The (global) best (and worst) of 2020
Streaming and carrying over a lot of titles made 2020 a less meager film year than it should have been. Extended lockdown enabled me to clock down over 500 titles. However, American cinema continued to disappoint while Asian films went through the pandemic quite unscathed. European movies have managed to stage a comeback of sorts, with a strong showing of auteur titles.
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- DirectorThiagarajan KumararajaStarsVijay SethupathiFahadh FaasilSamantha Ruth PrabhuAn unfaithful newly-wed wife, an estranged father, a priest and an angry son suddenly find themselves in the most unexpected predicaments, each poised to experience their destiny, all on one fateful day.The Indian "Pulp Fiction" is my favorite film of the year and proof that the Tamil industry is now India's strongest. Comedy, tragedy, queerness, gender equality, crime, even Sc-iFi crammed in three hours of intelligent entertainment.
- DirectorCéline SciammaStarsNoémie MerlantAdèle HaenelLuàna BajramiOn an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.My 2nd favorite film and best direction candidate manages to undo French cinema's voyeuristic inclination towards Lesbian romance, "Blue is the Warmest Color" being the most over-hyped example. Beautiful photography and top-notch performances, but a tad barren atmosphere.
- DirectorSam MendesStarsDean-Charles ChapmanGeorge MacKayDaniel MaysApril 6th, 1917. As an infantry battalion assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly trap.The film that should have won the Academy Award is absolutely flawless action entertainment with perfect screenplay and photography. Maybe it did not win because it is not a "proper" war film. Well at least the Golden Globes got it right.
- DirectorDzintars DreibergsStarsOto BrantevicsGreta TrusinaMartins VilsonsAfter losing his mother and his home, Arturs finds some consolation in joining the army. However, war is nothing like he imagined.This Latvian WWI film is the real deal, though. Extraordinary photography and cinematography given the budget. A bit too patriotic perhaps but who can blame the Lats given their history.
- DirectorTanel ToomStarsPriit LoogEster KuntuPriit VõigemastAndres settles in a new farm. With rose-tinted lenses, he sets out to transform the farm into a prosperous paradise - all he needs is a healthy harvest, cooperative neighbors and a son. But, life turns out to be cruel and treacherous.Estonia's biggest film budget could never recoup its cost through admissions, but became the country's most successful film nevertheless. An old-fashioned period drama with excellent direction and performances. The kind of epic we won't get to see anymore once streaming takes over completely.
- DirectorPete DocterKemp PowersStarsJamie FoxxTina FeyGraham NortonJoe is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn't quite gone the way he expected. His true passion is jazz. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.Far and away the best US picture this year. I'm one of the people who really hated "Inside Out" for its simplistic views of a teenage girl's psyche, but this time Pete Docter got it all right. Apart from the Picasso angels. Pixar does what mother Disney doesn't - take risks. Too bad we didn't get to experience this on the big screen.
- DirectorVáclav MarhoulStarsPetr KotlárNina SunevicAlla SokolovaA young Jewish boy somewhere in Eastern Europe seeks refuge during World War II where he encounters many different characters.Jerzy Kosinki's classic novel has been called unfilmable because of its gruesome violence. The director left it all in, including the most disgusting scene I've seen all year, but that's faithful to the text. Respect, but it's definitely not for everyone, albeit a masterpiece.
- DirectorThomas VinterbergStarsMads MikkelsenThomas Bo LarsenMagnus MillangFour high-school teachers consume alcohol on a daily basis to see how it affects their social and professional lives.Vinterberg delivers a classy, if routine take on male midlife crisis. A joy to watch because American treatments of this subject have become utterly dull and predictable. Mikkelsen remains the best actor of his generation.
- DirectorMadhu C. NarayananStarsShane NigamSoubin ShahirFahadh FaasilThe film revolves around four brothers who share a love-hate relationship with each other. Their relationship progresses to another level when Saji, Boney, and Franky decide to help Bobby stand by his love.For most critics the best Indian film of the year and almost certainly the best Malayalam film ever. A well-rounded story of culture clash and family (dis)loyalties in an unusual setting. Soubin Shahir is no pretty boy but acts better than most Bollywood stars.
- DirectorMong-Hong ChungStarsChien-Ho WuYi-Wen ChenSamantha Shu-Chin KoA family of four fractures under the weight of unmet expectations, unexpected tragedy, and uncompromising pride.Complex Taiwanese family dramas in the vein of Edward Yang, but much more modern, in a nice blend of humanist character drama and social realism. Gives a very good idea about the constraints and fabric of the society it portrays. Best East Asian film of the year.
- DirectorJan KomasaStarsMaciej MusialowskiVanessa AleksanderDanuta StenkaA young man searches for purpose in a net of hatred and violence that he tries to control.Scary tale of revenge and a reminder what intelligent psychopaths can accomplish with the weapons social media provide. Screams American remake of Mateusz Pazewicz's non-nonsense script. After filming a real-life incident almost mirroring the story happened in Poland, but that was before release. So the topic could hardly be more relevant.
- DirectorJan KomasaStarsBartosz BieleniaAleksandra KoniecznaEliza RycembelDaniel experiences a spiritual transformation in a detention center. Although his criminal record prevents him from applying to the seminary, he has no intention of giving up his dream and decides to minister a small-town parish.Same director, same script writer as the previous title. Jan Komasa's story of redemption is equally well played and written, with more public love as it's less uncomfortable to watch. But these two films are equally good and have a similar theme of young men finding orientation - one going the right, one the wrong way.
- DirectorKarim AïnouzStarsJulia StocklerCarol DuarteFlávia GusmãoKept apart by a terrible lie and a conservative society, two sisters born in Rio de Janeiro make their way through life each believing the other is living out her dreams half a world away.In a strong year for women-themed films, Karim Ainouz's best film yet juxtaposes the lives of two women trapped in a machismo world, but does not resort to the lecturing American films of this kind tend to provide. Excellent photography by (female) cinematographer Hèlène Louvart, very good screenplay adaptation.
- DirectorKim Do-YoungStarsJung Yu-miGong YooKim Mi-kyungKim Ji-yeong, an ordinary woman in her 30s, suddenly shows signs of being inhabited by others such as her late mother and older sister, and the stories of the people connected to her.Another very good women-themed film from a country where movies are unusually high on testosterone. Very good lead performance and screen adaptation of a bestselling novel. Given its success at home, this is a must-see for anyone interested in Korean culture.
- DirectorNora FingscheidtStarsHelena ZengelAlbrecht SchuchGabriela Maria Schmeide9-year-old Benni is a toss-up between institutions that cannot tackle her outbursts. She wants to move in with her mother, but she can not handle her wild daughter. After Micha is hired Benni slowly opens up and attaches herself to him.Nothing bears more pitfalls than using child actors, but Nora Fingscheidt's direction of Helena Zengel playing a child with violent fits leaves nothing to chance in this neo-realist family drama which won the German film award.
- DirectorNicolas BedosStarsDaniel AuteuilGuillaume CanetDoria TillierVictor, a disillusioned 60-something whose marriage is on the rocks, opts to relive the week of his life when, 40 years earlier, he met his true love through a company that allows customers to return to the time period of their choosing.French romantic comedy can often come across as stale, but old-fashioned is brilliant in this tale of a middle-aged man trying to recapture his moment of falling in love with his wife. A bit cheesy, but in a good way - I would have loved to watch more like this in 2020.
- DirectorDerek TsangStarsDongyu ZhouJackson YeeFang YinWhile she copes the the pressures of her final examinations, a bullied teenage girl forms an unlikely friendship with a mysterious young man who protects her from her assailants.Another great romance, this tale of high-school romance marred by bullying and delinquency was a huge hit at home and turned lead actress Zhou Dongyu into China's biggest new star.
- DirectorLadj LyStarsDamien BonnardAlexis ManentiDjebril ZongaA cop from the provinces moves to Paris to join the Anti-Crime Brigade of Montfermeil, discovering an underworld where the tensions between the different groups mark the rhythm.I'm a bit divided on this one, as it's too programmatic for my taste and does not reach the brilliance of Mathieu Kassovitz' "La Haine". It did inspire a big discussion about the suburbs (once again) and has very good continuity.
- DirectorTaika WaititiStarsRoman Griffin DavisThomasin McKenzieScarlett JohanssonA young German boy in the Hitler Youth whose hero and imaginary friend is the country's dictator is shocked to discover that his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home.Another much hyped film I'm a bit divided on, as Waititi's gift for black humor doesn't quite work in my opinion, and one would have wished to see more from the support cast and less of the boy. It is visually very creative but the screenplay Oscar wasn't the most deserved.
- DirectorShannon MurphyStarsEliza ScanlenMichelle LottersToby WallaceMilla, a seriously ill teenager, falls in love with a drug dealer, Moses, her parents' worst nightmare.A fantastic lead performance by Eliza Scanlen makes this the best Australian film of the year for me, although it could have used some trimming towards the end.
- DirectorAntonio CamposStarsBill SkarsgårdTom HollandBanks RepetaSinister characters converge around a young man devoted to protecting those he loves in a postwar backwoods town teeming with corruption and brutality.And for male newcomer performances, few could beat Tom Holland's in an otherwise underwhelming Southern gothic tale that slightly collapses under its own weight.
- DirectorDarius MarderStarsRiz AhmedOlivia CookePaul RaciA heavy metal drummer's life is turned upside down when he begins to lose his hearing and he must confront a future filled with silence.The best male lead performance of the year in my view is Riz Ahmed's drummer suffering from loss of hearing and the subsequent need to turn his life around. The script is borderline kitsch at times but Ahmed makes it work.
- DirectorEdoardo PontiStarsSophia LorenIbrahima GueyeRenato CarpentieriIn seaside Italy, a Holocaust survivor with a daycare business takes in a 12-year-old street kid who recently robbed her.We were also gifted the probably last lead performance by Sophia Loren, who is not as iconic as she was in her heyday but still brings her incredible range across.
- DirectorBaldvin ZophoníassonStarsElín HallEyrún Björk JakobsdóttirLára Jóhanna JónsdóttirDrawing on true stories and interviews with the families of addicts, this harrowing portrait of addiction follows Stella and Magnea through the decades as precarious teenage years morph into perilous adulthoods.As for films that are so obscure that they fall beneath one's radar, this Icelandic tale of jilted Lesbian romance and drug abuse would be the belated discovery of the year, although it's story structure tests one's patience at times.
- DirectorAitor ArregiJon GarañoJose Mari GoenagaStarsAntonio de la TorreBelén CuestaVicente Vergara1936. A country taken by the fascism. A husband marked for the killing. A wife determined to all for saving him. An endless incarceration in his own home.Part of a trend of films dealing with the Franco regime's legacy, this one has a very bold concept reminiscent of Kusturica's Underground minus the satire, which is both its strength and its weakness.
- DirectorTerrence MalickStarsAugust DiehlValerie PachnerMaria SimonThe Austrian Franz Jägerstätter, a conscientious objector, refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II.While it does provide Malick's unique talent to combine serene and mental landscapes, it is far too long for the story it has to tell and the support cast, particularly Mathias Schoenaerts, outweigh August Diehl's somewhat one-note performance.
- DirectorAnca DamianStarsLizzie BrocheréOlimpia MelinteMarius ManoleAfter an accident, a little dog remembers all the different masters she's had successively and loved unconditionally.While "Soul" is definitely the best CGI animated film this year, this French 2D film is a brilliant European contribution to the art, with a marked Eastern European touch.
- DirectorTomm MooreRoss StewartStarsHonor KneafseyEva WhittakerSean BeanA young apprentice hunter and her father journey to Ireland to help wipe out the last wolf pack. But everything changes when she befriends a free-spirited girl from a mysterious tribe rumored to transform into wolves by night.However when it comes to animated films for children, this is the one to go for this year, by far the best family viewing title as Pixar's outings are very mature of late. Like Tomm Moore's previous "Song of the Sea", it combines Celtic visuals and folk tales with questions of identity, but in a way that is easily grasped.
- DirectorDan ScanlonStarsTom HollandChris PrattJulia Louis-DreyfusIn a magical world full of technological advances, elven brothers Ian and Barley Lightfoot set out on an adventure to resurrect their late father for a day.The other Pixar feature this year features a teenage friendly gaming atmosphere, but also dwells deeply in matters of death. And for a bit too long at that. So while it's still way better than anything by Disney this year, one wonders what kind of audience this was made for.
- DirectorJun'ichi FujiseTomoyuki ItamuraMasaharu TomodaStarsMahiro TakasugiLynnYukiyo FujiiA high school student discovers one of his classmates, Sakura Yamauchi, is suffering from a terminal illness. This secret brings the two together, as she lives out her final moments.Yet another animation concerned with death is this beautifully made tale of doomed high school romance which inspired a live-action remake and TV series.
- DirectorMakoto ShinkaiStarsKotaro DaigoNana MoriTsubasa HondaSet during a period of exceptionally rainy weather, high-school boy Hodaka Morishima runs away from his troubled rural home to Tokyo and befriends an orphan girl who can manipulate the weather.I only got to see Makoto Shinkai's follow-up to the super hit "Your Name" this year, to which it compares at a disadvantage in spite of visual brilliance.
- DirectorMasayuki KojimaStarsMiyu TomitaMariya IseShiori IzawaRiko, Reg, and their new friend, Nanachi, continue their journey down the Abyss and arrive at the 5th layer. But in order for them to continue to the 6th layer, they must encounter the haunting figure of Nanachi's past: Bondrewd the Novel.The best Japanese animation I've seen this year would be the conclusion to the Made in Abyss trilogy, which is also one of the greatest anime series ever. However, it is not for the faint of heart, as its cheerful looks hide a truth that gets constantly harder to bear. Prepare to be devastated.
- DirectorAlexander NanauStarsDan Alexandru CondreaLiviu IoluRazvan LutacDirector Alexander Nanau follows a crack team of investigators at the Romanian newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor as they try to uncover a vast health-care fraud that enriched moguls and politicians and led to the deaths of innocent citizens.The best documentary I've seen this year would be this up-close retelling of the scandal that changed my homeland. So I'm not neutral on this but it plays out like a thriller. Given that the real story only intensified after the film ends, I hope there'll be a sequel.
- DirectorGeethu MohandasStarsNivin PaulyShashank AroraSanjana DipuA transgender child from Lakshadweep sets off to Mumbai in pursuit of Akbar, an elder brother who left the island due to his sexual orientation.When it comes to audacity, this epic tale of a queer islander's journey from sensitive youth to big city thug is hard to match and carried by good performances throughout, although it lacks in timing.
- DirectorMohammad RasoulofStarsBaran RasoulofZhila ShahiMahtab ServatiThe four stories that are variations on the crucial themes of moral strength and the death penalty that ask to what extent individual freedom can be expressed under a despotic regime and its seemingly inescapable threats.An Iranian parable on the death penalty in four stories, for which the director was sentenced to prison. It won the Golden Bear, but is too long, one story less would have brought the message across fine.
- DirectorYaron ZilbermanStarsYehuda Nahari HaleviAmitay Yaish Ben OusilioAnat RavnitzkiDetails the year leading to the assassination of Israel's Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin (1922-1995), from the point of view of the assassin.Another controversial title was this realist perspective taken from Rabin assassin Yigal Amir. The director remained absolutely neutral even though the events raise doubts about his sanity. With the result that, if such a view is accepted by so many, is the entire country insane? Most uncomfortable film for me this year.
- DirectorMaïmouna DoucouréStarsFathia YoussoufMédina El Aidi-AzouniEsther GohourouEleven-year-old Amy starts to rebel against her conservative family's traditions when she becomes fascinated with a free-spirited dance crew.The most controversial film of the year was of course this one but that only shows how hypocritical people can be. It's the story of an 11-year-old who protests her mother's acceptance of her father's second marriage by joining a girl gang dancing in lascivious ways. Yet the director, a migrant woman of color, was accused by the social media moral police of entertaining pedophiles. The film deserves to be seen just for fairness, since its real themes have been ignored by a hostile debate. It's not very good though as it has serious continuity issues.
- DirectorAlvaro Delgado AparicioStarsJunior BejarAmiel CayoMagaly SolierSegundo Paucar, wants to become a master story-box maker just like his father to carry on with the family legacy.Difficult to obtain, this carefully crafted work forms part of a wave of Latin American films about queerness and is one of the few which address rural homosexuality, which carries much higher risk.
- DirectorOliver HermanusStarsKai Luke BrummerBarbara-Marié ImmelmanMichael KirchA young man in 1981 South Africa must complete his brutal and racist two years of compulsory military service while desperately maintaining the secrecy of his homosexuality.Not as good as last year's Kanarie with a similar theme of homosexuality in South Africa's military during the last days of Apartheid, it's still an impressive recapturing of that time's multi-layered oppression.
- DirectorBora KimStarsPark Ji-huKim Sae-byeokJeong In-giSeoul 1994, in the year the Seongsu Bridge collapsed, 14-year-old Eunhee wanders the city searching for love.Also a period piece about queer awakening, but Lesbian, this is a very nuanced approach with a understatement uncommon to Western films about the subject these days. Too much under the radar, like so many Lesbian-themed films.
- DirectorRay YeungStarsTai-BoBen YuenPatra AuSUK SUK is a quiet portrayal of a gay relationship between two men in their twilight years. PAK, 70, a married taxi driver who refuses to retire meets HOI 65, a retired single father. Although both are secretly gay, they are proud of the families they have created through hard work and hardship over the years. HOI is a member of the Mature Tongzhi Society, a social group, which caters for gay men who are over 60. The group is planning to attend a public forum to request the government to create senior citizen homes dedicated exclusively for gay people. However, due to the fact that most men in the group are in the closet, there is no one who is willing to voice their opinions in the public forum. HOI supports the notion of a gay senior citizen home and considers speaking in the public forum. However when HOI begins to wonder whether his son WAN suspect he is gay, his attitude shifts. As PAK and HOI fall in love they contemplate a possible future together. SUK SUK studies the subtle day-to-day moments of the two men as they struggle between conventional morals and their personal desires.A rare film about homosexuality in old age, this a modest undertaking which still manages to carry the spectator into quite different cultural circumstances.
- DirectorAmjad Abu AlalaStarsMustafa ShehataIslam MubarakMahmoud Maysara ElsarajShortly after Muzamil was born, the village's holy man predicts that he will die at age 20. Muzamil's father can't stand the curse and leaves home. Sakina raises her son as a single mother, overly protective. One day, Muzamil turns 19.Another jump into foreign culture is this first Sudanese movie in decades after the country shook off its dictatorship. The story is a bit predictable but it is beautifully filmed.
- DirectorYi'nan DiaoStarsGe HuGwei Lun-MeiFan LiaoA gangster on the run sacrifices everything for his family and a woman he meets while on the lam.Interesting to watch for its editing of almost indecipherable dark shots in constant slow movement, this is an almost experimental neo-noir and perhaps only for serious cineasts.
- DirectorRian JohnsonStarsDaniel CraigChris EvansAna de ArmasA detective investigates the death of the patriarch of an eccentric, combative family.When it comes to genres, this would be the most entertaining mystery / crime film of the year owing more to a clever script than an ensemble cast in which some big names leave a small impression.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsMatthew McConaugheyCharlie HunnamMichelle DockeryAn American expat tries to sell off his highly profitable marijuana empire in London, triggering plots, schemes, bribery and blackmail in an attempt to steal his domain out from under him.As for comedy, Guy Richie came back with yet another routine, but funny heist saga that was accused of being politically incorrect - while mocking political correctness.
- DirectorV. VignarajanStarsVinoth KishanArjun DasPooja RamachandranAs a blind librarian, dispirited cricketer and desolate psychiatrist each seek retribution and release, their lives overlap under eerie influences.Horror did not produce many noteworthy titles this year, but this supernatural Tamil thriller stands out because of its story taking place at different times - which then becomes an integral part of the narrative.
- DirectorJóhann JóhannssonStarsTilda SwintonTwo billion years ahead of us, a future race of humans finds itself on the verge of extinction. Almost all that is left in the world are lone and surreal monuments, beaming their message into the wilderness.As for experimental film, this narration of a classic British Sci-Fi novel by Tilda Swinton to views of Yugoslav Brutalist monuments is as unique as it gets.
- DirectorThomas KailStarsLin-Manuel MirandaPhillipa SooLeslie Odom Jr.The real life of one of America's foremost founding fathers and first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. Captured live on Broadway from the Richard Rodgers Theater with the original Broadway cast.As for most over-hyped films of the year, this filmed performance takes the cake as it's not a movie in the first place. For non-Americans, it's also rather boring. The novelty of seeing people of color play white historical persons wears off quickly. The only great moments are the three scenes of Jonathan Groff as George III, as he plays the part with gleeful mockery. Everyone else is too serious and noisy for my taste. But OK, I also hate Cats (both film and musical).
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsJohn David WashingtonRobert PattinsonElizabeth DebickiArmed with only the word "Tenet," and fighting for the survival of the entire world, CIA operative, The Protagonist, journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a global mission that unfolds beyond real time.Most over-hyped real movie of the year in which Christopher Nolan takes his usual mind-bending drowned in lots of shooting so that the viewer's brain may not process how absurd the plot is a step too far. If Robert Pattinson was the lead, it would probably work as he lends his character enough gravitas to overplay logical loopholes. But JD Washington looks like a spectator of his own movie in an awkward display of misplaced casting choices. It's a hot mess, but may still win the Academy Award for lack of alternatives.
- DirectorPatty JenkinsStarsGal GadotChris PineKristen WiigDiana must contend with a work colleague, and with a businessman whose desire for extreme wealth sends the world down a path of destruction, after an ancient artifact that grants wishes goes missing.However, the prize for worst film of the year belongs most definitely to this utterly ridiculous train wreck. I'm not a big fan of superhero films to start with but was pleasantly surprised by Gal Gadot's presence in the first one. Here she fights Kristen Wiig in a costume borrowed from Cats wearing a pure gold armor weighing tons while losing her powers. And why is the villain's son Asian while he is Latino but looks like Trump? At some point, there will be a documentary about such a huge project could turn out so horribly wrong, and it will become cult, like "Showgirls". For now, it's just awful.