A long list of short thoughts about movies I've seen this year (2020)
I miss the cinema. Deep seats, popcorn, an overpriced bottle of water. That particular sound of a gaggle of people chattering that’s both indistinct but entirely itself that slowly fades out as the lights dim. Group gasps and laughs. Full house or dozens of empty seats. Going to see a film in the middle of the day and being confused, genuinely confused, when you leave and there’s still daylight. I miss it all.
2020 wasn’t a year for cinemas but it was still a year for movies. Here’s every one I watched (and 2019’s entry).
Parasite was brilliant.
The Lighthouse unsettling but strangely compelling and I have a newfound respect for seagulls.
The Peanut Butter Falcon was so twee it hurt (in a good way). I almost like Shia LeBeouf now.
The Host is surprisingly funny (in a dark way) and a great monster movie.
Drunken Master is worth watching just to see what Chan put himself through (even though his character is basically just an asshole all the time).
The Raid has a kill in it I’ve been thinking about for years. It was just as affecting the second time around.
Clue was a lot more fun than I expected.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters held up to a second viewing.
Igby Goes Down was my favourite movie as a teen. It holds up 10+ years later.
The Invisible Man was legitimately unnerving. I’ll now watch anything with Elisabeth Moss in it.
Tampopo may have given me a food fetish?
Megamind has an inexplicably good soundtrack.
The Princess Bride was a real hole in my list of movies I’d seen. And it was good.
Birds Of Prey is fun, charming, compelling, and legitimately underrated. Beats out Wonder Woman as a the best DC movie I’ve seen in a long time.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is beautiful and engrossing.
Knives Out is a bunch of really talented people having a lot of fun. Especially the set designer.
Eighth Grade is a straight-up punch to the heart.
Booksmart is fantastic “high-schoolers-try-to-party” movies. Lotta laughs, lotta heart.
Can You Ever Forgive Me? exceeded all my expectations.
Zombieland: Double Tap was disappointingly bland.
Creed is another reason to love Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler.
Creed II wasn’t as good as the first one but still great.
High Flying Bird is a basketball movie my partner actually enjoyed.
Attack the Block has a great cast (John Boyega is fantastic), great monster design, mix of sci-fi/comedy/social commentary, and the best slang going. Allow it.
Princess Mononoke is a beautiful, multi-layered movie. Watching it unfurl is a joy.
Crawl was so well constructed engineers should study it.
You’re Next has one of my favourite leads in a slasher.
Alien is so confident it’s intimidating.
Aliens takes everything great about Alien and genre shifts it.
Porco Rosso was probably made just so Miyazaki could paint clouds (and it works beautifully).
Jennifer’s Body is uneven but does a lot of things well (and I can see why it’s a cult classic).
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure was more fun than I expected.
The Thing is fantastic. A real masterclass in pace, atmosphere, and body horror.
John Wick slaps. It might be my least favourite of the three Wick movies in terms of action but it has the tightest story and the best subtle world building.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse does all the big and little things perfectly.
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