2021: Banner Year for Movies
Note: This is NOT my list of Best Films of 2021
One of the interesting facts of this year’s top contenders for major Oscar Awards is their reflection of how much the production and distribution landscapes have changed over the past few years.
Most of the films on my list have been produced and/or distributed by “small” indie companies (A24, Neon) and especially by streaming platforms. (See below).
Titles (A to Z)
Frontrunners
“Belfast” Focus Features
Laura Berwick, Kenneth Branagh, Becca Kovacik, Tamar Thomas
“The Power of the Dog” Netflix
Emile Sherman, Iain Canning, Roger Frappier, Jane Campion, Tanya Seghatchian
“Dune” Warner Bros
Cale Boyter, Joe Caracciolo Jr, Mary Parent, Denis Villeneuve
“West Side Story” 20th Century Studios
Kristie Macosko Krieger, Kevin McCollum, Steven Spielberg
“CODA” Apple Original
Films Philippe Rousselet, Fabrice Gianfermi, Patrick Wachsberger, Jerôme Seydoux
“Drive My Car” Sideshow and Janus Films
Tsuyoshi Gorô, Misaki Kawamura, Osamu Kubota, Sachio Matsushita, Yoshito Nakabe, Keiji Okumura, Jin Suzuki, Akihisa Yamamoto
“King Richard” Warner Bros
Tim White, Trevor White, Will Smith
“Licorice Pizza”
MGM/United Artists Releasing Paul Thomas Anderson, Sara Murphy, JoAnne Sellar, Daniel Lupi
“The Lost Daughter” Netflix
Charlie Dorfman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Osnat Handelsman-Keren, Talia Kleinhendler
“Tick, Tick … Boom!” Netflix
Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Julie Oh
“The Tragedy of Macbeth” Apple Original Films/A24
Joel Coen, Robert Graf, Frances McDormand
Strong Contenders
“Being the Ricardos” Amazon Studios
Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch
“Nightmare Alley” Searchlight Pictures
J. Miles Dale, Guillermo del Toro, Bradley Cooper
“Don’t Look Up” Netflix
Adam McKay, Kevin Messick, Scott Stuber, Betsy Koch, Todd Schulman
“C’mon C’mon” A24
Chelsea Barnard, Lila Yacoub, Andrea Longacre-White
“A Hero” Amazon Studios
Asghar Farhadi, Alexandre Mallet-Guy
“The Harder They Fall” Netflix
Lawrence Bender, Jay-Z, James Lassiter, Jeymes Samuel
“Cyrano” MGM/United Artists Releasing
Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Guy Heeley
“House of Gucci” MGM/United Artists Releasing
Ridley Scott, Giannina Scott, Kevin J. Walsh, Mark Huffam
“Flee” Neon
Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen
Distributors of Top Contenders
20th Century Fox
West Side Story
Searchlight:
Nightmare Alley
Netflix:
Don’t Look Up
The Lost Daughter
The Power of the Dog
Tick, Tick … Boom!
Amazon Studios:
Being the Ricardos
Focus Features:
Belfast
Warner
Dune
King Richard
Apple Original
CODA
Apple Original/A24
The Tragedy of Macbeth
MGM/United Artists Releasing
Licorice Pizza
A24
C’Mon, C’Mon
Sideshow and Janus Films
Drive My Car
