My Top 10 Films of 2013

10) Monsters University

Those who claim that prequels are nothing more than soulless cash-ins (and let’s be honest, there have been plenty of reasons to support this theory) should look up Pixar’s latest offering. Wittily scripted and flawlessly animated – try counting Sulley’s hairs! – it was the touching bromance between the two main characters that made Monsters University such a joy to sit through.

9) Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa

It was a particularly strong year for comedy, but while This Is The End and The World’s End felt a little too similar both in theme and title and Anchorman 2 inevitably didn’t live up to its predecessor’s legendary status, Alan Partridge’s feature length debut ended up nabbing the best laughs. Mundane, small scale and all the better for it, it plays out like Die Hard meets Dog Day Afternoon in Norwich for afternoon tea. As it turns out, Steve Coogan’s graceless DJ works just as well on the big screen as he does on the small one. Enjoy him, everyone else is.

8) Iron Man 3

It was always going to be a tough gig, following up The Avengers. Luckily for Marvel, putting Lethal Weapon scribe Shane Black in the director’s chair proved to be a smart decision, for IM3 is an impressive threequel that manages to be funny, action-packed and surprisingly cerebral on a psychological level – if you think about it, this is a film about a man who tries to overcome his insecurities by creating better mechanical versions of himself. Yes, Iron Patriot is pretty useless and fans were outraged about the Mandarin twist, but you’d be hard-pressed to find another superhero flick in 2013 that was as bold and ballsy as this. Who needs the Avengers? 

7) Pacific Rim

Giant robots versus giant monsters – it’s the sort of concept most people would dismiss as “juvenile”, the sort of activity you’d engage in the playground during your childhood but that you’ve now outgrown supposedly because you’ve “matured”. Fuck most people. In the hands of visionary director Guillermo Del Toro, Pacific Rim is a stylishly shot film that pays loving homage to the monster movies of the past, without forgetting to focus on the more human elements of the story, as each towering robot necessitates two pilots with a personal connection in order for them to function. The best blockbuster of the summer, hands and claws down.

6) Captain Phillips

It’s tricky picking between Zero Dark Thirty and Captain Phillips. Both are remarkable examples of guerrilla, documentary style filmmaking, but while the former chronicles a CIA operative’s hunt for Osama Bin Laden, the latter is the tale of an ordinary man’s fraught negotiation with a gang of Somali pirates and feels more relatable in comparison. What’s most impressive however is director Paul Greengrass’ resolve to avoid triumphalism and make us feel for the pirates too, as the odds are gradually stacked against them to the point of desperation. As for the titular captain’s nervous breakdown at the end of the film, it’s a heartbreaking scene and a powerful reminder that Tom Hanks is still one of Hollywood’s finest actors.

5) Filth

Some films are meant to be one-man shows and Filth is beyond doubt James McAvoy’s baby and his finest performance to date. As corrupt DS Bruce Robertson, he is a conniving little shit of a man with no morals to speak of, but somehow manages to keep us hooked in with his blend of ruthless ambition and seductive charisma. It’s the kind of role that in an ideal world would be up for an Oscar, but if the Academy was too afraid to nominate Michael Fassbender and his penis for last year’s Shame, there’s no chance in hell McAvoy will be picking up a golden baldie anytime soon. It doesn’t matter, for Filth remains regardless an excellent adaptation of Irivine Welsh’s book of the same name, and the closest fans will get to a Trainspotting follow-up. 

4) Rush  

If only there were more biopics like Rush. Instead of going through the overfamiliar rise and fall trajectory of other films of the genre, Peter Morgan’s script is more interested in the rivalry between playboy pilot James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth, reliably charming) and methodical driver Nicki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl, surprisingly profound) both of whom were at the centre of the F1 craze throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s. There’s no need to be a motor-head to appreciate what’s on show here, all you need to do is take in the strong performances and before you know it you’ll find yourself lapping up this riveting sports drama. It’s 2013’s Senna.  

3) Nebraska

Nebraska is one of those films that on the surface seems to be about nothing. This is mainly due to its minimal dialogue and static shots, while Alexander Payne’s decision to film in black and white is sure to put off mainstream viewers. Which is a pity, because it means they missed out on the most bittersweet movie of the year. Payne’s latest offering is a delicate portrayal of a family on its way to losing its paterfamilias to Alzheimer’s, with results ranging from amusing to tear-jerking. It’s easy to commend veteran actor Bruce Dern for his touching lead performance, but the truth is June Squibb, Will Forte and Breaking Bad’s Bob Odenkirk all deserve equal praise for pulling off the rarest of things in Hollywood: portraying a family that feels genuinely real, with all their subtle quirks and imperfections. 

2) Before Midnight

Iron Man 3 may have scooped up all the bucks at the box office, but back in the early summer days there was a small contingent of cinemagoers that was eagerly anticipating a different threequel. Picking up 9 years after we last saw them playfully flirt about in a Parisian apartment, this time we caught up with Jesse and Celine in Greece, who in the meantime have moved on from intellectualizing romance and chance encounters to debating adulthood and responsibilities they never thought they’d have to contend with when they first met in Vienna way back in the ‘90s. With nostalgic musings and one particularly nasty fight dominating most of the film, for some fans Before Midnight may be quite a departure from the previous rose-tinted installments but, in an industry that is constantly rebooting and remaking all of its star properties, this is clearly an indie franchise that is not afraid to mature with its characters. And for that reason, we should all be looking forward to seeing Jesse and Celine again in 2022.

1) Gravity

What contemporary Hollywood seems to be lacking the most is blockbusters with original high concepts. Far too often these days we see our multiplexes showing almost exclusively comic book movies, teen novel adaptations, reboots and sequels to movies that happened over 10 years ago that no one really wants to see. Gravity harks back to a time when audiences went to see a film purely because they were hooked on its gripping premise, and while there’s a chance that Alfonso Curaròn’s flick would have made its budget back on curiosity factor alone, it helps that he’s actually delivered a perfectly executed film that is both thrilling and stunning to look at. Majestic vistas of Earth, deadly shrapnel silently tearing up shuttles and a distressingly believable performance by Sandra Bullock all contribute towards a movie that begs to be seen on the big-screen or at the very least on a 55 inch HD TV. It’s that good.