It’s that time of year for me to pretend to be a movie blogger and tell all of you about the movies I watched this year, because I’m just that kind of guy. It was, of course, a weird year for movies. This list almost certainly looks very unlike what it would have had we not had the pandemic wreaking havoc on the year’s release schedule, but hey, it is what it is.
This year, I saw 140 movies that I’d never seen before, 24 of which were 2020 releases. This is definitely the most in one year since I’ve been doing these posts, and I think having little else to do during the COVID pandemic is at least partly responsible. I usually see 20/25-ish films a year in the theater, but as this was the pandemic year, I only saw 4 in the theater, the last of which was The Invisible Man all the way back in the first week of March before everything shut down.
There’s usually a big list of late-year indies and Oscar contenders that I didn’t always get the chance to see, and this year is a little different but I still did not see every 2020 release yet, including Tenet, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Soul, The Sound of Metal, First Cow, and others. I hope to catch up with them soon.
*SOME SPOILERS MAY FOLLOW*
Top 5 movies of the Year
Not the “best” movies, but my personal favorites from among the ones I’ve seen. This was a bit of a strange year for picking a top movie because with most years there’s at least a couple that I love, and I’m not sure that happened this year - just a few that I liked a lot.
5. Buffaloed
This was a very funny and engaging if a bit uneven shakedown of capitalism and debt in America. It has a really fun and manic energy to it, and Zoey Deutch turns in a very oddly mannered (in a good way) performance as a young woman in Buffalo, NY, who takes an early interest in financial independence before unexpectedly finding herself in debt and then hustling her way into becoming a debt collector. The plot gets a bit convoluted at times and it meanders a bit at times, but overall I really dug this film’s vibe.
4. Unpregnant
This is a new HBO Max film about a teenage girl who unintentionally becomes pregnant, and her quest to deal with it. I think it’s a movie that mixes tones/styles maybe a tad more than is necessary, but that’s a pretty minor gripe because I thought it was very funny and created some very endearing characters. Ultimately, it’s a movie about expectations and how they can impact dramatic personal decisions and how we behave amidst social pressures. I’m very glad that the movie was pro pro-choice, because it could have easily veered into the territory of acquiescing to sentiment and have the lead decide at the last minute to actually have her baby, but nope - it’s true to its convictions and is one of the first, or maybe only, movies I can think of that is specifically about this topic and in this way. Bravo.
3. Get Duked!
I suspect a lot of people haven't heard about this one. It’s a British production about a handful of Chavs that have used up all the goodwill their school system can afford, and are given one last chance to get their shit together by going on a sort of Boy Scout-like experience through the Scottish Highlands. Tagging along is Ian, the one good kid who actually wants to be there. Of course, not all goes as it’s supposed to and the 4 kids have to navigate hostile terrain, eccentric farmers, and most notably some upper-class gentry that are hunting them. It’s a very class-conscious story that feels appropriate to our times, and I thought the movie was sharp, hilarious, super light on its feet, and tons of fun.
I know this film has its critics and there are reasonable justifications for not liking it, but it really hit my personal wavelength and I was able to overlook some of its shortcomings. When sci-fi can be so easy to over-do, I really like films that go the other direction. This one is almost as understated as understated gets, but it's not merely an exercise in style. It's no mistake that the protagonists are two smart kids who are almost certainly not going to reach their potential holed up in their small hometown. They're not just empty teenagers filling requisite plot structure needs, they want things, and the film's story will tap into their aptitudes. It’s a period piece that doesn’t beat you over the head with its period-ness - the film knows that these kids don’t see themselves as living in our past, they’re living in their present. I think the film nails its tone & atmosphere, and does a great job at slowly revealilng its central mystery. There’s also some wonderful thematic material in here about the ignored voices of women and minorities, and about how terrifying but exhilarating growth & change can be.
1. Palm Springs
This may have been the perfect movie for 2020. In a year in which many of us felt stuck in place and numbed by the apparent pointlessness of everything around us, Palm Springs was right there to commisserate along with us. This is probably the best I've ever seen Andy Samberg, he was resigned and weary without being maudlin, and he's only at the top of a pretty great cast that all fill their roles perfectly. In particular, I really liked Cristin Milioti in a role that might have been a bit tricky to pull off, because she's in the part that would have ostensibly been the protagonist in a traditional film, which is just another part of how much fun this movie has with twisting the Groundhog Day-like premise. And, like that movie, this one has a very tender heart that it isn't afraid to wear on its sleeve (I especially liked JK Simmons' line "you know, this was always a good day"). Straight comedy films often leave me feeling cold because their characters are too contrived and over-the-top. The protagonists of Palm Springs couldn't be any more relatable, and the dry, salty sense of humor with which they confront their predicament was 100% my speed. It's my favorite movie of 2020.
Honorable Mentions
Bad Education - Hugh Jackman doing great work in a film about the sublte normalcy of villainy as it is in real life
Da 5 Bloods - Spike Lee's messy and discordant but fascinating story about brotherhood and pain for 4 black Vietnam vets
Emma. - Probably the best adaptation of this material I've seen, with really great production values, style, and performances
The Trial of the Chicago Seven - A nice ensemble cast tackles some history that feels very relevant today in a good production from writer/director Aaron Sorkin
The Way Back - All the ingredients in this film feel familar, but they're executed with honesty and Affleck is perfectly understated in it
Worst movies of the Year
Movies that I genuinely did not like and felt were a waste of my time.
The Wolf of Snow Hollow - I’m still shocked that this was mostly well-liked by audiences and critics. I thought its attempt at blending comedy and horror fell flat on its face with awkward scripting, performances, and editing. A clunky mess all-around.
The Wretched - It registered so poorly that I had to go read about it to remind me what it was. Bland synthesis of Stranger Things and bad horror movie tropes. Blah.
Most Disappointing
Not necessarily movies I hated, but ones that did not live up to the expectations I’d had for them
Guns Akimbo - Daniel Radcliffe has been on quite a run of great indie films since exiting the Potter franchise, so I was disappointed that this felt a bit conventional and predictable despite its bonkers premise
The Old Guard - It's sometimes hard to have high(ish) expectations for a Netflix film, but I really hoped this one would feel as interesting as its premise was, but it just felt universally bland to me
Wonder Woman 1984 - This is the biggie, and although I don't think it's an outright bad movie, it is a definitvely disappointing follow-up to what I thought was a wonderful introduction to this character. The whole premise of how Steve was brought back felt icky and was impossible to ignore, and on the whole it just felt kind haphazard and rushed, and although I love Pedro Pascal I just didn't care about his character's story at all. Here's hoping they do better with the next one.
The Full List
Everything I saw for the first time in 2020
1917
400 Blows, The
Ad Astra
Adam's Rib
Adventures of Tintin, The
Alita: Battle Angel
Art of Self-Defense, The
Babe
Bad Education
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Belle de Jour
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)
Blood Simple
Bone Tomahawk
Bound
Boyhood
Buccaneer, The
Buffaloed
Christmas in Connecticut
City Lights
City of God
Crawl
Da 5 Bloods
Dark Phoenix
Das Boot
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
Dirty Dozen, The
Dolemite is My Name
Dressed to Kill
East of Eden
Emma.
Enola Holmes
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Extraction
F for Fake
Fantastic Planet
Farewell, The
Flashdance
Following
Four Lions
Fury
Gaslight
Gentlemen, The
Get Duked!
Ghost in the Shell
Ghost Story, A
Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, A
Gold Rush, The
Good, The Bad and The Ugly, The
Guns Akimbo
Haywire
Hidden Fortress, The
Hillbilly Elegy
His Girl Friday
Honey Boy
Hostiles
Howard's End
Hunger
Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Hustlers
I Lost My Body
I Married a Witch
Interview, The
Invisible Man, The
Ip Man
Italian Job, The
Jackie Chan's First Strike
Jay & Silent Bob Reboot
Jeremiah Johnson
Killing, The
La Llorona
Lion in Winter, The
Little Women
Locke
Long Shot
Lucy
Man Who Knew Too Much, The
Mandy
Marie Antoinette
Marriage Story
Master, The
Meek's Cutoff
Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected), The
mid90s
Miller's Crossing
Molly's Game
Monty Python's Life of Brian
Most Violent Year, A
My Dinner With Andre
Naked Gun, The
Night of the Hunter, The
Old Guard, The
Open Water
Other Boleyn Girl, The
Pain and Glory
Palm Springs
Paths of Glory
Point Break
Porco Rosso
Project Power
Prospect
Rashomon
Real Genius
Rear Window
Safety Not Guaranteed
Scanners
Sea of Love
Seventh Seal, The
Shame
Sicario: Day of the Soldado
Singin' In the Rain
Singles
Soltera Codiciada
Songcatcher
Sorcerer
Spartacus
Stagecoach
Stalker
Steamboat Bill, Jr.
Steel Magnolias
Sucker Punch
Sugarland Express, The
Tale of Tales
Talented Mr. Ripley, The
Tales from Earthsea
Throne of Blood
Top Secret!
Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The
Trial of the Chicago Seven, The
Uncut Gems
Underwater
Unpregnant
Unsane
Vast of Night, The
Way Back, The
Wolf of Snow Hollow, The
Wonder Woman 1984
Wretched, The
Yojimbo
Zombieland: Double Tap
