TOP TEN Movies of 2021!

2021 - such a weird year for movies! Theaters continued to struggle as HBO offered films on streaming the same day of release, but also, somehow Spider-Man managed to make a billion dollars. Celebrity deaths like Norm Macdonald and Michael K. Williams hit hard. The Golden Globes aren't being televised, and Oscar season is super short since last year they had an extended deadline for COVID. Crazy times! All that being said though, if you dug around for gems there were plenty of amazing movies to watch this year. 

So here it is, my official "Top Ten" movies of 2021!

10. Raya and the Last Dragon

Directed By: Don Hall & Carlos López Estrada

Written By: Don Hall, Carlos López Estrada, Kiel Murray, Adele Lim, Paul Briggs, Dean Wellins, Qui Nguyen & John Ripa

Awkwardly released in March, when theaters were open but moviegoers were still unsure about returning, Raya and the Last Dragon was unfairly left behind before it could really find its audience. But this fantasy epic ranks among the Studio's best films with a stunningly realized world, along with fun, heartfelt characters. 

9. Blue Bayou

Directed By: Justin Chon

Written By: Justin Chon

I consider myself a bit of a Justin Chon hipster because I discovered his directorial debut at a film festival I volunteered at in Boston, and I've been a fan ever since! Blue Bayou is unjustly not being discussed this awards season; it's a harrowing story of a father trying to escape his criminal history when he's summoned to return to Korea, even though he lived his entire life in America, due to incomplete paperwork from his adoptive parents. It's fertile ground for drama, but it also highlighted an issue I never really considered was a thing before. Blue Bayou's two leads, Justin Chon himself and Alicia Vikander, deliver stunning performances. Don't let this one go under your radar!

8. Pieces of a Woman

Directed By: Kornél Mundruczó

Written By: Kata Weber

You'll have to remember all the way back to January when Pieces of a Woman was released on Netflix, but the film has stuck with me all these months later! Vanessa Kirby's performance was nominated for an Oscar last year for this film, and I thought she deserved to win. Without giving too much away, the first 15 minutes or so is one long, unbroken take where she is experiencing a home birth, and suffice to say things don't go as planned. It's another incredible film for Hungarian director Kornél Mundruczó, whose 2014 film White God also landed on my Top Ten list that year. I hope he keeps making these kinds of daring, intense movies!

7. Zola

Directed By: Janicza Bravo

Written By: Janicza Bravo, A’Ziah King, Jeremy O. Harris & David Kushner

Zola is one of the only films ever made that can boast that it's based on a story posted on a stripper's Twitter profile. It's unknown how much of the original story is fact or fiction, but one thing is for sure, Zola is a wild road trip of a movie, following a waitress, a stripper, her doofus boyfriend, and basically her Nigerian "pimp" on their way to Florida. There's a tense, chaotic energy to this movie that made me uncomfortable in the best way - especially once Colman Domingo's Nigerian accent comes out!

6. The Rescue

Directed By: Jimmy Chin & Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi

While there are quite a few depressing movies on my list, The Rescue may single-handedly restore your faith in humanity. This documentary chronicles the huge effort spent rescuing a group of boys stuck in a cave in Taiwan that garnered international attention, focusing particularly on a handful of the world's most renowned cave divers who lead this impossible mission. In between interviews and actual footage are some amazing, claustrophobic recreations of what the divers had to do to pull this all off. Directed by the same team who won the Oscar for Free Solo, and The Rescue I'd argue is just as Oscar-worthy!

5. Saint Maud

Directed By: Rose Glass

Written By: Rose Glass

Saint Maud is a hugely impressive first-time feature from director Rose Glass. This A24 horror movie follows a religiously-devout nurse, Maud, whose moral superiority is put into question when her latest patient shows some "sinful" behavior. Soon enough she starts to mentally unravel as her own repressed desires start to surface, and we get one of the most twisted descents into madness on screen since Joker. Some major Carrie vibes - love it!

4. Summer of Soul

Directed By: Ahmir-Khalib Thompson (Questlove)

It is mind-blowing to me that the footage from this documentary sat on a shelf for 50 years. Thanks to Questlove, the bandleader for The Roots on The Tonight Show, this iconic three-day concert in Harlem featuring some of the most legendary black music artists of all time has been gloriously restored. You have the likes of Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Sly and the Family Stone, and Nina Simone. But my favorite performance had to be The Fifth Dimension, who had a big hit with "Aquarius." Having thought the footage forever lost to history, we see the remaining members watch the old footage of the concert with tears in their eyes, their memories of that day finally "legitimized." 

It's not just a concert - it's a film about unheard narratives and a major turning point in American culture. An amazing story, with fascinating footage and fantastic music - I'd recommend this movie to anyone!

3. The Father

Directed By: Florian Zeller

Written By: Florian Zeller & Christopher Hampton

I think most of us have had experiences with family members suffering dementia or Alzheimers. For me it was my grandmother. I remember her forgetting who her family members were, confused what year it was, or even where she was. It's a terrifying inevitability of being human that eventually our bodies will break down, and living out those final days can be a scary process for all involved.

The Father completely captures those feelings to a haunting degree. Anthony Hopkins delivers the year's best performance as a man with Alzheimers, and director Florian Zeller, adapting his own stageplay for the screen, uses a slew of cinematic techniques to immerse viewers in the confusion the main character feels. Sets and characters will sometimes change, the editing and set design cleverly mimicking how people with this disease think. The way this movie naturally evokes those unsettling feelings of disorientation is astounding. Not an "easy" watch, but an essential one.

2. Minari

Directed By: Lee Isaac Chung

Written By: Lee Isaac Chung

Minari is about a father with a dream. Wanting to provide a better life for his family, Jacob (Steven Yeun) moves with his wife, two kids, and later mother-in-law from Korea to rural, middle-of-nowhere Arkansas to try and make it as a farmer, come hell or high water. But that dream isn't without its challenges, and the weight of his decision to uproot his family's lives is deeply felt throughout the film, putting his marriage and financial stability in serious jeopardy.

America is made up of so many "dreamers" like Jacob, adding to the poignancy of this touching family drama. Every character in this family is so well-written and wonderful, especially the Grandma who will completely win you over! "Korean-American man tries to make a farm" may not sound thrilling on paper, but Minari will melt your heart, make you laugh, and even make you nervous as this family navigates their new world.

1. Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry

Directed By: R.J. Cutler

I might be the only person to list this as their #1 movie of the year, but I was blown away by this documentary! Following the fast-rising career of Billie Eilish from her humble beginnings recording music with her brother in their small bedroom to winning ALL the Grammys, it's an intimate, fascinating portrait of a pop star that turned me into a fan of her music! Mixing home videos and concert footage, The World's a Little Blurry taps into what makes Billie such a special presence in music, especially for teens today, giving voice to mental health issues that are becoming ever-present.

I never would have expected this would be my top pick at the beginning of the year, but there you have it!

Honorable Mentions (Alphabetical Order):

THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE - Dir. Michael Showalter

A sympathetic portrait of a controversial figure in the world of televangelism; Jessica Chastain deserves the Oscar for this!

I CARE A LOT - Dir. J Blakeson

Rosamund Pike deviously tries to scam old people out of their money, gotta love it!

JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH - Dir. Shaka King

Fantastic performances by LaKeith Stanfield and Daniel Kaluuya in this tense period piece about the Black Panther party.

MALCOLM AND MARIE - Dir. Sam Levinson

Unfairly maligned chamber drama starring John David Washington and Zendaya as a couple going through a rough patch in their relationship. These two are born to be movie stars!

THE NIGHT HOUSE - Dir. David Bruckner

One of the best "ghost" movies I've seen in a long time. If not for a bias against horror, Rebecca Hall's performance deserves awards recognition!

NOBODY - Dir. Ilya Naishuller

You WILL believe Bob Odenkirk can kick ass in this action film from the writers of John Wick.

RED ROCKET - Dir. Sean Baker

From the director of The Florida Project comes another story about lives in the margins - this time about an ex-porn actor who comes home to Texas to try and start from scratch again. A hilarious and unsettling portrait of America today.

SMALL ENGINE REPAIR - Dir. John Pollono

A Manchester, NH-set thriller that goes to some dark places! 

WOODSTOCK 99: PEACE, LOVE, AND RAGE - Dir. Garret Price

A concert gone very, very wrong. The opposite of Summer of Soul but no less interesting!

Movies I missed this year that could have made the list: Annette, Becoming Costeau, Bruised, Come from Away, Cryptozoo, Cyrano, Drive My Car, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, Encounter, Finch, Flag Day, Flee, The Hand of God, A Hero, The Humans, Jakob's Wife, The Lost Daughter, Mass, Memoria, Mitchells vs. the Machines, Parallel Mothers, Petite Mamon, Prisoners of the Ghostland, Respect, Swan Song, The Tender Bar, The Tragedy of Macbeth, The Velvet Underground and The Worst Person in the World.

Thanks for reading, everyone! And stay tuned for my Top Ten most anticipated movies of 2022!