mode.  Elijah Wood is the star and lead actor and is believable as the creepy maniac.  Like Byzantium, I lost myself in the way this was shot.  Perfect film score that really draws you in, similar to Drive.  Great cinematography.  As I said, not for everyone, and is fairly graphic in its violence, but its one I kept coming back to as one of the most interesting and enjoyable movies ive seen this year.

1. Disconnect - Drama

A complex, multi-layered drama in a similar vein to Crash, that brings 4-5 storylines together in a huge crescendo in the finish.  It shows the cause and effect of social media and being responsible for the decisions you make.  You know a movie has really touched you to your core when you're still thinking about this days after watching.  Jason Bateman was the real star as the lead character.  No other film has had this effect on me in 2013 than Disconnect.  It may not be in many other top 10 lists you'll see but its well worth a watch. 

Honourable Mentions: Prisoners, Rush & We're The Millers.  Just missed out on the top 10.

Best movies watched for the first time not from 2013:

1. Shame

2. Flight

3. 50/50

Best performances for the year:

1. Adele Exarchopoulos - Blue is the Warmest Colour

2. Daniel Bruhl - Rush

3. Sandra Bullock - Gravity

4. Bradley Cooper - The Place Beyond The Pines

5. Hugh Jackman - Prisoners