Surprises can come in all shapes and sizes. For us at ScreenAnarchy these surprises were films we originally expected to dislike, while others were flicks that seemingly came out of nowhere to our absolute delight and awe. From neon-lit nightmares to the hours we keep in the museum, from cheap thrills to cannibal families, death-dealing judges and kid cops, here are our biggest surprises of 2013.
Only God Forgives
Ben Umstead - East Coast Editor
When it comes to transgressive films I've generally appreciated Nicolas Winding Refn's attitude and approach, but never been fully in love with the offerings. Well, that changed with Only God Forgives. OGF is an abstract action film formed from the moments in-between and parallel to the violence we expect. Ruminative, haunting and surreal, I think it's his first all out masterpiece.
Shelagh M. Rowan-Legg - Contributing writer
I've always approached Refn's films as intellectual exercises in filmmaking; I did not expect to love this film, but I did with great passion.
Ernesto Zelaya Miñano - Contributing writer
Normally I despise artsy, slow-moving cryptic stuff - but it worked for this film. It's an engrossing, beautiful looking movie.
Museum Hours
Dustin Chang - Contributing writer
Kurt Halfyard - Contributing writer
Many people practically pummelled me to get into the theatre and check out Jem Cohen's Museum Hours, knowing that it would be my cup of tea. Intimate, emotional, practical and didactic in a compulsively watchable package, this is how academics should be teaching classes, with fictional marvels such as this.
Barroco
Jaime Grijalba - Contributing writer
This is the best movie I saw at BAFICI. An Argentinian film, independent, in competition, it's about a man who works at a book store and tries to make some money so he can pay the gas, that's just the top of the problems this wonderful main character must deal with. He also wants to make a photoplay and sell it to people, and to do that he steals the books from the store, using a strategy that he repeats once and once again until something really bad happens. The film is a hidden gem at this point, no one is talking about it, and it's one of the best things I've seen this year.
Big Bad Wolves
Eric Ortiz Garcia - Contributing writer
I watched this one at the Feratum Film Festival, where it played as the closing film. I heard it was great but still didn't know much about it or the directors. I ended up loving it. Few films are as unpredictable and exciting as Big Bad Wolves, plus all three main performances are superb.
Cheap Thrills
Peter Martin - Managing Editor
Alone in the back of a theater past midnight, I was galvanized by a movie I knew almost nothing about beforehand. Such moments are rare and precious.
Child Of God
Joshua Chaplinsky - Contributing writer
Spring Breakers sold me on Franco as an actor, but I was still skeptical of his skill behind the camera, especially when it came to adapting such "difficult" material. But lo and behold, McCarthy and Franco are a perfect fit. The result is a gothic character study that is raw and unflinching in its portrayal of madness.
Dredd
Christopher O'Keeffe - Contributing writer
Gloria
Brian Clark - European Editor
Never expected to love a character study of a middle-aged divorcee so much.
Kid's Police
Todd Brown - Founder and Editor
Kid's Police very likely should have been one of those one gag things that overstays its welcome in about ten minutes. It's not. It's a real movie, a damn funny one, that remains incredibly committed to its wonky premise and keeps finding new nuance and comic territory throughout.
Matterhorn
Ard Vijn - Contributing writer
My general hatred of Dutch cinema is by now well-documented, so it is with increasing incredulity that I keep being proven wrong in this respect. There are many good Dutch films doing the rounds these days, and Matterhorn was even damn close to being the best thing I saw all year.
Muscle Shoals
Jim Tudor - Contributing writer
Lips And Soul
Niels Matthijs - Contributing writer
Our Heroes Died Tonight
Ben Croll - Contributing writer
Pain And Gain
Kwenton Bellette - Contributing writer
I despise Michael Bay's films and the trailer for this also looked awful. Who knew I'd end up watching this film much more than once though. Just crazy.
Philomena
Jason Gorber - Featured critic
One of the nice things about going into these films knowing little is the ability to still be surprised - I for one had no idea it was a true story, yet it was done without the baggage that normally comes from adhering strictly to actual events. It could easily have been just crap, and yet is almost effortlessly excellent.
Ugly and Han Gan-ju
Pierce Conran - Contributing writer
I know Gangs of Wasseypur made a big splash last year but I hadn't seen it when I sat down to Ugly. I simply didn't realize that India was capable of such great genre cinema. I stand humbled and kneeling before the brilliance of Anurag Kashyap.
A few days into the Busan Film Festival I had seen or heard reports on almost every new Korean film, so I got myself a ticket for one that no one had said a word about. About halfway through Han Gong-ju the tears started to flow and they didn't abate until long after leaving the theater. Tackling a difficult subject with deft skill, this debut was, in every way, surprising.
Tim's Vermeer
Ryland Aldrich - Festivals Editor
Trap Street
Patryk Czekaj - Contributing writer
I went to see Trap Street by chance during Warsaw Film Festival and ended up loving it more than I can tell. It's a true gem of the Chinese new wave with a message as disturbing as it is accurate.
We Are What We Are
James Marsh - Asian Editor
As a big fan of Jorge Michel Grau's 2010 original, I was more than a little wary of a US remake of We Are What We Are. I was confident that Jim Mickle would make something palatable from the material, but I was unprepared for the fantastic reworking he has cooked up with writing partner Nick Damici. The changes to the original story feel organic and well-suited to the transplanted setting in New York's Catskills, while the spirit of Grau's bleak, downbeat horror remain. The result is one of the very best recent examples of a successful remake, and also one of the year's standout horror films. In its own right, Mickle's We Are What We Are is - as was also true of its predecessor - a minor masterpiece.