Best of 2013: Top 30 Songs

My favorite songs from 2013. I limited my selections to a maximum of two songs per artist (one artist technically appears on this list three times, but once as part of a collaboration, so I made an exception), lest this list be made up almost entirely of songs from Tegan and Sara, Chvrches and Dessa.

Honerable Mention: Bo Burnham, "Repeat Stuff"
It's hard to judge satirical songs with the same gauge as normal music, but I wanted to include this nice evisceration of pop artists on my list. Burnham is a talented comedian, and this song is a good compliment to his previous take-down of the genre, 2010's "Art is Dead".

30. The Joy Formidable, "Silent Treatment (William Orbit mix)"
While the acoustic album version of this track is also good, legendary producer William Orbit knows a thing or two about sprucing up even already-good songs.

29. Sleigh Bells, "Sugarcane"
Good melodic noise.

28. The 1975, "Sex"
A song about mutual attraction with a girl who, unfortunately, already has a boyfriend.

27. Her Royal Harness, "Unseen"
The two members of Her Royal Harness met on a message board when they got into an argument about a band. Eventually they realized their sensibilities were complimentary, and I'm glad they did.

26. Skylar Grey, "Slowly Freaking Out"
Holly Brook failed to find success with her first album. So she renamed herself Skylar Grey, and Skylar's debut album hit #8 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. So, it worked, I guess.

25. The Killers, "Just Another Girl"
This appears as a bonus track on the band's first Greatest Hits album.

24. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, "Sacrilege"
Karen O can do no wrong by me.

23. Regina Spektor, "You've Got Time"
This is used as the opening theme for Netflix's hit series Orange is the New Black.

22. The Julie Ruin, "Ha Ha Ha"
Former Bikini Kill and Le Tigre frontwoman/punk-pop-icon Kathleen Hanna revived her old Julie Ruin project this year.

21. Lissie, "The Habit"
Lissie's new album is not as good as her first, but this song fits right in with her best.

20. Lady Gaga, "Applause"
Lady Gaga's latest album is mostly filled with misses, as she struggles in which direction to go, artistically-speaking. But this song looks backwards instead of ahead, and would fit in quite nicely with tracks on her debut album, "The Fame".

19. Marina and the Diamonds & Charli XCX, "Just Desserts"
Marina Diamandis and Charli XCX spent much of the past year touring together. Along the way they hopped into the studio together and recorded this track, which they then released for free as a gift to their fans.

18. VNV Nation, "Retaliate"
VNV Nation's songs tend to sound the same, but I never get sick of them.

17. Charli XCX, "SuperLove"
The first single off of her eventual second album is a reassuring sign of things to come from this talented pop star.

16. Yuna, "Rescue"
Yuna deserves to be a star.

15. Grouplove, "Ways to Go"
This band always sound like they're just having fun.

14. Sleigh Bells, "Young Legends"
This is the most melodic song the duo have released since their breakout hit, "Rill Rill".

13. Charli XCX, "Nuclear Seasons"
A solid opening track on what was one of my favorite pop records of the year.

12. Haim, "The Wire"
This three-sister band got a lot of well-deserved buzz this year.

11. The Joy Formidable, "This Ladder is Ours"
The serene orchestral opening soon gives way to what the band does best: big guitar sounds and Ritzy Bryan's assured vocals.

10. The 1975, "Chocolate"
One of the hookiest guitar lines of the year.

9. Dessa, "Warsaw"
I want to adopt the line "Pray for rain, but brace for whiskey" as a life philosophy.

8. Esben and the Witch, "Deathwaltz"
This trio gets better with each new record.

7. Chvrches, "We Sink"
"We Sink" pulls off the tricky perspective of describing being in a failing relationship, but one that still has hope left in it, if only the couple at its center can get their shit together.

6. Tegan and Sara, "How Come You Don't Want Me"
I'm always slightly drawn to self-loathing post-breakup songs, and this may be the best I've heard yet.

5. The Naked and Famous, "Hearts Like Ours"
An even better single than their breakout, the ubiquitous "Young Blood".

4. Oh Land, "Renaissance Girls"
Oh Land is another imported pop star that deserves to be a far bigger success in the US than she currently is.

3. Chvrches, "Tether"
A song divided: the first half of the track covers a dependent relationship, then a quiet moment in the middle where she finds the strength to let go, and the song's latter half rejoices. It's an emotional journey crammed into less than five minutes.

2. Dessa, "Call Off Your Ghost"
The closest that Dessa has come to a pop song. If this is any indication, the genre would be stronger if she became a part of it.

1. Tegan and Sara, "Drove Me Wild"
This would have felt right at home on the pops charts in 1987. The catchiest song I've heard all year. And also ever.

Best of 2013: Top 10 Albums

My picks for the Top 10 Albums of 2013

10.  The 1975, "The 1975"

Mostly an amalgam of the band's previous four EPs, their self-titled debut full-length is a hook-filled collection of pop-rock that has already spawned five singles in the UK. The album charted at #1 in its first week of release in the UK. It's slowly gaining traction in the US, largely on the strength of its breakout single "Chocolate" and its many YouTube covers.

9. Sleigh Bells, "Bitter Rivals"

On their third release, the pop-noise duo have finally dialed back the distortion a little bit to reveal more of the pleasant melodies that have always served as the foundation of their best songs. The result is their best album to date. Not that the noise goes away entirely, of course. They wouldn't be Sleigh Bells if their songs weren't noisy.

8. Yuna, "Nocturnal"

I didn't do a Top Albums list for 2012, but if I had, Yuna's debut self-titled album would have been #1. It was a nearly flawless work of songwriting, so her follow-up was almost certain to be a letdown by comparison. "Nocturnal" is still a very good album, but it doesn't really get going until the album's back half. Once it gets going, however, it shows that Yuna is still a force to be reckoned with.

7. Oh Land, "Wish Bone"

Oh Land's sophomore album improves upon her impressive debut in nearly every way. The production is better, her voice is smoother, the singles are stronger, and the overall quality is more consistent. It's everything a listener wants a second album from a promising artist to be.

6. The Naked and Famous, "In Rolling Waves"

The Naked and Famous expand their sound on their second album, to mostly positive effect. Apart from the album's two singles, however, none of the other songs really stand out in the way that songs on their debut album did. Instead they vanish into the album's overall soundscape. That the soundscape is very well done and appealing is the album's saving grace.

5.  Charli XCX, "True Romance"

Like The 1975, Charli XCX is a UK popstar that is starting to break into the US market, largely thanks to her involvement with the inescapable dance hit "I Love It" from Icona Pop and an opening spot touring with Ellie Goulding. "True Romance" is a strong debut, a solid pop record with five singles to its credit. Looking forward to hearing more from her, which should be soon since she already has a follow-up record being released later this year.

4. The Joy Formidable, "Wolf's Law"

The Joy Formidable has always sounded like a far bigger band than they look. They are arena-sized performers stuffed into the body of an indie-rock group. Wolf's Law, the band's third proper album and second with a major label, finds the band reeling-in its sound just enough to keep things from getting out of control (as it occasionally seemed to on their major label debut), but not so much that it will stop them from blowing out a speaker or two. This is a good balance for them to have, as the band has never sounded better than they do here.

3. Dessa, "Parts of Speech"

Dessa was my favorite musical discovery of the year. After devouring her back catalog, it becomes clear that "Parts of Speech" is absolutely her most accomplished work to date. The Minnesota-based rapper/singer genre-hops from song to song, each of which is led by perhaps the strongest lyrics of the year. She's angry, sad, emboldened, regretful, and everything in between. And she always knows exactly how to express it.

2. Chvrches, "The Bones of What You Believe"

There is not a single weak track on the album. Not a single one. That's hard for any band to do, let alone a relatively new band releasing their first record. It's full of melodic hooks from opening until closing, backed by intelligent songwriting and lyrics (not surprising considering that Lauren Mayberry, the band's lead singer, has a law degree and a Masters in Journalism) not often found in EDM music. In almost any other year, this would have been my #1 album without question...

1. Tegan and Sara, "Heartthrob"

...but 2013 was the year Tegan and Sara released "Heartthrob", their homage to 80's pop music that manages to function both as a great tribute and as a culmination of the growth the Quinn sisters have experienced as songwriters in their 17 years(!) as performers. It is a perfect pop record. And apparently Tegan didn't even want to do it, eventually relenting because Sara insisted on doing a pure pop album. I'm extremely happy she went along with it, as my two favorite tracks are both Tegan tracks (T&S fans quickly learn to spot the Tegan songs from the Sara songs, and not just by their voices).

For example, this is a Sara song:

And this is a Tegan song:

Best of 2013: Top 20 Movies, part 2

NOTE: the order of these posts is changing slightly from the order I initially stated. Today I'm posting Part 2 of my Top Films of 2013 instead of the Top Albums list. Both the Top Albums and Top Songs lists will be posted tomorrow, with my Oscar predictions still being posted on Friday.
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My top 20 films of 2013.

10. All is Lost

No one would have guessed that writer/director J.C. Chandor, who received an Oscar nomination for his extremely-talky Margin Call script, would follow up that effort with a film so sparse that the script was supposedly only 32 pages long. But he did, and the result is impressive. Robert Redford, the film's sole actor, anchors a nearly-dialogue free tale of a man struggling to stay alive at sea as incident after incident make that task increasingly unlikely. Man vs. nature tales are no stranger to film, but rarely is the focus narrowed down so specifically as it is here. And Redford, a seasoned actor if ever there was one, knows to just play each scene for itself, without nodding towards a larger theme. He's just a guy trying to solve the problem that's in front of him. And we're rooting for him to succeed.

9. Oblivion

Possible spoiler alert (depending on if you've seen the movie I'm about to compare Oblivion to).
At it's core, Oblivion is basically 2009's sci-fi gem Moon, but a lot prettier and with 20x the budget. There are a few more fireworks, but the theme is largely the same. As a result, what would be a thrilling science fiction movie on its own can start to feel a bit like it's treading on an already-beaten path. But if you can shake that sense, it's an entertaining and gorgeous-looking film.

8. Dallas Buyers Club

Man vs. The System dramas based on true stories are a dime a dozen. Dallas Buyers Club succeeds because it has Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto giving 110% in their roles (and Jennifer Garner trying her gosh-darndest, which is really the most you can ever ask of her). This is an acting showcase, and the leads are up to the challenge and then some.

7. You're Next

A slasher film that subverts expectations, You're Next initially seems like a dysfunctional family drama before crossbow bolts start smashing through the windows. Privileged adult siblings gather at their parents' remote estate for dinner, barely masking their resentments and petty jealousies. Then people start dying off, being hunted down by intruders wearing animal masks. But one of the would-be victims is more capable and dangerous than they realize. Tense and darkly funny throughout, You're Next is a huge showcase for the emerging "mumblegore" genre (a hybrid of mumblecore's dialogue-and-character driven material and independent horror's nostalgic take on 70's and 80's era horror tropes), featuring as many directors in roles as it does actors. Mumblecore maestro Joe Swanberg is hilarious in the role of the judgmental older brother, so self-righteous that he continues talking shit to his siblings even while an arrow is sticking out of his shoulder blade. Amy Seimtez also has a funny extended cameo as the youngest sibling, the "daddy's little angel" archetype. Leading it all is Aussie actress Sharni Vinson, whose biggest role to date has been in Step Up 3D. Here she more than capably assumes the film's lead as a girlfriend to one of the siblings who is stronger than anyone expects. You're Next is a strong genre film with enough surprises up its sleeves to overcome the familiar plot setup.

6. The World's End

Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright's concluding chapter of the loosely-affiliated "Cornetto Trilogy" improves upon the trio's last effort, the very good Hot Fuzz (2004's Shaun of the Dead rounds out the trilogy). A getting-the-gang-back-together plot that also features an alien invasion and that overall serves as a metaphor for alcoholism is not an easy thing to pull off, but the gang has just the chops to do so. Wright has proven himself to be a master behind the camera (his rhythmic fight sequences are the highlight of any of his films, this one included), Pegg has never been better than he is here, and Frost shows new talents by playing against type as the film's straight man. An entertaining and occasionally poignant final chapter to a superior thematic "trilogy".

5. Captain Phillips

Like with his stellar United 93, Paul Greengrass' Captain Phillips askews backstory for immediacy. The effect is similarly electrifying. We may not know that much about Tom Hank's titular captain, but we're rooting for him to find a way out of the nightmare that has ensnared him. Just like in United 93 and Apollo 13, Greengrass and Hanks manage to create a large amount of tension and suspense even though most of the audience already knows how the story will end. That's no small feat.

4. The Gatekeepers

This documentary combines interviews with every living head of the Shin Bet, Israel's state security and intelligence service (similar to the US's NSA and Homeland Security) to give what amounts to an oral history of the organization. The interviewees differ in their degrees of candor, with some openly lamenting bad decisions while others refuse to acknowledge even a small degree of fault in their actions. The end result is fascinating, especially as some of the interviewees' start to criticize their predecessors and/or successors. The film demonstrates wonderfully the way a powerful country's security decisions/policies can vary wildly depending on the man tasked with enforcing them.

3. Gravity

Gravity is one of the best-looking films ever made. Yeah, I said it. It's a visual feast, filled with wonder and adrenalin in equal parts. It would be a classic if the visuals weren't hung on such a threadbare plot and someone other than Sandra Bullock was the film's lead. Bullock is a talented actress, and she tries really hard here, but she doesn't come across as a character so much as just "Sandra Bullock in a space suit". George Clooney can be more forgiven for mainly playing an astronaut version of himself here, as his character is kinda written that way. Still, most people won't care about that stuff until after the movie has released them from its grip, and by then who really cares that much?

2. The Wolf of Wall Street

It's a remarkable feat that Martin Scorsese's longest film feels like one of his shortest. The Wolf of Wall Street dives into a sea of excess and then swims with all its might into deeper and deeper waters. All of the characters are horrible people, but we don't care as we watch them gleefully overindulging in everything they possibly can. The result is more of a demented black comedy than a drama, and is easily Scorsese's funniest film (sorry After Hours, I still love you dearly though). Scorsese himself overindulges as director, using damn near every filmmaking trick he's ever learned. The camera whips and pans frantically one moment, then draws out a long take in the next moment. Scenes blend into one another, and characters move in and out of the 4th wall without breaking stride. And Leonardo DiCaprio, the perfect choice for this role, gets to show the audience some new tricks. DiCaprio is one of the most recognizable faces in film, and yet I doubt anyone knew how capable of physical comedy he could be. A late-film sequence involving a high dose of quaaludes becomes a wordless struggle against his own useless body, and the scene is so good that it should be his Oscar clip.

1. Upstream Color

Shane Carruth makes films for audiences to obsess over. Like in his infamous debut, Primer (made for only $7,000, and on actual filmstock, no less), Upstream Color's story doesn't 100% reveal itself upon first viewing. And not necessarily on the second viewing, either. Carruth does the rarest of things as a writer/director: he trusts that his audience is patient and intelligent enough to put scattered pieces together themselves. Everything the audience needs to know about the plot is on screen, just not in the typical way. While Carruth's praises tend to be about his dense, complicated plotting, he has also revealed himself to be a very talented cinematographer. Primer rarely gets credit for how good it looks (especially for the debut film of a man with no formal filmmaking education). Upstream Color sees Carruth jumping straight into Terrence Malick territory with his visuals. Only 2 movies into his career, Shane Carruth is proving to be one of the best auteurs currently working.
I'm intentionally not summarizing the plot here, because that would be a futile attempt. The plot is too abstract for description. And yet, after a few viewings, it's also not abstract at all. Trust me, it does eventually make sense. And it's amazing.

Best of 2013: Top 20 Movies, Part 1

My top 20 films of 2013.

20. Spring Breakers

I hate that a Harmony Korine film made my list, but I have to acknowledge the fine bit of cinema that Spring Breakers is. It's all about bright colors, loud noises and sleazy excess. It's a sensorially-assaulting experience, and the story at its center only exists so there's a sense of structure. A film like this lives scene by scene, and ultimately it doesn't matter how they all go together. There are enough individual moments in this movie to make the experience of watching it a worthwhile one. Even the stunt casting (the 4 rebellious main characters are played by 3 ex-Disney stars and the director's wife) ends up working, which on paper shouldn't have.

19. Iron Man 3

As much as the Marvel movies all need to fit into the same universe, and as much as the Iron Man franchise has developed its own kind of rhythm, Iron Man 3 is 100% a Shane Black film. Black made his name writing big Hollywood films that revel in character self-loathing and sarcasm, and those qualities have carried over into his directorial work. Iron Man 3 marks a fitting reunion for Black and Robert Downey Jr. Downey starred in Black's directing debut, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Downey was then offered the role of Tony Stark in the first Iron Man film based largely on his performance from Black's film. So Black knows exactly what kind of dialogue to put in Downey's mouth. Black may not be great at depth, but the 3rd film in the franchise is certainly its funniest. The scene with the Mandarin (if you've seen it, you know the one) is the single funniest scene I saw all year.

18. Europa Report

The opposite of trash like Apollo 18, Europa Report is a found-footage style science fiction movie that puts the emphasis on science. A crew of international astronauts is sent on a mission to study the ice of Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. As is always the case in these films, they encounter difficulties both on the way there and once they've arrived. The reason this film stands head and shoulders above its peers is that it embraces the professionalism of the characters. Problems are dealt with using reason and proper procedure. When alternate methods must be used, they are done so intelligently. The appeal of Europa Report comes from watching an elite group of people struggle to accomplish something unprecedented. And the end result is very appealing indeed.

17. Drinking Buddies

Mumblecore stalwart Joe Swanberg takes a step towards directing a real mainstream movie with Drinking Buddies. His mumblecore sensibilities are still there, of course, as the film is mostly just people hanging out and talking. But look, it has real stars in it! There's Olivia Wilde, being irresistibly appealing as a press agent for a microbrewery. Jake Johnson is one of the brewmasters, who has a really, really close rapport with Wilde. And there's an actual Oscar nominee, Anna Kendrick, as Johnson's girlfriend! And also Ron Livingston is there for a while. This is first and foremost a hangout movie, where the joy comes from just watching these characters live. There's some drama involved, and some of the story beats look formulaic at first (though don't end that way), but they're not the movie's heart.

16. Lone Survivor

It may double as a recruitment ad for the military, but Peter Berg's film is also a fast, tense action thriller. Taylor Kitsch leads a team of Navy SEALs including Mark Wahlberg, Ben Foster and Emile Hirsch on a mission that goes wrong, leaving the 4 men to flee from a group of pursuing Taliban fighters. Faulty equipment and a disorganized support effort thwart their chances of escape, and the fighting gets very ugly. There's no real depth here, but there is a lot of adrenalin, which works wonders in its own way.

15. The East

While not up to the quality of her previous screenwriting efforts, writer/star Brit Marling's The East is still an occasionally gripping drama about a corporate spy sent by boss Patricia Clarkson to infiltrate a group of eco-terrorists led by a seductively charming Alexander Skarsgard and a suspicious Ellen Page. The story hits some well-worn tropes ("oh no, the undercover agent is getting too deep!" and "maybe the good guys aren't so good after all"), but the acting and directing (Marling reteams with her Sound of My Voice director Zal Batmanglij) keeps the film running along relatively smoothly.

14. American Hustle

"Serious pianists sometimes pound out a little honky-tonk, just for fun." That's how Roger Ebert opens his review of Steven Soderberg's Ocean's Eleven. His review goes on to suggest that while the movie is slickly made and enjoyable, it is ultimately just an exercise in fun between a talented director's more worthy projects. I would describe American Hustle the same way. It's David O. Russell having some fun with his friends, and very little more. The film was overhyped, and has experienced some backlash as a result. The truth is that the film is a good one but not a great one, though it is plenty fun for the duration of its running time.

13. 12 Years a Slave

For all of the positive hype surrounding it, I thought the film actually seemed kind of slight. There are certainly a few powerful scenes and some great performances, but it still felt like the movie could have used an extra 30 minutes of character scenes to fill in the gaps. It's a good movie, but perhaps a touch overrated.

12. Sound City

Half nostalgia documentary, half performance film, David Grohl's directorial debut is above all else a love letter to the music studio. Not just the studio of the title, but to the music studio as a concept; a place where likeminded musicians can gather to create something. Famous and non-famous interviewees all gush about the experiences they had recording at Sound City. Then Grohl buys the legendary Sound City recording board (the studio closed), installs it in his own studio, and invites his friends and some of the Sound City alumni to join him in recording an album. As a documentary, it's a bit shallow. As a love letter, it's remarkably heartfelt.

11. Prince Avalanche

Early in his career, David Gorden Green was often compared (perhaps a bit hyperbolically) to the legendary Terence Malick. Then he took a sudden u-turn into directing terrible stoner comedies, and his potential seemed forever squandered. Prince Avalanche returns him to form, and is easily his best film in over a decade. Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch star as workers who spend the week repainting road markings and putting up road signs in a forest recently destroyed by wildfire. They bicker, they bond, they experience setbacks and advances in their personal lives. And always they are surrounded by the signs of ruined life, and of the new life that is slowly growing back into the world. It's funny, sad, and visually poetic. The drama is held up only by the fact that there isn't much at stake for the characters, but thats a minor quibble.

Best of 2013: Movie Awards

My awards for the films of 2013.

Best Actress:

Amy Seimetz, Upstream Color
Amy Seimetz has been quietly doing superb work in mublecore films for a few years now, and 2013 finally saw her starting to get some recognition outside of that niche genre. She was given a large role on AMC's The Killing, and also had a featured role in Christopher Guest's HBO comedy series Family Tree.  But her best work is on display in Upstream Color. The film made waves at Sundance, and Seimetz's performance is at the film's center. It's hard to describe the demands of her performance, given the nature of the film's incredibly complicated plot, but she manages to pull off a role that requires her to seamlessly portray a character who is both well grounded yet completely otherworldly. She goes above and beyond, making the viewer care about a character they may likely never really understand.

Runner-Up: Amy Adams, American Hustle

Best Actor:

Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
Look, I know he's Tom Hanks and everything he ever does tends to be overpraised (call it "The Streep Effect"), but he actually earned this one. He does a great job throughout, and an absolutely amazing job in the last few minutes.

Runner-Up: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress:

Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
A heart-wrenching piece of acting from a previously unknown actress. I hope we see a lot more of her soon.

Runner-Up: Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
My apologies to Jennifer Lawrence in American Hustle, but Roberts mines a previously untapped vein of anger for her role and it works like gangbusters. (totally NSFW language in the clip)

Best Supporting Actor:

Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club
There is a scene in the movie where Leto's AIDS-infected transvestite Rayon confronts her father. Leto has to portray a character experiencing a hundred different conflicting emotions at once. That he is able to do so in a quiet, subdued way is a testament to Leto's historically-underappreciated talent.

Runner-Up: James Franco, Spring Breakers

Best Director:

Martin Scorsese, Wolf of Wall Street
Wolf of Wall Street is a film that presses the pedal to the floor from the very first frame and doesn't let up until the credits nearly 3 hours later. Only a master of the medium like Scorsese could keep a film like this from crashing.

Runner-up: Shane Carruth, Upstream Color

Best Cinematography:

Upstream Color
Every frame is beautiful. Every. Single. One.

Runner-up: Prince Avalanche

Best Screenplay:

Terence Winter, Wolf of Wall Street
It takes good writing to make an audience willing to care about reprehensible characters. Winter is up to the task. (He's the creator of HBO's Boardwalk Empire, which also follows the lives of terrible people)

Runner-up: Scott Z. Burns, Side Effects

Best Score:

Explosions in the Sky & David Windgo, Prince Avalanche

Runner-Up: Shane Carruth, Upstream Color

Best Guilty Pleasure:

Escape Plan
This is the Schwarzenegger/Stallone collaboration that the world was waiting for, not those stupid Expendables movies. Everyone involved appears to be having fun, especially the former Governator and mustache-twirling villain Jim Caviezel. 

Runner-Up: White House Down
Again, it all comes down to fun. That's why I will always appreciate Roland Emmerich films far more than the movies (I refuse to call them films) of Michael Bay. Emmerich makes things big, dumb and loud. But he also makes them fun, dammit.

Best Movie I was Led to Believe Was Bad:

The Lone Ranger
It's a giant, silly popcorn movie directed by a master of epic, highly choreographed action setpieces (Gore Verbinski). It never takes itself seriously, nor should anyone. Just enjoy this old fashioned rollercoaster ride of a movie for what it is: breezy entertainment.

Runner-Up: The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
I thought it was funny.

Best Opening:

Gravity
The 17-minute faux-one-take tracking shot is the best single setpiece of the year, period.

Runner-Up: We Are What We Are
This little seen-or-appreciated bit of old fashioned gothic horror opens with gloom and death, but not the type you're expecting. Rather, it's just a simple trip to the convenience store in the drizzling rain as a massive thunderstorm approaches, with a character whose mind appears to be elsewhere. She buys groceries, goes to her car, spots a sign stapled to a telephone pole, and stares at it sadly, knowingly. Then her nose starts bleeding, and she faints, falling into a flooded drainage channel where she dies, unseen by the people around her. It's a decent enough teaser to get the audience interested is staying for the rest of the film, but it's far better on second viewing where you can fill in the blanks. She's haunted by the choices she's made. And those choices are what led her to her death. And she won't be the last thing that's washed away in the storm.

Best Out of Context Line:

“You never want to do anything interesting.” 
“I don’t think that’s a fair criticism.” -You're Next

Runner-Up: “I'm never eating at Benihana again, I don't care whose birthday it is.” -Wolf of Wall Street

Special Award for Ambition:

+1 (Plus One)
It's a deeply flawed movie, but it tries really hard to do something new and different with the typical teen comedy/drama. And while the results are very mixed, it has a handful of great scenes and tosses around some intriguing concepts. 

Biggest Waste of Talent

Parkland
A sprawling, overqualified cast does good work in an otherwise middling drama that offers nothing to the audience that the audience didn't already know.

Runner-Up: The Way Way Back
Steve Carell (playing against type), Toni Collette, Sam Rockwell, Alison Janney, Maya Rudolph, Amanda Peet and Rob Corddry can't make this coming-of-age comdey/drama feel anything more than slight, despite their best efforts.

Coming Soon: Best of 2013

This week I'll be writing about my favorite movies and music from 2013. Later today I'll be giving awards for various cinematic achievements/underachievements, followed tomorrow by my Top 20 films of the year. On Wednesday I'll cover music with my Top 10 Albums of 2013, followed Thursday by my favorite songs. On Friday I'll be bringing it back to films with my predictions for this year's Academy Awards, which will be airing this Sunday night.