Just like music, there are other forms of entertainment, and maybe the most common media are movies, so of course, we had to get together a small list of recommendations for you. If you’ve missed any of these titles because you’re living under the rocks or were in retirement far from society, you need to see them and live the experience while they’re still fresh.
1. In the Heights
Starting with a movie adaptation of a beloved Broadway musical, In the Heights premiered both on HBO max and theaters this year, receiving an overwhelmingly good critic for both the acting and the music made by Lin-Manuel Mirada. In this movie, we follow our main character, Usnavi, who tells a story about Washington Heights to four children, about love, fear, family, and the importance of following your dreams, no matter how far or weird or complicated they seem.
We met and fall in love with many different characters in Washington Heights, knowing their struggles, personal fears, and personal dreams. Everyone in this movie has something to offer, and every one of them gets to tell their side of the story so that you can relate.
2. Encanto
Encanto premiered recently, the newest animated film from
Walt Disney Pictures, this time being inspired in Colombian culture, with original music made by Lin-Manuel Miranda as well, following the story of Mirabel, a woman with no gift, in a family full of magical abilities. We follow her in her journey, learning to love herself with her self-perceived flaws, as she saves her family, that’s being threatened and can maybe lose it all at the end.
It is endearing, heartwarming, and full of representation for anyone who has lived the Latino experience, definitely worth watching it with your family or friends.
3. West Side Story
Another beloved Broadway musical that received a movie adaptation this year was West Side Story, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler, who is said to star as Snow White in the future live-action from Disney
The movie follows Tony and Maria, that fall in love, and spark a fight between two gangs, to have power over the streets of Manhattan’s West Side. With a story worth a tear or two, maybe more, if you’re emotional. If you love musicals, West Side Story is a quality one, and you might love it too.
4. Eternals
After winning the Oscar for Best Director, Chloe Zhao went on to direct a new movie for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this time, with a different approach to what we know as a superhero movie. Eternals is more about the hero’s journey and their stories than the action, explosions, and everything we know as a superhero movie to date.
With a renowned ensemble, with actors like Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, and Angelina Jolie, this is arguably one of the best movies in the MCU if you are looking for something fresh and out of the pattern from the last movies. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, that’s for sure, but if it is yours, it will become one of your favorite movies.
5. I Care A Lot
At the beginning of the year, back in February, Netflix announced a new movie starring Rosamund Pike and Eiza Gonzalez, with many other known actors, like Peter Dinklage, and people really didn’t have any expectations for this movie, but it turned out great.
The film received a lot of critical acclamation because of the movie’s weird charm: there’s not a hero to root for. Like in real life, people are not necessarily good every time. There are bad people in this world, and it was a strange reality check following Marla’s story, a scammer. This movie makes you realize bad people can make great protagonists.
