There are many words in my vocabulary. Some, like "was", I use too often. Some, like various obscenities, I use rather sparingly. This year, I found the words "dumpster fire" were put together and expressed by me for the very first time. Those two words have become the embodiment of 2020.
I won't go into detail about the parts of the year that took on the scent of burning garbage. They're there. I know them. I don't wish to give them more importance than they deserve. Instead, I wish to talk about the opportunities for viewing movies and television series that I have had over the last nine months.
My film diary took up more pages this year than in others. Having access to multiple streaming services, online Film Festivals and a knack for YouTube and Vimeo has been an enormous help. Being home for the last nine months was also an important factor.
Let's begin with my "long suit" - Animation. I must have seen more features and shorts in this genre than anything else. Some of these were seen on line. Some, I have the blu-ray. All were enjoyed. They might not be classic, but they were a fun watch. These are in no specific order.
Ride Your Wave (2019, Japan)
Pom Poko (1994, Japan) Disney+
Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna (2020, Japan)
The Addams Family (2019) Epix
Children of the Sea (2019, Japan) Netflix
Terra Willy (2019, France)
A Whisker Away (2020, Japan) Netflix
Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon (2019, UK) Netflix
The Little Vampire (2017, Netherlands) Amazon
The Willoughbys (2020, Canada) Netflix
Soul (2020, Pixar) Disney+
Over the Moon (2020, China) Netflix
Some of the highlights: Lurch singing "Everybody Hurts" in "The Addams Family", the overall beautiful look of "Children of the Sea", the numerous sight gags and Easter Eggs in "Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon", the tear inducing scenes in "Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna", and the sarcastic dialog of "The Willoughbys".
No, I have not seen "Wolfwalkers" yet! I expect that to be the year's best.
Hard to believe, but I did see some Live Action Features. They ran the gamit, from 1920s Silent Films to 2020 Zombies Running Amok. Here are the best of the lot!
One Cut of the Dead (2019, Japan) Shudder
Colossal (2016, Canada) Amazon
Chestersberg (2019, UK) Sohome Horror Film Fest
Inhumanwich (2017) YouTube
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016, New Zealand) Hulu
The Girl with All the Gifts (2016, UK) HBO
#Alive (2020, Korea) Netflix
Dead (2020, New Zealand) Sohome Horror Film Fest
The Oak Room (2019, Canada) Sohoho Horror Film Fest
Witness Infection (2019) Sohoho Horror Film Fest
The Night Eats the World (2018, France) Tubi
Of course, there are five Zombie films on the list, all well done. The only film that isn't in the horror genre is Taika Waititi's wonderful "The Hunt for the Wilderpeople", which is a definite must see. "The Oak Room" was a 'secret film' for the Sohoho Horror Film Fest and stole the show. If you can find it, it is very different and worth your time. Laughs can be found in "Inhumanwich", "Chestersberg", "Dead" and "Witness Infection". "One Cut of the Dead", well, I can't say enough about this film. As a matter of fact, I can't say anything without spoiling it! I had a 30 Day Free Trial for Shudder that gave me access to it.
Anyone who knows me, knows my love for short films. I don't always go looking for them, but they do find me! Most of these were courtesy of the Soho Horror Film Festivals, and many are now available on YouTube and Vimeo. If there is an "X" next to the film, click on it and you can see it. And yes, most are horror films.
In Sound, We Live Forever (2019) X
Melvin and the Microphone (2020)
Post-Mortem Mary (2017, Australia) X
Quaranstein (2020) X
Finley (2019) X
Don’t Know What (2019, Austria) X
Spiritual Practice (2020)
The View from Here (2019) X
Meta (2020)
Poltergays (2020)
Stagnant (2020) X
We Got a Monkey’s Paw (2018) X
Floor 9.5 (2017, UK) X
Crop Dust (2018) X
Blood Oranges (2017) X
Burrow (2020) Disney+
Canvas (2020) Netflix
Some things to consider: both "Spiritual Practice" and "The View from Here" are by one of my favorite directors, Patrick Rea; expect to see "Canvas" and "Burrow" nominated for Best Animated Short; "In Sound, We Live Forever", is one of the best short films I've seen in a long time; "Quaranstein" is a unique film and needs your attention; you'll laugh out loud with "We Got a Monkey's Paw", "Blood Oranges", "Sandwitch" and, of course, "Shaun the Sheep"; and, yes, "Crop Dust" is what it says it is.
Perry Mason (HBO Max)
Digimon Adventure (CrunchyRoll)
Hilda (Netflix Season 2)
Kipo and the Age of the Wonderbeasts (Netflix All 3 Seasons)
Camp Cretaceous (Netflix Season 1)
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark (HBO Max)
Upload (Amazon Prime)
The Owl House (Disney XP Season 1 parts 1 & 2)
The Hollow (Netflix Season 2)
DuckTales (Disney XP Season 3 Episodes 1-7)
Yes, most are animated. "Hilda", "Kipo", and "The Owl House" are incredible examples of story telling. "I'll Be Gone in the Dark" is the hunt for the Golden State Killer and it will keep you up at night. I wasn't sure about the reimagining of "Perry Mason", but Matthew Rhys' performance just won me over. Speaking of reimaginings, "Digimon Adventure" is up to episode 30 and continues to entertain. And "Camp Cretaceous" has dinosaurs. Who needs more?
Special Notes. "DuckTales" has been cancelled. The rest of Season 3 will be all there will be. Season 2 of "Camp Cretaceous" premieres on 22 January. "Kipo" was cancelled after Season 3 but completed its story arc.
So, the final tally for 17 March to 31 December is -
Feature - 143 which includes Animated (47) and Zombies (14)
Short Films - 153 which includes Animated (25) and Silent Films (7)
An eclectic collection, Ernie!
ReplyDeleteI was kind of interested and also kind of skeptical about HBO's Perry Mason, but Matthew Rhys is a good actor. So maybe I should give it a chance like you did.