Here it is. The list that no one’s been waiting for. In my geekiness, I rated every film I watched this year out of 10 immediately after I watched them. And here they are along with my favs of the year.
1 The Conversation 8
2 Young Adult 6
3 Moon 9
4 The Perks of Being a Wallflower 6
5 Avengers Assemble 8
6 This Must Be The Place 8
7 Over The Edge 7
8 Looper 3
9 Tiny Furniture 3
10 Silver Linings Playbook 6
11 Drive 7
12 No 8
13 Cafe du Flores 5
14 Ruby Sparks 5
15 Django Unchained 8
16 Stoker 6
17 Indie Games: The Movie 9
18 Bully 7
19 Man on Wire 8
20 Take This Waltz 8
21 The invisible war 7
22 Compliance 7
23 Persona 5
24 Attack the Block 4
25 Bernie 7
26 Martha Marcy May Marlene 8
27 Cyrus 7
28 All The Presidents Men 8
29 Undefeated 8
30 Woody Allen: A Documentary 7
31 Chronicle 7
32 Dazed and Confused 7
33 Sleep Furiously 7
34 Rust and Bone 6
35 Samsara 7
36 Man of Steel 4
37 Before Sunrise 7
38 Before Sunset 8
39 Before Midnight 8.5
40 The Hunt 9
41 Suspension of Disbelief 5
42 In The Loop 8
43 Tony Takitani 2
44 The Interruptors 8
45 Pay it Forward 4
46 Extremely Loud, Incredibly Close 7
47 Galaxy Quest 6
48 Seven Psychopaths 7
49 The Amazing Spider-Man 4
50 Flight 5
51 I Wish 7
52 Liberal Arts – DNF
53 Ironman 3 7
54 Marley 7
55 Lantana 5
56 Cloud Atlas 6
57 Wreck it Ralf 6
58 Life and Times of Harvey Milk 7
59 The Place Beyond the Pines 8
60 Beware of Mr Baker 8
61 Stories We Tell 8
62 The Hidden Face 2
63 Frances Ha 8
64 God Grew Tired Of Us 8
65 You’ve Been Trumped 6
66 Upstream Color 7
67 In the House 6
68 Olympus Has Fallen 6
69 This is 40 7
70 John Dies at the End 7
71 World War Z 4
72 What Maisie Knew 8
73 Gravity 7
74 Star Trek: In to Darkness 1
75 The Way, Way Back 4
76 The Great Hip Hop hoax 8
77 Kick Ass 2 3
78 Nostalgia For The Light 7
79 Stone Roses: Made of Stone 8
80 Argo 7
81 Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives ??
81 Blue is the Warmest Colour 9
82 Computer Chess 3
83 Now You See It 4
84 The Act of Killing 9
85 Pacific Rim 6
86 Spring Breakers 7
87 Gremlins 2 7
88 The Great Gatsby DNF
89 The Big Wedding 1
90 The World’s End 6
91 Star Wars Ep.3 Revenge of the Sith 5
92 The Matrix 8
93 Star Wars Ep.4 A New Hope 8
94 Side Effects 7
95 Sky High 6
96 Star Wars Ep.6 Return of the Jedi 7
97 Blackfish 8
The best of the year (In no particular order. And yes, I know that these aren’t the ones that necessarily scored the highest marks – but they’re the ones that have stuck with me):
Before Midnight (the final half an hour is probably my favourite 30 mins of cinema this year)
The Act of Killing
Indie Games: The Movie
Blue is the Warmest Colour
Stories We Tell
Beware of Mr Baker
The Hunt
Moon
The two that I couldn’t even get through
Liberal Arts
(this was heavily recommended but I’ve rarely seen such a pretentious, self indulgent waste of my time – I lasted 40 mins before I quit)
The Great Gatsby
(Tobey Maguire’s awful voiceover/Tobey Maguire’s face/it was like watching a 3D film without the 3D glasses – I gave this one less than 20 mins before I had to switch off)
The un-rateable
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
(Have any of you seen this? It won the Cannes Palm D’Or. It’s surreal and beautiful and confusing. I still have no idea whether I love it or not)
The inevitably bad
Star Trek: Into Darkness
(Just in case anyone had a final sliver of hope that the new Star Wars films will be any good, JJ Abrams puts a nail firmly in that coffin)
I remember seeing Star Trek: Into Darkness. Nothing about it, but I know I saw it.
I wish I couldn’t remember seeing it.
Happy new year Charles! Hope 2014 is a great one for you – as much as anyone, you deserve it.
Thanks. Fingers crossed. Give it time and you’ll forget the movie. Seemed rather unmemorable.
So many movies I want to see on this list! One thought I had whilst reading it, when I saw the Stone Roses film (on my “want to see” list) is have you seen Spike Island? Curious to know if you have what you thought on it.
Moon is on my list to watch this week, by the way.
Happy New Year to you!
I haven’t seen Spike Island yet. I’ve heard mixed things from people and am dubious to whether it’ll be any good. But I will watch it! What did you think of it? I’d definitely recommend the documentary though – I went to see them play in London the week before I saw it and it just really all came together for me.
Let me know what you think of moo when you’ve seen it. It’s another one that seemed to split opinion. But I love it.
Happy new year!
I enjoyed Spike Island. It isn’t a “great” film, but I really liked it. It reminded me of Tonight I’m Yours and Detroit Rock City, and maybe a little of Dazed and Confused, in that kind of “day in the life” on a quest for a sought after good time before everything changes kind of way. I enjoyed the way it was filmed, too. There were some flaws, and a character and character relationship/friendship I wish they had flushed out more, but all in all I enjoyed it. If you see it let me know what you thought.
I’ve heard mixed things about Moon, as well – but I love Sam Rockwell…I’ve been wanting to see it for a long time so I’m looking forward to it. Others to watch this week/weekend – Drinking Buddies, What Maize Knew and Comedy of Terrors (1963, re-watch for a review project).
Rockwell is fucking brilliant in Moon. It’s a genuinely Oscar-worthy performance (although that isn’t always a compliment, I guess!).
What Maisie knew blew me away. One of the best of the year. You have an excellent week of film watching coming up!
That made me smile (re: The Oscars) as I have many an issue with the way they nominate, and who and what films they ignore.
I’ll let you know what I think of both films.
Any movies on the horizon for you to see?
Oh, and I agree, the thought of JJ and his lens flare getting all over Star Wars makes me shudder.
Yes, I don’t even really follo what happens at the Oscars very closely any more. I guess I just wanted to say that his performance was award-worthy!
I feel as if I really need to see Her. I wasn’t sure about it when I saw the trailer a few months ago – but I’ve heard from a lot of people that it’s brilliant.
Most looking forward to Under The Skin this year.
Her is high on my list of dying to see. I agree, first look at the trailer awhile back had me underwhelmed, but the more I have read about it the more intrigued I am. Spike Jonze does have a unique take on things.
Yes, I got what you meant – I just liked your reference to the Oscars not meaning all that much.
What is Under the Skin about? I’m curious –
I know this is an annoying thing to say – but I think it’s probably better know as little as possible about UNder the Skin before you see it. I read the book that it is (I think loosely) based on years ago and loved it…
Definitely intrigued! Feels a little David Lynch-ian. Who wrote the book?
It’s by Michael Faber. He’s a fantastic author with a huge range – I’d recommend searching him out.
Will do – thanks for the recommendation!
Great list.
Thanks! As always, I’m just as frustrated by the films I didn’t see as much as I’m excited by the ones that I did.
Happy new year – hope 2014 is a good one for you…
Some fantastic films in there and plenty I’m still to catch up with. Happy New Year to you sir!
Thanks man. No matter how many film we see, there are always more to catch up on. Happy 2014!
An interesting list Mark. It confused me at first, as I remember seeing Moon with you, and it was definitely before 2013 – though i agree it was at least a 9; one of the best films I’ve ever seen. Then it became apparent (from the Star Wars entries) that you are also rating films you’ve already seen. Why have you chosen to do this? And do you think your ratings may change over time, or are you influenced by your opinion on first watching. I guess one advantage of doing this is that if you do rewatch any again, you can compare ratings. But I’d have preferred to see your list of films that you’d seen for the first time – or at least some differentiation between those you’d already seen and those you hadn’t.
As for your ratings… I agree with your thumbs up to the other two films we saw together – Avengers Assemble (you give it an 8; i’d probably say 8.5/9 – i think it’s the best comic book adaptation I’ve seen) and The Hunt (you give it a 9; i’d probably agree, though the sheer disturbing nature of it might have pushed it down a notch if I was rating from a blank canvas).
Of the others, I think you’re overly harsh on Attack the Block; you give it a 4 and i’d probably give it a 7 or 8. Perhaps that’s partly because it reminds me a lot of Brixton, but generally I thought it was hilarious. I also think your underrate All the President’s Men, which has to be at least a 9; the same of In the Loop. (I recommend another Robert Redford film I saw last year – Three Days of the Condor – which I’d give an 8. And of course All is Lost is out at the moment, though I haven’t seen it.)
I think The Amazing Spiderman is probably better than the Toby McGuire franchise, and is probably worth a 7. Looper deserves more than a 3 for simple entertainment – i’d say 6 – and I’d give Drive an 8. The Place Beyond the Pines I would agree with your 8. The World’s End I’d give a 7 and Gravity a 9 – the cinematography and the score were both incredible. I’d give A New Hope a 9; and Return of the Jedi an 8. The Matrix I’d give a 9 (though with all three of these films I come back to my point on re-watching – these are my ratings in perpetuity; have yours changed?). Silver Linings Playbook you give a 6; I’d give a 7. The Way Way Back I really enjoyed: you give it a 4; i’d say 7.
Films you overrate in my opinion include After Midnight, which i thought was dreadful. It was like watching a bunch of conversations in my own living room and I found it sickeningly pretentious; i’d give it a 4 at best. If there’s any caveat here, i hadn’t seen the previous two and was told by the person I went with that (a) that didn’t matter and (b) he was sure i’d think the film was brilliant. I thought Ironman 3 was a huge disappointment and wouldn’t give it more than a 5. Django Unchained I remember giving a 6.5 when I came out of the cinema.
A couple of films I remember seeing at the start of the year and are not in your list: Lincoln (8) and Zero Dark Thirty (8). You should see them. Life of Pi you did well to avoid. But what on earth were you doing going to see The Great Gatsby? You deserve everything you get 🙂 I can say the same about myself for going to see About Time, which I’d give a 3.
And finally an observation. There are no 10s on this list. Is it possible for a film to score a 10? There are several of my favourite films on here (A New Hope; Moon; All the President’s Men; The Matrix). I don’t give any of them a 10, and I don’t really know why. It’s like the ratings system actually ends at 9. And, especially in my case, there’s also a tendency for 7 to be the mean rather than 5 – perhaps because I just enjoy watching films, and try to pick films I think I’ll enjoy; but I also think there’s a natural tendency to rate high (I think the only film I’ve ever given less than a 4 was Deep Impact). Perhaps you’re better at not doing this, which might explain why I up-rate more of the films we’ve both seen than those that I down-rate.
(Oh and an erratum – Return of the Jedi is Star Wars episode 6; not episode 8 – you’ll probably have changed this by the time that I post…)
That is by quite some distance the longest response I’ve ever got to a post. Congratulations! Especially as I’ll probably see you in person again very soon 😉 We can take your points one at a time then (oh boy) – maybe a cinema date to see All Is Lost is in order.
Thanks for the ROTJ spot!
But an interesting point about whether any film can score a 10. I think it’s possible – but most of my favourite films are flawed or don’t quite match the ambition with which they set out. They’re still brilliant, nonetheless.
Films that I’d probably score a 10 off top of my head: 2001:A Space Odyssey, Apocalypse Now, The Shining, Dr Strangelove, Punch Drunk Love, Bladerunner, Let The Right One In, Heat, Beasts of the Southern Wild.
But as you say, my opinion can change over time and with repeat viewings…
Now that you bring up 2001… I agree if any one film is a 10 then it’s that one. There are lots of films that I love, but none other that has such an impact as Kubrick’s masterpiece.
Great list! I loved Uncle Boonmee but I’m not sure I understood it. I was interested to read your opinion on the Before trilogy. I preferred Sunset to Sunrise too, but I haven’t seen Midnight yet. I keep hearing vastly different views, I guess I’ll just have to take the plunge and watch it! Here’s wishing you many hours of happy film viewing in 2014! (PS I decided to ring the changes in 2014 by using the WordPress app, but haven’t quite got the hang of the comment bit yet, so if you’ve got a variation of this comment 3 times already, I do apologise.)
Take the plunge. Do it. I admit that I struggled with the first third of the film… but the final third makes up for this 10 times over. For me, it is the most real, truthful and powerful part of the entire trilogy.
And I only recieved your message once. Phew.
Looks like you saw some great stuff. The Conversation and Dazed and Confused are two of my all-time favorites. I’m a big fan of Bergman but Persona is probably the biggest movie I haven’t seen by him (I’m waiting for the new Criterion release to come out) so that’s disappointing to hear. Also, you did not miss anything from bailing out on The Great Gatsby. Wish I did the same.
Yeah, I have to be honest, I think I scored Persona like that because I didn’t entirely know what to make if it! I think that sometimes with Bergman it can be worthwhile to read up about a film before you see it… I’ll definitely give Persona a second viewing.
The final scene of The Conversation, of Hackman in his apartment, is one of the saddest in film history. Really stunning.
I think at most I have seen two of those:( for shame. Now if I put up my list of books….
Not a shame at all! You know how slow I am at reading… my list of books is properly shameful!
I’m terrible at watching films. I always have a book in my way.
Oh yes, Star Trek Into Darkness, or as I like to call it, the JJ Abrams butchery.
Ha. It’s difficult to imagine how they made such a bad film… but it is truly awful.
Fortunately the theatre I was at was mostly deserted, otherwise I might have gotten tossed out for shouting at the screen.
Definitely with you on Star Trek. A big disappointment.
Started watching Uncle Boomee but turned it off after 20mins. I realised I was a bit too drunk to fully concentrate and didn’t want to ruin the experience incase it was any good. I will go back to it, though.
And there was me thinking that it might have helped if I was drunk when I watched uncle Boonmee! But yes, I reckon we should both give it another viewing. It’s unlike anything else I’ve seen.
I am still not sure why Star Trek was so unwatchable. It was not unmemorable – it was actively bad. I agree with you on Before Midnight (it blew me away). Liberal Arts was indeed pretentious, but it was conscious of it, and it came out in the end firmly on the other side (which gained it some points for me). I think I mostly disagree on Looper (I l o v e d it) and Ruby Sparks (ditto).
Yup, it seems that a lot of people disagree with me on Looper. I just thought it was ridiculous… which can sometimes be ok, but I just didn’t believe the reality it created enough to go along for the ride. And I was really looking forward to it too!
To be fair, I might have given up in Liberal Arts too soon – so it may get a second screening in the future.
Thanks for commenting!
Interesting: it was precisely the depiction of the future reality that sold me on the concept. I even wrote about precisely that! (if I may: http://iknowwhereimgoing.wordpress.com/2012/10/21/too-close-for-comfort/)
Ha. Cool… I’ll go and take a look…
I felt the same way about Looper. Wasn’t sure why it got so much hype. I was lost half the time.
At last… someone else is with me on this!
I’m all for the suspension of disbelief, and I’m not one to fault time-travel stories (I’ve written about it myself, and there will always be holes), but that one just had too many gigantic sinkholes for my taste.
I found this last night…
Ha! That’s awesome. That disposable body thing is spot on. That was one of my biggest pet peeves of the movie. Thanks!