These Are the Top-Rated Movies on Rotten Tomatoes

People love talking about movies—whether that's arguing over the most shocking twist endings, debating the best movie to watch as a family, rehashing the saddest cinematic deaths, or trying to pick the funniest movie of all time. When it comes to the best movies of all, these things are subjective, and that's part of what makes the discussion so fun. But if you want to prove your pick is universally adored, you can always turn to Rotten Tomatoes, the immensely popular movie review aggregator, and see if it's one of the top rated movies on the site.

Rotten Tomatoes culls together reviews from film critics to create a by-consensus score for each film. The top-rated films are "certified fresh," while the low-rated ones are deemed "rotten." The site's list of top films of all time ranks movies by a wide variety of factors, including number of reviews, release date, genre, and average rating. You might be surprised by some of the choices on this list, but you'll have to take that up with the algorithm. Read on to discover if your faves made the cut. And for more critically acclaimed films worth watching, check out these 11 Academy Award Best Picture Winners That Still Hold Up.

Yes, Black Panther is a superhero movie based on a comic book—but it's a truly awesome one. Actually, according to Rotten Tomatoes, it's the most awesome one. With a majority-black cast, Black Panther gave movie audiences something totally fresh: The prior 17 films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe starred white superheroes, which made Black Panther's T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) stand out. As a result, the film brought in a global haul of more than $1.3 billion, making it one of the highest grossing films ever. Oh, and it also got nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, ultimately picking up Oscars for Best Costume Design, Best Original Score, and Best Production Design.

T'Challa returns in Avengers: Endgame along with, well, every other Marvel superhero ever, basically. The 2019 sequel to Avengers: Infinity War was the culmination of over a decade of films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe—and it gave audiences all the laughter, the tears, and the catharsis they were looking for. That's probably why it ended up grossing a staggering $2.8 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of all time.

Nobody does it like Jordan Peele: The writer-director of Get Out—which you'll also find on this list—scared the pants off of audiences again with his 2019 follow-up, Us. With Lupita Nyong'o delivering one of her greatest performances ever, and a script that relentlessly ratchets up the tension while offering more biting social commentary, Us is another horror film that expands the mainstream perception of what the genre can do. The Academy may not have recognized it, denying some well deserved nominations, but critics were certainly happy to give the film its due. And for scary movies you can watch right now, here are The 18 Best Horror Movies on Netflix.

How do you top perfection? You don't, and that's why so many of us were nervous about the continuation of the Toy Story saga after the flawless original trilogy concluded in 2010. Nevertheless, Toy Story 4 proved the naysayers wrong, as critics were more than willing to admit. From a breakout role for the criminally underappreciated Bo Peep (Annie Potts) to the introduction of instant fan favorite character Forky (Tony Hale), Toy Story 4 defied expectations by being another delightful installment that made us cry again.

At its core, 2017's Lady Bird is about the relationship between a mother and a daughter (Laurie Metcalf and Saoirse Ronan)—both of whom are stubborn, independent, and opinionated. The film centers on Ronan's character, a senior in high school in 2002 who just wants to move on to bigger and better things (preferably outside of her hometown of Sacramento, California). After its release, critics instantly deemed it one of the best films of that year—and with good reason.

According to the Library of Congress, The Wizard of Oz—the beloved adaptation of L. Frank Baum's 1900 children's book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz—is the most watched film in all of history. Though the 1939 film, starring Judy Garland as Dorothy, didn't snag any Academy Awards (Gone With the Wind earned the majority of statues that year), the movie still became iconic in its own right. There's a very good chance you grew up watching it.

Who would have guessed that the sixth installment in the Mission: Impossible film series would prove so successful with audiences and critics? Probably the same people who guessed that Tom Cruise would be a viable action star and handsome leading man well into his 50s. The actor is aging like a fine wine, and so is the Mission: Impossible series, which manages to keep topping itself. We can only predict where the two announced sequels will end up on this list when they're released in 2021 and 2022.

In case you had any doubts that Martin Scorsese could still deliver an epic crime film, the director returned with The Irishman, a three-and-a-half hour exploration of real-life truck driver-turned-hitman Frank Sheeran, played by Robert De Niro at the top of his game. The Irishman got a lot of attention for its use of CGI to de-age its cast—including Joe Pesci and Al Pacino—but critics were wowed not by the special effects or the length, but by Scorsese's ability to still tell a grounded, human story amid all the violence.

Citizen Kane is considered by many critics to be the best movie ever made. Screen legend Orson Welles co-wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the 1941 film, which shattered precedents with its narrative and stylistic innovations. The film centers on newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane, who was loosely based on newspaper tycoons William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer. It was nominated for Academy Awards in nine categories, though it only won the Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Screenplay), for the script by Welles and Herman J. Mankiewicz.

Based on Ron Stallworth's memoir, Black Klansman, this 2018 film follows the Colorado Springs Police Department's first black police officer as he sets out to expose the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan during the 1970s. Directed by Spike Lee and starring John David Washington and Adam Driver, BlacKkKlansman was admired by critics, whose reviews praised its exploration of our recent history and the times we find ourselves in now—and how they're inextricably linked. BlacKkKlansman ultimately won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, a first for Lee.

This 1920 silent German horror film was dubbed the "first true horror film" by famed critic Roger Ebert. The movie—about an insane, murderous hypnotist—has also been praised by other critics for paving the way for future stylized arthouse productions. In particular, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari's dark and angular cinematography created an ambiance that was new to audiences when it was released, and has proved hugely influential.

Jordan Peele has made two films so far, and they're both on this list. His directorial debut, Get Out, smashed box-office records. It also made Peele the first black writer to win the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The film stars Daniel Kaluuya as a black man who travels with his white girlfriend to meet her family. If you haven't seen it, we won't spoil anything, but needless to say, things aren't as they seem. This is a horror film, after all!

There have been so many different versions of Spider-Man at this point (there's even another on this list!) that it can be a real challenge to stand out. But Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is such a distinctive vision in every way—from the varying animation styles to the inclusive casting to the consistently surprising storytelling. Critics adored it, with some calling it the best Spider-Man movie, not to mention one of the greatest superhero movies of all time.

This action film, set in a post-apocalyptic desert where water is in high demand, sees Max (Tom Hardy) joining forces with Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) to evade crazed cult leader Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne). Upon its release, the film was widely praised by critics, who enjoyed that the film managed to maintain a lively pace of action while also incorporating some humor and feminist ideals. While it might not have seemed like a typical Oscar movie, Mad Max: Fury Road won six Academy Awards, breaking the record for the most wins for an Australian film.

Nosferatu has a complicated history. While F.W. Murnau's expressionist horror film was quite clearly based on Bram Stoker's novel Dracula—instead of Count Dracula, his vampire is Count Orlok—the director did not have the rights to the novel. Stoker's heirs sued the filmmakers, and the court ruled that all remaining copies of Nosferatu had to be destroyed. Thankfully, the movie survived. It remains a horror classic, of which Roger Ebert once wrote, "I admire it more for its artistry and ideas, its atmosphere and images, than for its ability to manipulate my emotions like a skillful modern horror film. … Nosferatu remains effective: It doesn't scare us, but it haunts us."

Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney's semi-autobiographical In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue served as the basis for writer-director Barry Jenkins' stunning coming-of-age drama, which follows a black gay man at three different stages of his life. Moonlight earned praise from critics for its stunning visuals, gorgeous performances (including by Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali), and its all-too-rare depiction of life as a black man in the LGBTQ+ community. Despite a notorious awards night snafu, Moonlight triumphed with a win for Best Picture.

In 1936, Charlie Chaplin wrote, directed, and starred in Modern Times, a movie that helped cement his mark in cinematic history. The film centers on his Little Tramp character—it was the last time Chaplin would take on the role—a bumbling but generally good-hearted fellow trying to survive in the industrial era. While Modern Times is a comedy, it offered keen insight and commentary on the dire plight of workers during the Great Depression. Decades later, in 1989, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

Arguably the most quotable movie in all of history—it's at least up there—Casablanca still shines bright decades after its release. Starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman as star-crossed lovers, this romantic drama set against the backdrop of World War II won Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. As time goes by, Casablanca remains a widely respected classic, regularly cited as the greatest movie ever made.

Kudos to Olivia Wilde, who hit it out of the park with her directorial debut. Booksmart takes all the tropes of classic teen comedies and then turns them on their head—it's both familiar and completely unique, which is probably why so many critics fell in love with it. Of course, it's hard not to fall in love with Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever as two best friends who, after realizing they're about to graduate high school without experiencing any of the good stuff, embark on a debaucherous (and ill-fated) night to remember.

Tell me something, boy: Can you remember the first time you heard Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga duet on "Shallow"? Just try to pretend you didn't get chills. The fourth iteration of A Star Is Born may have faded in some people's memories at this point, but there's no denying the very real cinematic magic that it conjured. Go ahead and revisit some of the film's early reviews, which rightfully praised Cooper's exceptional direction and a performance from Lady Gaga that deserved all the attention it received.

Awkwafina got rave reviews for her role as Billi in Lulu Wang's The Farewell, about a Chinese-American family visiting their dying grandmother in China—and deciding not to tell her about her diagnosis. Yes, it's a tearjerker, but it's also very funny, and critics and audiences praised The Farewell for a balanced and honest depiction of the clash between Chinese and Western cultures, treating all of its characters with respect, admiration, and a healthy sense of humor.

Based on the iconic DC Comics character, this superhero movie starring Gal Gadot brought high-octane feminine power into the world of superheroes. Oh, and it also received a ton of glowing reviews from critics in the process. After it was released in 2017, the film set numerous box-office records, proving just how much audiences wanted to see a female superhero in the spotlight. The sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, is scheduled to hit theaters on Aug. 14, after being delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, this movie offers a visceral depiction of the 1940 evacuation of Dunkirk during World War II. Due in large part to its ensemble cast—which included big names like Harry Styles, Kenneth Branagh, Cillian Murphy, and Tom Hardy—Dunkirk managed to captivate audiences everywhere with its poignant portrayal of the historic event. To date, Dunkirk is the highest-grossing World War II film (even surpassing Saving Private Ryan), making $525 million worldwide. The film received eight Academy Award nominations, ultimately taking home three awards.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb

This 1934 American romantic comedy, which stars Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, was so lauded by critics that it became the first of only three films to win all five major Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay. That's far from the film's only achievement—it was also selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1993.

In 1999, the British Film Institute voted The Third Man the best British film of all time, but critics had been calling it a masterpiece for decades. With the 1949 movie, Carol Reed proved himself to be an industry trailblazer, using a combination of lighting, music, and camera techniques to set a dark mood for his noir film set in post-World War II Vienna. The screenplay by acclaimed novelist Graham Greene certainly didn't hurt either—nor did the performances, including by Reed's fellow trailblazer Orson Welles. Unfortunately for Reed, Welles' involvement meant that many people still think of The Third Man as "an Orson Welles movie."

With a superstar voice cast featuring Amy Poehler, Bill Hader, Mindy Kaling, Diane Lane, and Kyle MacLachlan, and a compelling and thought-provoking plot, Inside Out is considered by many to be one of the best animated films of the 21st century. Praised for its open dialogue about the way emotions change as you mature, Inside Out received a plethora of awards upon its 2015 release. And like any good Pixar movie, it also made audiences weep. (Don't get us started on Bing Bong.)

Released in 2018, Eighth Grade is a comedy-drama written by Bo Burnham and starring Elsie Fisher as the titular eighth grader during her last week of middle school. It was hailed by critics for its peek inside the mind of a young teen, with Burnham's exceptional screenplay capturing the harsh realities of contemporary adolescence. Despite encountering trouble as he tried to fund the film, Burnham was vindicated when Eighth Grade received major accolades, with Burnham winning an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay, and Fisher getting a Golden Globe nomination for her performance.

This 1937 war film is considered by many to be one of the greatest French movies ever made. In fact, when Orson Welles was asked which movies he would bring with him "on the ark," La Grande Illusion was one of two he picked. Directed by Jean Renoir, the film centers on the dynamic among a group of French prisoners of war plotting their escape. After Franklin Roosevelt said, "Every democratic person should see this film," it was banned in several countries.

Alfonso Cuarón's intimate, semi-autobiographical Roma gave audiences insight into the director's upbringing—and gave Netflix, who distributed the movie, a lot more prestige. The film earned overwhelmingly positive reviews from critics, who called the movie one of Cuarón's most stunning and personal. It also got plenty of attention at the Academy Awards, with 10 nominations, including Best Picture. While it failed to take the top prize, it did win three Oscars for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.

Inspired by the Mexican holiday Day of the Dead, Coco follows 12-year-old Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), who ends up in the Land of the Dead and seeks out his great-great grandfather for help getting back. The film was praised for its respectful handling of Mexican culture—and became the first film with an all-Latino cast to have a nine-figure budget. And yes, like every other Pixar movie on this list, it's also a crowd-pleaser that will make you sob.

Released to widespread critical acclaim in 2015, Spotlight recounts the real-life story of The Boston Globe's 2001 investigation into claims of child sexual abuse among Roman Catholic priests. The film, which stars Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, and Rachel McAdams, was praised for its thoughtful and compelling retelling of a challenging story. It went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, with Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer winning for their screenplay.

Decades after its release, The Godfather still manages to show up on nearly every list of the best films of all time. (So does its sequel, which somehow didn't make the Rotten Tomatoes list.) In case you missed this cherished piece of cinema, the film centers on a fictional New York crime family and stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, and Diane Keaton. It was the highest grossing movie of 1972, and, for a short time, the highest grossing film ever. It won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actor (Brando), and Best Adapted Screenplay for Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo. And yes, it was also chosen for preservation by the Library of Congress.

Fans of The Office learned that John Krasinski had the range with this post-apocalyptic horror film about a family trying to evade alien monsters with super-powered hearing by staying completely silent. Krasinski co-wrote, directed, and starred in the movie, playing opposite his wife, Emily Blunt, whose performance was heralded by critics as one of the year's best. A sequel, A Quiet Place Part II, is due out in 2020, with Krasinski once again in the director's chair.

Star Wars fans can debate The Last Jedi all they want—and trust us, they will—but in terms of box office and critical response, the film can easily be considered a success. The continuing adventures of Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), and Poe (Oscar Isaac) took in $1.3 billion worldwide, and impressed critics, who appreciated the way the film upended expectations of what a Star Wars movie looks like. Some of the fans, on the other hand, were less enthused.

It's hard to imagine where we'd be without Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the first full-length animated feature film, and the movie that put Walt Disney on the map. While it wasn't until decades later that a Disney movie would get the coveted Best Picture nomination, the man himself did earn an honorary Oscar for Snow White—or rather, one full-size Oscar and seven dwarf statuettes. More than 80 years after its release, the movie is still a favorite among Disney fans.

Ava DuVernay's historical drama recounts the 1965 voting rights marches in Alabama between Selma and Montgomery, and was released just shy of the 50th anniversary of the historic event, then re-released to coincide with the actual date to commemorate its legacy. While there was some debate over the film's historical accuracy, critics were particularly impressed by the complex and nuanced depiction of Martin Luther King Jr., and David Oyelowo's performance in the role.

Since 1982, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial has taught young people about friendship, loss, and Reese's Pieces. Steven Spielberg's timeless film about an alien trying to get back home has resonated with kids and adults for decades because it's an exciting sci-fi adventure that will also make you seriously emotional. For years, it held the record as the highest grossing film of all time, but Spielberg broke his own record with Jurassic Park in 1993. As a consolation, the following year, E.T. was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

Singin' in the Rain is one of the most beloved movie musicals of all time. It's a love letter to 1920s Hollywood, starring Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds in all their singing-and-dancing glory. While the movie features several notable songs, some of which had been seen in earlier films, it's of course best remembered for the title number—which had been performed as early as 1927, but never as memorably as in the film inspired by it.

Best Picture winner The Shape of Water is a romance on two fronts. Guillermo del Toro's dark fantasy depicts the unlikely love story between Elisa (Sally Hawkins), a cleaner at a secret government laboratory who doesn't speak, and the Creature From the Black Lagoon-esque creature (Doug Jones) being held captive there. But the film is also a love letter to old Hollywood, which might be why critics latched onto it so readily. They were also entranced by Hawkins' tender and stirring performance.

All About Eve is probably best remembered for two things: Bette Davis' iconic performance, and her delivery of the line, "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night." But the Joseph L. Mankiewicz film—about Davis' Margo Channing, an aging actress, and the titular Eve (Anne Baxter), a younger actress worming her way into Margo's life—is still as smart and funny as it was 70 years ago. If anything, as critics have noted, the movie gets better with age. And that's impressive, because it was a classic upon its release, breaking the then-record for most Oscar nods with 14 nominations.

By the 17th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the third installment of the Thor franchise, you'd think Thor: Ragnarok had nothing new to offer. Enter director Taika Waititi, who helped deliver one of the most creative, surprising, colorful, and remarkably funny superhero movies of all time. Critics noted that the film set a new bar for Marvel movies, which have thankfully learned from Waititi's example and adopted some of the humor and unabashed eccentricity that made Thor: Ragnarok such a standout.

Amy Adams earned glowing reviews—but alas, still no Oscar—for her role as linguist Louise Banks, recruited by the U.S. Army to communicate with a new alien species, and hopefully stave off impending war. Arrival, directed by Denis Villeneuve, rests on a brilliant (and rather gutting) twist that we won't give away. Suffice it to say, it's the kind of movie that benefits from repeat viewing. And Adams really should have finally gotten that Academy Award.

In addition to its respectable slot on this list, Rotten Tomatoes ranks King Kong as the sixth-greatest horror film of all time. It was also one of the first. It's been remade enough at this point that even if you haven't seen the original you know the story: A giant ape is captured on a remote island and brought back to New York where he risks it all for a human woman (Fay Wray) he's fallen in love with. The special effects in the film were so striking in 1933 that producer David O. Selznick unsuccessfully petitioned the Academy to give animator Willis O'Brien a special Oscar for his work. They declined, but the Special Achievement Award for Special Effects Oscar was introduced shortly thereafter in 1938; you now know it as Best Visual Effects.

There have been so many movies featuring X-Men at this point that it's hard to keep track of all of them. When Logan hit theaters in 2017, it was the 10th movie in the X-Men series and the third and final movie in the Wolverine trilogy—and none of that really matters, because it was entirely its own thing, despite Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart reprising their roles as Wolverine and Charles Xavier. While Logan's R-rating may have seemed like a gimmick to distinguish the movie from past superhero flicks, critics found that the movie's graphic violence turned out to be secondary to its surprising nuance and emotional depth.

Remember we promised Spider-Man would web-sling back onto this list? And here he is again, with Tom Holland in the role for the second time after 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, the first standalone Spider-Man movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unsurprisingly, the film was a major box-office success, raking in $1.1 billion worldwide. But it was also no slouch with critics, who were impressed with the way Far From Home picked things up after the epic Avengers: Endgame by blending classic MCU action with a breezier, more contained story.

James Whale's 1931 Frankenstein may be one of the most famous horror films of all time, but you don't see it on this list, do you? Instead, you'll find the equally iconic sequel, 1935's Bride of Frankenstein, also directed by Whale. No shade to Boris Karloff, who remains the definitive Frankenstein's monster, but it's tough to compete with Elsa Lanchester as the titular bride, who helped this movie improve on the original. With its campy quality and provocative themes, it's certainly become the favorite of the two.

Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani collaborated on this romantic comedy based on their love story, with Nanjiani playing a fictionalized version of himself, and Zoe Kazan playing a fictionalized version of Gordon. As in real life, early on in the relationship between the movie's Kumail and the movie's Emily, she falls seriously ill and ends up in a coma, leading him to have to connect with her family. While The Big Sick wasn't the first rom-com to deal with cross-cultural themes, the specificity of its story and the sharp (and obviously very personal screenplay) got critical attention—and an Oscar nom.

With 14 years between the first Incredibles movie—a tremendous commercial and critical success—and the sequel, expectations were high for Incredibles 2. Thankfully, they were met, in large part due to that same charming voice cast, including Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, and Samuel L. Jackson. But also, yes, thanks to the unmistakable Pixar magic that has made so many of the studio's films pop up on this list. As far as box-office achievement goes, Incredibles 2 managed to surpass the original by a lot, ultimately netting $1.2 billion worldwide.

There are probably Alfred Hitchcock movies you know better that could have ended up on this list, but it's hard to argue with Shadow of a Doubt, his 1943 psychological thriller about young Charlie Newton (Teresa Wright) discovering that her beloved Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotten) is a murderer. Like so many Hitchcock films, it's a relentlessly suspenseful cat-and-mouse game, but with a complexity and sense of realism that made it one of the director's personal favorites.

Luca Guadagnino's lush coming-of-age romance follows the brief affair between 17-year-old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) and 24-year-old graduate student Oliver (Armie Hammer) over the course of an Italian summer in 1983. At 89, James Ivory became the oldest ever Academy Award winner for his screenplay adaptation of André Aciman's novel. Critics praised Call Me By Your Name for its honest and emotionally affecting depiction of first love.