Top ten lists are a funny creation, meant to illustrate perceived consensus by critics for the years to come. They’re also meant for validation, and seeing who got it right and who didn’t. And if, in six months time, anybody did. They’re a little bit arbitrary, especially in years where most films are of seemingly comparable quality and delineations seem slight, or what about the movies that plant seeds, and that may not blossom for many months to come? Especially because end of the year movies are often seen in such proximity, loud movies like American Hustle seriously risk drowning out the quiet movies like Inside Llewyn Davis. These lists are prone to such unavoidable bias that how well they represent much of anything is up for debate, but nevertheless, we make them. 2013 was a year of surprising audacity and bravery, with many filmmakers defying expectation. Though slow and soft for most of the year, until October really, 2013 emerged as what might become one of the most memorable years of the 2010-2019 decade in cinema. That’s unexpected, and cool. I still haven’t seen Her, which is a serious contender for making my top ten. This is the best, and most accurate, representation of 2013’s year in film for The Metaplex: