DAVID’S TOP TEN MOVIES OF 2025 (plus MORE!!)
Yes, I realize this 2025 list is tardy by a few weeks. And if that’s not bad enough, you’ll note a few movies below don’t have the review posted yet. Those stragglers will get added when THIS straggler (me) completes the work.
2025 gave us many movies I’d like to include here, and I’ve attempted to narrow the list(s) down so that you might find value as a reference for “movies to watch”. For the year, I watched 232 movies, and as is the tradition, I’ve listed my personal Top 10, plus a list of “Best of the Rest” and a few special categories to help in identifying some you might want to seek out. Another tradition is the final category, “Most Disappointing”, which may or may not be the worst movie of the year (this year it is), but definitely one I believed failed to live up to expectations (a dangerous thing for movies, books, and people).
Annual Reminder: This list has nothing to do with predictions for the Academy Awards or any other awards.
***NOTE: You may click on the blue film titles which are hyperlinked to my full review. If a movie title is marked with asterisks (***), that means the review hasn’t been posted, but will be at some point.
TOP 10 MOVIES OF THE YEAR
1(a). HAMNET
For weeks I’ve been battling this decision on which of these two films were my favorite. The two are so very different, and both have stuck with me, so co-number ones it is! Oscar winner Chloe Zhao brings Maggie O’Farrell’s novel to the screen, and it’s a beautiful and heartbreaking viewing experience. Jessie Buckley delivers a remarkable performance as Will Shakespeare’s wife. Bring a hanky for this one.
1(b). ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER
Somehow filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson has yet to win an Oscar, and his latest delivers everything voters could possibly want. The cast delivers memorable performances (Sean Penn may haunt your dreams), and the movie’s story is painfully pertinent to the times in which we are living. It’s a rare case of a big message movie also containing an intimate story.
3. TRAIN DREAMS
If you are a fan of seemingly quiet movies that pack a punch, then Clint Bentley’s screen adaptation of Denis Johnson’s novella is one to watch. Joel Edgerton gives his best yet performance as a man who overcomes solitude only to have it dumped back on him in a devastating manner. The stillness and serenity of this film contrast with the emotional wallop it delivers. Nature can be calming, but sometimes life isn’t.
4. SINNERS
Easily the most entertaining and shocking movie surprise of the year comes from Ryan Coogler, who turns the vampire legend on its head. A dual role from Michael B Jordan and an exceptional and deep cast make this one the wildest ride of the year. It’s a folk horror gem with fantastic music to accompany the violence.
5. SENTIMENTAL VALUE (Norway)
Filmmaker Joachim Trier directed the first of two International films in my Top 10 for the year. Estranged family members and the healing power of art are at the heart of this film that features four strong performances, including Renate Reinsve and Stellan Skasgard. There is an authenticity to these characters that we rarely see in family dramas.
6. IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT (Iran)
The second international film on the list also capitalizes on authentic characters and their actions/reactions. What happens when former Iranian hostages confront their sadistic tormentor … or at least are fairly certain it’s him. I mean, the squeak from the prosthetic limb seems to be recognizable, so … How far will revenge take them before human decency overrides their anger?
With this movie in the Top 10 and another in the ‘Best of the Rest’ section, filmmaker Richard Linklater had quite the year. This is his loving homage to the French New Wave film movement … and specifically to the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s landmark film, BREATHLESS (1960). He even manages to inject a bit of humor into what we typically view as a somewhat dour era.
Fresh off his Oscar nomination last year, Timothee Chalamet imbues the role of an arrogant, ping-pong playing dreamer giving us the rare lead role that offers little to like. Still, in the hands of director Josh Safdie, we can’t look away from the guy nobody is really cheering for, and find joy in the storytelling and the performances.
9. FRANKENSTEIN
When a great filmmaker finally undertakes his dream project, the results can deliver awe for the viewer – which is exactly what has happened with Guillermo Del Toro’s latest. The visuals are sensational, and as you might expect, GDT puts his own spin on the story, focusing on the monster’s humanity. It’s kind of funny how we are rooting for the monster in this one, and not for the ping pong player in number 8.
10. SORRY, BABY
I doubt this has happened before. A director’s feature film debut with a script she wrote and a lead role she plays herself has cracked my Top 10. The film could have been titled, ‘Just Deal with it’, as the story is about how this woman deals with the aftermath of a devastating event … while everyone else in her life just carries on.
BEST OF THE REST (14, alphabetical)
***A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE (political thriller)
BLUE MOON (psychological drama biopic)
BOB TREVINO LIKES IT (comedy-drama)
BUGONIA (satirical crime drama)
EDDINGTON (satirical political dark comedy)
F1: THE MOVIE (dramatic racing drama)
NUREMBERG (historical legal thriller)
REBUILDING (heavy drama)
***RENTAL FAMILY (comedy-drama)
SONG SUNG BLUE (biographical music drama)
THE LIFE OF CHUCK (dramatic fantasy)
WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (mystery thriller)
***WEAPONS (supernatural folk horror)
WICKED: FOR GOOD (musical fantasy)
SPECIAL CATEGORIES (4)
Most Surprising Performance by an Actor: Will Arnett in IS THIS THING ON?***
Most Surprising Performance by an Actress: Rose Byrne in IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU***
Most Nostalgic for Baseball Lovers: EEPHUS
Biggest Political Gut Punch: ANNIVERSARY
DOCUMENTARIES (5, alphabetical order)
***ORWELL 2+2=5
WORLD CINEMA (5, alphabetical order)
IT WAS JUST AN ACCIDENT – Iran
***NO OTHER CHOICE – S Korea
SENTIMENTAL VALUE – Norway
***SIRAT – Spain
***THE SECRET AGENT – Brazil
BEST SHORT FILM
MOST DISAPPOINTING
JULIET & ROMEO (musical) – William Shakespeare wrote a wonderful story – one that’s enthralling to read and one that has inspired countless films over the years. I have enjoyed reading the story and I’ve enjoyed many of those film projects. But this one is different. It’s a musical set to pop music and I found it as close to unwatchable as any movie I’ve seen in a while. In fact, I opted not to review it so as not to put myself back through the agony of recalling scenes that stole two hours of my life. No need to fret, as HAMNET salvaged the year for The Bard.
Feel free to share the list with your movie-loving friends!
Movie Reviews from the Dark 