Genre: Action & Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Arjun Gupta, Hale Appleman, Jade Tailor, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Stella Maeve, Summer Bishil
Find the best movies and show to watch from the year 2020. These handpicked recommendations are highly-rated by viewers and critics.
Genre: Action & Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Arjun Gupta, Hale Appleman, Jade Tailor, Olivia Taylor Dudley, Stella Maeve, Summer Bishil
By all outward appearances, The Villages—a massive and manicured retirement community in Florida—looks like it does offer paradise to its aging residents, as promised. The list of activities is endless, the seniors are all partnered up. “It’s like going back to college,” as one of them puts it, where people from all over the country come together to create a new life with each other.
But of course, nothing comes that easy, not even death. Some Kind of Heaven follows certain residents (and one committed trespasser) as they grapple with the slipperiness of fulfillment in their later years. It gets very eerie when the film's bleak messages are contrasted with the home's vibrant Floridian colors and the residents' plastered smiles. But the eeriness adds to the overall intrigue and pull of the documentary. Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) co-produces this fascinating film.
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Director: Lance Oppenheim
This historical show with immaculate production value is about the fall of Constantinople in 1453. It's fully in English, despite being a Turkish production, featuring a mix of entertaining interviews and dramatic reenactment. The way it's narrated is reminiscent of History Channel documentaries (with frequent recaps), which is unfortunate. Still, the story and the production compensate well enough. The young 21-year-old Ottoman Sultan Mehmet risks everything in pursuit of Constantinople, a city twelve armies, including his father's, have failed to take. This moment is pivotal for so many reasons: it marked the end of the Roman empire, it turned the Ottomans from local power to a global one, and the use of advanced military techniques (such as a new generation of cannons) changed warfare forever. But knowing that Mehmet will enter Constantinople (now Istanbul) changes nothing to the appeal of this show. The question is not will he win, but at what cost, and how.
Genre: Drama
Actor: İlayda Akdoğan, Birkan Sokullu, Cem Yiğit Üzümoğlu, Cem Yigit Uzümoglu, Charles Dance, Damla Sönmez, Damla Sonmez, Ilayda Akdogan, Osman Sonant, Selim Bayraktar, Tolga Tekin, Tommaso Basili, Tuba Büyüküstün, Tuba Büyüküstün, Ushan Çakır, Ushan Cakir
Dakota Johnson and Casey Affleck star in this comedy-drama as a small-town couple, one of whom gets diagnosed with a terminal illness. Their best friend (Jason Segel) puts his life on hold and moves in with them, picking up the husband when he faints at the hospital, shaving his head in solidarity with the wife, and even taking care of the dog who also gets sick.
It might seem like just another terminal illness drama, but Our Friend is based on a true story, and it’s as much about the illness as it is about how to be there for people, and reversely, the power of people being there for you.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Ahna O'Reilly, Azita Ghanizada, Casey Affleck, Chandler Head, Cherry Jones, Dakota Johnson, Denée Benton, Gerald Brodin, Gwendoline Christie, Hali Everette, Isabella Kai, Jacinte Blankenship, Jake Owen, Jason Bayle, Jason Segel, Jennifer Pierce Mathus, Jeronimo Spinx, John McConnell, Lindsey Reimann, Marielle Scott, Mark Costello, Michael Papajohn, Mike Lutz, Paige King, Reed Diamond, Richard Speight Jr., Ritchie Montgomery, Sampley Barinaga, Susan Williams, T.C. Matherne, Violet McGraw
Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite
Being a Viking is “the easiest job in the world” a villager tells the town’s most feared fighter: “sit on a boat, stab people with swords — it’s as basic as it can possibly get”. In Norsemen, a variety of characters try to fight this basicness. They take fashion risks like putting horns on a helmet for the first time, try to be more culturally diverse by interacting with a Roman slave, fall in love and raid tribes (often at the same time), and so on - you know, every day Viking stuff. Norsemen’s first season was viewed by more than a million people in Norway, a country of five million.
Genre: Comedy
This difficult movie is about a seventeen-year-old from the U.S. underclass who has to deal with an unplanned pregnancy. Autumn is creative, reserved, and quiet, but those are not qualities that her environment in rural Pennsylvania seems to value. On the opposite, she is surrounded by threats, including disturbing step-father and boss characters.
Dangers escalate as Autumn decides to travel to New York to have an abortion. Never Rarely Sometimes Always is about unplanned pregnancies as much as it is about just how dangerous it is to be a teenage girl living in America.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Amy Tribbey, Brian Altemus, Carolina Espiro, Christian Clements, David Buneta, Denise Pillott, Drew Seltzer, Eliazar Jimenez, Lizbeth MacKay, Mia Dillon, Ryan Eggold, Salem Murphy, Sam Dugger, Sharon Van Etten, Sidney Flanigan, Sipiwe Moyo, Talia Ryder, Théodore Pellerin, Théodore Pellerin
Director: Eliza Hittman
This five-season British series is about a “fun” vicar, someone who follows the rules loosely, but who one day is presented with a murder case. Why him? “You can ask any question of anyone, however private,” the person who presents him with the crime tells him.
This setting, added to a 50s countryside atmosphere, make for a fun mystery with a classy edge. Whereas the comparable Sherlock Holmes was a serious and computer-like detective, Sidney Chambers, the vicar, is kind and involved. And where the Sherlock crimes are cold evil acts, Grantchester’s crimes are reflections of how badly we sometimes treat each other.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Actor: Billy Porter
This Obamas-produced documentary does much to change the way we may still view people with disabilities as helpless or to be pitied. First, Crip Camp cleans up footage from a 1970s New York summer camp for disabled teens to pristine sound and video quality, allowing us to see how vibrant and lively this community has always been. Then, more importantly, the film traces how these kids—in particular, Judy Heumann—became badass faces in the movement for disability rights, staging protests and articulating themselves passionately for better accessibility in the most fundamental areas of everyday life. It's a documentary that isn't just designed to inspire, but also to advocate for safe spaces where young people with disabilities can receive the encouragement and motivation they need as early as possible.
Genre: Documentary
Actor: Ann Cupolo Freeman, James Lebrecht, Joseph O'Conor, Judith Heumann
Director: James Lebrecht, Nicole Newnham
Genre: Documentary
Actor: Apolo Ohno, Bode Miller, Lolo Jones, Michael Phelps, Sasha Cohen, Shaun White
Director: Brett Rapkin
For better or worse, The Reason I Jump isn't a documentary made for autistic viewers but for a neurotypical audience that may not be very knowledgeable about autism. This means the film doesn't really offer anything new to the conversation, and it misses the opportunity to truly let its main characters express themselves in their own unique ways, uninterrupted. That said, The Reason I Jump still structures itself smartly (with stunning filmmaking to boot) by having each of its five characters introduce us to different aspects of the autism experience, from sense and memory to communication and community.
Genre: Documentary
Actor: David Mitchell, Donna Budway, Emma Budway, Jeremy Dear, Jordan O'Donegan
Director: Jerry Rothwell
A woman loses her phone on her way back to her countryside childhood home. Once there, she connects an old landline in hopes of finding her lost mobile, only to start receiving weird calls that seem to be from 20 years ago.
On the other side of the receiver is a girl who seems to be in danger. The Call is thrilling, sometimes scary, but also brilliantly shot, and its plot is so expertly woven. It’s a proper movie-night movie.
Genre: Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller
Actor: EL, Jeon Jong-seo, Jo Kyung-sook, Jun Jong-seo, Kim Min-ha, Kim Sung-ryoung, Kim Sung-ryung, Lee Dong-hwi, Lee El, Lee Joo-young, Moon Chang-gil, Oh Jung-se, Park Ho-san, Park Hyeong-su, Park Hyoung-soo, Park Shin-hye, Ryu Kyung-soo, Song Yo-sep, Um Chae-young
Director: Lee Chung-hyun
Given that The Bold Type is largely set in the office of a women's magazine a la Cosmopolitan and Teen Vogue, it's easy to be blinded by its flashiness at first. Cliches aren't hard to miss either, seeing as it is a show that follows three 20-something girlfriends making it big in New York City.
But this initial underestimation is the point. Right away, the show flips the script on hyper-feminine stories by also engaging in relevant political, racial, and feminist issues. It also takes journalism seriously and dives deep into the industry's complexities. The biggest surprise (and delight) comes in the form of Jacqueline Carlyle (Melora Hardin) the editor-in-chief who despite all looks and appearances isn't actually a Miranda Priestly-type but an actual mentor who is as tough and wise as she is compassionate and understanding. The series is subversive in this way, but it also manages to be entertaining and light on its feet—an impressive feat all on its own.
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Actor: Aisha Dee, Katie Stevens, Meghann Fahy, Melora Hardin
While most media outlets would rather talk about Taylor Swift’s love life and never-ending feuds, the fact remains that Swift is a dedicated artist. She’s a prolific songstress and an astute writer, and regardless of what you think of her, it’s always a treat to see someone with that much passion and talent delve deep into their craft.
This is precisely what she does in Folklore. Between cozy conversations with co-producers and rustic live sessions, Swift lets her guard down to reveal how she works on each song, from the backstory to the melody. The result is a mesmerizing documentary about how Swift spent the secluded year of 2020 working on a record that would go on to win Album of the Year at the Grammys.
Genre: Documentary, Drama, Music
Actor: Aaron Dessner, Jack Antonoff, Justin Vernon, Taylor Swift
Director: Taylor Swift
Logan Lerman (The Perks of Being a Wallflower) and John Hawkes (The Sessions) star in this easy road drama about a father who tries to rekindle with his son. After the mother passes away, they try to execute her dying wishes of spreading her ashes in her home country of Ireland. The son, Lerman's character, is freshly released from jail and accepts to take the trip on the one condition that he never sees his father again. This premise makes for a fun mix between a family drama and an adventure movie. Both characters have a lot to discover in Ireland: about the country, each other, and themselves.
Genre: Adventure, Drama
Actor: Aine Ni Mhuiri, Amy De Bhrún, Andrea Irvine, David Grant Wright, Denis Conway, Des Keogh, Emily Berry, Jack McEvoy, Joan Sheehy, John Hawkes, Lalor Roddy, Logan Lerman, Marion O'Dwyer, Mary McEvoy, Noella Brennan, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Sarah Bolger, Sean Mahon, Shaw Jones, Steven Blount, Zylan Brooks
Director: Elfar Adalsteins