Moviegoers Returned To Theaters With Enthusiasm

 The world of movies was met with a roller-coaster ride in 2021.

There were still a limited number of films in theaters in January, but fans had many options throughout the year to see movies from all genres across multiple platforms. As the year progressed, moviegoers returned to theaters with enthusiasm. Here’s a look back at some of the best films of the year.



‘Cruella’


“Cruella” tells the origin story of its eponymous Disney villain, Cruella de Vil (Emma Stone). Contrary to the colors of her hair, Cruella’s rise of infamy is not so black and white. Stone’s performance evolving from ambitious thief and fashion designer, Estella, to Cruella — the bold yet semi-principled criminal — is spectacular, simultaneously humanizing the character and peeling back layers of her perhaps originally unknown to audiences.


By the film’s end, it’s easy to empathize with Cruella and question whether she deserves the title of a villain, especially compared to the ruthless Baroness (Emma Thompson). Cruella is the hero of her own story; the movie’s other aspects complement this with stunning costumes, hair and makeup design, and a soundtrack that matches the film’s edgy tone. “Cruella” is a must watch that exceeds expectations and, fortunately, already has a sequel in development.



‘In the Heights’


A fun musical adaptation that any “Hamilton” fan will enjoy, “In the Heights” highlights the Washington Heights neighborhood in New York City. The film’s music — like with “Hamilton” — features a singing-rap style that’s become synonymous with its composer and previous star, Lin-Manuel Miranda. Catchy tunes fill the movie, like the lighthearted, upbeat “Benny’s Dispatch” from Benny (Corey Hawkins) and Nina (Leslie Grace). Fans will be on their feet during Melissa Barrerra’s “It Won’t Be Long Now” and Miranda’s “Piragua” and enjoy Anthony Ramos as Usnavi, leading “96,000” and “Carnaval Del Barrio” with the neighborhood’s ensemble cast.



‘Free Guy’


“Free Guy” is the kind of film that’s become uncommon in the cinema world of sprawling franchises, sequels and spinoffs. The Ryan Reynolds-led comedy crafts its own original story about Guy (Reynolds), a non-player character (NPC) — ordinarily controlled by a computer program, not a real person — living in the background of “Free City,” an open-world video game on the verge of destruction. When he meets the avatar of Millie — a real-life “Free City” player — Guy breaks out of his routine and blurs the line between programmed code and artificial intelligence to save his world.


The plot of “Free Guy” is unlike any other, and the film’s self-awareness of its uniqueness adds to comedy that Reynolds naturally creates. The movie’s attempt of originality doesn’t stop it from taking advantage of A-list cameos or pop culture tie-ins, like Guy using Captain America’s shield, a lightsaber and a Fortnite ax in the final act. 


Reynolds’ performance is stellar, and Comer and Joe Keery are standouts among the rest of the cast; they got to branch out from their respective fame from “Killing Eve” and “Stranger Things.” “Free Guy” received great pandemic-era success in August, and its arrival on Disney+ in February will further expose viewers to its brilliant stars and memorable story.



‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’


For his first feature film, Simu Liu’s performance as the star of Marvel’s “Shang-Chi” is impressive. His and [Nora] Awkwafina’s chemistry as their characters, Shaun/Shang-Chi and Katy — whether it remains platonic or becomes romantic — makes them the perfect duo to lead the movie and future installments. They’re exceptionally funny together, which lifts the emotional weight of a darker film and origin story that Tony Leung’s Wenwu perpetuates as he trains Shang-Chi to become an assassin after his mother dies.


The representation is phenomenal in front of and behind the camera, which audiences see in the predominantly Asian cast and crew. The Disney+ “Assembled” docuseries shows the film’s development and helps the audience appreciate all the people that made the film come to life — especially as production encountered obstacles due to COVID-19.


As a whole, outstanding performances from its core cast, a rising score and beautiful cinematography and visual effects make “Shang-Chi” a top-tier film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). A sequel was recently confirmed with returning director Destin Daniel Cretton, as well as a Disney+ show, which might follow up on the post-credits scene teasing Xialing’s (Meng’er Zhang) takeover of the Ten Rings organization.


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“Spider-Man: No Way Home”


By far, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” is the best movie of the year, the best Spider-Man film in history and perhaps one the greatest Marvel movies ever. That might sound like an exaggeration, but it’s really not. 


Without spoiling it, “No Way Home” follows Peter after he’s unmasked as Spider-Man and encounters iconic villains from across the multiverse, including some from Tobey Maguire’s and Andrew Garfield’s previous Spider-Man franchises. The fact that the filmmakers could pull off everything they did in its sprawling story is admirable. The movie was plagued with spoilers and leaks, yet the in-theater energy was unparalleled to anything else released this year, with audience reactions going viral.


Tom Holland gives his finest take yet on the web-slinging hero in the perfect closure to Peter Parker’s character arc since his 2016 MCU introduction in “Captain America: Civil War.” Thankfully, “No Way Home” doesn’t allow Doctor Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) inclusion to overshadow Peter’s critical story, and it makes greater use of Zendaya’s portrayal of MJ, who delivers as many funny moments as she does heartbreaking ones. The film is absolutely worth seeing in theaters — multiple times, even. With an open-ended conclusion and at least one more guaranteed appearance from Holland, Peter Parker’s story is “no way” over.


With “No Way Home” filling theaters once again and crossing the $1 billion global box office mark, it hopefully serves as an indicator for the future. 


This year had a lot to offer moviegoers, including several honorable mentions like “Luca,” “CODA” and “No Time to Die.” A full slate of exciting films approaches in 2022, with new stories for fans to anticipate.

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