Marie gives us Top 10(ish) of 2021
Like many people I’m sure, my cinema-going in 2021 was severely curtailed (yet again) by the ongoing pandemic. I ventured out to the arms of my trusty and sensibly-restricted art-house cinema a handful of times – usually picking an early, mid-week screening to avoid crowds – but bearing in mind my own personal circumstances, I chose to avoid screenings and cinemas where it was likely to be crowded or mask-free.
The result is that I have inevitably missed a swathe of films which, under other circumstances, might have had a shot at making this list. So if your favourite isn’t here, it could either be that I didn’t like it or more likely, that I haven’t seen it yet.
Relying on streaming outlets then has meant that my viewing in 2021 was perhaps a little less mainstream that would normally be the case. And that, in turn, has resulted in an even more eclectic selection for my end-of-year favourites. In addition, the caprices of international release dates mean that my first opportunity to see something may have come in the last 12 months where other parts of the world saw it in 2020; or perhaps I’ve seen something that others won’t be able to access until later in 2022.
Hopefully, this list might offer a few ideas for films to seek out over the coming months, and if I’ve written about the film for The Movie Isle, it will be linked so that you can read more. So without further ado … let’s start at number 10.
10 – The Lost Daughter
This one snuck in on New Year’s Eve as it dropped on Netflix just in time for a 2021 list – it also means I probably haven’t quite pinned down my appreciation for it yet and it may have risen higher with a longer time to mull it over.
What I am immediately full of admiration for though is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s writing and direction. For a first feature it is amazingly assured; I guess having Olivia Colman at the centre is going to help, but even a great performance such as this is at the mercy of the director, and Gyllenhaal nails it. There’s no denying that it is an uncomfortable watch and that its commentary on aspects of being a mother may be difficult for some to absorb but, as with her acting choices, Maggie Gyllenhaal does not shy away from the tricky subject matter, and we are all beneficiaries.
9 – Promising Young Woman
One of the first films I saw in 2021, Emerald Fennell’s feature debut was certainly a talking point for many. Fennell’s collaboration with Carey Mulligan produced an intentionally uncomfortable and challenging story of predatory male behaviour, of justice, and of revenge.
8 – Dear Comrades!
Based on true events and shot in black and white using a largely non-professional cast, former Tarkovsky collaborator Andrei Konchalovsky focusses on two days in 1962 in a small town in the Soviet Union. Those 48 hours follow staunch party member Lyuda (Julia Vysotskaya), whose communist ideals are challenged to the core following events in Novocherkassk. Pointedly satirical yet cleverly understated.
7- Mass
Excellently scripted and wonderfully played by all four of the main actors, Mass is a powerful piece of cinema examining raw emotions and important themes in modern America. A thoughtful, emotional, and absorbing drama which is quite extraordinary in its sensitivity and insight, as a first piece of directing and writing from Fran Kranz, it’s impressive.
6 – Mads Mikkelsen
OK, hands up, this is a little bit of a cheat but it’s my list and I’ll do what I want.
Another Round won a raft of awards in 2021, including the Oscar for Best International Feature, and it’s easy to see why. The four men at the centre of the story decide to experiment with the theory that being ever so slightly tipsy is the way humans are supposed to live their lives, and of course, chaos ensues. But the comical premise is not really what the film is about, and the joy of drinking is merely a sticking plaster for other issues. From the start, the excellent writing means that the relationship between the four men is already established. Then there are two different but outstanding performances from Thomas Bo Larsen and Mads Mikkelsen (although that should be no surprise from either of them). Both convey inner demons and disappointments with a simple look or the taking of a breath. It’s a film with equal measures of joy and despair forming a delicious cocktail to be enjoyed responsibly.
But I also want to piggyback another Mads Mikkelsen vehicle here, which is Riders of Justice. Returning soldier Mikkelsen leads a raggedy collection of computer nerds and statisticians on a mission to exact justice for the death of his wife while neglecting the needs of his teenage daughter. Riders of Justice treads a remarkably thin line between emotional drama, action thriller, and dark comedy, and balances everything perfectly. The humour is absurd without being outlandish, and the whole thing is extremely satisfying to watch – recommended Mikkelsen double-bill.
5 – Night of the Kings
This one took me completely by surprise, as magical realism is not something which I enjoy too much – and yet here we are at number 5.
Anchored in an Ivory Coast prison in the middle of a forest, Night of the Kings begins with the arrival of a new inmate to the gang-run jail. It looks like we’re about to witness a naïve young man’s journey into a violent, lawless environment where danger is prevalent. And yet the young man is pressed into telling stories, Scheherazade-like, which take inmates on a flight of imagination outside of the walls and into a magical reality of pre-colonial royalty and the streets of modern-day Abidjan. Some of the inmates become almost a chorus to the storytelling, singing acapella harmonies and providing dance movement to punctuate the events of the story. A captivating and intriguing film about the power of stories to free the mind, particularly when the body is constrained.
4 – The Power of the Dog
On paper The Power of the Dog has two things which, from most other directors, would have me moving away in the other direction; it’s a ‘western’, and it stars Benedict Cumberbatch. (I’m probably going to get into all kinds of trouble for that, but I’ve never been a fan of his work, although I’m sure he’s a lovely person.) But when a new film from Jane Campion appears, that’s not something I’m going to overlook.
The Power of the Dog is one of those films where nothing much appears to be happening, but which all comes together in the final scene, a scene which had me immediately press re-watch to see how much was there all along. It’s a true Campion-take on toxic masculinity and perhaps one of Cumberbatch’s best performances.
3 – What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?
As I mentioned for Night of the Kings above, magical realism is not really my thing, and nor is quirkiness. However, Georgian director Alexandre Koberidze’s 150-minute long fairy-tale-meets-real-world film was so beautifully observed that I still think about it months after.
Following a chance encounter in the historical town of Kutaisi in Georgia, two strangers agree to meet up with each other the following evening. But the spirits around them have decreed that they shall both be the victims of a spell, and when they wake up in the morning they will both look different. So when they both turn up for their date, neither of them recognises the other and their lives are completely different.
While all this is happening, other small and joyous stories are materialising all around. Children play football together, grandparents entertain grandchildren in the park, a couple of tricksters make people laugh with some fishing line. Beautiful cakes are created in the Georgian countryside. Humans (and dogs) gather to watch the World Cup on television screens across the town. And a team of filmmakers is trying to find six suitable couples for their next project.
What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? is a difficult film to describe; every single screen moment seems to be reminding us not to take life or the world around us for granted, and to enjoy its simple poetic pleasures. We’re invited just to enjoy the deed of social interaction – however small – with its hugs, shrugs, and laughter; and in these times where many of us are still wary of getting too close to others after what we’ve experienced during a pandemic, it’s a wonderful feeling.
2 – Drive My Car
Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Haruki Murakami, and Anton Chekhov walk into a theatre … and the result is three hours of quietly anguished soul-searching and a lot of driving.
Japanese director Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car is inspired by a short story of the same name by Haruki Murakami and follows a theatre actor/director as he struggles with emotions from a personal tragedy. Mixing rehearsals for Uncle Vanya with conversations with his chauffeuse, Drive My Car makes it clear that facing up to the realities of our own past, and learning secrets of those whom we think we knew best, does not come easy. Drive My Car delves into these hidden places by getting other people to do it for us – either characters in a play or the actors playing them.
1 – Quo Vadis, Aida?
This film did the festival circuit in 2020 but only became more widely available in 2021, around the time it won its Academy Award nomination (losing out to Another Round – see above). Set in the Balkan conflict in Bosnia in July 1995, it is an important piece of work both for reminding viewers of the history of the time and also for understanding the consequences of inaction or even turning a blind eye to crimes against humanity
Quo Vadis, Aida? pulls no punches in highlighting the ineptitude and complacency – and perhaps even by default complicity – of the United Nations in standing by, as loosely disguised genocide took place right under their noses.
Jasna Đuričić in the lead role is magnetic and conveys Aida’s lack of power, and growing alarm bordering on panic, in an emotionally controlled manner that isn’t at all distancing. The audience recognises from her portrayal that if Aida stops to think too much about the situation she will never recover; the only way is to keep going in the face of the unspeakable until there is nothing left to fight for.
An important reminder of a slice of recent European history as well as a powerful and vital tribute to the thousands of brothers, sons, and husbands who were lost, and the women left to mourn them.