Best Movies, TV, Music and Games Of 2020
28th December, 2020 - Blog
Roll up, roll up, for the most pointless awards ceremony of the year.
What’s up everyone? It’s been a hell of a year, but there have been some definite positives in terms of entertainment.
While cinemas have been shut for the most part, we’ve been treated to a smorgasbord of streaming and a gluttony of great games… not to mention music.
With that in mind, here are some of my favourite releases of the year, as well as some that didn’t come out this year that are well worth your time anyway.
Movies
Ok, so when looking through this year’s releases, I found ONE new movie I saw this year. One.
That honour goes to Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm which is perhaps most interesting not just for its hidden camera style comedy but as a snapshot of the US during the COVID 19 pandemic.
At one point, the eponymous character attends a rally with outgoing VP Mike Pence, the room stuffed to the rafters with supporters while Pence explains that there are only a handful of cases of COVID-19.
Within weeks, the scene shifts to Borat wandering the streets during curfew, before showing the bizarre theories that the Trump administration has seeded within the US. It’s fascinating stuff, and more than a little scary.
Honourable Mentions: I See You and Ready Or Not. Yeah, it’s a pretty paltry list, but I’ve got Parasite, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, Tenet, The Gentlemen and more to catch up on from the last couple of years.
TV Shows
It’s been a strange year for TV shows for me, but we’ve found a fair few things to watch.
We finally watched the Haunting of Hill House, for example, and I finally started The Mandalorian (but I’m still in Season 1, so no spoilers please).
We also got through Season 2 of Umbrella Academy, which was just as good as the first, as well as both seasons of Amazon’s The Boys (which might be one of my new favourite shows).
Finally, Frank and I started watching Schitt’s Creek on a limb, and it’s become a bit of an obsession. Seriously, I adore it.
Music
This was the year I found myself pulled from podcasts back to music, and that’s in no small part to some fantastic releases this year.
The Weeknd’s After Hours, new 1975, Machine Gun Kelly’s Tickets To My Downfall all formed part of my rotation this year.
Then there was a new Dangerous Summer EP, a stunning new Bring Me The Horizon effort, new Code Orange, Loathe and more.
Dance Gavin Dance and Silverstein proved they can do no wrong, too, while HAWK’s first EP caught my attention thanks to Spotify.
Then there were not one but TWO Taylor Swift albums, and they’re both fantastic.
It’s been an incredible year for music, and I’ve still got plenty to catch up on. Check out my playlist here.
Video Games
We’ve been spoilt in the past for incredible video game years. I look at the likes of 2004, 2007, and 2018 fondly, and I think 2020 joins those ranks handily.
Maybe it’s because I’m now in my first industry job, but this year felt particularly special. We had new consoles (I even got to review the Xbox Series X), as well as a whole host of big releases.
Just on PS5 alone, I’ve loved Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Astro’s Playroom and Demon’s Souls, while treating myself to a gaming PC opened my eyes to the likes of Escape from Tarkov, Hades (before the Switch port), and more.
In fact, there’s been so much to play that I’m still working through the likes of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, Watch Dogs: Legion and more, while Cyberpunk 2077 has my attention at the moment as well (I’m playing on PC).
Here are my top 5 for 2020, along with links to my coverage:
– The Last of Us Part 2
– Hades
– Final Fantasy VII: Remake
– Ghost of Tsushima
– Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2
What media have you enjoyed in the year of hell that was 2020? Let me know!
