HLS Movie Awards Top 116 Movies of 2021 Part 5! 50-26
Welcome back to HLS Entertainment! Today we are going to discuss Part 5 of the top 116 movies of 2021, this time 50-26. Part one we discussed many popular well-known movies that flopped quality wise (and box office in some cases), part two contained films that were so close to being good but just were not quite there but were still enjoyable, part three was more of the same but had less obvious misgivings, part four we had a few that fit that mold, but that is where the list turns into just really good movies. And now here in part five, these are all movies I would recommend as they are all very good movies. We might have loved movies you hated, or hated ones you loved, let us know in the comments or on Twitter @HLSEntrtainment or my personal Twitter @HaroldLStokes.
Now like always with every movie I am going to be putting what I personally think is the safest grading scale out there, the IMDB user rating score. Here is a simple breakdown of what their 0.0-10 grading scale means:
Now this is not a gold standard but is a good starting point, on to the movies. On to the movies!
50. The Last Duel
IMDb Score: 7.4
This was a movie that was failed by the marketing department. This is a very well-done movie that should have been promoted as a thriller from three different perspectives, but you would not know that based off the trailers. The trailers promote it to be more akin to Ridley Scott's previous work in the Gladiator but the separate timelines make it feel more akin to a Nolan weird timeline movie. Ben Affleck, Adam Driver and Matt Damon all deliver such creepy powerful performances while Jodie Comer delivers an excellent emotional performance that is worth the price of admission itself.
49. The White Tiger
IMDb Score: 7.1
This movie, like so many on this list, is just such a unique film and is about a lower-class valet/driver's, Adarsh Gourav, fight to rise above his station and fight to climb the social ladder.
48. Lamb
IMDb Score: 6.3
Speaking of unique, you will not find another movie like this one. This movie is about a couple desperate for love and a child find a "blessing" that they raise to love. This movie is WEIRD and beautiful and haunting.
47. Luca (Disney+)
IMDb Score: 7.5
Silencio Bruno, a phrase that will forever be stuck in my head after this movie. Luca is a young sea monster who just wants to be a part of the human world just right out of his reach. To be over simplistic this movie is Italian Little Mermaid without the terrible message of giving up your voice for a boy.
46. In the Heights (HBOMax)
IMDb Score: 7.3
I have kept it no secret I adore this new wave of musicals we have been getting these past few years and I welcome more and more of them. This one I very much enjoyed but it just was not my favorite. I just wanted to preface that because others have rightfully put this movie much higher, and I do not have any qualms with them doing so. The music was just not my favorite, but it is just SO well done and is such a fun ride.
45. Raya and the Last Dragon (Disney+)
IMDb Score: 7.3
Disney just so rarely misses, and this movie is definitely not a miss. There was a lot of talk around this movie because it was one of the first Premier Access movies on Disney+ and that ruffled a lot of feathers. I feel like this movie came and went and needs to be talked about more. Raya is a young warrior who is set out on a quest to find the last dragon to help fix her world from the curse that has been set upon it by the greed of the world leaders.
44. Cruella (Disney+)
IMDb Score: 7.4
Cruella De vil wears Prada. This movie is somehow not only a good Disney Cruella live action movie but also a great fashion movie? No idea how they pulled that off. I am forever a sucker for a good soundtrack, and I loved the needle drops in this movie.
43. The Night House
IMDb Score: 6.5
Rebecca Hall puts on a great performance of a grieving widow who uncovers a horrifying mystery as to what her husband was going through before the time of his death. Horror/thriller movies are always rough to judge on the IMDb scale, even movies like this that are very well done and tightly written get unfair judgments occasionally just from people getting scared/disturbed by some of the imagery.
42. The Harder They Fall (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 6.6
This is a movie that I really wanted to land higher on this list, and it being at 42 is certainly not a negative reflection on the very great job Jeymes Samuel and the cast did on this movie I loved it. This movie has one of the best cast of any movie on this list just star studded top to bottom, Regina King, LaKeith Stanfield, Jonathan Majors, Damon Waynes, Delroy Lindo and other incredible actors. Just a great classic western revenge story.
41. No Sudden Move (HBOMax)
IMDb Score: 6.5
The one movie that I swear got about a third of the promotion it should have from WB. I loved the main pairing of Don Cheadle and Benecio Del Toro as our leads in this crime thriller. A group of criminals who are already at odds with one another are brought together mysteriously for a job, and the unraveling of the truth to their situation just gets stranger the higher it goes.
40. Nobody
IMDb Score: 7.4
I will take as many John Wick rip offs with great action as I can get. Bob Odenkirk was the absolute perfect casting choice for a movie like this and I want as many sequels, and maybe a prequel or two, as they will pump out.
39. tick, tick..BOOM! (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 7.6
Another musical that was wonderfully done but I specifically did not connect to the music. As someone who did not know the full story going into it, I found it so wonderful and heartbreaking. Andrew Garfield puts on an outstanding performance, and he deserves all the award love he has gotten if not even more.
38. The Paper Tigers (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 6.3
Man, I wish more people saw this movie. Three former top of the line martial artists and best friends gather together to try to solve their former teacher's murder. Former athletes will greatly appreciate the jokes of getting old and just not being able to do what you used to be able to.
37. Antlers
IMDb Score: 5.9
5.9 was very upsetting to see, but I spoke earlier on how horror/thriller films get much rougher ratings in general. This movie is a perfect example of people being disturbed or frightened and not giving a film a fair rating, it was wonderfully done and brought so much new to the genre.
36. The Dig (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 7.1
If you want a simple drama that is very well written and excellently acted look no further. Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes are just wonderful in this true story about one of the most historically impactful archaeological digs in England.
35. Encanto (Disney+)
IMDb Score: 7.3
I do not think many people have missed this delightful Disney film, so I will not waste time breaking down this X-Men movie. Instead, I want to say I get it, but it was a mistake by Disney to push Dos Oruguitas instead of We Don't Talk About Bruno.
34. A Quiet Place Part II
IMDb Score: 7.2
This being called a part II made more sense than most sequels. This movie picks up nearly immediately after the first with some overlap with the first film. John Krasinski is a good actor but is just an incredible writer/director, studios should be lining up to greenlight any project he wants.
33. Black Widow (Disney+)
IMDb Score: 6.7
The longest overdue movie in the MCU but I am thankful for the time waited (or wasted) so we were able to get the new best character in the MCU with Yelena played by Florence Pugh. This movie will age SO well in peoples personal MCU rankings, I expect it to climb higher and higher the further we get away from it. I will give this spot the one time (here) that I will complain about the MCU phase 4 obviously having a CGI problem. I am not sure if they spent less money on CGI or if they changed who their VFX artists are but there has been a sever drop in the consistent quality we are used to from the MCU.
32. Worth (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 6.8
I do not understand how this movie is under a 7. Excellently acted across the board and very well written as it deals with the very brutal reality of the US government trying to help those effected by the tragedy of 9/11 and trying to figure out the "worth" of every victim. Tough watch, but excellently done.
31. Pig
IMDb Score: 7.0
If you talk to certain people this movie deserved to be in every best picture conversation. To me I think that Nick Cage was wonderful but the story itself is not anything that wowed me though I did enjoy all the mysterious that unfolded throughout this quest of a man trying to get his pig back.
30. The Mitchell's vs the Machines (Netflix)
IMDb Score: 7.7
I had a very hard time not putting this movie higher. I want this to be higher. Sony animation once again killed it making yet again the best animated movie of the year. I will fight for this movie to win best animated picture. It is filled with so much heart and humor and just fun as a misfit family fights to save the world from their robot overlords.
29. One Night in Miami... (Amazon)
IMDb Score: 7.1
I loved this movie, I just found myself wishing it took so many more liberties with reality and expand the story more. This fictional story about when four of the most influential American figures all just happened to be in Miami at the same time and what would have happened if they got together.
28. Free Guy
IMDb Score: 7.2
This movie had zero business working, nevertheless, be great. And it is great. If this movie counts as a videogame film, it is the best videogame movie of all time. Ryan Reynolds is a NPC that comes to life and decides to become the hero of his videogame reality to impress the player he is magically attracted to.
27. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
IMDb Score: 7.5
Please please please Marvel Studios take the correct lesson from this movie and change from the quick cut fights to showing off the excellent fight choreography. Shang-Chi opened so many doors of Marvel that have yet to be explored I cannot wait to see more.
26. Ghostbusters Afterlife
IMDb Score: 7.2
Oh man this movie is just fun. If you were worried about another Ghostbusters movie just forget what you think this movie can be. This film was the perfect step to modernizing the franchise for the next generation while still capturing the same wonder that the original films brought to audiences. Also, Paul Rudd can do no wrong and his scene in Walmart is one of my favorite scenes of the year.
Thank you so much for reading! Please share and be sure to follow me on Twitter @HaroldLStokes !
