My Top 10 of 2013
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- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingKristin Scott ThomasVithaya PansringarmJulian, a drug-smuggler thriving in Bangkok's criminal underworld, sees his life get even more complicated when his mother compels him to find and kill whoever is responsible for his brother's recent death.The best film of the year stars Gosling as he plays Julian, an American running a Thai boxing club/drug front in Bangkok who, in some sense, is facing the forces of divinity made manifest by the dynamics of his family and the Thai police. Rife with beautiful cinematography in a neon lit yet coldly engaging world and a zoning electronic score, Only God Forgives shows director, Refn’s European sensibilities returning since his last film, Drive. This bloody violent film is stocked with symbolism and at times perplexing philosophical/psychological currents. Do not expect to follow Only God Forgives emotionally – it’s expecting you to put the work in intellectually. Which is a reflection of the Spanish surrealist the film is dedicated to…
“If you are great, ‘El Topo’ is a great picture. If you are limited, ‘El Topo’ is limited”
– Alejandro Jodorowsky on his film El Topo.
Does that make it self-indulgent? Arrogant? Pretentious? I, for one, couldn't care less. - DirectorShane CarruthStarsAmy SeimetzFrank MosleyShane CarruthA man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives.With his debut film Primer, Carruth introduced himself with a unique storytelling style that manages to make sci-fi on a budget more enjoyable than blockbuster sci-fi. It's not just his fresh style but the simple and always effective use of intelligent and original ideas. The same can be said of Upstream Color. One could sum up the story as easily as saying two individuals are introduced into the life cycle of some parasitic drug. They meet and slowly unravel the mystery of what has happened and is happening to them. Again, the real beauty here is the eclectic editing and visual poetry that Carruth utilizes to tell there story. One could spend days discussing and analyzing the story concepts - Walden, anyone?. Add in the cinematic aspects and you'll be at it for weeks.
- DirectorCarlos ReygadasStarsNathalia AcevedoAdolfo Jiménez CastroRut ReygadasJuan and his urban family live in the Mexican countryside, where they enjoy and suffer a world apart. And nobody knows if these two worlds are complementary or if they strive to eliminate one another.An urban family, having moved to the countryside of Mexico, experiences raw drama and ambiguous fantasy in this cinematically fresh and rewarding film by Reygadas. The cinematography is ethereal and at times haunting when combined with such unsettling imagery. That's not to say the films imagery is horrifying in itself. The imagery of Post Tenebras Lux is unsettling in that it's picturesque and lush while also being new and confounding. This is partially due to it's hypnotic, almost tunnel vision take on the 4:3 ratio. This way of presenting the story only adds to it's mysterious nature. The narrative in itself is overtly expressionist as it's partial auto-biographical and moves with fluidity removed from reasoning. It's a film that's entrancing and bewildering at the same time - an atmosphere that just seems to work. It certainly worked to make one of the most original films of the year.
- DirectorAlfonso CuarónStarsSandra BullockGeorge ClooneyEd HarrisDr Ryan Stone, an engineer on her first time on a space mission, and Matt Kowalski, an astronaut on his final expedition, have to survive in space after they are hit by debris while spacewalking.Honestly, I think there's little left to say about Gravity. It's a technologically progressive, suspenseful lost in space hit film that in some circles doubles as a horror film set in space. It's impressive in many aspects and is masterfully directed and I found it to be an enjoyable and memorable film-going experience. Very few films working on this level strike me with the same intensity and reverence for filmmaking.
- DirectorTerrence MalickStarsBen AffleckOlga KurylenkoJavier BardemAfter falling in love in Paris, Marina and Neil come to Oklahoma, where problems arise. Their church's Spanish-born pastor struggles with his faith, while Neil encounters a woman from his childhood.In the wake of The Tree of Life Malick's To the Wonder can easily be seen as a minor work. However, there is something moving in the way he has taken such grand and emotional concepts and rendered them into the everyday life of humankind. As in all Malick films, a soaring cinematography touts an enigmatic blend of poetry and philosophy but with To the Wonder it has been refined and cast specifically to the characters. And though it's a story of the complexities of love and relationship it stretches beyond the shallow depths of traditional cinematic expressions of the like if only by simply being beautiful and daring.
- DirectorNoah BaumbachStarsGreta GerwigMickey SumnerAdam DriverA New York woman apprentices for a dance company and throws herself headlong into her dreams, even as the possibility of realizing them dwindles.With Frances Ha Baumbach has found the bridge between the french new wave and GIRLS. Greta Gerwig remarkably plays Frances, a new york "dancer" who is actually more of a dreamer than a dancer. There is a slight sadness to her lofty goals but the overall whimsy of the film shines thorough. With some stellar black and white cinematography Baumbach achieves something successful and redeeming - I think we all were starting to lose hope for something as good as The Squid & The Whale (speaking of lofty goals) but, here it is!
- DirectorRob ZombieStarsSheri Moon ZombieMeg FosterBruce DavisonRadio DJ Heidi is sent a box containing a record--a "gift from the Lords". The sounds within the grooves trigger flashbacks of her town's violent past. Is Heidi going mad, or are the Lords back to take revenge on Salem, Massachusetts?Ken Russell and Dario Argento live in Rob Zombie's satanic panic throwback, The Lords of Salem. Here's an easy to hate film of the year - a simplistic story, choppy progression with an overt style over substance complex - but it's also the most noteworthy horror film of the year. Zombie has put out something original to himself and to the current stream of contemporary horror cinema - a bombastic, stylized, psychedelic slow burn with the most bold use of satanism I've ever seen on film. As mentioned above, Zombie is echoing the disturbing eclectic works of the likes of Russell and Argento. There's an underlying essence of oddity and ambiguity that makes this film something more than a run-of-the-mill spook-fest with all of modern horror's poor qualities. All of the Zombie "haters" really should be thanking him for being unique to the scene - I mean, how many generic ghost stories and paranormal crap-tivities can we endure?
- DirectorSpike JonzeStarsJoaquin PhoenixAmy AdamsScarlett JohanssonIn a near future, a lonely writer develops an unlikely relationship with an operating system designed to meet his every need.Joaquin Phoenix gives another stellar performance as Theodore Twombly in Spike Jonze's sci-fi romantic comedy, Her, in which he falls in love with the an artificially intelligent operating system. I found this film interesting in the way it dissects romantic relationships. It's hard not to think about the absurdity of a human-AI relationship but I feel as though Jonze wrote this well enough to, at least, point out that the absurdity is shallow at best (it’s just not that farfetched, really). There is also a lot to speak of on some meta level when comparing this film to Jonze's ex-wife's great film, Lost in Translation. Both films deal with individuals being alienated from their respective relationships (much like Jonze and Coppola must have felt) and both films have Scarlett Johansson taking her turn on each side of that alienation.
- DirectorHarmony KorineStarsVanessa HudgensSelena GomezAshley BensonFour college girls hold up a restaurant in order to fund their spring break vacation. While partying, drinking, and taking drugs, they are arrested, only to be bailed out by a drug and arms dealer.Art-house aggressor, Harmony Korine, returns with one of his most accessible films to date. This is not to say that Spring Breakers isn’t just as artistic or aggressive. Here’s a film flaunting a group of young college girls heading out to enjoy spring break in a true drug laden, booze soaked, pop rockin MTV fashion. That sounds about as interesting as any other Girls Gone Wild feature might be but the difference is that Korine takes this attitude, this PoV or dare I say philosophy to the pinnacle of its own brash violent idiocy transforming these objectified little girls into dominating feminist anti-heroes (arguably anyway). Of course, I don’t see Korine passing judgment here but the characters due themselves in – in a number of ways.
I also just have to mention James Franco as “Alien”. Honestly, Alien was one of the best characters of the year. With that said, crack up the Skrillex, slam some Four-loko and pretend you’re hip enough to hang with Selena Gomez in a ski-mask touting a gun. - DirectorZach WeintraubStarsJustine EisterKymberly WaldenIan WeintraubJustine left to sit quietly by and observe the early signs of her own deteriorating relationship.Lastly, I place this true (mumblecore?) gem on my top 10 of 2013. You Make Me Feel So Young is the latest feature from Zach Weintraub, who I’d guess is a die-hard do-it-yourself indie filmmaker generating clever witted and artistically fresh cinema. The film follows the story of Justine, a girl doing her best to become comfortable with her fading relationship. Weintraub makes it look easy by presenting a simple story in a simple setting but it’s the moody undertones and canted black and white melancholic style that serves it so well. And while that all sounds so drab there’s brief moments of comedy that carries the film along. Weintraub also has a way with long takes by toying with our perception. He commonly uses off-screen action and/or plays with the depth of field in an act of cinematic language – a sort of punch-line by way of focus. I chose this film to highlight in hopes that others might take the time to seek out good indie work like it. It’s far too easy to let Hollywood control your cinematic experience so please do yourself a favor and look for those under-appreciated filmmakers out there.