London, UK (6 January 2021): Global media and entertainment firm Alpha1Media on January 6 launched its annual list of the top 5 best films from around the world which global cinema audiences enjoyed in 2020, despite the immense disruption of the global COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown and a plummeting global box office.
The A1Film Top 5 Best Movies of 2020 surveys and highlights films from Hollywood, Bollywood, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Far East, which are reflective of the best of global popular cinema in 2020, Alpha1Media said.
“2020 was the Year of the Disruption of Cinema,” said Talal Malik, Chairman and CEO of Alpha1Media. “Whilst the debate in 2019 was on defining cinema, the cash from the box office was literally thrown out with most movie releases, as the global pandemic and lockdown led to cinemas globally being shut down and theatrical releases for major films being postponed or cancelled.”
From March 2020 and for many weeks and months, over 3 billion people globally were under lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to the global box office for movies plummeting more than 72%, from $42.5 billion in 2019 to around $12 billion in 2020.
Major films as selected by Alpha1Media for its A1Film Preview List for 2020, such as James Bond 007 film ‘No Time to Die’, Tom Cruise’s ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and Marvel’s ‘Black Widow’ having their theatrical cinema releases postponed to 2021 whilst Denis Villeneuve ‘Dune’ has been moved direct to streaming and cinema release.
Apart from ‘Dune’, major film studio Warner Bros. announced on December 3, 2020, that it will debut all its 2021 movies simultaneously in on its streaming platform HBO Max as well as any cinemas open globally, leading to an outcry from many of the leading filmmakers at Warner Bros. itself such as Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve whilst other filmmakers such as Steven Soderbergh were more conciliatory.
In 2019, acclaimed American film maker Martin Scorsese ignited a debate about whether Marvel superhero films constitute cinema, with the likes of other film industry giants Bob Iger, Francis Ford Coppola, Kevin Feige, John Woo and George Miller contributing.
“For nine years, we have issued the A1Film Top 10 List, but in this decade year, it is the A1Film Top 5 List, as we simply did not have enough major top-tier films that had a global cinema release,” said Ms. Maria Felce, Alpha1Media’s official spokesperson.
“The irony is that the debate of what defines cinema in 2019 had become crystal clear for us by the end of 2020, as we specifically will focus, as we always have on, global popular cinema, featuring movies with commercial and or critical acclaim, which have had the opportunity to genuinely be released theatrically in cinemas globally and primarily, and not just through, or primarily through, streaming platforms.”
“This year this has meant we have five less global popular cinema films to include in our list, and hopefully next year, we will be able to return to the full A1Film Top 10.”
The A1Film Top 5 Best Movies of 2020 List in order:
- ‘Tenet’ IMDB: 7.5 (‘The Intelligent Blockbuster’)
TENET – Is #TENET the movie a post-COVID world deserves, also the one it needs right now? Deja Vu inspired with Washington Jr casting as the first Black James Bond – #ChristopherNolan ups the ante to warrant a long theatrical run #Alpha1Media @Alpha1Media #A1Film @TENETFilm
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@TENETFilm is, the first time, like a challenging mock exam, so you go and study some more, then watch it a second time in @imax, and it runs swiftly and easy like a breeze – an excellent film on free will vs predestination #A1Film #Palindrome #SatorSquared
- ‘1917’ IMDB: 8.3 (‘The Historical Epic’)
1917 – Sam Mendes as first time auteur goes brilliantly all out with anti-war war film with single tracking shoot, pays tribute to diversity in war effort and also own heritage @Alpha1Media #Alpha1Media #1917 @1917 #SamMendes #A1Film @1917FilmUK
- ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ IMDB: 5.5 (‘The Superhero Franchise’)
WONDER WOMAN 1984 – @WonderWomanFilm1984 – @PattyJenks at apex, @GalGadot as definitive superheroine @PedroPascal1 as @realDonaldTrump meets @ricky_martin, #KristenWiig as #FatalAttraction in wondrous movie to end 2020 – in cinema & IMAX @Alpha1Media #Alpha1Media #A1Film #WonderWoman1984
- ‘The Eight Hundred’ IMDB: 7.2 (‘The Historical Epic’)
THE EIGHT HUNDRED – China’s blockbuster 1937 war movie of Japan’s siege of last Chinese stronghold of Shanghai warehouse is ultimately a retreat movie, with action, scale and psyche insight high, character arcs less so @Alpha1Media #Alpha1Media #A1Film #TheEightHundred
- ‘Bad Boys for Life’ IMDB: 6.6 (‘The Franchise’)
BAD BOYS FOR LIFE – Belgian duo Adil El Arbi and Billal Fallah pay solid tribute to 90s Bayhem popcorn fest giving Will Smith and Martin Lawrence well-deserved hit #Alpha1Media @Alpha1Media #A1Film #BadBoysForLife @badboys #WillSmith #martinlawrence #adilelarbi @BilallFallah
“‘Tenet’ leads our list for a plethora of reasons – it is the definition of the genre of an intelligent blockbuster, an ultra-high concept film mixing contemporary themes with time travel and top-tier action; it is the main film in 2020 that its auteur director Christopher Nolan insisted have a global cinematic release; it is a film that the major studios, public and the media looked at as being the frontrunner for the survival of cinema; it had a budget of $205 million and grossed $350.8 million during the pandemic; it warranted watching at least twice, cinematically even and within Imax; and its auteur director Christopher Nolan bravely told truth to power when he criticised his own major studio Warner Bros. for its decision to have a simultaneous cinema-streaming release for its 2021 slate,” said Ms. Felce about the top movie in the A1Film Top 10 Best Movies List for 2020.
Four of the top 5 films selected by Alpha1Media have been recognised in the official A1Film Preview List of 2020, namely are ‘Tenet’, ‘1917’, ‘Wonder Woman 1984’, ‘The Eight Hundred’ and ‘Bad Boys for Life’.
There have been many films in 2020 which cannot be included in the A1Film Top 5/10 List, either due to limited theatrical releases globally and or being primarily released on streaming platforms. These films include ‘Nomadland’, ‘Mank’, ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’, ‘One Night in Miami’, ‘Da 5 Bloods’, ‘Sound of Metal’ and ‘On the Rocks’.
Alpha1Media will release the A1Film Awards 2020, celebrating the achievements of global popular cinema in 2020, and the A1Film Preview for 2021.
Alpha1Media is a global media and entertainment firm. Alpha1Media produces and advises on media creation using 10×10 types of media including phone, print, TV, radio, billboard, computer, cinema and futuristic media based on scale, motion and holograms.
In the film sector, Alpha1Media focuses on film development, production, financing and cultural advisory services. It currently has six film projects in development with production value estimated at over USD $500 million from 2021-2030, including the industry-acclaimed ‘NANO’.