Top Ten Films 2013

10. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty - A lonely day dreamer finally escapes his dull life and enters on the adventure of a lifetime while trying to find a missing photograph negative. That's Walter Mitty in a nutshell and the film is a great experience filled with laughs, action and the most beautiful scenery. It's visual overload with volcanoes erupting and boats at sea. Walter Mitty is a sweet movie for the daydreamer in all of us.

09. Captain Phillips - If you like your movies intense, than Captain Phillips is for you. The true story of a cargo ship boarded by Somali pirates, Captain Phillips is the most intense film of the year. Tom Hanks is charming and heroic. Newcomer Barkhad Abdi makes his presence felt as the empathetic villain. But it's the hand held camera work and gut-wrenching emotion that makes this one of the year's best. And once you see Tom Hanks last ten minutes on film, you'll wonder why he was snubbed by Oscar this year. It may be the best ten minutes in all of movies this year.

08. Disconnect - Interwoven stories tell the tale of how we are all so dependent on technology for connection, and really, how lonely and disconnected we all feel on a day to day basis. Disconnect is a little, indie movie that I happened upon that ended up being so much better than I ever could have imagined. It's got a great ensemble featuring the likes of Jason Bateman, Paula Patton and Alexander Skarsgaard. But, mostly it's the story that you can relate to se easily. If you have ever been lonely, or bullied, or made mistakes, or wanted to escape your life... than there is something in this movie for you.

07. The Spectacular Now - This past year has been a remarkable year for coming of age stories and The Spectacular Now is the best of the bunch. It's the story of the most popular guy in school (Miles Teller) who falls for a smart and sad outcast (Shailene Woodley). And while that may sound cliche, this movie manages to avoid feeling like something you've seen a million times before. Perhaps it's the chemistry of the stars, or the fact that everything just feels real. This is a great movie about two teenagers on the cusp of becoming adults, with great performances, especially by a scene stealing Kyle Chandler.

06. Inside Llewyn Davis - The Coen Brothers have always loved unlikable men, and the folk musician at the center of Inside Llewyn Davis is no different. He's, more or less, a self-destructive asshole who angers and upsets just about everyone he comes in contact with. The fact that we can root for Llewyn at all says a lot about the amazing performance of Oscar Issac. Inside Llewyn Davis is yet ANOTHER Coen Brothers masterpiece, and this time, it's got a great, sing-along soundtrack as well.

05. 12 Years a Slave - I still believe that 12 Years a Slave has its flaws, but it's so close to being a masterpiece that it barely even matters. Not only is it an Important Movie (with capital letters!), but also it is a beautiful one. Never has something so ugly looked so pretty. The cinematography, the acting, the directing, the script: it's all wonderful. My only hesitation with it initially was thinking it was a little too pretentious. But that's nearly an afterthought now. Years from now, when people talk about the year 2013 in film, they will be talking about 12 Years a Slave.

04. The Place Beyond the Pines - Another flawed epic of a movie, The Place Beyond the Pines follows the lives of two men whose lives intersect and then, years later, their sons whose lives intersect as well. The Place Beyond the Pines is a refreshing sort of movie that is absolutely mesmerizing from start to finish. It's also unpredictable, and while the female characters seem like a sort of afterthought, the movie itself is a breath of fresh air in this day and age of remakes and sequels and unoriginality.

03. The Wolf of Wall Street - The most brazen, ballsy, out of control movie of the year is also won of the best. Martin Scorsese is still making movies like he's in his twenties with something to prove and star Leonardo DiCaprio has never been so free, completely letting go of his inhibitions to give one of the best performances of the year. The Wolf of Wall Street is an absolute masterpiece of greed and debauchery. The men at the center of the film are awful people, but that doesn't make watching them any less enjoyable.

02. Frances Ha - I don't know exactly what it is about this little black and white movie that struck me so much. Perhaps it's just how much I seem to relate to Frances (Greta Gerwig). Frances is a lonely girl living in New York City with big dreams, and although she has ambition, nothing ever quite works out for her. It's the story of struggling through life when all your friends seem to have their shit together but you can barely get out of bed some days. But mostly it's the story of a girl who is just trying to get her life straightened out. Frances says it's okay to have no idea what you're doing on a daily basis, and I thank her for it.

01. Her - The newest love story from Spike Jonze follows the story of a lonely writer desperate to make a connection (just like so many films I loved this year). He ends up falling in love with the new operating system for his computer. Her is just about everything a movie should be: smart, funny, intimate, quirky, original, sweet, and sad. This is the sort of lovely, wonderful movie that will have you crying one moment and laughing the next. Anchored by the joyful performance of Joaquin Phoenix and featuring the best screenplay of the year, Her is an absolute little gem of a movie.