Honorable Mention:
Star Trek: Into Darkness - JJ Abrams knocks it out of the park again. He delivers a sequel that holds up to the first one. Abrams continues to breathe fresh life into the once left for dead Trek franchise. I'm really excited for the new Star Wars movie.
The Conjuring - A kickass horror flick that manages to make the haunted house genre new again.
10) Mud - A redneck version of Huckleberry Finn... Matthew McConaughey had an incredible comeback in 2013 and this was one of many amazing performances.
9) World War Z - The best of the summer blockbusters. It overcame loads of pre-release bad press to deliver a totally satisfying zombie thriller.
8) American Hustle - Perhaps the best acted film (and best movie hair) of the year. Not as high on my list as some others. When all was said and done, I found the acting to be better than the story the film was trying to tell. Still, David O. Russell's homage to Scorcese was a lot of fun.
7) Blackfish - A surgical takedown of Seaworld that begs to ask the question of why these beautiful, smart animals are kept in captivity when we don't really know anything about them.
6) Fruitvale Station - Totally overlooked by the Academy. Perhaps it came out too early in the year for voters to remember. Michael B. Jordan delivers the breakout performance of the year in a movie that shows the human being behind a senseless police shooting.
5) Captain Phillips - Tom Hanks' best work in years as a ship captain who must do anything to prevent his crew from being killed by Somali pirates. Big props to first time actor Barkhad Abdi as the leader of the pirates.
4) Prisoners - A tense and thrilling story about a man who must commit horrible acts to find his kidnapped daughter. Hugh Jackman proves he's more than just Wolverine and someone who can sing showtunes. A highly overlooked film.
3) The Wolf of Wall Street - Scorcese and DiCaprio crank the volume to 11 for 3 hours of epic mischief and debauchery. The backlash against this film is way overblown. This is their best work together and Scorcese's best film since Casino.
2) Gravity - A technical masterpiece. The most fun I've had at the movies since Jurassic Park.
1) 12 Years A Slave - This is the best movie of the year... and it's not even close. The most heart-wrenching movie I've seen since Schindler's List. If this movie doesn't clean up at the Academy Awards then there is seriously something wrong with the Academy.
And now for my bottom 5... again, same rules apply. I had to have seen it to include it on this list.
5) Spring Breakers - Some called it art and there was even an Oscar campaign for James Franco. I found him (and the film) boring after about five minutes.
4) The Hangover: Part III - Please let this be the last film in what has become the most pointless comedy trilogy of all-time. Part III further tarnished the legacy of the first one.
3) A Good Day To Die Hard - A film that almost ruins the greatest pure action franchise of all time. John McClane goes to Russia and generic action and terrible one-liners ensue.
2) Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues - A painfully unfunny movie. Perhaps the legend of Ron Burgundy should have stayed classy in San Diego.
1) Machete Kills - The worst movie I've seen in a long time. I did not like anything about this movie and I cringe to think that there could be another one. Please go away.
Bonus time...
Biggest surprise of 2013: World War Z - It had nothing but bad press before it was released. I found it to be a fresh and exciting reinvention of the zombie genre.
Biggest disappointment of 2013: Man of Steel - It wasn't necessarily a bad movie, but it just tried too hard to jumpstart a Justice League franchise. They tried to cram way too much into this film, and in doing so, they didn't spend enough time developing Super Man into a likable character.
I will revisit this list closer to Oscars time. Until then, I hope you've enjoyed it.
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