Top 14 Films of 2021
2021 was a strong year for film (box office, be damned). As such, I couldn't really reduce my favorites down to a traditional ten. Apropos of its quality, a Top 14 was necessary.
Oh, and before you ask, if weirdly settling on a top fourteen is good enough for the former-president, it's good enough for me!
Honorable Mentions:
The Green Knight
Philly DA
Don't Look Up
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14. The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain
“…lays bare how ill-equipped law enforcement is in dealing with the mental health issues of the citizens it is tasked with protecting, and it does so with visceral immediacy. The phrase “searing indictment” is an overused idiom in the critic’s toolbox, but in this instance, it couldn’t be more appropriate.” - Austin Chronicle
13. Shiva Baby
“…increasingly amplifies its sense of claustrophobia, using discomfort and mistrust as the main methods of trepidation, projecting Danielle’s helplessness and humiliation with every prickly, fast-paced conversation.” - Variety
12. The Last Duel
“…gives us the texture of life in 14th century France, so much so that we feel that we are there, in this place that’s desperate and foreign and yet human and familiar. The customs, clothing and rituals are almost from another planet, and yet human nature — with all its jealousies, lusts, loyalties and treacheries — remains unchanged.” - Datebook
11. Passing
“The result is cool, elegant, and devastating, a film as tightly woven and plaintive as the source novel itself. It’s an artifact of its time, both 1929 and in 2021, when the questions around identity have morphed and shifted but are still relevant as ever. And they still leave us, individually and as a society, feeling uneasy about where we stand in relation to one another. Passing captures that feeling and challenges today’s audience to dwell with the discomfort, and wonder what it might mean to live a different way.” - Vox
10. King Richard
“In this alternately funny, poignant and inspiring movie, the focus isn’t on the sports prodigies who would one day attain legendary status on the tennis circuit. Instead, screenwriter Zach Baylin takes a more oblique approach, focusing on the man whose determination, ambition and sometimes overweening ego helped make his children champions.” - Washington Post
9. TINA
“…succeeds in telling us exactly what happened—making skillful use of musical analysis, archival footage, and audio recordings, and interviews with prominent musicians and journalists who got to know Tina Turner before, during, and after her ’80s revival. But it also honors Turner’s wish to be relinquished from the constant rehashing of her most painful moments. Her new interview in the film allows her to speak authoritatively on her own celebrity and personal life without having to revisit the sordid details of the abuse she experienced at the hands of Ike. And though it doesn’t shy away from the darkness held within her biography, Tina turns decidedly toward the light. The result is a film that shines, both in its passion for Turner’s talent and the depth and complexity of her character.” - Vanity Fair
8. CODA
“If you’re going to make a film that sticks to the playbook, or playbooks, this is how to do it: CODA is a radiant, deeply satisfying heartwarmer that more than embraces formula; it locates the pleasure and pureness in it, reminding us of the comforting, even cathartic, gratifications of a feel-good story well told.“ - The Hollywood Reporter
7. The Humans
“A warning, to be issued immediately and upfront: You might not want to see The Humans directly before or after a holiday dinner. Should potential viewers still be suffering from PTSD regarding their Turkey Day get-together, or spend the bulk of their weekly therapy sessions dreading the thought of a Christmas spent in the company of relatives, this movie will be triggering. The filmmakers can not be held liable for any uncontrollable shaking, faintness of breath, numbness in extremities, loss of consciousness and/or bracing moments of clarity and recognition that are experienced while viewing playwright-turned-director Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Pulitzer-nominated, Tony-winning drama.” - Rolling Stone
6. Operation Hyacinth
“Had this been made back in the 1940s, it would have fit nicely in the same genre as “Detour” or “The Maltese Falcon.” It has a streak of hopeless nihilism that’s characteristic of the finest noir. Ciastoń’s script, which won the Polish Film Festival’s Best Screenplay award, weaves a compelling and complex web of anger, suspense, and romance while simultaneously indicting the Hyacinth system and its participants. It has a lot to say about the harsh costs of repression brought about by societal homophobia. As a result, the film’s resolution is far from tidy or closed, yet it still manages to satisfy.” - Rogerebert.com
5. The Crime of the Century
“…shines a spotlight on the evolution of Purdue and company’s treacherous conduct, linking physicians, sales representatives, boardroom bigwigs, distributors, pharmacies, and politicians in a contemptible conspiracy of fraud, negligence, malpractice, bribery, and mass killing.” - Daily Beast
4. The Power of the Dog
“What's unique about The Power of the Dog is that it seems at first to be an epic Western, but it becomes a brooding gothic melodrama in which relationships shift and long-buried secrets surface. Its slow-burning psychological mysteries may frustrate some viewers. But others will be gripped by the way Campion twists the conventions of the American frontier drama: the fact that its jittery score is by Jonny Greenwood isn't the only thing it has in common with There Will Be Blood.” - BBC
3. Mass
“In brewing such precise discomfort, Kranz forces the audience to concentrate deeply on what’s being said and, more important, unsaid. The characters, played meticulously by four top-of-the-line actors, all believe they understand why they’re there: Gail and Jay want more clarity, and, as they repeatedly insist, “to heal”; Linda and Richard feel it’s their responsibility to provide answers. But their exchange doesn’t unspool so neatly.” - The Atlantic
2. The Father
1. Dune
“Villeneuve is superb at juxtaposing the colossal spectacle with the intimate encroachment of danger and a mysterious dramatic language that exalts the alienness of every texture and surface. Perhaps even more than in his previous film, Blade Runner 2049 (another audacious reinvention), the sound design and musical score of this film is compelling: it throbs, grinds and whispers through the cinema.” - The Guardian
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