In spite of us frequently complaining about how we consider 2013 to have been a bad year for movies, we compiled our Top 10 Worst Movies of 2013 list with ease. This list, however, was rather troublesome to make: we watched over 115 movies released this year and it was hard for us to choose the very best among them. We’ve been delaying writing this list as much as possible in an attempt to watch every acclaimed movie released in 2013. That being said, we didn’t manage to watch some praised movies like Her, Inside Llewyn Davis, Nebraska or The Past, so they won’t be making this list. We are very eager to watch them, but we can’t delay this list any longer – and we also think that over 115 movies are more than enough to make a fine list. So, without further ado, here’s our list of Top 10 Best Movies of 2013:
10. Before Midnight
Before Midnight is the third movie in a serial that features Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, and is preceded by Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. After watching the two main characters fall in love at a very young age and get married some time later, in Before Midnight we watch them dealing with marital problems and the possibility of divorce. This is another great movie in the (for now) trilogy, with all the traits its predecessors had: great visuals and acting, lots of talking and interesting themes. All the movies are a must see, and Before Midnight is also one of the best movies of the year. Our full review.
9. The Place Beyond The Pines
The Place Beyond the Pines, written and directed by Derek Cianfrance, is a very ambitious movie – it is a 2 and a half hour long movie, divided in three stories: one about a motorcycle bank robber (Ryan Gosling), one about an idealist cop that crosses his path (Bradley Cooper), and one about the sons of these two characters. Featuring amazing acting and direction, the movie deals with very interesting topics like family, family values and family legacy. All in all, The Place Beyond the Pines deserves your time and attention.
8. Blue Jasmine
While Blue Jasmine definitely isn’t Woody Allen’s magnum opus, it is still a very good movie that serves as evidence that Allen’s career is far from over. His directing and writing are good as ever, however, the real of star of Blue Jasmine is Cate Blanchett: her acting is absolutely amazing, she manages to portray all aspects of Jasmine’s complex personality with ease. Her performance is perfect and we hope she’ll get the recognition she deserves – in form of an Oscar. Our full review.
7. 12 Years a Slave
The incredible story of Solomon Northup – a free black man who was kidnapped and sold as a slave in the antebellum USA, and was freed after 12 years – has been turned into a great, sad, and shocking movie, that’s easily earned its place on this list. Chiwetel Ejiofor’s performance, as the main character, is truly Oscar worthy, and the wonderful supporting characters complete him – especially Michael Fassbender as Edwin Epps, the cruelest slave owner in the feature. Our full review.
6. The Wolf of Wall Street
One of the most anticipated movies of the year, fortunately, didn’t turn out to be a disappointment, like many others (World War Z and The Counselor come to mind). The Wolf of Wall Street is shocking, insane and fast (even though it runs for three hours). It has a good cast and DiCaprio’s performance as the main character Jordan Belfort is wonderful, but for those who don’t care about topics like sex, drugs and so-rich-I-don’t-know-what-to-do-with-my-money, this movie will offer nothing. Still, for us, it’s a definite recommendation. Our full review.
5. Prisoners
We had heard lots of praise for this movie, but we only recently saw it – and we were blown away. The story is fairly simple: two little girls are kidnapped and the father of one of them (Hugh Jackman) decides to go look for them and their kidnapper, even though a detective (Jake Gyllenhaal) is looking for them, too. The acting is marvelous and the cinematography fits the depressing and frightening tone of the movie. Another great feature is the unpredictable plot we’ll leave to you to discover.
4. Gravity
Hailed by many as the best movie of 2013, Gravity isn’t our number one, because of some minor flaws (and because we, obviously, managed to find three better movies to put on the list). We didn’t (and still don’t) understand the casting choices (Sandra Bullock and George Clooney), and some of the dialogues/monologues are hollywoodishly cheesy. Apart from that, Gravity is a visually stunning and frightening experience you shouldn’t miss – and a pleasant change from the usual Sci-Fi Hollywood puts out. Our full review.
3. La Grande Bellezza
Nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Film category, La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty) is definitely worthy of winning the prize. The director Paolo Sorrentino makes Fellini come back to life, in this beautiful depiction of modern-day Rome, while following the lonely and pointless life of old writer Jep Gambardella (Toni Servillo) and his relationship with his friends and society in general. La Grande Bellezza is worthy of its title and could be the most gorgeous movie we’ve seen in 2013.
2. Rush
It’s an understatement to say that Rush caught us by surprise: we expected this movie to be awful and boring (who would enjoy a movie about Formula 1, except Formula 1 fans?), but, in the end, it turned into a pleasant surprise! Rush is a true example of what we consider a flawless movie. It is an incredibly good sports drama that features amazing performances (kudos to Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl), an awesome soundtrack and tense racing scenes. Rush should be viewed by movie and sports fans alike. Our full review.
1. The Best Offer
This choice must come as a surprise to those who are familiar with the bad reviews and low score this movie got on Rotten Tomatoes. We can’t understand why. Like we already wrote, The Best Offer is an interesting and intelligent drama, led masterfully by Geoffrey Rush and directed by the famous Giuseppe Tornatore. The Best Offer has no weaknesses whatsoever and it’s a pleasure to watch, especially because of the beautiful filming locations. It’s also extremely easy to connect with the main character and share his joys and sorrows. From our point of view, this is the best movie of 2013, and if you haven’t seen it yet, ignore the critics and give it a shot!
Pass the Popcorn! 
I’ve never even heard Best Offer. Is it in English or Italian?
I think its funny how you have to defend Gravity for only being 4th on your list. That certainly speaks to the impact the movie had this year.
I also think its interesting how many times Prisoners is popping up on these lists, since it didn’t have that much buzz when it was out. Maybe more people caught it on home video?
The Best Offer is by an Italian director, but the movie is in English. You should definitely see it and tell us what you think of it!
Yes, we’ve seen many “Top X best movies of 2013”, and Gravity was often number 1, so we decided it would be good to spend some time explaining why it’s (only) number 4 in our list.
Prisoners is amazing! It definitely wasn’t advertised enough (at least not in our country), but we think that, since it was so good, after they had seen it, people probably started spreading the word – and that was all it took. We also found out about it accidentally, on the internet!