It's true of course that "best" is a bit of a slippery term. It kind of depends on who you're asking and what standards, personal or otherwise, they're applying. Plus, the year ain't quite over yet and your faithful reporter cannot claim to have seen the second part of The Hobbit yet, so, all bets are hedged on that one.
Jumping the gun on the Hobbit though probably isn't such a leap of faith. Since it was made pretty much simultaneously with part 1, it's pretty safe to assume it will replicate the former's same pros and cons: to be precise, more fresh humor than we'd anticipated, but a bit too much in the action thing. One of the ingredients of LOTR's success was the sure handed balancing of action adventure and introspection (all that soul searching, battling the evil within, stuff). Sadly, the initial installment of the Hobbit strayed too far toward the action end of the spectrum. Who knows, though, perhaps the balance has been restored in the editing room. We will see.
Between though what's been released and what our secret sources have given us access to ahead of the gen-pop, we feel comfortable in declaring for the best movies of 2013 - or, more precisely, the best movie! One criterion of course is to let the people have their say. They vote with their hard earned dollars and that at least deserves honorable mention.
The winner in this category would appear to be Iron Man 3, which this morning Box Office Mojo had listed as pushing $410 million Shekels gross. This fact, I confess, blows my mind. Who would have predicted that the star of The Pick-Up Artist and Two Girls and a Guy, or the purveyor of Larry Paul from the Ally McBeal show, would wind up being the superhero star of a megabuck successful action franchise? Not I. That's almost as weird as Tobey Maguire being the superhero star of a megabuck successful action franchise. Almost as weird.
But, no, this is no democracy here at The Best Movies of 2013. We're going to evaluate on something more than merely bums in seats. It's quite possible that the best movie of the year actually was the delightful and intriguing Sound City. This documentary tells the story of one of the best kept secrets of both American rock and the San Fernando Valley. Tucked away discreetly amid rows of ramshackle warehouses, this extraordinary studio, on the strength of its technical excellence would win its way into a legendary place within the subculture of American pop and rock stars.
Those ranging from Fleetwood Mac to Neil Young, to Nirvana and Metallica made the trek to the studio so far off the beaten track. The film tells the story of the studio through the eyes of those whose music was so influenced by its contribution to the contemporary music sound. This is really a great movie experience. However, really, we're not going to be so namby-pamby as to name a doc best movie of the year. Come on, now.
Instead, here at Best Movies of 2013, we're getting ahead of the curve and declaring the soul scorching Le Week-End as the best film of the year. No, it's not a foreign film (that would be as bad as declaring a doc best movie). The Frenchish sounding title denotes the location of the action, set in Paris. There a Brit couple, fantastically portrayed by amazingly still hauntingly beautiful Lindsay Duncan and the almost always compelling Jim Broadbent.
I really don't want to say too much about the story and its exquisite dialogue. It's so full of nuanced and subtle cruelty that it really has to be experienced firsthand to be appreciated. I'll just say, if you enjoyed Richard Linklater's moving Before Sunset series, try to imagine the last days of Jesse and Celine's deteriorating relationship, when all the clever quips and observations have degenerated into passive aggressive jousting. This is really something special.
Also needing special mention is the supporting role provided by Jeff Goldblum, another stellar contribution to his later career forte. This one still hasn't equaled the dark menace of his great contribution to Igby Goes Down, but it's still a pretty great performance. One for which I suspect the tall guy will long be remembered.
So, that's our story and we're sticking with it. There were some other really good movies in 2013, which have received a well deserved not. It is though Le Week-End, dark and brooding, funny and cruel, scorching the soul and maybe welling up just a tear or two, which is our pick for the very best movie of 2013. And, if you think we're wrong, well, tell us why.
Jumping the gun on the Hobbit though probably isn't such a leap of faith. Since it was made pretty much simultaneously with part 1, it's pretty safe to assume it will replicate the former's same pros and cons: to be precise, more fresh humor than we'd anticipated, but a bit too much in the action thing. One of the ingredients of LOTR's success was the sure handed balancing of action adventure and introspection (all that soul searching, battling the evil within, stuff). Sadly, the initial installment of the Hobbit strayed too far toward the action end of the spectrum. Who knows, though, perhaps the balance has been restored in the editing room. We will see.
Between though what's been released and what our secret sources have given us access to ahead of the gen-pop, we feel comfortable in declaring for the best movies of 2013 - or, more precisely, the best movie! One criterion of course is to let the people have their say. They vote with their hard earned dollars and that at least deserves honorable mention.
The winner in this category would appear to be Iron Man 3, which this morning Box Office Mojo had listed as pushing $410 million Shekels gross. This fact, I confess, blows my mind. Who would have predicted that the star of The Pick-Up Artist and Two Girls and a Guy, or the purveyor of Larry Paul from the Ally McBeal show, would wind up being the superhero star of a megabuck successful action franchise? Not I. That's almost as weird as Tobey Maguire being the superhero star of a megabuck successful action franchise. Almost as weird.
But, no, this is no democracy here at The Best Movies of 2013. We're going to evaluate on something more than merely bums in seats. It's quite possible that the best movie of the year actually was the delightful and intriguing Sound City. This documentary tells the story of one of the best kept secrets of both American rock and the San Fernando Valley. Tucked away discreetly amid rows of ramshackle warehouses, this extraordinary studio, on the strength of its technical excellence would win its way into a legendary place within the subculture of American pop and rock stars.
Those ranging from Fleetwood Mac to Neil Young, to Nirvana and Metallica made the trek to the studio so far off the beaten track. The film tells the story of the studio through the eyes of those whose music was so influenced by its contribution to the contemporary music sound. This is really a great movie experience. However, really, we're not going to be so namby-pamby as to name a doc best movie of the year. Come on, now.
Instead, here at Best Movies of 2013, we're getting ahead of the curve and declaring the soul scorching Le Week-End as the best film of the year. No, it's not a foreign film (that would be as bad as declaring a doc best movie). The Frenchish sounding title denotes the location of the action, set in Paris. There a Brit couple, fantastically portrayed by amazingly still hauntingly beautiful Lindsay Duncan and the almost always compelling Jim Broadbent.
I really don't want to say too much about the story and its exquisite dialogue. It's so full of nuanced and subtle cruelty that it really has to be experienced firsthand to be appreciated. I'll just say, if you enjoyed Richard Linklater's moving Before Sunset series, try to imagine the last days of Jesse and Celine's deteriorating relationship, when all the clever quips and observations have degenerated into passive aggressive jousting. This is really something special.
Also needing special mention is the supporting role provided by Jeff Goldblum, another stellar contribution to his later career forte. This one still hasn't equaled the dark menace of his great contribution to Igby Goes Down, but it's still a pretty great performance. One for which I suspect the tall guy will long be remembered.
So, that's our story and we're sticking with it. There were some other really good movies in 2013, which have received a well deserved not. It is though Le Week-End, dark and brooding, funny and cruel, scorching the soul and maybe welling up just a tear or two, which is our pick for the very best movie of 2013. And, if you think we're wrong, well, tell us why.
About the Author:
Mickey Jhonny regularly writes on television and popular culture. Learn about a popular culture phenomenon in his great piece on The Walking Dead Fanfiction.
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