2021 marked another year of great films. The Q’s list of top films of 2021 is not hierarchical or ranked. A film is defined as released in 2021 if it became available to the general public/streaming services this year. Here’s a broad sampling of our 2021 list, so that no matter what you’re into, you’ll find something to love.
To read our full reviews and see the other 10 films… READ OUR LIST!
Ema directed by Pablo Larraín
Everything in Pablo Larraín’s Ema is vibrantly aflame — from its performances to its mesmerizing choreography to the rocky relationship between the film’s protagonist and her lover.
Identifying Features directed by Fernanda Valadez
Fernanda Valadez’s Identifying Features is one of the most underrated films of the year. Valadez’s debut film revolves around a woman from central Mexico named Magdalena (Mercedes Hernández) and her quest to find out what happened to her son, Jesús (Juan Jesús Varela), who left home on a dangerous journey three years ago.
Judas and the Black Messiah directed by Shaka King
Shaka King’s 2021 film Judas and the Black Messiah is electrifying; it is a story about a movement and those who championed it. Daniel Kaluuya plays Fred Hampton, the murdered chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party, and William O’Neal plays FBI informant William O’Neal.
Limbo directed by Ben Sharrock
Ben Sharrock’s film Limbo is a humorous and introspective twist on tragedy. The film follows Omar (Amir El-Masry), a Syrian refugee who has arrived on a fictional island outside of Scotland alongside other refugees, all awaiting a letter that would either grant them asylum or deportation.
Quo Vadis, Aida? directed by Jasmila Zbanic
Jasna Ðuričić gives one of the best performances of the year as the protagonist of Jasmila Zbanic’s Quo Vadis, Aida? Quo Vadis, Aida? recalls the horrific 1995 Srebrenica genocide through the point of Aida (Jasna Ðuričić), a fictional Bosnian UN interpreter and former high school teacher.
Summer of Soul directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s documentary Summer of Soul (...or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) beams with radiating energy — piecing together footage from the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival to bring the historical event back to life.
The Disciple directed by Chaitanya Tamhane
Chaitanya Tamhane’s The Disciple exercises its cinematic hand carefully — quivering at the notion of ‘practice makes perfect’ and asking how much of one’s happiness should be sacrificed in pursuit of chasing a dream. What happens when it is never realized?
The French Dispatch directed by Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch is a celebration of journalism — specifically in the mode of “print,” a medium now many consider to be “dying.” To that, Anderson says, “screw you” and makes an elaborate anthology film that brings to life absurd feature pieces published in a fictional 20th-century newspaper called “The French Dispatch.”
The Summit of the Gods directed by Patrick Imbert
Imbert’s animated French film, based on Jirô Taniguchi’s manga adaptation of Baku Yumemakura’s 1998 novel, does not try to understand why people do the unthinkable; he already knows there’s no point. Instead, Imbert deftly portrays a pursuit that seems to closely resemble madness — and argues that it might be more innately human than one might think.
The Worst Person in the World directed by Joachim Trier
Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World chronicles a quest for love and meaning through following Julie (Renate Reinsve), a twenty something who finds herself in a stateless cycle of her life.