As another pretty average year finds itself gone by, I sum up the movies that are among the best I’ve seen in 2021 and make mention of some unforgettable moments & stellar performances.

In a sense, it’s been a somewhat underwhelming year for film. Although I watched an impressive total of 163 movies released in Australia in 2021, only 28 of these have disappointingly received 4 or more stars from me.

In brighter news, despite the pandemic delaying the release of several major titles worldwide (Were we ever going to see No Time to Die released!?), our website statistics have again surpassed their previous best! We ended a record-breaking 2020 with 27.6K views and end another record-breaking 2021 with 31.3K views.

As usual, a genuine hearty thank you to every single soul that has taken a look at this website, read a review and followed us on various social media platforms. 

I hope you enjoy reading my summary of movies in 2021 and discover a recommendation or two to add to your watch list 🙂

The Best 20 Movies of 2021

20 – Saint Maud
19 – Breaking Bread
18 – Shiva Baby
17 – The Harder They Fall
16 – The Worst Person in the World (Verdens Verste Menneske)
15 – The Dissident
14 – Don’t Look Up
13 – Rocks
12 – The Rescue
11 – Better Days (Shaonian De Ni)

10 – Ammonite

9 – CODA

8 – The Power of the Dog

7 – Welcome to Chechnya

6 – Dune

5 – A Quiet Place Part II

4 – The Last Duel

3 – The Father 

2 – Two of Us (Deux)

The Best Film of 2021 – Nitram

Staying in my top 20, these are the unforgettable moments & stellar performances from the aforementioned films…

Anthony Hopkins’ magnificently multi-faceted and heartbreaking performance as the father in The Father. The editing and screenplay also stand-out.

The very emotional performance of Chinese star Dongyu Zhou in Oscar-nominated film Better Days and the very contemporary cinematography, editing, score and directing.

The very natural debut performance from Bukky Bakray and the Ken Loach-like directing by Sarah Gavron of Rocks.

The top shelf performances from Emilia Jones, Marlee Martin, Troy Kotsur and Daniel Durant in the excellent Apple TV+ release, CODA.

The perfection of the carefully considered, sensitive and tasteful writing and directing applied to 5 star Australian drama, Nitram, and the equally perfect performances from Caleb Landry Jones and Judy Davis.

The feature film directing debut of musician Seal’s brother, Jeymes Samuel, in the underrated Revisionist Western The Harder They Fall.

Dune’s epic and imposing production and sound design.

The time stand still and the mushroom trip sequences in Norwegian gem, The Worst Person in the World.

Jane Campion’s writing and directing of The Power of the Dog and Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance.

Kate Winslet’s steely and self-assured performance in the excellent Ammonite.

In 2021, we have a three-way tie for worst movie of the year. Shadow in the Cloud, Old and The Ice Road.

Finally, while these movies didn’t make my end of year top 20 list, these are the acting performances and moments in movies that are definitely among the best I’ve seen this year…

The entire opening sequence of Pieces of a Woman and Vanessa Kirby’s performance.

Frances McDormand in Nomadland.

Carey Mulligan’s exquisite range on full firing display in Promising Young Woman. Also, the brave and creative directing of Emerald Fennell and the manner in which she merges genres.

One Night in Miami’s engagingly-written screenplay together with the outstanding performances of Leslie Odom Jr. and Kingsley Ben-Adir.

Rosamund Pike’s sinister performance in I Care a Lot.

LaKeith Stanfield’s work in Judas and the Black Messiah.

The priceless moment and gob-smacking reaction when Karl Bertil-Nordland sees himself painted for the first time in documentary feature The Painter and the Thief.

Andra Day’s entrance into acting portraying Billie Holiday in The United States vs. Billie Holiday.

The sheer and delightful madness in the magic of the comedy, Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar.

Nina Hoss’s wunderbar performance in German drama The Audition (Das Vorspiel).

The brilliantly precise shift in body language and temperament courtesy of the consumption of alcohol from Mads Mikkelsen in Oscar winning Danish film, Another Round (Druk).

The hilariously haunting Furby sequence in boisterous animated Netflix release, The Mitchells vs The Machines.

We already know that British star Emma Thompson is another level of actress not many others are at. She puts in another outstanding exhibition of that exceeding level as The Baroness in Cruella. The costume design, hair & make-up and production design are all stunning too.

Bo Burnham performing ‘Sexting’ in his Netflix TV Special Bo Burnham: Inside.

The bus fight scenes in the highly recommended action flick, Nobody and in the excellent martial-arts inspired Marvel action movie, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Stage performer Rachel Zegler’s first film role playing Maria in Spielberg’s strictly cinematic West Side Story remake. Ariana DeBose is also worthy of a mention as Anita.

Compiled by Leigh for Moviedoc

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