10. The Place Beyond The Pines
I ended up watching this movie on a whim and I was absolutely surprised by it. Having no knowledge of it whatsoever, I was just hoping for another film with Ryan Gosling being bad-ass as usual but there was so much more to it than that. I was not expecting it to be an intricately woven crime drama with a focus on the passing of family legacies and generations.
I admit I'm a Marvel fan through and through but I would LOVE to finally see a Justice League film done right and Man of Steel is hopefully a step in the right direction. Finally we get to see Superman unleash his powers and kick some major ass, albeit in a slightly over the top way but whatever. Sure the story took a more background focus behind all the action but when it was there, it delivered; in both being respectful to the lore and true to the iconic character.
It may have been trashed to bits by hardcore Trekkies, (I'm sorry is that considered offensive now?), but as a casual fan this was a lot of fun. Hilarious, visually arousing and overall a very enjoyable time. Yeah it was kind of corny at certain parts and some scenes were obviously nothing more than pure fan-service, ahem Alice Eve in lingerie, but I'm not complaining.
I have such a love-hate relationship with this third installment of a beloved superhero franchise. It was a BIG improvement over Iron Man 2 and I loved the emphasis it had on Tony himself as opposed to his armoured alter ego but they just had to ruin Iron Man's most important villain and barely touched upon the Extremis storyline, which is arguably one of the characters most important comics arcs.
I'm a sucker for rom-coms and I'm also a sucker for anything zombie related so this was perfect. Unlike Twilight, where the plotline of falling in love with an undead creature tries to be way too serious, Warm Bodies does so in a delightfully lighthearted and tongue in cheek manner. Accompanied with a killer soundtrack, great performances and humorous plays on romantic cliches, it's heartbreaking to see that this didn't nearly get enough recognition as it should have.
Screwed is a low budget, indie film that is both a raunchy sex comedy and a depressing John Hughes-esque story at the same time. I didn't know what to expect watching this as it could turn from hilarious to heartwrenching to just plain what-the-fuck in a matter of minutes. Either way I've seen it multiple times now and is definitely going on my list of "Films That Make Me Hate Myself."
While I enjoyed the books, I wasn't as into it as everyone else seemed to be, probably one of the only franchises I haven't spent hours reading into it's lore. Though I did like the movie adaptations a lot more and Catching Fire was a great step up from the first film; out were the annoying shaky cam sequences, the new characters were perfectly cast and of course Jennifer Lawrence.
Finally a proper science-fiction fantasy Thor film! With my slight disappointment in Iron Man 3 and Man of Steel, this was THE superhero movie I ended up seeing multiple times in the theatre. Less Earth, more Asgard and the Nine Realms. More emphasis on The Warriors Three and Lady Sif. More Loki and more of Thor's powers. Lastly a completely unexpected cameo half way through the film, had me in absolute tears of fanboyism.
Of all the bad remakes in recent years, Evil Dead was one of the good ones. It really was just a perfectly done, respectful homage to the 1981 original. Sure the iconic Ash Williams is not in this but the new character Mia is so damn creepy, she could easily give the new Carrie a run for her money. The original dark humor is also gone but the gore effects certainly make up for it.
1. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
I love the Lord of The Rings Trilogy with all my heart so when I walked into the theatre last December for An Unexpected Journey in what I hoped to be a great return to Middle-Earth, I was slightly sad and disappointed to have left unsatisfied. However where the first part of The Hobbit Trilogy meandered along, The Desolation of Smaug had me at the edge of my seat the entire time. Everything was greatly improved; the pacing was better, the action sequences were watchable and the effects were spectacular. More of the dwarves got a spotlight, new characters, Bard the Bowman and Thranduil were introduced fantasically and even though Legolas and Tauriel were not in the original novel, they were both equally and purposely kick-ass. (Plus Evangeline Lilly as a redheaded she-elf...oh good lord.) But the highlight of the film is easily Smaug. Seriously there are not enough movie dragons and holy crap they outdid themselves with him. Visually the most largest, terrifying and intricately detailed dragon in recent years, topped off with an amazing vocal performance by Benedict Cumberbatch whose posh, British, baritone voice works perfectly in what could arguably be THE movie villain of the year.
Honorable Mentions:
The World's End
Pacific Rim
Gravity
Side Effects
World War Z
The Wolverine
Elysium
Don Jon
So there you have it, my 10 personal favorite films of 2013. What would you put on yours?
