2013 Review

I realise it's now mid January, so this is a little late in coming - but better late than never! It's also been a couple of years since I did a Yearly Review, so hopefully I can remember what I normally cover... This review will also encompass less films than a normal year as I only started reviewing movies again in March, and I've watched a lot less movies than in previous years.

So, without further ado, I'm going to determine my best and worst movies in the same way as I did for my 2011 Review. All the films that scored 4 stars or more have been listed together, and my top ten decided from that list (plus one 3.5 star movie as I've seen so few truly great movies this year). Conversely, all the films that scored 2.5 stars or less have been listed together, and my top ten films not to waste your time on have been decided.

Films of the Year:

10. Before Midnight (3.5 stars)
9. Insidious (4 stars)
8. Down with Love (4 stars)
7. Paul (4 stars)
6. Ever After: A Cinderella Story (4 stars)
5. Django Unchained (4 stars)
4. A Bunch of Amateurs (4 stars)
3.The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (4 stars)
2. Saving Mr Banks (4 stars)

And my Film of the Year:

1. Finding Nemo (5 stars)

Film of the Year was just such an easy choice this year. It's the only movie I've given 5 stars to all year. I hadn't watched it for some time, but I love it every time I see it, and November's viewing was no exception.

Unlike previous years, I've had to include all the movies that scored 4 or more stars (previously I've only included movies that have scored 4.5 stars or more), as I simply haven't watched enough movies to score that many that highly. In fact, I haven't given a single movie 4.5 stars this year. Even then, there were only 9 movies in my top movies list, so I had to add in a 3.5 star movie. Although, on reflection, Before Midnight is a lot better than the majority of movies I gave 3.5 stars to, and fully deserving of its place in my Top Ten Movies of the Year. I think my expectations may have been raised a little too high by the previous films in the trilogy.

Overall I don't think my Films of the Year list is a bad one, although I don't think I've seen that many great movies this year - so the list was never going to have many amazing films on it. As you can see, almost all the movies only scored 4 stars, so I consider very few of them to be exceptional. The only movie I'm not totally convinced should appear on the list is Insidious. Whilst I enjoyed the film immensely whilst watching it, it was a very silly plot, and I still think that my enjoyment came primarily from not having watched a horror movie for some time, rather than because the movie was really anything special.

In contrast to this, I must have watched a lot more bad films than good ones this year, as it was easy to come up with a Top Ten list of movies that had scored 2.5 stars or less. Or alternatively I just watch terrible movies. Unlike on my Top Films of the Year list though, all these movies thoroughly deserve a place on this list. 

Films Not to Waste Your Time On:

10. Carnage (2.5 stars)
9. The Switch (2.5 stars)
8. The Kids are All Right (2.5 stars)
7. Compliance (2 stars)
6. Sahara (2 stars)
5. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2 stars)
4. Les Miserables (2 stars)
3.  Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2 stars)
2. Another Year (1.5 stars)

And Worst Film of the Year goes to:

1. Winter's Bone (1.5 stars)

Once again, Worst Film of the Year was easy. Only two films scored 1.5 stars, and of the two Winter's Bone screamed "I was worst! Pick me!". It was just so boring, with no satisfying conclusion at all. For a film that got so much critical acclaim, I cannot recommend it less. That's not to say Another Year isn't also fully deserving of its 1.5 stars; it's not a lot better...

Although, unlike previous years, I haven't wasted my time on a movie that's scored 0 stars, so apparently there are worse movies out there. I just don't have the time to watch them anymore.

In Summary:
Film of the Year 2013: Finding Nemo
Worst Film of the Year 2013: Winter's Bone