(Photo by Macall Polay/©Warner Bros.)
Rotten Tomatoes is collecting every new Certified Fresh movie into one list, creating our guide to the best movies of 2021. Among them you’ll find Blockbusters (Shang-Chi), documentaries (Lily Topples the World), awards contenders (The Green Knight), the cutting-edge in horror (The Night House).
Movies achieve Certified Fresh status by maintaining a steady Tomatometer score of at least 75% after a minimum number of reviews, with that number depending on how the movie was released. For wide releases (of which there were significantly fewer this year, as you can imagine), the minimum number of reviews is 80. For streaming or limited release movies, that number is 40. And finally, it’s 20 reviews for movies premiering on television. Across all release types, each movie needs at least five of its reviews to be published by Top Critics. Once a movie goes Certified Fresh, the only way to lose it is by dropping below 70%.
After the world-altering year of 2020, critics and audiences and studio heads alike are navigating 2021 with its evolving distribution models and industry standards. So far, streaming continues to deliver the goods straight to the people while theaters have now reopened in earnest, and are delivering some big hits (Free Guy, Black Widow, and yes, Shang-Chi).
Read on for the best movies of 2021, ranked by Tomatometer! (And check out the current best movies of 2022, or explore other years with our guides on 2020, 2019, and 2018.) —Alex Vo
#243
Adjusted Score: 76284%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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#242
Adjusted Score: 77185%
Critics Consensus: Although it traffics in familiar territory, Palmer is elevated by worthy themes and a strong ensemble led by an impressive Justin Timberlake.
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#241
Adjusted Score: 74413%
Critics Consensus: Spoor stylishly taps into a deep well of anger to deliver an unusual yet largely effective revenge thriller with environmental and feminist overtones.
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#240
Adjusted Score: 80787%
Critics Consensus: Blue Bayou can be indelicate in its attempts to tug the heartstrings, but solid acting and a genuinely affecting story make this drama difficult to ignore.
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#239
Adjusted Score: 96439%
Critics Consensus: Cruella can’t quite answer the question of why its title character needed an origin story, but this dazzling visual feast is awfully fun to watch whenever its leading ladies lock horns.
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#238
Adjusted Score: 76956%
Critics Consensus: Percy vs Goliath teeters toward heavy-handed messaging, but Christopher Walken’s work in the central role helps keep this fact-based story upright.
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#237
Adjusted Score: 78338%
Critics Consensus: Pixie borrows shamelessly from multiple like-minded heist thrillers; fortunately, Olivia Cooke’s outstanding lead performance makes for a great getaway vehicle.
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#236
Adjusted Score: 77746%
Critics Consensus: American Underdog sticks to the standard inspirational sports drama playbook — and proves once again that it can be very effective in the right hands.
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#235
Adjusted Score: 82218%
Critics Consensus: The World to Come is made from ingredients that will be familiar to fans of period forbidden romance movies, but they’re given fresh life thanks to an excellent cast.
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#234
Adjusted Score: 85836%
Critics Consensus: The Mauritanian takes a frustratingly generic approach to a real-life story that might have been inspirational in other hands, but Tahar Rahim’s performance elevates the uneven material.
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#233
Adjusted Score: 96283%
Critics Consensus: Delivering squarely on its title, Godzilla vs. Kong swats away character development and human drama to deliver all the spectacle you’d expect from giant monsters slugging it out.
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#232
Adjusted Score: 80270%
Critics Consensus: A horror story with unexpected emotional resonance, Son uses its familial focus to counter a certain queasy familiarity.
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#231
Adjusted Score: 78203%
Critics Consensus: It’s hard to ignore the parts that are left unexamined, but WeWork: Or the Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn does well enough by its real-life stranger-than-fiction story.
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#230
Adjusted Score: 81177%
Critics Consensus: Its characters’ time-loop journey is a little bumpy and fairly familiar, but heartfelt charm and likeable leads make A Map of Tiny Perfect Things worth following.
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#229
Adjusted Score: 80917%
Critics Consensus: Pacing problems prevent Stowaway from fully engaging, but it’s distinguished by its thoughtful, well-acted approach to a story built on an excruciating moral dilemma.
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#228
Adjusted Score: 85765%
Critics Consensus: Although Malignant isn’t particularly scary, director James Wan’s return to horror contains plenty of gory thrills — and a memorably bonkers twist.
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#227
Adjusted Score: 84013%
Critics Consensus: Part creature feature, part war movie, and part social commentary, Shadow in the Cloud doesn’t always blend its ingredients evenly — but it’s frequently pulpy fun.
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#226
Adjusted Score: 77278%
Critics Consensus: Flawed but ultimately compelling, Ma Belle, My Beauty uses the aftermath of a polyamorous relationship to explore the intersections of love and ambition.
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#225
Adjusted Score: 81462%
Critics Consensus: Discomfiting by design, Surge will wear some viewers down — but Ben Whishaw’s mesmerizing performance keeps the action gripping even when it’s hard to take.
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#224
Adjusted Score: 83073%
Critics Consensus: With ingeniously gross hidden-camera bits that often find their unsuspecting marks at their best, Bad Trip turns out to be a surprisingly uplifting ride.
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#223
Adjusted Score: 81573%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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#222
Adjusted Score: 92539%
Critics Consensus: A searing swipe at late-stage capitalism, I Care A Lot is an exhilarating pitch black comedy with a wicked performance from Rosamund Pike.
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#221
Adjusted Score: 81769%
Critics Consensus: Stylish and exciting, Cliff Walkers sees director Zhang Yimou trying his hand at the spy thriller genre with generally impressive results.
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#220
Adjusted Score: 79715%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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#219
Adjusted Score: 83811%
Critics Consensus: The dramatic heft and dread of The Night delivers haunting psychological frights — and an impressive feature directorial debut for Kourosh Ahari.
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#218
Adjusted Score: 81909%
Critics Consensus: Diminishing returns have set in for this trilogy, but To All the Boys: Always and Forever has just enough of the original’s effervescent charm to serve as a worthy conclusion.
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#217
Adjusted Score: 88393%
Critics Consensus: In the Earth‘s bleak kaleidoscope of horror is a hallucinogenic meditation on the residual pandemic fears that haunt humanity.
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#216
Adjusted Score: 102974%
Critics Consensus: Black Widow‘s deeper themes are drowned out in all the action, but it remains a solidly entertaining standalone adventure that’s rounded out by a stellar supporting cast.
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#215
Adjusted Score: 80584%
Critics Consensus: Fans of uplifting sports dramas will find Safety in this skillfully told fact-based story about an athlete overcoming adversity.
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#214
Adjusted Score: 82031%
Critics Consensus: Offering a hauntingly lush style and plenty of gore, Bloodthirsty successfully captures the nightmarish darkness behind being hungry like the wolf in the quest for fame.
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#213
Adjusted Score: 83564%
Critics Consensus: A bizarrely memorable sci-fi/comedy hybrid, Fried Barry may be an acquired taste, but it certainly isn’t chicken.
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#212
Adjusted Score: 83727%
Critics Consensus: With a hard fantasy story that stands in service of its eye-catching animation, The Spine of Night is a distinctive treat for genre enthusiasts.
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#211
Adjusted Score: 83017%
Critics Consensus: A slow-burning thriller that teeters between reality and delusion, Knocking views social issues through a blurred lens streaked with horror.
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#210
Adjusted Score: 85258%
Critics Consensus: Uneven yet admirably ambitious, Violet takes a thoughtful look at the occasionally profound difference between a person’s private thoughts and public face.
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#209
Adjusted Score: 82237%
Critics Consensus: Savagely funny and viscerally unsettling, The Columnist takes the unbridled vitriol of social media to its bloodily over-the-top conclusion.
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#208
Adjusted Score: 85754%
Critics Consensus: It may not be as effervescent as its title character, but Everybody’s Talking About Jamie remains an infectiously enjoyable musical with an uplifting message.
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#207
Adjusted Score: 86309%
Critics Consensus: While not François Ozon’s best work, Summer of 85 serves as a beguiling, bittersweet ode to teen love and its lingering after-effects.
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#206
Adjusted Score: 86592%
Critics Consensus: It isn’t the first animated film to confront technology creep, but in terms of striking an entertaining balance between humor and heart, Ron’s Gone Wrong gets it right.
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#205
Adjusted Score: 86791%
Critics Consensus: Well-acted and solidly directed, Concrete Cowboy lassos old-fashioned uplift with its story of a father and son in a little-seen corner of American culture.
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#204
Adjusted Score: 89767%
Critics Consensus: Bright, colorful, and unabashedly silly, Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar reaffirms that Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig are still as fun — and funny — as ever.
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#203
Adjusted Score: 95037%
Critics Consensus: Combining a clever concept, sweet, self-aware humor, and a charming cast, Free Guy is frivolous fun.
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#202
Adjusted Score: 81168%
Critics Consensus: The Wanting Mare operates at a chilly remove, but writer-director Nicholas Ashe Bateman’s visually striking drama is worth watching for its sheer ambition.
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#201
Adjusted Score: 84895%
Critics Consensus: An effective spine-tingler despite clear budget constraints, Caveat suggests a deliciously dark filmmaking future for writer-director Damian Mc Carthy.
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#200
Adjusted Score: 79911%
Critics Consensus: The Most Beautiful Boy in the World tells an undeniably familiar cautionary tale, but it’s no less unbearably tragic in the telling.
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#199
Adjusted Score: 88027%
Critics Consensus: It doesn’t add many new ingredients to the genre, but action fans in the mood for an old-school thriller will be happy to buy what Copshop is selling.
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#198
Adjusted Score: 83703%
Critics Consensus: It may occasionally veer into discordant territory, but The Audition remains a darkly illuminating character study led by a forceful turn from Nina Hoss.
#197
Adjusted Score: 83936%
Critics Consensus: Traditional horror may not be on the menu, but for fans of the gruesomely disquieting, The Feast more than lives up to its name.
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#196
Adjusted Score: 81293%
Critics Consensus: Although it sometimes struggles to make sense of its story, Dementer presents a unique — and chillingly dark — perspective on healthcare horror.
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#195
Adjusted Score: 84875%
Critics Consensus: Night Raiders strikes grim parallels between its dystopian setting and the present, offering a disturbing reminder that the horrors of the past are often very much still with us.
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#194
Adjusted Score: 84524%
Critics Consensus: Boys from County Hell stands out as an uncommonly good time in the crowded vampire genre — and proves the Irish countryside is a fine setting for slaying the undead.
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#193
Adjusted Score: 89351%
Critics Consensus: Fear Street Part One: 1994 kicks off the trilogy in promising fashion, honoring the source material with plenty of retro slasher appeal.
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#192
Adjusted Score: 101719%
Critics Consensus: Spencer can frustrate with its idiosyncratic depiction of its subject’s life, but Kristen Stewart’s finely modulated performance anchors the film’s flights of fancy.
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#191
Adjusted Score: 105336%
Critics Consensus: It isn’t the sleekest or most daring 007 adventure, but No Time to Die concludes Daniel Craig’s franchise tenure in satisfying style.
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#190
Adjusted Score: 109865%
Critics Consensus: Dune occasionally struggles with its unwieldy source material, but those issues are largely overshadowed by the scope and ambition of this visually thrilling adaptation.
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#189
Adjusted Score: 82011%
Critics Consensus: Akilla’s Escape occasionally loses sight of its strongest assets, but solid acting and a smart story make this a neo-noir worth watching.
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#188
Adjusted Score: 84351%
Critics Consensus: Although Port Authority frustrates with its inaccurate portrayal of the culture it attempts to represent, it remains an absorbing and well-acted drama.
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#187
Adjusted Score: 87695%
Critics Consensus: A stranger-than-fiction account of a too-incredible-to-be-true story, Misha and the Wolves is an engaging documentary wrapped in a thrilling mystery.
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#186
Adjusted Score: 86606%
Critics Consensus: Homeroom offers an encouraging — and engaging — look at young people preparing to leave high school behind and shape the future.
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#185
Adjusted Score: 84932%
Critics Consensus: A supernatural horror story grounded in real-world trauma, The Power marks writer-director Corinna Faith as an emerging talent to watch.
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#184
Adjusted Score: 85560%
Critics Consensus: If its narrative ambitions aren’t always equaled by its chilling visuals, Gaia remains an effective slice of ecological horror.
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#183
Adjusted Score: 98584%
Critics Consensus: Nobody doesn’t break any new ground for the genre, but this viscerally violent thriller smashes, shatters, and destroys plenty of other things — all while proving Bob Odenkirk has what it takes to be an action star.
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#182
Adjusted Score: 88083%
Critics Consensus: Its themes are occasionally undercut by its storytelling, but outstanding performances give The Mad Women’s Ball a poignant, disturbing power.
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#181
Adjusted Score: 88623%
Critics Consensus: Well-acted and visually striking, Come True offers an eerily effective reminder of how the sleeping subconscious can be fertile ground for horror.
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#180
Adjusted Score: 93727%
Critics Consensus: Precariously walking a tightrope of varying genres and tones, Benedetta provokes salient questions about sexual freedom and its relationship to faith.
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#179
Adjusted Score: 97241%
Critics Consensus: The Courier delivers a rousingly effective old-school spy adventure elevated by a thrilling fact-based story and Benedict Cumberbatch’s nervy central performance.
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#178
Adjusted Score: 99962%
Critics Consensus: The Last Duel‘s critique of systemic misogyny isn’t as effective as it might have been, but it remains a well-acted and thought-provoking drama infused with epic grandeur.
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#177
Adjusted Score: 87854%
Critics Consensus: Jakob’s Wife gives genre legend Barbara Crampton an opportunity to carry an old-school horror story — and she bloody well delivers.
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#176
Adjusted Score: 92981%
Critics Consensus: Werewolves Within is the rare horror comedy that offers equal helpings of either genre — and adds up to a whole lot of fun in the bargain.
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#175
Adjusted Score: 103024%
Critics Consensus: A deeply personal project for writer-director Kenneth Branagh, Belfast transcends its narrative deficits with powerful performances and directorial craft.
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#174
Adjusted Score: 88746%
Critics Consensus: Led by Ezra Dewey’s standout performance, The Djinn serves up a scary, sleekly effective cautionary tale about being careful what you wish for.
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#173
Adjusted Score: 90754%
Critics Consensus: Vivo offers few surprises, but this attractively animated adventure is enlivened by the catchy songs contributed by star Lin-Manuel Miranda.
#172
Adjusted Score: 91901%
Critics Consensus: Minor but charming, the well-acted Bergman Island uses the titular filmmaker’s legacy as the launchpad for a dreamlike rumination on romance and creativity.
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#171
Adjusted Score: 98734%
Critics Consensus: Led by Rebecca Hall’s gripping central performance, The Night House offers atmospheric horror that engages intellectually as well as emotionally.
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#170
Adjusted Score: 99373%
Critics Consensus: Led by Oscar Isaac’s gripping performance, The Card Counter adds another weighty chapter to Paul Schrader’s long inquiry into man’s moral responsibility.
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#169
Adjusted Score: 98053%
Critics Consensus: tick, tick… BOOM! makes musical magic out of a story focused on the creative process — an impressive feat for debuting director Lin-Manuel Miranda.
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#168
Adjusted Score: 88352%
Critics Consensus: Skillfully directed by Kim A. Snyder, Us Kids is a stirring portrait of hope that prevails in the face of tragedy.
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#167
Adjusted Score: 87460%
Critics Consensus: For viewers tuned into Quentin Dupieux’s frequently absurd wavelength, Keep an Eye Out offers another delightfully off-kilter triumph.
#166
Adjusted Score: 90847%
Critics Consensus: A fiendishly goofy premise, strong performances, and a strong dose of winkingly meta humor help Vicious Fun deliver on its title.
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#165
Adjusted Score: 89767%
Critics Consensus: Operation Varsity Blues uses a unique stylistic blend of documentary and re-enactments to compellingly piece together the details of a torn-from-the-tabloids scandal.
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#164
Adjusted Score: 90200%
Critics Consensus: Its title may be unwieldy, but Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time looks at the nature of love with commendable clarity.
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#163
Adjusted Score: 94756%
Critics Consensus: Oxygen gets the white-knuckle maximum out of its claustrophobic setting, with director Alexandre Aja and star Mélanie Laurent making this a must-watch thriller for sci-fi fans.
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#162
Adjusted Score: 93678%
Critics Consensus: Violation presents a powerful depiction of one woman’s trauma — and its uncomfortably gripping aftermath.
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#161
Adjusted Score: 92838%
Critics Consensus: A smart and subversive twist on slasher horror, Fear Street Part II: 1978 shows that summer camp has never been scarier thanks to stellar performances from Sadie Sink, Emily Rudd, and Ryan Simpkins.
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#160
Adjusted Score: 97804%
Critics Consensus: It isn’t as bold and fearless as its characters, but The Harder They Fall fills its well-worn template with style, energy, and a fantastic cast.
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#159
Adjusted Score: 102751%
Critics Consensus: Zola captures the stranger-than-fiction appeal of the viral Twitter thread that inspired it — and announces director/co-writer Janicza Bravo as a filmmaker to watch.
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#158
Adjusted Score: 90516%
Critics Consensus: Held aloft by Deragh Campbell in the title role, Anne at 13,000 Ft tells the soaring story of a woman who’s lost her moorings.
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#157
Adjusted Score: 91405%
Critics Consensus: A finely calibrated WWII-era thriller, Wife of a Spy delicately balances the weight of national loyalty against our moral obligations to our fellow human beings.
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#156
Adjusted Score: 96491%
Critics Consensus: Memoria finds writer-director Apichatpong Weerasethakul branching out into English-language filmmaking without forsaking any of his own lyrical cinematic vocabulary.
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#155
Adjusted Score: 95089%
Critics Consensus: Spurred on by an excellent Toni Collette, Dream Horse has a comfortably crowd-pleasing gait that makes the most of the story’s familiar formula.
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#154
Adjusted Score: 96779%
Critics Consensus: Undine draws on folklore for a dark fantasy whose murky storytelling is often offset by the enchanting romance at its core.
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#153
Adjusted Score: 98965%
Critics Consensus: A knockout feature directorial debut from Edson Oda, Nine Days is an ethereal and evocative film about the meaning of life – elevated by a phenomenal performance from Winston Duke.
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#152
Adjusted Score: 96952%
Critics Consensus: Occasionally uneven but bold and viscerally effective, Censor marks a bloody good step forward for British horror.
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#151
Adjusted Score: 102754%
Critics Consensus: Thrillingly provocative and original, Titane reaffirms writer-director Julia Ducournau’s delightfully disturbing vision.
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#150
Adjusted Score: 106026%
Critics Consensus: The Green Knight honors and deconstructs its source material in equal measure, producing an absorbing adventure that casts a fantastical spell.
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#149
Adjusted Score: 91469%
Critics Consensus: A gripping action story as well as sobering commentary on colonialism, High Ground is a vividly engrossing attempt to grapple with Australian history.
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#148
Adjusted Score: 94460%
Critics Consensus: A slasher with flair and crafty patience for the kill, The Stylist marks writer-director Jill Gevargizian as an uncommonly sharp genre filmmaker.
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#147
Adjusted Score: 95136%
Critics Consensus: A fitting if not groundbreaking tribute, Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time will inspire viewers to seek out — or revisit — his work.
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#146
Adjusted Score: 92572%
Critics Consensus: The Queen of Black Magic mixes buried trauma with supernatural horror to produce a dark blend that genre fans will savor.
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#145
Adjusted Score: 90909%
Critics Consensus: Spurts of dark humor gush out of I Blame Society‘s satirical approach to filmmaking and celebrity culture, prodded by sharp societal observations from writer-director-star Gillian Wallace Horvat.
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#144
Adjusted Score: 93281%
Critics Consensus: A striking debut from director/co-writer Dea Kulumbegashvili, Beginning grapples convincingly with complex ideas while offering a brilliant showcase for star Ia Sukhitashvili.
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#143
Adjusted Score: 89961%
Critics Consensus: A refreshingly optimistic look at urban community life, The Outside Story is further distinguished by a layered leading performance from Brian Tyree Henry.
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#142
Adjusted Score: 93340%
Critics Consensus: Beans opens a compelling window into the indigenous coming-of-age experience — and serves as an affecting debut for Kiawentiio.
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#141
Adjusted Score: 92740%
Critics Consensus: V/H/S/94 gets the franchise back on track with a gory buffet of shorts that should delight horror anthology fans.
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#140
Adjusted Score: 93398%
Critics Consensus: Ailey pays invigorating tribute to its subject’s brilliant legacy — and offers a tantalizing introduction to the rest of a fascinating story.
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#139
Adjusted Score: 95063%
Critics Consensus: A slow-burning crime drama anchored by a solid central performance from Eric Bana, The Dry offers gripping thrills for genre fans.
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#138
Adjusted Score: 95548%
Critics Consensus: Consistently clever and creepy, The Vigil mines richly atmospheric supernatural horror from a deep well of religious traditions.
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#137
Adjusted Score: 100270%
Critics Consensus: Led by Simon Rex’s magnetic performance, Red Rocket is another vibrant, ground-level look at modern American life from director/co-writer Sean Baker.
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#136
Adjusted Score: 102529%
Critics Consensus: While Passing‘s delicate approach has a dampening effect on its story, debuting director Rebecca Hall makes the most of an impressive cast — and handles thorny themes with impressive dexterity.
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#135
Adjusted Score: 105398%
Critics Consensus: King Richard transcends sport biopic formulas with refreshingly nuanced storytelling — and a towering performance from Will Smith in the title role.
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#134
Adjusted Score: 106645%
Critics Consensus: Licorice Pizza finds Paul Thomas Anderson shifting into a surprisingly comfortable gear — and getting potentially star-making performances out of his fresh-faced leads.
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#133
Adjusted Score: 109753%
Critics Consensus: Enlivened by writer-director James Gunn’s singularly skewed vision, The Suicide Squad marks a funny, fast-paced rebound that plays to the source material’s violent, anarchic strengths.
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#132
Adjusted Score: 115469%
Critics Consensus: A boldly provocative, timely thriller, Promising Young Woman is an auspicious feature debut for writer-director Emerald Fennell — and a career highlight for Carey Mulligan.
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#131
Adjusted Score: 91533%
Critics Consensus: Les Nôtres deftly hits expected beats to tell a story of betrayal whose finely calibrated direction and performances make it all the more harrowing.
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#130
Adjusted Score: 94463%
Critics Consensus: The Oak Room contains a taut, spooky tale that proves southern gothic can flourish in the snowy north.
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#129
Adjusted Score: 92785%
Critics Consensus: True Mothers uses an intractable conflict to explore the bonds of parenthood with director/co-writer Naomi Kawase’s usual sensitivity and grace.
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#128
Adjusted Score: 90217%
Critics Consensus: The Man Who Sold His Skin uses the tension between art and commerce as powerful fuel for a sobering story about freedom and human dignity.
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#127
Adjusted Score: 91823%
Critics Consensus: Raging Fire forsakes character development to go all in on action — and fortunately, writer-director Benny Chan Chi-Shun and star Donnie Yen are more than capable of delivering the goods.
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#126
Adjusted Score: 92853%
Critics Consensus: While Wild Indian might have benefited from a more probing approach to its themes, it’s held together by Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr.’s skilled direction and a strong performance from lead Michael Greyeyes.
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#125
Adjusted Score: 94977%
Critics Consensus: Tough but stirring, Little Fish uses one couple’s pandemic love story to illustrate the strength of human connection in trying times.
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#124
Adjusted Score: 95429%
Critics Consensus: Moffie uses one South African soldier’s story to grapple against a series of thorny questions — with rough yet rewarding results.
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#123
Adjusted Score: 95240%
Critics Consensus: As playfully provocative as its title, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn uses a potentially prurient premise to highlight the hypocrisy of societal norms.
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#122
Adjusted Score: 98035%
Critics Consensus: An emotionally raw and respectful portrait of Anthony Bourdain, Roadrunner marks another unflinchingly honest documentary from director Morgan Neville.
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#121
Adjusted Score: 97440%
Critics Consensus: Together Together explores love and parenthood from unexpected angles, capturing a broad spectrum of emotions through Patti Harrison and Ed Helms’ starring performances.
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#120
Adjusted Score: 102339%
Critics Consensus: Encanto‘s setting and cultural perspective are new for Disney, but the end result is the same — enchanting, beautifully animated fun for the whole family.
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#119
Adjusted Score: 106550%
Critics Consensus: Slight but suffused with infectious joy, the beguiling Luca proves Pixar can play it safe while still charming audiences of all ages.
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#118
Adjusted Score: 109675%
Critics Consensus: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings isn’t entirely free of Marvel’s familiar formula, but this exciting origin story expands the MCU in more ways than one.
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#117
Adjusted Score: 109868%
Critics Consensus: A nerve-wracking continuation of its predecessor, A Quiet Place Part II expands the terrifying world of the franchise without losing track of its heart.
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#116
Adjusted Score: 111214%
Critics Consensus: Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story presents a new look at the classic musical that lives up to its beloved forebear — and in some respects might even surpass it.
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#115
Adjusted Score: 95021%
Critics Consensus: Days of the Bagnold Summer draws on well-rounded performances from its leads to fill in the familiar outlines of its coming-of-age story with gentle humor and tender insight.
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#114
Adjusted Score: 93342%
Critics Consensus: Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation lives up to its title with an absorbing and revealing look at a pair of American literary giants.
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#113
Adjusted Score: 94420%
Critics Consensus: Smart, well-acted, and above all scary, Coming Home in the Dark finds first-time director James Ashcroft making his mark with a white-knuckle ride for horror fans.
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#112
Adjusted Score: 93719%
Critics Consensus: Mandibles finds writer-director Quentin Dupieux off on another thoroughly original flight of fancy that will captivate like-minded audiences while baffling others.
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#111
Adjusted Score: 95608%
Critics Consensus: It’s hard not to hear echoes of similarly desperate stories, but Holler drowns them out with strong performances and palpable empathy.
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#110
Adjusted Score: 96743%
Critics Consensus: A remarkable first feature for writer-director Lauren Hadaway, The Novice paints a thrilling — and disturbing — portrait of obsession.
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#109
Adjusted Score: 96588%
Critics Consensus: Udo Kier’s layered performance lends Swan Song a nuance and poignancy that offset its potentially outlandish story.
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#108
Adjusted Score: 95044%
Critics Consensus: Over the top and enthusiastically strange, PG: Psycho Goreman delivers all the cheesy midnight-movie goodness promised by its title.
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#107
Adjusted Score: 96385%
Critics Consensus: Drawing on another terrific performance from Honor Swinton Byrne, The Souvenir Part II continues its story with profound emotional complexity and elegant storytelling.
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#106
Adjusted Score: 98656%
Critics Consensus: The Humans takes its Tony-winning source material from stage to screen without sacrificing the essence of writer-director Stephen Karam’s dysfunctional drama.
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#105
Adjusted Score: 98656%
Critics Consensus: While it may not be on par with his best crime capers, No Sudden Move finds Soderbergh on entertainingly familiar ground — and making the most of an excellent cast.
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#104
Adjusted Score: 106355%
Critics Consensus: Led by a stellar Denzel Washington, The Tragedy of Macbeth strips the classic story down to its visual and narrative essentials.
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#103
Adjusted Score: 94459%
Critics Consensus: Wildland reaches past the familiar tropes of its gangster drama setup to tell an evocative and refreshingly original coming-of-age story.
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#102
Adjusted Score: 94722%
Critics Consensus: A heartwarming look at the way a meaningful bond can transcend just about any barrier, this documentary will leave you asking your friends to come and see My Octopus Teacher with you.
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#101
Adjusted Score: 94591%
Critics Consensus: A lightly humorous look at impending parenthood, Baby Done finds laughs — and moments of genuine honesty — in a life-altering event.
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#100
Adjusted Score: 94450%
Critics Consensus: Although its rather workmanlike approach may be an awkward fit, The Capote Tapes offers a consistently engaging primer for its sublime subject.
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#99
Adjusted Score: 94723%
Critics Consensus: An enchanting debut for writer-director-star Suzanne Lindon, Spring Blossom captures first love with fittingly delicate beauty.
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#98
Adjusted Score: 94443%
Critics Consensus: The Alpinist surmounts its subject’s indifference to deliver a fascinating and thrillingly filmed investigation into a life spent defying danger.
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#97
Adjusted Score: 93661%
Critics Consensus: Pray Away presents a compassionate picture of the damage wrought by so-called conversion therapy — on its subjects as well as its proponents.
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Starring:
#96
Adjusted Score: 90540%
Critics Consensus: Well-acted by its young leads, Martyrs Lane tells a slow-burning ghost story that gathers real emotional weight.
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#95
Adjusted Score: 92543%
Critics Consensus: A layered look at fame in the digital era, Lily Topples the World benefits immensely from a subject with an uplifting story and immense charm.
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#94
Adjusted Score: 95135%
Critics Consensus: Deft direction and an expertly assembled ensemble further elevate Only the Animals‘ intelligent, absorbing mystery.
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#93
Adjusted Score: 96472%
Critics Consensus: All Light, Everywhere poses thought-provoking questions about our view of objective reality — and the implications for our growing reliance on surveillance technology.
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#92
Adjusted Score: 96127%
Critics Consensus: A rich blend of thrilling horror and sharp social commentary, Lucky acts as a bloody good calling card for director Natasha Kermani and writer-star Brea Grant.
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#91
Adjusted Score: 96323%
Critics Consensus: Final Account falls shy of the definitive statement suggested by its title, but the belated reckoning on display remains chillingly valuable viewing.
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#90
Adjusted Score: 97062%
Critics Consensus: Some Kind of Heaven could have gone deeper into its subject, but it remains a breezily entertaining look at some interesting people.
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Starring:
#89
Adjusted Score: 98473%
Critics Consensus: The Killing of Two Lovers unites deft direction and an artfully assembled cast in service of a powerful story.
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#88
Adjusted Score: 98515%
Critics Consensus: An absorbingly reflective documentary that benefits from its subject’s self-chronicling, Val offers an intimate look at a unique life and career.
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#87
Adjusted Score: 99547%
Critics Consensus: A profoundly uplifting portrait of the refugee experience, Limbo is distinguished by its offbeat tone — and overall impressive work from debuting director Ben Sharrock.
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#86
Adjusted Score: 101739%
Critics Consensus: A brilliantly unsettling blend of body horror and psychological thriller, Saint Maud marks an impressive debut for writer-director Rose Glass.
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#85
Adjusted Score: 108453%
Critics Consensus: Another gorgeously animated, skillfully voiced entry in the Disney canon, Raya and the Last Dragon continues the studio’s increased representation while reaffirming that its classic formula is just as reliable as ever.
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#84
Adjusted Score: 112761%
Critics Consensus: Brought to life by a stellar ensemble led by Benedict Cumberbatch, The Power of the Dog reaffirms writer-director Jane Campion as one of her generation’s finest filmmakers.
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#83
Adjusted Score: 115183%
Critics Consensus: A bigger, bolder Spider-Man sequel, No Way Home expands the franchise’s scope and stakes without losing sight of its humor and heart.
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#82
Adjusted Score: 97402%
Critics Consensus: Led by Alec Utgoff’s impressive starring performance, Never Gonna Snow Again blends elements of sci-fi, satire, and surreal drama with an assured hand.
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#81
Adjusted Score: 96906%
Critics Consensus: Led by a reliably solid performance from Tim Blake Nelson, Old Henry serves up a supple cut of vintage western rawhide.
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#80
Adjusted Score: 99848%
Critics Consensus: About Endlessness sees writer-director Roy Andersson surveying the human condition with equal parts striking clarity, tenderness, and deadpan existential wit.
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#79
Adjusted Score: 104619%
Critics Consensus: The sweet chemistry between Joaquin Phoenix and Woody Norman is complemented by writer-director Mike Mills’ empathetic work, helping C’mon C’mon transcend its familiar trappings.
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#78
Adjusted Score: 109220%
Critics Consensus: CODA‘s story offers few surprises, but strong representation and a terrific cast — led by Emilia Jones’ brilliant performance — bring this coming-of-age story vividly to life.
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#77
Adjusted Score: 113101%
Critics Consensus: Lights up for In the Heights, a joyous celebration of heritage and community fueled by dazzling direction and singalong songs.
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#76
Adjusted Score: 96175%
Critics Consensus: Bound together by Maxine Peake’s magnetic portrayal of the main character, Fanny Lye Deliver’d offers impactful, richly layered period drama.
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#75
Adjusted Score: 96475%
Critics Consensus: Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President warmly — and tunefully — highlights a rarely explored facet of the 39th U.S. President’s tenure.
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#74
Adjusted Score: 96388%
Critics Consensus: Its depiction of actual events is questionable, but Escape from Mogadishu is sleekly effective as an intelligent, well-acted action thriller.
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#73
Adjusted Score: 96327%
Critics Consensus: El Planeta taps into real-life economic anxiety to present a darkly humorous glimpse of life spent teetering on the edge of financial ruin.
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#72
Adjusted Score: 96387%
Critics Consensus: Miraculously restored archival materials lend The Real Charlie Chaplin credibility and unique insight, casting a fair look at the entertainer that celebrates his genius while scrutinizing his foibles.
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#71
Adjusted Score: 96598%
Critics Consensus: Anchored by the believable bond between its leads, Wildfire tells a heartfelt and realistic story of sisters peering into their family’s past.
#70
Adjusted Score: 97526%
Critics Consensus: Lapsis binds economic anxiety to an unsettling sci-fi story set in the not-too-distant future, with smartly inventive results.
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#69
Adjusted Score: 97470%
Critics Consensus: Rose Plays Julie uses a woman’s quest to know her biological parents as the foundation for an unsettling story that compellingly confounds expectations.
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#68
Adjusted Score: 99429%
Critics Consensus: Like the show whose groundbreaking creation it commemorates, Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street is as enlightening as it is purely entertaining.
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#67
Adjusted Score: 101074%
Critics Consensus: An affecting profile of screen legend Rita Moreno, Just a Girl is at once a sharp critique of the industry’s crushing inequities and a beautiful homage to an artist who never backed down despite the odds.
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#66
Adjusted Score: 104742%
Critics Consensus: Mass requires a lot of its audience, but rewards that emotional labor with a raw look at grief that establishes writer-director Fran Kranz as a filmmaker of tremendous promise.
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#65
Adjusted Score: 97672%
Critics Consensus: A rare opportunity to look back at history being made, The Human Factor offers an engrossing behind-the-scenes look at efforts to end generations of bloodshed.
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Starring:
#64
Adjusted Score: 98465%
Critics Consensus: The rare film that captures the passion that drives the mastery of creative pursuits, The Disciple reaffirms writer-director Chaitanya Tamhane as an emerging master of his craft.
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#63
Adjusted Score: 98040%
Critics Consensus: Plan B doesn’t overplay its timely message — and it doesn’t have to, thanks to a sharp, funny script and the sparkling chemistry between its charming stars.
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#62
Adjusted Score: 98094%
Critics Consensus: Gripping and clear-eyed, In the Same Breath captures history as it’s being written — and governmental failures as they amplify worldwide tragedy.
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Starring:
#61
Adjusted Score: 98173%
Critics Consensus: Test Pattern surveys the aftermath of a woman’s assault — and uncovers the many ways in which personal trauma can be compounded by systemic injustice.
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#60
Adjusted Score: 99391%
Critics Consensus: Stray takes a patient, meditative look at the lives of Istanbul’s stray dog population — and uncovers truths of the human condition in the process.
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Starring:
#59
Adjusted Score: 99124%
Critics Consensus: A slim-cut slice of bizarre horror, Slaxx effectively balances quirk with gore — and has the good sense to get out before its oddball premise starts showing its seams.
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#58
Adjusted Score: 105053%
Critics Consensus: A blunt yet visceral depiction of society’s treatment of the elderly, The Amusement Park sees George A. Romero exploring a different — yet still chilling — type of terror.
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#57
Adjusted Score: 100645%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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#56
Adjusted Score: 100376%
Critics Consensus: Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry offers an enlightening — and sometimes uncomfortable — look behind the scenes of a young star’s ascension.
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#55
Adjusted Score: 100767%
Critics Consensus: Befitting the culinary aesthetic favored by the brilliant chef it honors, Julia uses fresh, simple ingredients to create a sumptuous documentary feast.
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#54
Adjusted Score: 103645%
Critics Consensus: A darkly humorous revenge thriller with satisfying depth and a dash of savory quirk, Riders of Justice makes another compelling case for Mads Mikkelsen as an all-purpose leading man.
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#53
Adjusted Score: 101927%
Critics Consensus: With a thought-provoking concept brought to humorous life by a pair of well-matched leads, I’m Your Man is an AI rom-com whose intelligence is anything but artificial.
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#52
Adjusted Score: 102849%
Critics Consensus: Their albums may be cult favorites, but this Edgar Wright-directed documentary offers an introduction to Sparks that has something for everyone.
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#51
Adjusted Score: 104445%
Critics Consensus: A ruefully funny calling card for debuting director Emma Seligman, Shiva Baby transcends its sitcom setup with strong performances and satisfying insights.
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#50
Adjusted Score: 107499%
Critics Consensus: A brilliant forum for Penélope Cruz’s talent, Parallel Mothers reaffirms the familiar pleasures of Almodóvar’s filmmaking while proving he’s still capable of growth.
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#49
Adjusted Score: 108561%
Critics Consensus: The Worst Person in the World concludes Joachim Trier’s Oslo Trilogy with a romantic comedy that delightfully subverts the genre’s well-worn tropes.
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#48
Adjusted Score: 110876%
Critics Consensus: Like the animal itself, Pig defies the hogwash of expectations with a beautiful odyssey of loss and love anchored by Nicolas Cage’s affectingly raw performance.
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#47
Adjusted Score: 99930%
Critics Consensus: The Reason I Jump‘s moving personal perspective succeeds in providing an authentic understanding of its subjects’ journeys.
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Starring:
#46
Adjusted Score: 99838%
Critics Consensus: A tense, terrifying, and all-around outstanding feature debut for its co-directing duo, The Boy Behind the Door should thrill discerning horror fans.
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#45
Adjusted Score: 99896%
Critics Consensus: The Human Voice unites Pedro Almodóvar and Tilda Swinton for a short film whose rich rewards are belied by its abbreviated length.
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#44
Adjusted Score: 100286%
Critics Consensus: A documentary that feels like a heist thriller, The Lost Leonardo paints an arresting portrait of some of the art world’s most colorful characters.
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#43
Adjusted Score: 101809%
Critics Consensus: A remarkable feature debut for director Heidi Ewing, I Carry You with Me finds universally resonant themes in a specific, richly detailed time and place.
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#42
Adjusted Score: 103865%
Critics Consensus: The Truffle Hunters explores a world most viewers will know nothing about — with delightfully savory results.
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#41
Adjusted Score: 107835%
Critics Consensus: Small in narrative scope but deeply impactful, Petite Maman is a delicate, powerfully acted meditation on grief.
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#40
Adjusted Score: 107564%
Critics Consensus: Eye-catching and energetic, The Mitchells vs. the Machines delivers a funny, feel-good story that the whole family can enjoy.
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#39
Adjusted Score: 107620%
Critics Consensus: Drive My Car‘s imposing runtime holds a rich, patiently engrossing drama that reckons with self-acceptance and regret.
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#38
Adjusted Score: 114432%
Critics Consensus: An electrifying dramatization of historical events, Judas and the Black Messiah is a forceful condemnation of racial injustice — and a major triumph for its director and stars.
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#37
Adjusted Score: 98295%
Critics Consensus: Empowering children to share their experiences, Liyana amplifies marginalized voices and iterates storytelling’s healing properties, gifting us a joyful documentary.
#36
Adjusted Score: 99642%
Critics Consensus: A deft and illuminating journalistic investigation, Assassins depicts the mechanics of North Korean politics to a chilling effect.
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#35
Adjusted Score: 99534%
Critics Consensus: Harrowing yet essential viewing, Procession probes the lasting legacy of trauma with heart-wrenching grace.
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#34
Adjusted Score: 99587%
Critics Consensus: A hard-hitting drama that feels disconcertingly real, 7 Prisoners blends sharp storytelling with a searing social conscience.
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#33
Adjusted Score: 100027%
Critics Consensus: Demon Slayer‘s visually stunning animation and masterful action set pieces serve a heartfelt plot that is sure to satisfy fans.
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#32
Adjusted Score: 99687%
Critics Consensus: A movingly personal work from writer-director Maria Sødahl, Hope sees stars Bræin Hovig and Stellan Skarsgård powerfully portraying a turning point in one couple’s long love story.
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#31
Adjusted Score: -1%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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#30
Adjusted Score: 100279%
Critics Consensus: Unsettling and compelling in equal measure, My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To casts a visually striking and thought-provoking spell.
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#29
Adjusted Score: 98158%
Critics Consensus: Well-acted and appropriately beautiful, Sweat takes a thoughtful, empathetic look at social media fame.
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#28
Adjusted Score: 100256%
Critics Consensus: There Is No Evil thoughtfully poses troubling questions about man’s responsibility to man — and leaves the viewer to try and answer them.
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#27
Adjusted Score: 102038%
Critics Consensus: Attica revisits the titular riot with intelligence, compassion, and anger, presenting a version of events that honors history as much as it exemplifies the art of documentary filmmaking.
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#26
Adjusted Score: 98099%
Critics Consensus: Apples explores human identity from a surreal and often humorous perspective, with peculiar yet ultimately thought-provoking results.
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#25
Adjusted Score: 100258%
Critics Consensus: As visually thrilling as it is edifying, Becoming Cousteau pays fitting tribute to a pioneering explorer and environmental advocate.
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#24
Adjusted Score: 100835%
Critics Consensus: The Paper Tigers blends action, comedy, and heart to produce a fresh martial arts movie with plenty of throwback charm.
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#23
Adjusted Score: 102876%
Critics Consensus: Gunda takes an absorbingly meditative look at farm life from the animals’ perspective, tacitly posing questions about our relationship to food along the way.
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Starring:
#22
Adjusted Score: 102598%
Critics Consensus: A remarkable feature debut for director/co-writer Filippo Meneghetti, Two of Us tells a deceptively complex love story while presenting a rich acting showcase for its three leads.
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#21
Adjusted Score: 104737%
Critics Consensus: MLK/FBI presents a sobering overview of the American intelligence community’s efforts to discredit and destroy a leader of the civil rights movement.
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#20
Adjusted Score: 104212%
Critics Consensus: The Velvet Underground takes a fittingly idiosyncratic approach to delivering a rock documentary that captures the band as well as its era.
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#19
Adjusted Score: 107726%
Critics Consensus: Depicting the refugee experience through vivid animation, Flee pushes the boundaries of documentary filmmaking to present a moving memoir of self-discovery.
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#18
Adjusted Score: 115321%
Critics Consensus: Led by stellar performances and artfully helmed by writer-director Florian Zeller, The Father presents a devastatingly empathetic portrayal of dementia.
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#17
Adjusted Score: 117001%
Critics Consensus: Led by arresting performances from Steven Yeun and Yeri Han, Minari offers an intimate and heart-wrenching portrait of family and assimilation in 1980s America.
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#16
Adjusted Score: 102323%
Critics Consensus: Gripping from start to finish, Boiling Point uses its bold formal approach to support a thrilling tightrope of a tale.
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#15
Adjusted Score: 100485%
Critics Consensus: A slow-burning descent into desperation, Identifying Features uses one shattered family’s ordeal to offer a harrowing look at the immigrant experience.
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#14
Adjusted Score: 110106%
Critics Consensus: Deftly interweaving incredible live footage with a series of revealing interviews, Summer of Soul captures the spirit and context of a watershed moment while tying it firmly to the present.
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#13
Adjusted Score: 101470%
Critics Consensus: Acasa, My Home presents a powerful documentary portrait of one family’s odyssey that illustrates bittersweet truths about freedom and society.
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Starring:
#12
Adjusted Score: 101239%
Critics Consensus: Urgent and empathetic, Changing the Game takes an affecting and admirably nuanced look at young transgender athletes.
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#11
Adjusted Score: 99506%
Critics Consensus: Narratively slight yet cumulatively absorbing, The Woman Who Ran finds writer-director Hong Sang-soo continuing to work in a beguilingly minor key.
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#10
Adjusted Score: 101591%
Critics Consensus: A coming-of-age drama that thoughtfully handles hard-hitting themes, Paper Spiders is anchored by heartbreaking performances from its leads.
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#9
Adjusted Score: 101645%
Critics Consensus: A clear-eyed look at an extraordinary subject, Mayor makes essential viewing out of one politician’s quest to preserve dignity in the midst of bureaucracy.
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#8
Adjusted Score: 99497%
Critics Consensus: An uncommonly patient thriller, Azor elegantly slips the viewer into its cool grasp and never lets go.
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#7
Adjusted Score: 101552%
Critics Consensus: Sabaya presents a scary and sobering look at human suffering — and the efforts of those dedicated to ending it.
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Starring:
#6
Adjusted Score: 100256%
Critics Consensus: Beautifully filmed and emotionally impactful, Luzzu uses one man’s story to capture the struggles of a region at a cultural crossroads.
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#5
Adjusted Score: 101539%
Critics Consensus: Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror takes a fascinating deep dive that’ll leave like-minded viewers making numerous new additions to their streaming queues.
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#4
Adjusted Score: 102713%
Critics Consensus: Led by Noée Abita’s outstanding central performance, Slalom offers a moving account of oppression and abuse in the guise of mentorship.
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#3
Adjusted Score: 103018%
Critics Consensus: Anchored by Yllka Gashi’s outstanding performance, Hive leads viewers on one woman’s fact-based quest for self-determination in a patriarchal society.
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#2
Adjusted Score: 104076%
Critics Consensus: Quo Vadis, Aida? uses one woman’s heartbreaking conflict to offer a searing account of war’s devastating human toll.
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#1
Adjusted Score: 105176%
Critics Consensus: A raw, fly-on-the-wall recounting of hospital life in Wuhan in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, 76 Days is an engrossing and potent documentary – and a surprisingly comforting portrait of humanity.
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Starring: