This Is the Best Movie of 2020, According to Critics
In a year without many major releases, these films quietly stood out.

Chances are you didn't see many movies in theaters this year. With closures across the country, and many of us forced to stay inside our homes, the moviegoing experience in 2020 was different—to say the least. But there were still plenty of new releases: smaller, indie films that got a little more attention on streaming services than they likely would have while competing against the many blockbuster releases that were postponed until post-pandemic. The critics were certainly paying attention. Based on their reviews, the following list represents the best movies 2020 had to offer.
We turned to Metacritic, which assigns films scores based on an average of the reviews they receive. The site's ranked list of the best reviewed films of the year is eclectic and filled with titles you might have missed in a more crowded, studio-driven year. Read on to see if any of your 2020 favorites made the list, and to find out what movies you need to make time to stream. And for more on what we watched this year, These Were the Most Popular Shows on Netflix in 2020.
50
Make Up

Metascore: 81
And for more recent films that got great reviews, check out The Best Movies of the 21st Century, According to Critics.
49
Sound of Metal

Metascore: 81
48
A Thousand Cuts

Metascore: 81
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47
The Climb

Metascore: 82
46
Bacurau

Metascore: 82
And for more of the year's best genre films, These Are the Best Horror Films of 2020, According to Critics.
45
Sorry We Missed You

Metascore: 82
44
Da 5 Bloods

Metascore: 82
43
House of Hummingbird

Metascore: 82
42
Residue

Metascore: 82
41
Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets

Metascore: 82
40
Driveways

Metascore: 83
39
Palm Springs

Metascore: 83
38
Saint Frances

Metascore: 83
37
I Wish I Knew

Metascore: 83
36
Our Time Machine

Metascore: 84
35
The Vast of Night

Metascore: 84
34
On the Record

Metascore: 84
33
Beanpole

Metascore: 84
32
Boys State

Metascore: 84
31
Red, White and Blue

Metascore: 84
30
Black Is King

Metascore: 84
29
76 Days

Metascore: 85
28
Nomad: In the Footsteps of Bruce Chatwin

Metascore: 85
27
Athlete A

Metascore: 85
26
The Father

Metascore: 85
25
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution

Metascore: 86
24
Vitalina Varela

Metascore: 86
23
To the Ends of the Earth

Metascore: 86
22
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Metascore: 86
21
Divine Love

Metascore: 86
20
Welcome to Chechnya

Metascore: 86
19
The Wolf House

Metascore: 86
18
Wolfwalkers

Metascore: 87
17
What the Constitution Means to Me

Metascore: 87
16
Rewind

Metascore: 87
15
Minari

Metascore: 87
14
City Hall

Metascore: 88
13
Education

Metascore: 88
12
Dick Johnson Is Dead

Metascore: 89
11
First Cow

Metascore: 89
10
Soul

Metascore: 89
9
Mangrove

Metascore: 90
8
Hamilton

Metascore: 90
7
Gunda

Metascore: 90
6
Never Rarely Sometimes Always

Metascore: 91
5
Time

Metascore: 91
4
David Byrne's American Utopia

Metascore: 93
3
Collective

Metascore: 95
And for more movies worth watching, find out The Best Movie That Came Out the Year You Graduated, According to Critics.
2
Lovers Rock

Metascore: 95
1
Nomadland

Metascore: 97
And if you're wondering what films critics hated this year, discover The Worst Movies of 2020, According to Critics.