Best Movies of 2013

Blancanieves | Pablo Berger
Released March 29 | Cohen Media Group
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Astoundingly beautiful Blancanieves blends the language of silent cinema with flamenco and bullfighting for a remarkable Spanish fairy tale. Grade: A

The Crash Reel | Lucy Walker | @LucyWalkerFilm
Released December 13 | HBO Documentary Films and Phase 4 Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
A candid assessment of our risk-taking culture, The Crash Reel offers a remarkable view into snowboarder Kevin Pearce's process of recovery. Grade: A

Dead Man's Burden | Jared Moshé | @jaredmoshe
Released May 3 | Cinedigm
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Moving from The Searchers to The Wild Bunch, the spare, beautifully shot Dead Man's Burden unearths family secrets amid echoes of Civil War. Grade: A

Enough Said | Nicole Holofcener
Released September 20 | Fox Searchlight Pictures
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Nicole Holofcener takes a sitcom premise (good people making bad decisions) and allows it to unfold with subtlety and kindness. Enough Said. Grade: A

In a World... | Lake Bell | @lakebell
Released August 9 | Roadside Attractions
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
In a World where family and career expectations can kill self-confidence, Lake Bell finds success by being the right voice at the right time. Grade: A

Mud | Jeff Nichols
Released April 26 | Roadside Attractions
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
River that brings stalwart teens to Mud is the refuge of their rural boyhood and allegiance to charismatic fugitive sets them on a new course. Grade: A

Running Wild: The Life of Dayton O. Hyde | Suzanne Mitchell
Released October 4 | Screen Media Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes | Tugg
The Life of Dayton O. Hyde (cowboy, conservationist, writer) celebrates horses Running Wild and the clear-eyed tenacity of a Western idealist. Grade: A

Stories We Tell | Sarah Polley | @SarahEPolley
Released May 10 | Roadside Attractions
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
In her intimate and extraordinary Stories We Tell, Sarah Polley explodes the documentary form while reaffirming its power to build narrative. Grade: A

Thale | Aleksander L. Nordaas
Released April 5 | XLrator Media
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Hulu | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
With empathy and deadpan humor, Thale employs a mythical creature to illuminate humanity. A wonderfully creepy indie fairy tale from Norway. Grade: A

War Witch | Kim Nguyen
Released March 1 | Tribeca Film
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Brutality, mysticism, loyalty, shame: War Witch captures a child soldier's developing morality when violence is the norm and love a respite. Grade: A

What Maisie Knew | Scott McGehee and David Siegel | @ScottMcVu @davidwsiegel
Released May 3 | Milennium Entertainment
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
A bright child's perspective of adult faults, What Maisie Knew about privilege and neglect is captured with Jamesian delicacy and precision. Grade: A

Cutie and the Boxer | Zachary Heinzerling | @zacharyzenor
Released August 16 | Radius TWC
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
For better and for worse, the Shinoharas put art first. Cutie and the Boxer paints the hardship and exhilaration of their tempestuous union. Grade: A-

The Great Gatsby | Baz Luhrmann | @bazluhrmann
Released May 10 | Warner Bros.
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Orgiastic excess gives way to romantic longing as The Great Gatsby captures Fitzgerald's duality: ambitious dreamer and defeated chronicler. Grade: A-

Hannah Arendt | Margarethe von Trotta
Released May 31 | Zeitgeist Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes | Tugg
Rigorous and composed Hannah Arendt upends conventional wisdom with a dispassionate, piercing intellect that pinpoints the banality of evil. Grade: A-

Happy People: A Year in the Taiga | Dmitry Vasyukov and Werner Herzog
Released January 25 | Music Box Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Werner Herzog takes astounding footage of Siberian trappers and fashions Happy People: A Year in the Taiga as a paean to rugged individualism. Grade: A-

In the House | François Ozon
Released April 19 | Cohen Media Group
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Literature teacher encourages ruthless interloper to ingratiate himself In the House of perfect family and both feed on his juicy narrative. Grade: A-

Museum Hours | Jem Cohen
Released June 28 | Cinema Guild
Website | Netflix | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
A meditative Museum Hours explores ways of seeing in Vienna's Kunsthistorisches, and through the tender bond of quiet, thoughtful strangers. Grade: A-

The Playroom | Julia Dyer
Released February 8 | Freestyle Releasing
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Uptight dad + swinging mom = aimless 1970s kids. Four suburban siblings retreat to The Playroom and fantasize about a future they can control. Grade: A-

The Punk Singer | Sini Anderson | @SiniAnderson
Released November 29 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
The Punk Singer echoes ethos of musician Kathleen Hanna: a strong feminist voice that's inclusive and a bracing aesthetic that's accessible. Grade: A-

Shepard & Dark | Treva Wurmfeld | @trevawurmfeld
Released September 27 | Music Box Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
A dual biography of consummate storytellers, Shepard & Dark documents complementary opposites Sam & Johnny dissecting their long friendship. Grade: A-

Touchy Feely | Lynn Shelton | @lynnsheltonfilm
Released September 6 | Magnolia Pictures
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
From the Touchy Feely to the tightly wound, a Seattle family and their satellites let go to move forward in observant, compassionate comedy. Grade: A-

Afternoon Delight | Jill Soloway | @jillwaysolo
Released August 30 | The Film Arcade
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
The raunchy Afternoon Delight challenges liberal beneficence and dissects the hive mind of hipsters who've adopted traditional gender roles. Grade: B+

The Attack | Ziad Doueiri | @ZiadDoueiri
Released June 21 | Cohen Media Group and Focus World
Website | Netflix | Blu-ray | DVD
A love story embedded in a political thriller, The Attack questions Arab surgeon's assimilation in Israel where duplicity is taken on faith. Grade: B+

Augustine | Alice Winocour
Released May 17 | Music Box Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Coolly observing the hysteria of Augustine uncovers a subtle power shift between esteemed Victorian neurologist and his prized patient muse. Grade: B+

A Band Called Death | Jeff Howlett and Mark Covino | @howlermano @markcovino
Released June 28 | Drafthouse Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
The amazing resurrection of A Band Called Death is based on a Detroit musician's artistic intransigence and the devotion of preacher's sons. Grade: B+

The Baytown Outlaws | Barry Battles | @BarryBattles
Released January 11 | Phase 4 Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
The Baytown Outlaws is The Warriors set in the rural South and damned if you don't root for the rednecks despite yourself. Good, greasy fun. Grade: B+

The Bitter Buddha | Steven Feinartz | @sfeinartz
Released February 15 | SYNDCTD Entertainment
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes | Tugg
The Bitter Buddha captures contradictory nature of Eddie Pepitone, whose fear of being a brilliant failure fuels his uncompromising comedy. Grade: B+

Bless Me, Ultima | Carl Franklin
Released February 22 | Arenas Entertainment
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes | Tugg
Carl Franklin creates a vivid vision of 1940s New Mexico for Bless Me, Ultima where a precocious Latino boy experiences his moral awakening. Grade: B+

Byzantium | Neil Jordan
Released June 28 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Byzantium revamps the gothic mythology by uncloaking female sexuality. Mother and daughter vampires rewrite history with ferocity and grace. Grade: B+

Crystal Fairy & The Magical Cactus and 2012 | Sebastián Silva
Released July 12 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Uptight American organizes ultimate drug trip but laid-back Chilean brothers and loopy tagalong Crystal Fairy provide go with the flow vibe. Grade: B+

Despicable Me 2 | Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud
Released July 5 | Universal Studios
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Despicable Me 2 mines Gru's desire to do good while being bad, gathering nuggets of comedy gold by spoofing spycraft and unleashing minions. Grade: B+

The English Teacher | Craig Zisk | @CraigZisk
Released May 17 | Cinedigm and Tribeca Film
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Rigid and self-sacrificing The English Teacher finds Austen ideals challenged by modern messiness and decides to write her own happy ending. Grade: B+

Far Out Isn't Far Enough: The Tomi Ungerer Story | Brad Bernstein
Released June 14 | First Run Features
Website | Netflix | DVD | iTunes
The Tomi Ungerer Story is illustrated by his bold drawings and frank interviews that show Far Out Isn't Far Enough for the uninhibited artist. Grade: B+

Fill the Void | Rama Burshtein
Released May 24 | Sony Pictures Classics
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
An illuminating glimpse into the closed world of Hasidic Jews, Fill the Void reveals the power of treasured women in this patriarchal realm. Grade: B+

Free Angela and All Political Prisoners | Shola Lynch | @sholalynch
Released April 5 | Codeblack Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes | Tugg
Free Angela and All Political Prisoners tracks 1970s maelstrom when the articulate, divisive Davis became a cause célèbre of radical politics. Grade: B+

Future Weather | Jenny Deller
Released March 1 | First Pond Entertainment
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Finding solace in the natural world and scientific pursuits, Future Weather's resourceful teen begins to take stock of her chaotic family life. Grade: B+

Grabbers | Jon Wright
Released July 19 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Islanders get the Tremors in cheeky horror comedy that tweaks Irish stereotypes and delivers a classic monster showdown with great Grabbers. Grade: B+

If I Were You | Joan Carr-Wiggin
Released March 15 | Kino Lorber
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
If I Were You employs Shakespearean tragedy and farce in the rare romcom that loves its characters, especially the flawed, struggling women. Grade: B+

Iron Man 3 | Shane Black
Released May 3 | Marvel and Disney
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Iron Man 3: this time it's personal. With superhero armor proving unreliable, Tony Snark uses his wits to reveal vengeance masked as terror. Grade: B+

It's a Disaster | Todd Berger | @thetoddberger
Released April 12 | Oscilloscope Laboratories
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Personal crisis trumps catastrophe in It's a Disaster, apocalyptic comedy that accepts self-interest as the driving force of human behavior. Grade: B+

London: The Modern Babylon | Julien Temple | @JulienTemple
Released June 7 | Cinedigm
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
In exhaustive mash-up, Julien Temple presents London as The Modern Babylon with a riotous people's history fueled by artists and immigrants. Grade: B+

Lore | Cate Shortland
Released February 8 | Music Box Films
Website | Netflix | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Ordered Third Reich gives way to feral divided Germany and Lore takes four siblings on a brutal rural trek that becomes her harsh awakening. Grade: B+

My Best Enemy | Wolfgang Murnberger
Released January 11 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Audacious con game intensifies the interplay between Jewish art dealer and Nazi opportunist, lifelong friends and rivals, in My Best Enemy. Grade: B+

No Place on Earth | Janet Tobias
Released April 5 | Magnolia Pictures
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Using remarkable recreations and interviews, No Place on Earth reveals the resilient Ukranian Jews who literally went underground during WWII. Grade: B+

Peeples | Tina Gordon Chism | @TinaGordonChism
Released May 10 | Lionsgate
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
People who love Peeples meet impossible to please patriarch in enjoyable situation romantic comedy that spoofs elitism and celebrates honesty. Grade: B+

Room 237 | Rodney Ascher | @Rodney_Ascher
Released March 29 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
A mesmerizing look at perceived coded messages in Kubrick's The Shining, Room 237 explores the afterlife of movies as speculative artifacts. Grade: B+

Smash & Grab: The Story of the Pink Panthers | Havana Marking
Released August 2 | Doppelganger Releasing
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Striking visuals of Smash & Grab make doc look like sleek caper film, but The Story of the Pink Panthers gains depth exploring Balkan roots. Grade: B+

Somm | Jason Wise | @Jbwpro
Released June 21 | Samuel Goldwyn Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Somm is a bubbly look at the obsessive geeks who absorb a world of wine knowledge in pursuit of the rarefied Master Sommelier certification. Grade: B+

Stand Up Guys | Fisher Stevens
Released February 2 | Lionsgate
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Wrinkled hams Al Pacino and Christopher Walken give lovely, low-key performances as Stand Up Guys who refuse to go quietly into the sunrise. Grade: B+

Supporting Characters | Daniel Schechter | @danschechter
Released January 25 | Tribeca Film
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Fragile relationships of Supporting Characters are affected by the blurry line between personal and professional in this wry showbiz comedy. Grade: B+

This is Martin Bonner | Chad Hartigan | @chadhartigan
Released August 16 | Monterey Media
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Paul Eenhoorn's guarded optimism perfectly balances Richmond Arquette's exquisite sadness in austere character study This is Martin Bonner. Grade: B+

Trash Dance | Andrew Garrison | @garrisontx
Released April 26 | Panther Creek Pictures
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | DVD | iTunes
Choreographer Allison Orr galvanizes Austin sanitation workers to perform a Trash Dance that showcases the grace in their everyday industry. Grade: B+

Upstream Color | Shane Carruth
Released April 5 | erbp
Website | Trailer | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
The oblique chiller Upstream Color worms its way into mind-bending horror territory while maintaining a defiantly impressionistic narrative. Grade: B+

Warm Bodies | Jonathan Levine | @jonathanalevine
Released February 2 | Summit Entertainment
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
A cheeky Romeo & Juliet & Zombies, Warm Bodies upends horror and romance cliches as its weary teens unequivocally embrace human interaction. Grade: B+

The Way, Way Back | Nat Faxon and Jim Rash | @NatFaxon @RashisTVUgly
Released July 5 | Fox Searchlight Pictures
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Refreshingly understated The Way, Way Back measures success as self-determination and employs coming of age cliches to quietly subvert them. Grade: B+

White Reindeer | Zach Clark | @zachjclark
Released December 6 | IFC Films
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | iTunes
Blissful holiday season becomes emotionally treacherous for recent widow in White Reindeer, a sharp, bittersweet comedy of Christmas excess. Grade: B+

The World's End | Edgar Wright | @edgarwright
Released August 23 | Focus Features
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Nostalgic pub crawl to The World's End goes from a dissection of friendship and maturity to the boozy reassertion of humanity and free will. Grade: B+

20 Feet From Stardom | Morgan Neville
Released June 14 | Radius TWC
Website | Netflix | Amazon Instant Video | Blu-ray | DVD | iTunes
Recalling the highs and lows of soulful background singers, 20 Feet from Stardom has the pulsing drive and narrative flow of the best pop songs. Grade: B+

ALL 2013 MOVIE RELEASES: JANUARY | FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL | MAY | JUNE | JULY | AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER | NOVEMBER | DECEMBER

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