Top 10: Films Of 2021
As the dust of the pandemic finally begins to settle, the movie theater prevails and cinema rages on. We close the chapter on another strange year, but it was one that was surprisingly running over with quality content. Yes sirree, 2021 actually panned out to be a damn fine year for film. There was a lot to get excited about and a lot to love. There were some things that we knew would capture our twisted heart, but there were things that blindsided us. Making this list wasn’t easy because so much connected with us, but like always, we managed to whittle it down to a list of ten.
Like we say every year: While we do manage to see quite a bit, we're a smaller indie blog and don't get the opportunity to see every film. This list is solely based on the ones we were able to see (or s. Also, since the subtleties of taste buds differ from person to person, it's highly unlikely that we'll be in complete agreement, but if you let us know your thoughts in the comments section below, we'd love to have a conversation over the past year's films.
With that said, let’s dive into what we consider to be the best films from 2021!
Despite the onslaught of MacBeth adaptations, there’s a lot to get excited about with Joel Coen’s The Tragedy Of MacBeth. For starters, it’s the most visually stunning film of the year. We’re absolutely rooting for Bruno Delbonnel to bring home the Oscar for his work here. Nearly every frame is a gallery-worthy painting that will have you arrested. The look, atmospherics, and particularly Coen’s use of staging gives off notes of Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Carl Theodor Dreyer, which gives the theatrical elements a stunning jolt of pure cinema. The film is exceptionally performed, but Denzel in particular delivers a performance for the books, one of his career best, in fact. Overall, it’s a very inspired adaptation that ranks amongst the very best — and that’s high praise considering cinema greats like Roman Polanski, Orson Welles, and Akira Kurosawa also tackled the material.
Tackling Frank Herbert’s Dune is not an easy task, but Denis Villeneuve proved to be a worthy interpreter of Herbert’s expansive epic. Remaining faithful to Herbert’s novel, Villeneuve beautifully articulates its complexity and delivers another well-crafted sci-fi epic. As always, he exhibits astounding command. He keeps everything tightly controlled, and more importantly, he trusts in his audience to pick up on things without have to force feed exposition. The large-scale world Villeneuve constructs is jaw dropping. It feels fully realized and grounded. There’s a lyrical, hypnotic quality, amplified (and sometimes suffocated) by Hans Zimmer’s thundering score (which becomes its own character), that casts an undeniable spell. Plus, it’s streaked with a good amount of weirdness and bolstered by Oscar Issacs incredible beard and the rest of its impressive cast.
With The French Dispatch, we get all the usual Anderson hallmarks, along with some welcome new additions, in the shape of an anthology. The delightfully charming and relentlessly funny omnibus that unfolds takes your on an enchanting ride through the the kind of singularly grandiose world that only Wes Anderson could create. All of it, very fitting of an editor’s burial. We’re assaulted by style and sieged by quirky characters galore. It’s just as immaculately conceived and sprawling in scope as The Grand Budapest Hotel, but it also feels like Anderson’s largest and most intricately crafted effort to date. It’s an absolute visual feast, and the level of detail on display is insane. It’s really everything one could want out of a Wes Anderson film: it’s expertly sculpted, deeply comical, effortlessly charming, and endlessly playful. Everything about it just makes us smile.
7: Red Rocket
Replete with juicy flesh and pulpy rind, Red Rocket marks another fresh-squeezed slice-of-life tale from Florida Project writer/director Sean Baker, who triumphantly rolls all of his signature trademarks into one raucously sleazy romp that charms and disturbs in equal measure. Heavily indebted to 70s cinema and the Italian sex comedies of the era (specifically the work of Umberto Lenzi), Red Rocket plays like a toxically masculine version ofTangerine with some serious Lolita energy. As always, Baker never passes judgement on his amoral antihero, and Simon Rex totally transforms him into a lovable asshole. It’s also beautifully photographed and peppered with snap-zooms that serve as the cherry on top, visually speaking. Rex’s performance shines at the forefront, but it’s really the film’s open-ended conclusion, which takes a sharp veer into fantasy, that makes it truly memorable.
Surprisingly supernatural free, Nightmare Alley finds del Toro taking on the seedy Noir with natural aplomb. Full of signature flourishes, excellent performances, and sublime sets/costumes, del Toro delivers his best effort since Pan’s Labyrinth. Not only does it bring the beloved auteur into slightly new terrain, but it’s still every bit the del Toro film you expect it to be: an exquisitely constructed and tautly drawn genre piece that goes down smooth, pulp and all. It’s about greed and secrets and the inescapability of fate; it’s about playing with fire and getting burned, how the power hungry sometimes just wind up hungry, and what it means to truly be a “geek.” Compellingly twisty, appropriately pulp-stained, and pockmarked with brutal spats of signature del Toro violence, Nightmare Alley marks another win for the veteran filmmaker and boasts his greatest ensemble cast to date.
5: Pig
Writer/director Michael Sarnoski cooked up a sublimely subversive three-course meal with his feature film debut, Pig. Although it’s masked as a revenge film, at its core Pig is a profound, genuinely affecting drama that proves that revenge doesn’t always have to be such a cold, violent dish. What appears to be another eccentric and absurd Nicolas Cage vehicle at first blush turns out to be one of the most restrained and refined performances of the veteran actor’s career, as well as one of the most affecting films of the year. It’s a strange alchemy of MANDY, John Wick, and Kelly Reichardt’s First Cow; there’s odd mystique and underground worlds/syndicates, but it’s all firmly grounded, perpetually straight-faced, and surprisingly tender. Although it takes the shape of a revenge film, it eventually reaches a crossroads and decides to go a different direction that ultimately transcends the subgenre entirely.
4: The Power Of The Dog
We didn’t get around to writing a formal review of it, but we were absolutely blown away by Jane Campion’s Power Of The Dog. The film is splendidly photographed, expertly written, and brilliantly performed. And as the cherry on top, it’s scored by composer Jonny Greenwood, who delivers yet again. There’s a complexity to the characters that’s slowly and subtly revealed through the writing, direction, and performances, and each unfolding layer is something to savor. The seemingly small and trivial details are made monumentally vital, and its ending is a real sizzler. It’s savage and cold in the best possible way, not violent but psychologically menacing. With steady hands, Campion steadily builds this unhurried slow burn toward a rewarding conclusion that’s as gnarled and knotted as old rope.
Don’t be fooled by its interestingly odd title; Licorice Pizza is a delightfully appetizing dish, one that serves up hilariously entertaining slices of youth, love, and life. It’s PTA’s most loosely reined and carefree endeavors, and it bounces about like an easygoing pinball ricocheting from bumper to bumper. It’s an exciting movie-going experience because you never quite know where it’ll take you next, and you’re often pleasantly surprised by the direction it veers in and fully enamored by its quirky characters, sweetly charming push-and-pull romance, and magnetic performances. Anderson also filters the whole freewheeling meander through the sun-soaked memory of his youth to create a dreamy nostalgic haze that further adds to the allure. Combine that with its period verve and expertly curated soundtrack, and the whole thing goes down oh so smooth. Dig in and dig it!
2: The Worst Person In The World
This is another one that we didn’t getting around to writing a formal review for, but it’s one we were glad we were able to squeeze in before making this list. A swirl of coming-of-age, romantic comedy, and character study, Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person In The World is an achingly tender slice-of-life tale that feels vibrantly alive. Segmented into chapters, the film chronicles four years in the life of Julie, a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path. Contrary to what the title implies, Julie is anything but the worst person in the world. Radiantly performed by Renate Reinsve, Julie is an incredibly relatable character who feels fully realized. Romantic comedies aren’t really our jam, but The Worst Person In The World subverts so many of the genre’s tired conventions, while also delivering the whimsical goods you’d expect. It took our breath away and stole our heart, and we’re not even mad about it.
Before we reveal our number one pick, here’s several others that wound up on the cutting room floor:
C’mon C’mon
Drive My Car
Without further ado, our favorite film of 2021 is….
1: TITANE
The latest twisted vision from French writer/director Julia Ducournau is a torqued up treat, and it’s one we’ve been absolutely crazy about since we first saw it at Fantastic Fest. The film earned Ducournau the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival (which made her the 2nd female to ever receive the festival’s top prize!), and it’s easy to see why. It’s an astounding achievement that pushes boundaries, challenges taboos, and transcends genre. The film oozes sexual energy (amongst other things), and like Raw, it also centers around a woman driven by a strange desire, which ultimately leads toward a ghastly transformation. With TITANE, Ducournau blends slasher, pregnancy body horror, and found-family drama into a wickedly potent elixir about love and parenthood. She creates scenes that sizzle with discomfort (in the best possible ways). It’s a beautifully orchestrated ballet of bodies and movement that’s boldly directed, brilliantly performed, excellently scored, and dementedly funny. If you’re anything like us, you won’t want the dance to end.
What do you think? We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always, remember to viddy well!