Rotten Tomatoes has become one of the most popular sites for film fans. As you probably already know, Rotten Tomatoes gathers film reviews from all over the world and generates scores based on the percentage of critics who liked a certain film.
Rarely are there films that manage to get a 100% Rotten Tomatoes approval rating, meaning every critic said the respective film is worth watching, and even if there are, sometimes this happens only because the film wasn’t reviewed by enough critics.
That is why we don’t think that the Rotten Tomatoes score always reflects a film’s quality – the average rating is much better at that. However, most of the films with a 100% score are at least decent, and a few of them are really great.
In the last three years, there were dozens of films which managed to get no bad reviews and thus earned a perfect 100% Rotten Tomatoes score. In this list, we tried to select the ones which we considered the best out of the bunch.
1. Paddington 2 (2017)
The sequel to 2014’s first live-action adaptation of Paddington’s stories and one of 2017’s best-reviewed films took everything that worked in the original “Paddington” film and improved on it, a thing that sequels rarely do nowadays. Anyway, it was still a surprise when the film became the most-reviewed film ever to remain at 100% on the site back in January 2018.
“Paddington 2” finds the English-speaking bear settled with his new family, the Browns, and ready for a new adventure. When soon-to-be 100-year-old Aunt Lucy’s birthday approaches, Paddington starts looking for the perfect gift and decides to buy a rare book from Mr. Gruber’s antique shop. In order to make some money for the gift, he takes all sorts of jobs, but unfortunately the book is stolen and Paddington is wrongfully accused. It’s now up to his family to unmask the thief and prove Paddington’s innocence.
“Paddington 2” sees the return of original cast members Ben Whishaw, Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters and Jim Broadbent, but also welcomes some new faces, including Hugh Grant as the mischievous actor Phoenix Buchanan and Brendan Gleeson as Knuckles the prison cook. Just like its predecessor, this is a great family adventure film, joyful and full of heart.
2. One More Time With Feeling (2016)
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ 16th studio album “Skeleton Tree” was heavily influenced by the tragic death of Cave’s 15-year-old son, Arthur Cave, who fell from a cliff after taking LSD with a friend back in July 2015. At the time, Cave and his band were in the middle of recording the album.
“One More Time With Feeling” features interviews with Cave, his wife Susie Bick, and his longtime bandmate Warren Ellis, documenting the recording process of “Skeleton Tree” and at the same time reflecting on Cave’s personal tragedy and the impact of grief on his creativity.
Shot mostly in black and white and featuring most of the songs from the bleak and dark record that is “Skeleton Tree,” this documentary will be better appreciated by those who are familiar with Nick Cave and his work. However, the uninitiated might still find this meditation on loss, grief and art fascinating and will get the chance to discover Cave and his phenomenal band.
3. Tea with the Dames (2018)
Initially released by BBC Two under the name “Nothing Like A Dame” and later getting a limited release under a new title, this documentary features Dames Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins and Joan Plowright, four good friends who also happen to be some of the most accomplished British actresses of all time. The four Dames who’ve been friends for more than half a century meet regularly to catch up with each other and this time they’ve let the cameras in to capture their discussions on career, life and death, love and friendship.
“Tea with the Dames” is the closest you will get to spending an evening with these four amazing actresses, and for its 94-minute length, it will make you feel like a silent observer to the ladies’ teatime filled with conversations that are both funny, awe-inspiring, and – when the matter of death comes into discussion – a little depressing.
4. Chasing Coral (2017)
This 2017 film documents one of the most severe problems the world is facing nowadays: coral bleaching. From 2014 to 2016, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered the longest global bleaching events ever recorded, a phenomenon where corals turn completely white and die after expelling the algae that live in their tissues. This is caused by the warmer water temperatures, which are in turn caused by global warming.
“Chasing Coral” is one of 2017’s best documentaries, an engaging and really informative film that manages to spread awareness about climate change, the importance of coral reefs, and the huge impact that a change of two degrees Celsius can have on nature. It might be a little formulaic, but “Chasing Coral” is a must-see for its important message, and both critics and audiences seemed to have loved it based on its Rotten Tomatoes scores.
5. Daphne (2017)
While watching last year’s “Daphne,” you might find yourself thinking about the likes of “Lady Bird” or “Blue Jasmine.” However, unlike the aforementioned movies, “Daphne” didn’t really get the recognition it deserved, considering it has a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score based on 29 reviews, but only 175 user ratings (!).
British-American actress Emily Beecham plays Daphne, a 31-year-old Londoner who has somewhat of a pre-midlife crisis but is completely oblivious to it. Daphne doesn’t give a damn, has an unstable character and is uninterested in any form of human relationship, always mocking everyone around her. Overall, she seems like the most unapproachable person ever, but you still can’t help but like her.
Beecham shines in this role and gives a performance that ought to be a career breakthrough. This might also be due to the great screenplay, which is well constructed, filled with unexpected moments and smart dialogue that is both funny and witty.