Top 10 Movies of 2021
Read all of my thoughts here: https://alienationmentale.wordpress.com/2021/12/30/top-10-movies-of-2021/
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- DirectorDavid LoweryStarsDev PatelAlicia VikanderJoel EdgertonA fantasy retelling of the medieval story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.A24's The Green Knight is about the stories humanity has told itself for millennia, the heroes we hence aspire to be (because part of the story is to convince ourselves that we’re “immortalized” if we do this-and-that with our finite time on Earth, following such-and-such creed), and the ultimate insignificance of even the most memorable members of our kind, including one of the knights who rode alongside Arthur. That’s how I read it, anyhow. It might also be about a knight who is green.
The actual premise is basic enough: During a Christmas banquet, Sir Gawain (a splendid Dev Patel) is challenged by an immortal tree man (Ralph Ineson) to a sparring match, wherein the former decapitates the latter. However, this injury doesn’t much faze the Green Knight and per the game’s rules, Gawain must travel to his chapel next Christmas, so that the blow that was dealt may be returned. Being a David Lowery film, however, the full experience is anything but basic, despite the nods to well-known myths and legends.
Through a series of stops across a cold, foggy England (structured in a way that’s meant to mimic poetic stanzas), we reach one of my favorite sequences of the entire year, where Gawain enters the Green Chapel to fulfill his oath, seemingly failing to do so. When he awakens from a long, nightmarish vision of his own future — what he perceives as the intended “legacy” of a true knight — and surrenders himself to the Green Knight, not for the honor of the game or for his pride, but because he has seen something deeper, the Green Knight (nature) suddenly smiles. When he jokes “Off with your head”, it might even be referring to some other head that Gawain had hitherto overvalued.
The natural look of the film, from the realistic sets to the usually-natural lighting, makes its supernatural interludes all the more striking. So many simple images and ideas are made deeply haunting, e.g. the puzzling dual performance of Alicia Vikander, the gargantuan creatures that appear to Gawain and disappear into the mist, the house that moves in and out of existence... Yet, none of these scenes hold a candle to that final nightmare; the film’s ultimate point. I still feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface of what this movie is about and even if my fate is to one day be devoured by the planet as though I was never here (which, statistically, I wasn’t), boy am I astronomically lucky to be alive to witness an age of movies like The Green Knight. - DirectorFlorian ZellerStarsAnthony HopkinsOlivia ColmanMark GatissA man refuses all assistance from his daughter as he ages. As he tries to make sense of his changing circumstances, he begins to doubt his loved ones, his own mind and even the fabric of his reality.No film from this year could have reached me at a more apt time in my life -- or rather, the life of my family as a whole. And I'm not saying this to inflate its value based on my own experience. The Father, based on Florian Zeller's similarly named stageplay, is one of those films that, no matter when it's actually released onto the world, it will be just in time for someone.
The Father tells a story of the human brain at its final stages. What sets it apart from many other films about dementia and old age is that it lets us see things from the person's point of view. It also leads us to wonder if we're truly seeing the old geezer Anthony (Anthony Hopkins) lose track of his memories, or if external forces are making him believe this is so. If you're curious about the nature -- and alleged max capacity -- of the human mind, you may also wonder: Is he remembering faces from the wrong moments, or is he seeing people before he's actually met them? Is there a way to tell the difference between those two? In which direction is the information traveling?
And even if you don't connect with this story (in which case you're in for a world of hurt when it BECOMES relatable, and it will), there is still much to admire. Starring opposite Hopkins is Olivia Colman, easily one of the finest actors working today. The writing is clever, the production design (while not striking or spectacular at a glance) is thematically purposeful, the metaphors and symbolism are similarly subdued-yet-masterful (consider the scene where Hopkins desperately tries to clean a skipping record in what may at first seem like filler), and the score (by the seminal Ludovico Einaudi) hits one right in the soul. - DirectorKornél MundruczóStarsVanessa KirbyShia LaBeoufEllen BurstynWhen a young mother's home birth ends in unfathomable tragedy, she begins a year-long odyssey of mourning that fractures relationships with loved ones in this deeply personal story of a woman learning to live alongside her loss.Pieces of a Woman is the most carefully, meticulously photographed film I've seen in years and Vanessa Kirby's central performance is tied with my next pick as the absolute best of the year. Staying believable even through that one shot that lasts upwards of 20 minutes, she seamlessly goes through the roller-coaster of emotions involved in childbirth, miscarriage, and loss.
This sequence is undoubtedly the film's highlight, but it never ceases to be powerful, nor beautifully shot. It's no surprise that its director, Kornél Mundruczó, hails from Hungary, as Hungarian filmmakers seem to have a certain knack for long-take cinematography (see also films like Son of Saul and Sátántangó).
The way Mundruczó crafts the film adds to its uncompromisingly natural feel, but the true honesty is that of the film's screenwriter Kata Wéber, who bases the script largely on events from her own life. Few movies on this list are quite as unmerciful as Pieces of a Woman. While the medium is so often associated with escapism and mindless entertainment, sometimes this is precisely what we need from cinema -- or, as it were, what WE need CINEMA for. - DirectorJoachim TrierStarsRenate ReinsveAnders Danielsen LieHerbert NordrumThe chronicles of 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, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametRebecca FergusonZendayaA noble family becomes embroiled in a war for control over the galaxy's most valuable asset while its heir becomes troubled by visions of a dark future.Denis Villeneuve continues to show that he is that rare filmmaker who understands why we, the species, even have the art of cinema. He fully appreciates that Mother Nature granted us the ability to craft universes of our own -- to freely create sights never before seen -- and so didn't take a moment's rest when taking on Frank Herbert's Dune, the sci-fi masterwork that most of us remember for the goofy-ass 1982 film version.
Yes, this was one of those rare films that truly needed an update; a new attempt to do its fantastical universe justice. Some parts look staler than others and I can understand why some viewers were bored by this one. However, I must acknowledge when a new standard for VFX and universe-building is set. This truly looks and feels like a whole new realm and all its characters -- played by the likes of Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Zendaya, Stellan Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, and Jason Momoa -- seem right at home.
The world of Dune is both awe-inspiring (the looming spacecraft, the fearsome Sandworms...) and intricately detailed. Its cliffhanger is abrupt and left many a viewer feeling starved for more. In a certain sense, that is a pretty good sign. Log on to HBO Max and let the Guild Navigators whisk you away. This is only the beginning. - DirectorTheo AnthonyStarsTheo AnthonyKeaver BrenaiRobert CunniffA far-ranging look at the biases in how we see things, focusing on the use of police body cameras.All Light, Everywhere is tremendously difficult to summarize; it might be the most cinematically significant documentary ever made, and one of the most thought-provoking contemplations on perception itself. At the same time, it is a timely film about the use of bodycams within the police force. Why I didn't review it during the Kyle Rittenhouse trial -- where more than a few observers made their judgment based on a sequence of images without any surrounding context -- is anyone's guess. Maybe I'm destined to suck at staying relevant.
Created by Theo Anthony (see 2017's Rat Film), the movie covers the earliest examples of man trying to capture time itself -- not just portraits or photographs, but a full sequence of events eternalized in some capacity. We see everything from the Janssen revolver to the chronographic rifle; all things you may be unaware of if you've been told that "movies" only date back to 1888 and The Roundhay Garden Scene.
As I noted in my review, Soviet legend Andrei Tarkovsky often spoke of film as the one art form that allows us to capture time. We even like to think of the camera (on account of being a machine, with no emotions or biases to skew their perception) as far more objective than the human senses; a "new sensory organ", as Étienne-Jules Marey called his aforementioned rifle. But as I've said before, there is often more to an event that meets the lens. - DirectorBo BurnhamStarsBo BurnhamA musical comedy special shot and performed by Bo Burnham, alone, over the course of a very unusual year.It's fascinating how a seemingly simple one-man show could be so emblematic of an entire generation's anxieties. Bo Burnham's Netflix comedy special Inside is so much more than it seems -- even the very term "comedy special" is too weak, as the project evolves into something far more personal and clever before our eyes (we follow its production process linearly as Burnham becomes one 2020 older).
This isn't just for the Millennials, however. Yes, people around my age might connect to its specifics more, especially the haunting scene where Burnham just sits silently and stares at an alarm clock as the final minute of his 20s passes. But I'm sure everyone will be moved by this portrait of a man going through one year of quarantine -- his special becoming more and more aware of this fact, and its effects on his mind, as it goes along -- and enjoy its obscenely clever usage of lights and projectors, and the perfectly timed music and comedy that goes with.
As I wrote in my review, Burnham is often on more layers of irony and self-awareness than we think (at one point, he's self-aware about his self-awareness and calls it a "defense mechanism"). Yes, his sock skit might be trying to teach us something, but the film also jokes about the silliness of privileged comedians trying to teach us things. Yes, there are genuine messages here (particularly the ones addressing those who are suicidal, or think they are), but also: "You say the ocean's rising like I give a shit. You say the whole world's ending. Honey, it already did. You're not gonna slow it, Heaven knows you tried. Got it? Good, now get inside." - DirectorPablo LarraínStarsKristen StewartTimothy SpallSally HawkinsDiana Spencer, struggling with mental-health problems during her Christmas holidays with the Royal Family at their Sandringham estate in Norfolk, England, decides to end her decade-long marriage to Prince Charles.
- DirectorJulia DucournauStarsVincent LindonAgathe RousselleGarance MarillierFollowing a series of unexplained crimes, a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for ten years.From another side of France comes Titane, a film less about Tintin-esque newspaper comics and fancy food and more about New French Extremity (see also Climax and Martyrs -- or don't, depending on how squeamish you are). Directed by Julia Ducournau, it covers existential themes on one hand and car-sex body horror on the other. No, I don't mean sex in a car. I mean that, quite literally, a woman has sex with a car -- specifically a sentient (?) firetruck -- and becomes pregnant with... something. This may be a metaphor for something else, of course. For now, though, I'd say I very much saw what I saw.
This all began with a car accident she had as a child; one that also necessitated a metal plate being placed in her skull. Now a showgirl and serial killer, the woman (played by Agathe Rousselle) is eventually forced to go undercover, disguising herself as the long-lost son of a local fireman (Vincent Lindon). From here, the love story only grows more twisted, as does the lifeform in her womb.
Even if you aren’t already familiar with French-Extremist content, it goes without saying that this is a highly disturbing movie — on a level of pure squick, as well as a deeper, more psychological one. Naturally, that sort of thing isn’t for everyone (some would even say it’s plain silly to ever want a film to disturb you). But an effective movie is an effective movie, and I haven’t been this deeply unsettled in a while. Yet again, the French have their ways. - DirectorWes AndersonStarsBenicio Del ToroAdrien BrodyTilda SwintonA love letter to journalists set in an outpost of an American newspaper in a fictional twentieth century French city that brings to life a collection of stories published in "The French Dispatch Magazine".The French Dispatch is art, pure and simple. It's also about art -- in several different forms. The obsessively immaculate filmmaking style of Wes Anderson needs no introduction, but he does something interesting with color this time around, communicating beauty and amazement with each splash of color within the otherwise black-and-white short stories.
These stories represent pieces of writing for "The French Dispatch of the Kansas Eve. Sun", a foreign magazine for an American paper, supervised by Anderson's go-to Bill Murray. And this is but one of many big names within this picture. The star power here is unbelievable; in roles both large and small, we spot the faces of Owen Wilson, Tilda Swinton, Benicio del Toro, Adrien Brody, Léa Seydoux, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Jeffrey Wright, Stephen Park, Edward Norton, the always pitch-perfect Saoirse Ronan, et cetera.
Some stories are less interesting than others, unfortunately (I’d say the middle one with Chalamet sticks out as being the least engaging). But the film is consistent where it counts; thoroughly as quirky and quaint as any Wes Anderson piece and also delightfully French with all its fancy cuisine, Nouvelle-Aquitaine scenery, and nudity. What more could you desire? - DirectorLeos CaraxStarsAdam DriverMarion CotillardSimon HelbergA stand-up comedian and his opera singer wife have a two-year-old daughter with a surprising gift.In Leos Carax’s Annette, surrealist arthouse cinema and musical theater collide into a bewildering hybrid; one that makes fellow 2021 musicals Cinderella and Music look all the more pathetic (see my list of worst 2021 movies at the bottom of my blog page). I didn’t get into Tick, Tick… Boom! either but that one was nowhere near the low points of this year. Either way, it seems the nutty brain behind Holy Motors is what was needed to win me over.
Adam Driver is what dominates this film. I loved him in The Last Duel (which tops my runners-up list, as seen near the bottom of the page) but this was THE Driver performance of the year for me; the man is an absolute animal, retaining the same energy and convincingness even when required to follow the melodies and lyrics of the Sparks brothers. Marion Cotillard is also wonderful, even if Catherine Trottmann had to help out with the more operatic singing. And yes, both stars are at their absolute sexiest, including a duet performed while eating pussy.
As weird and French as this is, the movie is also fairly touching; its kooky touches, particularly the wooden child conceived by Driver and Cotillard, do have a point (on top of deliberately mimicking the sort of “special effects” you might see in a stage musical, where one often has to make do). If you want to see something that’s truly and completely different, this may be for you. Did I mention that the song numbers are heaps and heaps of fun? Maybe I should’ve led with that. - DirectorJane CampionStarsBenedict CumberbatchKirsten DunstJesse PlemonsCharismatic rancher Phil Burbank inspires fear and awe in those around him. When his brother brings home a new wife and her son, Phil torments them until he finds himself exposed to the possibility of love.Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog is one of those timely films about the past; a reminder of how certain key aspects of American society have failed to evolve. I understand people's weariness when it comes to Westerns, but this one sets itself apart in the best way possible, taking one of the most famously "manly" genres and giving it a defiant treatment.
That said, it's also very good as a straightforward Western. Everything looks 100% convincing, the directing is ambitious (there's always something going on in the film's universe outside of the central conversation), and all of the acting is top-notch, if not better. Benedict Cumberbatch is flawless and Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons (one of the new greats) are similarly effective. Kodi Smit-McPhee works well as a young man who has committed the irremissible crime of not being man enough, neither in terms of physique or hobbies (only in human society would an interest in origami flowers denote some sort of biological defect).
Cumberbatch's character is especially repulsed. Yet, as is curiously often the case, we learn that this man may be lashing out because he himself possesses immutable characteristics that are deemed less-than-macho -- for this reason alone, he is ashamed, coping by attacking that which he hates most about himself when he sees it in others. Is that a mild spoiler? What do you care? It's not like this is the one where he summons a bunch of Spider-Man villains. - DirectorJasmila ZbanicStarsJasna DjuricicIzudin BajrovicBoris LerAida is a translator for the UN in the small town of Srebrenica. When the Serbian army takes over the town, her family is among the thousands of citizens looking for shelter in the UN camp.
- DirectorJames GunnStarsMargot RobbieIdris ElbaJohn CenaSupervillains Harley Quinn, Bloodsport, Peacemaker, and a collection of nutty cons at Belle Reve prison join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X as they are dropped off at the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese.
- DirectorDamian Mc CarthyStarsBen CaplanJohnny FrenchLeila SykesA lone drifter suffering from partial memory loss accepts a job to look after a psychologically troubled woman in an abandoned house on an isolated island.
- DirectorIlya NaishullerStarsBob OdenkirkAleksey SerebryakovConnie NielsenA docile family man slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled by two petty thieves, which, coincidentally, leads him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsMatt DamonAdam DriverJodie ComerThe Knight Jean de Carrouges must settle the dispute over his wife Marguerite by challenging his former friend to a duel to the death.
- DirectorShaka KingStarsLaKeith StanfieldDaniel KaluuyaJesse PlemonsOffered a plea deal by the FBI, William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party to gather intelligence on Chairman Fred Hampton.
- DirectorJon WattsStarsTom HollandZendayaBenedict CumberbatchWith Spider-Man's identity now revealed, Peter asks Doctor Strange for help. When a spell goes wrong, dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear.
- DirectorBen HozieStarsPeter VackJulia FoxKeith PoulsonJack is an internet gambler living in NYC who becomes fixated on Scarlet - a cam girl from San Francisco. His obsession reaches a boiling point when fantasy materializes in reality and Jack sees Scarlet on a rainy Chinatown street.