Fanboys Anonymous

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2020

1. Sonic the Hedgehog
2. A Quiet Place Part II
3. Superman: Man of Tomorrow
4. Peninsula
5. Soul
6. Justice League Dark: Apokolips War
7. Wonder Woman 1984
8. Palm Springs
9. Tenet
10. The Devil All the Time
    

The only movie I really took away from this year loving for the most part was Sonic the Hedgehog. Then again, this was the year of a full-blown shutdown with movies due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost nothing came out.

That's why you'll see something like Tenet here, which I didn't even really like. But holy shit did I still overall appreciate it more than Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) which just actively pissed me off, or The New Mutants, which was about as terrible of a pilot episode of a CW reject show as you could get.

Blind Spot Movies = Guns Akimbo, Mulan, Project Power and more.

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2021

1. Spider-Man: No Way Home
2. Zack Snyder's Justice League
3. The Suicide Squad
4. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings 
5. Ghostbusters: Afterlife
6. No Time to Die
7. Black Widow
8. Nobody
9. Godzilla vs. Kong
10. Free Guy
11. Venom: Let There Be Carnage
12. The King's Man
    
13. Batman: The Long Halloween (Part One and Part Two)
14. Red Notice
    

With more movies coming back into theaters this year, you can see the big difference. This year actually had some heavy hitters and some genuinely fun movies I'll be watching for years to come.

No Way Home was a wild ride. Zack Snyder's Justice League is certainly way better than the Joss Whedon cut. The Suicide Squad follows that format in being a massive improvement. And Shang-Chi was one of the best parts of this phase of the MCU.

I really enjoyed some of what Ghostbusters: Afterlife had to offer, even though it is a shell of the first movie and falls short of the second by a mile, too.

Black Widow was disappointing, as was Free Guy and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and even The King's Man, but I still enjoyed them.

If we're talking disappointments, though, No Time to Die......but it is still a James Bond film, so it gets some priority placement.

Shout out to some movies like Ron's Gone Wrong and Mass and Encanto that don't make the cut, and a surprise in Vacation Friends that I enjoyed more than I thought I would.

Blind Spot Movies = Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, National Champions, The Protege and more.

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2022

1. The Batman
2. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
3. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
4. Bullet Train
5. Everything Everywhere All At Once
6. The Menu
7. Nope
8. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
9. Top Gun: Maverick
10. Prey
11. Sonic the Hedgehog 2
12. Thor: Love and Thunder
    
13. Clerks III
    
14. Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
15. The Black Phone
    
16. The Bad Guys
    
17. DC League of Super-Pets
18. Jackass Forever
19. Amsterdam
20. Jurassic World Dominion
21. The Adam Project
    
22. Lightyear
23. Death on the Nile
    

Great stuff in the top three, with Bullet Train just narrowly behind. That was a blast to sit through. As was Everything Everywhere All at Once even though I think that won't be the type of movie I want to sit down and watch here and there on a whim.

I really enjoyed The Menu and Nope, and was surprisingly thumbs up on Top Gun: Maverick, as well as Prey. Obviously. These movies were rock solid. And Sonic 2 was good, but I think the first was better. The same goes for Glass Onion. And for how Thor: Love and Thunder went WAY too far into the ridiculous aspects that I still think were a little overbearing in Ragnarok, even.

I was disappointed in Clerks III. I was surprised by how fun Weird: The Al Yankovic Story was. Also, The Black Phone did its job. But a movie like that isn't going to be a favorite of mine, nor will Amsterdam or the others in gray. So while I appreciate a movie for having a great performance like The Whale, I'm not going to rewatch it.

Boy did Black Adam and Morbius suck. Yikes.

Blind Spot Movies = The 355, Ambulance, Avatar: The Way of Water, The Outfit, Turning Red and more.

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2023

1. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
2. Godzilla Minus One
3. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
4. The Holdovers
5. The Iron Claw
6. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
7. The Super Mario Bros. Movie
8. They Cloned Tyrone
9. Knock at the Cabin
10. John Wick: Chapter 4
11. The Flash
12. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
13. Oppenheimer
14. Saltburn
15. Barbie
16. Dream Scenario
17. Leave the World Behind
18. Renfield
19. A Haunting in Venice
20. The Marvels
21. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
22. M3gan
23. Missing
24. Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
25. Haunted Mansion
26. Blue Beetle
27. The Zone of Interest 
28. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
    
29. Merry Little Batman
30. The Creator
31. Shazam! Fury of the Gods
32. Talk to Me
33. 65
34. Saw X
35. When Evil Lurks
36. Paradise
37. All of Us Strangers
    
38. Cobweb
39. Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match
40. The Meg 2: The Trench
41. Five Nights at Freddy's
42. Vacation Friends 2
43. The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster
44. The Pale Blue Eye
45. Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham
46. The Pope's Exorcist
47. Hidden Strike
48. Justice League: Warworld

Considering how many comic book films were underwhelming this year, and how a few other movies were surprisingly higher up than I anticipated, this is not at all the list that I was expecting heading into 2023, that's for sure!

Across the Spider-Verse was naturally awesome. Godzilla was SO good, which blew my mind. GOTG wasn't as good as the first, but I think there are elements that are better than the second, and it was a good way to finish the trilogy. I don't have an attachment to Indiana Jones in the same way some others do when they saw the first three as kids, but I did enjoy Dial of Destiny quite a bit, even if it feels a bit unnecessary in the grand scheme.

Holdovers and Oppenheimer are the two "best" movies of the year in terms of Oscar caliber Best Picture nominations, with Saltburn just behind them. I enjoyed Barbie while watching it, but the more I think about it after the fact, the less staying power it has. I can't imagine watching it a second time.

Knock at the Cabin was a very early "wow" for me that eventually was just overtaken by other movies, but for a while, sat at the top of the list.

When you tap into my childhood and you do a pretty good job at pulling it off, I have to give a thumbs up to Super Mario and TMNT, although while Mario far exceeds its 90s movie precursor, Mutant Mayhem is a shell of the 1990 Ninja Turtles film, which remains one of my favorites of all time.

The Marvels, The Flash, Shazam, Quantumania, Blue Beetle...what are we doing? Woof. The general idea was that all of these movies had some good ideas and some potential, but just weren't good. The execution was just not what it could have been. Frankly, I'm being kinder to some of them than I would be if they were the exact same films, but of a different genre. They're lucky I love superhero flicks. Unless it was Justice League: Warworld, which was just beyond dissatisfying.

Renfield was fun, as was Haunted Mansion and M3GAN, for random examples. I even enjoyed Talk to Me more than most horror films. The Creator was a bust, though. Very disappointing.

Blind Spot Movies = Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Beau is Afraid, Eileen, Rebel Moon and more.

TOP 10 FAVORITE FILMS OF 2024

This year is obviously ongoing, so my list will be adjusted here and there as I see more movies.

1. Civil War
   
2. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
3. Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part One
4. Late Night with the Devil
5. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
   
6. Ricky Stanicky
   
7. Beekeeper
   
8. Argylle
9. Road House
   
10. Immaculate
11. The I.S.S.
12. Imaginary 
13. The First Omen
14. Madame Web
    

Here's hoping this is a great year for movies that makes it tough to just pick only 10!

TOP 10+ FAVORITE FILMS OF 2020s DECADE (so far)
BONUS ROUND

1. Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
2. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
3. The Batman (2022)
4. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
   
5. The Suicide Squad (2021)
6. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
7. Civil War (2024)
   
8. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire (2024)
   
9. Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
10. Godzilla Minus One (2023)
    
11. The Holdovers (2023)
12. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings  (2021)
13. Bullet Train (2022)
14. Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
15. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
16. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
17. Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
18. Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
19. Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020)
20. Batman: The Long Halloween (Part One and Part Two) (2021)
21. Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020)
22. The Menu (2022)
23. No Time to Die (2021)
24. The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023)
25. They Cloned Tyrone (2023)
26. Nope (2022)
27. Prey (2022) 
28. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
29. Knock at the Cabin (2023)
30. John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023)
31. The Flash (2023) 
32. The Iron Claw (2023)
33. Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
34. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
    
35. Saltburn (2023)
36. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
37. Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part One (2024)
    
38. Nobody (2021)
39. A Quiet Place Part II (2020)
40. Renfield (2023)
41. Soul (2020)
42. Oppenheimer (2023)
43. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (2023)
    
44. Dream Scenario (2023)
45. Barbie (2023)
46. A Haunting in Venice (2023)
47. Death on the Nile (2022)
48. Black Widow (2021)
49. The Marvels (2023)
50. Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
51. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)
52. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022)
53. Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (2022)
54. M3gan (2023)
55. Free Guy (2021)
56. Clerks III (2022)
57. Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
58. Peninsula (2020)
59. The Black Phone (2022)
60. Palm Springs (2020)
61. The Bad Guys (2022)
62. Leave the World Behind (2023)
63. Missing (2023)
64. Talk to Me (2023)
    
65. Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)
66. Haunted Mansion (2023)
67. The King's Man (2021)
68. DC League of Super-Pets (2022)
69. Jackass Forever (2022)
70. Amsterdam (2022)
71. Jurassic World Dominion (2022)
72. Red Notice (2021)
73. Late Night with the Devil (2024)
    
74. The Adam Project (2022)
75. Blue Beetle (2023) 
76. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)
    
77. Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)
    
78. Tenet (2020)
79. Vacation Friends (2021)
80. Ricky Stanicky (2024)
    
81. Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
82. 65 (2023)
83. Lightyear (2022)
84. Merry Little Batman (2023)
    
85. Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (2023)
    
86. Five Nights at Freddy's (2023)
87. Immaculate (2024)
88. Saw X (2023)
89. Beekeeper (2024)
    
90. Argylle (2024)
91. Road House (2024)
    
92. The I.S.S. (2024)
93. Cobweb (2023)
94. Imaginary (2024)
    
95. The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster (2023)
96. When Evil Lurks (2023)
97. The Creator (2023)
98. The Meg 2: The Trench (2023)
99. Vacation Friends 2 (2023)
100. The First Omen (2024)
     
101. Madame Web (2024)
     
102. The Pale Blue Eye (2023)
103. The Pope's Exorcist (2023)
104. Hidden Strike (2023)
105. Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham (2023)
106.  Justice League: Warworld (2023)
107. **** Pending additions, removals and adjustments upon future extra viewings
     

Obviously, this decade list is a work in progress. I'll be updating it every few months or so, any time I remember to put in a new film that I've liked enough to put somewhere on the list.

What are your favorite movies from every year?
Drop your thoughts in the comments below!