Despite experiencing a lull in 2020, the movie industry has experienced a resurgence in 2021 with many exciting new releases. Like the previous year, 2021 has seen a break in the cinema owing to COVID-19 restrictions. But moviemakers haven’t been sleeping. Their focus has shifted from the movie theatre to on-demand, non-fiction, independent and online streaming. The new movies haven’t just been about showcasing diverse cultures. Instead, they also highlight prevailing fashion trends suitable for the modern young woman. Here is our must-watch 2021 movie list:
My Zoe
My Zoe depicts the struggles of a single mother taking care of a daughter. The devastating parental drama is gripping from the get-go. It will engage you from the get-go, leaving you on the edge of your seat, literally. The tragicomic movie is behind how people process or fail to go through it successfully. My Zoe also explores emotional, familial, and scientific ethics.
Candyman
Candyman is the sequel of a 1992 movie with a similar title centered on a Black supernatural killer. It is the story of a white graduate student researching folklore and urban legends. As she works on her research, she comes across Candyman, a ghost haunting Cabrini-Green, a Chicago public housing development. Candyman is the ghost of a black artist whose affair with a white woman led to his murder in the late 19th century. While the first movie was from a White perspective, the current film is from the Black point of view, depicting Candyman’s experiences. Unlike in the past, when he was depicted as the villain, Candyman has a soul and history worth celebrating.
Come True
Anthony Scott Burns is a talented film director who also acts as a cinematographer, composer, and editor. In Come True, he creates a movie with an elusive sense of menace that lingers for days. The film is about Julia Sarah Stone, a troubled 18-year-old insomniac who gets drawn deeper into her nightmares despite signing up for sleep study. It is a bare-bones story with an insane twist at its tail end.
About Endlessness
78-year-old Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson has a way of making memorable movies. In this film, he creates feature-length collages of fiercely deadpan, intricately composed scenes ranging from mundane moments to anecdotes of a somewhat dark history. It features a man whose childhood acquaintance gives a cold shoulder for an unkind act from the past. There is also a spur-of-the-moment dance outside a cafe and a march, by a defeated army, towards a prison camp. The film is about mundane human struggles and the absurdity of human cruelty.
Slalom
Slalom features Lyz (Noee Abita), a 15-year-old student in the Swiss Alps, where she encounters Fred (Jeremie Renier), who coaches an elite ski team. Fred believes that he can only make the girls better skiers by manhandling their bodies. But that doesn’t make anything in this movie filled with exhilarating skiing scenes predictable.
Through the artful use of exhilarating camera work, the director depicts an exhilarated, victorious Liz that eventually grows closer to Fred. Even though he isn’t a scheming predator, Fred turns out to be a deceptively screwed up, immature man. His narcissistic tendencies have blinded him too much to know how to keep boundaries or maintain trust.
A Quiet Place Part II
In 2018, John Krasinski released A Quiet Place, which depicted a horrifying alien invasion. The 2021 version of the film is equally horrific, opening with a stomach-gnawing view of the first invasion of the sound-seeking aliens. Evelyn Abbott’s (Emily Blunt) is a widow whose husband passed on in the previous film. Now she has to find a safe abord for her children, ending up in her neighbor Emmett’s (Cillian Murphy). A supposed radio message gives away their location, forcing them to flee from Regan. Much of the film’s story comes out thanks to Krasinski’s mastery of movie directing. His infusion of texture, subtlety, and artistry makes the film strangely believable.
Playing with Sharks: The Valerie Taylor Story
Despite her pin-up looks, Valerie Taylor became famous for her skills as a scuba diver and spearfisher. You would think that the last thing she could become is a dedicated, committed conservationist. As she struggles to preserve the underwater world, she captures memorable images of life in the ocean.
Valerie and her husband Ron Taylor rose to fame as the foremost shark chroniclers. They ended up contributing to Jaws with live shark footage. In this documentary, Sally Aitken captures Valerie’s remarkable career. Valerie, now in her mid-80s, carries on with her daredevil diving with the sharks. The documentary takes you through her life’s work to her current occupation as a conservationist.
Conclusion
Since these movies fall in different genres, you will probably find one that appeals to you. If you don’t like a film about an alien invasion, then a conservationist documentary would do the trick. Go ahead and pick the one you love.