Movie theaters were open for like five minutes this year and it doesn’t look like their reopening anytime soon. Most all big movie releases this year were either delayed or went directly to streaming so it’s been a crap year for new movies. There were a handful that snuck out before the pandemic hit, but all the blockbusters haven’t seen the light of day yet. In fact, this past Christmas day, Wonder Woman 1984 was released on HBO Max, for no additional cost. This is the first giant movie to do this and Warner Media is continuing this strategy into 2021. All in all, 2020 was a crap year for movies, hopefully next year is better.
My picks for the best movie released in 2020, in order of release:
Bad Boys For Life – January 17 | Columbia Sony
The long-await third part in the Bad Boys series starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. I was a huge fan of these as a teenager and was first in line to see this when it was released. My wife and I re-watched the first two movies in preparation for the new film. Bad Boys For Life turned out to be a reboot of sorts, with the same cast. It was well written and directed and there’s already talk of making more. I’ll take all the Bad Boys I can get.
The Hunt – March 13 | Blumhouse Universal
Blumhouse produces are certain kind of movie. If you’ve seen any of them, you know what I’m talking about. Most of these are what would consider “B-movies”, but in an era where we have access to everything, a lot more movies get seen. The Hunt seems to take inspiration from The Hunger Games and some sort of twisted dream. It’s worth the watch just for the story that they cook up and how it unfolds. Don’t be expecting Oscar nominated material here.
Tenet – September 3 | Syncopy Warner Bros.
A lot of press has come out around Tenet and its director Christopher Nolan recently. Over the summer, when the pandemic was slowing down (so we thought), Tenet released only in theaters. My wife and I were one of the very few who actually went to the theater to see it. It was a failed experiment and Warner Bros. have decided they weren’t going to risk it with any of their movies in 2021. Needless to say, Christopher Nolan isn’t happy and is shopping his next project elsewhere. Regardless of all the good/bad press it received, Tenet is a very good movie. I’m a fan of most of Nolan’s work so I enjoyed it. It harkens back to his mind thriller Inception, which I also loved. The only downside to Tenent is, dare I say even more confusing than Inception. I look forward to re-watching Tenet to try to gain a better understanding of Nolan’s vision.
Honorable mention:
Freaky – November 13 | Blumhouse Universal
Check out more of my ‘Best of 2020’ —> Here