Since ranking all digital releases I'd seen in 2020 before theatrical releases returned, I've continued to see more and more as they've been released. As we come to the end of this hectic year, I thought it'd be a good time to go through them. This list will cover all digital 2020 releases I've seen since the start of September, a considerably stronger batch compared to the last one, but still not great on the whole. Nevertheless, let's go!
11. Hubie Halloween
Even though I regard 2020 as a weak year for movies, this is really the only bad film I've seen. But, even at that, it's not that bad. Hubie Halloween is perfectly passable and extremely harmless, but it's soooooooooo boring. I literally got out some school work and started doing that while the film was on, I was that uninterested in it. It's kind of a shame as well because, even though I'm not the biggest fan of Adam Sandler, I tend to enjoy his simple, silly comedies like this, even if they aren't that good. I think a big part of why this didn't click with me is because I'm not really that invested in Halloween. It happens every year, but it's not as big a deal here in the UK compared to the USA. The only legitimately funny thing in this film was the running gag involving the thermos, that made me laugh on a couple of occassions. But, aside from that, I was bored out of my mind - 4.0/10
10. The Devil All the Time
Netflix throw a lot at the wall when putting out original content, so more often than not, they put out a couple of films that are genuinely interesting, a few of which are on this list. Unfortunately, while this is one of them, it didn't hit the mark for me. The Devil All the Time has a very impressive cast who all deliver strong and commited performances, an appropriate aesthetic and direction, and some intriguing themes, but that couldn't really salvage the movie when I found it to be so long and convoluted as well as so excessively dark to the point where I don't really want to revisit or think about it again. I appreciate this movie for what it was going for, but I don't think such is to my liking - 6.0/10
9. The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two
I didn't think too much of the original Christmas Chronicles film, it was a fairly surface-level Christmas romp but made quite fun because of Kurt Russell as Father Christmas. Going into this one, I naturally wasn't expecting much, but I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would, more so than its predecessor. The interpretation of Christmas here is so inventive, making it quite a fun watch. Additionally, Kurt Russell continues to charm and the story is also a lot more exciting. So, even though there still wasn't much to latch onto, as a slice of festive cheer in the year 2020, this did the job just fine for me - 7.0/10
8. Enola Holmes
There's not much to be said about this one, I just really enjoyed it. A lot of what makes Enola Holmes work is the charm, charisma, and general likability of Milly Bobby Brown in the central role - I thought she did an excellent job, and the way she kept breaking the 4th wall was consistently entertaining. This was originally much higher, but the more I think about it, the less I want to go back, which isn't too good a sign. But, still had fun while it was on - 7.5/10
7. Mank
During COVID, I've become a fan of David Fincher's work. He's made quite a few great films, so I was pleased to see that a new outing from him was soon to come. However, I felt a little disappointed with what I got. Mank has much to like, particularly in its performances from Gary Oldman and Amanda Seyfried, the well-crafted 1930s aesthetic, and the solid direction as usual. But, it's quite a dull watch. With most films based on true stories, there's always something about their narrative that communicates to the audience why this story needed to be dramatised, but this just didn't have that. Nothing about this story seemed especially interesting or engaging, and I felt I could probably get the same experience from just reading the behind the scenes of Citizen Kane. Speaking of which, it didn't help that the film was designed to appeal to those in love with the afore mentioned film as well as those familiar with this era and the politics surrounding it, so I was unable to get as much out of this as a different audience member could have. I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as the last two films, but I've placed it higher because I am keen to come back once I've seen Citizen Kane and also because, there's much more worth admiring even if the issues are more prominent - 6.0/10
6. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
The last digital release I watched, and not the highest of notes to go out on. It's undeniably great to see one last amazing performance from Chadwick Boseman, a terrific talent whose passing will leave a considerable hole in the film industry in the coming years, and Viola Davis is also as fabulous as she usually is. But this was just kind of an uneventful movie. It's occassionally interesting and compelling, but most of the time it was just obvious that this was desgined for the stage, a format I believe is better suited for this story because of how little variation there is in location and how little of the lives of these people is covered outside of monologues and such. As a result of this, the filmmaking was kind of unremarkable too. However, I can't complain too much because I thought this was a perfectly fine watch, and I see more worth admiring in this too compared to other films lower on this list that I enjoyed more - 6.5/10
5. I'm Thinking of Ending Things
This is another interesting movie but one that actually frustrates me. I enjoyed I'm Thinking of Ending Things; the performances, particularly from Jessie Buckley, were terrific, the cinematography and aspect ratio were very effective, and the overall atmosphere was really engaging, meaning the film always had my attention and I was always interested. But, I just can't bring myself to say I loved it. It felt a lot as if it was just constantly throwing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle at me but not giving any time to piece them together. I like it when a piece of art leaves you thinking about what you just watched and what it means, but here it hindered my enjoyment, as I struggled to embrace what I was watching due to being so bogged down in all the different aspects of it. Similar to Mank, I'm not familiar with the work of Charlie Kaufman, so maybe after a bit of experience with his films I'll be more prepared to get the most out of this. To reiterate, I did really enjoy and admire a lot of what this movie offered, and I am keen to revisit it, but I just took some issue with everything else - 7.5/10
4. On the Rocks
While this did have a brief theatrical run, I watched it for the first time at home thanks to my year free trial of Apple TV+ (very generous considering that there are some streaming services that don't offer a free trial at all *cough* Disney+ *cough*). I'm not too familiar with Sofia Coppola's films aside from the great Lost in Translation, but I was keen to see this. Having watched it, it was mostly a vehicle for Bill Murray to just be himself from 90 minutes, and I'm perfectly fine with that. The plot was fine, the filmmaking fairly standard, but I really enjoyed it overall, not too much else to say here, it was just entertaining and I'd happily check it out again - 7.5/10
3. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
For some inexplicable reason, I had not seen Borat until roughly two months ago, which is shocking considering that I love Sacha Baron Cohen. After watching it, I was delighted that there was a sequel on its way, and even more delighted upon having had plenty of fun watching it. Cohen's antics as the goofy Kazakhstani reporter are just so damn funny, and it's hard to resist. But it doesn't stop there, as putting him in the climate of the year 2020 was especially genius, and it is impressive that this film was written and produced in the midst of the pandemic. As far as issues go, I feel the edge of the original with its mockumentary style was slightly abandoned in favour of a more emotional story, and there are times where some of the jokes get a bit old, but I still had a great time with this everything considered - 7.5/10
2. David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet
This one also had a brief time in the cinema, but I was able to watch it on Netflix. I thought this was just a brilliant film. David Attenborough is a true inspiration, and his witness statement about the state of our planet was so eye-opening and honest. But, as much as the tragedies of today's natural environment were highlighted, there was a ton of optimism about what can be done to redeem it as a counter-balance. After watching, I felt like I'd learned much, making this essential viewing for anyone who cares about the world we live in, or really just anyone who lives on this planet. While not a film in the traditional sense, leaving it out of this list would be doing a disservice - 8.0/10
1. The Trial of the Chicago 7
The only great Netflix movie from 2020, and I couldn't be happier to say that there was at least one! I was sold on this film before having seen it - Aaron Sorkin has proven himself to be the best in the business when it comes to screenwriting, dialogue in particular. If you look at a film like The Social Network, you can pick up just how talented he is from how satisfying and even musical the dialogue is. So, upon combining such a skillset with a courtroom drama, a sub-genre I have started to take a liking to, you essentially have a match made in heaven. The writing here is pitch-perfect and thoroughly engrossing, I loved almost every bit of it. It executed this really fascinating story in such a terrific way. In addition to this, Sorkin presents himself as a solid directing talent too. Aside from that, the acting was very strong from Eddie Redmayne, Mark Rylance and Joseph Gordon-Levitt to name a few. Despite an occasionally messy structure, this film just hits the right notes in almost every aspect, so it's the best digital release I've seen in 2020 - 8.0/10
So, that just about rounds up my thoughts on every digital 2020 release I've seen, as well as every 2020 release I've managed to see in general. I'm grateful I've been able to find some new content in this time, some of which has been well worth the watch, but it all boils down to just a shell of the 2020 movie season I was hoping for. Let's hope that 2021 will have more to offer, and hopefully more on the big screen.
If you want to see my full 2020 movie ranking including both digital and theatrical releases as well as brief reviews I post after watching films both old and new, be sure to follow me on Letterboxd: Jack W. If you don't have it, I'd highly recommend if you're a big movie person like myself.
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