- 2019 was a great year for movies, with films like "Parasite,""Marriage Story," and "Booksmart" delighting audiences and critics alike.
- And major stars like Eddie Murphy and Chris Evans found critical success with movies like "Dolemite Is My Name" and "Knives Out."
- Foreign language films like "Parasite" and "Atlantics" were also beloved by critics.
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Numerous films that premiered this year were adored by critics and audiences alike, like Korean thriller/family drama "Parasite" and murder mystery "Knives Out," starring Chris Evans and Daniel Craig.
While there were plenty of blockbusters and superhero films to keep fans happy, 2019 saw plenty of nuanced, niche dramas and thrillers make waves with reviewers, too.
We used Rotten Tomatoes data to find the films of 2019 that critics have loved the most. Keep reading for the top 50 movies that were beloved by reviewers in 2019.
50. "Diane" is a rich and heartfelt drama.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Diane fills her days helping others and desperately attempting to bond with her drug-addicted son. As these pieces of her existence begin to fade, she finds herself confronting memories she'd sooner forget than face."
49. "Monos" is set in Latin America and features a "Lord of the Flies"-type concept.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "On a remote mountaintop, eight kids with guns watch over a hostage and a conscripted milk cow."
48. Shia LaBeouf's childhood serves as inspiration for "Honey Boy."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A young actor's stormy childhood and early adult years as he struggles to reconcile with his father and deal with his mental health."
47. "Chernobyl" star Jessie Buckley plays the lead role in "Wild Rose."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A troubled young Glaswegian woman dreams of becoming a Nashville country star."
46. "The Last Black Man in San Francisco" explores themes of home and belonging.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A young man searches for home in the changing city that seems to have left him behind."
45. Jordan Peele directed "Us," a chilling and memorable horror film.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 93% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A family's serene beach vacation turns to chaos when their doppelgängers appear and begin to terrorize them."
44. "Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool" follows the life of a famous jazz musician.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Miles Davis: Horn player, bandleader, innovator. Miles was a singular force of nature, the very embodiment of cool. The central theme of Miles Davis' life, and of this film is Davis' restless determination to break boundaries and live life on his own terms."
43. "Rafiki" follows two girls in Kenya as they fall in love and grow up together.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "'Good Kenyan girls become good Kenyan wives,' but Kena and Ziki long for something more. When love blossoms between them, the two girls will be forced to choose between happiness and safety."
42. "Ask Dr. Ruth" follows the rise of famous sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Charting the incredible life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America's most famous sex therapist."
41. "The Wild Pear Tree" explores life for a college graduate in modern Turkey.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "An unpublished writer returns to his hometown after graduating, where he seeks sponsors to publish his book while dealing with his father's deteriorating indulgence into gambling."
40. "Mike Wallace Is Here" focuses on the changing landscape of modern news.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A look at the career of '60 Minutes' (1968) newsman, Mike Wallace."
39. "Shadow" is set in an ancient Chinese court.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Life and intrigue in an ancient Chinese court."
38. "The Mustang" focuses on a prisoner and his relationship to horses.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "The story of Roman Coleman, a violent convict, who is given the chance to participate in a rehabilitation therapy program involving the training of wild mustangs."
37. "Transit" takes place during WWII.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A man attempting to escape Nazi-occupied France falls in love with the wife of a dead author whose identity he has assumed."
36. "Avengers: Endgame" was a hit with audiences and critics alike.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 94% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "After the devastating events of 'Avengers: Infinity War' (2018), the universe is in ruins. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers assemble once more in order to reverse Thanos' actions and restore balance to the universe."
35. "Ray & Liz" focuses on an alcoholic, impoverished family.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 95% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Photographer Richard Billingham returns to the squalid council flat outside of Birmingham where he and his brother were raised, in a confrontation and reconciliation with parents Ray and Liz."
34. Shia LaBeouf stars in "Peanut Butter Falcon."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 95% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Zak runs away from his care home to make his dream of becoming a wrestler come true."
33. "An Elephant Sitting Still" focuses on inhabitants of a Chinese city.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Four people in a Chinese city live through a complicated day as their lives intersect."
32. "Harpoon" is a horror film set on a stranded yacht.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Rivalries, dark secrets, and sexual tension emerge when three best friends find themselves stranded on a yacht in the middle of the ocean desperate for survival."
31. "Atlantics" is a supernatural drama that touches on real-world social issues.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "In a popular suburb of Dakar, workers on the construction site of a futuristic tower, without pay for months, decide to leave the country by the ocean for a better future. Among them is Souleiman, the lover of Ada, promised to another."
30. Tessa Thompson stars in "Little Woods."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A modern Western about two sisters who work outside the law to better their lives."
29. "Hail Satan?" chronicles the rise of Satanism in the US.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A look at the quick rise and influence of the controversial religious group known as The Satanic Temple."
28. "Birds of Passage" is a visually striking drug crime thriller."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "During the marijuana bonanza, a violent decade that saw the origins of drug trafficking in Colombia, Rapayet and his indigenous family get involved in a war to control the business that ends up destroying their lives and their culture."
27. Tom Hanks plays Mr. Rogers in "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Based on the true story of a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and journalist Tom Junod."
26. "Knives Out" is a murder mystery starring Chris Evans.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A detective investigates the death of a patriarch of an eccentric, combative family."
25. Martin Scorsese's latest film "The Irishman."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 96% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A mob hit man recalls his possible involvement with the slaying of Jimmy Hoffa."
24. "The Heiresses" is set in Latin America.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Chela and Chiquita are both descended from wealthy families in Asunción and have been together for over 30 years. But when their debts lead to Chiquita being imprisoned on fraud charges, Chela is forced to face a new reality."
23. "Tigers Are Not Afraid" blends magical realism with the terrors of Mexico's drug wars.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A dark fairy tale about a gang of five children trying to survive the horrific violence of the cartels and the ghosts created every day by the drug war."
22. "Woman at War" is set in Iceland.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Halla becomes a determined environmental activist, but this threatens a long-held hope of hers."
21. Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver play a couple in the midst of a divorce in "Marriage Story."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Noah Baumbach's incisive and compassionate look at a marriage breaking up and a family staying together."
20. Eddie Murphy stars in "Dolemite Is My Name."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Eddie Murphy portrays real-life legend Rudy Ray Moore, a comedy and rap pioneer who proved naysayers wrong when his hilarious, obscene, kung-fu fighting alter ego, Dolemite, became a 1970s Blaxploitation phenomenon."
19. "Pain & Glory" is the latest film from Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A film director reflects on the choices he's made in life as past and present come crashing down around him."
18. Actress Olivia Wilde directed the beloved coming-of-age film "Booksmart."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97%
Synopsis: "On the eve of their high school graduation, two academic superstars and best friends realize they should have worked less and played more. Determined not to fall short of their peers, the girls try to cram four years of fun into one night."
17. "Toy Story 4" was the latest film in the beloved franchise.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 97% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "When a new toy called 'Forky' joins Woody and the gang, a road trip alongside old and new friends reveals how big the world can be for a toy."
16. Thriller "Rojo" was a hit with most reviewers.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 98% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "In Argentina pre-coup d'etat, a successful lawyer starts to feel against the ropes when a secret of the past threatens his present."
15. "Too Late to Die Young" is set in 1990s Chile.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 98% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "In an isolated community, Sofía (16), Lucas (16) and Clara (10), face their first loves and fears, while preparing for New Year's Eve."
14. "Varda by Agnès" is a moving look at an iconic filmmaker's work.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 98% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Agnès Varda, photographer, installation artist and pioneer of the Nouvelle Vague, is an institution of French cinema. Taking a seat on a theatre stage, she uses photos and film excerpts to provide an insight into her unorthodox oeuvre."
13. "Portrait of a Lady on Fire" is a period piece.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 98% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman."
12. A famous Iranian actress is the focus of "3 Faces."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 98% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Three actresses at different stages of their career. One from before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, one popular star of today known throughout the country and a young girl longing to attend a drama conservatory."
11. "One Child Nation" explores a painful chapter in Chinese history.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "After becoming a mother, a filmmaker uncovers the untold history of China's one-child policy and the generations of parents and children forever shaped by this social experiment."
10. "For Sama" focuses on a young woman in Syria.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "'For Sama' is both an intimate and epic journey into the female experience of war."
9. "Honeyland" offers a relatable perspective even though it's set in a remote village in the Balkans.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "The last female beehunter in Europe must save the bees and return the natural balance in Honeyland, when a family of nomadic beekeepers invade her land and threaten her livelihood."
8. Concert footage from an Aretha Franklin concert forms the majority of "Amazing Grace."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A documentary presenting Aretha Franklin with choir at the New Bethel Baptist Church in Watts, Los Angeles in January 1972."
7. The events of "Ash Is Purest White" unfold over several years.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A story of violent love within a time frame spanning from 2001 to 2017."
6. "Apollo 11" features never-before-seen footage of NASA trips into space.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A look at the Apollo 11 mission to land on the moon led by commander Neil Armstrong and pilots Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins."
5. "The Farewell" follows a Chinese family dealing with an impending loss.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A Chinese family discovers their grandmother has only a short while left to live and decide to keep her in the dark, scheduling a wedding to gather before she dies."
4. "Parasite" is a genre-defying family drama-turned-thriller.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 99% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "All unemployed, Ki-taek and his family take peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks, as they ingratiate themselves into their lives and get entangled in an unexpected incident."
3. "Chained for Life" examines the relationship between a beautiful actress and her disfigured costar.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 100% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A beautiful actress struggles to connect with her disfigured co-star on the set of a European auteur's English-language debut."
2. A young maid in a luxurious Mexico City hotel is the focus of "The Chambermaid."
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 100% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "A look at the working environment of a chambermaid in one of Mexico City's most luxurious hotels."
1. "One Cut of the Dead" is a refreshing update to the zombie genre.
Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 100% (certified fresh)
Synopsis: "Things go badly for a hack director and film crew shooting a low budget zombie movie in an abandoned WWII Japanese facility, when they are attacked by real zombies."