Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World, stated that “experience is not what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you.” This quote lingered within my thoughts for the majority of the 2013 movie year because there is a remarkable number of films that confirm Huxley’s statement with shocking clarity. During 2013 the majority of characters in cinema experienced a relentless assault of either irrepressible physical violence or emotional turmoil, resulting in each character clinging to their lives, praying that they won’t become defeated. Characters had to either sink or swim. No film provided for them a middle ground that would grant them an easy way out or provide a buoy for them. Characters had to act, and act fast.

In Gravity, becoming disconnected from her partner in the infinite void of space, Dr. Stone had to gain composure quickly or endure an onslaught of debris and isolation. In The Place Beyond the Pines, a cop had to rely on his survival instincts and the ramifications of his decision reverberated throughout generations. In Blue is the Warmest Color, a confused teenage woman, utterly love-sick, discovers the throes and pangs of first love and is left even more confused after the indelible experience. In Dallas Buyers Club, an AIDs victim with a guaranteed death-sentence uses his situation to give hope to thousands of other AIDs victims. And in The Counselor, a man’s experience overwhelms him and he is soon exposed to the most unsavory circumstances that are beyond his control and the most heinous individuals.

Without further hesitance, the best 2013 had to offer.

The Place Beyond the Pines
Directed by Derek Cianfrance
Screenplay by Derek Cianfrance, Ben Coccio, and Darius Marder
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Ray Liotta, Ben Mendelsohn
Focus Features
Rated R | 140 Minutes
Release Date: April 12, 2013

Directed by Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine), The Place Beyond the Pines stars Ryan Gosling as Luke Glanton, a motorcycle stuntman working in a death-defying traveling act.

While performing at a carnival in Schenectady, NY, Glanton reunites with ex-lover Romina (Eva Mendes) and learns that he’s the father of her newborn son.

Glanton hangs up his helmet to stay in town and provide for his child, but Romina has become involved with another man, Kofi (Mahershala Ali).

Imagine Gosling’s tight-lipped wheelman from Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive joined S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders and you’ve got Luke Glanton. Covered in homemade tattoos with peroxide blond hair, the grunge motorcyclist hooks up with Robin (Ben Mendelsohn), a retired criminal, and becomes an outlaw to support his family.