1. ‘Driveways’

No film this year better symbolized the nation’s desperate need for kindness, compassion and connection than Andrew Ahn’s warm, embracing indie release. In his final role, Brian Dennehy delivers a career high, gently playing a Korean War veteran who befriends a lonely, bullied 8-year-old neighbor (Lucas Jaye) — dubbed “the Professor” since he’s so brainy. The lad and his mom have moved for a brief stint into his dead aunt’s hoarder home in upstate New York. It’s a quiet film reminding us to take the time to reach out, understand and talk to each other, even when we are on opposite sides of driveways. Can you see it? Yes, the film is available on several streaming platforms.

2. ‘Nomadland’

What happens when your spouse dies, the industry town you live in gasps its final breath and you have no place to call home? Should you be Frances McDormand’s resilient Fern, you pack up the camper van and journey through America’s heartland, where you make fleeting but unforgettable friendships while working at odd jobs. As she did with “The Rider,” filmmaker Chloe Zhao mixes real characters with fictional ones in her adaptation of Jessica Bruder’s nonfiction book “Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century.” In the process, she holds a mirror up to forgotten Americans, strappy sorts who are barely making ends meet on this restless and rugged range. Can you see it? Probably not yet; the film was streamed on limited sites earlier in the month to earn awards eligibility and will open in wide release in early 2021.

3. ‘Minari’

Lee Isaac Chung’s quasi-autobiographical debut is an uplifting beauty that fondly looks back at a Korean American family settling on Arkansas farmland, where they hope the American dream strikes a crop of gold next to their mobile home. It’s a realistic, tender, often hilarious remembrance about days past. The scenes between the

Some studios held back their big-ticket releases until everyone could go back to theaters. When the pandemic persisted, some relented and released major films — like “Mulan” — on streaming platforms. A few did a mixture of streaming and releasing to limited-capacity theaters — but did anyone actually attend?

Given all that strangeness, and the pandemic’s impact on Hollywood production schedules, you might think there’d be few contenders for a 2020 top movies list. And would you be totally wrong. There were so many to consider that the process was agonizing at times.

Still, here are my top 5 favorite movies of the year.

5. ‘Collective’

Journalism has come under attack from our fake-news president, and that’s part of the reason why Alexander Nanau’s provocative documentary on dirty politicking in the aftermath of a massive 2015 fatal fire in Romania that clogged ill-equipped hospitals, leading to nearly 40 more people dying while being treated for their injuries, is such an important standout. The film follows the fire aftermath and journalists uncovering hospital mismanagement; it’s not just a brilliant shout at a broken system, but a reminder why a robust press is so necessary. If “Collective” doesn’t provoke a full-throttle scream, nothing can. Can you see it? Yes, the film is available on several streaming platforms, and is also available on select independent theater websites as part of the Virtual Cinema series.