Newton’s third law of motion states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and the same can be said for movies, so seeing as my previous blog post ranked my ten favourite films of last year it is only fitting that I counter-act that with my least favourite films from 2021.
As I’ve stated before, when I create these ranking posts the main driving force in my decision making process is not the technical aspects of film-making but rather based on how much I enjoyed – or in this case, didn’t enjoy – watching the film.
10. Spider-Man: No Way Home
Rather than focusing on a solid story and a well-rounded out villain, Spider-Man: No Way Home focused instead on paying lip service to the fans, clouding the two and a half hour runtime with a barely controlled mess of characters, easter eggs and teasers. The hubby and I left the cinema feeling incredibly disappointed but, looking at the responses and ratings on the likes of Letterboxd and Rotten Tomatoes, it seems we are definitely in the minority.
However, I do remember feeling the same way about Avengers: Endgame but enjoying it much more following a rewatch about a year after the initial release, so I have ranked No Way Home a little higher than I think it actually deserves on the hopeful assumption that it will watch better the second time round.
9. The King’s Man
This was a difficult one to rank, on its own The King’s Man is a solid war drama with a comedic edge and ultimately was a pleasant enough watch in its own right. However, when you consider it as part of the Kingsman franchise as a whole, it misses the mark completely suffering from a lack of the chaotic energy and glorious absurdity that made the first film so darn good.
Read my full review – here.
8. Things Heard & Seen
This mystery drama starring James Norton and Amanda Seyfried had the potential to be a really good psychological thriller about the decline of a marriage and the unravelling of a psychopath’s carefully constructed persona but, for me, the supernatural element threw the film out of balance and ultimately ruined the overall viewing experience.
Read my full review – here.
7. Run
As with Things Heard & Seen, Run failed to capitalise on the strength its female lead, in this case Sarah Paulson delivers a captivating portrayal of a doting mother and simmering psychopath but the story, written and directed by Aneesh Chaganty, doesn’t do her performance the justice it deserves.
Read my full review – here.
6. Woman In The Window
There seems to be a bit of a trend here… This time it is Joe Wrights’ The Woman In The Window that takes a strong female lead, along with a handful of other big names, and expects them to turn a poorly written script into a something worth watching. And although Amy Adams makes the most of what she is given, the strength of her performance failed to make this anything more than a middle of the road thriller.
Read my full review – here.
5. Army Of The Dead
After being out of the limelight for a few years, 2021 brought Zack Snyder’s name back onto everyone’s lips unfortunately though his $90 million blended heist/zombie movie The Army of the Dead was a disappointing tale of too much style and not enough substance. That being said, it did break Netflix streaming records and spawned its own universe, with a prequel released less than six months later, so my opinion should probably be taken with a pinch of salt.
Read my full review – here.
4. Gunpowder Milkshake
With the likes of Karen Gillen, Lena Headey, Michelle Yeoh and Carla Gugino in the roster, Gunpowder Milkshake should have been a full-on feminist romp of a movie but once again, we were left with a film that, despite the kickass gunslinging, tomahawk-wielding badassery of its cast, was more style than substance. Not enough flavour to have you ordering again.
3. Without Remorse
Fans of Tom Clancy’s novels, which the movie was based on, may have felt differently about this action thriller but I can only base my opinion on my viewing experience and the fact that I genuinely can’t remember what Stefano Sollima’s Without Remorse was about is probably justification enough for its place here in my worst films of 2021.
2. Beckett
I can sum up my opinion of Ferdinando Cito Filomarino’s crime drama Beckett in one word – dull – but in all honesty, I can’t put my finger on what I disliked about it. I guess there are some films that we gel with and others that we just don’t, unfortunately, I just did not get on at all with this one.
Read my full review – here.
1. Zack Snyder’s Justice League
If my inclusions of Spider-Man: No Way Home and The King’s Man in this list went against the flow of popular opinion then me putting Zack Snyder’s Justice League in the top spot is the cherry on the top. At a little over four (!) hours long, the long-called for Snyder cut of the DC ensemble film completely rewrote and redesigned much of the 2017 version – which I wasn’t particularly enamoured by in the first place. Whilst many lauded the changes, the rewritten script and extra storylines dragged the film out so much that the story felt watered down and the action sparse. Definitely not worth the time taken to watch it.
So there you have it, my most disappointing watches of 2021. So, what were your least favourite films from last year?
