Needless to say, there's never been a year for cinema like 2020 in our lifetimes. The pandemic meant that many films skipped movie theaters, with some movingtheir release dates to 2021 as we (hopefully) get closer to widespread vaccination, whileothers headedto streaming services and other online platforms.
However, that doesn't mean that there was ashortage of quality films last year.Indeed, while it was a realdisappointment that audiences didn't have the chance to see the vast majority of movieson the big screen, the shortage ofblockbusters meant that smaller-scale films got a larger spotlight.
Here are 10 of my favorite films that hada theatrical or (more often than not)virtual release in 2020.
'Bacurau'
One of the first moviesto be made available through virtual cinemasas theaters closedamid the pandemic, "Bacurau" may have come as a shock to those familiar with directorKleber Mendonça Filho from his relatively straightforward drama "Aquarius." Like thatearlier movie, the filmmaker (co-directing here withJuliano Dornelles) follows Brazilians whose lives are disrupted by outsiders, as the namesakefictional town discovers it's disappeared from maps,among other strange occurrences. Yet as "Bacurau" progresses, it becomes an unabashed genre moviefeaturing a band of mercenariesled by cult cinemaicon Udo Kier, in an early jolt to this year in film.
'Da 5 Bloods'
Spike Lee's sprawling 150-minute tale of four Black veterans who return to Vietnam decades later to retrieve a hidden gold stockpile is messy in the best way, bursting at the seams with ideas, setpieces and cinematic references.Lee regular Delroy Lindo gives a searing performance as the tormented Paul, likely to earn him his first Oscar nomination, while Chadwick Boseman plays their fallen squad leader in a role that's even more haunting following the actor'suntimely death last year. Lee showed his versatility by directing anotherof 2020's standout movies, "David Byrne's American Utopia," an exuberantconcert film featuringthe former Talking Heads frontman that lived up to comparisons to the classic "Stop Making Sense."
'Dick Johnson is Dead'
Director Kirsten Johnson follows her2016 film"Cameraperson" with another standout documentary, this one centering on her own father. As he starts to show signs of dementia, she films various staged scenarios imagining his demiseand afterlife, as a way to deal with the inevitability of his eventual death. Even as it features numerous, often comically violent scenes ofher father dying, "Dick Johnson is Dead" is really about the importance of letting the loved onesin your life know what they mean to you while they're still around, and proves that Johnson is one of the most inventive documentariansworking today.
'First Cow'
Kelly Reichardt, who grew up in Miami and directed the South Florida-set "Riverof Grass" before finding her muse in the Northwest, makes her finest film yet in "First Cow." The movie set in 19th century Oregon Territoryfollows a cook (John Magaro) and Chinese immigrant (Orion Lee) whocovertlyuse a cow'smilk to make and sell "oily cakes" that quickly become popular,eventually attracting the attention of the animal's wealthyowner (Toby Jones.) "First Cow" is both a gentle taleoftwo outcasts forging a friendship and portraitof an unsparing landscape, culminating in astrikingly bittersweet final moment.
'I'm Thinking of Ending Things'
For fans of Charlie Kaufman, the mind behind movies such as"Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "Synecdoche, New York," 2020 was a good year. He released not onlyhis debut novel "Antkind," but also this cinematicadaptation of Iain Reid's 2016 book, following a woman (Jessie Buckley) who ponders breaking up with her boyfriend (Jesse Plemons) asthey travelto meet his parents, only to confront greater issues."I'm Thinking of Ending Things" can be challenging at times even by Kaufman's standards, withan abstract narrative dense with cultural references (the musical "Oklahoma!" plays a prominentrole), but it's always absorbing,with two great lead performances.
'Lovers Rock'
All five filmsin Steve McQueen's "Small Axe" anthology, centering on Black British individualsover multipledecades, are worth watching, but the standoutis this storyset during a house party in 1980s London. The characters aren't immune from the racism and hardships that play a more prominentpart in the anthology's other entries– one woman is briefly hassled by white youths, whilea creep harasses variouswomen at the party. Yet "Lovers Rock"largely lets its characters enjoy themselves as they drink, smoke and dance, including a singalong to Janet Kay's "Silly Games" that's deservedly been called the year's best moviescene by many.
'The Nest'
After nearly a decade away from feature filmmaking, "Martha Marcy May Marlene" director Sean Durkin made his welcomereturnwith this 1980s-set drama about a businessman (Jude Law) who moves his wife (Carrie Coon) and two kids to his native England, only for them to find it's not quite the greatopportunity he promised. Along with Durkin's direction and script, "The Nest" features possiblythe best film performances by Law and Coon, two immensely talented actors. It also sports striking cinematography byMátyás Erdély and a score by Arcade Fire member Richard Reed Parry, punctuated by a well-curated list of '80s gems from The Cure,Hüsker Dü and more.
'Never Rarely Sometimes Always'
Eliza Hittman's sensitively realized coming-of-age dramafollows a teenager (Sidney Flanigan) living inPennsylvania who's confronted with an unexpected pregnancy, then travelswith her cousin (Talia Ryder) to New York City to visit a Planned Parenthood clinic. Hittman, whose previous movie"Beach Rats" featured a remarkable performance by Harris Dickinson, secures similarly strong turnsfrom her two lead actors here, each making their feature film debuts. Flanigan in particular is a revelation, never more so than the heartbreaker of a scene that gives the film its name.
'Nomadland'
Chloé Zhao's "Nomadland" was the first movie to win the top awards at both Venice and Toronto International Film Festivaland is largely considered the Best Picture frontrunner at this year's Oscars, and for good reason. Based on the 2017 nonfiction book of the same name, the film stars Frances McDormand as a woman who lives and travels in a van after her town's sheetrock factory closes. "Nomadland" sees the directorworking withher largest canvas yet (at least until her Marvel movie "Eternals"), but McDormand and costar David Strathairn blend seamlessly into a cast of non-actorslike Zhao's previous film "The Rider," as well aslandscapes beautifullylensed by cinematographer Joshua James Richards.
'Time'
Garrett Bradley's documentary centers on Fox Rich, a mother of sixfightingto get her husband released from a 60-year Louisiana State Penitentiary sentencefor armed robbery. As its title suggests, what makes "Time" truly remarkable is the span of its footage, includingboth material shot by Bradley and home videos that Rich recorded over the decades. It's one thing to talk about the effects of incarceration and sentence disparities, but it's another to literally watch as children grow into youngadults and Rich builds a new life for herself, all while keeping the constant goal of one dayreuniting with her husband.
Honorable mentions: "Another Round," "The Assistant," "Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets," "David Byrne's American Utopia," "Fourteen," "The Invisible Man," "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," "Minari," "Shirley," "Tommaso"
Regrettably missed: "News of the World," "Pieces of a Woman," "Promising Young Woman"
Email entertainment reporter Jimmy Geurts at jimmy.geurts@heraldtribune.com.
