Best-Reviewed Movies 2016 > Limited Releases

Films in this category never opened in more that 600 theaters in the US in 2016. And although these titles may not be immediately familiar to all audiences, critics say each one of them is worth watching.

The order of the list reflects the scores as of December 31, 2016, but the number displayed on the Adjusted Tomatometer may change as more reviews keep getting added after the end of the year.

#1

Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
97%

#1

Adjusted Score: 106732%

Critics Consensus: The charmingly offbeat Hunt for the Wilderpeople unites a solid cast, a talented filmmaker, and a poignant, funny, deeply affecting message.

Synopsis: A boy (Julian Dennison) and his foster father (Sam Neill) become the subjects of a manhunt after they get stranded... [More]

Starring: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rima Te Wiata, Rachel House

Directed By: Taika Waititi

#2

Things to Come (2016)
99%

#2

Adjusted Score: 105702%

Critics Consensus: A union to cherish between a writer-director and star working at peak power, Things to Come offers quietly profound observations on life, love, and the irrevocable passage of time.

Synopsis: A passionate middle-aged philosophy professor (Isabelle Huppert) rethinks her already much-examined life after an unforeseen divorce.... [More]

Starring: Isabelle Huppert, André Marcon, Roman Kolinka, Edith Scob

Directed By: Mia Hansen-Løve

#3

Don't Think Twice (2016)
98%

#3

Adjusted Score: 103983%

Critics Consensus: Don't Think Twice offers a bittersweet look at the comedian's life that's as genuinely moving as it is laugh-out-loud funny -- and a brilliant calling card for writer-director Mike Birbiglia.

Synopsis: Turmoil strikes a New York improv troupe (Keegan-Michael Key, Gillian Jacobs, Mike Birbiglia) when one member leaves to star in... [More]

Starring: Keegan-Michael Key, Gillian Jacobs, Mike Birbiglia, Kate Micucci

Directed By: Mike Birbiglia

#4

Sing Street (2016)
95%

#4

Adjusted Score: 105245%

Critics Consensus: Sing Street is a feel-good musical with huge heart and irresistible optimism, and its charming cast and hummable tunes help to elevate its familiar plotting.

Synopsis: In 1985, a Dublin teenager (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) forms a rock 'n' roll band to win the heart of an aspiring... [More]

Starring: Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Lucy Boynton, Jack Reynor, Aidan Gillen

Directed By: John Carney

#5

Weiner (2016)
96%

#5

Adjusted Score: 103986%

Critics Consensus: Weiner uses sharp insight and untrammeled access to offer a portrait of a political and personal collapse that's as queasy as it is undeniably compelling.

Synopsis: Former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) runs for mayor of New York in 2013, but a new sex scandal ruins his... [More]

Starring: Anthony Weiner, Huma Abedin, Dean Obeidallah, Philippe Reines

Directed By: Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg

#6

Little Men (2016)
97%

#6

Adjusted Score: 103291%

Critics Consensus: Little Men takes a compassionate look at the ways in which adult problems impact childhood friendships -- and offers another affecting New York drama from director Ira Sachs.

Synopsis: Two teens develop a growing friendship in Brooklyn, N.Y., while the feud between their respective parents (Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Ehle)... [More]

Starring: Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Ehle, Paulina García, Michael Barbieri

Directed By: Ira Sachs

#7

Cameraperson (2016)
99%

#7

Adjusted Score: 103597%

Critics Consensus: Fresh and inventive yet immediately accessible, Cameraperson distills its subject's life and career into an experience that should prove immediately absorbing even for those unfamiliar with her work.

Synopsis: Cinematographer Kirsten Johnson exposes her many years behind the camera through a memoir made up of decades of footage shot... [More]

Starring: Kirsten Johnson, Roger Phenix

Directed By: Kirsten Johnson

#8

Embrace of the Serpent (2015)
96%

#8

Adjusted Score: 102837%

Critics Consensus: As rich visually as it is thematically, Embrace of the Serpent offers a feast of the senses for film fans seeking a dose of bracing originality.

Synopsis: In the early 1900s, a young shaman in the Colombian Amazon helps a sick German explorer and his local guide... [More]

Starring: Jan Bijvoet, Brionne Davis, Nilbio Torres, Nicolás Cancino

Directed By: Ciro Guerra

#9

Tower (2016)
99%

#9

Adjusted Score: 103186%

Critics Consensus: Tower probes into a painful chapter of American history with sensitivity and grace -- and revisits its events from a valuable new perspective.

Synopsis: On Aug. 1, 1966, a sniper rode the elevator to the top floor of the University of Texas Tower and... [More]

Starring: Violett Beane, Blair Jackson, Josephine McAdam, Reece Everett Ryan

Directed By: Keith Maitland

#10

The Wailing (2016)
99%

#10

Adjusted Score: 102416%

Critics Consensus: The Wailing delivers an atmospheric, cleverly constructed mystery whose supernatural thrills more than justify its imposing length.

Synopsis: Suspicion leads to hysteria when rural villagers link a series of brutal murders to the arrival of a mysterious stranger... [More]

Starring: Kwak Do-won, Jun Kunimura, Hwang Jung-min, Chun Woo-hee

Directed By: Na Hong-jin