The Best of 2021: JBFC Staff's Favorite Films

by JBFC Marketing Associate Paige Grand Pré

2021 was truly a year unlike any other, especially in the film industry. After nearly 14 months of darkness, the JBFC Theater marquee lit up once again this May as we welcomed audiences back to the big screen. What’s kept the JBFC going over the last two years—and the past year in particular—is our staff’s shared passion for film, and our belief in the immeasurable value of a communal viewing experience.

As awards season kicks into high gear, what better way to celebrate the cinematic medium than by highlighting all the films that moved us in 2021? To that end, we’ve compiled “Best of 2021” lists from staff members across the JBFC organization. Featuring a wide range of titles that made us laugh, cry, grow, think, reflect, and cheer, this compilation of lists is a testament to our staff’s undying love for film, and the ways it can bring us together—even when we’ve been apart for so long.

We’ll see you at the movies!

Andrew Jupin, Associate Director of Programming

1. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier
2. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) |  Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
3. Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve
4. The Velvet Underground | Dir. Todd Haynes
5. C’mon C’mon | Dir. Mike Mills

Mary Jo Ziesel, Executive Director

1. CODA | Dir. Sian Heder
2. West Side Story | Dir. Steven Spielberg
3. The Velvet Queen | Dir. Vincent Munier & Marie Amiguet
4. Drive My Car | Dir. Ryusuke Hamaguchi
5. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier

Bradford Burdick, House Manager

1. C’mon C’mon | Dir. Mike Mills
2. Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve
3. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) | Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
4. No Time to Die | Dir. Cary Joji Fukunaga
5. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier

Tara Bongiorno, Customer Service Manager

1. Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve
2. West Side Story | Dir. Steven Spielberg
3. CODA | Dir. Sian Heder
4. tick, tick…BOOM! | Dir. Lin-Manuel Miranda
5. Encanto | Dir. Byron Howard & Jared Bush

Honorable Mentions:
The Velvet Underground | Dir. Todd Haynes
Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) | Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
 

Selena Beaumont, Executive Assistant to the Executive Director & General Manager

1. The Mitchells vs. the Machines | Dir. Michael Rianda
2. Encanto | Dir. Byron Howard & Jared Bush
3. The Green Knight | Dir. David Lowery
4. The Tragedy of Macbeth | Dir. Joel Coen
5. Nightmare Alley | Dir. Guillermo del Toro

Catherine Saraceno, Box Office Staff

1. tick, tick…BOOM! | Dir. Lin-Manuel Miranda
2. The Mitchells vs. the Machines | Dir. Michael Rianda
3. In the Heights | Dir. Jon M. Chu
4. Encanto | Dir. Byron Howard & Jared Bush
5. West Side Story | Dir. Steven Spielberg

Elizabeth Garrigue, Membership Director

1. Julia | Dir. Julie Cohen & Betsy West – She was just so cool. Fun to witness her love of well-prepared food and just good food in general, and to see how she changed the way the US cooked!
2. King Richard | Dir. Reinaldo Marcus Green – An incredible story of toughness, optimism, and faith in a future outcome. He believed and worked hard with his daughters and family to make it all happen.
3. tick, tick…BOOM! | Dir. Lin-Manuel Miranda – Great music and lyrics, fun format for telling the story of a creative genius. If only he were still with us!
4. CODA | Dir. Sian Heder – Great strong loving family dynamics. I’m a sucker for the “she can really sing!” story.
5. The Power of the Dog | Dir. Jane Campion – So powerful! Fantastic acting, gorgeous scenery and score. A mesmerizing, scary tale.

Ian LoCascio, House Manager

1. Annette | Dir. Leos Carax
2. Drive My Car | Dir. Ryusuke Hamaguchi
3. The Power of the Dog | Dir. Jane
4. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier
5. Licorice Pizza | Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson

Honorable Mentions:
Benedetta | Dir. Paul Verhoeven
The Card Counter | Dir. Paul Schrader
Memoria | Dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Paige Grand Pré, Marketing Manager

1. Bo Burnham: Inside | Dir. Bo Burnham – Released at the height of the pandemic, a mere two months before I turned thirty just like Bo, I related to this film so intensely that at first I was alarmed, considering its occasional dark turns. Ultimately, I embraced it: “I’m Turning 30” became my soundtrack to 2021, and the knowledge that there were other people out there feeling the same rollercoaster of emotions as I was during the pandemic—and making beautiful art out of the experience—made my pandemic loneliness subside, even just for a little bit. I’ve watched Inside so many times at this point that I’ve lost count; to me, it represents a new frontier in comedy, one that not only acknowledges but even embraces the darker sides of life, modern existence, and survival in an unprecedented pandemic.
2. Pig | Dir. Michael Sarnoski – A longtime Nicolas Cage fan, I was skeptical when I saw the rave reviews for Pig roll in. But they weren’t just right—they were an understatement. Perhaps Cage’s best role in decades, Pig is a beautiful examination of the relationship between humans and animals, a careful consideration of one’s place in society, and a scathing critique of contemporary culinary and “hipster” culture.
3. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) | Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson – Getting to see this film on the big screen was the closest I’d come to seeing a concert in person during the pandemic, and the experience was so powerful it was damn near a spiritual revelation. Questlove is a genius, full stop.
4. The Green Knight | Dir. David Lowery – I have endless love for David Lowery and Dev Patel, and this film only deepened that respect. A wholesale rejection of the crusading historic epics that bear witness to brave knights’ quests for glory, The Green Knight was a pensive, brooding take on the hero’s journey, one so gorgeous that it often felt like watching a renaissance painting play out on the big screen.
5. The Alpinist | Dir. Peter Mortimer & Nick Rosen – There’s a saying in rock climbing that I’ve always found both awe-inspiring and humbling all at once: “The mountain doesn’t care.” This film considers the fearsome power of nature and its terrifying ambivalence towards human life, but also celebrates what one man can achieve, and honors the beauty of pursuing your life’s passion—however briefly—amidst the staggering beauty of our planet.

Honorable Mentions:
Titane | Dir. Julia Ducournau
Zola | Dir. Janicza Bravo
A Hero | Dir. Asghar Farhadi

Brian Ackerman, Founding Director of Film Programming

1. The Velvet Underground | Dir. Todd Haynes
2. The Velvet Queen | Dir. Vincent Munier & Marie Amiguet
3. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) | Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
4. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier
5. The Green Knight | Dir. David Lowery

Honorable Mentions:
Bergman Island | Dir. Mia Hansen-Løve
This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection | Dir. Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese
Drive My Car | Dir. Ryusuke Hamaguchi
Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve

Jesse LoCascio, Projectionist, AV Coordinator

1. Boiling Point | Dir. Philip Barantini – Unfolding in real time, and holding the audience captive inside the kitchen of London’s most cut-throat restaurant, this one-take wonder of a film is my absolute favorite of last year—a merciless, propulsive viewing experience, accentuated by razor sharp technical execution.
2. Licorice Pizza | Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson – The type of exuberant cinematic spectacle that only comes along once every decade or so, flawlessly directed—as well as photographed—by one of our great auteurs, and featuring two of the most beautifully unvarnished performances you’re likely ever to see from untrained actors. Not to mention, that soundtrack is absolutely aces.
3. Benedetta | Dir. Paul Verhoeven – Gleefully blasphemous and genuinely thought-provoking in a manner that only the great Paul Verhoeven could deliver.
4. Titane | Dir. Julia Ducournau – Singularly original, deeply disturbing, and thrillingly bonkers. Unlike anything else I’ve seen in years.
5. The Lost Daughter | Dir. Maggie Gyllenhaal – One of the strongest and most challenging directorial debuts of recent memory, rife with uneasy vibes all the way through, brought to stunning life by a career-best Olivia Colman.

Adrienne Frank, Film Programming Coordinator

1. Flee | Dir. Jonas Poher Rasmussen – Flee was the first movie I watched at the virtual Sundance Film Festival in January, 2021. We were almost a year into the pandemic, I was watching it on a laptop in my apartment that I had spent way too much time in, and I was feeling pretty disenchanted with just about everything. Then I hit play and Flee reminded me why I fell in love with movies in the first place. It’s a story that could only be told through film, as it utilizes animation, archival footage, and voice-over to create an unforgettable experience. It’s also a deeply human story that showcases the power that comes with being able to tell one’s own story. In that moment, Flee reminded me why film matters—as an art form, as a haven for storytellers, as a way to feel human connection even when we’re apart—and it’s a movie that, over a year later, still casts a spell over me.
2. West Side Story | Dir. Steven Spielberg
3. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) |  Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
4. Zola | Dir. Janicza Bravo
5. Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve

The Best of the Best: The JBFC’s Top 5 of 2021

Pulling together every staffer’s list, with rankings weighted based on the film rankings from each, here are the 2021 films that came out on top:

1. Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) | Dir. Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson
2. Tie: West Side Story | Dir. Steven Spielberg & Dune | Dir. Denis Villeneuve
3. The Worst Person in the World | Dir. Joachim Trier
4. Tie: tick, tick…BOOM! | Dir. Lin-Manuel Miranda & CODA | Sian Heder
5. The Mitchells vs. the Machines | Dir. Michael Rianda

A number of the films mentioned above are still showing at the JBFC! Check out our current film programming schedule to see what’s playing.

All caught up on 2021 films, and want to join us for the Oscars on March 27? Tickets are now on sale for our Oscars Watch Party!

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