First-rate films: The 5 best movies showing in theaters right now

First-rate films: The 5 best movies showing in theaters right nowA Star Is Born. | Photo: Warner Bros.
Kelly Woo
Published on November 19, 2018

Fresh is best, especially when it comes to movies. And the best-reviewed movies in theaters now offer a delectable range of tastes, from a star-studded remake of a romantic drama to an astronaut biopic to a fascinating look at the price of success.

Here are the five best movies rated fresh by review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes that you can see in theaters now.

5. Boy Erased

"Manchester by the Sea" breakout star Lucas Hedges is getting Oscar buzz again, this time for his performance in this intense drama. He stars as a young man who outs himself as gay to his Baptist preacher father and mother. They force him to go to a conversion therapy camp or face permanent exile from the family and community. There, he struggles with the strict treatments, all while questioning his identity and faith.

The film, released on Nov. 2, currently has an 85 percent positive critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 78 percent audience score.

4. First Man

Ryan Gosling reunites with Oscar-winning "La La Land" director Damien Chazelle for this gripping chronicle of NASA’s attempt to land a man on the moon. Gosling’s Neil Armstrong grapples with the difficulties and dangers, while his wife, Janet (Claire Foy), stays strong for their family as they wait for the mission’s outcome.

The film, released on Oct. 12, currently has an 88 percent positive critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 64 percent audience score.

3. A Star Is Born

Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, girl becomes a star … but they did not live happily ever after. The third remake of the 1937 romantic drama stars Bradley Cooper (who makes his directorial debut) as grizzled country musician Jackson Maine. He discovers up-and-coming singer Ally (Lady Gaga) and helps launch her career. But will fame take a toll on the couple?

The film, released on Oct. 5, currently has a 90 percent positive critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and an 82 percent audience score.

2. Wildlife

Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal star in this nuanced tale of a seemingly typical 1960s family that falls apart. After husband Jerry loses his job and then suddenly leaves to fight a raging forest fire, wife Jeanette is forced to fend for herself and their teen son. And now that she makes choices for herself for the first time, she begins to realize her life could be different.

The film, released on Oct. 19, currently has a 93 percent positive critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 70 percent audience score.

1. Can You Ever Forgive Me? 

Based on a true story, Melissa McCarthy shows off her dramatic side as Lee Israel, a writer who once made a living writing celebrity profiles in the 1970s and '80s. But now that her kind of work has fallen out of favor, she gets desperate and turns to forging letters from dead authors. It’s not long before Lee’s elaborate con goes awry.

The film, released on Oct. 19, currently has a 98 percent positive critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, and an 86 percent audience score.