Non-definitive UNDISPUTED Ranking of 2020 Films UPDATED

People of the Internet, because of the pando, I didn't see as many new films this year as usual, so this is not a definitive list. But whaddya gonna do? Of the ones I saw, this is the UNDISPUTED ranking of films from 2020

1. Lover's Rock - An utterly unique and successful film centered on a portrayal of a West-Indian house party in 70's London with no explication provided and none necessary. Handheld camera roves constantly through the cramped house from setup up through the night in a way that the viewer feels more like another party-goer than a passive participant. Music is great of course.
2. Last Cow - Set in pioneer times in the Pacific Northwest, a tiny story of friendship and pastries well told
3. Da Five Bloods - A crazy, never subtle, ambitious, uneven movie about the damage done by a stupid war to its involuntary combatants on both sides, with the perfect cast to pull it off. Best Spike Lee since 25th Hour? Kudos to a soundtrack that doesn't use "Fortune Son" even once, but instead employs Mr. Marvin Gaye. More honest than Ken Burns' somewhat milquetoast 5,000 hour PBS doc. Delroy Lindo is incredible playing a man broken on the wheel of injustice and trauma, and more than deserving of an Oscar
4. Dick Johnson is Dead - Personal and emotion-stirring film by a documentarian dealing with her father developing dementia by filming various different death scenes starring her father
5. Bacurau - I enjoyed this dystopian, pulpy, immersive experience in a small, literally off the map Brazilian village. The colonial symbolism is heavy, if appropriate. I wish the villains were a little more sketched out, but that's not what the filmmakers were going for.
6. American Utopia - I would probably rank this higher if I HADN'T seen it live in previews in Boston and loved it. The film is still a good time with great music and the close-ups and different angles show some new perspectives, but it can't match the theater experience. Go see it. It's good.
7. Palm Springs - A very good and funny variation on the Groundhog Day theme. Both leads are excellent.
8. Judas and the Black Messiah - I have only basic knowledge about Fred Hampton and his murder by the police, so this movie was a tough learning experience. It's tough to watch because it depicts very clearly the unconsicionable evil of white "law enforcement" in the 60s. I was gritting my teeth the entire time. Daniel Kaluuya is riveting as Hampton
9. I'm Thinking of Ending Things - It's a thinker, alright. Frustrating to watch at times, scary, gets better the more you think about it.
10. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom -The charismatic performances of both Davis and the band are what make this a standout. The dialogue (Monolgues really) make this filmed play a little too stagy for me.
11. Nomadland - A quiet movie of an older woman who decides to live in a van and the American community of "nomads" in similar circumstances. The film is a slice-of-life study shot in a mix of wide landscapes and tight closeups. It's a good thing they got Frances McDormand, as this would not be very compelling without her. Most of the other roles are filled by non-actors living the life.
12. Vast of Night - A very ambitiously shot twilight zone episode. In a good way. Mostly.

Honourable Mention:

• Zappa - A good surface-level bio. You get a feel for Zappa as he would like to be seen: a difficult genius
• Hamilton - I can see why everyone wanted to see this. Daveed Diggs is so friggin charismatic. Funny that this rah-rah version of American history makes right-wingers angry because there's people of color in it
• Tenet -  Blockbuster entertainment! A LOT of necessary explication, but still fun to watch. I turned on the subtitles because critics were complaining you couldn't hear the dialogue. Since he took five years to write the script, I'm going to trust Nolan has all the timelines lined up like Primer. Denzel's kid is a bit of an enigma, sometimes has the swagger and sounds exactly like him and sometimes he's a complete blank. That vampire kid has become a really watchable actor, huh?

Best Performances: Lindo, Davis and Boseman, McDormand, Kaluuya

Have not seen but want to: Wolfwalkers, The Assistant, City Hall, Minari, Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets, Sound of Metal, Another Round

Seen but did not like:

• Mank - Very good looking movie with an ironically unimaginative script. Fincher's weakest in a while
• Borat II - doesn't feel like much of a revelation that Americans are shitty when properly prodded
• Midnight Sky - Truly awful, I thought Clooney had better judgment than this. Changes the theme of the book of "last surviving humans" into something completely different and saccharine. Some of the special effects are ok.
• Hillbilly Elegy - Look, I'm not going to pretend we weren't drinking and making fun of this movie from the opening credits, but everyone else who watches this movie is going to come away feeling patronized and angry. I suppose Close and Adams deserve props for going full hillbilly. Stick to Arrested Development narration, Ron

Plague Year Film List - The Complete Record

DEFINITIVE, UPDATED Ranking of Quentin Tarantino Movies

People of the Internet: I just saw Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It's pretty ok for the most part, the setting and cinematography are great, of course, and it really makes you long for the days without traffic (i suggest a drive through Northern Maine and New Brunswick.) Brad Pitt is just about perfect and DiCaprio is fine. There are some great scenes especially on the TV Western sets. However, it's way too long, too many ideas are repeated and scenes take twice as long as they need to. Also, as always my appreciation of the film is lessened because it's shot by someone with the sensibility of a 12 year old psychopathic foot fetishist. The Bruce Lee scene is worse than even I thought it would be, and the off-putting over the top violence played for laughs that began with the Gimp still isn't funny. Also, this is the second Tarantino movie in a row I've seen in a theater where half the crowd literally laughed and cheered while women got their face beat in, which seems...problematic? Also, everyone was laughing at the buffoonery of the "Bruce Lee" character, which could've made more sense if the character was not supposed to be Bruce F'n Lee. Kentucky Fried Movie did that 10 times better.

Anyway: Here is my DEFINITIVE, UPDATED list of Quentin Tarantino movies ranked:

1. Reservoir Dogs (Is Keitel/Roth the only believable human relationship in his catalog?)
2. Jackie Brown (Soundtrack and cast are his best)
3. Pulp Fiction (While I liked it in the theater, it launched a million bad movies and probably doesn't hold up. The gimp scene is indefensible. but Sam Jackson...is very defensible)
4. Inglorious Basterds (First 20 minutes are magnificent, but the Jew revenge fantasy...ugh)
5. Once Upon a Time in the West (Would rather the whole movie be about shooting the TV Western, that was fun and interesting with earned pathos and a great character arc.)
6. Django Unchained (slavery revenge fantasy that is also 1 hr too long. The Don Johnson/ Jonah Hill kkk scene is funny.)
7. The Hateful Eight (No one left to tell QT no, apparently. Undistilled sadism, rips off The Great Silence while removing political context. Bruce Dern wasted)
8. Kill Bills (feels like one long pointlessly sadistic QT wet dream)

Top 15 Kinks Songs

Top 15 Kinks songs: 

1. You Really Got Me
2. Waterloo Sunset
3. Lola
4. Strangers
5. Sunday Afternoon
6. Tired of Waiting
7. Well Respected Follower of Fashion
8. Father Christmas
9. Till the End of the Day
10. Ape Man
11. Picture Book
12. Village Green Preservation Society
13. Come Dancing
14. Days
15. Victoria

Best American Movie For Each Decade I've Been Alive

Best American movie by decade, says me:
1970s: Chinatown
1980s: Bladerunner - Director's Cut
1990s: Miller's Crossing
2000s: Mulholland Drive
2010s: Inside Llewyn Davis