Ranked: All the best movies we saw at the virtual AFI Fest, from 'Nine Days' to 'Belushi'

First, we went to the Toronto International Festival and never had to leave the couch. Then we hit up the New York Film Festival, chomping on a big apple without having to actually go there. And finally, we ended a most interesting film-festival season by virtually stopping through LA for AFI Fest.

COVID-19 put the kibosh on a lot of entertainment options this fall but also gave audiences unprecedented access to quality awards season fare and independent film gems. AFI Fest gave its viewers an eclectic mix of everything, plus conversations about bridging the gap between deaf and hearing audiences with the innovative movie "Sound of Metal" and tackling characters with mental health as in "Pink Skies Ahead."

After giving our Wi-Fi another major workout, here are the 10 best films we saw at AFI Fest (with release dates where applicable):

'Sound of Metal': How Riz Ahmed's drama bridges important gap between hearing audiences, deaf community

'Pink Skies Ahead': Kelly Oxford's film brings positive mental health depictions to the fore at AFI Fest

10. 'Pink Skies Ahead'

Kelly Oxford's directorial debut (planned for a 2021 release) is a solid coming-of-age film that shows the realities of anxiety disorder through its appealing main character. Winona is a 20-year-old writer (a standout Jessica Barden) who's dropped out of school and navigates her love life and an uncertain future while also dealing with the confusing onset of crippling panic attacks.

9. 'Really Love'

Many movies have tracked the romantic struggles of two lovers figuring things out through class divisions and differing life paths, though director Angel Kristi Williams' debut feature throws in Black artists and go-go music. Kofi Siriboe is a Washington, D.C., painter, Yootha Wong-Loi-Sing is a Georgetown law student, and the film movingly tracks how their successes affect their relationship.

8. 'I'm Your Woman'

Jean (Rachel Brosnahan) is not only gifted a surprise baby (which isn't hers) by thieving husband Eddie (Bill Heck) but also has to go on the run when he disappears after betraying his partner. Julia Hart's 1970s-set crime drama (in theaters Dec. 4, streaming Dec. 11 on Amazon Prime) has plenty of thrills and winningly teams its star with Marsha Stephanie Blake as a pair of ultra-capable wives looking out for each other.

7. 'The Intruder'

Argentinian filmmaker Natalia Meta's thriller centers on a voiceover actress and singer (Érica Rivas) who is forced to end a vacation with her boyfriend when tragedy strikes. Soon after, she's beset by constant nightmares and discovers strange sounds coming from deep within her that affect mics and, worse. Her everyday life in an increasingly unnerving, nicely refreshing horror flick.

6. 'Wander Darkly'

Sienna Miller and Diego Luna are a couple with a baby on the precipice of a breakup when they're involved in a fatal car accident. She wakes up as a spirit, shocked to be looking down on herself in the hospital, then goes on a twisty, time-warping journey through different points of their relationship in the immersive afterlife drama (in theaters and video on demand Dec. 11).

5. 'Belushi'

R.J. Cutler's enlightening documentary (on Showtime Nov. 22) charts the life of comedy legend John Belushi from his Illinois roots to his 1970s "Saturday Night Live" success to the drug use that led to his death at age 33. His story is told through audio interviews with Dan Aykroyd, Carrie Fisher and many more – including Belushi himself – and stylish animation that captures a cultural icon and the vulnerable boy underneath.

4. 'The Boy Behind the Door'

Lonnie Chavis ("This Is Us") powers this survival horror movie that effectively upends expectations. Young pals Bobby (Chavis) and Kevin (Ezra Dewey) are kidnapped and taken to a strange house in the country, where Bobby escapes and has to stealthily avoid his captor as well as attempt to free his BFF. The film goes to visceral, all-too-real places with youthful heroism keeping it enjoyable.

3. 'Uncle Frank'

"It" breakout Sophia Lillis and Paul Bettany are fantastic together in Alan Ball's stirring and empathetic 1970s-set dramedy (streaming on Amazon Prime Nov. 25). A college freshman (Lillis) and her closeted gay uncle (Bettany) travel from New York to their South Carolina home – with his boyfriend (Peter Macdissi) in tow – for a family funeral, so Frank has allies as he fights the return of old demons and hard feelings.

2. 'Wolfwalkers'

In the enchanting and gorgeous animated Celtic fantasy adventure (streaming Dec. 11 on Apple TV+), Robyn (voiced by Honor Kneafsey) and her hunter dad (Sean Bean) travel from England to Ireland to take out dangerous wolves. But Robyn discovers they're a magical pack and befriends a young Wolfwalker (Eva Whittaker), a girl who can transform into a wolf and needs Robyn's help to find her missing mom (Maria Doyle Kennedy).

1. 'Nine Days'

Writer/director Edson Oda's debut feature (in theaters early 2021) is an insightful and existential sci-fi drama starring Winston Duke as a reserved man who lives in a house in the desert choosing souls to be born. When one of his favorite previous candidates dies, he begins the nine-day process to pick her replacement from a crop of newbies, including one (Zazie Beetz) who reminds him of what it means to really live.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: AFI Fest: All the best movies we saw, from 'Nine Days' to 'Belushi'