December 21 2013 – 2013 has been a very busy year in film. Compelling stories, captivating biographies and cinematic wizardry are just some of the reasons we found ourselves immersed in the world of film. Drawing from the Toronto festival circuit, theatrical releases and independent productions, this year saw a multitude of hidden and not so hidden gems worthy of my top 10 list. After watching tons of films in 2013, here are my top 10 movies of 2013.
10. I Will Be Murdered – Played at North By Northeast (NXNE) Festival 2013
An incorruptible Guatemalan attorney, who never asked to be a hero, became a martyr to thousands when he fought the scourge of corruption in his beloved homeland. The Rodrigo Rosenberg-Marzano’s story is as investigative juggernaut that reaches the highest corridors of the political establishment. Like Karen Silkwoods, Veronica Geurin and other prolific whistle-blower, Rodrigo refused to be silence and paid for it with his life.
9. Global Groove Network – Played at Toronto HotDocs Film Festival 2013
As a former 80’s underground dance club steppa, this doc became more of a chronological celebration of my club experiences during that era. Director, Courtney James tapped into the global dance floor Zeitgeist by sourcing out the cultural origin, technical innovations, regional vibes and the science of sound. Beat revellers of a certain age will relish this hot step down memory lane.
8. Elysium – Theatrical Release
At its core, Elysium is a Sci-fi drama addressing the plight of two-tier healthcare and immigration in the year 2154. What makes this movie so compelling is that we as a society are slowly moving towards this model and the future, just as in Elysium, doesn’t look bright. Director, Neil Blomkamp’s (District 9), issue driven narrative gives us the stark realities of the medical version of the 1%. Max (Matt Damon), part of earth’s impoverished underclass will risk everything to change that current healthcare model.
7. Europa Report – Played at Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2013
The basic premise of deep space exploration with the introduction of a found footage sub-plot is the mission we are watching – a voyage to one of Jupiter’s moons to confirm the presence of water beneath the icy surface. Director, Sebastian Cordero, and Writer, Philip Gelatt, have crafted a visually appealing Sci-fi that peels back this mutli-layered narrative revealing a doomed mission and the decisions the crew made that lead to this.
6. The Dirties – Played at Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2013
This unconventional highschool buddy comedy addresses the taboo of bullying. Matt (Matt Johnson), and Owen (Owen Williams), celebrated lack of refinement is hidden behind the protective lens of guerrilla filmmaking. This insular world becomes a window into their angst which they channel into mind bending sequences of humour. Director and Co-writer, Matt Johnson reveals the unsettling consequences of marginalized teens being pushed too far. That being said, the highs and lows of Matt and Owen’s are worth the ride.
5. BB King: Life of Riley – Played at North By Northeast (NXNE) Festival
There’s the ‘King of Pop’, and the ‘King of Rock & Roll’ . . . and then there’s the ‘King of the Blues’. The life of musical genius Blues Boy King is a long and winding road. From the 1925 cotton plantation in Belclair, Mississippi and its grinding poverty, to the hallowed music venues around the world, BB King’s iconic sound lives on. Music is his salvation and Director, Jon Brewer, painstakingly chronicles through a mix of live concert footage, interviews with friends, family, and fans and associates the greatest blues guitarist the world has ever known. With eloquent narration from Morgan Freeman setting the tone, Brewer sneaks us into intimate backstage moments of the man and his music.
4. Marley (DOC) – Played at Caribbean Tales Film Festival 2013
A prophet, a poet, a politician, Bob Marley created music to heal the world and he did. The cultural revolution of Reggae music was exploding on the world stage and Bob was the face. Academy Award Winning Director, Kevin McDonald, shows the selfless roots of a man whose richness was not framed material possessions but life. Capturing his unifying spirit and philosophy, McDonald’s documentary is the quintessential story of family, history, culture and religion filtered through the lens of Reggae music.
3. Big Bad Wolves – Played at Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2013
Hot on the heels of their breakout debut movies, ‘Rabies’, Directors, Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado, proves lightening can strike twice. The sophomore effort was this year’s closing gala screening at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival. A cross between a modern day fairy-tale and a modern day nightmare, Big Bad Wolves is an unsettling thriller that puts the lives of three men on a collision course. With witty dialogue and enough narrative crumbles to make you wince, Keshales and Papushado are the new Coen Brothers, in the vein of Blood Simple.
2. Gravity – Theatrical Release
A mountain of awards and accolades has followed the release of Director, Alfonso Cuarón’s Sci-fi thriller and this movie has shirley earn every one of them. This uncluttered vision comes at you in celestial waves of tension. Gravity’s technical wizardry and big screen wonder is a marvel of cinematography anchored by lifetime performances in Bullock and Clooney. This awe-inspiring achievement is a marvel of the Sci-fi imagination.
1. Camp 14 – Total Control Zone – Played at Human Rights Watch Film Festival 2013
We in North America complain about our egregious first world problems. The high cost of filling up the Lexus, the long line ups at the Whole Food counter, the cost of Toronto Maple Leaf tickets are more that we can bear. For Shin Dong-hyuk, born into a North Korean coal mining labour camp, the simple act of hiding a kernel of corn could get him killed.
Camp 14 is governed by five simple rules, each one ending in ‘will be shot’ if broken. Yet, Shin Dong-hyuk has the audacity of dreaming of a world outside the camp and then devising a plan of getting out. Nothing, absolutely nothing can prepare you for his unimaginable story of survival. Director, Marc Wiese, has offers up a harrowing narrative that shows the brutality of a regime on its people. First person accounts of two ex camp officers from the Secret Police Service bring home the realities of this world. Camp 14 – Total Control Zone is not an easy documentary to watch but, what it leaves you with you won’t forget.
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