If 2020 was the Godfather of Annus horribilis, 2021 was the Oscar winning sequel. Hats off, boss. The bar was low, and you made it seem anything but. However, on a more optimistic note, unlike the past two years, this year's round up post comes before the end of the year, even if you're in Kiribati islands. So, there's that.
Movie wise, unfortunately I am yet to see the inside of a movie theater for 22 months and don't see that changing anytime soon. Though once again, thanks to some solid work by the streaming platforms for keeping us entertained, engaged, and sometimes depressed (looking at you Sardar Udham, what a gut wrenching beauty). Bollywood, for the most part continued to lag in quality and give up all the gains of the 2010s, hoping the pandemic is the reason and we will be back to happier days. Hollywood and many parts of world cinema though had a solid year, with some blockbusters making a comeback and more importantly just lots of good cinema.
Now to the annual post. This is the 13th year of this tradition, and as always here's a recap of the prior years:
2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020.
Also, from this year I have split the documentaries entirely into a separate annual post, with books and shows, you can find more about that here.
As this is as much of a movie round up tradition as a personal geeking out event on personal movie stats, let's get to the sections you have indulged me in for all the years.
Here is the Summary Table (in its 15th year) of movies released in the same year (2021 for this post) that I watched.
Year # Seen Hindi:English:Others Top Rating Avg. Rating
2007 32 22:10:0 9.0 5.78
2008 30 23:7:0 8.5 6.35
2009 24 18:6:0 9.0 6.85
2010 25 16:9:0 8.5 6.62
2011 22 15:6:1 8.5 6.77
2012 28 12:11:5 9.0 7.33
2013 28 14:14:0 9.0 7.12
2014 16 10:6:0 9.0 6.16
2015 26 20:6:0 9.0 6.55
2016 30 17:13:0 9.5 6.98
2017 31 17:13:1 9.0 7.03
2018 87 23:59:5 9.0 7.29
2019 86 12:65: 9 10.0 7.45
2020 38 16:20:2 9.0 7.40
2021 53 15:34:4 9.0 7.20
The split of the movies by source (not just 2021 movies) was as follows.
| Source | Number |
| Netflix | 16 |
| Amazon Video | 10 |
| HBO Max | 9 |
| Disney+ | 8 |
| Hulu | 5 |
| Showtime | 4 |
| Others | 4 |
| Starz | 3 |
| Hoichoi | 1 |
| Grand Total | 60 |
And now for the annual rankings.
As always, Top 5 Hindi and Non-Hindi movies of the year (released in 2021). All images are courtesy of Wikipedia. And these are based on just 53 movies I happened to watch this year, take it with dollops of salt, send your agreements and vitriol, and keep enjoying the magic of the movies.
Non-Hindi Movies
5. Borunbabur Bondhur (Language: Bengali, Director: Anik Dutta)
Acknowledging the confusion of whether this can be considered a 2021 movie, and moving on. My blog, my rules, especially as it can be argued this is a 2019, 2020, and 2021 movie. Based on a short story by Ramapada Chowdhury, this last hurrah by the Late Soumitra Chatterjee is a slow burn as they say nowadays. But with a fair amount of intrigue, involving a character no less than the President of India. It's about the ageing patriarch of a joint family and his waning influence of the next generations. Petty family politics, and then the twist. And the twist. Thanks for the parting gift Soumitra Sir.
4. Coda (Language: English, Director: Sian Heder)
Streaming on Apple TV+ in the US, this coming of age story surrounds a teenager who is the child of deaf adults (CODA). Indian viewers will find some similarities with SLB's
Khamoshi, but it's mostly at a surface level. 19 year old Emilia Jones delivers a performance that will make a lot of filmmakers take notice and that can only be good news for her, and us. But will be amiss of me to not acknowledge the all round solid performances, and how this movie retains his comedic nature, without giving in to melodrama which was an easy option. It does tug at those heartstrings for sure, but not always in the ways you will predict.
3. King Richard (Language: English, Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green)
A movie about the greatest tennis sisters in history but actually about their dad. Well, that's the first surprise for all of us. But then it works hard, from title onwards, to make sure they don't bait and switch us. Yes, this is about Richard Williams, and this is about Will Smith, and this is bloody good. I am sure cinematic liberties have been taken, and I am fine as long as the family doesn't say this is a hogwash - which they haven't, and we see the inside view of the life of someone who had the inside view of making and raising two geniuses. Difficult to take your eyes off the family and especially Richard, even when he's being his obnoxious best, or maybe especially when he's being so. Inspiring, motivating, and just overall feel like cheering for these people. We will likely also be cheering for some of them during the awards season.
2. The Humans (Language: English, Director: Stephen Karam)
"Stephen - we know you're a playright, but that doesn't mean you should make a movie without knowing how to hold a camera!" It's OK if you had this thought. Most of us did. And the camera was in very able hands in this one, even though we were seeing the backs of characters, through walls of rooms engaging in mundane thanksgiving dinner table conversations. The taut screenplay, sharp humor, and the eerie atmosphere in a lower middle class NYC apartment building is just on point. This is a movie about the characters and the dialogues/conversations. And we feel the cringe when that person says that thing. And we want to jump in and break the tension when a loose cannon has been let out. The ending catches us by surprise, but by then you're already not wanting the movie to end.
1. Judas and the Black Messiah (Language: English, Director: Shaka King)
I actually wasn't even hooked on to what turned out to be my favourite movie of the year during the first ten minutes of viewing. I remember turning it off and then when I realized it was going away from HBO Max in a few days, giving it a second shot. Daniel and Lakeith deliver powerhouse performances, both in their own style and whether you know enough about the Black Panther Party's history, or not (like me) you will feel deeply about them and all the other characters and want that thing to work out. This is a funny one, as due to the pandemic, in spite of the 2021 launch, it was already nominated for a bunch of 2021 Awards, and ended up winning a bunch too, very deservingly.
Hindi Movies
5. Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar (Director: Dibakar Banerjee)
It's not what you think this is about. And then it's again got a few surprises for you. Unlike most Bollywood movies, and especially mainstream ones it doesn't hold back punches. I am going to confess, with the leading couple being who they were my hopes were low, then my interest was piqued by the storyline, and finally when it streamed, turned out to be one of the most pleasant surprises of the year. It's a tough watch in parts if you're going with standard Bollywood as your benchmark.
4. Atrangi Re (Director: Anand L Rai)
A last minute entry, coming in as a Christmas release, Anand L Rai and Dhanush delivers again. Yes, there's enough resemblances with their prior partnership, Ranjhaana, but kudos to them for trying something different. Yes, a serious topic was handled in that mixed bag way that they tend to be in these mainstream but different movies, but takes something to put this amount of money into such a bet. Also, it looks and sounds splendid, with ARR showing some of his charm after a while. The ending was exactly what I was hoping and not at the same time, but it's OK.
3. Ajeeb Daastaans - Geeli Puchhi (Director: Neeraj Ghaywan)
A good anthology of three above average short stories, and one outstanding one. Coming from Neeraj Ghaywan, director of Masaan (winner of Best movie of 2015, in this blog) not surprised that he used Konkona and Aditi Rao Hydari in ways they haven't been utilized in a while. Taking on multiple complex issues - caste, sexual identity, feminism - Neeraj manages to serve the knockout punch, and many punches prior to that. Even if you don't watch the rest of the movies, which I think you should, don't miss these 45 minutes. Perhaps the best of Bollywood in 2021.
2. Pagglait (Director: Umesh Bist)
A dark comedy with no A-list superstars, with no theater release. Was easy for this to sink without a trace, but it did quite the opposite. With sharp story telling, introducing quirky but relatable characters for today's generation, and some core Bollywood plot pillars it won us over. Sanya Malhotra has quickly built a repertoire of interesting and different movies - Secret Superstar, Badhai Ho, Ludo among others and she carries this on her character's widowed shoulders with ease and grace. There levity when things get too tense, and everyone is happier for it. Was good to see Ashutosh Rana after a while, and he did his best in a toned down role of a grieving father.
1. Ram Prasad Ki Tehrvi (Director: Seema Pahwa)
They say steer clear of using the word "underrated" when talking about a movie because how does it matter how others rate something when you're reviewing it. This one should be an exception. Hardly a peep about this outside of the "artsy" circles and that's likely a criminal offense. The brilliant Seema Pahwa's directorial debut depicts multiple generations of a middle class family arriving at the parents' house after the death of the father (Naseeruddin Shah). The nuances captured through the scenes, lines, props, and emotions are straight out of moments we have all witnessed first hand in our middle class Indian lives. You sort of know everyone's agenda, but not quite sure if everyone is as scheming or naive as they seem or if there's more to it. And please watch the movie to find out.
NOTE: There's an obvious omission in my list - yes, I am talking about Sardar Udham (I haven't seen 83 as that has had only a theatrical release). I have had the privilege of viewing Sardar Udham, and it's quite something else. The only reason I couldn't exactly put it in my Top 5 or any list for that matter is because I didn't enjoy watching the movie. Yes, of course I loved the movie, but watching it wasn't an experience I want to go through again. I just have this idiosyncratic filter, that I shouldn't just love a movie, but like it too, to recommend. And that kind of graphic gore and violence just doesn't feel right to me. Hats off to Shoojit Sircar, Vicky Kaushal and the rest of the team for delivering a message that was waiting to be delivered for a century, in a way that will echo for a while.
Final list of ALL movies watched in 2020 (including documentaries, in alphabetical order within groups)
Grade: Must Watch
Drishyam 2
Encanto
ET Extra Terrestrial
Kajillionaire
Little Things
Luca
Minari
Oslo
Sound of Metal
The Father
The Kid Detective
Together
Zack Snyder's Justice League
Zola
Grade: Recommended
8-Bit Christmas
Black Widow
Cruella
Drunk Bus
Home Sweet Home Alone
I Care a lot
In The Heights
Jungle Cruise
No Sudden Move
No Time To Die
Rashmi Rocket
Run
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
Shershaah
Sir
Sophie Jones
Thalaivii
The Climb
The Courier
The Guilty
The Hand of God
The Last Letter From Your Lover
Young And Beautiful
Grade: Read Summaries/Use Discretion
Ammonite
Ankahi Kahaniyan
Bell Bottom
Dhamaka
Mixtape
Passing
Sherni
Sooryavanshi
The Dig
The Power of the Dog
Grade: Please Avoid
No comments:
Post a Comment