The 2013 RopeofSilicon Movie Awards

Another really hard category, but here we have a list of directors with a clear idea of what they’re trying to bring to the table. When it comes to Scorsese we’re talking about a 70+ year-old director that delivered a film with the energy of a man in his mid-20s. On the flip side of that, Ryan Coogler made one hell of an impressive debut, prompting us to immediately look forward to whatever he makes next.

McQueen’s ability to use sound and editing to ratchet up the drama without even a single word being spoken is truly astonishing and speaking of a lack of dialogue, have you seen All is Lost? I love the way J.C. Chandor managed to so perfectly pace his story of a man lost at sea so as to keep the audience on the edge of their seat while also delicately negotiating the resourcefulness, willingness and strength in humanity.

Then you have the Coens and Spike Jonze. What is there to say? Their work is so intrinsically theirs it’s impossible to imagine their films made by anyone else. If evaluated in five minute increments their films may seem aimless, but when looked at as a whole you recognize the story of a life, and in the case of Her, delving into a multitude of themes, boiling life down to a matter of shared particles between humans and their electronic devices.

As hard as it was deciding between Her and Inside Llewyn Davis and which one I would name my #1 film of the year, the designation was equally difficult here and while Jonze is the name that rises to the top, I’d be just as satisfied had it been the Coens.

Alexander Ebert‘s score for All is Lost is so absolutely perfect it’s almost alarming. The music in the film was never entirely absent as much as it simply underscored what was taking place on screen rather than overwhelming it.

Of the four runners up, Johan Johansson‘s score from Prisoners is easily my second favorite and I find it comical the Academy nominated Newman’s score for Saving Mr. Banks while his work on Steven Soderbergh‘s Side Effects was vastly superior, but that’s the way it goes with today’s short term memory.

As for M83‘s work on Oblivion, I need to watch the film again to hear it alongside its images, but it is probably my favorite score to just flat-out listen to on its own.