A24 has built the most reliable modern brand in independent film by doing what bigger studios rarely do: letting filmmakers take real swings. When you look at how often their releases land with critics, it is not luck. It is taste, discipline, and a willingness to back stories that feel specific instead of mass marketed. That consistency is why A24 titles keep dominating “best of the year” lists, and why so many of them age well after the hype cycle ends.
This list ranks the 25 most critically favored A24 films using Rotten Tomatoes critic consensus as the backbone. When titles sit close together, the tie breaker is staying power: rewatch value, influence, awards traction, and whether the movie still sparks conversation years later. You will also notice a pattern: A24’s strongest films tend to be emotionally precise, visually confident, and driven by performances that critics can not ignore.
25. ‘The Bling Ring’ (2013)
The Bling Ring is not A24’s sharpest reviewed title, but it is an important early signal of what the studio would become. Sofia Coppola frames celebrity obsession as a hollow drug, and critics responded to the film’s cold, observational style. It has grown more relevant as social media culture blurred fame, consumption, and identity into one loop.
24. ‘Spring Breakers’ (2013)
Spring Breakers is the kind of movie that gets misunderstood if you expect a traditional party film. Harmony Korine turns repetition into commentary, and critics tended to reward the intent even when audiences felt unsettled. Korine’s approach also helps explain why A24 can champion divisive movies and still win long term. If you track how critics measure provocation, compare how they frame “worst” lists like Stephen King movie adaptations versus films that intentionally challenge comfort.
23. ‘Enemy’ (2014)
Enemy thrives on mood and controlled paranoia. Denis Villeneuve builds dread without over explaining, and Jake Gyllenhaal anchors the uncertainty with quiet intensity. Villeneuve’s precision is why the film stays in the conversation, especially among viewers who like interpretation heavy endings.
22. ‘The Lobster’ (2015)
The Lobster is deadpan romance as dystopia, and it works because Yorgos Lanthimos commits to the weirdness with absolute control. Critics rewarded its originality and its refusal to soften the premise. Lanthimos makes discomfort feel deliberate rather than accidental.
21. ‘Green Room’ (2016)
Green Room is a masterclass in contained tension. Jeremy Saulnier makes violence feel frightening instead of stylish, and critics appreciated how grounded the stakes remain. It is the kind of film people discover late, then recommend aggressively because it feels like a hidden weapon.
20. ‘Room’ (2015)
Room earns its critical standing because it is humane without being sentimental. Lenny Abrahamson focuses on survival psychology instead of shock, which is why the film’s emotional weight hits harder. It also shows how A24 can handle heavy material with restraint, the same quality critics often praise in serious awards season dramas.
19. ‘Ex Machina’ (2015)
Ex Machina is minimalist science fiction with real philosophical bite. Alex Garland builds tension through ideas, not spectacle, and critics responded to the clean execution. Garland’s style is why the film stays in the “best modern sci fi” conversation even without franchise scale.
18. ‘Lady Bird’ (2017)
Lady Bird works because the writing never lies about adolescence. Greta Gerwig captures the push pull between ambition and insecurity with sharp detail, and critics rewarded how authentic it feels. Gerwig’s voice is also a reminder that A24’s best reviewed films often feel personal rather than engineered.
17. ‘The Lighthouse’ (2019)
The Lighthouse is craftsmanship driven madness. Robert Eggers uses sound, framing, and rhythm like weapons, which critics tend to love when the execution is this confident. Eggers proves that a film can be wildly specific and still land as a critical event.
16. ‘Hereditary’ (2018)
Hereditary changed the modern horror conversation because it treats grief like the monster. Ari Aster builds dread through family collapse, not just scares, and critics recognized the ambition. If you are mapping horror demand, it is worth pairing lists like this with broad “best by year” frameworks such as best horror movie breakdowns.
15. ‘Midsommar’ (2019)
Midsommar doubles down on daylight dread and relationship rot. Aster’s tone is so controlled that even the bright visuals feel oppressive. Critics respected the formal risk, even when viewers found it exhausting. The film’s reputation has held because it is impossible to confuse with anything else.
14. ‘Uncut Gems’ (2019)
Uncut Gems is anxiety as entertainment, executed with ruthless discipline. Benny Safdie and Josh Safdie trap you inside momentum and bad decisions, and critics rewarded the immersion. The Safdies also helped popularize a modern style of stress pacing that shows up everywhere now.
13. ‘Good Time’ (2017)
Good Time is the Safdies in pure propulsion mode. The film’s critical strength comes from how it never stops escalating while still staying character grounded. It is also a reminder that A24’s best genre films feel authored, not assembled.
12. ‘The Farewell’ (2019)
The Farewell hits because it tells the truth about family performance. Lulu Wang balances humor and grief without forcing either, and critics loved that emotional realism. The film is also endlessly recommendable because it is accessible without being generic.
11. ‘Under the Skin’ (2014)
Under the Skin has only grown in stature over time. Jonathan Glazer makes alienation feel physical, and critics tend to reward films that commit to a singular sensory language. Glazer’s approach also overlaps with how critics praise bold formalism in prestige cinema, the same reason cinematography focused rankings remain popular for directors like Christopher Nolan.
10. ‘First Reformed’ (2018)
First Reformed is spiritual crisis cinema with modern urgency. Paul Schrader strips the film down to essentials and lets moral dread build slowly, which critics tend to admire because it feels fearless. It is one of those films where the critical consensus makes sense the moment you finish it.
9. ‘Minari’ (2020)
Minari earns acclaim through warmth and specificity. Lee Isaac Chung makes the story intimate without shrinking its meaning, and critics responded to the honesty. It is also the kind of film that remains relevant because family and displacement never stop being timely topics.
8. ‘Aftersun’ (2022)
Aftersun is a quiet emotional gut punch built from fragments. Charlotte Wells trusts the audience to feel what is not said, and critics often reward that level of confidence. Wells’s film sits high because its impact grows with rewatching.
7. ‘Past Lives’ (2023)
Past Lives became an instant critical favorite because it makes longing feel precise instead of melodramatic. Celine Song writes with restraint, and critics responded to how mature the storytelling feels. The film also reflects a modern appetite for emotionally intelligent romance that does not rely on clichés.
6. ‘The Zone of Interest’ (2023)
The Zone of Interest is unsettling because it refuses to sensationalize. Glazer focuses on banality and proximity, forcing the audience to confront moral distance. Critics praised the formal rigor and the way the film creates dread through absence, not spectacle. If you track how awards conversation evolves, this is the kind of film that shows up in serious year end debates.
5. ‘The Florida Project’ (2017)
The Florida Project is a film critics love because it delivers empathy without romanticizing hardship. Sean Baker captures childhood joy against adult instability, and the contrast lands with real power. Baker’s style also maps to why audiences search for “best performances” lists, because character driven films often generate the most acting conversation.
4. ‘Moonlight’ (2016)
Moonlight remains one of A24’s most respected achievements. Jenkins tells the story with tenderness, patience, and visual poetry, and critics responded with near universal admiration. The film’s cultural impact did not fade, which is why it keeps showing up in “best of the century” arguments, especially alongside broader critics lists like the top 10 movies discussions.
3. ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ (2022)
Everything Everywhere All at Once is the rare film that aligned critics, audiences, and awards bodies at the same time. Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert deliver maximalist emotion with precise structure, and critics rewarded the ambition because it is backed by craft. It also helped expand what “indie success” can look like in the modern era.
2. ‘Eighth Grade’ (2018)
Eighth Grade earns its placement because it captures social anxiety without mocking it. Bo Burnham directs with empathy and precision, and critics responded to how real the film feels. It also sits at the intersection of cultural relevance and craft, which is the sweet spot for Rotten Tomatoes driven acclaim.
1. ‘The Witch’ (2015)
The Witch is one of A24’s defining releases, and its critical reputation has only strengthened. Eggers crafts dread through language, atmosphere, and belief systems, making the horror feel historical and psychological at the same time. The film’s influence on modern horror is huge, and it helped pave the way for the studio’s later genre dominance.
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