Between Disney+ expanding their portfolio tenfold and some dramatic biopics that might have gone under many people’s radars, there are some fantastic movies from 2021 for film fans to discover on various streaming platforms, not to mention in theaters.
But what are the best movies of 2021? IMDb may hold the answers for many people looking for the must-see cinematic experiences of the year.
Updated on January 6th, 2022 by Mark Birrell: As 2021 closed out, IMDb's top movies of the year solidified into an interesting list of films that features the best of animation, drama, comedy, and action. The MCU's Phase Four is now in full swing with some notable hits and misses already, not to mention the long-awaited returns of cinematic icons like James Bond and Cruella de Vil.
What voters have placed as the best movies of 2021 on IMDb is sure to stir some controversy, as all end-of-year lists tend to do, but most people will likely find at least one thing they love in the rankings.
Raya And The Last Dragon - 7.3
• Available on Disney+
Though it underperformed at the box office, those who did see Raya and the Last Dragon were mostly blown away. The new Disney flick does everything that audiences would expect from a new movie from the studio, as the animation is yet again better than it has ever been.
But more than anything, it increases the ethnic representation in their movies too. Following Disney’s Moana and Mulan, The Last Dragon continues to evolve the idea of the Disney princess.
In The Heights - 7.3
• Available on HBO Max
Being one of two huge musicals getting released in 2021 (with the other being Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story,) In The Heights kicked off the musical season with a great start. The movie is about a Hispanic neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, and it’s joyous, celebratory, and visually dazzling.
It’s based on the play from the mind of Lin-Manuel Miranda, so the music itself is unquestionably more rhythmic and catchy than you'd typically get, and it’s even arguably better than Hamilton.
A Quiet Place Part II - 7.3
• Available on Paramount+
After such a long wait, as the movie was first screened in a couple of festivals over a year ago, A Quiet Place Part II is finally available to the public, and in many ways, it even surpasses the brilliance of the original. The sequel is just as terrifying and intense as the first movie, but it ups the ante by expanding the world in such a natural way.
Being barely over 90 minutes in length, it doesn’t outstay its welcome, and it’s so refreshing in an age of 2.5-hour action movies. The Abbott’s life is so emotionally exhausting, but in the most entertaining way possible, and the thought of where it’ll lead to in Part III makes it even more exciting.
Don't Look Up - 7.3
• Available on Netflix
Though director Adam McKay rose to fame for directing a number of hugely popular comedy movies, such as Anchorman and Step Brothers, his most recent films have pushed into the realm of political satire, with his latest being perhaps his most provocative yet.
Don't Look Up presents a classic Hollywood disaster plot as a planet-killing comet heads straight for Earth, but takes a darkly comedic approach to the idea, with political ineptitude and corporate greed becoming just as big of a threat to humanity. Blockbuster stars and effects make the movie look the part while delivering an uncommonly pessimistic vision of a possible future that evidently struck the right chord with viewers, even if it got a much harsher reception from critics.
Cruella - 7.4
• Available on Disney+
On paper, an origins story about a villain who skins dogs to make fur coat sounds ridiculous, and like it’d surely bomb at the worldwide box office, but Cruella did the complete opposite.
Due to the fact that it combines everything that makes a great movie, from the soundtrack to the detailed costumes, to the performances across the board, it’s the best depiction of Cruella there could have ever been. And it was so entertaining that fans are already speculating about a sequel. To say it’s pretty much impossible to humanize a character who is so horrible, the movie did a great job.
Nobody - 7.4
• Available to purchase on Prime Video
As Nobody has so many parallels to John Wick, it can sometimes feel like a carbon copy of the hit assassin franchise. They both follow retired assassins, both feature the Russian mafia, and both have a unique currency for their criminal underworlds.
But it’s just as entertaining as the John Wick series, as the gun-fu is yet again on another level. And as Bob Odenkirk trained vigorously for the role, every fight sequence is so impressive, especially considering the actor started out as a comedian.
No Time to Die - 7.4
• Available to purchase on Prime Video
Daniel Craig's tenure as James Bond came to a momentous end after multiple delays to the movie's release, satisfying fans both new and old while delivering some surprising firsts for the long-running franchise of spy films.
Following on from the end of 2015's Spectre, 007 finds himself once again dealing with Christoph Waltz's Blofeld as well as a new villain played by fellow Oscar-winner Rami Malek. Though the biggest of the movie's multiple twists weren't without their detractors, the response overall has been positive enough to rank No Time to Die as one of the best movies of 2021 on IMDb.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings - 7.5
• Available on Disney+
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings followed the slightly more tepid response to the MCU's first movie of 2021, Black Widow, which had a famously contentious same-day streaming release. But Shang-Chi became a bigger hit for Marvel Studios even if the box office hadn't quite returned to any kind of normality when it premiered exclusively in theaters.
Widely praised for its martial arts-based action as well as its focus on Asian characters and culture, Shang-Chi looks to be yet another beloved franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with a sequel in development that is set to keep director Destin Daniel Cretton at the helm.
The Mauritanian - 7.5
• Available on Showtime
One of the best legal dramas in recent years, The Mauritanian follows a man who was imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay for 14 years and was subjected to torture during that entire time. It’s based on a true story, as it sees a defense attorney do everything in her power to free him.
It’s hard to watch at times, but it’s one of the most thought-provoking and empathetic movies of the year. Like many films from this year, the theatrical release was scrapped and is now available to watch online.
Judas And The Black Messiah - 7.5
• Available on HBO Max
Being another historical drama based on true events, just like The Mauritanian, Judas and the Black Messiah is one of the most intense biopics of the 21st century. It follows William O’Neal as he infiltrates the Black Panther Party whilst working with the FBI, and being about racial injustice, the film couldn’t have come at a better time.
And as Daniel Kaluuya brilliantly plays the impressive Fred Hampton, the chairman of the Black Panther Party, it earned him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Luca - 7.5
• Available on Disney+
Though Pixar fans didn’t exactly get to see it in the way it was intended, as it went straight to Disney+ instead of going into movie theatres, even the small screen is able to capture the beauty and magic of Luca. It’s one of the more fantastical Pixar movies, as it follows a boy who is part-human, part-sea monster, and it’s one of the most fascinatingly absurd coming-of-age movies.
Though it has a more than respectable score on IMDb and it’s a signifier that it’s loved by many, it’s actually a fairly low rating compared to other Pixar movies. However, the movie was rated much higher by critics, as it’s one of Pixar’s best movies according to Rotten Tomatoes.
The Mitchells Vs. The Machines - 7.7
• Available on Netflix
This year, Netflix has arguably out-Pixared Pixar, as The Mitchells vs. the Machines could easily be compared to The Incredibles. Being produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the brains behind Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse and The Lego Movie, they knocked it out of the park once more by developing one of the most relatable animated movies of the year.
Whether it's locking horns during the family dinner or trying to deal with teenage emotions, there’s so much that parents will be nodding along to. The Mitchells vs. The Machines is one of the best Netflix movies of 2021 and its most entertaining family movie too.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League - 8.1
• Available on HBO Max
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is unprecedented in the movie industry, and though there have been many director’s cuts in the past, none are quite like this. After the tepid reception that the original theatrical release of Justice League received back in 2017, as production was taken over by Joss Whedon, Warner Bros. gave Snyder the opportunity to fulfill his vision, and the result is on another level.
It was unanimously praised by fans and even the critics who despised the original, mostly due to the fact that it ties up a lot of loose ends. And though this might be the end of Snyder’s tenure with the DC Extended Universe, the four-hour movie is more than enough for fans to comb over for years.
Dune - 8.2
• Available to purchase on Prime Video
After the famously flawed first film adaptation of Frank Herbert's seminal science-fiction novel, Dune, from director David Lynch, anticipation ran high for Denis Villeneuve's adaptation, especially after his hit sci-fi movies Arrival and Blade Runner 2049.
Villeneuve's movie more than lived up to expectations, with an epic score from Hans Zimmer and stunning visuals throughout. Though it only deals with half of the novel's story, a sequel is already scheduled to start shooting in 2022 and it looks as if this could be the beginning of the 2020s' defining sci-fi franchise.
Spider-Man: No Way Home - 8.8
The 4th and final MCU movie of 2021 rejuvenated the box office in ways that many had begun to believe were no longer possible after such a long period without any billion-dollar successes. Spider-Man: No Way Home quickly rose to become not only the highest-grossing Spider-Man movie ever but the most successful Sony release of all time at the US box office.
Overflowing with big surprises and beloved characters, it's no wonder how No Way Home almost instantaneously became ranked as the best movie of 2021 on IMDb, with actor Tom Holland looking to be secure in the lead role for some time to come.