(Photo by Gia Coppola's Mainstream. Thumbnail: Chloe Zhao's Nomadland)

Our 2020 Venice Film Festival Movie Scorecard

The 77th Venice International Film Festival opened ceremonies with an orchestral tribute to Ennio Morricone, saluting the legendary composer who passed away in July and ushering in 2020’s fest selections. In the first industry bash since quarantine lockdown, the scaled-back, safety-protocoled festival will host socially distant critics pursuing buzzed movies, including Chloe Zhao’s Nomadland, Kornel Mundruczo’s Pieces of a Woman, and Gia Coppola’s Mainstream. As these films achieve their Tomatometer scores, along with everything else playing at the festival through September 12th, we’ll be adding them to our Venice Film Festival 2020 Movie Scorecard.

#56

One Night in Miami (2020)
98%

#56

Adjusted Score: 112.017%

Critics Consensus: A hauntingly powerful reflection on larger-than-life figures, One Night in Miami finds Regina King in command of her craft in her feature directorial debut.

Synopsis: On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and activism gathered to celebrate one of the biggest... [More]

Starring: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.

Directed By: Regina King

#55

Nomadland (2021)
94%

#55

Adjusted Score: 107.441%

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: Following the economic collapse of a company town in rural Nevada, Fern (Frances McDormand) packs her van and sets off... [More]

Starring: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May

Directed By: Chloé Zhao

#54

The World to Come (2020)
73%

#54

Adjusted Score: 77.069%

Critics Consensus: The World to Come is made from ingredients that will be familiar to fans of period forbidden romance movies, but they're given fresh life thanks to an excellent cast.

Synopsis: In this powerful 19th century romance set in the American Northeast, Abigail (Katherine Waterston), a farmer's wife, and her new... [More]

Starring: Katherine Waterston, Vanessa Kirby, Christopher Abbott, Katherine Waterstone

Directed By: Mona Fastvold

#53

Apples (Mila) (2020)
100%

#53

Adjusted Score: 100.53%

Critics Consensus: Apples explores human identity from a surreal and often humorous perspective, with peculiar yet ultimately thought-provoking results.

Synopsis: Amidst a worldwide pandemic that causes sudden amnesia, middle-aged Aris (Aris Servetalis) finds himself enrolled in a recovery program designed... [More]

Starring: Aris Servetalis, Sofia Georgovassili, Anna Kalaitzidou, Argiris Bakirtzis

Directed By: Christos Nikou

#52

Mandibles (Mandibules) (2020)
95%

#52

Adjusted Score: 86.324%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When simple-minded friends Jean-Gab and Manu find a giant fly trapped in the boot of a car, they decide to... [More]

Starring: David Marsais, Grégoire Ludig, Adèle Exarchopoulos, India Hair

Directed By: Quentin Dupieux

#51

Dear Comrades! (2021)
96%

#51

Adjusted Score: 97.129%

Critics Consensus: Dear Comrades takes a sharp, commanding look at a dark chapter in Soviet history made even more effective by its director's cold fury.

Synopsis: When the communist government raises food prices in 1962, the rebellious workers from the small industrial town of Novocherkassk go... [More]

Starring: Yulia Visotskaya, Vladislav Komarov, Andrey Gusev, Yuliya Burova

Directed By: Andrey Konchalovskiy

#50

The Duke (2020)
100%

#50

Adjusted Score: 52.607%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60-year old taxi driver, stole Goya's portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National... [More]

Starring: Jim Broadbent, Helen Mirren, Fionn Whitehead, Matthew Goode

Directed By: Roger Michell

#49

Night of the Kings (La Nuit des Rois) (2020)
99%

#49

Adjusted Score: 101.348%

Critics Consensus: A restless and riveting fable, Night of Kings sees writer-director Philippe Lacôte in full command of his craft.

Synopsis: A young man is sent to "La Maca," a prison in the middle of the Ivorian forest ruled by its... [More]

Starring: Issaka Sawadogo, Steve Tientcheu, Abdoul Karim Konaté, Rasmane Ouedraogo

Directed By: Philippe Lacôte

#48

Never Gonna Snow Again (2020)
94%

#48

Adjusted Score: 76.424%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: A masseur from the East enters the lives of the rich residents of a bland, walled off community. Despite their... [More]

Starring: Alec Utgoff, Maja Ostaszewska, Agata Kulesza, Weronika Rosati

Directed By: Malgorzata Szumowska

#47

Sun Children (Khorshid) (2020)
100%

#47

Adjusted Score: 33.477%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Starring: Ali Nasirian, Javad Ezati, Tannaz Tabatabaei, Roohollah Zamani

Directed By: Majid Majidi

#46

The Human Voice (La Voz Humana) (2020)
96%

#46

Adjusted Score: 96.339%

Critics Consensus: The Human Voice unites Pedro Almodóvar and Tilda Swinton for a short film whose rich rewards are belied by its abbreviated length.

Synopsis: A woman watches time passing next to the suitcases of her ex-lover (who is supposed to come pick them up,... [More]

Starring: Tilda Swinton

Directed By: Pedro Almodóvar

#45

New Order (Nuevo orden) (2020)
67%

#45

Adjusted Score: 68.439%

Critics Consensus: in spite of solid performances, New Order's merciless brutality and unfocused gaze threaten to derail its message.

Synopsis: In this riveting, suspenseful dystopian drama, a lavish upper-class wedding goes awry in an unexpected uprising of class warfare that... [More]

Starring: Diego Boneta, Naian González Norvind, Dario Yazbek Bernal, Mónica Del Carmen

Directed By: Michel Franco

#44

Wife of a Spy (Supai no tsuma) (2020)
100%

#44

Adjusted Score: 43.042%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: The year is 1940 in Kobe, the night before the outbreak of World War II. Local merchant, Yusaku Fukuhara, senses... [More]

Starring: Yû Aoi, Issei Takahashi, Ryôta Bandô, Yuri Tsunematsu

Directed By: Kiyoshi Kurosawa

#43

The Disciple (2020)
96%

#43

Adjusted Score: 96.148%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Sharad Nerulkar has devoted his life to becoming an Indian classical music vocalist, diligently following the traditions and discipline of... [More]

Starring: Aditya Modak, Arun Dravid, Sumitra Bhave, Deepika Bhide Bhagwat

Directed By: Chaitanya Tamhane

#42

I Am Greta (2020)
78%

#42

Adjusted Score: 80.778%

Critics Consensus: Audiences might not learn anything new from I Am Greta, but its stirring chronicle of the young activist's efforts is inspiring.

Synopsis: In August of 2018, Greta Thunberg, a 15-year-old student in Sweden, starts a school strike for the climate. Her question... [More]

Starring: Malena Ernman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Antonio Guterres, Greta Thunberg

Directed By: Nathan Grossman

#41

Hopper/Welles (2020)
89%

#41

Adjusted Score: 80.872%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Starring: Dennis Hopper, Orson Welles

Directed By: Orson Welles

#40

Topside (2020)
86%

#40

Adjusted Score: 28.79%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Deep in the underbelly of New York City, a five year-old girl and her mother live among a community that... [More]

Starring: Zhaila Farmer, Celine Held, Jared Abrahamson, Fatlip

Directed By: Celine Held, Logan George

#39

Notturno (2021)
80%

#39

Adjusted Score: 81.564%

Critics Consensus: Notturno contemplates the cost of war in starkly human terms by surveying the lives of people living under the threat of destruction.

Synopsis: Filmed over three years on the borders between Iraq, Kurdistan, Syria and Lebanon, Notturno captures the everyday life that lies... [More]

Starring:

Directed By: Gianfranco Rosi

#38

And Tomorrow the Entire World (Und morgen die ganze Welt) (2020)
89%

#38

Adjusted Score: 38.308%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Starring: Mala Emde, Noah Saavedra, Tonio Schneider, Luisa-Céline Gaffron

Directed By: Julia von Heinz

#37

Pieces of a Woman (2020)
76%

#37

Adjusted Score: 85.378%

Critics Consensus: Pieces of a Woman struggles to maintain momentum after a stunning opening act, but Vanessa Kirby's performance makes the end result a poignant portrait of grief.

Synopsis: Martha (Vanessa Kirby) and Sean (Shia LaBeouf) are a Boston couple on the verge of parenthood whose lives change irrevocably... [More]

Starring: Vanessa Kirby, Shia LaBeouf, Ellen Burstyn, Iliza Shlesinger

Directed By: Kornél Mundruczó

#36

Lacci (2020)
75%

#36

Adjusted Score: 28.695%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Starring: Alba Rohrwacher, Luigi Lo Cascio, Laura Morante, Silvio Orlando

Directed By: Daniele Luchetti

#35

Mosquito State (2020)
60%

#35

Adjusted Score: 14.347%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Starring: Beau Knapp, Charlotte Vega, Jack Kesy, Olivier Martinez

Directed By: Filip Jan Rymsza

#34

Final Account (2021)
71%

#34

Adjusted Score: 21.599%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Twelve years in the making, Final Account is director Luke Holland's compelling documentary profiling German veterans and their accounts of... [More]

Starring:

Directed By: Luke Holland

#33

In Between Dying (2020)
67%

#33

Adjusted Score: 28.838%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: IN BETWEEN DYING is the love story of Davud, a young man in search of his 'true' family, who completes... [More]

Starring: Orkhan Iskandarli, Rana Asgarova, Maryam Naghiyeva, Murvat Abdulazizov

Directed By: Hilal Baydarov

#32

Mainstream (2020)
36%

#32

Adjusted Score: 18.939%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Just above Hollywood boulevard, lives FRANKIE (Maya Hawke) a young woman in her early 20s trying to navigate who she... [More]

Starring: Maya Hawke, Andrew Garfield, Nat Wolff, Jason Schwartzman

Directed By: Gia Coppola

#31

Guest of Honour (2020)
42%

#31

Adjusted Score: 44.109%

Critics Consensus: David Thewlis' performance aside, Guest of Honour serves as a frustratingly limited return to form for writer-director Atom Egoyan.

Synopsis: Jim (David Thewlis) and his daughter Veronica (Laysla De Oliveira), a high school music teacher, attempt to unravel their complicated... [More]

Starring: David Thewlis, Laysla De Oliveira, Luke Wilson, Rossif Sutherland

Directed By: Atom Egoyan

#30

Miss Marx (2020)
38%

#30

Adjusted Score: 14.539%

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Bright, intelligent, passionate and free, Eleanor is Karl Marx's youngest daughter. Among the first women to link the themes of... [More]

Starring: Romola Garai, Patrick Kennedy, John Gordon Sinclair, Felicity Montagu

Directed By: Susanna Nicchiarelli