So, I know this is late. But here's the deal! Of the past few years, 2013 was easily one of the most difficult years in which to find the movies you wanted to see. Many theaters didn't even play some of the films that people were touting as best of the year candidates. Unfortunately, I still haven't been able to see some of the films I wanted desperately to see (they'll be mentioned at the end of this post). That being said, I can't wait any longer to make the list. If you don't get your "best of" list done before February then it's pretty much moot, right? And because I don't really believe anyone, especially myself, is an expert on movie quality, here is a list of the movies that were my favorite and that I thought (from 10 to 1) were some of the best films of the year! Enjoyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!
10.) Computer Chess
The
"Godfather of Mumblecore," Andrew Bujalski originally burst on the
scene with Funny Ha Ha about a recent college graduated
trying to lock down a job and win the heart of a college friend who just might
be an alcoholic. Ever since, he has been known for his rough around the edges,
realistic films (a la Cassavetes) which feel decidedly lo-fi and are populated
with amateur actors and a style of dialogue that includes the false starts and
"um"s and "uh"s that hit way too close to home. His latest
film, Computer Chess, is
no different... but with a tweak that makes it absolutely brilliant.
Shot in
black and white on a 40-year-old camera Bujalski bought on Ebay, the film tells
the story of a group of socially-inept computer nerds who all gather in a
no-tell motel to test the computer chess programs they have developed in a
tournament hosted by Chessmaster Pat Henderson (film critic Gerald Peary).
There are independent programmers, a group from CalTech, and one from MIT among
others. It's a scenario that could have easily and successfully (and safely)
resulted in a period-comedy playing on the burgeoning products that would one
day dominate our culture as well as the antisocial computer programmers
clashing with the too-open cultists/swingers that are sharing the weekend venue
with the tournament. What results however, is a
surprisingly philosophical, poignant comment on artificial intelligent and
what it is to be human that remains oddly hilarious while verging into a
Cronenbergian level of science fiction. Computer
Chess is a near-perfect
reproduction of classic, home-video footage while acting as an irreverent
rebuke of the vast array of slick options available to indie filmmakers today. It
is a film that manages the almost impossible balance of being a
substantial film full of insight while never losing its feeling of fun and
whimsy. It's also the rare film that deserves that all too coveted description
of unique.
9.) Captain Phillips
Easily the most mainstream and probably the most well known of my choices, Captain Phillips, the latest film from Paul Greengrass (the good Bourne movies), tells the real life story of merchant-marine captain Richard Phillips who was held hostage by Somali pirates after his ship, the Maersk Alabama, was hijacked. However, though the title is seemingly simple and straightforward, the film itself is actually about two captains. The first, the titular Phillips (Tom Hanks) is a New England family man and committed professional. The second, the string-bean Somali Muse (newcomer Barkhad Abdi), is young but the veteran of many successful ship raids, someone who has caught the eye of the warlords who run his region of Somalia and has garnered a level of authority. Despite their differences - one is stickler for the rules while the other is wild improviser, one commands a gargantuan shipping vessel while the other rides a small skiff - from the early scenes, parallel on top of parallel begin being drawn about the two. When the two finally meet, they both notice it but keep quiet. It would only work to interrupt the game of wills in which they find themselves wrapped.
Captain Phillips is probably the most intense, heart-stoppingly dramatic film of the year. I saw it only a few days after seeing (the admittedly fantastic) Gravity and was blown away by the fact that it was this film that had me perched precariously close to my seat's edge. Both leads are phenomenal. Once (SPOILERS) Phillips is kidnapped, the way Greengrass, without making it too obvious, is able to repeatedly show how both captains are desperately caught trying to keep the impossible situation in which they find themselves from slipping even further out of their control is magnificent. And it is this drama, and the flawlessly composed and executed action sequences, that is what makes the film work so well. Both men at the forefront play out the much larger clashes happening around them on an intimate scale, and while they come out of it understanding one another better, there is no hint that there will ever be a true understanding between these two worlds. Phillips discovers the limited choices that Muse has been given and how the ones he chose ended him up here. Muse realizes that America is so ubiquitous in part because of its massive military power. Though this single skirmish ends, it will not be the last time these worlds collide. Greengrass and company could have easily made an excellent movie simply by showing us what happened. By showing us the why, they made Captain Phillips extraordinary.
8.) Her
I adore Spike Jonze. I love Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. is easily one of my favorite movies of all time. With Her, Jonze leaves Charlie Kaufman to strike out into the writing world on his own. And though Kaufman's name cannot be found in the film's credits, he can surely be felt in the film's protagonist. Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) is reticent and obviously wounded as a impending divorce from his wife (Rooney Mara is a very effective cameo), damaged nearly to the point of no return. When he laughs, it feels like he's indulging in some kind of intrinsic vice rather than actually enjoying himself. Then he falls in love with the advanced operating system on his new phone (played by Scarlett Johansson who, even though appearing in voice alone, gives one of the most poignant and sexy performances of the year) and all of that changes.
Her is a love story for our generation. No other film to date has so perfectly captured the mood of the times in which we all live while discovering new ways into the euphoria and heartbreak that have existed since the first person said, "I love you." Like Being John Malkovich, the film expertly takes a ridiculously whimsy concept and infuses it with deep reservoirs of emotion, desire and hurt. Yes, when Theodore asks Samantha (the OS) how it's going, expecting and receiving a complex, thoughtful response, it's inherently absurd. But the answer feels important because she is as real to us as she is to him. It's an incredibly beautiful film about moving on from a relationship that you once thought would last forever. Most importantly, Her reminds us that love is about the connection of two people's psyches, how the memories this connection produces can shape who we are and how these memories can lose resolution once the relationship is over. It remains a mystery whether or not love can transcend the physical body. But, the sublime final shot seems to suggest an answer.
7.) Spring Breakers
I really wanted to put Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers at number 1 just to screw with everybody. But all the screwing aside (along with all the irony), I truly believe this weird ass movie with Disney sweethearts and King Freak himself, James Franco, is one of the best films of the year. Essentially, Spring Breakers is about four college-aged girls on their spring break. Unable to afford the costs of making it Florida, the four get really high on cocaine, don ski-masks, rob a local diner with hammers and realistic squirt guns, flee in a stolen car that they eventually burn to a crisp and eventually make their way to St. Petersberg. And from there on is when shit really gets real.
Spring Breakers is perhaps one of the most layered movies I've seen in a long, long time. There's the primary layer that most people saw and absolutely hated. Bad acting, repetitive action, exploitative and (some have argued) sexist material full of booze, bongs, bling, and a delirious swirl of jocks, skanky girls, wiggers and bronies all abound. Then there's the layer of irony, of satire. Arguably, Spring Breakers is a searing indictment of the nihilistic, hedonistic youth with a Korine script that is loaded with sharp, acerbic dialogue exposing the rotten moral cores of his outwardly beautiful apples. "Look at my shit!" Franco's Alien exclaims as he excites the girls' with his extreme consumption in a wonderfully dreamy monologue performed through sparkling grill. And on a final, most important layer, Spring Breakers is one of the most self-aware films I've ever seen. Franco practically cracks up in a few scenes (a la an SNL performance), the repetitive dialogue and visuals make it seem as if Korine is almost challenging critics to criticize his lack of planning and execution. Gucci Mane plays a drug kingpin. Is the acting bad or is it intentionally bad? The fact that you can't tell even after long deliberation is indicative of the film's genius. So, is Spring Breakers a good film or a bad one? The fact is, it's both. And that's what makes it amazing. Disagree? I have a five words for you: SPRANG BREAK! SPRANG BREAK FOREVERRRRRRRRRRRR!
6.) Before Midnight
Richard Linklater's (Dazed and Confused, School of Rock) Before Trilogy are three of the most beautiful, entrancing films I have ever seen. They represent the rare instance of films that beg for more sequels and that subsequently deliver again and again and again. For those who don't know, the trilogy tells the story of Jesse and Celine (Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy respectively). In Before Sunrise, the pair meet on a train heading to Vienna from Budapest. They strike up a conversation and end up spending Jesse's last day in Vienna walking and talking. They connect on a deep level and fall in love. Eventually, however, they part but vow to meet in Vienna in six months. Nine years later in Before Sunset, Jesse is in Paris doing a book tour for This Time, a book he wrote about the couples brief encounter. As the event closes, out of the corner of his eye he spies Celine and is shocked. The pair meet up again, walk and talk again before Jesse is scheduled to fly out of the country. They talk about their lives, how Celine wanted to meet six months later but her grandmother died and she had to attend the funeral. How Jesse did go to Vienna and was heartbroken when Celine did not meet him there. They talk about love and the past, how Jesse is in an unhappy marriage and how he has a young son. And inevitably, the pair fall in love again. As the film fades to black, Celine tells Jesse he's going to miss his plane, "I know," he says with a smile. Cue nine years later and Before Midnight. Jesse is in Greece and is putting his now teenage son on a plane back to the U.S. After a particularly hard goodbye, Jesse walks outside to a waiting Celine and their two young twin girls asleep in the backseat of an SUV. What follows is another chapter in this couple's lives where they spend the last hours of their vacation trying to figure things out and rekindle the fire that once burned between them.
The romance between Jesse and Celine is, for my money, one of the greatest in cinematic history. No other characters feel more fully realized, more three dimensional than this pair. Before Midnight manages the impossibly difficult test of preserving the integrity of the first two films while breaking new ground between the two leads. It is an exquisite film that is equally melancholic and hopeful, dour and hilarious, and foremost extremely cathartic. Joys and frustrations of long-term parenthood and commitment, sex, death, it's all covered insightfully, intensely and intimately. Together, Linklater, Hawke and Delpy have created one of the most realistic and personal series of films in modern cinema. Hawke and Delpy have melded so completely with their roles that nothing they say comes off as false. From their kids habits to the despair brought on by death, every word feels honest and natural. And when things finally explode between the two in a hotel room at the end of the film, the range of emotion that is displayed and that is caused in the audience is incomparable to any film this year. No one makes films like these anymore. And Before Midnight is one of the most stunningly beautiful and emotionally draining films of the year.
Okay! That's it for this first half. I hope you enjoyed and if you haven't seen some of these films, I hope I sparked your interest! I hope to have the final five films (my favoritest of the favorite!) done this weekend. Thanks for tuning in!
