With so many major releases pulled from the schedule, 2020 turned out to be
a good year to make your feature directorial debut, and we got some real
gems from new directors. Here are the 10 directorial debuts that most
impressed us in 2020 (for the purposes of this list we've defined
"directorial debut" as a first feature length narrative film).
The Assistant (Kitty Green)
We said: "A dystopian video installation might be constructed from the film's many
lengthy shots of its eponymous protagonist simply standing still and
silent in her environment as fluorescent lights buzz, photocopiers hum and
police sirens pierce the office walls."
Babyteeth (Shannon Murphy)
We said: "You might imagine a movie like Babyteeth to be a
tearjerker, but aside from the emotional flashback coda that closes out
the film, I found myself grinning throughout. Its characters might be
living in the sort of situations we wouldn't wish on anyone, but they're
vividly alive and human."
Beasts Clawing at Straws (Kim Yong-hoon)
We said: "It is rather beautifully filmed with thick neon-noir colour stylings and
a running motif of water; the film’s visual language informing us always
of the democratic, Darwinian nature of crime and violence."
Bull (Annie Silverstein)
We said: "Following a series of shorts, this is Silverstein’s debut feature length
film. How exciting to witness the breaking of a brand-new film maker, to
be there at the start of her career. No shit, Bull is the
real deal."
If You Are Happy (Xiaoming Chen)
We said: "A blackly comic satire on the desperate measures one man is willing to
take to ensure a future for his daughter. With a stressful, chaotic
structure akin to the films of the Safdie brothers,
If You Are Happy is as nerve-wracking as any thriller."
Les Misérables (Ladj Ly)
We said: "What makes Les Misérables such a gripping and stressful
watch is how we're given little time to weigh up the ethical complexity of
its powder keg scenario. Such moral complexity is a breath of fresh air when compared to recent
American movies that have attempted to tackle similar scenarios in a
simplistic fashion."
Murmur (Heather Young)
We said: "At times, this intimate character study is acutely sad; the sort of
sadness that thickens your blood and makes it difficult to breathe because
it is so honest and real. A masterpiece of poignancy which troubled me a
great deal."
Perfect 10 (Eva Riley)
We said: "The coming of age drama meets the musical meets the sports movie meets
the crime caper in this infectiously charming feature debut from
writer/director Riley."
Rose: A Love Story (Jennifer Sheridan)
We said: "While directing shorts, Sheridan has been working steadily as an editor
for the past decade, and her experience shows in her feature debut.
Rose: A Love Story is immaculately assembled, with not a
beat out of step in its visual storytelling."
The Swerve (Dean Kapsalis)
We said: "This is a grim revival of ‘The Woman’s Film’, a 2020 ‘times up’ iteration
of the genre, with all the gorgeous Sirkian technicolor now curdled to
muted greys and sour milk whites, but retaining a central character who is
both vital to the circumstances she exists within, yet excluded from any
meaningful status within that world."