The 10 Best, No, the 100 Best Films of 2013

by Kam Williams

 

Kam’s Annual Assessment of the Cream of the Cinematic Crop

            While 2013 may be remembered for black-themed films like 42, The Butler, Fruitvale Station and early Oscar favorite 12 Years a Slave, there were plenty of other excellent offerings released over the course of the year. The summer season alone featured a trio of outstanding horror flicks in The Conjuring, You’re Next and The Purge.

            And fright fans were even treated to a fascinating documentary deconstructing the making of Night of the Living Dead entitled Birth of the Living Dead. The profusion of cinematic treats once again made it impossible to limit my favorites to just the 10 best.

            So, as per usual, this critic’s annual list features 100 entries in order to honor as many deserving films as possible.

 

 

10 Best Big Budget Films

 

1. The Butler
2. Prisoners
3. 42
4. You’re Next
5. Gravity
6. The Purge
7. 12 Years a Slave
8. This Is the End
9. Inside Llewyn Davis

10. American Hustle

 

Big Budgets Honorable Mention

 

11. The Heat

12. The Best Man Holiday

13. Philomena

14. Gangster Squad

15. Black Nativity

16. Fast & Furious 6

17. Jack the Giant Slayer

18. August: Osage County

19. Rush

20. The Great Gatsby

21. Olympus Has Fallen

22. Bullet to the Head

23. Saving Mr. Banks

24. Dead Man Down

25. The Conjuring

 

 

10 Best Foreign Films

 

1. The Hunt (Denmark)
2. Hannah Arendt (Germany)
3. Paradise: Love (Kenya)
4. Kon-Tiki (Norway)
5. Aliyah (Israel)
6.  2+2 (Argentina)
7. The Price of Sex (Bulgaria)
8. S#x Acts (Israel)
9. A Hijacking (Denmark)

10. The Broken Circle Breakdown (Germany)

 

Foreign Films Honorable Mention

 

11. Three Worlds (France)

12. Sweet Dreams (Rwanda)

13. Hava Nagila (Israel)

14. Paradise: Faith (Austria)

15. The Grandmaster (China)

16. The Iran Job (Iran)

17. Pad Yatra: A Green Odyssey (Nepal)

18. War Witch (Congo)

19. Paradise: Hope (Austria)

20. Rising from Ashes (Rwanda)

21. The Act of Killing (Indonesia)

22. Reality (Italy)

23. The Pirogue (Senegal)

24. Garifuna in Peril (Honduras)

25. Israel: A Home Movie (Israel)

 

 

10 Best Independent Films

1. Fruitvale Station
2. The Kings of Summer
3. Nebraska
4. Mud
5. Drinking Buddies
6. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
7. The Sapphires
8. I Used to Be Darker
9. The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete

10. Enough Said

 

Independent Films Honorable Mention

 

11. In a World…

12. Short Term 12

13. All Is Lost

14. Go for Sisters

15. Touchy Feely

16. Shadow Dancer

17. Lucky Bastard

18. Big Words

19. King’s Faith

20. Four

21. A Teacher

22. The Happy Sad

23. Mother of George

24. I’m in Love with a Church Girl

25. Finding Happiness

 

 

10 Best Documentaries

 

1.  Stories We Tell

2.  Dear Mr. Watterson

3.  Best Kept Secret

4.  A Place at the Table

5.  Muscle Shoals

6.  Unmade in China

7.  20 Feet from Stardom

8.  Schooled: The Price of College Sports

9.  Evocateur: The Morton Downey, Jr. Movie

10.Linsanity

 

Documentaries Honorable Mention

 

11.The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia

12.When Comedy Went to School

13.Venus & Serena

14. Liv & Ingmar

15.Call Me Kuchu

16.No Place on Earth

17.Red Obsession

18.Cutie & the Boxer

19.Inequality for All

20.Spark: A Burning Man Story

21.Bidder 70

22.Men at Lunch

23.Aroused

24.When I Walk

25.Herman’s House