After what felt like an eternity, 2021 is finally over. Unfortunately, 2022 will likely be more of the same, but at least this means it’s time for me to share my year in movies with the merry band of dorks who still visit RtM when shit goes up.
I love this tradition well beyond reason — although to be fair that can be said about damn near everything that brings me any sort of joy. I’m a nerd who loves when others publish similar lists (Steven Soderbergh’s yearly list is the most notable I can think of), and in turn I’m always excited to share the movies I watched throughout the year, with nods to the ones I adored the most.
I don’t know if you’re a crazy person like me who keeps a list like this every year, but I’ve gotta say I highly recommend it. Even if you’re not an obsessive list-maker like I am, it’s a worthwhile endeavor.
The list becomes a record not just of the films (or shows for the non-movie-watchers) you watched, but of the year at large. I look back on my lists and I can see the story of the ebbs and flows of the year. I watched 67 movies by the end of March, but then only 36 over the five months that followed? That speaks volumes about how my year went in so many ways, not the least of which in regards to my mental health (and contrary to how folks might read that, the more movies I’m watching the better I’m doing).
It’s also fun to look back at old lists as they become time capsules of years gone by. I look at really old lists and marvel at how strange the passage of time feels. I also marvel at how fucking old I’m getting, which I suppose isn’t the best selling point for making lists like this.
At the very least, looking at old lists never fails to remind me just how much I fucking love cinema, and that’s reason enough for me.
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The key is the same as usual:
(#) Movie I saw in the theater.
[#] Movie I saw for the first time.
E# – Movies I watched with Emily.
Favorites — Underlined titles are the ones that have stood up after repeated viewings and still keep me coming back for more. They’re the ones I’ve seen before and will certainly watch again.
**Best new (to me) movies — Titles with an asterisk are the films I loved the most out of those I’d never seen before.
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January
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1. The Grand Budapest Hotel – E1
2. The Whistlers [1]
3. Bottle Rocket
4. I’m Thinking of Ending Things [2]
5. Apollo 11 [3] E2
**6. Broadcast News [4] E3
7. Rio Bravo [5]
**8. The Vanishing (1988) [6]
9. Support the Girls [7] E4
10. Mulan (2020) [8] E5
11. This is Spinal Tap
**12. Suspiria (2018) [9]
13. The Trial of the Chicago 7 [10] E6
14. Death to 2020 [11]
15. The Incredibles
**16. The Phantom Thread [12]
17. The Personal History of David Copperfield [13] E7
18. The Little Things [14]
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February
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19. First Reformed [15]
20. The Edge of Tomorrow (aka Live. Die. Repeat.)
21. Bill & Ted Face the Music [16]
22. One Night in Miami [17] E8
**23. La mala educación [18]
**24. You Were Never Really Here [19]
25. The Witches of Eastwick [20]
**26. Tampopo [21]
27. Deadpool 2 – E9
28. Mega Time Squad [22]
29. Predestination [23]
30. To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You [24] E10
31. To All the Boys: Always and Forever [25] E11
32. Blood Punch [26]
**33. Triangle [27]
34. The Map of Tiny Perfect Things [28]
35. The Fare [29]
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March
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44. Koko-di Koko-da [36]
45. Hurok [37]
**46. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006) [38]
47. A Day (Ha-ru) [39]
48. Arrival – E14
49. Game Over (2019) [40]
50. Reset [41]
51. Run Lola Run
52. Groundhog Day – E15
53. Boss Level [42]
54. Time After Time [43] E16
55. Looper
56. Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel
57. Timecrimes
58. MLK/FBI [44] E17
59. Synchronicity [45]
60. Time Bandits
61. Galaxy Quest – E18
62. Happy Accidents [46]
63. Paddington – E19
64. Peggy Sue Got Married [47]
65. About Time – E20
66. Slaughterhouse-Five [48]
**67. Mirai [49]
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April
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68. Fireworks (2017) [50]
69. Adjustment Bureau – E21
**70. Your Name [51]
**71. Secret [52]
72. Back to the Future – E23
**73. Nobody [53]
74. Synchronic [54]
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May
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75. The Last Blockbuster [55]
76. Space Sweepers [56]
**77. The Mitchells vs. the Machines [57] E24
78. I Care a Lot [58]
**79. Minari [59] E25
80. In the Shadow of the Moon [60]
81. 21 Jump Street
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June
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82. My Octopus Teacher [61] E26
83. Hunt for the Wilderpeople
84. Raya and the Last Dragon [62] E27
85. The Aristocrats [63]
**86. In the Heights [64] E28
87. Step Brothers
**88. The Sparks Brothers [65](1)
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July
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89. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
90. America: The Motion Picture [66]
91. Blade Runner 2049
92. Black Widow [67] (2) E29
93. No Sudden Move [68]
**94. Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain [69] (3) E30
95. A Glitch in the Matrix [70]
96. Office Space
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August
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97. Barb and Star Go to Vista del Mar [71]
**98. The Suicide Squad [72] (4)
99. Fear Street: Part One – 1994 [73]
100. Demolition Man
**101. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) [74]
102. The Game
**103. Hard Eight [75]
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September
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**104. Luca [76]
**105. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings [77] (5) E31
**106. Police Story 2 [78]
**107. Moonstruck [79] E32
108. Time Lapse [80]
109. Hellraiser [81]
110. Seven Stages to Achieve Eternal Bliss By Passing Through the Gateway Chosen By the Holy Storsh [82]
111. Halloween (2018) [83]
112. Freaky [84]
**113. The Brood [85]
114. Coco – E33
115. Malignant [86]
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October
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116. A Quiet Place: Part II [87]
117. A Quiet Place – E34
**118. Werewolves Within [88]
119. Crawl [89]
120. Time Trap [90]
**121. Session 9 [91]
122. A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors [92]
123. Muppets Haunted Mansion [93] E35
124. [REC]2 – [94]
125. No Time to Die [95](6) E36
126. Candyman (2021) [96]
**127. The French Dispatch [97] (7) E37
128. Land of the Dead [98]
129. Donnie Darko
**130. Dune [99] (8) E38
**131. Hush [100]
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November
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**132. Last Night in Soho [101] (9)
133. Timecop
**134. The Harder They Fall [102]
135. [REC]3 [103]
136. 2067 [104]
137. The Fifth Element
138. Trancers [105]
**139. King of New York [106]
140. Super 8
141. Eternals [107] (10) E39
142. Sound of My Voice
143. Rush [108] E40
**144. Klute [109]
145. Catch Me If You Can – E41
**146. Licorice Pizza [110] (11)
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December
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147. Darkman
148. Star Trek: First Contact
**149. The Last Black Man in San Francisco [111] E42
150. Yes, God, Yes [112]
151. Free Guy [113] E43
152. Paddington 2 – E44
153. Grindhouse: Planet Terror [114]
154. Clue – E45
155. Murder on the Orient Express (1974) [115]
**156. Spider-Man: No Way Home [116] (12)
**157. Tampopo – E46
**158. Street Gang: How We Got To Sesame Street [117] E47
159. Get Shorty
**160. CODA [118] E48
161. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives [119]
**162. Encanto [120] E49
163. Batman – E50
164. The Matrix Resurrections [121]
165. Inception – E51
166. Shaft [122]
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