10) Code 3 (2025)
Rainn Wilson is perfectly cast as a burned-out paramedic, who must try to make it through his last shift, while training a young, unjaded apprentice. It's funny and serious. Wacky and grim. Goofy and heartfelt. The film effortlessly strikes a perfect balance between these opposing styles and moods.
I love discovering little indie flicks like this. F**k off with your $400 million, 2500 CGI-shot movies. Give me this any day.
9) Long Distance aka Distant (2024)
For some reason this clearly expensive science fiction film has barely been released. Not sure why, it's better than most of the dreck that makes it to the theaters. Effectively a 2-hander, Anthony Ramos play Andy Ramirez, a mand who crashlands on an alien planet, and must try to make his way to another survivor before his air runs out.
Love the framework for this story. Two characters. One journey. A tight deadline. And alien monsters. What more can you ask for? Someone get this film released properly, so I can get a 4K disc version.
8) Vicious (2025)
Dakota Fanning, who has turned into a powerhouse of a little actress in the last couple of years, plays a lady who... receives a weird box. And then sh*t starts happening. Simple. Moody. And very, very grim. This is another one of those "the less you know the better" movies. But know this: it's awesome!
7) Stone Cold Fox (2025)
The adorable Kiernan Shipka plays a young woman who tries to escape the clutches of drug-dealing queenpin Goldie, played with gusto and sass by Krysten Ritter.
This little low-budget charmer connected with me in all the right ways. I love the 70s aesthetic - the digitally shot film manages to look like it was shot on grainy 70s film stock. I love the lead character, Fox. I love the music. I loved everything about this movie, except the fact that you haven't seen it. Why haven't you seen it? Why are you a bad person?
6) Until Dawn (2025)
Horror movie Groundhog Day! Except, every day is a new kind of horror! Brilliant! I didn't know a thing about the computer game behind this film before I saw it, but that didn't matter. I loved the inventive, engaging story, the likeable characters (except THAT guy, I'm glad he died like that), and lead Ella Rubin was an extremely solid guide down this road of horrific horror. I've already rewatched this a couple of times. It holds up very well, which is more than can be said about most horror movies.
5) Jurassic World: Rebirth (2025)
An absolutely fantastic return to form for the beloved franchise. In no small part thanks to Scarlett Johansson's committed and convincing turn as the lead action hero. The most surprising aspect of this film is that it actually manages to bring back true awe to the franchise for the first time since the first film! The visual effects are way above par. The exciting three-pronged story works extremely well. And did I mention just how absolutely fantastic Scarlett Johansson is? I've seen this film three times already. And I'm gonna see it again. You can't stop me.
4) Weapons (2025)
One of the most unlikely sleeper hits of the year! The chilling mystery at the heart of this story is unraveled with the patience of a saint by director Zach Cregger. Meticulously, he puts all the pieces into place until the full horrific image is revealed to the viewer. And then he steps on the gas! The less you know about this, the better, so if you haven't caught this film yet, get on it. It's a rare treat indeed.
3) Predator: Badlands (2025)
In the midst of the enshitification of Hollywood blockbusters, it's an absolute delight to come across a film like this that actually works. A fun adventure story that takes a different approach to its story, compared to previous Predator films, but retains the jungle setting that worked so well in the original and in the underrated 2010 Predators.
Elle Fanning is the MVP of the show, with a delightfully enthusiastic performance as the broken android who must assist our unlikely Predator hero in his mission to get his trophy.
2) The Gorge (2025)
I know what you're thinking. Why would a film like The Gorge be my second favorite film of the year? It's just a dumb Apple streaming run-of-the-mill film, right? No, it is not. It's a love story. And it's super cool. And shut up!
I liked The Gorge the first time I saw it, but I ended up returning to the film several times during the course of the year. In fact, this is the film I saw the most times in 2025! I love the setting, the two leads are adorable, and once I got tuned in to the somewhat uneventful first half, I found myself enjoying the hell out of these quiet and melancholic parts of the film even more than the inevitable science fiction spectacle that follows. I guess I'm just a big old softy after all.
1) September 5 (2024)
Grim and focused. This film tells the story of the reporters responsible for covering the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, who suddenly had to change gears and become an actual breaking news team when the Israeli athletes were attacked by terrorists.
I love stories about news teams and live reporting, and this film does a fantastic job of covering the event from the perspective of the reporters, who were frantically trying to figure out what the hell was going, and passing that information on to the viewers at home, amidst a barrage of technical and ethical challenges. Simply flawless filmmaking.
WRAP-UP
That's it! All done for 2025. Got any problems with this? Don't sound off in the comments below.
Now, let's get ready to 2026!
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