With the Golden Globe nominations released, we're really seeing a Group of Death situation come to the fore. There's no clear and immediate winners present – such is the level of quality on display this year. Here's the five best actors of 2013...

5. IDRIS ELBA

Although he's been fantastic in Luther, Idris Elba hasn't really got the chance to spread his wings and get into film acting in a real way. All that changed in 2013 when he appeared in Pacific Rim and Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom. Although Pacific Rim was so-so, his performance in Mandela is the best thing about it. In fact, we predict that Elba will finally be catapulted into the big leagues on the strength of it.

4. MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY

He's already featured in our breakout performance list, and he's here as well. The career turnaround for McConaughey is well and truly complete. With roles in Dallas Buyers Club, Mud and Wolf of Wall Street, 2013 has been a huge year and we haven't seen half of his stuff yet here in Ireland. Not only that, with Christopher Nolan's Interstellar looking like it's going to be the film of 2014, we can see a golden statue in his future very soon.

 3. JAMES McAVOY

Starring in Filth and Trance, two of our favourite films of 2013, James McAvoy continues to prove himself as an actor worthy of note. His role in Filth as Bruce, the near-psychotic Scottish policeman was one of the year's most talked-about. Loud, disgusting and pitch-black funny, Filth was one of 2013's highlights and it was all down to McAvoy. In anyone else's hands, it would have a mess. It still was a mess, but a much more entertaining one.

2. JAMES GANDOLFINI

This year saw the passing of James Gandolfini. At just 51, he was on the cusp of something truly incredible. With Enough Said, Gandolfini could have staged a career turnabout and reinvent himself as a different kind of leading man. Playing a loveable divorcee alongside Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, the image of a snarling mobster was completely dispelled forever.

1. TOM HANKS

Tom Hanks is often credited as being the “every-man” actor in films. This is true, and in Captain Phillips, he guides the audience through the sheer chaos of what it's like to be kidnapped and held at gunpoint. The film has you on a razor's edge throughout and you can see Hanks deteriorate with each passing moment, barely surviving each scrape. The final scene, in which Phillips breaks down from the pressure, is harrowing to watch. For that short, five-minute scene, Hanks deserves an Oscar.