Top Rated Movies of 2021
by khunt67 | created - 12 Jan 2022 | updated - 05 Jul 2022 | PublicCollated from multiple sources (IMDb ; Empire Magazine; Sight & Sound Magazine; Rotten Tomatoes; Metacritic; AFI; various awards)
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. The Power of the Dog (2021)
R | 126 min | Drama, Western
Charismatic rancher Phil Burbank inspires fear and awe in those around him. When his brother brings home a new wife and her son, Phil torments them until he finds himself exposed to the possibility of love.
Director: Jane Campion | Stars: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee
Votes: 193,703
2. Drive My Car (2021)
Unrated | 179 min | Drama
A renowned stage actor and director learns to cope with a big personal loss when he receives an offer to direct a production of Uncle Vanya in Hiroshima.
Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi | Stars: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Tôko Miura, Reika Kirishima, Masaki Okada
Votes: 65,694
3. Dune (2021)
PG-13 | 155 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A noble family becomes embroiled in a war for control over the galaxy's most valuable asset while its heir becomes troubled by visions of a dark future.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Oscar Isaac
Votes: 852,714 | Gross: $108.33M
4. West Side Story (2021)
PG-13 | 156 min | Crime, Drama, Musical
An adaptation of the 1957 musical, West Side Story explores forbidden love and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez
Votes: 95,481
5. Licorice Pizza (2021)
R | 133 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The story of Alana Kane and Gary Valentine growing up, running around and going through the treacherous navigation of first love in the San Fernando Valley, 1973.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn, Tom Waits
Votes: 140,198
Thrillist #5
6. CODA (2021)
PG-13 | 111 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
As a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) Ruby is the only hearing person in her deaf family. When the family's fishing business is threatened, Ruby finds herself torn between pursuing her passion at Berklee College of Music and her fear of abandoning her parents.
Director: Sian Heder | Stars: Emilia Jones, Marlee Matlin, Troy Kotsur, Daniel Durant
Votes: 164,793
7. Belfast (2021)
PG-13 | 98 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
A young boy and his working-class Belfast family experience the tumultuous late 1960s.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Jude Hill, Lewis McAskie, Caitríona Balfe, Jamie Dornan
Votes: 92,275
8. Petite Maman (2021)
PG | 73 min | Drama, Fantasy
Nelly has just lost her grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother's childhood home. She explores the house and the surrounding woods. One day she meets a girl her age building a tree-house.
Director: Céline Sciamma | Stars: Joséphine Sanz, Gabrielle Sanz, Nina Meurisse, Stéphane Varupenne
Votes: 17,668
9. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
PG-13 | 148 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
With Spider-Man's identity now revealed, Peter asks Doctor Strange for help. When a spell goes wrong, dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear, forcing Peter to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
Director: Jon Watts | Stars: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacob Batalon
Votes: 878,299 | Gross: $804.75M
10. Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)
PG-13 | 118 min | Documentary, History, Music
Documentary about the legendary 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival which celebrated African-American music and culture and promoted Black pride and unity.
Director: Questlove | Stars: Dorinda Drake, Barbara Bland-Acosta, Darryl Lewis, Ethel Beatty
Votes: 13,869
11. Flee (2021)
PG-13 | 89 min | Documentary, Animation, Biography
FLEE tells the extraordinary true story of a man, Amin, on the verge of marriage which compels him to reveal his hidden past for the first time.
Director: Jonas Poher Rasmussen | Stars: Daniel Karimyar, Fardin Mijdzadeh, Milad Eskandari, Belal Faiz
Votes: 19,497
12. The Worst Person in the World (2021)
R | 128 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The chronicles of four years in the life of Julie, a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is.
Director: Joachim Trier | Stars: Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Herbert Nordrum, Hans Olav Brenner
Votes: 97,297
13. King Richard (2021)
PG-13 | 144 min | Biography, Drama, Sport
A look at how tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams became who they are after the coaching from their father Richard.
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green | Stars: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Jon Bernthal, Saniyya Sidney
Votes: 136,151
14. The Lost Daughter (2021)
R | 121 min | Drama
A woman's beach vacation takes a dark turn when she begins to confront the troubles of her past.
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal | Stars: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson, Ed Harris
Votes: 75,065
15. Don't Look Up (2021)
R | 138 min | Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi
Two low-level astronomers must go on a giant media tour to warn humankind of an approaching comet that will destroy planet Earth.
Director: Adam McKay | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett
Votes: 601,272
16. Titane (2021)
R | 108 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Following a series of unexplained crimes, a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for ten years.
Director: Julia Ducournau | Stars: Vincent Lindon, Agathe Rousselle, Garance Marillier, Laïs Salameh
Votes: 56,081
17. The Souvenir: Part II (2021)
R | 107 min | Drama, Romance
In the aftermath of her tumultuous relationship, Julie begins to untangle her fraught love for him in making her graduation film, sorting fact from his elaborately constructed fiction.
Director: Joanna Hogg | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Honor Swinton Byrne, James Spencer Ashworth, Alice McMillan
Votes: 4,293
Sight & Sound #1
18. Pig (I) (2021)
R | 92 min | Drama, Mystery
A truffle hunter who lives alone in the Oregon wilderness must return to his past in Portland in search of his beloved foraging pig after she is kidnapped.
Director: Michael Sarnoski | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin, Cassandra Violet
Votes: 89,433
Empire Magazine #13
19. The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)
PG | 114 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A quirky, dysfunctional family's road trip is upended when they find themselves in the middle of the robot apocalypse and suddenly become humanity's unlikeliest last hope.
Directors: Michael Rianda, Jeff Rowe | Stars: Abbi Jacobson, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Michael Rianda
Votes: 126,684
Empire Magazine #8
20. The Green Knight (2021)
R | 130 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
A fantasy retelling of the medieval story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
Director: David Lowery | Stars: Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Joel Edgerton, Sarita Choudhury
Votes: 117,883
Empire Magazine #12; Sight & Sound #12
21. Memoria (I) (2021)
PG | 136 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A woman from Scotland, while traveling in Colombia, begins to notice strange sounds. Soon she begins to think about their appearance.
Director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Agnes Brekke, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Jerónimo Barón
Votes: 11,135
Sight & Sound #4
22. Nightmare Alley (2021)
R | 150 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A grifter working his way up from low-ranking carnival worker to lauded psychic medium matches wits with a psychologist bent on exposing him.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe
Votes: 165,214 | Gross: $11.34M
23. Encanto (2021)
PG | 102 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
A Colombian teenage girl has to face the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers.
Directors: Jared Bush, Byron Howard, Charise Castro Smith | Stars: Stephanie Beatriz, María Cecilia Botero, John Leguizamo, Mauro Castillo
Votes: 262,009 | Gross: $96.09M
24. Annette (2021)
R | 141 min | Drama, Music, Musical
A stand-up comedian and his opera singer wife have a two-year-old daughter with a surprising gift.
Director: Leos Carax | Stars: Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard, Simon Helberg, Devyn McDowell
Votes: 22,662
Empire Magazine #16; Sight & Sound #9
25. Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)
PG | 107 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
In a realm known as Kumandra, a re-imagined Earth inhabited by an ancient civilization, a warrior named Raya is determined to find the last dragon.
Directors: Don Hall, Carlos López Estrada, Paul Briggs, John Ripa | Stars: Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Izaac Wang
Votes: 171,671 | Gross: $54.72M
26. Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy (2021)
121 min | Drama, Romance
An unexpected love triangle, a failed seduction trap and an encounter that results from a misunderstanding, told in three movements to depict three female characters and trace the trajectories between their choices and regrets.
Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi | Stars: Kotone Furukawa, Ayumu Nakajima, Hyunri, Kiyohiko Shibukawa
Votes: 9,797
Sight & Sound #10
27. Spencer (2021)
R | 117 min | Biography, Drama
Diana Spencer, struggling with mental-health problems during her Christmas holidays with the Royal Family at their Sandringham estate in Norfolk, England, decides to end her decade-long marriage to Prince Charles.
Director: Pablo Larraín | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, Jack Nielen
Votes: 76,560
Sight & Sound #15
28. The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)
R | 105 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A Scottish lord becomes convinced by a trio of witches that he will become the next King of Scotland, and his ambitious wife supports him in his plans of seizing power.
Director: Joel Coen | Stars: Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand, Alex Hassell, Bertie Carvel
Votes: 39,658
29. Jai Bhim (2021)
Approved | 164 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
When a tribal man is arrested for a case of alleged theft, his wife turns to a human-rights lawyer to help bring justice.
Director: T.J. Gnanavel | Stars: Suriya, Lijo Mol Jose, Manikandan K., Rajisha Vijayan
Votes: 217,101
IMDb 250
30. The French Dispatch (2021)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A love letter to journalists set in an outpost of an American newspaper in a fictional twentieth century French city that brings to life a collection of stories published in "The French Dispatch Magazine".
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Benicio Del Toro, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux
Votes: 150,483
31. tick, tick... BOOM! (2021)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
On the brink of turning 30, a promising theater composer navigates love, friendship and the pressure to create something great before time runs out.
Director: Lin-Manuel Miranda | Stars: Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Robin de Jesus, Vanessa Hudgens
Votes: 119,572
32. The Velvet Underground (2021)
R | 121 min | Documentary, Music
The Velvet Underground explores the multiple threads that converged to bring together one of the most influential bands in rock and roll.
Director: Todd Haynes | Stars: John Waters, Mary Woronov, Barbara Walters, Lou Reed
Votes: 5,333
Sight & Sound #13
33. In the Heights (2021)
PG-13 | 143 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
In Washington Heights, a sympathetic New York bodega owner saves every penny every day as he imagines and sings about a better life.
Director: Jon M. Chu | Stars: Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera
Votes: 52,093
34. Parallel Mothers (2021)
R | 123 min | Drama
The story of two mothers who bond in unexpected way after giving birth the same day.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Stars: Penélope Cruz, Milena Smit, Israel Elejalde, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón
Votes: 35,932
35. Red Rocket (2021)
R | 130 min | Comedy, Drama
Mikey Saber is a washed-up porn star who returns to his small Texas hometown, not that anyone really wants him back.
Director: Sean Baker | Stars: Simon Rex, Bree Elrod, Suzanna Son, Brenda Deiss
Votes: 33,002
36. Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (2019)
110 min | Drama, Family
An aspiring singer living with his grandmother in the capital of Bhutan dreams of getting a visa to move to Australia.
Director: Pawo Choyning Dorji | Stars: Sherab Dorji, Ugyen Norbu Lhendup, Kelden Lhamo Gurung, Pem Zam
Votes: 6,569
37. The Hand of God (2021)
R | 130 min | Drama
In 1980s Naples, young Fabietto pursues his love for football as family tragedy strikes, shaping his uncertain but promising future as a filmmaker.
Director: Paolo Sorrentino | Stars: Filippo Scotti, Toni Servillo, Teresa Saponangelo, Marlon Joubert
Votes: 49,409
38. The Card Counter (2021)
R | 111 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
William Tell is an ex-military interrogator living under the radar as a low-stakes gambler. When he encounters a young man looking to commit revenge against a mutual enemy, he takes him on the casino circuit to set him on a new path.
Director: Paul Schrader | Stars: Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, Willem Dafoe
Votes: 42,975
39. What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? (2021)
150 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A chance encounter on a street corner has Lisa and Giorgi fall in love at first sight, but an evil spell is cast on them. Will they ever meet again?
Director: Aleksandre Koberidze | Stars: Ani Karseladze, Giorgi Bochorishvili, Oliko Barbakadze, Giorgi Ambroladze
Votes: 2,025
Sight & Sound #7
40. Ascension (III) (2021)
Not Rated | 97 min | Documentary
The absorbingly cinematic Ascension explores the pursuit of the "Chinese Dream." This observational documentary presents a contemporary vision of China that prioritizes productivity and innovation above all.
Director: Jessica Kingdon
Votes: 4,097
41. Attica (2021)
TV-MA | 116 min | Documentary, History
This unnervingly vivid dive into the 1971 uprising from Emmy® winning director Stanley Nelson sheds new light on the enduring violence and racism of the prison system and highlights the urgent, ongoing need for reform 50 years later.
Directors: Traci Curry, Stanley Nelson | Stars: Arthur Harrison, Carlos Roche, Tyrone Larkins, George Che Nieves
Votes: 3,076
42. Bergman Island (2021)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A couple retreat to the island that inspired Ingmar Bergman to write screenplays for their upcoming films when the lines between reality and fiction start to blur.
Director: Mia Hansen-Løve | Stars: Vicky Krieps, Tim Roth, Mia Wasikowska, Anders Danielsen Lie
Votes: 9,894
Sight & Sound #11
43. Writing with Fire (2021)
Not Rated | 92 min | Documentary
In a cluttered news landscape dominated by men, emerges India's only newspaper run by Dalit women. Chief Reporter Meera and her journalists break traditions, redefining what it means to be powerful.
Directors: Sushmit Ghosh, Rintu Thomas | Stars: Meera Devi, Shyamkali Devi, Suneeta Prajapati
Votes: 1,662
44. Shiva Baby (2020)
Not Rated | 77 min | Comedy, Drama