YNOT at the Movies

It's the time of the year again. I see a trend that instead of top ten, people start to compose top 10, 15, 20, 25, or whatever number films of 2013. However, I am going to stick with ten for another year, for no reason.

During the entire calendar year of 2013, I watched 338 feature films. Again, my top ten films are selected from the films I saw during the calendar year of 2013, not based on when they are released in the theaters. That is how I define "a film in 2013" for me. Allow me to explain the reason behind this: we are living in a small and more complicated world now. If I fly to Beijing or Europe and see a film that has not opened in San Francisco or New York City, does this film belong to 2012, or 2013, or 2013? Why should a film's year be based on a US release date?

Here are the top ten best feature films I saw in 2013.

1. Before Midnight (USA 2012 | 108 min. | My review)

   Eighteen years later since we first met the two protagonists, these two arresting characters become more mature physically, but they are also more charming, charismatic, intellectual, cultured, and illuminating.

   

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2. Like Father, Like Son (そして父になる | Japan 2013 | in Japanese | 120 min. | My Review)

   In his latest film, renowned Japanese writer/director Hirokazu Koreeda (是枝 裕和) once again works his magic and tells a deeply touching story that explores the true meaning of a family bond.

   

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3. All Is Lost (USA 2013 | 107 min. | My capsule))

   Writer/director J. C. Chandor brilliantly creates a thriller with lyrical visual, few words (if any at all), and a tour-de-force performance by Robert Redford.

   

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4. Gravity (USA 2013 | 90 min.)

   A singular 3D movie going experience with breathtaking visual.

   

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5. 12 Years a Slave (USA 2013 | 134 min. | My review)

   The film makes you feel the excruciating pain as if those lashes are landing on your back; it evokes profound rage toward slavery; it captures slaves' humanity and spirit, as well as their horrific suffering. Director Steve McQueen's "12 Years a Slave" remarkably puts American's racial tension into a historical perspective and it should be included in every American school's curriculum.

   

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6. Stories We Tell (Canada 2012 | 108 min. | Documentary | My capsule)

   What a touching, engrossing, fascinating, intriguing, and amusing family story they tell in this film!

   

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7. Frances Ha (USA 2012 | 86 min. | My capsule)

   It's impossible not to be enchanted by the film's colorful characters, witty one-liners, and the fantastic Greta Gerwig.

   

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8. Amour (Austria/France/Germany 2012 | in French | 127 min. | My review)

   This slow paced, impeccably precise, beautifully tender, and fascinatingly arresting Oscar-winning film tells a poignant story.

   

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9. When the Bough Breaks (危巢 | China 2011 | in Chinese | 147 min. | Documentary | My review)

   Despite the glamorous outlook of the booming economy in China, millions migrant workers struggle to survive, while clinging on their hope for a better future. In a fly-on-the-wall style, Chinese director Ji Dan's (季丹) extraordinary documentary "When the Bough Breaks" tells a poignant story of such a family living in a slum in the outskirts of Beijing.

   

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10. August: Osage County (USA 2013 | 121 min. | My review)

    Based on writer Tracy Letts's award-winning play, fantastically played by an ensemble cast including Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, and Margo Martindale, August: Osage County dramatically and hilariously unfolds a carnage during a dysfunctional family's gathering in the deep South.

    

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Until next year...