It's that time of year again! After a year of hiatus, the annual No Films Left Behind (NFLB) Awards returns for a third year, where I am trying to give out some well-deserved recognitions to some of the best movies I have seen this year and hand out metaphorical "participation trophies" to all the other ones that have kept me entertained in some way during these difficult times!
A word of disclaimer before I start: my original plan was to follow the guidelines for Academy Awards (Oscars) this year and only hand out awards to movies that have released theatrically or on streaming between March 1 and December 31, 2021, but I thought it wouldn't be fair to the more than a dozen films I have watched that were released before then. So, just for this year, I'm awarding the movies that are released in both 2020 and 2021, and the movies that are released in 2020 will be indicated in brackets.
A general review of my awards rules:
- Every movies that I have seen will be received either a "Best" or "Most" category exactly ONCE, it is getting increasingly difficult for this year but I managed somehow. There are certainly several overlaps but I have tried my best to give them the awards that they deserve!
- Everyone's opinion for movies, like all other art forms, is really subjective. These are my PERSONAL opinions so of course there will be some agreements and disagreements. Constructive and destructive criticism are always welcome as long as you have a valid point!
- I'm ALWAYS looking for suggestions! Unlike most people, I'm kind of behind on all the streaming services, and not be able to watch some movies in theatres clearly destructs my urge to watch them right away. So even though there are some movies, such as The Power of the Dog and CODA, that I might check out eventually, those are just not on my list of priorities right now. But if you have any more suggestions, feel free to let me know, and I will "give out" appropriate awards for them once I have watched them!
The "Best" List:
Best Drama - King Richard
Best Comedy - Free Guy
Best Action - Nobody
Best Comic Book Adaptation - Spider-Man: No Way Home
Best Animation - Soul (2020) + The Mitchells vs. The Machines
Best Musical - West Side Story
Best Horror - The Invisible Man (2020)
Best Sequel - The Suicide Squad
Best Safe Card - Jungle Cruise
Best Copycat - Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula (2020)
Best Tribute - Ghostbusters: Afterlife
Best Redemption - Zack Snyder’s Justice League
Best Underdog - Onward (2020) + Last Night in Soho
Best Update from the Source Material - Cruella
Best Visual Effects - Dune
Best Cultural Fusion - Encanto
Best New Star - Cooper Hoffman (Licorice Pizza)
Best Returning Star - Lady Gaga (House of Gucci)
Best Voice Star - Awkwafina (Raya and the Last Dragon)
Best Reunion of Onscreen Duo - Will Smith and Martin Lawrence (Bad Boys for Life)
Best Cameo - Keanu Reeves (The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run) (2020)
Best Opening Credits - Godzilla vs. Kong
Best Prologue - A Quiet Place: Part II
Best Ending - Escape Room: Tournament of Champions
(Mostly because the movie itself is painfully average)
Best Cliffhanger - Venom: Let There Be Carnage
Best Soundtrack - The King’s Man
(In the past years, I have listed the specific songs that are made the movies won the “Best Soundtrack” category, but this movie has a phenomenal soundtrack overall so it’s hard to pick a favorite! There might be some prejudice here since I REALLY love the soundtrack from the first two Kingsman movies!)
Best Song - “Paciencia y Fe” (In the Heights)
Best Use of an Existing Song - “White Rabbit” in Matrix Resurrections
Best Line - “Be careful how you speak to me, young man. I’ve lived ten of your lifetimes” (Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings)
The "Most" List (The "Participation Trophies" award the movies that excel in a nontraditional category):
Most Agitating - Halloween Kills
(If you don’t believe me, just look at how brutal this scene is, definitely NSFW!)
Most Confusing - Candyman
Most Inspirational - Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
(The inspirational speech in the final battle!)
Most Heartwarming - Ron’s Gone Wrong
Most Heartbreaking - No Time to Die
Most Emotional - Sing 2
(The finale in the "Out of This World" show that will make you cry if you see the whole movie!)
Most Disappointing - Dolittle (2020), Old
Most Outrageous - F9: The Fast Saga
Most Sophisticated - Tenet (2020)
Most Realistic School Representation (or even society in general) - Dear Evan Hansen
Most Predictable Twist - Peter Rabbit 2
Most Unexpected Twist (But also expected after seeing the first movie) - Trolls World Tour
(This is the specific moment I have in mind!)
Most Promising Sequel - Don’t Breathe 2
Most Unnecessary Installment - Black Widow
Most Likely to Have a Satisfying Sequel - Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
Most Overexpected (expectation higher than reality) - Mulan (2020)
Most Overlooked (and definitely worth a second look in the future) - The French Dispatch
Most Divided (some people really like it, some really hate it, but I hold neutral position) - Birds of Prey (2020) + Eternals
Most Wasted Talent - LeBron James (Space Jam: A New Legacy)
Most Underused Star - Michael Gandolfini (The Many Saints of Newark)
Most Adoring Friendship - “The Underdogs” aka, Luca Paguro, Alberto Scorfano and Giulia Marcovaldo (Luca)
Most Confusing Romance - Mike Milo and Marta (Cry Macho)
Most Likely to Be the Father of the Year - Tim Templeton from The Boss Baby: Family Business
Most Satisfying Fight Scene - Scorpion vs. Sub Zero (Mortal Kombat)
Most Destructive Fight Scene - Tom and Jerry vs. Spike (Tom & Jerry)
Most Humorous Insertion of “Adult Humor” - “My friends call me Dick” and “F-bomb” from Scoob! (2020)
And finally… a SPECIAL SHOUTOUT AWARD goes to Bloodshot (2020)! For it was the last movie I saw in theatres (last IMAX showing on March 13, 2020, at Masonville Place in London, Ontario) before the COVID-19 Pandemic changed the movie industry and our lives forever.
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