100 Best Movies on Amazon Prime (December 2020)

Adjusted Score: 105.7%

Critics Consensus: It’s going to be a long, long time before a rock biopic manages to capture the highs and lows of an artist’s life like Rocketman.

Adjusted Score: 90.853%

Critics Consensus: Itzhak serves as an entertaining introduction to the life and career of a brilliant artist with a personality as warm as his music.

Adjusted Score: 93.175%

Critics Consensus: Intimate in setting yet ambitious in scope, the beautifully acted Marjorie Prime poses thought-provoking questions about memory, humanity, and love.

Adjusted Score: 92.982%

Critics Consensus: Bone Tomahawk’s peculiar genre blend won’t be for everyone, but its gripping performances and a slow-burning story should satisfy those in search of something different.

Adjusted Score: 95.93%

Critics Consensus: Arctic proves that a good survival thriller doesn’t need much in the way of dialogue to get by — especially when Mads Mikkelsen is the one doing the surviving.

Adjusted Score: 94.998%

Critics Consensus: A dark but timely subject is handled deftly by writer/directer Owen Moverman and superbly acted by Woody Harrleson and Ben Foster.

Adjusted Score: 106.653%

Critics Consensus: A gripping story brilliantly filmed and led by a pair of powerhouse performances, The Lighthouse further establishes Robert Eggers as a filmmaker of exceptional talent.

Adjusted Score: 92.065%

Critics Consensus: RUMBLE shines a long overdue spotlight on key contributions to the American musical lexicon, satisfying rock scholars while offering a fascinating — albeit sobering — primer on the foundations of a genre.

Adjusted Score: 95.579%

Critics Consensus: Incendiary, subversive, and darkly humorous, If…. is a landmark of British countercultural cinema.

Adjusted Score: 94.123%

Critics Consensus: It’s solidly directed by Robert Benton and stacked with fine performances from an impressive cast, but above all, Nobody’s Fool is a showcase for some of Paul Newman’s best late-period work.

Adjusted Score: 92.486%

Critics Consensus: Microbe and Gasoline brings Michel Gondry’s distinctive gifts to bear on an oft-told tale, with thoroughly charming results.

Adjusted Score: 93.221%

Critics Consensus: Brawl in Cell Block 99 rides a committed Vince Vaughn performance into the brutally violent — and undeniably entertaining — depths of prison-set grindhouse genre fare.

Adjusted Score: 94.302%

Critics Consensus: Traditional in form yet effective in execution, this taut thriller updates the “danger on a train” scenario with atmospheric sense.

Adjusted Score: 95.059%

Critics Consensus: A Man Called Ove’s winsome sincerity — and Rolf Lassgård’s affectingly flinty performance in the title role — keep it from succumbing to excess sentimentality.

Adjusted Score: 95.414%

Critics Consensus: Epic in scope yet clear-eyed and intimate, Human Flow offers a singularly expansive — and sobering — perspective on the global refugee crisis.

Adjusted Score: 95.97%

Critics Consensus: While it’s plenty predictable and sentimental, The Sapphires also has an irresistible feel-good vibe, winning music and charming performances to spare.

Adjusted Score: 96.516%

Critics Consensus: Earnest without being didactic and uplifting without stooping to sentimentality, Pride is a joyous crowd-pleaser that genuinely works.

Adjusted Score: 99.412%

Critics Consensus: Free of visual or narrative embellishments, Gloria Bell rests almost completely on Julianne Moore’s performance in the title role — and she’s gloriously up to the task.

Adjusted Score: 101.35%

Critics Consensus: Bumblebee proves it’s possible to bring fun and a sense of wonder back to a bloated blockbuster franchise — and sets up its own slate of sequels in the bargain.

Adjusted Score: 100.966%

Critics Consensus: Featuring outstanding work from an excellent cast, The Departed is a thoroughly engrossing gangster drama with the gritty authenticity and soupy morality we come to expect from Martin Scorsese.

Adjusted Score: 104.967%

Critics Consensus: Thanks to a script that emphasizes its heroes’ humanity and a wealth of superpowered set pieces, The Avengers lives up to its hype and raises the bar for Marvel at the movies.

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Directed By:

Adjusted Score: 93.101%

Critics Consensus: The tense and well-acted Always Shine tells an absorbing story while making a sharp, thought-provoking statement on women’s roles in Hollywood.

Adjusted Score: 93.769%

Critics Consensus: James Cromwell and Geneviève Bujold are outstanding in this tender, affecting, insightful drama about the bonds and sacrifices of marriage.

Adjusted Score: 94.044%

Critics Consensus: Ambitious and beautifully shot, Demon delivers a gripping — and sadly final — testament to the singular talent possessed by director/co-writer Marcin Wrona.

Adjusted Score: 95.679%

Critics Consensus: Journey’s End brings R.C. Sherriff’s 90-year-old play to the screen with thrilling power, thanks to director Saul Dibb’s hard-hitting urgency and brilliant work from a talented cast.

Adjusted Score: 96.507%

Critics Consensus: Whatever opinion you come to have of the obsessive Treadwell, Herzog has once again found a fascinating subject.

Adjusted Score: 96.931%

Critics Consensus: This is a piercingly honest, acidly witty look at divorce and its impact on a family.

Adjusted Score: 96.645%

Critics Consensus: Entertaining doc about the adverse effects of eating fast food.

Adjusted Score: 100.599%

Critics Consensus: An affecting story powerfully told, The Last Black Man in San Francisco immediately establishes director Joe Talbot as a filmmaker to watch.

Adjusted Score: 102.654%

Critics Consensus: An engrossing sci-fi thriller that transcends its period trappings, The Vast of Night suggests great things for debuting director Andrew Patterson.

Adjusted Score: 102.098%

Critics Consensus: Much like the sport it celebrates, Fighting with My Family muscles past clichés with a potent blend of energy and committed acting that should leave audiences cheering.

Adjusted Score: 102.442%

Critics Consensus: With a brilliantly stark visual aesthetic to match its lean narrative, Cold War doesn’t waste a moment of its brief running time — and doesn’t skimp on its bittersweet emotional impact.

Adjusted Score: 103.286%

Critics Consensus: Smart, funny, and profoundly melancholy, Inside Llewyn Davis finds the Coen brothers in fine form.

Adjusted Score: 103.985%

Critics Consensus: High-octane fun that’s smartly assembled without putting on airs, Logan Lucky marks a welcome end to Steven Soderbergh’s retirement — and proves he hasn’t lost his ability to entertain.

Adjusted Score: 102.957%

Critics Consensus: The Cabin in the Woods is an astonishing meta-feat, capable of being funny, strange, and scary — frequently all at the same time.

Adjusted Score: 97.341%

Critics Consensus: Barbara Streisand elevates this otherwise rote melodramatic musical with her ultra-memorable star turn as Fanny Brice.

Adjusted Score: 95.465%

Critics Consensus: Powerfully acted and rich with emotion, Invisible Life beguiles in the moment and leaves a lingering, dreamlike impression.

Adjusted Score: 103.072%

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.

Adjusted Score: 99.659%

Critics Consensus: A globetrotting caper that prizes its idiosyncratic pieces over the general puzzle, Charade is a delightful romp with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn’s sparkling chemistry at the center of some perfectly orchestrated mayhem.

Adjusted Score: 95.172%

Critics Consensus: Dear Zachary is a both a touching tribute to a fallen friend and a heart-wrenching account of justice gone astray, skillfully put to film with no emotion spared.

Adjusted Score: 95.537%

Critics Consensus: Beautifully photographed and majestically scored, Fateless is a haunting account of one boy’s experiences during the Holocaust and his journey to pick up the pieces in the war’s aftermath.

Adjusted Score: 106.288%

Critics Consensus: The holiday classic to define all holiday classics, It’s a Wonderful Life is one of a handful of films worth an annual viewing.

Adjusted Score: 97.673%

Critics Consensus: Its infectious enthusiasm for its subjects – and Iggy Pop’s ingratiating presence – more than make up for the effortlessly entertaining Gimme Danger’s relative lack of context or depth.

Adjusted Score: 98.016%

Critics Consensus: Train to Busan delivers a thrillingly unique — and purely entertaining — take on the zombie genre, with fully realized characters and plenty of social commentary to underscore the bursts of skillfully staged action.

Adjusted Score: 103.77%

Critics Consensus: Honey Boy serves as an act of cinematic therapy for its screenwriter and subject — one whose unique perspective should strike a chord in audiences from all backgrounds.

Adjusted Score: 101.942%

Critics Consensus: Stylish, fast-paced, and loaded with gripping set pieces, the fourth Mission: Impossible is big-budget popcorn entertainment that really works.

Adjusted Score: 103.238%

Critics Consensus: Colin Firth gives a masterful performance in The King’s Speech, a predictable but stylishly produced and rousing period drama.

Adjusted Score: 99.98%

Critics Consensus: Stunning visuals from Werner Herzog and an intense portrayal of the famed bloodsucker from Klaus Kinski make this remake of Nosferatu a horror classic in its own right.

Adjusted Score: 101.088%

Critics Consensus: Featuring plenty of the humor, action, and escapist thrills the series would become known for, Dr. No kicks off the Bond franchise in style.

Adjusted Score: 101.597%

Critics Consensus: A landmark Sergio Leone spaghetti western masterpiece featuring a classic Morricone score.

Adjusted Score: 98.25%

Critics Consensus: Gods and Monsters is a spellbinding, confusing piece of semi-fiction, featuring fine performances; McKellen leads the way, but Redgrave and Fraser don’t lag far behind.

Adjusted Score: 97.83%

Critics Consensus: Revealing yet respectful, 20,000 Days on Earth is essential viewing for any Nick Cave fan.

Adjusted Score: 98.801%

Critics Consensus: The Innocents isn’t always easy to watch, but its nuanced exploration of complex themes — and its refreshing perspective — are well worth the effort.

Adjusted Score: 100.792%

Critics Consensus: Raw, terrifying, and painfully difficult to watch, The Act of Killing offers a haunting testament to the edifying, confrontational power of documentary cinema.

Adjusted Score: 100.057%

Critics Consensus: Well-acted and dramatically moving, The Pianist is Polanski’s best work in years.

Adjusted Score: 103.174%

Critics Consensus: The Handmaiden uses a Victorian crime novel as the loose inspiration for another visually sumptuous and absorbingly idiosyncratic outing from director Park Chan-wook.

Adjusted Score: 104.107%

Critics Consensus: Casino Royale disposes of the silliness and gadgetry that plagued recent James Bond outings, and Daniel Craig delivers what fans and critics have been waiting for: a caustic, haunted, intense reinvention of 007.

Adjusted Score: 102.053%

Critics Consensus: Cruel, dark, but undeniably effective, Diabolique is a suspense thriller as effective as Hitchcock’s best work and with a brilliant twist ending.

Adjusted Score: 102.139%

Critics Consensus: A haunting journey of natural wonder and tangible danger, Aguirre transcends epic genre trappings and becomes mythological by its own right.

Adjusted Score: 102.503%

Critics Consensus: It may occasionally be guilty of coasting on pure charm, but To Catch a Thief has it in spades — as well as a pair of perfectly matched stars in Cary Grant and Grace Kelly.

Adjusted Score: 98.764%

Critics Consensus: A stunning feat of modern animation, Ghost in the Shell offers a thoughtful, complex treat for anime fans, as well as a perfect introduction for viewers new to the medium.

Adjusted Score: 97.341%

Critics Consensus: A disquieting classic of Australian cinema, Wake in Fright surveys a landscape both sun-drenched and ruthlessly dark.

Adjusted Score: 98.764%

Critics Consensus: The performances in Big Night are wonderful, and the food looks delicious.

Adjusted Score: 97.958%

Critics Consensus: Gleason stands out among sports-themed documentaries by offering a clear-eyed look at its subject’s physical deterioration — and an intimate portrait of the family affected by his ordeal.

Adjusted Score: 101.029%

Critics Consensus: Well-acted and thematically rich, Boyz N the Hood observes Black America with far more depth and compassion than many of the like-minded films its success inspired.

Adjusted Score: 98.799%

Critics Consensus: Thunder Road deftly balances emotionally affecting drama against bruising comedy – and serves as an outstanding calling card for writer-director-star Jim Cummings.

Adjusted Score: 99.262%

Critics Consensus: Sweet Country makes brilliant use of the Australian outback as the setting for a hard-hitting story that satisfies as a character study as well as a sociopolitical statement.

Adjusted Score: 100.513%

Critics Consensus: Custody uses formal restraint — and a series of searing performances — to take a hard-hitting look at the often painful bond between parents and children.

Adjusted Score: 102.014%

Critics Consensus: Intelligent, compelling, and packed with strong performances, The Insider is a potent corporate thriller.

Adjusted Score: 103.993%

Critics Consensus: The Salesman takes an ambitiously complex look at thought-provoking themes, and the well-acted results prove another consistently absorbing entry in writer-director Asghar Farhadi’s distinguished filmography.

Adjusted Score: 103.927%

Critics Consensus: A feelgood adventure brought to life by outstanding performances, The Peanut Butter Falcon finds rich modern resonance in classic American fiction.

Adjusted Score: 106.146%

Critics Consensus: Paterson adds another refreshingly unvarnished entry to Jim Jarmusch’s filmography — and another outstanding performance to Adam Driver’s career credits.

Adjusted Score: 109.961%

Critics Consensus: Manchester by the Sea delivers affecting drama populated by full-bodied characters, marking another strong step forward for writer-director Kenneth Lonergan.

Adjusted Score: 109.804%

Critics Consensus: One of the silent era’s most influential masterpieces, Nosferatu’s eerie, gothic feel — and a chilling performance from Max Schreck as the vampire — set the template for the horror films that followed.

Adjusted Score: 99.196%

Critics Consensus: Intimate in scope yet thematically expansive, Hale County This Morning, This Evening draws extraordinary insights out of seemingly ordinary moments.

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Adjusted Score: 104.309%

Critics Consensus: George A. Romero’s debut set the template for the zombie film, and features tight editing, realistic gore, and a sly political undercurrent.

Adjusted Score: 100.587%

Critics Consensus: As gripping as it is unique, the thrillingly kinetic The Fits marks debuting writer-director Anna Rose Holmer as a singular talent.

Adjusted Score: 105.168%

Critics Consensus: An evocative look at the experiences of the deaf community, Sound of Metal is brought to life by Riz Ahmed’s passionate performance.

Adjusted Score: 102.092%

Critics Consensus: The movie that catapulted Ang Lee into the ranks of upper echelon Hollywood filmmakers, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon features a deft mix of amazing martial arts battles, beautiful scenery, and tasteful drama.

Adjusted Score: 103.873%

Critics Consensus: Bolstered by a strong performance from Matthew McConaughey in the title role, Mud offers an engaging Southern drama that manages to stay sweet and heartwarming without being sappy.

Adjusted Score: 106.56%

Critics Consensus: A well-acted, intensely shot, action filled war epic, Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker is thus far the best of the recent dramatizations of the Iraq War.

Adjusted Score: 115.966%

Critics Consensus: Fast, sleek, and fun, Mission: Impossible – Fallout lives up to the “impossible” part of its name by setting yet another high mark for insane set pieces in a franchise full of them.

Adjusted Score: 117.446%

Critics Consensus: Knives Out sharpens old murder-mystery tropes with a keenly assembled suspense outing that makes brilliant use of writer-director Rian Johnson’s stellar ensemble.

Adjusted Score: 99.27%

Critics Consensus: Steadily drawing viewers into its harrowing tale with equal parts grim intensity and startling compassion, Night Comes On heralds the arrivals of debuting director Jordan Spiro and her magnetic young stars.

Adjusted Score: 103.008%

Critics Consensus: Among one of, if not the best rock movie ever made, The Last Waltz is a revealing, electrifying view of the classic band at their height.

Adjusted Score: 106.638%

Critics Consensus: Anchored by stellar performances from Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell, His Girl Friday is possibly the definitive screwball romantic comedy.

Adjusted Score: 111.042%

Critics Consensus: Arguably the first true horror film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari set a brilliantly high bar for the genre — and remains terrifying nearly a century after it first stalked the screen.

Adjusted Score: 101.683%

Critics Consensus: As illuminating as it is accessible, One Child Nation probes a painful chapter in Chinese history with piercing clarity.

Starring:

Adjusted Score: 102.905%

Critics Consensus: Clever, funny, and original, Blow the Man Down is a cinematic journey that’s not to be missed.

Adjusted Score: 102.392%

Critics Consensus: An entertaining and gripping documentary that shows being confined to a wheelchair doesn’t mean the fun has to end.

Adjusted Score: 104.484%

Critics Consensus: Short Term 12 is an emphatic, revealing drama that pulls audiences into the perspective of neglected youths.

Adjusted Score: 110.811%

Critics Consensus: Funny, heartfelt, and intelligent, The Big Sick uses its appealing leads and cross-cultural themes to prove the standard romcom formula still has some fresh angles left to explore.

Adjusted Score: 112.64%

Critics Consensus: The Farewell deftly captures complicated family dynamics with a poignant, well-acted drama that marries cultural specificity with universally relatable themes.

Adjusted Score: 105.728%

Critics Consensus: Goldfinger is where James Bond as we know him comes into focus – it features one of 007’s most famous lines (“A martini. Shaken, not stirred”) and a wide range of gadgets that would become the series’ trademark.

Adjusted Score: 105.117%

Critics Consensus: Ash Is Purest White finds writer-director Zhangke Jia revisiting familiar themes while continuing to observe modern Chinese society with an urgent, empathetic eye.

Directed By:

Adjusted Score: 107.406%

Critics Consensus: I Am Not Your Negro offers an incendiary snapshot of James Baldwin’s crucial observations on American race relations — and a sobering reminder of how far we’ve yet to go.

Adjusted Score: 105.274%

Critics Consensus: Boasting dazzling animation, a script with surprising dramatic depth, and thrilling 3-D sequences, How to Train Your Dragon soars.

Adjusted Score: 112.314%

Critics Consensus: Eighth Grade takes a look at its titular time period that offers a rare and resounding ring of truth while heralding breakthroughs for writer-director Bo Burnham and captivating star Elsie Fisher.

Adjusted Score: 102.798%

Critics Consensus: Jonathan Demme’s Stop Making Sense captures the energetic, unpredictable live act of peak Talking Heads with color and visual wit.

Adjusted Score: 109.886%

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.