20 Best Movies Of 2013

18. This Is The End

The only full-out comedy film from 2013 to make our list, This Is The End - on paper, at least - sounded like the all-time vanity project: the kind of movie that established stars get together to make purely so they've got an excuse to hang out and get paid a ton of cash to do so (Ocean's Twelve, anyone?). And yet what could have been an unmitigated disaster emerged as a full-on laughter riot, a meta-comedy that made sure to put its stars in front of the crosshairs and wasn't afraid to poke fun at their established Hollywood personas for the sheer thrill of doing so. The fact that the sum of This Is The End takes place during a party at James Franco's house (who plays himself, of course) when the world ends only serves to make things all the more hilarious. Aside from usual Apatow regulars Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robison, Jonah Hill and Danny McBride, there are brilliant offbeat cameos from the likes of Michael Cera, Rihanna, and Emma Watson, who aren't afraid to make themselves look ridiculous. It's no masterpiece, of course, but for what it sets out to do, This Is The End winds up hitting all the right buttons.
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