Top 10 Movies of 2021

2021 is finally over and it's time for me to pu my Top 10 list together.  While there were a lot of great movies this year, I didn't see much that was truly amazing.  Granted, there were a handful I missed with Dune probably being the most notable, so forgive me not having it on my list.  Let's do this!

#10. Pig 

Part John Wick, part...something else, Pig gives us one of Nicolas Cage's best performances of his entire career.  It's not hammy.  It's not over the top.  It's a grounded performance and one that will devastate you.  The story is engaging and leave you baffled as to what is coming next.  The music is excellent and and it boasts one of the single most emotional scenes of the year.

#9. Nobody

Speaking of John Wick, I expected Nobody to be good, but I was not expecting it to be just as badass as John Wick.  The action sequences are very exciting and well done and both Bob Odenkirk and Christopher Lloyd kick a ton of ass.  I will never be able to listen Pat Benatar's "Heartbreaker" again without thinking of this movie.  I will admit, some of the exposition is clunky.

#8. Malignant

I was very surprised to like this movie.  I was expecting a pretty average James Wan film.  I was not expecting this to be my favorite horror film of the year.  The score is fantastic and James Wan knows how to make a movie look good.  Marina Mazepa gives a elite physical performance, the twists are insane, and this movie never loses itself even while referencing other horror movies.  Some of the dialogue falls flat, but that's all I've got.

#7. PG: Psycho Goreman

This movie is not for everybody.  Let's just get that out of the way right now.  Lots of people hate this movie, others think it's fine, but I love it.  It feels like it was made specifically for me.  The characters are some of my all-time favorites.  Psycho Goreman himself is the heckin' best, but Adam Brooks and Nita-Josee Hanna also give bizarre and hilarious performances.  I know a lot of people didn't care Hanna's character, but you're not really supposed to.  She's making fun of the classic kid protagonist characters we see in movies like this.  Instead of a nice, relatable kid, we get the evilest child alive.  That's fantastic!  Don't even get me started on all the practical costumes, sets, and gore.  It's a work of art that not enough people appreciate.  The 3rd act isn't as strong as the rest of the film, but it's still pretty fun.

#6. The French Dispatch

This is a Wes Anderson film, so of course it's going to be magical.  He has such a unique visual style of storytelling and it shines brightly here.  The cinematography is my favorite of the year and each of the segments is good, if not great, with the highlight being the chase between Adrien Brody and Benicio del Toro.  While the segment with Frances McDormand and Timothée Chalamet isn't as strong, it's still far superior to the weakest story of most anthology films.

#5. Wolf

Wolf is an extremely weird movie with a lot to say with its allegory.  This is another one that won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I'm fascinated by it and greatly enjoyed it.  George MacKay should be at least nominated for Best Actor, but I can guarantee you he won't be.  His physical performance is insane and I almost forgot he was human at times.  The only element that doesn't work is Lily-Rose Depp's character.  She isn't fully developed enough for us to understand her motivations.  Apart from that, I loved every second of this film.

#4. Lamb 

This bizarre fairy table is probably the most unique movie of the year.  The story itself is insane, but is grounded by the performances of the leads.  It's the most tense movie of the year, for sure.  You know something bad is on the horizon, but you have no idea what it is.  It certainly had me on the edge of seat.  Plus it gave us my favorite character of the year, except for maybe Psycho Goreman, in Ada.  I've never been so emotionally invested in the survival of a child character in a movie.  The emotional resolution isn't as successful as it could have been, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the film.

#3. Spider-Man: No Way Home

No Way Home ended up being my favorite live-action Spider-Man movie and Marvel's best movie of the year.  While I thought the events that kicked the plot of the movie off were a little silly, everything after that was amazing.  The film balances all of the characters extremely well and is both emotionally devastating and exhilarating.  Everyone does a great job and I cried watching this movie more than any other movie this year.

#2. South Park: Post Covid

Yes, this counts.  It's a TV movie, yes, but I didn't say this was my Top 10 theatrical movies of 2021, did I?  South Park doesn't get overly emotional often and when it does, it hits hard.  Post Covid drops the jokes and goes for the gut punch a few times.  The satire is extremely effective and hits way too close to home.  The story is very effective, gives us a few really funny moments, and some surprising development for the characters.  As a huge fan of South Park, this checked all the boxes and then some.

Finally, before we get to the best film of 2021, a few honorable mentions.

Free Guy

The Suicide Squad

Judas and the Black Messiah

Fear Street Part Three: 1666

#1. Belfast

I will admit that I didn't catch all of the dialogue because of the tick Irish accents, but that aside I loved Belfast.  The history of Northern Ireland is very interesting to me and we witness it through the lens of a small boy.  The characters are all marvelous and I hope this movie takes home at least Best Supporting actor for Ciarán Hinds.  The music is wonderful and the visuals, with their sparing use of color, are really effective.  At its core, this is a powerful, emotional, and personal story, and it's done extremely well.

So that's my list!  What do you think?  Am I dead wrong or did I nail it?  What's your favorite movie of the year?  Let me know!