With the return to cinemas seemingly a long way off for most, and with more and more studios pushing back their tentpole movies every day, we thought it would be poignant to look at some of the extremely interesting movies still to hit streaming giant Netflix in 2020, which will become one of the only sources of new films for what appears to be the foreseeable future.
As sad as the state of the world and cinema is, Netflix has certainly attempted to build on the successes of the likes of last year’s “Marriage Story” and “The Irishman” to bring audiences what could be some of the must-see movies this year.
*The release dates of the films below are mostly TBD but Netflix has them all listed as 2020
14) “The Life Ahead”
Sophia Loren plays a Holocaust survivor who stumbles upon a 12-year-old Senegalese boy. in this immigration drama from Italy. Directed by Loren’s son, Edoardo Ponti, this film was recently featured in L.A. Times writer Glenn Whipp’s latest Oscar predictions piece. We have no idea how submissions for the international feature category will play out, so this title is iffy for now. But who doesn’t want to see the magnificent Loren shine on Oscar night again?
13) “Eurovision”
“Wedding Crashers” director David Dobkin, reunites with Rachel McAdams to bring to life this Will Ferrell written look at the Eurovision Song Contest. Farrell stars alongside McAdams as singers Lars and Sigrit, who are chosen to represent their country at Europe’s most extravagant singing completion. The competition itself is a colorful explosion of all things strange, so melding that with Ferrell’s type of humor may make this a big winner for die-hard Will Ferrell fans. The film will also give Eurovision fans this year’s dose of crazy after the competition’s 2020 edition was canceled.
12) “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”
George C. Wolfe (“Lackawanna Blues”) brings this August Wilson play to the small screen. Following the tensions encountered by Musician Ma Rainey after conflict between both her bandmates, her white agent, and producer, the film is sure to have an incredible central performance with Oscar winner Viola Davis taking on the role of the ‘Mother of the blues’.
11) “Prom”
Ryan Murphy (“American Horror Story” “Glee” “The Politician”) further uses his mega-deal with Netflix to debut this comedy musical following a group of self-obsessed theatre actors who swarm to a small Indiana town in support of a high school girl who wants to take her girlfriend to the prom. Adapted from the book of the same name by Bob Martin, the film carries with it immense star power in the form of Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, Kerry Washington, James Corden, and Keegan Michael Key.
10) “Over the Moon”
The streaming giant will also debut a brand new animated adventure in 2020, with Glen Keane (animator on “Aladdin”, “Beauty and the Beast” “The Little Mermaid”) stepping behind the camera for the first time with an animated musical fantasy which follows a young girl who builds a rocket and ventures to the moon in search of a legendary Moon goddess. Could this compete against Pixar’s “Soul” for Best Animated Feature?
9) “The Old Guard”
This action/fantasy epic from “Love and Basketball” director Gina Prince-Bythewood follows the story of a covert team of apparently immortal mercenaries played by the likes of Charlize Theron, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Kiki Layne, as they fight to keep their identity a secret. The film is based off the Comic-Book series by Leandro Fernandez and Greg Rucka.
8) “Rebecca”
Ben Wheatley (High Rise, Free Fire) moves to Netflix with his re-imagining of Daphne Du Maurier’s 1938 classic. Leading the cast is Lily James, supported by some huge talent in Armie Hammer, Keeley Hawes, Kristen Scott Thomas, and more. Wheatley and his cast may also benefit from the Academy’s decision to allow streaming-only content into this year’s Oscars. Rebecca is expected to land sometime in the last two months of the year.
7) “Hillbilly Elegy”
Ron Howard hits screens for the first time since “Solo: A Star Wars Story” later this year with his adaptation of the memoir of J.D. Vance, which details his formative years growing up in the Midwest. Vance is played by Gabriel Basso (“Super 8”) and is backed up by a tremendous supporting cast including Amy Adams, and Glenn Close. The film is penned by “The Shape of Water” co-writer Vanessa Taylor. Time for Amy Adams to finally win an Oscar?
6) “The Midnight Sky”
Based on Lily Brooks-Dalton’s novel “Good Morning, Midnight”, George Clooney teams with Netflix for this Sci-Fi adventure in which he also stars. Clooney plays scientist Augustine, who races to stop a group of astronauts, led by Felicity Jones’ Sully from returning to the post-apocalyptic Earth. The combination of Clooney and Netflix’s huge financial muscle could make this one a must-see. Whilst Clooney will certainly hope his latest effort lands better than his 2017 offering “Suburbicon”.
5) “The Devil All the Time”
Set between the end of WWII and the beginning of the Vietnam war, this adaptation of Donald Ray Pollock’s psychological thriller-esque novel by “Christine” Director Antonio Campos follows the stories of various people who have suffered at the hands of post-war society. The cast is star-studded throughout, including the likes of Tom Holland, Mia Wasikowska, Sebastian Stan, Robert Pattinson, Bill Skarsgard, Eliza Scanlan, and Jason Clarke.
4) “Blonde”
The profile of this fictionalized chronicle of the inner life of Marilyn Monroe has received major boosts in the wake of its star Ana De Armas’ meteoric rise in popularity since the release and her impeccable performance in “Knives Out”. And she is no doubt primed to deliver another killer performance in Andrew Dominik’ re-imagining of one of Hollywood’s first megastars.
3) “Da 5 Bloods”
On the back of their “BlacKkKlansman” success, Spike Lee and Kevin Willmott return with this mysterious War drama, following a group of Vietnam veterans who return to the jungle to find their lost innocence. Starring the likes of Chadwick Boseman, Paul Walter Hauser, Jean Reno, and Giancarlo Esposito, and clocking in at a monster 2hr 34min, will this be Netflix’s biggest gem of the year?
2) “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”
Charlie Kaufman, writer of “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”, “Being John Malkovich”, and “Anomalisa” steps into the director’s chair for this drama following Jessie Buckley’s as of yet unnamed character who upon trying to figure out how to end things with her boyfriend Jake(Jesse Plemons) finds herself rethinking her entire life following a series of mysterious events. The cast also includes the inspired pairing of Toni Collette and David Thewlis as the parents of boyfriend Jake.
1) “Mank”
One of the more intriguing and highly anticipated on the list is the return of David Fincher to film for the first time since “Gone Girl” in 2014. He returns with “Mank” which follows famed “Citizen Kane” scribe Herman Mankiewicz’s rocky development of one of cinema'‘s most famous stories. With Gary Oldman in the lead role, this film could be set to be the streamer’s most prized possession of 2020.
Criterion's December lineup has some great additions to the library, but the title that jumped out at me is Werner Herzog's "Grizzly Man," which officially joins the Collection on December 8.