Zoë Rose Bryant has written 507 reviews for films during 2021.

  • Don't Look Up

    Don't Look Up

    ★★★★½

    I’m not here to fight about this film - since the conversation has already descended into chaos and I don’t think anyone’s minds can be changed at this point - but I just want to reiterate how well the movie’s resolution works in my eyes. Whatever your misgivings may be with the comedy that comes before, I think it’s almost impossible to deny the feeling of that final scene, and it’s easily the most effective beat of the entire film.…

  • Licorice Pizza

    Licorice Pizza

    ★★★★★

    I get so sad every time the Benny Safdie segment starts because I realize this is almost over and I just… wish it would never end? I’ve said it a million times (and probably already in one of these reviews), but I literally wish I could live in this film forever. Y’all can have your Hogwarts or Middle-earth or [insert fan-favorite fictional world here], but give me PTA’s specific vision of the San Fernando Valley in the 1970s, and I’m…

  • American Underdog

    American Underdog

    ★★★½

    The biggest plot twist of 2021 is me actually liking this but if anyone asks I’ll deny it (then again maybe it’s just because I would literally go to war for Academy Award Winner Anna Paquin)

    2021 Ranked

  • CODA

    CODA

    ★★★★½

  • Don't Look Up

    Don't Look Up

    ★★★★½

    (Sorry. Still love it.)

    2021 Ranked
    Adam McKay Ranked

  • Licorice Pizza

    Licorice Pizza

    ★★★★★

    There are moments when I’m watching this where I think “Is this the best movie ever made?”

    And you know what? It might be 😌

    Favorites
    2021 Ranked
    Paul Thomas Anderson Ranked

  • A Journal for Jordan

    A Journal for Jordan

    ★★½

    Honestly, it’s nowhere near as bad as I was expecting, but that doesn’t mean it’s all that good either.

    A Journal for Jordan
    takes a stirring true story and adapts it for the big screen in the most maudlin manner possible, and, as such, its sugary sweet sentimentality can often feel at odds with the very dark drama being depicted. The production values are likewise pretty poor (it can’t counter those “Hallmark movie” critiques), and it’s obscenely overlong at nearly…

  • Hustlers

    Hustlers

    ★★★★★

    It’s a Christmas movie.

    2019 Ranked

  • The King's Man

    The King's Man

    ★★★½

    The King’s Man is nowhere near the bombastic brilliance of the first film but leagues above the atrocious dreck known as The Golden Circle, and y’know what… sometimes that’s enough! Sure, it doesn’t rewrite the rulebook for spy films the way the original did, but it’s not really trying to do that either? It’s content telling this smaller but still cinematically satisfying story that melds the spy and war film genres, and while the plotting can at times feel a…

  • Spider-Man: No Way Home

    Spider-Man: No Way Home

    ★★★★

    This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

    Still not sure that this deserves a Best Picture nomination, but… it does get better with each subsequent viewing, and I will never tire of seeing it with a packed audience. I’ll admit a lot of my initial emotions were fueled by my cynicism about what the film represents vs. what it actually is, and when I let that go, I have an absolute blast. Still really hard to reconcile with the death of any theatrical release that isn’t a superhero film, but that’s not Spider-Man’s fault!

    And, Andrew Garfield MVP. Always and forever.

    2021 Ranked
    Spider-Man Ranked
    Marvel Cinematic Universe Ranked

  • The Matrix Resurrections

    The Matrix Resurrections

    ★★★½

    The Matrix Resurrections takes some time to find its footing - and I do feel like the second act could’ve been stronger, as that’s when you really feel the film’s length - but when it hits its stride, it SOARS. Specifically, Lana Wachowski’s subversive storytelling is as enthralling as ever, expanding the franchise in fascinating fashion with creative meta commentary on the series’ legacy in pop culture and on the industry’s incessant desire to mine the past for new content…

  • Hawkeye

    Hawkeye

    ★★★★

    Well, what fun this was. At the start, I was initially worried that Hawkeye would be a bit too “small-scale” (and despite often searching for smaller stories like this in the MCU, it’s still important that there are some stakes), but I felt that it thankfully quickly picked up, almost entirely due to the compelling chemistry between the cast, with no weak links to be found. I’ve never been a huge fan of Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye - moreso because of…