Interference's Best Films Of 2013

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lazarus

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We probably wouldn't get enough participation for a poll this year, but at least we can post our own personal lists.

1. Laurence Anyways (Xavier Dolan, Canada)
2. The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino, Italy)
3. Stories We Tell (Sarah Polley, Canada)
4. Blancanieves (Pablo Berger, Spain)
5. The Wind Rises (Hayao Miyazaki, Japan)
6. Stoker (Park Chan-Wook, USA/UK)
7. 12 Years A Slave (Steve McQueen, UK/USA)
8. Her (Spike Jonez, USA)
9. In The House (François Ozon, France)
10. The Wolf Of Wall Street (Martin Scorsese, USA)

Honorable Mention: The Grandmaster (Wong Kar-Wai, China), Before Midnight (Richard Linklater, USA), The Past (Asghar Farhadi, France/Iran), Inside Llewyn Davis (Coen Bros, USA), Night Across The Street (Raúl Ruiz, Chile), To The Wonder (Terrence Malick, USA), The East (Zal Batmanlij, USA), All Is Lost (JC Chandor, USA), Faust (Alexander Sokurov, Russia), Upstream Color (Shane Carruth, USA), From Up On Poppy Hill (Goro Miyazaki, Japan), Blue Is The Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, France)

Acting Citations: Suzanne Clément (Laurence Anyways), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf Of Wall Street), Toni Servillo (The Great Beauty), Melvil Poupaud (Laurence Anyways), Julie Delpy (Before Midnight), Brit Marling (The East), Zhang Ziyi (The Grandmaster), Michael Polley (Stories We Tell), Chewitel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave), Pauline Burlet (The Past), Adele Exarchopoulos (Blue Is The Warmest Color), Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)


If anyone cares, here's some capsules for my Top 10 I wrote for my barely-used blog:

1. Laurence Anyways (Xavier Dolan, Canada)
One of the great relationship films, painted in both bold, colorful strokes and the most naked, candid details. A surprisingly wise perspective from a young auteur not even 25 years old putting himself in the shoes of a couple from their 30s to their 40s. Viewed by some as overlong and indulgent, there is as much soul as there is style, and characters you’re happy to spend more time with and sorry to say goodbye to. Heartbreaking yet rapturous for the future of the artform.

2. The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino, Italy)
Rome spread out before our eyes, its midnight mysteries and its aching decay, the wry observations of the aging party scene cognoscenti as well as the regrets and anxieties they keep close to the vest. Satirical and suspicious of institutions yet relishing the heartbeats and drumbeats of the revelers and saving a little room for lost love.

3. Stories We Tell (Sarah Polley, Canada)
In this quasi-documentary (and her third feature), actress Polley turns the camera on herself, or more accurately her entire extended family. The central mystery slowly and cleverly unfolds to the point where we are forced to re-evaluate all we have seen and heard. A brilliant exploration of the unreliable narrator and as the title makes plain, the nature of storytelling. And despite the narrative trickery a very moving experience.

4.Blancanieves (Pablo Berger, Spain)
Its novel thunder sadly stolen during production by the success of The Artist, this B&W silent homage draws inspiration from different, more continental sources, and one can see glimpses of early Russian, French, and German cinema in its visual approach. Yet the atmosphere and iconography are Spanish through and through, bringing a fresh angle to the Snow White tale. Unforgettable photography and music, and images that delight and haunt. An instant classic that feels more like an unearthed treasure from way back.

5. The Wind Rises (Hayao Miyazaki, Japan)
The (supposed) swan song from a legendary cinema artist, and surely the most towering voice in animation post-Walt Disney. Returning to his long obsession with flying machines, the story is Miyazaki’s most grounded in realism, and while ostensibly a loose biography of a notable Japanese figure, it also serves as a remembrance of the director’s own childhood. The pastoral imagery ranks alongside those of the old masters Ozu and Mizoguchi, and the scattered scenes where the imagination runs wild bear echoes of past flights of fancy from Miyazaki’s filmography. A fitting farewell.

6. Stoker (Park Chan-wook, USA/UK)
The English-language debut from Korean filmmaker Park may be dismissed as a simple genre exercise, but shows the director totally in command of cinematic language, featuring bravura camera movements and matched cuts. His follow-up to the modern vampire film Thirst runs along similar lines, minus the fangs and sanguinary excess, influenced by Hitchcock’s Shadow Of A Doubt (and perhaps Czech classic Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders), most notably in terms of the coming-of-age arc of its main character. This prim variation of Southern Gothic has a distinctly analog design, the only trace of technology a contemporary luxury car and an unused mobile phone. A genuinely creepy original in a tired genre.

7. 12 Years A Slave (Steve McQueen, UK/USA)
Yes, a brutally powerful representation of a dark period in history. But more importantly a tactile, sensory experience in a particular time and place. The rotation of a riverboat paddlewheel, the burning embers of a discarded distress letter, and the ambient sounds of the South, perpetual even when providing the soundtrack to disturbingly mundane atrocities. A rare work that rides the delicate balance between detached artistic presentation and visceral engagement (with noteworthy contributions from its actors).

8. Her (Spike Jonez, USA)
Exploring the age-old process of recovering from emotional wounds and returning to the fray, the film at times seems a variation on the subgenre of Wise Aliens Visit Earth To Teach Humanity A Lesson, rather than an unique comment on human interaction in the digital age. The creative production design aside, this is more valuable for its sensitivity to common traumas than the strangeness of its story (which is normal compared to Jonez’ collaborations with Charlie Kaufman), with a welcome dosage of humor.

9. In The House (François Ozon, France)
Voyeurism has been a key theme for filmmakers including Hitchcock, Michael Powell, Fritz Lang, and David Lynch. What sets this film apart is the lack of a reflexive comment about cinema, as it concerns itself with literary observation and fantasy, its main protagonists a perceptive (and perverted) creative writing student and his increasingly obsessed teacher. Its condemnation of bourgeois hypocrisy reminiscent of Chabrol but with the added twist of (once again) the unreliable narrator. Devilish fun.

10. The Wolf Of Wall Street (Martin Scorsese, USA)
On the surface not as poetic, reflective, or ambitious as much of his recent work, but in a sharp left turn Scorsese produces what is one of the most fast-paced and political films of his career: a relentless, cynical tableau of American greed and corruption. Firing breathlessly on all cylinders for much of its long running time, sequences are pumped up to maximum energy and volume, which abruptly drop out intermittently for dazzling, drawn out scenes of hilarious improvisation. This technique serves to keep the viewer breathless and off-kilter, forced to pause and come to terms with the collateral damage of the debauchery on display.
 
Participated in this podcast if anyone's interested.

http://theyshotpictures.com/they-shot-pictures-ep26-2013-year-in-review-part-1/

They Shot Pictures Ep#27: 2013 Year In Review – Part 2 |

Though not very useful probably, since I even say upfront I go by strict imdb dates so a lot of films are on my 2012 list that people saw this year, and I hadn't been to any festivals or shit this year, and my viewing of new film wasn't as strong as it could have been.

Anyway, a top 10 at this point?

Insidious 2
The World's End
Nobody's Daughter Haewon
The Grandmaster
Before Midnight
Wolf Children
The Past
Blue Jasmine
The Wolf of Wall Street
Our Sunhi
 
I saw Laurence at the 2012 AFI Fest but yeah I'm going by U.S. release dates. It's irrelevant with that film as it's probably my favorite of the last 5 years.

I haven't rewatched anything else yet besides Biancanieves. I'm going to check out the Chinese cut of the WKW soon so that might move up in the future.
 
Insidious 2 is really that good? I didn't see anything special in the first one. It was OK.

I'll have a list out sometime before the Oscars. Her, American Hustle, Before Midnight and Side Effects will be on there somewhere, but I've only seen 4 of the 9 best picture nominees so there's a lot of room for additions.
 
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This is what made the most impression for me so far.

1. 12 years a slave 9.0
2. Wolf of Wall Street 9.0
3. Before Midnight 9.0
4. The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug 9.0
5. American Hustle 8.5
6. Captain Phillips 8.5
7. Blue Jasmine 8.5
8. The World's End 8.0
9. Her 8.0
10. Pacific Rim 7.5

I still want to see Inside Llewyn Davis, Nebraska, The Grandmasters, The Wind Rises, The Hunt, The Great Beauty, Saving Mr. Banks, All is Lost, Dallas Buyers Club, and The Act of Killing. Ultimately I'll see these on video. Some of these might push some off titles from the top 10 but probably not.
 
Participated in this podcast if anyone's interested.

They Shot Pictures Ep#26: 2013 Year In Review – Part 1 |

They Shot Pictures Ep#27: 2013 Year In Review – Part 2 |

Though not very useful probably, since I even say upfront I go by strict imdb dates so a lot of films are on my 2012 list that people saw this year, and I hadn't been to any festivals or shit this year, and my viewing of new film wasn't as strong as it could have been.

Anyway, a top 10 at this point?

Insidious 2
The World's End
Nobody's Daughter Haewon
The Grandmaster
Before Midnight
Wolf Children
The Past
Blue Jasmine
The Wolf of Wall Street
Our Sunhi

Insidious 2 is sitting on the 'ol hard drive right now. I'll have to check that out soon and give your pod a listen.

Told myself I'd have a 2013 list ready by Jan 31st. It'll happen, gang.
 
I'm also shooting for the end of January, but looking at my list right now, I might be too embarrassed to post it.
 
Insidious 2 is really that good? I didn't see anything special in the first one. It was OK.

I'll have a list out sometime before the Oscars. Her, American Hustle, Before Midnight and Side Effects will be on there somewhere, but I've only seen 4 of the 9 best picture nominees so there's a lot of room for additions.

Insidious is one of my favorite horror films of the 21st century. Big fan of it and Wan's films less because they're scary or especially meaningful than because of their style, humor, visual expressiveness and Wan's really strong command of form and genre for firing off all the right pleasure centers in my brain. IMO, Insidious 2 is far and away his more interesting and enjoyable film to date.

Anyway the ranking of my list is somewhat arbitrary, though I did stick to the one I ultimately went with for the podcast just for continuity's sake. The Grandmaster and The World's End I've actually seen at least twice and they're probably stronger films on the whole. And I have two Hong Sang-Soo films on my list, as he's remarkably prolific and the closest thing we have to a modern day Eric Rohmer, he's easily one of my favorite working filmmakers, but it's his oeuvre as a continuing auteurist creative enterprise that is worth considering. He has standouts for sure, but nothing that excels so grandly above the rest (yet) as a My Night at Maud's or The Green Ray. Otherwise it would be easy to put more of his films at the top of my list every single year, which is no fun.

Major films from this year I've yet to see, ftw:

A Touch of Sin
The Wind Rises
Stray Dogs
Inside Llewyn Davis
Stranger by the Lake
Blue is the Warmest Color
Closed Curtain
Stories We Tell
The Act of Killing
The Missing Picture
 
Insidious Chapter 2 is so dope. Extrapolating from the first flick's gleefully baroque riff on the haunted house sub-genre to an even more expansive palette is a welcome change. so dope. Extrapolating from the first flick's gleefully baroque riff on the haunted house sub-genre to an even more expansive palette is a welcome change. The whole thing stood out to me as a study of prisms, the way flashlights can be refracted into a barrage of different colors, splitting the worlds of the living and the dead. Wan is churning out giallos that are in dialogue with the past & present, especially here. Seeing Jocelin Donohue as young Barbra Hershey was a nice surprise; I love me some House of the Devil.

The expanded mythology with overt nods to Psycho & The Shining operate in the framework of the first's dissection of Poltergeist, The Entity, and the rest of that ilk.

Really dug The Conjuring, but Wan's operating from a much more expressive and interesting place here.

and oh my god, the BTTF 2-esque returns to past events had me in fits. Fucking fantastic.
 
:drool:

Don't know if you ever saw Dolan's Heartbeats (aka Les Amours Imaginaires) but I found it somewhat insufferable if partially enjoyable. This was a giant leap forward. It's also shot in 1.33 so that should be a huge bonus for you.
 
I liked Heartbeats, but yeah fair description. 1.33 is all that matters. Will watch soon.
 
So far behind this year...have a list of everything notable (mostly via lists from Slant/The Dissolve) and plenty of Netflix list adds and DVD screener downloads, but it's slow going when you try to watch most of these with a girlfriend who has a full-time job, etc.

Some favorites I have seen:

The Act of Killing
Blue Is The Warmest Color
Computer Chess
Frances Ha
Spring Breakers
Wolf of Wall Street
 
I've seen half of Laz's list now. Her is my favorite of those I've seen, but The Great Beauty is terrific. It grows sadder and more haunting as it goes along, which prevents the gripping style of the film from having to carry everything. This is a relief, as the first half hour left me cold.

The first 10 minutes are gaudy but serve as an attractive way to introduce the cast. There are several more, quite similar scenes after that. It grows a bit numbing after a while, but that's the point (I disliked this excuse being used for Wolf of Wall Street's debauche, but I would have enjoyed that film infinitely more at Great Beauty's relatively slim 2:20).

It's a very meaningful film, but the meaningless/aimless nature of the lives of the characters makes for a dead spot or two in the script. Some rather dull conversation, a shot or two that seems to be there purely for the sake of aesthetic; there is some fat to be shed. On the bright side, it's mostly to our benefit because the cinematography and editing is truly artful. A number of times I purposely zoned out of the dialogue to focus on the lighting and scenery. It's a gorgeous film, full of creative shots that took me by surprise.
 
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Glad you gave that on a chance and liked it. Not a perfect film, but what peaks it has. The ending was surprisingly moving. My main issue was the friend's daughter abruptly disappearing from the story with little explanation/reflection. Considering how big a part she played in the film's middle third, I felt they gave her short shrift.
 
I fell asleep when we watched this the other night 25 minutes before the end. I made the mistake of picking it up from where I left off. Should've just started it over.

Anyways, I ended up giving it a pretty high score, simply because I found it a truly enjoyable, beautiful cinematic experience and I really can find myself getting wrapped up pretty strongly into films like that.

My one and only problem was the random indie song that popped up nearish to the middle of the film, when the friend's daughter dies. It felt kitschy and very Hollywood in the middle of what was, essentially, a Fellini throw-back film. Anytime I hear an indie song in a movie, I know the whole idea is that I'm supposed to feel something. I tend to sigh and go with it for most movies, but its inclusion in this one really rubbed me the wrong way.

Anyways, there's still a few films I haven't seen, but as it stands, I think this is basically my list:


  1. Side Effects
  2. Before Midnight
  3. The Hunt
  4. The Great Beauty (I'm kinda on the border about this one and the Hunt, they could probably easily switch places on any given day)
  5. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
  6. The World's End
  7. Her
  8. Frances Ha
  9. The Spectacular Now
  10. Dallas Buyers Club
Laz, I just noticed you saw The Wind Rises. Did you torrent it?
 
No, it screened at the AFI Fest back in November. Since it also received a brief Oscar-qualifying run here in December, I'm considering it a 2013 release.

Nice to hear The Great Beauty has another fan. Now if I can only convince everyone to see Laurence Anyways! You'll enjoy those soundtrack choices a lot more...
 
No, it screened at the AFI Fest back in November. Since it also received a brief Oscar-qualifying run here in December, I'm considering it a 2013 release.

Nice to hear The Great Beauty has another fan. Now if I can only convince everyone to see Laurence Anyways! You'll enjoy those soundtrack choices a lot more...

Ahhh. I'm kinda surprised that the Oscars also decided it was a 2013 release. Didn't they wait until Spirited Away was released/available in the States before nominating it? But I see what you're saying, the run in December is what qualified it.

Laurence Anyways is on the list, it's just a matter of getting around to it. :shifty:
 
Spirited Away was a 2001 release in Japan. It played festivals and got a limited run here in the fall of 2002. The wide release didn't happen until after the Oscars around March. Which Disney somehow managed to fuck up.

Ridiculous that the #1 grossing film in Japanese history couldn't make more than $10 million here.
 
I am very paranoid about Disney's relationship with Ghibli, and to this day insist that they purposely fucked that up.
 
They also did little promotion after it was nominated, choosing instead putting all their efforts behind Lilo & Stich. Luckily the Academy was smart enough to award the correct film.

Prob my favorite Oscar win ever.
 
My self-imposed post date has arrived. Here goes nothin'.

  1. The Wolf of Wall Street (dir. Martin Scorsese)
  2. The World’s End (dir. Edgar Wright)
  3. Spring Breakers (dir. Harmony Korine)
  4. Nebraska (dir. Alexander Payne)
  5. Before Midnight (dir. Richard Linklater)
  6. Frances Ha (dir. Noah Baumbach)
  7. Inside Llewyn Davis (dir. Joel & Ethan Coen)
  8. Drug War (dir. Johnnie To)
  9. 12 Years a Slave (dir. Steve McQueen)
  10. Upstream Color (dir. Shane Carruth)
  11. Mud (dir. Jeff Nichols)
  12. Her (dir. Spike Jonze)
  13. Trance (dir. Danny Boyle)
  14. Computer Chess (dir. Andrew Bujalski)
  15. Blue Ruin (dir. Jeremy Saulnier)
  16. Insidious Chapter 2 (dir. James Wan)
  17. Blue Jasmine (dir. Woody Allen)
  18. Behind the Candelabra (dir. Steven Soderbergh)
  19. You’re Next (dir. Adam Wingard)
  20. Fast & Furious 6 (dir. Justin Lin)
  21. This Is the End (dir. Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg)
  22. Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuarón)
  23. The Counselor (dir. Ridley Scott)
  24. Cheap Thrills (dir. E.L. Katz)
  25. Passion (dir. Brian De Palma)

Fave Male Performances:
Leading:
Leo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Simon Pegg, The World's End

Supporting:
James Franco, Spring Breakers
Matthew McConaughey, Mud & The Wolf of Wall Street
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill, The Wolf of Wall Street & This Is the End
Keith Stansfield, Short Term 12

Fave Female Performances:
Leading:
Amy Seimetz, Upstream Color
Greta Gerwig, Frances Ha
Julie Delpy, Before Midnight
Brie Larson, Short Term 12
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Supporting:
June Squibb, Nebraska
Cameron Diaz, The Counselor
Adepero Oduye, 12 Years a Slave
Rooney Mara, Side Effects
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

Ensemble:
12 Years a Slave
The World's End
Blue Jasmine
Computer Chess
Nebraska


Favorite Quote
Sam Elliott: [on John Milius] He doesn't make movies for pussies and he doesn't make movies for women. He makes movies for men; Milius

Worst Performances:
James Deen, The Canyons
Christian Bale, American Hustle
Carey Mulligan, Inside Llewyn Davis
Alexis Denisof, Much Ado About Nothing
Natalie Portman, Thor: The Dark World

They Deserve Better:
Amy Adams, American Hustle
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Pain & Gain
Kristin Scott Thomas, Only God Forgives
Idris Elba, Pacific Rim
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Escape Plan

Cinematography:
Bruno Delbonnel, Inside Llewyn Davis
Matthias Grunsky, Computer Chess
Steven Soderbergh, Side Effects
Sean Bobbitt, 12 Years a Slave
Shane Carruth, Upstream Color

Editing:
Allen Leung & David M. Richardson, Drug War
Paul Machliss, The World's End
Jennifer Lame, Frances Ha
Douglas Crise, Spring Breakers
Thelma Schoonmaker, The Wolf of Wall Street

Screenplay:
John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave
Bob Nelson, Nebraska
Terence Winter, The Wolf of Wall Street
Jeff Nichols, Mud
Edgar Wright & Simon Pegg, The World's End

Soundtrack/Score:
The Wolf of Wall Street
Only God Forgives
The Bling Ring
Inside Llewyn Davis
You're Next


Biggest Surprise:
Cheap Thrills
This Is the End
Computer Chess
Blue Ruin
The Counselor


Biggest Disappointment:
Star Trek into Darkness
Only God Forgives
American Hustle
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
A Field in England


Craziest Movie:
Trance
The Counselor
The Act of Killing
Lords of Salem
Side Effects


Favorite Screening:
The Lords of Salem - SXSW Midnight at the Long Center in Austin, TX
Trance - Matineé after 3 hours of sleep at the Tallahassee Mall in Tallahassee, FL
The Wolf of Wall Street - Christmas Eve employee screening at the Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter Lane in Austin, TX
Spring Breakers - Packed full of South Florida kids at the Tallahassee Mall in Tallahassee, FL
Frances Ha - Breaking through post-grad ennui at the Tropic Cinema in Key West, FL

The 'S' Doesn't Stand for "Hope," It Stands for Shit:
Man of Steel

13 I Missed from 2013:
Ain't Them Bodies Saints (dir. David Lowery)
Berberian Sound Studio (dir. Peter Strickland)
Blue Is the Warmest Color (dir. Abdellatif Kechiche)
Captain Phillips (dir. Paul Greengrass)
The Grandmaster (dir. Wong Kar-Wai)
The Great Beauty (dir. Pablo Sorrentino)
In the House (dir. François Ozon)
Leviathan (dir. Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel)
No (dir. Pablo Larraín)
Post Tenebras Lux (dir. Carlos Reygadas)
Stoker (dir. Park Chan-wook)
Stories We Tell (dir. Sarah Polley)
To the Wonder (dir. Terrence Malick)
 
If there was a 2 hour edit of Wolf of Wall Street, it would be top 5 on my list, whenever I make it. Somewhere around the shipwreck I started to get restless and I didn't find the comedown in the final half hour to be much of a payoff. Very Goodfellas-esque, only I didn't get as attached to the protagonist. But clearly I'm in the minority there.

You have to see Great Beauty. You don't need to see To the Wonder.
 
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