Best-Reviewed Dramas 2018

No drama is purely a drama — there are always other themes floating around — and this year’s best-reviewed films in the category tackle a variety of issues, in a variety of different ways, to tell their stories. The year’s top film is no exception: Spike Lee took a remarkable true story with sociopolitical implications that ring true even today, and earned some of the best reviews he’s gotten in decades with BlacKkKlansman.

The order of the rank below reflects the Adjusted Score as of December 31, 2018. Scores might change over time.

#1

BlacKkKlansman (2018)
96%

#1

Adjusted Score: 114.182%

Critics Consensus: BlacKkKlansman uses history to offer bitingly trenchant commentary on current events -- and brings out some of Spike Lee's hardest-hitting work in decades along the way.

Synopsis: From visionary filmmaker Spike Lee comes the incredible true story of an American hero. It's the early 1970s, and Ron... [More]

Starring: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace

Directed By: Spike Lee

#2

Leave No Trace (2018)
100%

#2

Adjusted Score: 109.224%

Critics Consensus: Leave No Trace takes an effectively low-key approach to a potentially sensationalistic story -- and further benefits from brilliant work by Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie.

Synopsis: Will (Ben Foster) and his teenage daughter, Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie), have lived off the grid for years in the... [More]

Starring: Ben Foster, Thomasin McKenzie, Jeff Kober, Dale Dickey

Directed By: Debra Granik

#3

Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018)
98%

#3

Adjusted Score: 110.601%

Critics Consensus: Deftly directed and laced with dark wit, Can You Ever Forgive Me? proves a compelling showcase for deeply affecting work from Richard E. Grant and Melissa McCarthy.

Synopsis: In CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME?, Melissa McCarthy stars as Lee Israel, the best-selling celebrity biographer (and cat lover) who... [More]

Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Richard E. Grant, Dolly Wells, Jane Curtin

Directed By: Marielle Heller

#4

The Hate U Give (2018)
97%

#4

Adjusted Score: 105.943%

Critics Consensus: Led by a breakout turn from Amandla Stenberg, the hard-hitting The Hate U Give emphatically proves the YA genre has room for much more than magic and romance.

Synopsis: Starr Carter is constantly switching between two worlds: the poor, mostly black, neighborhood where she lives and the rich, mostly... [More]

Starring: Amandla Stenberg, Regina Hall, Russell Hornsby, KJ Apa

Directed By: George Tillman Jr.

#5

First Reformed (2018)
93%

#5

Adjusted Score: 102.881%

Critics Consensus: Brought to life by delicate work from writer-director Paul Schrader and elevated by a standout performance by Ethan Hawke, First Reformed takes a sensitive and suspenseful look at weighty themes.

Synopsis: Reverend Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) is a solitary, middle-aged parish pastor at a small Dutch Reform church in upstate New... [More]

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Cedric the Entertainer, Michael Gaston

Directed By: Paul Schrader