BOT Top 25 movies of 2020 | Countdown complete

[grim22]

Thanks for the great response to the list again. 

 

61 Total lists were received

133 total movies were ranked by users

17 lists had the bare minimum of 5 movies

36 lists had 10 movies or less

1 list from an anonymous user (*cough @Wondy *cough*) had only 4 movies, but I counted it

 

As i am not an elite cinephile and have watched only about 6 of the movies on the list, and have heard of a further 5, i will be taking a page from @chasmmi's book and trying to guess what the other movies are about just from their title to fill space in the countdown.

 

Will include the first 2 movies today and will kick off things in earnest tomorrow, and plan to end by Saturday. Been buried with way too much work the past few weeks unfortunately.

[Blankments]

Good turnout love you all 😘 

[grim22]

#25

 

Spoiler

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

Have I watched it? NO

 

What do I think the plot is then? I know it has Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams, so I am assuming the plot is about 2 Americans who want to participate in Eurovision, but they can't because the US is not in Europe. So they found their own country in a principality in Europe called Fire Saga and make it to the contest only to find that a terrorist group plans to blow up the stadium upon the winner being declared. They must now find a way to both win the contest and beat the terrorist group.

 

 

 

 

Actual Plot: When aspiring musicians Lars and Sigrit are given the opportunity to represent their country at the world's biggest song competition, they finally have a chance to prove that any dream worth having is a dream worth fighting for.

 

Looks like I whiffed on the plot. Will Ferrell playing an Icelandic character feels like way more of a stretch than anything he has done to date. May catch this some time when randomly flipping through Netflix

 

Tomatometer: 63% with 173 reviews

 

Rankings: #1 on 2 lists and top 5 on 6 lists. Not a lot of support for this, appearing only on 7 lists, but pretty high on all the lists pushing it into the top 25

 

BOT User Reviews:

 

- @The Panda

 

[Blankments]

your plot for Eurovision would’ve likely been better than what we got

[Dementeleus]

Way too high. 

[Blankments]

Just now, Plain Old Tele said:

Way too high. 

Tele you literally told me yesterday you didn’t watch it 

[grim22]

#24

 

Spoiler

I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Have I watched it? NO

 

What do I think the plot is then? I know nothing about this movie apart from the title. No idea who is in it, no idea who made it, no idea where it is streaming. Just based on the title, it is the character study of a depressed person who is talking over his life with his therapist and ends each session by saying the title of the movie to the therapist thereby showing he is suicidal. In the end, he learns that life is worth living due to seeing the smile of a baby or some such thing.

 

 

 

Actual Plot: Full of misgivings, a young woman travels with her new boyfriend to his parents' secluded farm. Upon arriving, she comes to question everything she thought she knew about him, and herself.

 

Is it possible for a plot summary and trailer to confuse you more than when you didn't know anything about a movie? This seems to have done the trick for me.

 

Tomatometer: 82% with 256 reviews

 

Rankings: #1 on 3 lists and top 5 on 3 lists. Another movie with limited support but strong support to get into the lower end of the top 25. 

 

BOT User Reviews:

 

As is customary of Charlie Kaufman’s screenwriting and directing works, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is a trippy, fascinating experience that defies easy categorization and left me with plenty to ponder afterward. With a narrative flow most clearly comparable to a bizarre dream that mutates in ways that suggest vague connections between a jumble of subconscious ideas, it is a heady, loopy film that successfully goes to weird places and pulls the rug out from under the audience just before we can ever get *too* comfortable with how it is approaching its story. It is such a purposely strange experience that it will not be for everyone (though I would argue that it’s not as distant nor as dense as Synecdoche, New York), but for viewers who are on Kaufman’s wavelength, it is fascinating to watch and attempt to piece together, even if it runs a bit too long and sometimes retreats a little too far into its fantastical headspace. Like Kaufman’s past efforts, it makes terrific use of striking visual imagery and compelling dialogue, both of which keep the proceedings engaging and meaningful even in the moments where the significance of what is happening onscreen might be fuzzy. The cinematography in particular – framed in a cramped 1.37:1 aspect ratio, presumably to give viewers the same sense of discomfort the female lead feels in her ever-changing environment – is beautiful, as it captures all the film’s surreal visual elements in captivating fashion. As is just about always the case with Kaufman, the script is also clever and succeeds in using surreal plot developments in service of deep and compelling insights; in this particular film’s case, those insights include identity, doubts about partnership, the fear of being alone, and the crushing weight of routine. It admittedly feels a little obtuse for the sake of obtuseness at times (most notably in the fact that it is not as direct or concrete about its true nature as the novel upon which it is based), but it unfolds in such a compelling manner that I was onboard with seeing where it went all the way up to the end. As the young woman at the center of the action, Jessie Buckley does very strong work; her voiceovers are elegant, and she is expressive in speech and gestures alike. From the very beginning, she is convincing as a woman questioning the necessity of a boyfriend she increasingly sees as dead weight, and her reactions to the confusing sights around her feel authentic enough that they allow viewers to connect with her experience. Jesse Plemons is solidly reliable as said dead weight boyfriend, as he does a good job of walking the line between the boring guy the young woman seems to see him as being and a more interesting guy (or at least shades of one) that she might have been drawn to earlier in their relationship. Toni Collette and David Thewlis are both clearly having a great time as Plemons’s character’s eccentric parents, and they make the most of opportunities to flex their comedic and dramatic muscles. Much of this review may sound vague, but I feel that to speak more directly about this film would be to give away its loopier surprises and rob it of the power it derives from its many odd touches. For viewers who can connect with what Kaufman is doing, it’s one of the most singularly intriguing films of the year.

 

B+.  @Webslinger

 

[Dementeleus]

Way too low. 

[Ethan Hunt]

less than a week ago i predicted that i'm Thinking of Ending Things would finish top 10 on this countdown

 

which proves i have no idea what's coming

[Cap]

I literally just sent in a list so I could put #25 @ # 1.  TOO LOW.

[Ethan Hunt]

Eurovision performing like it's Portrait of a Lady on Fire has me legit lmao

[WrathOfHan]

I'm Thinking of Ending Things is a video essay by Charlie Kaufman.

[SLAM!]

I'm Thinking Of Ending my subscription to Netflix because that Charlie Kaufman movie weirded me out so much I can't handle it 😤

 

(I'm kidding, I loved that movie!)

[grim22]

#23

 

Spoiler

The Way Back

Have I watched it? Yes

 

What is the plot? Alcoholic coach and former basketball star-player Ben Affleck returns to his alma-mater to coach at-risk teens to glory while trying to exorcise his own demons including alcoholism and a descent into loneliness.

 

 

 

 

 

Actual Plot: Jack Cunningham was a high school basketball phenom who walked away from the game, forfeiting his future. Years later, when he reluctantly accepts a coaching job at his alma mater, he may get one last shot at redemption.

 

I liked this movie, although saying "enjoyed this movie" is not possible as it is a hard watch with Affleck playing an alcoholic at the same time he was undergoing counseling for alcohol addiction in real life. The almost biographical nature of this movie is hard to overlook. A good job by both Affleck and Gavin O'Connor carry us through this movie.

 

Tomatometer: 84% with 211 reviews

 

Rankings: Appeared on 19 lists. Wasn't in the top 3 spots in any of them, but had decent widespread support.

 

BOT User Reviews:

 

 this might be Ben's best performance.  He goes through a wide range of emotions here and he's kind of brilliant in every scene.  I know this is not the kind of film the academy will remember in 9 months, but his performance is good enough to be mentioned for 2020. 

 

It's a story about redemption, second and third chances and it lets us know that we never know what kind of influence we can have on an individual so try to live your best life as much as you can.

 

9/10 @baumer

 

The script hits a lot of predictable beats, but O'Conner gives the film so much honesty and humanity that it overcomes that more often than it doesn't. Affleck's terrific in this, career-best work. @TMP

 

[4815162342]

Looks like BOT can hit the ocean from the beach after all

[WrathOfHan]

:sadben:

[Rorschach]

4 minutes ago, 4815162342 said:

Looks like BOT can hit the ocean from the beach after all

We're working on it

[grim22]

#22

 

Spoiler

Onward

Have I watched it? NO

 

What do I think the plot is then? 2 elf brothers go on a road-trip to find their father or something. There's also a blink and you miss it lesbian character whose lines can be cut in China and Russia.

 

 

 

 

 

Actual Plot: Two elven brothers embark on a quest to bring their father back for one day.

 

Nailed the plot at least. Pixar's lesser effort of 2020 ran smack into an unstoppable force at the box office called "The Covid-19 pandemic". Released 10 days before the US and the world effectively went into pause, the movie opened low and never recovered. One of the first movies to go from theatrical to Disney+ in record time, and a harbinger for the rest of 2020.

 

Tomatometer: 88 with 330 reviews

 

Rankings: Appeared on 19 lists, same as The Way Back, beat out The Way Back by 4 points overall. 

 

BOT User Reviews:

 

Overall, a great film.  Beautifully animated with lovable characters and an emotional ending.  Love the magical themes, the quirkiness, the bond between the brothers, the adventure element.  It's not the best Pixar movie but for me it was as entertaining as many in the top tier, and I love seeing original content from a studio that's relied too much on sequels in the past dedace.  

 

@HeatSeeker

 

[SLAM!]

2020's early theatrical releases are showing up big time on this list--that's fascinating to me!

Edited February 17, 2021 by SLAM!

[Ethan Hunt]

too low for The Way Back but i guess i'll take it