Year-End Lists

Les Inrockuptibles: Top 20 Films of 2020

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Uncut Gems
   Ben Safdie and Joshua Safdie
2. Mank
   David Fincher
3. Adolescents
   Sébastien Lifshitz
3. Little Girl
   Sébastien Lifshitz
4. The King of Staten Island
   Judd Apatow
5. Un soupçon d'amour
   Paul Vecchiali
6. The Things We Say, the Things We Do
   Emmanuel Mouret
7. Richard Jewell
   Clint Eastwood
8. My Best Part
   Nicolas Maury
9. Summer of 85
   François Ozon
10. Enormous
    Sophie Letourneur
11. The Invisible Man
    Leigh Whannell
12. Dark Waters
    Todd Haynes
13. Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains
    Gu Xiaogang
14. Soul
    Pete Docter
15. The Woman Who Ran
    Hong Sang-soo
16. Hotel by the River
    Hong Sang-soo
17. The August Virgin
    Jonás Trueba
18. The Trial of the Chicago 7
    Aaron Sorkin
19. If It Were Love
    Patric Chiha
20. Undine
    Christian Petzold

This list summarizes other lists, including these:

• Les Inrocks: Emily Barnett: Top 10 Films of 2020
• Les Inrocks: Marilou Duponchel: Top 10 Films of 2020
• Les Inrocks: Murielle Joudet: Top 7 Films of 2020

Michael Phillips: Top 10 Movies of 2020, as published by The Chicago Tribune

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Small Axe: Lovers Rock
   Steve McQueen
2. First Cow
   Kelly Reichardt
3. David Byrne's American Utopia
   Spike Lee
4. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
5. City So Real
   Steve James
6. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
   George C. Wolfe
7. The Assistant
   Kitty Green
8. Small Axe: Mangrove
   Steve McQueen
9. The Vast of Night
   Andrew Patterson
10. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
    Eliza Hittman

Runners-up, 11-20, in alphabetical order

• Beanpole
  Kantemir Balagov
• Driveways
  Andrew Ahn
• Earth
  Visakesa Chandrasekaram
• The 40-Year-Old Version
  Radha Blank
• Hamilton
  Thomas Kail
• The Nest
  Sean Durkin
• The Personal History of David Copperfield
  Armando Iannucci
• Small Axe: Red, White and Blue
  Steve McQueen
• 76 days
  Hao Wu, Weixi Chen and Anonymous
• Shirley
  Josephine Decker

Sheri Linden: The Best Films of 2020, as published by The Hollywood Reporter

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019]

1. Beanpole
   Kantemir Balagov
2. Gunda
   Viktor Kosakovskiy
3. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
   Eliza Hittman
4. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
5. One Night in Miami
   Regina King
6. Bacurau
   Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles
7. 76 days
   Hao Wu, Weixi Chen and Anonymous
8. First Cow
   Kelly Reichardt
9. Ammonite
   Francis Lee
10. The 40-Year-Old Version
    Radha Blank

Honorable mentions

• Beyond The Visible - Hilma af Klint
  Halina Dyrschka
• Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
  Jason Woliner
• Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution
  Nicole Newnham and James LeBrecht
• David Byrne's American Utopia
  Spike Lee
• La Llorona
  Jayro Bustamante
• My Darling Vivian
  Matt Riddlehoover
• The Painter and the Thief
  Benjamin Ree
• The Surrogate
  Jeremy Hersh
• Tesla
  Michael Almereyda
• The Truffle Hunters
  Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw

Jon Frosch: The Best Films of 2020, as published by The Hollywood Reporter

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019]

1. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
   Eliza Hittman
2. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
3. An Easy Girl
   Rebecca Zlotowski
4. Ammonite
   Francis Lee
5. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
6. The 40-Year-Old Version
   Radha Blank
7. The Climb
   Michael Angelo Covino
8. Beanpole
   Kantemir Balagov
9. The Surrogate
   Jeremy Hersh
10. Da 5 Bloods
    Spike Lee

Honorable mentions

• And Then We Danced
  Levan Akin
• Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution
  Nicole Newnham and James LeBrecht
• David Byrne's American Utopia
  Spike Lee
• First Cow
  Kelly Reichardt
• Fourteen
  Dan Sallitt
• The King of Staten Island
  Judd Apatow
• One Night in Miami
  Regina King
• 76 days
  Hao Wu, Weixi Chen and Anonymous
• Swallow
  Carlo Mirabella-Davis
• Time
  Garrett Bradley

David Rooney: The Best Films of 2020, as published by The Hollywood Reporter

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019]

1. David Byrne's American Utopia
   Spike Lee
2. First Cow
   Kelly Reichardt
3. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
   Eliza Hittman
4. Ammonite
   Francis Lee
5. Beanpole
   Kantemir Balagov
6. Minari
   Lee Isaac Chung
7. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
8. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
9. Small Axe: Lovers Rock
   Steve McQueen
10. Bacurau
    Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles

Honorable mentions

• The Assistant
  Kitty Green
• Da 5 Bloods
  Spike Lee
• The 40-Year-Old Version
  Radha Blank
• The Invisible Man
  Leigh Whannell
• Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
  George C. Wolfe
• News of the World
  Paul Greengrass
• The Old Guard
  Gina Prince-Bythewood
• One Night in Miami
  Regina King
• The Surrogate
  Jeremy Hersh
• Wolfwalkers
  Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart

Candice Frederick: The Best Films of 2020, as published by Harper’s Bazaar

1. On the Record
   Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering
2. Assassins
   Ryan White
3. Minari
   Lee Isaac Chung
4. Miss Juneteenth
   Channing Godfrey Peoples
5. Relic
   Natalie Erika James
6. Sylvie's Love
   Eugene Ashe
7. Da 5 Bloods
   Spike Lee
8. Tigertail
   Alan Yang
9. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
10. The Donut King
    Alice Gu

Honorable Mention

• MLK/FBI
  Sam Pollard
• Coming Home Again
  Wayne Wang
• Finding Yingying
  Jiayan "Jenny" Shi
• Cuties
  Maïmouna Doucouré
• Another Round
  Thomas Vinterberg

IndieWire: Best Movies of 2020, as voted by film critics from around the world

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

1. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
2. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
   Eliza Hittman
3. First Cow
   Kelly Reichardt
4. Small Axe: Lovers Rock
   Steve McQueen
5. I'm Thinking of Ending Things
   Charlie Kaufman
6. Beanpole
   Kantemir Balagov
7. Time
   Garrett Bradley
8. Da 5 Bloods
   Spike Lee
9. Martin Eden
   Pietro Marcello
10. Bacurau
    Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles

Dana Stevens: The Best Movies of 2020, as published by Slate

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011]

• The Assistant
  Kitty Green
• Bacurau
  Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles
• Beanpole
  Kantemir Balagov
• Collective
  Alexander Nanau
• Da 5 Bloods
  Spike Lee
• First Cow
  Kelly Reichardt
• Let Them All Talk
  Steven Soderbergh
• Minari
  Lee Isaac Chung
• Nomadland
  Chloé Zhao
• Saint Maud
  Rose Glass

Plus five runners-up

• City Hall
  Frederick Wiseman
• Dick Johnson Is Dead
  Kirsten Johnson
• Fourteen
  Dan Sallitt
• Small Axe: Lovers Rock
  Steve McQueen
• Time
  Garrett Bradley

Mara Reinstein: The Best Movies of 2020, as published by Us Weekly

[see also 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013]

1. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
2. Palm Springs
   Max Barbakow
3. The Prom
   Ryan Murphy
4. Minari
   Lee Isaac Chung
5. Da 5 Bloods
   Spike Lee
6. The Trial of the Chicago 7
   Aaron Sorkin
7. The Invisible Man
   Leigh Whannell
8. Bad Education
   Cory Finley
9. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
10. Taylor Swift: Miss Americana
    Lana Wilson

Honorable mentions

• The Father
  Florian Zeller
• Babyteeth
  Shannon Murphy
• Sylvie's Love
  Eugene Ashe
• Run
  Aneesh Chaganty
• Sound of Metal
  Darius Marder
• Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
  Jason Woliner

Randy Myers: The Best 10 Movies of 2020, as published by San Jose Mercury News

[see also 2022]

1. Driveways
   Andrew Ahn
2. Nomadland
   Chloé Zhao
3. Minari
   Lee Isaac Chung
4. Small Axe
   Steve McQueen
5. Collective
   Alexander Nanau
6. Bacurau
   Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles
7. First Cow
   Kelly Reichardt
8. Promising Young Woman
   Emerald Fennell
9. Mank
   David Fincher
10. Wolfwalkers
    Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart

Honorable Mentions

• Let Them All Talk
  Steven Soderbergh
• Never Rarely Sometimes Always
  Eliza Hittman
• I Carry You with Me
  Heidi Ewing
• The Personal History of David Copperfield
  Armando Iannucci
• Sound of Metal
  Darius Marder
• Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution
  Nicole Newnham and James LeBrecht
• The Climb
  Michael Angelo Covino
• The Midnight Sky
  George Clooney
• The Father
  Florian Zeller
• Sylvie's Love
  Eugene Ashe
• The Truffle Hunters
  Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw
• Soul
  Pete Docter
• The Trial of the Chicago 7
  Aaron Sorkin
• Palm Springs
  Max Barbakow
• Shirley
  Josephine Decker
• Survival Skills
  Quinn Armstrong
• Around the Sun
  Oliver Krimpas
• News of the World
  Paul Greengrass
• Embattled
  Nick Sarkisov
• The Half of It
  Alice Wu
• Boys State
  Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine
• Athlete A
  Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk
• Da 5 Bloods
  Spike Lee