In a year that proved that truly anything is possible, cinema provided a proverbial shelter, a refuge, to many across the world. It was also a year of standout films, bookended by the Berlinale—ominously viewed in retrospect as the last major film festival to unfold in a pre-COVID world—and the Venezia 77, the first in-person festival to take place after a surreal and seemingly endless interregnum. Unfortunately, many festivals were delayed, cancelled, or moved online, depriving emerging filmmakers of an invaluable resource in getting their films seen.
Many fear that one of the COVID-era's many consequences will be to accelerate the shift to digital in all our habits, film-watching not least among them. While some spectators will indeed opt to stay home, even once cinemas are able to open their doors, we here at Filmatique consider the theatrical experience irreplacable, a site and occasion to engage in collective consciousness—and believe others will, too.
Below are Filmatique's Top Films of 2020:
Another Round, Thomas Vinterberg
City Hall, Frederick Wiseman
Collective, Alexander Nanau
Days, Tsai Ming-liang
The Disciple, Chaitanya Tamhane
First Cow, Kelly Reichardt
Gunda, Victor Kossakovsky
Small Axe, Steve McQueen
The Nest, Sean Durkin
Never Gonna Snow Again, Malgorzata Szumowska & Michal Englert