U.S. Release Date: 2021-10-08
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Violence, Profanity, Sexual Content)
Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Cast: Daniel Craig, Jeffrey Wright, Lea Seydoux, Rami Malek, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Lashana Lynch, Ben Whishaw, Christoph Waltz, Ana de Armas, Billy Magnussen, Rory Kinnear, David Dencik
The film’s occasional overreaches aren’t always a negative; the high points are very high and, when it’s all over, most viewers will remember them.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-03-26
MPAA Rating: "R" (Violence, Profanity)
Genre: Action/Thriller
Director: Ilya Naishuller
Cast: Bob Odenkirk, Alexey Serebryakov, Connie Nielsen, Christopher Lloyd, Michael Ironside, Colin Salmon, RZA, Gage Munroe, Paisley Cadorath
Never takes itself too seriously, delivers all the goods one expects from this sort of action-thriller, and doesn’t overstay its welcome.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-17
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Profanity, Disturbing Themes)
Genre: Drama
Director: Lauren Hadaway
Cast: Isabelle Fuhrman, Amy Forsyth, Dilone, Jonathan Cherry, Kate Drummond
The escapism on offer here isn’t of a light and airy nature but instead provides insight into the darker, obsessive aspects of the human experience.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-07-23
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Violence, Nudity, Sexual Content)
Genre: Science Fiction/Horror
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Cast: Gael García Bernal, Eliza Scanlen, Nolan River, Emun Elliott, Alex Wolff, Alexa Swinton, Embeth Davidtz, Thomasin McKenzie, Aaron Pierre, Ken Leung, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Abbey Lee, Rufus Sewell, Vicky Krieps, Kathleen Chalfant
The movie doesn’t make a lot of sense and it doesn’t help that the dialogue is poorly written and clumsily delivered.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-05-12
MPAA Rating: "NR" (Profanity, Mature Themes)
Genre: Science Fiction/Thriller
Director: Alexandre Aja
Cast: Melanie Laurent, Mathieu Amalric
The bad aftertaste from the contrived conclusion diminishes the experience but doesn’t undo the prior 90 minutes of mystery and tension.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-24
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content)
Genre: Drama
Director: Pedro Almodovar
Cast: Penelope Cruz, Milena Smit, Rossy De Palma, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, Israel Elejalde
Thoroughly conventional by the director’s standards, the central narrative is accessible and offers a wrenching emotional experience.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-10-27
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Profanity, Sexual Content, Racism)
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Rebecca Hall
Cast: Tessa Thompson, Ruth Negga, Andre Holland, Bill Camp, Alexander Skarsgård
The movie has a magnetic quality that’s all the more welcome because of all the weighty issues forming its foundation.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-01
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Disturbing Images, Nudity)
Genre: Western/Drama
Director: Jane Campion
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee
Perhaps not as powerful or wrenching as Campion intended for it to be but "The Power of the Dog" remains an unsettling piece of cinema.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-05-14
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity, Violence)
Genre: Thriller
Director: Timur Bekmambetov
Cast: Valene Kane, Shazad Latif, Christine Adams, Amir Rahimzadeh, Morgan Watkins, Emma Cater
Worth seeing for the story it tells, the tension it generates, and the glimpse of potential it offers for future productions employing the "screenlife" technique.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-03-05
MPAA Rating: "PG"
Genre: Animated/Fantasy
Director: Don Hall, Carlos Lopez Estrada
Cast: Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Izaac Wang, Gemma Chan, Daniel Dae Kim, Benedict Wong
"Raya" offers a screenplay and story geared primarily toward younger audiences and lacks the magic necessary to command long-term adulation.