BEST MOVIES OF 2021 (Lists)

[oscar jubis]

The best 2021 release I have seen so far is a documentary series directed (co-written, co-produced) by Raoul Peck and available on HBO. The last time I was so enthralled by a television series was in 2017 (Twin Peaks by David Lynch). The last documentary that impressed me as much was also directed by the Haiti-born Peck (I am Not Your Negro in 2018) but it is more specific and less ambitious than this new one. I have no doubt that the well-deserved reception to this film resulted in HBO making such a huge commitment: it's over four hours and "looks expensive" (detailed period recreations, for example). The title of the series alludes to Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" and provides a sort of nutshell explanation of Western history in the past 5 or 6 centuries:
Exterminate All the Brutes.
The four episodes are titled:
1)The Disturbing Confidence of Ignorance
2)Who the fuck is Columbus?
3)Killing at a Distance or... How I Thoroughly Enjoyed the Outing
4)The Bright Colors of Facism