The year that almost never was...
I know what you’re thinking. How on earth do you do a “best of 2020” movie list when a) there were very few movies to review, and b) it’s not possible to use the word “best” to describe 2020.
Both very valid points. But the way I look at it, is in a year where change was thrust upon us, it might be nice for a little bit of normalcy. And normalcy is the key here. Because in an “unprecedented” year, when so many of us have been forced to “pivot”, this movie list will be doing no such thing.
Sure, I could have changed up the plan by including direct to steaming movies in this year’s list. But as a fan of cinema and the actual experience of going to a movie theatre, I decided to keep the list as it has been in years past, only taking into consideration the new release movies I saw in cinemas, including those designed for streaming services but had a limited cinema release nonetheless (i.e., The Prom).
Of course, this does mean that several of the movies that likely would have made it onto this list such as Disney-Pixar’s phenomenal Soul, the latest live action remake of an animated classic Mulan, and the quirky and brilliant Palm Springs, will not feature. Which is a shame, because two of these would have likely shaken up the top three spots (hint: the awful Mulan adaptation would not be anywhere near the top of the list). But the decision to release these films direct to streaming has such excluded them from this list. As much like Ross’s sofa, I refuse to “pivot”, particularly when cinema releases for these movies were possible in Australia given most theatres only closed for approximately 3-4 months. Either way, I am sure the studios must be devastated over this exclusion. It will be up there with the delay/cancellation of the Academy Awards in terms of disappointment for them, I bet.
But enough about that. Let’s get to the movies – all 17 of them. Talk about depressing.
Even with only 17 films though, there were some shining lights – and one unmitigated disaster. On the positive front, of the far fewer films released in 2020, the overall quality was, well, quite good. In fact, almost all were at least entertaining enough to keep this humble reviewer transfixed for a couple of hours. Some surprises included the Clea DuVall directed Christmas flick, Happiest Season; the Judd Apatow dramedy The King of Staten Island; and the Ryan Murphy Netflix produced movie musical, The Prom. The latter providing a glossy, polished, and amicable adaptation of the Broadway musical it was based on in-spite of its mediocre lead cast (honestly, James Corden and Meryl Streep really need to stop being cast in every movie musical ever made).
At the top of the list however were three films that could not be further removed from one another if they tried (actually, two of them do share one very notable theme, but that’s about where the similarities end).
In third place, was the latest adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s literary classic, Little Women. Greta Gerwig’s adaptation brought a renewed and timely retelling of this all too familiar tale via an extraordinary cast led by the brilliant Saoirse Ronan and a cleverly rearranged order of events. In doing so, Gerwig managed to bring to the forefront some of the timelier themes and storylines to make this well-told story fresh again. Which in and of itself is no easy accomplishment.
In second place was Taika Waititi’s charming, original, joyous, and heartbreaking story of acceptance in even the darkest of settings, JoJo Rabbit. This bold attempt to combine drama, comedy, coming-of-age romance, as well as a billion other themes into a satirical war film could only be conceived, and more importantly, executed successfully, by the deft hands and mind of the brilliant Taika Waititi. Like many of Waititi’s films, the characters are the real standouts here. They are charming, colourful, and quirky, and juxtapose the dark storyline and historical setting so perfectly, that it somehow makes sense to be shocked and disarmed in one moment, and then in fits of giggles the next. This really was an extraordinary film that deserved every accolade it received.
But it was another war epic that pipped JoJo Rabbit to the number one spot. Sam Mendes visually stunning, utterly mesmerising and ferociously intense 1917 rocketed to my number one spot when I saw it in January. I’m not normally a fan of war epics – and I’m even less a fan of movies that focus on visuals and fancy schmancy in your face direction over storytelling – but in 1917, Mendes used these techniques to actually enhance the story and create well-rounded characters and a level of suspense I’ve not encountered in a cinema since 2019′s Hotel Mumbai. Maybe I’m a sucker for suspense (who knew?), because much like Hotel Mumbai, this well crafted suspense was more than enough to earn this film my number one spot of 2020. I guess it truly was an unprecedented year after all.
And let’s leave it at that. Normally I’d go on to explain some of the weaker entries from the year that was, but let’s just say the less said about The New Mutants, the better.
So, like much of 2020, let’s close the book on it quickly and hope that 2021 brings with it not just a return to cinemas in general, but that the long-anticipated string of movies delayed from 2020 live up to an extra year of hype and anticipation.
To be honest though, who really cares? Just get me back to cinema escapism and away from streaming movies – stat.
