After the year that wasn’t in 2020, 2021 saw the return to the movies. Before we can look and talk about the good of ’21, we should get the bad out of the way. The following ten films represent for me the very worse films I regrettably sat through last year.
Let’s start with…
10. The King’s Man
There was so much potential in this third installment of the Kingsmen franchise. However, it was so over the top even for this series and uneven in its storytelling that it failed to hold my attention.
9. Unforgivable
A Netflix original, this was a tough call due to Sandra Bullock’s performance. This is a classic case of a well-acted performance lost in a muddy plot that played it too safe instead of exploring the darker side of humanity.
8. Don’t Look Up
Here is another Netflix original with a stellar cast led by Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence. So, what could go wrong you ask? This is Hollywood getting on their preverbal soap box to satirically show how jaded we all are in a time of crisis and impending doom. Honestly, this is something we can see every day just by going to the supermarket or post office etc.
7. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City
Much like The King’s Man, Resident Evil had all the tools to be a fun adventure film like its predecessors. Unfortunately its quite boring and disappointing. If I was you, I would stick to the earlier films for your Resident Evil fix.
6. Clifford
I wanted to like this but it reminded me too much of the Tom and Jerry live action film that came out months earlier. Young children should like it but parents will be looking at the watch or phone to see how much longer they must endure the computer-animated big red dog.
5. The Many Saints of Newark
I am probably in the minority when I say that The Sopranos is one of the most overrated series of all time. Whew… there I said it. There are a lot of inside jokes that some movie goers probably won’t understand or get. This is the first of many mistakes by the filmmakers. It’s a prequel that seems to pander solely to those who are fans of the HBO series and not open to introducing it to new potential viewers. The script should have been whacked to save us all.
4. The Unholy
Here is another film I wanted to like but lazy writing doomed this horror film almost from the start. Once again so much potential with its premise. Unfortunately the half-ass delivery of that premise led to this films major disappointment.
3. Spiral: From the Book of Saw
Torture porn just isn’t my thing. As much as I like Chris Rock as a performer, even Chris can’t save this film from itself. Spiral was meant to be a reboot of the popular Saw franchise. It tries too hard however to be more clever and shocking to its inspiration but it fails in a predicable manner.
2. Cinderella
As a Amazon Prime original, this was a downright painful and bland reimagining of the classic story. Lead Camila Cabello is certainly talented so it is safe to say her future is bright. I recommend the animated classic, the Disney live action that came out a few years back or even Ever After starring Drew Barrymore for a more fulfilling Cinderella tale.
1. Space Jam: A New Legacy
I am not going to compare a mediocre original to this ill-conceived reboot. A New Legacy is both pointless and unfair. It was pointless to be made and unfair to those who wasted their time seeing it. As for LeBron James’ acting, the only thing I will say is, his acting makes Michael Jordan’s baseball career seem Hall of Fame worthy.
There you have it, the bottom of the barrel films of 2021. While some of these films may be on your list as well, there are others that can easily be added to it. The beauty of films is the subjective nature in which they impact us.
May the Dork be with you,
JPB
The Dork Knight
