2020 was a GREAT year for entertainment. 2021 is working on it.
Because stories will never be left behind.
Is not every start of a brand-new year that we get to exhale heavily, hopefully flourishing away all disasters of the year left behind. That, certainly, was my welcome to 2021. Despite the fact that I cannot label my 2020 as a horrendous, disrupting or sickening period of my life, I avow the craziness of it all.
By the end of March, cities began to shut down, whole countries began to shut down, even productions began to shut down! For the first time in history, the world stopped. And the giant machine responsible for most of the magic filling our lives followed suit. But this is only what we read on the headlines. In fact, it is odd to say that 2020 was an empty year for the entertainment industry. Those juicy streaming platforms everyone got to hate at some point owing to the thought that they will destroy cinema, came to save us. But, expanding its screen period, 1917 by Sam Mendes joined the brilliant Portrait of a Lady on Fire by Céline Sciamma to initiate this tumultuous 2020.
Subsequently, Parasite, up to its preparedness for the Academy Awards, modestly travelled along the globe, little by little increasing its performance. Overseas, Bong Joon Ho’s film has reached an average of $129.7 million worldwide. With a Best Picture nomination? All but a higher exposure. With a Best Picture Academy Award? Just imagine. I personally shrieked at the absolute justice of it.
But going back briefly to the gorgeous Portrait of a Lady on Fire, the French 18th century impossible romance between a young painter, Marianne (Noémie Merlant), and her model Héloïse (Adèle Haenel) completed the portrait of a year on fire, as a tender story seeking self-discovery, as a succinct call for freedom amongst a controlled world. Unlike other pictures which actively sustain narrative, even enlarge it, adding a musical soundtrack, this film does not find it necessary to tell the audience how to feel. This is where Portrait of a Lady on Fire raw style is born.
And prompting into that use of non-musical adherence into a scene, Pieces of a Woman, during its 24-minute shot of the longest home-birth scene ever seen in a movie plays the game of uplifting drama, not via score, but by means of a silent background and anxious characters. It is one of those scenes where you find yourself shouting at the screen, hands covering mouth and heart beating fast. Disaster forthcoming. “Find the phone! Why are you stuttering!? Move!”.
Crazy enough a free-floating camera for a 30-page script birth continuous scene completed in only two days? Settle yourself, since it was the first scene to be shot for the entire film and it was not rehearsed once! Vanessa Kirby (Oscar nominated) and Shia LaBeouf star in the Netflix drama, a picture painted in yellow. A movie to pay close attention to if one is harassed to deal with untouched feelings, or pending talks. I wondered, right after its viewing, how a life can possibly turn upside down by just one single mistake, but one that shatters everything around it.
Flabbergasted plenty I was with this movie, then should I say, just mention, a 2020 blast, a brooding but pleasant film, Sound of Metal. Ever speculated how deafness sounds on a movie? Honestly, I never did. Not before meeting the feature debut of Darius Marder, with Riz Ahmed leading on the foreground as a heavy-metal drummer who starts to lose his hearing.
Watching the first few minutes of the film is enough to figure out two things; firstly, why is Riz Ahmed one of the best actors of the moment; secondly, why is Sound of Metal a movie anyone has ever seen, or heard (you’ll see) before. 2020 proved to be a bit of a windfall, courtesy of Sound of Metal, “the most comforting movie of the year,” is said around critics. It is, not holding much regard on the half-vacant dramatic interior, a story engrossed in the desperate need to “learn how to be deaf” — for Ruben, too.
Sound of Metal is a break from a long year. Because how many of us had reached out for comforting and carefree movies and shows to forget, to reset our minds and laugh along the way as we binge on for another Schitt’s Creek or The Good Place episode? — not to be sassy, but we’ll be covering those further ahead in this article. Our heavy metal filled-world — pandemic or not — takes everything for granted, and here comes Sound of Metal to challenge precisely that.
As for an inspiring quote of the movie, maybe an emotional call for you to jump into this story, preferably situated in its ending, something like “and these are the final worlds of Sound of Metal,” my answer is as comforting as it can be: watch this movie in one of two ways, a great set of headphones — no, really -, or bribe your nearest movie theater to experience this captivating piece of 2020 in the most feasible way possible. Trust me in this one.
I was, however, shoving my head against a wall for the major part of the year — and no, nothing to do with my eagerness towards Disney’s+ upcoming influx; not at all, not much. Just a bit. Two movies I was hoping to be sitting down for, staring at a big screen, immersing myself into as credits rolled, forthcoming, promising, a poignant and thrilling experience; the comeback of two masters, this time detached, each with a setup of historical events in two movies fully sustained in the acumen of dialogues and structure — at two culminating periods commemorating history; one, the story of what’s possibly the greatest film in cinema antiquity, Citizen Kane, the directorial debut of the ruthless Orson Welles, the return of David Fincher in a script written by his late father Jack Fincher, scouting the trials and tribulations up to the writing of the classic, the diagnoses of a 1930s Hollywood by Herman J. Mankiewicz, alcoholic critic and screenwriter, as he rushes in a scuffle to finish Citizen Kane.
David Fincher’s MANK opts for a tailored approach, showcasing Hollywood’s glory, but also the struggle in a dense world of manipulation, a deep dive of the juncture of film and politics, where in the end, “the magic of the movies”, ending quote for the film, revolves around more than just chanting “camera rolls, sound’s speeding, frame … and action!”
While MANK appears to bear on a looking style alike to the 1941 movie, restoring Hollywood’s Golden Age aesthetic, at no time do storytellers were after the making of a picture resembling Welles’s film, accurately uttering to “consciously trying to avoid overt homage.” Erik Messerschmidt was worried at first, “What was most terrifying to me is that a movie like this can so easily become a parody.” Nevertheless, MANK’s unique looking style comes from a pastiche of noir films as well as others ’30s classic, adding up very modern setups, which contribute to the naturalistic, brilliantly contrasted and in-depth scenarios. This is how David Fincher recreates Hollywood’s Golden Age, standing side-by-side to the always stunning, always whimsical Gary Oldman giving life to Mank.
Thus, experiencing such a film like it, a film specially conveying the grandeur of cinema, staring up at my TV, accompanied by the unapologetic downstairs neighbor’s toilet flushing noise and constant anguish that none of my relatives would suddenly decide to resume a Netflix’s show, is not the kind of ambience required to fully plunge into a movie quite as unusual as this. But I did get emotional! Ultimately, a great movie is great movie.
The second comeback of the year, what people are saying is possibly the most outstanding film of 2020, already nominated for the 2021 Golden Globes in almost every department, hand in hand with MANK — in fact, both leading the stand for the prime categories; in fact, both competing within a pair of names which created what could be considered the finest movie of 2010; in fact, I’m saying that Aaron Sorkin is competing alongside Fincher for the best movie of 2020 with his historical, yet contemporary piece, The Trial of the Chicago 7, a movie I turned out to be entirely absorbed by.
Bringing to the screen one of the most shocking scenes to ever take place in an American courtroom on the 29th of October of 1969, after a group of anti-Vietnam War protestors are accused of inducing violent riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, can only but result in something excruciatingly harrowing in form and highly emotional due to Sorkin’s mastery with dramatic storytelling.
For the sake of entertainment, however, the 2020 movie reshuffles historical accuracy, by means of dates, relationships and story. “This isn’t a biopic”, says Sorkin, who relies on the relationships among characters, mainly, the ones portrayed by Eddie Redmayne and Sacha Baron Cohen, Tom Hayden and Abbie Hoffman, respectively. Indeed, Sorkin was allowed to have a little chat with the latter (who died in 2016) for the first draft he wrote in 2007.
Maybe we are before Sorkin’s most crucial work, maybe we must consider a different approach to depicting (some) historical events. Perhaps, The Trial of the Chicago 7 could fly around plenty of “what ifs”, yet, not when admittedly considering it an enthralling picture, a top on the list of the best of 2020.
But wait! Last year was, indeed, a great year for “based on true events” movies. One of my favorites, Ma’ Rainey’s Black Bottom, fitting Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis into a tale of admiration for black art, expertly mixed up with philosophical dialogues on the lives of black people in the 1920s; namely, Ma Rainey’s band when gathering in a studio in Chicago in 1927. Denzel Washington produced this second adaptation of Augustus Wilson’s ‘Century Cycle’, a collection of ten plays featuring stories of Black American people from various decades, Fences (2017) being the first to make it to the big screen.
This recent one takes a recording studio as main location, enclosing a fearless Ma and go-getting Levee. Ma’ Rainey’s Black Bottom assures a brilliant entertainment carried, could not have been less, of heavy drops of emotion, outstanding performances and up-to-date themes with so much value. exhibited in scenarios full of kinetic characters staged as in a Broadway musical.
One Night in Miami is another key piece of 2020, reuniting icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown to discuss their roles in the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Despite being granted the label “based on a true story”, Kempt Powers’ screenplay compounds facts and fiction to entrance the audience in a social event while imagining the conversations that these four friends might have had.
Feature film for Regina King, who was allured by the idea of singing to history, as One Night in Miami dances amid dialogue and music devising and exploring a one-in-a-lifetime night. “It’s been a long, long time coming. But I know that change is gonna come”, signs King through one of Sam Cooke’s lyrics. It is a reminder of how past, perhaps, remains a present issue that still lies within us; previous year shameful outrages, I mean, George Floyd’s brutal case, can make up for what mentioned movies, Ma’ Rainey’s Black Bottom and One Night in Miami, are determined to further persecute: change and justice.
Nonetheless, dramas were not about to be the only 2020 genre to catch our eyes; actually, if there must be an engaging feature paramount on the entertainment industry this past year it would be regarding the variety of content released. Marvel was out of the picture, rubbing hands while setting up its new route — this time expanding their universe using both movies and series. And this time, for real. But we’ll get to that sometime later.
How about the renaissance of romantic comedy, but now adding a sci-fi mood to thrive into more innovative forms of storytelling? Palm Springs loops to the beat of Andy Samberg’s fast-paced, and ever-hysterical performance while partnering up next to Cristin Milioti. Building up from such sincere plot, “Two wedding guests develop a budding romance”, the movie simply grows in the most entertaining way with the overlapping of, “Stuck in a time loop, living the same day over and over again.”
And I have to say, 2020’s final sprint, for instance, Christmas time, passed in an even smoother manner, owing to films like Happiest Season. Now, hold on a sec! Happiest Season is not the soft lesbian rom-com we were expecting. Personally, never have I felt so miserable, so sore, while watching a character denying her own pain. A bright, content and cheerful world colored in sweet and endearing characters. That is how this movie opens up. That is what this movie wishes to break apart from.
Conversely, I can speak for a movie that neither wishes to depict a world of hope — not at any point, not at all. Seriously. — nor inviting the audience to a pleasant experience. It is, I proudly state, a Spanish movie. Only a brief introduction such as, in a prison tower with countless floors, a platform packed with food, gradually descends through the tower’s levels, creeps the blood out of your skin. The Platform is terrifying. A crippling horror for 2020 asserting a not-so-subtle social commentary, one jam-packed with hope for humanity. At least, that is what Goreng (protagonist) hopes will occur.
Shall we not forget some other 2020 titles. The Devil All the Time is a name. A movie with not much to say — ok, nothing — but it makes for a tensed-up game of characters dancing around corruption in a period post-World War where stories featuring faith and evil merge in a sinister town where everyone thought to be talking to and taking direction from God, when it was The Devil All the Time. And outstanding as he often proves to be, Chadwick Boseman once said, “When it comes down to it, I’d rather have an action figure than a Golden Globe.” He ended up getting both. Ma’ Rainey’s Black Bottom had him aim for the latter, but Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods emotional anguish, also starring Boseman cannot go under the radar.
But whom I assume made the most out of 2020 is the impassible Ryan Murphy. As a brochure for the year, The Prom, a colorful musical, with names sufficiently recognized to be referred to yet again, has already ruled Netflix’s list of the ten most-watched movies in the U.S. Murphy released five series and three films in 2020. Following the story of sadistic character, Mildred Ratched, the gothic, and appropriately named Ratched, is planned to situate Paulson’s nurse into One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest world. And we have to agree, it would be gripping to watch this.
Hollywood is Ryan Murphy’s alternative story of cinema; a reimagined Golden Age Hollywood where aspiring actors and filmmakers will do the unimaginable to achieve their dreams. The drama was intended to be a limited series. Any chances of a second season? Wait, let me rephrase the question. Did something ever stopped Netflix and Murphy before to continue down the path of releasing content?
The same question comes into play when talking about Michael Schur. His Brooklyn Nine-Nine seventh season is as good (depending on when you ask, I would say better) as the previous ones, skillfully blending the recurring follies of the genre with the proper setting of a world of cops. Sadly, the upcoming season will be the last one. According to Schur, “Ending the show was a difficult decision, but ultimately, we felt it was the best way to honor the characters, the story and our viewers.” This happened to The Good Place, as well. The writers decided it was best to conclude rather than filling in and hinder narrative. I doubt there would be another show that ever induces so much Kant into comedy, or transcends into so many queries regarding good and bad.
“Would the Kardashians still be the Kardashians without their money?” wondered Dan Levy before turning to his father, Eugene Levy, to help him develop Schitt’s Creek. This happened as for 2014, prior to the show having garnered more than 150 nominations and at least 64 awards. Turning to this series as a way to seek out different outlooks on comedy television is the best thing anyone can do. Because despite having to say goodbye to it this past year with its sixth and final season, Schitt’s Creek has gained the audience and critic’s devotion with a long-lasting, sentimental and sardonic humor for every single episode. And, unquestionably, earned a name on the best shows of 2020.
Even so, settling themselves in the whole of a totally dissimilar category; i.e., ‘the best tv dramas of 2020’, such shows as Unorthodox, an electrifying story of upheaval and freedom, Normal People, a tearing love-story that captures the beauty and ruthlessness of first love impeccably, and the unlikely hit of 2020, the utterly unforeseen triumph of the year: The Queen’s Gambit, a mesmerizing story of a woman kicking ass on chess competitions — yet, it goes far beyond than that. Much more beyond than that. What I loved most about The Queen’s Gambit, setting aside the obviousness in issue to Anya Taylor-Joy, was the maturity with which is played out. Entirely, from start to finish.
Seldom do we recognize the influence of non-fiction films; to state a prevailing debate, to stop on our tracks from our hectic lives and wonder along precious landscapes framed in stories depicting life itself, to make account for horrible events, in hope of righting past wrongs. And 2020 delivered such great ones. Netflix’s four-hour documentary, Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, gives voice to some of the victims, recalling with pain and regret the crimes of the multimillionaire, and in the end, prompting out what the world continues to find an answer to since this case first came to the forefront of attention, “What other information was left behind from the case?”
Dear Werner, on the contrary, this one a full movie documentary, suiting itself as an escape from chaos (filmed before 2020, indeed), takes Pablo Maqueda, who grabbed a camera, a big rucksack and himself to make record of Europe’s most vast natural ambiences while strolling through a trip from Munich to Paris. A trip only by foot in a beautiful and endearing picture where words and landscapes come together flashing tributes to cinema’s history — and it is done gorgeously! But really, was I the only one who immediately ran off to deactivate my phone notifications after watching The Social Dilemma?
Some say it was an overly dramatic doc. Some say it was pretty accurate and depicted with great detail the current social dilemma. A penny for my thoughts on it? I restructured the entire application layout of my smartphone right after watching it. Be prepared to feel the rush to shut down your social media accounts for when you go in for The Social Dilemma, as plenty of concepts, speculations and quotes will prove hard to be forgotten.
It is no secret that COVID-19 has had a grave impact on the film industry in 2020. “I’d rather you literally die than watch my movie on a TV,” joked Joshua Topolsky on Nolan’s words about how some (his) projects “are meant to be big-screen experiences.” And Tenet made it. Other studios preferred to wait, and wait, and finally schedule their movies to 2021. The list is long, so grab pen and patience to jot down all titles you’ve been eagerly waiting for. The pandemic will, and seriously is, bearing its cost on film and tv industry.
However, opinions might differ, clearly bringing in a positive side as to how the industry is nicely adapting to the crisis. Aubin Spitzer, relative of the owners of Central Cinema said, “The switch to going online creates a lot less cost. People can just upload it to the website and pay a subscription to watch.” Whether one agrees or disagrees with this issue does not detract from the fact that 2020 was dominated by Netflix, HBO, Amazon Prime, and — drum roll — the latest addition — Disney+.
The year when the world came to a halt, the year when Marvel mellowed out. At least, for half of it. Because coming summer, Disney+ came right through the pandemic, and along, countless of old and new content; in the form of movies, docs, but mainly — a huge excess — series of all sorts which turned lockdown into a more bearable time for all those who were already up to their gills with Netflix. Pixar’s Soul directly made it to the platform, and Onward, in the viewing of the uncertainty of movie theaters, marched along. Marvel stepped in a grand sweep: How about a superhero adaptation instigating into the history of American sitcom? Checked. WandaVision settled in for a pleasant welcome to a, yet, 2021 loaded with viruses.
But Kevin Faige has a plan for the upcoming Marvel/Disney+ shows. What went wrong with Marvel’s Netflix universe? First of all, that Kevin Feige was not involved, and we know what this man does. And has done. And is planning to do. In fact, he plugged into the TV side for this new phase to fix exactly that, to truly bring order to the whole cinematic and streaming universe. As things have started, I endorse what was said by Elizabeth Olsen, “In Feige we trust”.
The opening credits of 2021 truly submitted for a stimulating, well-balanced and entertaining engine towards the forthcoming months of the year. An unexpected favorite that it will surely take time to fade away, primarily for its smartness featuring… yeah, absolutely the whole thing, Scorsese’s Pretend It’s a City sits down humorist Fran Lebowitz to weigh in on New York City’s transport, money, art and the not-so-effortless act of walking along the streets.
Another — at least what people categorize as — movie on “straight people screaming at each other for like two hours” as other greeting title for the year is the alluring Malcolm & Marie. Before we move to the end! Do not even think about missing Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland. I’m still crying. Frances McDormand, and that’s enough. But I definitely can’t wait to be sitting down, hopefully in an armchair with a cup holder, to watch Judas and the Black Messiah by Shaka King. And I will certainly not miss The King’s Man, the prequel to a fantastic film which is already a benchmark of the genre.
Is being seen, it must be admitted, and eventually, must be said; 2021 has opened up to a tricky timing, but roars into the pandemic with big titles in beneath, starring big names, suiting big productions, and challenging any sort of complications to continue pursuing a long-time passion: making movies, creating stories for us to cry, laugh, delight, gasp and — more importantly — attach to.
Before all this started, Scorsese was about to begin production for his next project, Killers of the Flower Moon, on March 2020. With all the boom of the Coronavirus, ultimately, all his plans went down the drain. And now? He aims to start shooting by April, having employed this chaos to redefine script, cast, and schedules. His ambition hasn’t lessened. And neither occurred to films.
Films, stories, have remained. The lights might have gone off for movie theaters, but here we are, still. When the whole world shut down, movies didn’t. And even more! We had been granted great stories, with great up-to-date themes, linking past to present. Stories of all kinds, of all setups.
As much as it had me chuckling occasionally, I would not say Death to 2020, much less its cinema. And if 2021 continues on the path it is heading through, these same words would apply for a not-so-distant future, where, again, stories will continue its way through our screens, big or small. But there will remain.
-Anabel Estrella
