Yes, that's right. Remember, this isn't a 'Best Performance' category, it's 'Actor of the Year'. A controversial choice? I certainly don't think so, so please read on while I justify my decision. James Franco has long had a reputation as one of the busiest multi-hyphenates in Hollywood, and 2013 was no different. Reuniting with his Spider-Man director Sam Raimi, Franco delivered a charismatic performance amongst a wealth of greenscreen and CGI in Oz the Great and Powerful, anchoring a movie that would gross almost $500m at the box office. He also played an exaggerated version of himself in This is the End, gleefully making fun of his own public image and proving himself once again as a superbly talented comic actor. However, his best performance of the year came as the demented rapper/gangster Alien in Spring Breakers, a turn that has been garnering plenty of awards notice. There was also an unlikely turn as the villain in a Jason Statham movie, with Franco doing his best with a poor script as meth dealer Gator in Homefront. Not to forget a cameo as Hugh Hefner in the well-acted yet underwhelming Lovelace, and a brief but convincing cameo in little-seen The Iceman. Then of course there were well-received adaptations of William Faulkner's seminal As I Lay Dying and Cormac McCarthy's Child of God that played the festival circuit, and for which Franco also served as writer and director. To summarize, this year alone James Franco has appeared in the fantasy, comedy, action, drama and thriller genres, as well as writing and directing three additional features in which he also starred. It's been another busy year for a man who always seems to have half a dozen projects on the go (with five so far announced for 2014), and he is my firm choice for 2013's Actor of the Year. Runner-Up: James McAvoy After being completely absent from cinema screens in 2012, James McAvoy returned with a vengeance in 2013 with three starring roles in three very different kinds of movie. In Eran Creevy's London-set, Hong Kong cinema-influenced Welcome to the Punch (if you haven't seen it, please do so) McAvoy plays a dogged detective reluctantly teaming up with his criminal nemesis to foil a larger conspiracy. This quick logline may seem generic, but the movie itself is excellent. Then came Danny Boyle's complex psychological thriller Trance, with McAvoy dialling up the crazy for a turn as an amnesiac art dealer trying to remember the location of a stolen painting. However, the best of the lot came with Irvine Welsh adaptation Filth, the actor giving a career-best turn in the black comedy as a violent, drug and alcohol abusing police officer. It's been an excellent year for James McAvoy, with his profile set to increase even further with the release of next year's eagerly-anticipated X-Men: Days of Future Past. Like this list? Let us know in the comments section below.
I don't do social media, so like or follow me in person but please maintain a safe distance or the authorities will be notified. Don't snap me though, I'll probably break. I was once labelled a misogynist on this very site in a twenty paragraph-long rant for daring to speak ill of the Twilight franchise. I stand by what I said, it's crap.
