Metacritic's Best Films of 2020
Below are the 2020 movies that critics rated most highly, according to Metacritic. Which of these do you think is the best? If you haven't seen any yet, which would you most like to see?
'Interested in seeing any that you haven't? Viewing information is provided beneath each movie.
Except for the first three, movies are listed in alphabetical order. Not any are listed here in order of Metascore.
There were so many ties that several of their picks couldn't fit below but were just a few points away from many of the films on this list here, including well known movies like 'Soul' and 'Da 5 Bloods.' See that full list here at Metacritic's Top 50 List. The list below is current as of February 26, 2021.
After voting, feel free to discuss here.
Vote in these related polls: Metacritic's Best Films of 2019, Metacritic's Best Films of 2018, and Metacritic's Best Films of 2017
'Interested in seeing any that you haven't? Viewing information is provided beneath each movie.
Except for the first three, movies are listed in alphabetical order. Not any are listed here in order of Metascore.
There were so many ties that several of their picks couldn't fit below but were just a few points away from many of the films on this list here, including well known movies like 'Soul' and 'Da 5 Bloods.' See that full list here at Metacritic's Top 50 List. The list below is current as of February 26, 2021.
After voting, feel free to discuss here.
Vote in these related polls: Metacritic's Best Films of 2019, Metacritic's Best Films of 2018, and Metacritic's Best Films of 2017
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- DirectorThomas KailStarsLin-Manuel MirandaPhillipa SooLeslie Odom Jr.The real life of one of America's foremost founding fathers and first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. Captured live on Broadway from the Richard Rodgers Theater with the original Broadway cast.Netflix
- DirectorChloé ZhaoStarsFrances McDormandDavid StrathairnLinda MayA woman in her sixties, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.Amazon Prime
- DirectorGeorge C. WolfeStarsViola DavisChadwick BosemanGlynn TurmanTensions rise when trailblazing blues singer Ma Rainey and her band gather at a recording studio in Chicago in 1927.Netflix
- DirectorWeixi ChenHao WuAnonymousRaw and intimate, this documentary captures the struggles of patients and frontline medical professionals battling the COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan.Apple TV+ and DOGWOOF internationally; for information by country, go to 76daysfilm.com
- DirectorBonni CohenJon ShenkStarsMaggie NicholsGina NicholsJohn NicholsFollow the Indianapolis Star reporters that broke the story about USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's abuse and hear from gymnasts like Maggie Nichols.Netflix
- DirectorKantemir BalagovStarsViktoria MiroshnichenkoVasilisa PerelyginaAndrey Bykov1945, Leningrad. WWII has devastated the city, demolishing its buildings and leaving its citizens in tatters, physically and mentally. Two young women search for meaning and hope in the struggle to rebuild their lives amongst the ruins.Amazon Prime
- DirectorEmmanuel AdjeiIbra AkeBlitz BazawuleStarsBeyoncéTina KnowlesJay-ZVisual album from Beyoncé inspired by 'The Lion King'.Disney+
- DirectorAmanda McBaineJesse MossStarsBen FeinsteinSteven GarzaRobert MacDougallA thousand 17-year-old boys from Texas join together to build a representative government from the ground up.Apple TV+
- DirectorFrederick WisemanStarsMarty WalshA look at Boston's city government, covering racial justice, housing, climate action, and more.PBS, which includes streaming it for free of the PBS website
- DirectorAlexander NanauStarsDan Alexandru CondreaLiviu IoluRazvan LutacDirector Alexander Nanau follows a crack team of investigators at the Romanian newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor as they try to uncover a vast health-care fraud that enriched moguls and politicians and led to the deaths of innocent citizens.Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, Google Play, YouTube
- DirectorJames LebrechtNicole NewnhamStarsJames LebrechtLionel Je'WoodyardJoseph O'ConorDown the road from Woodstock, a revolution blossomed at a ramshackle summer camp for teenagers with disabilities, transforming their lives and igniting a landmark movement.Netflix
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsDavid ByrneJacqueline AcevedoGustavo Di DalvaSpike Lee documents the former Talking Heads frontman's brilliant, timely 2019 Broadway show, based on his recent album and tour of the same name.HBO, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime
- DirectorKirsten JohnsonStarsMichael HilowAna HoffmanDick JohnsonA daughter helps her father prepare for the end of his life.Netflix
- DirectorGabriel MascaroStarsDira PaesJulio MachadoAntonio PastichA woman uses her bureaucratic job to convince divorcing couples to stay together and is utterly committed to getting pregnant by her husband in a future of dance parties, ritualistic orgies and fundamentalist Christianity.medium.com
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsNaomi AckieJade AnoukaTemirlan Blaev12 year-old Kingsley is held back by the unofficial segregation policies at his school.IMDb and Amazon Prime, where you can watch 'Education,' list this as an episode of a miniseries called Small Axe, directed by Steve McQueen. Metacritic, however, considers Small Axe a collection of five films, four of which made it onto their "Best of 2020."
- DirectorKelly ReichardtStarsAlia ShawkatJohn MagaroDylan SmithA skilled cook has traveled west and joined a group of fur trappers in Oregon, though he only finds true connection with a Chinese immigrant also seeking his fortune. Soon the two collaborate on a successful business.Hulu, Showtime, Sling TV, Amazon Prime, Fubo TV, YouTube
- DirectorVictor KossakovskyStarsGundaDocumentary looks at the daily life of a pig and its farm animal companions: two cows and a one-legged chicken.To be released March 25, 2021 in theaters in some countries; go to thevore.com for DVD and streaming information
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsDennis BovellSaffron CoomberFrankie FoxA single evening at a house party in 1980s West London sets the scene, developing intertwined relationships against a background of violence, romance and music.Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, iTunes, Google Play, YouTube
IMDb lists this as an episode of a miniseries called Small Axe. Metacritic, however, considers Small Axe a collection of five films, four of which made it onto their "Best of 2020." - DirectorSteve McQueenStarsGary BeadleDarren BraithwaiteRichie CampbellMangrove tells this true story of The Mangrove Nine, who clashed with London police in 1970. The trial that followed was the first judicial acknowledgment of behavior motivated by racial hatred within the Metropolitan Police.IMDb and Amazon Prime, where you can watch 'Mangrove,' list this as an episode of a miniseries called Small Axe. Metacritic, however, considers Small Axe a collection of five films, four of which made it onto their "Best of 2020."
- DirectorLee Isaac ChungStarsSteven YeunHan YeriAlan KimA Korean American family moves to an Arkansas farm in search of its own American dream. Amidst the challenges of new life in the strange and rugged Ozarks, they discover the undeniable resilience of family and what really makes a home.Limited release in theaters in some countries; also streaming at A24films.com, where you can sign up and buy tickets to watch it there.
- DirectorEliza HittmanStarsSidney FlaniganTalia RyderThéodore PellerinA pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy.HBO, HBO Max, Amazon Prime
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsWerner HerzogBruce ChatwinKarin EberhardA journey where the viewer can see Werner Herzog's creative and personal vision which was shared with iconic travel writer Bruce Chatwin, the prolific author of 'In Patagonia' and a champion of the nomadic life.Amazon Prime, YouTube, Vudu, Apple TV+, Google Play
- DirectorKirby DickAmy ZieringStarsSil Lai AbramsJoe BidenTarana BurkeA former hip hop executive decides whether to make public her rape by one of the most powerful men in the music industry.HBO Max
- DirectorS. Leo ChiangYang SunStarsMa DuoTianyi HuangMa KeWhen influential Chinese artist Ma Liang (a.k.a. Maleonn) realizes that his father Ma Ke, an accomplished Peking Opera director, is suffering from Alzheimer's disease, he invites his father to collaborate on his most ambitious project to date - a haunting, magical, autobiographical stage performance featuring life-size mechanical puppets called "Papa's Time Machine". Through the creation of this play, the two men confront their mortality before time runs out and memories are lost forever.Amazon Prime, YouTube, Apple TV+, Google Play
- DirectorSteve McQueenStarsNeal BarryJack BenceStephen BoxerSpotlights the true story of Leroy Logan, who at a young age saw his father assaulted by two policemen, motivating him to join the Metropolitan Police and change their racist attitudes from within.Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, iTunes, Google Play, YouTube
IMDb lists this as an episode of a miniseries called Small Axe. Metacritic, however, considers Small Axe a collection of five films, four of which made it onto their "Best of 2020." - DirectorSasha Joseph NeulingerStarsSasha Joseph NeulingerHenry NevisonHoward NevisonDigging through the vast collection of his father's home videos, a young man reconstructs the unthinkable story of his boyhood and exposes vile abuse passed through generations.Amazon Prime, Vudu, Apple TV+, YouTube
- DirectorGarrett BradleyStarsSibil Fox RichardsonRobert G. RichardsonMahlik RichardsonFox Rich fights for the release of her husband, Rob, who is serving a 60-year sentence in prison.Amazon Prime
- DirectorKiyoshi KurosawaStarsAtsuko MaedaShôta SometaniTokio EmotoA young Japanese woman finds her cautious and insular nature tested when she travels to Uzbekistan to shoot the latest episode of her travel variety show.Pluto TV, Amazon Prime, Vudu, iTunes, YouTube
- DirectorAndrew PattersonStarsSierra McCormickJake HorowitzGail CronauerOne night in New Mexico, in the late 1950s, a switchboard operator and radio DJ discover a strange audio frequency which could change the future forever.Amazon Prime
- DirectorPedro CostaStarsVitalina VarelaVenturaManuel Tavares AlmeidaA Cape Verdean woman navigates her way through Lisbon, following the scanty physical traces her deceased husband left behind and discovering his secret, illicit life.Amazon Prime, Apple TV+
- DirectorDavid FranceStarsOlga BaranovaDavid IsteevRamzan KadyrovA group of activists risk their lives fighting for LGBTQ+ rights in Chechnya.HBO Max, Vudu, Hulu, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play
- DirectorMarielle HellerStarsHeidi SchreckMike IvesonRosdely CiprianLive Broadway cast production of Heidi Schreck's play presenting multiple facets, historical perspectives and personal experiences with the U.S. Constitution.Amazon Prime
- DirectorJoaquín CociñaCristóbal LeónStarsAmalia KassaiRainer KrauseKarina HylandTells the story of Maria, a young woman who takes refuge in a house in southern Chile after escaping from a German colony.Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, Vudu, Apple TV+
- DirectorTomm MooreRoss StewartStarsHonor KneafseyEva WhittakerSean BeanA young apprentice hunter and her father journey to Ireland to help wipe out the last wolf pack. But everything changes when she befriends a free-spirited girl from a mysterious tribe rumored to transform into wolves by night.Apple TV+