What do you care about most at the end of the year?
Year-end bonus!
Sir has no benefits to pay today, but he can show you other people's benefits.
The film industry also issues year-end awards every year, but the name is a little higher:
Top 10 of the year ××.
And every year there are different "bosses" who choose the list according to their own tastes, which is both a reward and a sharing (well, there is no money).
Analyzing the taste preferences of these "bosses" is a great pleasure for Sir every year.
No, two days ago, a big boss in the industry took the lead in announcing the results.
Time magazine, top 10 movies of 2020.
Moreover, the ranking is in order.
Seeing this list, Sir's expression, probably so.
Well, a very characterful "boss".
His choices may not be convincing, and you may question his taste or intentions.
But Sir believed.
Film is not a tool for critiquing right and wrong, black and white.
Its charm lies precisely in inclusion.
Embrace different preferences and perspectives.
It also embraces all people with different backgrounds, different identities, and different races, and their own precious and sincere feelings.
From this point of view, this list of films is worth a taste.
Opening.
TOP 1
The First Cow
Director: Kelly Lecat
Starring: John Margaro / Orion Lee / René Oberjonoy / Toby Jones
Word of mouth is extremely fragmented.
In front of the general audience, the performance is mediocre:
Douban 7.6, IMDb 7.0, Rotten Tomatoes Popcorn Index 59%.
And in the face of more professional film critics, media people...
Amazing:
Professional film critic websiteStitch MTC scores 89 and Rotten Tomatoes freshness 96%.
More noteworthy:
In another list, Eric Kohn, chief film critic of the world's top authoritative film website Indiewire, rated the top 20 best films of 2020, "The First Cow" is still the first.
In other words— a work that has a doorway inside the line and is not bustling outside the line.
Sir became more and more curious about what charm it had.
The story takes place in the 1820s during the pioneering period of the American West.
Cookie, a chef who travels to the west, saves King Lu, a Chinese immigrant who was hunted down by the Russians.
The two had a hard time retrieving their lives, and both had been oppressed for a long time, and they were the same at first sight.
Decided to try their luck together in the Wild West.
The conditions were harsh, the pioneers were generally malnourished, and they were threatened with disease, beasts, and Indians.
The protagonists are two people together, and they are engaged in some small business.
One worked as a cook, the other as a trader, and the gang opened a dessert shop.
The core raw material, a cow that the local boss just ordered.
Don't get me wrong.
This is not an angel investment.
Two outsiders, the accumulation of primitive capital, can only rely on stealing.
Run to milk every night.
Because of the milky bonus, the desserts they made tasted good and were not expensive, and soon became famous among the pioneers.
Sales have exploded, customers have been pouring in, and products are in short supply.
The two of them got better and better in business, and they both felt that they had found their American dreams, until they were discovered by the local boss and had to flee.
Doesn't the story sound special?
Sir saw the ending, and was also particularly calm:
After a tired reunion, the two lay exhausted and slept quietly in a clearing in the forest by the river.
finish.
this...... ??? of the Year
Wait a minute.
If you connect the ending to the beginning of the movie – the story magically "gives birth" to another story.
The movie opens: A modern girl in a down jacket finds two white bones in a grove by the river.
The opening scene will explain the ending:
An American, a Chinese, once fought together for a dream of getting rich, so that they slept together before they died and slept together after death, until they were discovered more than a hundred years later.
If you only see it as a tragedy of lamenting dreams, think of it simply.
Its expression can be glimpsed from the understanding of the film selector.
Selector Stephanie Zacharek had this to say about the film:
"It's a reminder that what all Americans have today was stolen from, not borrowed, from those who lived on the land before whites knew about it — and the ugly behavior of these forefathers is the foundation of today's prosperity."
But at the same time, she also said:
"'The First Cow' is a song from this barren land we call America, where tenderness remains the most precious thing."
The meaning is probably clear.
But for most domestic audiences, it is still difficult to understand.
In Sir's view, the most precious thing about "The First Cow" is not the idea.
Rather, unbiased, pure insight.
Director Kelly Lecat didn't complain about anything, just set the perspective on two weak ordinary people of that era.
The film has a gentle A-side—a discussion of the cruelty, plunder, oppression, and the history of the American race that was full of topics in that barbaric era, on the friendship between two people at the bottom who help each other.
There is also the cruel B-side - behind the touching, is the sound of the American dream shattered to the ground.
Which side you take, it does not depend on which side you stand on.
It's about what kind of era you're in.
TOP 2
Konitsev
Director: Alexander Neneu
主演:Razvan Lutac / Mirela Neag / Catalin Tolontan / Tedy Ursuleanu / Vlad Voiculescu
The Romanian documentary Sir once said in detail, "The outrageous real documentary, the black curtain that was exposed with life, should not be known only to 127 people."]
It started with an accidental fire.
27 people died and 180 were injured.
As a result, the Prime Minister resigned.
A bit of a fuss?
This is just the beginning.
Of the injured, 37 were seriously injured and sent to hospital for treatment.
As a result, within four months, all the injured died from severe bacterial infections. In the reporter's lens, the wounds of the hospitalized patients even grew maggots (not medical techniques, but the hospital conditions were worrying).
There are even people with minor injuries who die directly because of the aggravation of infections in hospitalization.
As soon as the matter was exposed, the whole country was in an uproar, and the crowd was indignant.
examine.
Check it out.
But in Romania, it's far from simple.
From unqualified disinfectants to the monopoly supply chain of shanzhai pharmaceutical factories;
From the mismanagement of the hospital, the shortage of personnel, to the earth-shattering corruption of its hands.
Finally, the government, the Ministry of Health, the health system, the pharmaceutical system... The minister of health, the former mayor, the former dean, the current mayor, none of them are clean.
Even after the election, the new party chairman is also a corrupt leader who runs 19 hospitals and eats human blood steamed buns.
No salvation.
Notice that this is not a movie, but a documentary (reality).
In other words, this is what has really happened in Romania over the past few years.
This degree of evil can easily cause public indignation.
But goodwill needs to be seen even more.
The real protagonists of "Koletsev" are the investigative journalists who hide behind the camera and silently fight to expose these scandals.
That's why Time magazine chose it:
It is also a profound testament to the power and necessity of investigative journalism in any country that seeks to distort the truth for its own use.
This vote, Sir followed.
TOP 3
The Trial of the Seven Gentlemen of Chicago
Director: Alan Sorkin
Starring: Eddie Redmayne / Alex Sharp / Sasha Byron Cohen / Jeremy Strong / John Carlo Lynch
He is also one of Sir's top ten candidates of the year (wrote, "Hollywood shoots at the president with movies, this year's election, who will leave the White House?"). 》）。
A group of anti-war activists were tried for conspiring to incite violence at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
One of the most notorious trials in American history.
The excellence of the film, two key points:
One, director and screenwriter Alan Sorkin.
The signature high-density, accurate and powerful line design, interspersed with historical and realistic editing, uses a huge amount of information to promote the audience to understand the causes and consequences of this trial.
The intrigues in the courtroom, the verbal confrontation between the two political views, and finally create a hearty viewing effect.
This is the most "good-looking" place in film techniques.
Second, it is a metaphor inside and outside the play.
Launched in mid-October, it coincided with the 2020 US election to the fullest.
This film has beaten a tube of "chicken blood" into the American progressive group that has always flaunted the values of freedom and progress.
In particular, the reflection of the social reality in 2020 in the movie is that the knife is bloody and the words are cursed.
hehe.
It turns out that the same thing still happens (oppression, discrimination, abuse of power) and the world has never changed.
Movies, on the other hand, are a fickle mirror.
If you can see the absurdity of history in it.
It can also illuminate the remorse in your heart.
TOP 4
David Byrne's American Utopia
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: David Byrne
Director Spike Lee, the concept is still ahead of the curve.
"Carry" the Broadway classic online – present a complete, high-level Broadway show (the film of the same name) in 105 minutes.
The protagonist, David Byrne, is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, artist, writer, actor and filmmaker.
Lead singer and guitarist of Talking Heads, a legendary band of American New Wave music, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the band as early as 2002.
In 1988, together with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Satoshi Su, he won the Oscar for Best Original Score for "The Last Emperor".
Sir had a hard time evaluating the work from a cinematic point of view.
It is more like a "performance video" that deviates from the basic form of "film".
"This is not a story movie, but a Broadway concert of old American singers filmed by veteran director Spike Lee, with a simple stage form, vivid documentary processing, 19 songs sung down, the atmosphere is warm and natural, so that the viewer can go directly to Broadway to see a wonderful live concert, not bad!"
——Director Xie Fei
Its documentary and dissemination value is far greater than the level of documentary itself.
As for the theme it wants to express?
Time Review:
Lee fully grasped the urgency of Bourne's intentions: (whatever) we must keep in touch with living in any meaningful way. This is a very simple and fundamental principle. ”
This principle is very moving in the final scene of the documentary:
At the end of the show, Bourne, the legendary musician, pushed his bike out of the side door and rode away, just like a normal person.
Integrate into the city, into life.
TOP 5
Lover's Rock
Directed by: Steve McQueen
Starring: Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn / Michael Ward / Shaniqua Okwok
Director Steve McQueen won an Oscar for Best Picture for "Twelve Years of Slavery."
The film was inspired by an episodic idea between him and the BBC, which used six episodes to tell five different stories of London's West Indies community from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s, but these five stories were later expanded into five feature films.
Lover's Rock is the second and shortest.
Since it is still in the release period, Sir can't see it either.
The reasons given by Time for inclusion are:
"Although it is the shortest in the series, its hypnotic beauty is immeasurable.
It captures the energy and hope of only that one night, and the meaning of seeking solace and solidarity in a larger, colder world, capturing a universe of time in just 68 minutes of poetry. ”
Poetic and cosmic at the same time...
This kind of middle school essay-style wording, Sir felt that unless it was good to explode, it was embarrassing.
And squat a resource.
TOP 6
Emma
Director: Otem de Wilder
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy / Johnny Flynn / Bill Nye
The classic British romantic comedy has been remade again.
Original by Jane Austen.
The protagonist, Emma, is a pretentious rich girl who has sworn never to marry for life.
But her biggest hobby is to be a red bride, in the midst of various random Mandarin duck scores, accidentally fell in love, and finally gained true love.
The beauty of the picture, the beauty of the scenery, the beauty of color grading...
Sir's comments:
Recommended for art students, Western literature lovers, costume designers, interior designers, and circle of friends influencer photographers to watch.
In addition, I really can't find a reason to be selected as one of the top ten.
TOP 7
Wolfwalker
Directed by: Tom Moore/Rose Stewart
Starring: Sean Bing / Horner Nephthie / Eva Whitak / Simon McBurne / Tommy Tilnan
Director Tom Moore's work "Song of the Sea" has been released on the mainland, and more than 130,000 people have scored a high score of 8.8, which is on the film festival for best animation and has been nominated for an Oscar.
This time, the theme is still Irish folktale.
Tells the magical experience of an 11-year-old girl, Luo Fen, exploring the relationship between man and nature, order and wildness.
As far as the trailer is concerned, the painting style is fresh and cute.
At present, Douban has a score of 8.3 and IMDb 8.4, and the evaluation is also acclaimed.
Obviously, the director has once again won the recognition of the audience.
Sir has not seen the original film yet.
The reason for the selection of "Time" is also very simple:
irresistible。
Couldn't resist.
TOP 8
"The Land of No One"
Director: Zhao Ting
Starring: Francis McDormand / David Stryzern / Derek Janis / Ty Strazern
Sir is one of the most anticipated pieces of the year.
Two names:
Zhao Ting + McDormand.
Cohen's sister-in-law's strength, we saw in "Three Billboards".
Putting aside the false aura of "Chinese light", Zhao Ting is also one of the most eye-catching female directors in the world.
Three feature films, strong departments.
Debut film "Knight", shortlisted for Cannes.
Marvel immediately asked her to direct the female superhero "Eternals".
There is also this "The Man Without a Man" that has just landed in North American theaters.
The two female creators collaborated for the first time and not long ago passed the official Venetian certification (won the Golden Lion Award).
The film tells the story of a woman in her 60s who lost everything in the Great Depression and became a modern nomad living in a van, a wandering life.
Foreign media have praised Zhao Ting for keenly capturing the gap between urban and rural areas in American society, and showing the "poetry" of the film with a genre similar to a road movie.
Not surprising.
Zhao Ting spent most of her life in the wilderness of the western United States.
Moreover, Zhao Ting's great strength lies in the delicacy of her observation and performance, which almost allows the work to cross the barrier of space and background.
The protagonist has a line that sounds very ear-catching:
I'm not homeless, I'm just houseless.
House and home.
Whether it is the United States, China, or even the world, these are two things that make adults empathize.
It is said that home is a place where the soul is placed.
What about wandering souls?
Don't you deserve a home?
Sir went over the stills, and the light and shadow of the film were very faint, penetrating the world, and revealing a hint of coolness.
This is probably the conclusion that the director inadvertently came to:
People with families and people without support are actually not contradictory.
TOP 9
Miss Juniteng
Directed by: Channing Godfrey Peoples
Starring: Nicole Bergari / Kendrick Sampson / Alexis Chikaeze
A simple inspirational story.
Former beauty pageant, now a single mother, has trained her daughter to become a new beauty pageant champion.
The background is complex:
Race, growth, motherhood, education, and multiculturalism.
Everyone stepped on the G-spot of social contradictions in the United States.
The evaluation of this drama is also very straightforward:
"Miss Juneteenth is a tapestry of a whole community, a reminder that this country is much bigger—and richer, and more diverse—than we tend to think."
Translated into our tone: America is much bigger than imagined, to firmly follow the "multicultural" route without wavering ...
Political correctness is late.
TOP 10
Bill and Ted's Quest
Director: Dean Parriso
Starring: Keanu Reeves / Samara Viven / Anthony Cary
Douban 5.9 points, IMDB 6.1.
I thought it was the biggest failure of this list.
As a result, sir really found a treasure.
The first two films, The Adventures of Bill and Ted and Bill and Ted, were released in 1989 and 1991, restarting after thirty years.
It's a very nonsensical film series.
Pin Pin First Plot:
In order to pass the middle school history exam, two teenagers who love to play music abduct various historical celebrities to the school to help in order to pass the middle school history exam.
For example, Freud, Lincoln, Napoleon, Beethoven, Joan of Arc, Genghis Khan, Socrates...
And then.
I didn't take the test.
Taking them to play music, eat hamburgers, and all kinds of funny things are the main lines of the movie.
The second part is even more outrageous...
Let them travel through hell and the human world, and finally find the god of death to play a band together, and their brains opened up to the sky.
Now the original renma returned, filming this "Bill and Ted Song".
The two starring Keanu Reeves and Samara Viven, with 1/2 of the hair volume and more than 5 times the belly, insist on sand sculpture, which can be called not forgetting the original heart.
It is no wonder that even Time magazine is shouting "Ye Qing Hui".
Who doesn't need crazy, passionate, and euphoric optimism in a horrible year without a doubt?
You can see that the selection criteria for this film list are very abrupt.
It is intoxicated for the niche and a cry for worldly pleasures;
Sometimes you question falling into the cliché of political correctness, and then immediately show your support for the avant-garde expression.
That's right.
Behind the film list, there is a complex and real individual.
Stephanie Zacharek, lead film critic at Time Magazine.
She was also a judge at the 2015 Pulitzer Prize and is a veteran media personality who has been in the industry for many years.
As an American professional media personality, her film selection obviously has a strong personal tendency.
Adhering to liberal idealism, focusing on minorities, emphasizing social progress, reflecting on the history of the country ...
Even if there are a few movies in it, Sir would never consider being ranked in his top ten of the year.
But Sir still acknowledges the weight of the film list.
Movies can have authority.
That's experience, technology, insight... Accumulated to a certain extent, enough to convince the industry of the "authority".
Instead of the "fox fake tiger power" formed by obliterating and killing.
Chen Kexin said a sentence some time ago after his film won the award:
"I don't defend my films."
What do you mean?
Once the work has landed, all the ripples it has caused will also become part of the work and cannot be defended.
And what really needs to be "defended" is the expression of you and me who are true and not swayed by authority.
The picture in this article comes from the network
Editorial Assistant: Gilmour's Gyro