The best films I've watched in 2021 + best films from 2021
These are the top 15 films that made my year. I consider these the best films I watched in 2021. The list doesn't only include films from the last year.
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- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneYutaka SadaTatsuya NakadaiAn executive of a Yokohama shoe company becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom.This film's probably one of the best from Kurosawa. I watched a lot of his Samurai stuff, but here Kurosawa shows a level of control of the pacing, blocking, style, and acting that's almost unequaled.
Rating: 9 - DirectorKrzysztof KieslowskiStarsIrène JacobJean-Louis TrintignantFrédérique FederA model discovers a retired judge is keen on invading people's privacy.The third film of the trilogy is the best one and a proper way to tie everything up and end strongly. It's also sort of a perfect film to end a career.
Rating: 9 - DirectorTakashi MiikeStarsGorô KishitaniRyôsuke MikiNarimi ArimoriA barkeeper saves a Yakuza boss' life and thus makes his way up in the organization. However his fear of nothing soon causes problems.Again one of the best, this time from Miike. Miike, a successor of Akira Kurosawa, if people only had eyes to see it. Here, he uses his style to perfection, and the story seeps with malice and a tragedy or farce of sorts. Miike does have trashy stuff in his oeuvre, but when he's at his A-game, he is enthralling.
Rating: 9 - DirectorMasaki KobayashiStarsToshirô MifuneYôko TsukasaGô KatôThe mother of a feudal lord's only heir is kidnapped away from her husband by the lord. The husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to get her back.This film feels very much like a companion piece to Hara-Kiri. Although slightly worse than its predecessor, Samurai Rebellion still has its moments that ravish the screen to this day.
Rating: 8.5 - DirectorsMerian C. CooperErnest B. SchoedsackStarsFay WrayRobert ArmstrongBruce CabotA film crew goes to a tropical island for a location shoot, where they capture a colossal ape who takes a shine to their blonde starlet, and bring him back to New York City.One of my favorite films is the 2005's remake, but this one started it all and still looks pretty good to this day.
Rating: 8 - DirectorIngmar BergmanStarsIngrid ThulinGunnar BjörnstrandGunnel LindblomA small-town priest struggles with his faith.I've decided to add notes only for the top 5, but heck, I'll make something up for the rest 10. For this one, well, it's Ingmar Bergman. Not much to say except that the film is filled with subtle acting and directing brilliance.
Rating: 8.4 - DirectorDavid LynchStarsAnthony HopkinsJohn HurtAnne BancroftA Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man who is mistreated while scraping a living as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of kindness, intelligence and sophistication.I love sentimental stories, especially when they're shot and acted this incredibly.
Rating: 8 - DirectorWong Kar-WaiStarsBrigitte LinTakeshi KaneshiroTony Leung Chiu-waiTwo melancholic Hong Kong policemen fall in love: one with a mysterious female underworld figure, the other with a beautiful and ethereal waitress at a late-night restaurant he frequents.I also love romantic films. The actors are pure charisma, the songs pure joy, and the whole film is pure love.
Rating: 8 - DirectorFrank PavichStarsAlejandro JodorowskyMichel SeydouxH.R. GigerThe story of cult film director Alejandro Jodorowsky's ambitious but ultimately doomed film adaptation of the seminal science fiction novel.Still, the what-could-have-been film of Jodorowsky's madness remains the most alluring Dune.
Rating: 8 - DirectorTakashi MiikeStarsTakeshi CaesarSetsuko KarasumaYûki NagataA young boy grows up in a violent and dysfunctional family.Good night, good night, baby. Nostalgia has never felt this real while being romanticized this hard.
Rating: 8 - DirectorMichael HanekeStarsIsabelle HuppertAnnie GirardotBenoît MagimelA young man romantically pursues his masochistic piano teacher.I don't like this film. It tried to hurt me as every Haneke film, but this one got under my skin. Downright disgusting but still a sympathetic film.
Rating: 7.9 - DirectorShunji IwaiStarsHayato IchiharaShûgo OshinariAyumi ItoThe problematic lives of teenager students for whom the singer Lily Chou-Chou's dreamy music is the only way to escape an alienating, violent and insensitive society.All about Lily Chou-Chou is another film that tried to hurt me, using kids this time. What I love about it is the daring teen spirit and the original idea of ether music that permeates the whole thing. There's some amateurish acting here and there, but still an almost great film.
Rating: 7.5 - DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroSharon StoneJoe PesciIn Las Vegas, two best friends--a casino executive and a Mafia enforcer--compete for a gambling empire and a fast-living, fast-loving socialite.I don't like Marty's gangster flicks. I just don't.
What I mean is that I don't rave about them, and I wouldn't go to a grave for them, like many others seem to do. I was impressed by Sharon Stone, though.
Rating: 7.4 - DirectorJulia DucournauStarsVincent LindonAgathe RousselleGarance MarillierFollowing a series of unexplained crimes, a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for ten years.Titane is the most underrated film of 2021. It made me cry and had me feeling catharsis and confusion and anger and love and acceptance. Quite similar to Miike films, bizarre, gruesome, Cronenbergian, but still works mighty well.
Rating: 7.4 - DirectorsPippa EhrlichJames ReedStarsCraig FosterTom FosterA filmmaker forges an unusual friendship with an octopus living in a South African kelp forest, learning as the animal shares the mysteries of her world.A good documentary feature, but it's just that, good. It has kind of a niche subject brought to the general audience mindset. It has some artful moments, from inspired nature nonetheless, and a strong emotional core driving the whole thing.
Rating: 7 - 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.A solid take on the Rashomon type of film structure. Good acting and an intriguing story.
Rating: 6.5 - 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.A film that's pretty good in all departments, with a solid twist that makes sense in an unorthodox film that'll anger a lot of traditionalists.
Rating: 6.5 - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametRebecca FergusonZendayaPaul Atreides arrives on Arrakis after his father accepts the stewardship of the dangerous planet. However, chaos ensues after a betrayal as forces clash to control melange, a precious resource.An embarrassment of riches in terms of everything, and especially actors, but still an incredibly directed film with great sound design and soundtrack (Hans Zimmer back in form I'd say).
Rating 6.4 - DirectorDavid LoweryStarsDev PatelAlicia VikanderJoel EdgertonA fantasy retelling of the medieval story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.I didn't like this film much per se and the way it ruined such a great story in a lot of places and as a whole. But the stuff we got is still quite good.
Rating 5.5 - DirectorValdimar JóhannssonStarsNoomi RapaceHilmir Snær GuðnasonBjörn Hlynur HaraldssonA childless couple discovers a mysterious newborn on their farm in Iceland.A folkloric tale in a modern world. A strange and interesting little film.
Rating 5.5 - DirectorCary Joji FukunagaStarsDaniel CraigAna de ArmasRami MalekJames Bond has left active service. His peace is short-lived when Felix Leiter, an old friend from the CIA, turns up asking for help, leading Bond onto the trail of a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new technology.No time to Die is a fine and satisfying finish to Daniel Craig's era of James Bond films.
Rating: 5.5 - DirectorMichael SarnoskiStarsNicolas CageAlex WolffAdam ArkinA truffle hunter who lives alone in the Oregon wilderness must return to his past in Portland in search of his beloved foraging pig after she is kidnapped.Nicolas Cage can still deliver. This film's a bit slow and plotted in a slightly meandering way, but a good one for sure.
Rating: 5.5 - DirectorZack SnyderStarsHenry CavillBen AffleckGal GadotDetermined to ensure that Superman's ultimate sacrifice wasn't in vain, Bruce Wayne recruits a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions.Zack Snyder's full vision for Justice League is decent and a much better film than the massacred studio cut. Sadly, it's just that.
Rating: 5.4 - 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.Another solid, charming and original superhero film in a sea of superhero nonsense.
Rating: 5.3
