The 100 Best Movie Performances of 2020

 

 

Having shared my thoughts on my favorite films of the year, it's time to turn to my favorite performances. This is always one of my favorite lists to assemble, and 2020 offered an incredible group of actors to choose from. As always this list is completely subjective, but it's one that I've put a lot of thought into. Each performance on this list, from 100 to 1, offers something wonderful, regardless of the quality of the film as a whole. And looking at the grid above I'm struck by how dynamic this year's acting was. The performances seem particularly varied, and the characters particularly memorable.

Before we go into the list, I should point out that I've not been including Steve McQueen's Small Axe anthology series as I've put together these lists. While each entry is a movie in its own right, I do think they work particularly well as part of an anthology, and so I think that does make Small Axe a series as opposed to a group of individual films. So, while I do have some TV films represented on this list, Small Axe isn't. So I'd like to give a shoutout to Shaun Parkes and John Boyega, whose work in Mangrove and Red, White and Blue would certainly have made my list otherwise.

 And now, that disclaimer aside, let's move onto my list of the 100 best movie performances of 2020:

 

100) Sunita Mani as Su Rajit—Save Yourselves! 99) Kingsley Ben-Adir as Malcolm X—One Night in Miami 98) Oksana Akinshina as Tatyana Yuryevna Klimova—Sputnik 97) Alice Krige as Holda—Gretel & Hansel 96) Jacob Ming-Trent as Lamont—The 40-Year-Old Version 95) Hermione Corfield as Siobhán—Sea Fever 94) Nnamdi Asomugha as Robert Hunter—Sylvie’s Love 93) David Strathairn as David—Nomadland 92) Stonehorse Lone Goeman as Gisigu—Blood Quantum 91) Leah Lewis as Ellie Chu—The Half of It   90) María Mercedes Coroy as Alma—La Llorona 89) Chelsea Peretti as Gaby—Spinster 88) Essie Davis as Anna Finlay—Babyteeth 87) Arinzé Kene as Cal—I’m Your Woman 86) Clancy Brown as Montgomery Dark—The Mortuary Collection 85) Michael Angelo Covino as Mike—The Climb 84) André Ward as Forrest Umoja Petry—The 40-Year-Old Version 83) Ibrahima Gueye as Momo—The Life Ahead 82) Riki Lindhome as Julia Robson—The Wolf of Snow Hollow 81) Numa Perrier as Sabrina—Jezebel                       80) Barry Pepper as Mitka—The Painted Bird 79) Alan Kim as David Yi—Minari 78) Charlene Swankie as Swankie—Nomadland 77) Michael Potts as Slow Drag—Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 76) Médina El Aidi-Azouni as Angelica—Cuties 75) Alec Secareanu as Tomaz—Amulet 74) Olwen Fouéré as Ciara—Sea Fever 73) Rachel Brosnahan as Jean—I’m Your Woman 72) Margarita Kenéfic as Carmen Monteverde—La Llorona 71) Sophia Lillis as Beth Bledsoe—Uncle Frank                     70) Vitaliy Khaev as Andrey Gennadievitch—Why Don’t You Just Die! 69) Sidney Flanigan as Autumn Callahan—Never Rarely Sometimes Always 68) Pyotr Fyodorov as Konstantin Veshnyakov—Sputnik 67) Satoshi Mizuno as Ishi—We Are Little Zombies 66) Bill Nighy as Alan Mellor—Sometimes Always Never 65) Olivia Cooke as Lou Berger—Sound of Metal 64) Oswin Benjamin as D—The 40-Year-Old Version 63) Morgan Saylor as Mary Beth Connolly—Blow the Man Down 62) Ben Mendelsohn as Henry Finlay—Babyteeth 61) Sophia Loren as Madame Rosa—The Life Ahead                 60) Leslie Odom Jr. as Sam Cooke—One Night in Miami 59) Vanessa Williams as Zora—Bad Hair 58) Emily Mortimer as Kay—Relic 57) Atsuko Maeda as Yoko—To the Ends of the Earth 56) Dennis Lindsey as Delonte—Residue 55) Andrea Riseborough as Hana—Luxor 54) Toni Collette as Mother—I’m Thinking of Ending Things 53) Phylicia Rashad as Dr. Lillian Brooks—Black Box 52) Jake Horowitz as Everett Sloane—The Vast of Night 51) Tamara Lawrance as Charlotte—Kindred                     50) Fathia Youssouf as Amy Diop—Cuties 49) Paul Bettany as Frank Bledsoe—Uncle Frank 48) Tzi Ma as Grover—Tigertail 47) Aldis Hodge as Jim Brown—One Night in Miami 46) Kiera Allen as Chloe Sherman—Run 45) Colman Domingo as Cutler—Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 44) David Thewlis as Father—I’m Thinking of Ending Things 43) Maria Bakalova as Tutar Sagdiyev—Borat Subsequent Moviefilm 42) Aya Cash as Fanny Addie—Scare Me 41) Sena Nakajima as Ikuko—We Are Little Zombies                     40) Zorion Eguileor as Trimagasi—The Platform 39) Samantha Ko as Qin—A Sun 38) Steven Yeun as Jacob Yi—Minari 37) Robyn Nevin as Edna—Relic 36) Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù as Bol—His House 35)Fiona Shaw as Margaret—Kindred 34) Juan Daniel Garcia Treviño as Ulises Sampiero—I’m No Longer Here 33) Vayu O’Donnell as Jim Williams—Survival Skills 32) Chadwick Boseman as Levee Green—Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 31) Amber Havard as Kris—Bull                 30) Chen Yi-wen as A-wen—A Sun 29) Delroy Lindo as Paul—Da 5 Bloods 28) Sierra McCormick as Fay Crocker—The Vast of Night 27) Hugh Jackman as Frank Tassone—Bad Education 26) Frances McDormand as Fern—Nomadland 25) Jesse Plemons as Jake—I’m Thinking of Ending Things 24) Mads Mikkelsen as Martin—Another Round 23) Rob Morgan as Abe Carter—Bull 22) Imelda Staunton as Sister Claire—Amulet 21) Wunmi Mosaku as Rial—His House                     20) Keita Ninomiya as Hikari—We Are Little Zombies 19) David Thewlis as Jim Davis—Guest of Honour 18) Riz Ahmed as Ruben Stone—Sound of Metal 17) Kelly O’Sullivan as Bridget—Saint Frances 16) Margo Martindale as Enid Nora Devlin—Blow the Man Down 15) Obi Nwachukwu as Jay—Residue 14) Glynn Turman as Toledo—Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 13) Youn Yuh-jung as Soon-ja—Minari 12) Tsai Chin as Grandma Wong—Lucky Grandma 11) Radha Blank as Radha Blank—The 40-Year-Old Version   10) Jean Dujardin as Georges—Deerskin Jean Dujardin is captivating as Georges, giving his best performance since The Artist. He utilizes the classic charm which made him a star to terrifying effect here, and gives a debonair quality to an obsessive sociopath that, in lesser hands, could never have been convincing. 9) Zainab Jah as Esther—Farewell Amor                      As an Angolan immigrant just arrived in the United States, Zainab Jah imbues Esther with strength and vulnerability. She's one of the most sympathetic and deeply human characters of the year.   8) Maciej Musiałowski as Tomasz Giemza—The Hater   I hope that The Hater launches Maciej Musiałowski to international recognition. His performance as a tech-savvy social climber is bone-chilling and captivating; repulsive even as you can't look away.   7) Paul Raci as Joe—Sound of Metal   Paul Raci is the unlikely heart of Sound of Metal, giving a sensitive performance that feels so real you forget that Joe is a fictional character.    6) Andrea Riseborough as Tasya Vos—Possessor    Andrea Riseborough continues to prove why she's one of the acting world's most convincing chameleons. As a futuristic assassin, Riseborough is endlessly fascinating, to the point that Possessor lost its spark any time her character was not on screen. 5) Ntare Mwine as Walter—Farewell Amor   Two of Farewell Amor's three leads cracked my top ten. But of the three protagonists, Mwine arguably carries the emotional weight of Farewell Amor on his shoulders. He more than rises to the top, and along with Zainab Jah, forms one of 2020's best on-screen couples. 4) Jessie Buckley as Young Woman—I’m Thinking of Ending Things   Jessie Buckley has a nigh impossible task in I'm Thinking of Ending Things. She has to create a cohesive character out of someone who literally changes from scene to scene. Buckley does so seamlessly, encompassing numerous contradictions at once.   3) Petr Kotlár as Joska—The Painted Bird   The Painted Bird is one of the most brutal films ever put on screen, and it is made all the more brutal because its protagonist is an innocent child. The film is incredibly lucky, then, to have Petr Kotlár, who makes Joska more than just a pawn for violence. His emotional journey is the widest of any character I've seen, and Kotlár handles it beautifully and almost wordlessly.   2) Jorge Garcia as Memo Garrido—Nobody Knows I’m Here   Those who only know Jorge Garcia from Lost will be amazed to see his work in Nobody Knows I'm Here. It's an incredible, sensitive performance, which shows astonishing restraint and genuine star power.   1) Viola Davis as Ma Rainey—Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom                 Nobody would deny that Viola Davis is one of the most respected actors working today. But if anybody somehow was in doubt then Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is a wonderful showcase for her talents. Powerful and unforgettable, it's a perfect match of actor and role that has more than earned its place at the top of my list.   The film with the most appearances is Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, with 5 performances on the list (including Viola Davis taking my top spot). After that, The 40-Year-Old Version and I’m Thinking of Ending Things have 4 performances apiece, meaning that Netflix films accounts for my top three finishers. There were five films that had three performances apiece: Minari, Nomadland, One Night in Miami, Sound of Metal, and We Are Little Zombies. As far as individual performers, there are two actors who landed two performances on my list. The always wonderful and interesting David Thewlis is on my list for both I’m Thinking of Ending Things (a great performance in a great film) and Guest of Honour (a great performance in a not so great film). The other actor with this honor is Andrea Riseborough, who has quickly become one of my favorite film actors working today. She does really standout work in both Possessor and Luxor, in roles that could not possibly be more different. And speaking of my favorite film actors, I need to give a shoutout to Jessie Buckley, who has given one of my top 15 performances for three years in a row now. Two years ago, she was #12 for Beast and last year she gave my favorite performance of the year in Wild Rose. Coupled with giving one of the best television performances this year in Fargo and Buckley is pretty much unstoppable. She’s not yet a household name, so if you’re still not familiar with her work, I highly recommend getting to know her now. She’s a truly rare talent.   What were your favorite performances of the year? Let me know in the comments!