I think 2013 has been a surprisingly strong year for movies. Okay, maybe not BIG movies, but there have been many smaller films that, to me, will rank high when the year comes to a close. I decided to make June 30 the cut-off here, so any film that has not officially opened before then (that I’ve already seen) is not here—hence, no “Blue Jasmine.” And of course, there are plenty of movies I still need to see that could make a dent: “Leviathan,” “Beyond the Hills,” “Simon Killer,” “The Act of Killing.” You’ll note that there is plenty of 2012 product here, but I am considering any film actually released in 2013 in North America is fair game. This list may change dramatically tomorrow, but today, in random order, here it is:
- “Stories We Tell”
- “Frances Ha”
- “The Place Beyond the Pines”
- “Upstream Color”
- “Before Midnight”
- “The Bling Ring”
- “Lore”
- “Mud”
- “No”
- “This is the End”
Some others that at the very least are in the conversation, for me: “The Gatekeepers,” “Side Effects,” “Room 237,” “Like Someone in Love,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “Fill the Void,” “Spring Breakers,” “To the Wonder,” “Something in the Air” (yes, I think I’ve completely changed my mind on this one), “Ginger and Rosa.”
What do others think? Here are several lists of 2013’s halfway-point bests:
- AV Club
- Scott Tobias
- The Dissolve
- The Playlist (The Playlist’s worst-of-2013 list is here.)
- Variety
- Indiewire
- The End of Cinema (the “best 2012 movies of 2013”)
- Rope of Silicon (best and worst)
“Upstream Color” still from the film’s official site.