London Film Festival 2020
by Col Needham | created - 08 Sep 2020 | updated - 26 Dec 2020 | PublicThis is a list of everything I have seen at The BFI London Film Festival 2020 in chronological viewing order.
I was able to see movies #1 to #11 before the festival and #12 to #49 at the festival itself virtually via The BFI Player, but also Ammonite (2020) in-person at The Watershed in Bristol on IMDb's 30th birthday -- an excellent way to end the festival.
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1. Herself (2020)
R | 97 min | Drama
A young mother escapes her abusive husband and fights back against a broken housing system. She sets out to build her own home and in the process rebuilds her life and re-discovers herself.
Director: Phyllida Lloyd | Stars: Molly McCann, Clare Dunne, Ruby Rose O'Hara, Ian Lloyd Anderson
Votes: 4,717
Sundance 2020
2. Stray (I) (2020)
Not Rated | 72 min | Documentary
The world of Zeytin, a stray dog living life on the streets of Istanbul.
Director: Elizabeth Lo | Stars: Zeytin, Nazar, Kartal, Jamil
Votes: 1,683
Film Independent
3. Mogul Mowgli (2020)
89 min | Drama, Music
A British Pakistani rapper is on the cusp of his first world tour, but is struck down by an illness that threatens to derail his big break.
Director: Bassam Tariq | Stars: Riz Ahmed, Aiysha Hart, Anjana Vasan, Nabhaan Rizwan
Votes: 3,212
Marche du Film
4. Relic (2020)
R | 89 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A daughter, mother and grandmother are haunted by a manifestation of dementia that consumes their family's home.
Director: Natalie Erika James | Stars: Robyn Nevin, Emily Mortimer, Bella Heathcote, Steve Rodgers
Votes: 30,213
US VoD
5. Shirley (2020)
R | 107 min | Biography, Drama, Horror
A famous horror writer finds inspiration for her next book after she and her husband take in a young couple.
Director: Josephine Decker | Stars: Elisabeth Moss, Odessa Young, Michael Stuhlbarg, Logan Lerman
Votes: 13,318
US VoD
6. Limbo (VI) (2020)
R | 104 min | Comedy, Drama
Omar is a promising young musician. Separated from his Syrian family, he is stuck on a remote Scottish island awaiting the fate of his asylum request.
Director: Ben Sharrock | Stars: Sidse Babett Knudsen, Kenneth Collard, Amir El-Masry, Vikash Bhai
Votes: 5,280
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
7. Never Gonna Snow Again (2020)
Unrated | 116 min | Comedy, Drama, Mystery
Zhenia, a Russian-speaking immigrant from the East, works as a masseur in Poland and becomes a guru-like figure in a wealthy gated community of his clients.
Directors: Malgorzata Szumowska, Michal Englert | Stars: Alec Utgoff, Maja Ostaszewska, Agata Kulesza, Weronika Rosati
Votes: 2,757
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
8. The Disciple (2020)
TV-MA | 129 min | Drama, Music
Self-doubt, sacrifice and struggle converge into an existential crisis for a devoted classical vocalist as the mastery he strives for remains elusive.
Director: Chaitanya Tamhane | Stars: Aditya Modak, Arun Dravid, Sumitra Bhave, Deepika Bhide Bhagwat
Votes: 3,062
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
9. Nomadland (2020)
R | 107 min | Drama
A woman in her sixties, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.
Director: Chloé Zhao | Stars: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May, Gay DeForest
Votes: 183,293
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
10. Wildfire (2020)
85 min | Drama
The story of two sisters who grew up on the fractious Irish border. When one of them, who has been missing, finally returns home, the intense bond with her sister is re-ignited. Together ... See full summary »
Director: Cathy Brady | Stars: Nora-Jane Noone, Nika McGuigan, Kate Dickie, Martin McCann
Votes: 615
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
11. One Night in Miami... (2020)
R | 114 min | Drama
A fictional account of one incredible night where icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown gathered discussing their roles in the Civil Rights Movement and cultural upheaval of the 60s.
Director: Regina King | Stars: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.
Votes: 34,269
Toronto International Film Festival 2020
12. Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets (2020)
98 min | Documentary, Drama
A look at the final moments of a Las Vegas dive bar called 'The Roaring 20s'.
Directors: Bill Ross IV, Turner Ross | Stars: Peter Elwell, Michael Martin, Shay Walker
Votes: 1,599
13.
Small Axe (2020)
Episode:
Mangrove
(2020)
TV-MA | 127 min | Drama, History
Mangrove tells this true story of The Mangrove Nine, who clashed with London police in 1970. The trial that followed was the first judicial acknowledgment of behavior motivated by racial hatred within the Metropolitan Police.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Gary Beadle, Darren Braithwaite, Richie Campbell, Ben Caplan
Votes: 5,890
14. Kajillionaire (2020)
R | 104 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A woman's life is turned upside down when her criminal parents invite an outsider to join them on a major heist they're planning.
Director: Miranda July | Stars: Richard Jenkins, Debra Winger, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Belcher
Votes: 22,093
15. 200 Meters (2020)
96 min | Adventure, Drama
A Palestinian father trapped on the other side of the separation wall is trying to reach the hospital for his son.
Director: Ameen Nayfeh | Stars: Ali Suliman, Anna Unterberger, Motaz Malhees, Mahmoud Abu Eita
Votes: 2,097
16. Honeymood (2020)
90 min | Comedy, Drama
Following a fight in their honeymoon suite on the night of their wedding, a bride and groom embark on a surreal urban odyssey through the streets of Jerusalem.
Director: Talya Lavie | Stars: Avigail Harari, Ran Khalil Danker, Dan Amroussi, Tom Antopolsky
Votes: 361
17. 180 Degree Rule (2020)
83 min | Drama
A school teacher from Tehran is preparing to attend a wedding in northern Iran. When her husband suddenly forbids her to go, she makes a choice that will place her on a painful path zig to atonement.
Director: Farnoosh Samadi | Stars: Sadaf Asgari, Sahar Dolatshahi, Azita Hajian, Mohammad Heidari
Votes: 300
18. The Reason I Jump (2020)
82 min | Documentary, Drama
Based on the book by Naoki Higashida, this immersive film explores the experiences of non-speaking autistic people around the world.
Director: Jerry Rothwell | Stars: Donna Budway, Emma Budway, Jeremy Dear, Joss Dear
Votes: 1,136
19. Farewell Amor (2020)
Unrated | 95 min | Drama, Music, Romance
Reunited after 17 years, an Angolan immigrant is joined in the U.S. by his wife and daughter. Now strangers sharing a one-bedroom apartment, they discover a shared love of dance that may help them overcome the distance between them.
Director: Ekwa Msangi | Stars: Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, Zainab Jah, Jayme Lawson, Joie Lee
Votes: 1,543
20. Wolfwalkers (2020)
PG | 103 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A young apprentice hunter and her father journey to Ireland to help wipe out the last wolf pack. But everything changes when she befriends a free-spirited girl from a mysterious tribe rumored to transform into wolves by night.
Directors: Tomm Moore, Ross Stewart | Stars: Honor Kneafsey, Eva Whittaker, Sean Bean, Simon McBurney
Votes: 38,622
21. Chess of the Wind (1976)
Not Rated | 99 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
The first lady of a noble house has died and now there is conflict between the remainders for taking over her inheritance.
Director: Mohammad Reza Aslani | Stars: Fakhri Khorvash, Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Akbar Zanjanpour, Shohreh Aghdashloo
Votes: 1,719
22. Siberia (2020)
R | 92 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
An exploration into the language of dreams.
Director: Abel Ferrara | Stars: Willem Dafoe, Dounia Sichov, Simon McBurney, Cristina Chiriac
Votes: 2,484
23. Time (I) (2020)
PG-13 | 81 min | Documentary, Biography
Fox Rich fights for the release of her husband, Rob, who is serving a 60-year sentence in prison.
Director: Garrett Bradley | Stars: Sibil Fox Richardson, Robert G. Richardson, Mahlik Richardson, Remington B. Richardson
Votes: 6,291
24. Industry (2020– )
TV-MA | 50 min | Drama
Young bankers and traders make their way in the financial world in the aftermath of the 2008 collapse.
Stars: Myha'la, Marisa Abela, Harry Lawtey, Ken Leung
Votes: 12,404
25. Supernova (II) (2020)
R | 95 min | Drama, Romance
Sam and Tusker are traveling across England in their old RV to visit friends, family and places from their past. Since Tusker was diagnosed with dementia two years ago, their time together is the most important thing they have.
Director: Harry Macqueen | Stars: Colin Firth, Stanley Tucci, Pippa Haywood, Peter MacQueen
Votes: 14,296
26. The Cheaters (1930)
82 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
The daughter of the head of a criminal gang falls in love with the son of her father's most bitter enemy.
Director: Paulette McDonagh | Stars: Marie Lorraine, Arthur Greenaway, John Faulkner, Josef Bambach
Votes: 86
27. Cicada (2020)
Unrated | 96 min | Drama, Romance
A New York love story that toes the line between narrative and doc with two actors reliving parts of their own experiences.
Directors: Matthew Fifer, Kieran Mulcare | Stars: Matthew Fifer, Sheldon D. Brown, Sandra Bauleo, Jazmin Grace Grimaldi
Votes: 1,095
28. Ultraviolence (2020)
75 min | Documentary
The struggles for justice by families of people killed by police in the UK. A poignant and political reflection on resistance capturing the brutality, trauma and relentless fightback of those who will not be silent about state violence.
Director: Ken Fero
Votes: 30
29. Bad Tales (2020)
98 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A few families living out on a limb in the suburbs of Rome. Tensions here can explode at any time; ultimately it's the children who bring about the collapse.
Directors: Damiano D'Innocenzo, Fabio D'Innocenzo | Stars: Elio Germano, Tommaso Di Cola, Giulietta Rebeggiani, Barbara Chichiarelli
Votes: 7,061
30. Genus Pan (2020)
150 min | Crime, Drama
A look at how much human beings are like animals.
Director: Lav Diaz | Stars: Nanding Josef, Bart Guingona, Don Melvin Boongaling, Hazel Orencio
Votes: 390
31. Eyimofe (This Is My Desire) (2020)
Not Rated | 116 min | Drama
In Lagos, Nigeria, tragedy and fate intervene as two people try to better the lives of their families.
Directors: Arie Esiri, Chuko Esiri | Stars: Jude Akuwudike, Kemi Lala Akindoju, Kelechi Udegbe, Emeka Nwagbaraocha
Votes: 550
32. Undine (2020)
Unrated | 91 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Undine works as a historian lecturing on Berlin's urban development. But when the man she loves leaves her, the ancient myth catches up with her. Undine has to kill the man who betrays her and return to the water.
Director: Christian Petzold | Stars: Paula Beer, Franz Rogowski, Maryam Zaree, Jacob Matschenz
Votes: 9,213
33. Rose (V) (2020)
86 min | Drama, Horror, Romance
Gripped by a violent, terrifying illness, Rose lives in seclusion with her husband, but the arrival of a stranger shatters the fragile refuge they have built.
Director: Jennifer Sheridan | Stars: Sophie Rundle, Olive Gray, Matt Stokoe, Nathan McMullen
Votes: 1,217
34. The Intruder (2020)
90 min | Horror, Thriller
The story of Inés, a young woman who after a traumatic episode during a trip with her partner begins to confuse herself between the real and the imaginary.
Director: Natalia Meta | Stars: Erica Rivas, Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Daniel Hendler, Cecilia Roth
Votes: 1,165
35. Another Round (2020)
Not Rated | 117 min | Drama
Four high-school teachers consume alcohol on a daily basis to see how it affects their social and professional lives.
Director: Thomas Vinterberg | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Bo Larsen, Magnus Millang, Lars Ranthe
Votes: 194,769
36. David Byrne's American Utopia (2020)
TV-14 | 105 min | Documentary, Music, Musical
Spike Lee documents the former Talking Heads frontman's brilliant, timely 2019 Broadway show, based on his recent album and tour of the same name.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: David Byrne, Jacqueline Acevedo, Gustavo Di Dalva, Daniel Freedman
Votes: 5,246
37. One Man and His Shoes (2020)
Not Rated | 83 min | Documentary, Biography, History
'One Man and His Shoes' tells the story of the phenomenon of Air Jordan sneakers showing their social, cultural and racial significance and how ground-breaking marketing strategies created a multi-billion-dollar business.
Director: Yemi Bamiro | Stars: David Falk, Jemele Hill, Scoop Jackson, DJ Clark Kent
Votes: 427
38. Notturno (I) (2020)
TV-MA | 100 min | Documentary
Gianfranco Rosi's new documentary is an immersive portrait of those trying to survive in the war-torn Middle East.
Director: Gianfranco Rosi
Votes: 1,313
39. After Love (2020)
89 min | Drama
Set in the port town of Dover, Mary Hussain suddenly finds herself a widow following the unexpected death of her husband. A day after the burial, she discovers he has a secret just twenty-one miles across the English Channel in Calais.
Director: Aleem Khan | Stars: Joanna Scanlan, Nathalie Richard, Talid Ariss, Nasser Memarzia
Votes: 4,290
40. Identifying Features (2020)
99 min | Drama
A mother travels across Mexico in search for her son whom authorities say died while trying to cross the borders into the United States.
Director: Fernanda Valadez | Stars: Mercedes Hernández, David Illescas, Juan Jesús Varela, Ana Laura Rodríguez
Votes: 2,441
41. The Painter and the Thief (2020)
106 min | Documentary
An artist befriends the thief who stole her paintings. She becomes his closest ally when he is severely hurt in a car crash and needs full time care, even if her paintings are not found. But then the tables turn.
Director: Benjamin Ree | Stars: Karl Bertil-Nordland, Barbora Kysilkova, Øystein Stene
Votes: 4,310
42. New Order (2020)
R | 86 min | Crime, Drama, Sci-Fi
A lavish high-society wedding unexpectedly turns into a class struggle that leads to a violent coup.
Director: Michel Franco | Stars: Naian González Norvind, Eligio Meléndez, Mónica Del Carmen, Fernando Cuautle
Votes: 9,468
43. Possessor (2020)
R | 103 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
An agent works for a secretive organization that uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people's bodies - ultimately driving them to commit assassinations for high-paying clients.
Director: Brandon Cronenberg | Stars: Andrea Riseborough, Christopher Abbott, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rossif Sutherland
Votes: 45,727
44. Shadow Country (2020)
135 min | Drama, History
How to reconcile with killings committed by your own neighbors? How to face growing evil that nobody stands against? What can human will overcome and what is the value of humility and hope?
Director: Bohdan Sláma | Stars: Magdaléna Borová, Csongor Kassai, Stanislav Majer, Robert Miklus
Votes: 281
45.
Small Axe (2020)
Episode:
Lovers Rock
(2020)
TV-MA | 70 min | Drama, History
A single evening at a house party in 1980s West London sets the scene, developing intertwined relationships against a background of violence, romance and music.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Dennis Bovell, Saffron Coomber, Frankie Fox, Daniel Francis-Swaby
Votes: 5,295
46. Ammonite (2020)
R | 117 min | Drama, History, Romance
1840s England, acclaimed but overlooked fossil hunter Mary Anning and a young woman sent to convalesce by the sea develop an intense relationship, altering both of their lives forever.
Director: Francis Lee | Stars: Kate Winslet, Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Jones, James McArdle
Votes: 23,320
47. African Apocalypse (2020)
88 min | Documentary
A people's history of colonialism like no other
Director: Rob Lemkin | Stars: Toby Stephens, Stephane Cornicard, Philippe Smolikowski, Femi Nylander
Votes: 68
48. Friendship's Death (1987)
78 min | Drama, Sci-Fi
In the 1970s, aliens send a female android diplomat to Earth on a mission of peace. She lands in war-torn Palestine instead of MIT by mistake and meets a friendly UK journalist there. They begin a series of insightful conversations.
Director: Peter Wollen | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Patrick Bauchau, Bill Paterson, Ruby Baker
Votes: 688
49. Gold for Dogs (2020)
99 min | Drama
Esther follows her crush from the south of France to Paris at summer's end.
Director: Anna Cazenave Cambet | Stars: Tallulah Cassavetti, Ana Neborac, Corentin Fila, Romain Guillermic
Votes: 253
50. Soul (2020)
PG | 100 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Joe is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn't quite gone the way he expected. His true passion is jazz. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.
Directors: Pete Docter, Kemp Powers | Stars: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton, Rachel House
Votes: 379,393
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