Best Movies of 2013

Scott Hardie | December 9, 2013
Now that voting is open, what were some of your favorite movies of 2013? And what movies do you predict will be voted the best of the year?

For me, the contenders for best movie are dominated by science fiction: Ender's Game, Iron Man Three, Man of Steel, The Day of the Doctor, The World's End, and Upstream Color were all different flavors of science fiction, and Gravity had strong appeal to sci-fi fans even if was based on reality. I've heard good things about Europa Report, John Dies at the End, and Upside Down, and I'll make time to see them before December 31 if I can.

It seems to me like a safe bet that Gravity will top our collective year-end vote, but a surprise can easily happen: Man of Steel was widely liked as well, and the well-respected Zero Dark Thirty was technically an early-2013 picture and has a shot, though it won't have Erik's vote. :-)

Just a reminder: You must review a movie before you can vote on it, but the reviews can be as short as one sentence if you'd like. The whole point of the sarcastically named "Thorough" Movie Reviews is to keep the reviews short and fun. Please contribute as much or as little as you'd like.

Samir Mehta | December 9, 2013
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Scott Hardie | December 10, 2013
You have seen so many good movies this year that I never got around to seeing. I am jealous! :-)

Her is a 2014 release by Funeratic standards, so there's one off your list at least.

American Hustle looks great, and was almost December's movie of the month, but I guessed that Martin Scorsese would ultimately give us more to talk about.

Samir Mehta | December 10, 2013
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Scott Hardie | December 16, 2013
Of all of the widely-seen movies of 2013 that everyone was talking about, I'm glad that I missed the biggest one of all: Sharknado.

Erik Bates | December 16, 2013
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Aaron Shurtleff | December 25, 2013
How could you miss Sharknado??? I saw it twice!

Scott Hardie | December 27, 2013
Sharknado is sitting there in my Netflix queue, tempting me. I try to see a really bad movie every year just to recalibrate my expectations for good movies. But I already saw this, and this, and worst (best?) of all this, so I'm more than set for 2013.

Just a reminder for anyone participating in the Best of 2013 voting: The ballot will close automatically in a few days. If you've seen more movies in December, or written more reviews since casting your original votes, now's the time to record your final choices. I look forward to seeing the outcome on New Years Day!

Aaron Shurtleff | December 28, 2013
Ooh, yeah. That Evil Dead remake was the pits. :( Too bad, I had such high hopes.

Scott Hardie | January 1, 2014
It's neat to see the completed list. I expected superheroes and hobbits and Katniss and Gravity because those are the movies that a majority of us saw and reviewed. Side Effects was a pleasant surprise, the highest-ranking "serious" movie on a list with several others, and a title that's well worth seeing. Films that receive multiple votes without ranking in the overall top ten are given an honorable mention, and this year there are two worthy mentions, the sort of lesser-but-still-good title that the "honorable mention" was intended for.

I have a feeling that American Hustle would have appeared in the overall top ten had it come out earlier. Evie told me she would have voted for it had she gotten her review written in time. Samir, you gave it a very positive review after casting your votes earlier in December; did you consider revising your ballot?

Thank you all for voting and/or following along. I hope that we have even more reviewers and voters in 2014, and more great movies too. :-)

Scott Hardie | January 1, 2014
To anyone: What movies do you wish you had been able to see in 2013? It's not fair at all for me to blame Kelly for me missing something, but since we see so many movies together, she can't help but have an influence on my viewing. I missed 12 Years a Slave because she dislikes graphic violence, and Before Midnight because she has yet to see its predecessors, and Sharknado because she has better taste than me.

If you didn't participate in the voting: What were the best and/or favorite movies that you saw in 2013?

Samir Mehta | January 1, 2014
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Erik Bates | January 2, 2014
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Scott Hardie | January 3, 2014
I'll see American Hustle myself as soon as I can. The Wolf of Wall Street slipped by me as well. The Oscar race should keep both of them playing in theaters for a while.

Erik, did you have any interest in Gravity? Do you have any more interest now that it topped our little list?

Erik Bates | January 3, 2014
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Samir Mehta | January 3, 2014
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Erik Bates | January 3, 2014
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Scott Hardie | January 3, 2014
Is it possible that one factor is how much of a jerk Simon Pegg's character was? Everyone (the heroes anyway) in Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz are basically likeable people. The hero of The World's End is an insufferable prick, and the movie rather cleverly turns the plot on that detail, but it also made the movie more abrasive.

Erik Bates | January 6, 2014
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Evie Totty | January 7, 2014
Ack! I didn't know this thread was here.

I don't think I would have put American Hustle #1 but it certainly would have made my top 10.

What movies came out in 2013 that I didn't get to see that I wanted to see?

The Wolf of Wall Street
12 Years a Slave
Captain Phillips
Mama
Stoker
Upstream Color
42
Mud
Frances Ha
Fast and Furious 6
Much Ado About Nothing
Monsters University
Turbo
The Spectacular Now
Europa Report
We're the Millers
The Butler
Enough Said
Rush
Don Jon
A.C.O.D
Carrie
Dallas Buyers Club
The Wind Rises
Frozen (though I did see it in 2014
Saving Mr. Banks
47 Ronin
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Grudge Match


I also have to say tentatively Before Midnight - the problem is that I haven't seen the first two... I realize this is a gigantic list (I literally went down the page of releases and went 'oh yeah!' and added the ones I want to see).

As far as movies I was anticipating and didn't get to see - much shorter list - like The Wolf of Wall Street. My psyche is kind of weird though - once the premiere weekend has come and gone it is hard for me to 'go back' to see a movie that's already come out, no matter how excited I was about it. Though I'm sure if I missed the premiere of say Iron Man 3 for whatever reason I would have watched it anyway.

Scott Hardie | January 9, 2014
Evie, I'm surprised that you didn't see Fast & Furious 6. I remember you being excited about it.

47 Ronin looks like a guilty pleasure to me: It can't possibly be good after all the release delays and Americanization problems, and Keanu Reeves plays every part way too seriously, but damn if my inner high-school-boy doesn't want to see it anyway. Samurai vs. witches in feudal Japan? I could see that.

Grudge Match: Ugh. It looks like Sylvester Stallone desperately trying to raise the ghost of one of his classic films, itself already exhausted by so many sequels that they stopped numbering them, and this time he's risking tarnish to the memory of Raging Bull. Stallone is as old today as Estelle Getty was when she played his frail elderly mother in Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.