Best-Reviewed Movies 2020: Wide Release

Critics Consensus: Smart, well-acted, and above all scary, The Invisible Man proves that sometimes, the classic source material for a fresh reboot can be hiding in plain sight.

Synopsis: After staging his own suicide, a crazed scientist uses his power to become invisible to stalk and terrorize his ex-girlfriend. When the police refuse to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Elisabeth Moss, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Aldis Hodge, Storm Reid

Directed By: Leigh Whannell

Critics Consensus: A poetic character study on the forgotten and downtrodden, Nomadland beautifully captures the restlessness left in the wake of the Great Recession.

Synopsis: A woman in her sixties embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad after losing everything in the Great... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May, Swankie

Directed By: Chloé Zhao

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.

Synopsis: FBI informant William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois Black Panther Party and is tasked with keeping tabs on their charismatic leader, Chairman Fred Hampton. A career... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, LaKeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons, Dominique Fishback

Directed By: Shaka King

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.

Synopsis: Nothing in Cassie's life is what it appears to be -- she's wickedly smart, tantalizingly cunning, and she's living a secret double life by night.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Carey Mulligan, Laverne Cox, Bo Burnham, Clancy Brown

Directed By: Emerald Fennell

Critics Consensus: It may suffer in comparison to Pixar's classics, but Onward makes effective use of the studio's formula -- and stands on its own merits as a funny, heartwarming, dazzlingly animated adventure.

Synopsis: Teenage elf brothers Ian and Barley embark on a magical quest to spend one more day with their late father. Like any good adventure, their... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Octavia Spencer

Directed By: Dan Scanlon

Critics Consensus: The Personal History of David Copperfield puts a fresh, funny, and utterly charming spin on Dickens' classic, proving some stories truly are timeless.

Synopsis: The life of David Copperfield is chronicled from his youth into adulthood.

Starring: Dev Patel, Tilda Swinton, Hugh Laurie, Peter Capaldi

Directed By: Armando Iannucci

Critics Consensus: News of the World takes a slow but absorbing ride down a comfortingly familiar Western trail, guided by Tom Hanks in peak paternal mode.

Synopsis: Five years after the end of the Civil War, Capt. Jefferson Kyle Kidd crosses paths with a 10-year-old girl taken by the Kiowa people. Forced... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Hanks, Helena Zengel, Mare Winningham, Michael Angelo Covino

Directed By: Paul Greengrass

Critics Consensus: Just Mercy dramatizes a real-life injustice with solid performances, a steady directorial hand, and enough urgency to overcome a certain degree of earnest advocacy.

Synopsis: After graduating from Harvard, Bryan Stevenson heads to Alabama to defend those wrongly condemned or those not afforded proper representation. One of his first cases... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson, Rob Morgan

Directed By: Destin Daniel Cretton

Critics Consensus: With a fresh perspective, some new friends, and loads of fast-paced action, Birds of Prey captures the colorfully anarchic spirit of Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn.

Synopsis: It's open season on Harley Quinn when her explosive breakup with the Joker puts a big fat target on her back. Unprotected and on the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Margot Robbie, Rosie Perez, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett

Directed By: Cathy Yan

Critics Consensus: As wholesomely goofy as its heroes, Bill and Ted Face the Music is a rare long-belated sequel that largely recaptures the franchise's original charm.

Synopsis: The ruler of the future tells best friends Bill and Ted they must compose a new song to save life as we know it. But... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, Kristen Schaal, Samara Weaving

Directed By: Dean Parisot