1. Twelve Years a Slave
"The genius of “12 Years a Slave” is its insistence on banal evil, and on terror, that seeped into souls, bound bodies and reaped an enduring, terrible price."
by Manohla Dargis in New York Times
2. Her
"Filmed with a bright crispness that speaks of a nostalgia for the future, “Her” is a touching, buoyant pleasure."
by Moira MacDonald in Seattle Times
3. Short Term 12
"Although some of the kids in this film are going through some serious … stuff (as are some of the young adults counseling them) and there are some deeply intense passages, “Short Term 12” is also slyly funny, graceful, tender and peppered with moments of small joy."
by Richard Roeper in Chicago Sun-Times
4. Wadjda
"Not only is this a deftly crafted and superbly acted film, but Wadjda sheds a powerful light on what women face, starting in childhood, in an oppressive regime."
by Claudia Puig in USA Today
5. Ain't Them Bodies Saints
"This poetically told Texas crime saga is deeply and, to be honest, naively sentimental at its core, which creates something of a drain on its seriousness."
by Todd McCarthy in Hollywood Reporter
6. Fruitvale Station
"Fruitvale Station is a gut punch of a movie. By standing in solidarity with Oscar, it becomes an unstoppable cinematic force."
by Peter Travers in Rolling Stone
7. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
"Perhaps most important, Catching Fire does a more faithful job of capturing the grim vision of Suzanne Collins’s source novels than its rather tepid predecessor. This movie feels hungry."
by Christopher Orr in The Atlantic
8. La cage dorée
"With a wonderfully light but firm hand, Alves has served up a loveably authentic romp that manages to speak to a broad audience, while also echoing the experiences of millions of emigrés around the world."
by Ed Gibbs in The Sun Herald
9. Inside Llewyn Davis
"But no one should be indifferent to Inside Llewyn Davis, a contemporary masterpiece by the Coens about a time long ago and far away, when music seemed like the answer to everything."
by Peter Howell in Toronto Star
10. Gravity
"The perspective is dazzling and jarring, and Mr. Cuarón allows a few moments of quiet, contemplative beauty to punctuate the busy, desperate activity of staying alive."
by A.O. Scott in New York Times
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