Yesterday I focused on critically-lauded 2021 films, and today I’m swinging in the opposite direction, highlighting the year’s best action movies.
That’s not to say the movies below were poorly reviewed. Some did quite well with critics. But these are movies that don’t require much deep thought, ones best enjoyed with a bucket full of popcorn.
Here are the ones I liked most, in alphabetical order:
I’ve been itching to write about the 2021 movie year, including posts on favorite performances, best musical moments, and my top ten list. But several must-see titles have stubbornly remained elusive, and I’m hoping to fit most of them in before locking things down.
As of this writing, I have seen 82 movies from last year, 10 more than I saw in 2020. Certainly a respectable showing. But here are some of the unseen films I believe might have a shot at one of those lists: C’mon C’mon, Cyrano, Drive My Car, Flee, Petite Maman, Red Rocket, and The Worst Person in the World.
I’ll give myself a few weeks to catch up with those before finalizing anything. If the Oscars aren’t until March 27, I figure I can give myself at least through the end of February.
Ah, nothing like a little Bob Marley to close out the weekend. ‘Waiting in Vain,’ a slow jam exploration of unrequited love, appeared on Marley’s 1977 album Exodus.
My knowledge of Marley’s discography is restricted to the greatest hits collection Legend, the top-selling reggae album of all-time. That record collects all of Marley’s best-known hits but has been criticized for leaving out his more challenging political work.
Ellie Goulding returns to the blog, two and a half years since her last Random Weekend appearance. The English singer-songwriter released four albums between 2010 and 2020, but her debut Lights remains the only one I’ve heard.
I haven’t really heard this one either, to be honest. Lights is in my iTunes library because my wife bought it back in 2011. I’ve never shared her appreciation of Goulding (and, despite her early interest, I don’t think she has listened to this album in years).
This week’s final Encanto selection is ‘What Else Can I Do?,’ the awakening song of eldest sister Isabela Madrigal (Diane Guerrero). Isabela is the perfect, pretty princess, and this track finds her breaking through the facade and embracing her pricklier side.
Lin-Manuel Miranda brings a neat pop-rock vibe to this track (channeling the “90s rock en español movement,” he says) and the film’s animators do a great job bringing the song to vivid life.
Meet Me In Montauk 