My Top Ten Films of 2013 [pelham123]

1. Mud
2. Far Out Isn't Far Enough: The Tomi Ungerer Story
3. Gravity
4. Blue Jasmine
5. Zero Charisma
6. A Field in England
7. Captain Phillips
8. Escape from Tomorrow
9. The Bling Ring
10. The World's End       

Everybody Street [2013] // Dir: Cheryl Dunn

It's a documentary about street photography. 
It's a documentary that features a lot of shots and snaps of New York City.
It has a pretty cool soundtrack and some great contributors.
It's very good and I recommend it if you're interested in the subject matter.
Boom.

Life (2009 TV Series) (reviewed by Jason Presents)

Another great series from the BBC. In America it's narrated by Oprah Winfrey, is David Attenborough not good enough for them?! Incredible imagery as always, conveyed through 10 episodes. 

My Top Ten Films of 2013

1.     Gravity
2.     Only God Forgives
3.     The Act of Killing
4.     The Place Beyond the Pines
5.     Captain Phillips
6.     Before Midnight
7.     Blue Jasmine
8.     Stories We Tell
9.     Cutie and the Boxer
10.  Blue Caprice

Honorable Mentions
 
Blackfish
Far Out Isn't Far Enough: The Tomi Ungerer Story
One Wall: Kings of Coney Island
Mud

Yet to see but very much looking forward to... 
 
The Wolf of Wall Street
Inside Llewyn Davis
Her
Nebraska
American Hustle
The Wind Rises
12 Years a Slave (future Best Picture winner)
All is Lost
Blue is the Warmest Colour (leaked online already but with timecode burnt in)

Cutie and the Boxer [2013] // Dir: Zachary Heinzerling

A really great documentary, deservedly featuring in a lot of end of year top ten lists. Recommended. 

Fruitvale Station [2013] // Dir: Ryan Coogler

Based on a true story, this won the top prize at the Sundance film festival last January. It was decent, very well received by critics upon its theatrical release, but not one of the stand out films of the year in my view. The lead performance from Michael B. Jordan is excellent and everyone else is pretty good as well.

Spring Breakers [2013] // Dir: Harmony Korine

I only watched this because it featured on some end of year best of lists. It has some nice cinematography, a fine looking cast and pretty much nothing else. It's very cringe worthy in places as well. I still found it kind of passable though. A generous...

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug [2013] // Dir: Peter Jackson

It's better than the first one but it's still nowhere near the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I don't want to discuss too much of it because of spoilers (a lot has changed from the book) but there are a lot of problems with this film. 

It's shorter than the first part but it feels much longer (especially towards the end which just drags on and on). Some of the sequences feature ridiculous feats of physicality by certain characters which completely takes you out of the film. Some of the changes from the book are totally unnecessary as well.

Other than that... visuals look great for the most part and.... that's about it really.

Interstellar - Teaser // Dir: Christopher Nolan

Family Plot (1976) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074512/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Hitchcock's last movie and although it's not exactly spectacular it's at least a bit better than the slew of cold war movies he was churning out towards the end of his career. The overall tone is more lighthearted and the characters are more likable overall, the story is still only average at best though. That's enough Hitchcock for a while anyways...

Topaz (1969) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065112/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Another boring cold war espionage movie although slightly better than 'Torn Curtain'. I'm starting to see Alfred Hitchcock as the Stephen King of movie making; when you throw that much shit at the wall some of it is bound to stick...

Torn Curtain (1966) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061107/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Another lackluster cold war spy espionage movie. The plot is dull, the characters are dull, and the entire concept behind the movie is dull. It's not a particularly badly made movie, just very non-engaging and unsatisfactory overall. 

   

Cavalcade (1933) Frank Lloyd (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023876/?ref_=nv_sr_2

Bleugh! Best left in the history vaults. Attempts to tie major events between 1899 and 1933 to the stories of two families, one upper class one lower; a sort of Forest Gump of its day if you will. The acting is shite, the stories dull, you may as well just leaf through a history book to find out the major events that happened during that time period (Boers War, Titanic, WWI etc..). I'm honestly struggling to remember the characters names...

Marnie (1964) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058329/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Meh, this seems to split Hitchcock fans, the only thing it did to me was give me a splitting headache. I will admit it is something different from Hitchcock but different doesn't necessarily mean good. He attempts to dabble in Freudian ideas but the plot is weak and unbelievable overall.  

The House I Live In (2012) Eugene Jarecki (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2125653/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

Great documentary about the 'war on drugs' in America exploring every facet from both sides and going into the origins of the war on drugs which of course have absolutely nothing to do with the drugs themselves. Also has some great interviews with the creator of 'The Wire'. Recommended. 

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) Brian Henson (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104940/?ref_=nv_sr_2

I'll admit I'm a little late to the Xmas party here as I never actually seen this before. However I found it very funny and enjoyable, and although many people my age will get a warm nostalgic Christmas feeling when watching this, I think the movie stands up by itself without having to rely on sentiment.

west of memphis

The most recent installment in the ongoing saga that is the Memphis three case.First of all as a film this is not a patch on the original "paradise lost" documentary.What it is,is comprehensive overview of the case to date.There are excellent interview's  with character's who at the time where unable or unwilling to talk openly about the case,the film brings the audience up to date on the event's and even posits a possible answer to some unanswered question's .excellent doc,but for me its just a companion to the epic genius that is paradise lost,still very relevant 7/10

alan partridge:alpha papa

Not much to say if your a fan or even remember the original series,you'll enjoy this.pretty straight forward plot,hostage situation,local radio.
not bad,not brilliant 6/10.

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049470/?ref_=nv_sr_1

I thought this was good but not spectacular. It uses Hitchcock's tried and tested people in the wrong place wrong time murder mystery formula, but somehow doesn't have the flair of his classics. The plot is extremely basic and is really carried by Jimmy and Doris, a credit to the two leads as I feel it could have otherwise been a dull affair! Good, but not essential...

king of the ants

A mash of horror theme's,presented as a low key crime flick.Directed by stuart re-animator gordon.
It all just kind of works,the character's are simple but interesting,story is by no means original,but its there and kinda works.
there are some great moments of dark humour which elevates the material,also as usual gordon bring's some brilliantly twisted make up work to the piece.

The Trouble With Harry (1955) Alfred Hitchcock (reviewed by Jason Presents)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048750/?ref_=nv_sr_2

The whole movie is whimsical, bat shit crazy and unlike anything I've seen from Hitchcock, but at the same time it was very enjoyable with some really funny moments and likable characters throughout. Definitely worth a watch, for it's uniqueness alone anyways...