I could on and on and on about all of the shit we had to wade through thanks to the 79-year-old head honcho last year but all of it is regurgitated to us every day thanks to his sheer hubris and an unrelenting bombardment of news media. So, let's go through the rest of the year quickly before focusing on the film industry, shall we?
We had a New's Year suicide attack in New Orleans; massive wildfires that destroyed Los Angeles; multiple plane crashes and airport problems; the flip-flopping ban of TikTok; Beyoncé finally getting the Grammy for Best Album; the Kansas City Chiefs losing at the Super Bowl and signaling the end of their dynasty; Kendrick Lamar caping his musical and cultural dominance with an impressive halftime show; Rory McIlroy completing the grand slam of golf at the Masters; Pope Francis died and an American cardinal is selected to succeed as Pope Leo XIV; the Eurovision Song Contest nearly collapsing due to irregular voting and then later draws intense ire and major boycotts when Israel isn't banned from competing; a deadly flash flood in Texas that shook up the Fourth of July weekend; Stephen Colbert's late night show planned to end next May due to "financial issues"; Coldplay becoming relevant again thanks to an affair-revealing kiss cam; Taylor Swift getting engaged to footballer Travis Kelce and later releasing a best-selling but heavily mocked new album; the assassination of conservative figure Charlie Kirk and his death going viral online; a true case of political censorship when the FCC and conservative-backing television stations attempted to cancel Jimmy Kimmel and his late night show; a long government shutdown; basketball players getting arrested for a illegal gambling ring, an abundant year of quality video games ruled over by the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 and the French "indie" RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and endless declarations of 6-7(!), the death of pop music, the future and supposed benefits of generative AI, and the releasing of the Epstein files.
Meanwhile, the world of film experienced their own set of trials and tribulations. The year started off miserably in January with the as-mentioned L.A. wildfires, which would help in part to the untimely death of legendary filmmaker David Lynch. The legal feud between It Ends With Us' Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni continued, even after everybody really stopped caring about it and failed to realize that it has nearly ended with them in the courts with Baldoni as the big loser. A serviceable Oscars was hampered by three incidents: the tragic death of Gene Hackman and his wife, the makers of The Brutalist revealed to have utilize AI in the production of the film, and most especially with Emilia Pérez, both for the growing backlash against the film itself and for star Karla Sofía Gascón, whose old racist tweets resurfaced "coincidentally" during the Oscar voting period and her decision to continue speaking out about them. The movie theater experience continued to lose popularity during the first half of the year, largely thanks to high ticket prices, poor offerings (Novocaine and The Alto Knights anyone?), original films that are catered more to critics' tastes than the American public (Mickey 17, Black Bag), and the ever expanding human urge to stay home, save money, and enjoying Hollywood releases via their debuts/drops on streaming services and/or longer-term storytelling via programs such as Adolescence and season 3 of The White Lotus. By the time we actually had a real box office winner with A Minecraft Movie, the #1 highest-grossing film of the year (yes, really), movie theaters became even more in danger literally due to the TikTok, meme-infused "Chicken Jockey!" trend causing audience members to be disruptive and engage in annoying and disturbing actions.
After a relatively ho-hum summer, you could tell the fall season was set to be a mess when anniversary screenings of Jaws beat out two new major releases (Caught Stealing and The Roses) over the Labor Day weekend. October was largely an absolute graveyard for original films, particularly those looking to score Oscar noms, and offered up substandard horror flicks. November was slow at first before managing to pick up around the holiday season, all thanks to flying witches and human-like animals dealing with human-like societal issues. Finally, it was December, where the long awaited third Avatar film was finally released to the world... and proceeded to generate a lot of money but not the shit ton of money it was expected to. Fair to middling notices from both critics and audiences will do that to you. And just to give the world a big lump of coal for the holidays, actor/director/all-around great American Rob Reiner and his wife were tragically taken away from us, with the Big Cheese and his White House bootlickers proceeding to show their true colors by making offensive remarks towards them.
Turmoil plagued the major Hollywood studios throughout the year. Disney once again had huge hits but the bombs and misfires were more spectacular to observe and laugh at, whether it was Elio, Tron: Ares, or most notably the now legendary-in-its-infamy live-action remake of Snow White. Marvel wasn't even spared, with Captain America: Brave New World and The Fantastic Four: First Steps failing to overcome sheer critical derision and quickly evaporating enthusiasm respectively. Warner Bros. had the biggest hits of the year, both critically and commercially, but it doesn't seem to matter now now that it is official that the business merger with Discovery was a stupid mistake and the movie studio side is set to be sold to Netflix, unless Paramount's attempt at a hostile takeover wins over the shareholders. Speaking of them, Paramount relied on Tom Cruise once again to save their asses, only for Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning to land not with a bang but a very quiet whimper. Universal relied on expensively made known fare (Jurassic Park: Rebirth, Wicked: For Good, How To Train Your Dragon) to boffo results but with little to no significant impact to the human memory beyond toy purchases. Even micro-studio A24 suffered, proceeding to have their "worst" year ever with a slate of films that spent more time confusing and pissing off their audiences than actually enthralling and entertaining them. Materialists. Need I say more?
But to be honest, though it wasn't always awesome and there were certainly a lot of dead spots in the release schedule, 2025 was a fun year for film, with many great movies sprinkled all around only for them to transform into big works of pop culture and/or develop a fervor of fans and critical debates. There was the true #1 film of the year, initially thrown to the public at the end of June by Netflix as their standard movie of the week, only to survive the likes of a poop cruise, Madea, and Adam Sandler and become Netflix's most watched film ever. There was the two horror-themed films that lived up to their startling trailers and prerelease hype to deliver stories and visuals that have and will continue to generate a million think-pieces and film student essays. There were the several anime films that generated a ton of capital, hit #1 at the box office, and forced many stubborn movie critics and insiders to discuss them, truly look at the current tastes of the American public and hopefully reflect on their own prejudices towards animation. There were aliens, zombies, a man-made zombie, body switches, body horror, desperate people looking to pay their rent, a desperate person looking to pay for a ticket to Japan, not one but two sentimental stories of famous film people trying to rebuild their relationships with their daughters, and four, count them four acclaimed Stephen King adaptations in the same year (well, one of those is a stretch but humor me and round it up, you know the one!). And of course, there was the off-kilter action flick by an American auteur that may not have been a big box office hit but is on course to being labeled as the best film of the year and set to win the Best Picture Oscar.
For me, however, 2025 wasn't actually all about movies. I seemingly spent more time and energy on theater and video games. My urge to watch old Tony Awards via YouTube greatly surpassed my urge to sit through a three-hour film time and time again. I always knew that I spend a lot of time playing video games but my whim to extensively document it last year greatly showed how much the medium truly means to me, even if I still can't always finish a JRPG. And when I planned out a full day trip to NYC in December, something I used to do to catch limited releases and Oscar hopefuls, I instead went to see Chess at the Imperial and Ragtime at Lincoln Center (the former was fine, the latter was amazing). Hell, 2025 was the year of Ragtime for me, as I consumed the book, the movie, the original Broadway cast album, and a live Broadway production all in one year. Add all that with a job promotion, several special training sessions, and way too many pricey car repairs, my time spent with film was dwindling. Also not helping matters is with the lack of extensive film output, movie theaters are now showing older films beyond the usual Fathom Events to draw up business and I often partook with them then say yet another bad 2025 movie starring Sydney Sweeney. One of these movies was, you guessed it, the first-ever theatrical release of my favorite film of 2020, Hamilton (spoiler: it's a whole lot better on the big screen). Still, as much as it's a thrill watching an old favorite, there's nothing like the incredible rush and excitement of a new offering.
My final total of 2025 films that I watched is 23. It's now time to arrange them in the order of my opinion, from the best to the worst.
First up is my Top Ten of the Year. It was pretty easy to figure out the top half. With the bottom half, however, I really had to get into the nitty gritty to figure out their placements.
For Hollywood, the standard rule of thumb for a produced film is generality and familiarity, particularly when it comes to a genre picture. Like this movie's opening scene, artists are expected to clean themselves up, forgo their passions, drop their tools, give up their rights, and follow what the powers-that-be have deemed as gospel. Writer-director-producer-future rights holder Ryan Coogler said to hell with all of that. His extravagant mixture of horror, musical, social drama, and fantasy, with a dash of blaxploitation for good measure, is simply divine all on its own.
2. Little Amélie Or The Character Of Rain
2025 was another great year for animation fans, as there was a smorgasbord of films from around the world, many of which were thankfully granted a little-wider-than-limited theatrical release. This French-Belgian coproduction, which adapts an oddly named, unconventional French novel, was the absolute best of the medium. There's just so much to love: the breathtaking visuals, the exemplary creativity, a rich and exploratory plot that's enacted so simply, and those emotional moments that are perfectly heartbreaking or heartwarming. Coupled with the equally excellent animated short Éiru, this was the most life-affirming I ever felt in theaters last year. I must also give a shout out to the fellow audience member who sat behind me and had a really awkward, really ugly cry at the end.
Ethan Hawke absolutely should win the Best Actor Oscar come March, hands down. Both he, director Richard Linklater, and writer Robert Kaplow create an exceptional full-blooded portrayal of famed American theater lyricist Lorenz Hart. Save for some deliberate winking at the audience and an overextended coat check room scene, the film truly feels what a night with Hart would have been like: playful, manic, bewitching, exhausting, witty, somber, etc., etc., etc.
Most horror films would be content with just having a popular persona of evil or a signature visual to linger in your nightmares. Writer-director Zach Cregger has both of them and more with his deeply frightening look at how societies can collapse and fester up intense anger and calls for retribution of any kind when an unexplainable tragedy unfolds.
The film of 2025, period. You know an animated musical is gonna be good when you're getting goosebumps from the very first song. Come for the bop-filled soundtrack and delightfully anime-esque 3D animation, stay for its examination on conflicted individuality and the personal demons we can never shake off. Sure, it has some cut corners and minor issues here and there but it's just too damn entertaining to care. The biggest regret film-wise that I had last year was not going to see it at the cinema during its special engagement runs. Watching it with a sold out audience of fans would have made it truly feel like "going to the movies" again.
Have you ever picked up a random superhero comic book from the spinning racks, looked through it and found yourself enjoying the sudden drop into a different world? Writer-director James Gunn has, and he recreates that experience with his cut-to-the-chase reimagining of America's greatest hero.
A hidden gem that pushes the boundaries of the musical film, yet also firmly states why musical films have been the most nourishing works of art during troubling times (see my #5 for proof). I'm not much of a fan of Kander & Ebb but director Bill Condon and his talented independent crew wisely reshaped the duo's Tony-winning musical, which was previously a book then a play then an Oscar-winning movie, into a more cohesive and easier to stomach affair. Sorry J-Lo, but this gloriously flamboyant and rigidly grim spectacle shines the greatest whenever Tonatiuh is on the screen. Fun Fact: This is a Sundance film.
A straight-up entertaining franchise flick. It stumbles a bit thanks to its stubborn-to-a-fault protagonist, not to mention many scenes being too damn dark to see, but the creators eventually smooth things out to craft proper blockbuster thrills, including an thoroughly exciting, spine-ripping, stomach-slicing, skull-collecting third act. I'm still shocked and highly impressed how they got away with all of that gore, even if it was all alien creatures and synthetic androids.
An exceptional journey of abject horror that unfortunately trips up right at the finish line (pun fully intended). This Stephen King adaptation was able to accomplish something that's practically impossible to pull off in a filmed battle royal narrative: all of the deaths are extremely disturbing to watch, even for a kill count video on YouTube. You can even say that they are Haneke-esque. They are made more unsettling by the grisly special effects and the vulnerable performances of the cast, particularly Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson. I wish I could put this higher but that ending, that new ending to this famed tale, woof. My crowd was so pissed and loudly asking for their money back.
Rian Johnson continues his streak of great murder-mysteries featuring the peculiar private detective Benoit Blanc with this much darker entry. It swallows up your time away with ease, thanks to its stacked cast, uniquely artistic composition and lighting, and an engrossing story about those that weaponize social hatred via their higher status versus those that wish to remain human and practice healing and forgiveness. Unfortunately, I think some of my enthusiasm with the film was impacted by seeing way too many murder-mystery television series involving priests, most notably Father Brown. Plus, it's way too obvious what the most shocking moment of the story was going to be (spoiler: look at the title) and who was going to be standing across from Benoit Blanc at the very end with the final reveals.
Next up is the one film, yes, one, that I thought was very good and a true highlight of the year. It just had a thing or two that kept it from making my Top Ten.
This was my first experience with the true "Safdie" style, and boy, what a squirming-in-my-seat trip. A whirlwind of high highs, low lows, and wild finishes, all mainly caused by the cruel behavior and bad decisions of its heavily flawed protagonist, played wonderfully by Timothée Chalamet. Possessing a fantastically elaborate cast and an idiosyncratic soundtrack, this is one great "sports" movie that I most likely will not want to watch ever again.
Next are the "creamy middles", the films that are worth a viewing and were effective in their execution, engagement, and/or entertainment. I just wasn't fully enamored with them as I was with the films above.
The time for clipshows and sneak previews are finally and thankfully done. Rabid Demon Slayer fans and other curious viewers richly enjoyed this movie, making it one of the biggest films of the entire world last year. As for myself, those three hours certainly felt like three hours, made worse by the episodic structure of the film and it firmly acting as part one to a much bigger conclusion. Nevertheless, the high caliber animation helped make the fights exciting, the English dub continues to be stellar, including a shocking voice acting performance from Channing Tatum, and that tragic backstory for one of the villains that concludes the picture is a doozy.
Though not as stupendous and thought-provoking as the first one, the continuing misadventures of Judy and Nick and the wild takes of animals living in a human-like culture are still well executed and a joy to behold. Additional compliments to its compelling finale, albeit one that quite liberally borrows from another popular Disney animated juggernaut.
Way too much focus was spent last year on this film's knockout at the box office than the actual film itself. While not truly exceptional outside of Dwayne Johnson's stunning transformation and award-worthy performance, this unique beast of a sports movie is destined to amass a cult following.
An impressive experiment in human memory and the intricacies of human combat. Whether you call it pro-war or anti-war, quite frankly, this film doesn't give a fuck what stance you think it takes. All it truly cares at conveying is the sheer toll that armed conflict brings.
A fluffy, fun-filled animated ride. You know this movie is good when it can somehow make Pete Davidson into a likable, talented actor.
Joseph Kosinski tried to work his Top Gun: Maverick magic again, featuring another aging movie star piloting a high-speed vehicle for global domination, to satisfying yet still stale results. A gas-powered blast of heightened excitement when watching it in a movie theater will all of the loud vroom vrooms, plus featuring a delightful Javier Bardem, the film stalls out too many times thanks to its bog-standard script, courtesy of shoddy screenwriter Ehren Kruger.
As much as I like the manga (still haven't checked out the anime series), this boffo anime hit just left a disappointing taste in my mouth for the most part. No, it's not because my tongue was also ripped out by the not-so-secret antagonist, nor because I saw this the same day as Little Amélie. It just felt long in the tooth for a such a simple story arc and the final battle wasn't as wow-inducing as I would have thought and wanted. On the other hand, the animation is top notch, the score is cool and groovy, and it sticks the landing at all of the intended poignant moments. Also, needed more Power.
Finally, we end with five of the worst films of 2025. The first two entries should have been separated and labeled as unfortunate disappointments but I frankly don't want to give them that courtesy. The other three truly deserve to be this low.
I originally wasn't going to place this movie this low, due to the sheer fact that I enjoyed it to a degree. The NIN soundtrack, Jodie Turner-Smith's cold as ice performance, some fun action set pieces, and crafty shifts in art direction brought much needed life to dormant Disney property. But then there's Jared Leto, who just sucks all the fun away whenever he's on the screen, then begins to doubly suck when he tries to spit out Marvel-like humor. His anti-stardom, coupled with a moldy script, a pathetic main villain, desperate use of fan service, and the audacity to be all gung-ho on AI-powered creations in this day and age, helped sink this film into its own Grid-generated ocean.
Each year, there are plenty of movies that come and go without leaving a lasting impact. A new Wes Anderson film shouldn't be one of them. Alas, the American auteur continues his downward trend with this crummy and often unfunny movie that tries in vain to coast on all of the same artsy fartsy filmmaking and story tricks of his trade, as well as the acting talents of Benicio del Toro. Seriously, why would you give a shit about a movie whose protagonist is some old ass, cheap ass, unlikable and near lethargic swindler, requires you to keep track of all of his mathematical scheming, and force you to constantly worry about his money woes and physical safety despite informing you from frame one that he's near invincible?
Even with exceptional animation, cool fights, top tier Japanese voice acting, a great soundtrack, and enduring popularity, I simply just can't get into this shonen property. This clipshow/sneak preview doesn't help matters. It's just a constant bombardment of death and destruction with little to no explanation for anyone that's not a fan of the show, followed by a second half that's more suited to television, with its walls of text and a pathetic ending that's more of a commercial break than an actual cliffhanger.
Nearly all year, I had this movie dead set to be at the bottom of my year-end list. Watching this was a bit of a nightmare, as I realized upfront that I had to deal with 20(!) main characters, all of whom barely have any characterization and came from a mobile game. Then you had the film's major dilemma, which stupidly stipulates that if even one version of the legendary virtual idol Hatsune Miku is rejected by the human race, the world will collapse but only for a few minutes, and all other Miku-infused music will be erased/re-edited. Oh no?! And then there's the talking, dear lord, the near endless talking that always boil down to "Should we do something?" and "We should do something!"
So, why is the film in the penultimate spot instead? Because when you finally get to the climactic musical performances, they are all solid j-pop bops and the animation is eye-catching. Plus, the movie's theme, that music is out there, patiently waiting for you to help your soul in your time of need, is a worthwhile message and conveys it strongly; post-viewing, I had a hard time shaking off the scenes involving the studying, stressed out school girl. Not a total disaster but a tough struggle to keep your attention. Fun Fact: This movie outgrossed a major Julia Roberts movie at the box office.
I knew this movie was going to be really bad upon seeing its trailer. However, after being one of the very, very few who saw it, I struggled with my final assessment. I kept getting hung up on whether I should be a little lenient on it since there simply aren't a lot of American animated films featuring a majority black cast or focus on black themes and culture. But then I remembered how the handful of other viewers in my theater were all white, mainly families looking for some kind of family entertainment. I remembered how utterly stupid the main human character is, with his strong refusal to just sell the ultra-rare shoes he wins in a lottery, despite living in dirt-poor conditions, always having to wear his one-and-only pair of busted-ass sneakers, and his intentions to wear and abuse them for a honestly worthless basketball game solely to impress a girl. I remembered, via my extensive notes, that there was another unnecessary villain, that the narrating chorus of shoefiti just disappear midway through the story, that it keeps weirdly making romantic relationships between different shoe characters instead of, you know, between a same pair of shoes, and that it enacts the greatest sin imaginable by having Keith David do a voice and regulate him to only one scene!
Colorful Stage annoyed me greatly. However, that movie truly wanted to entertain people and make an impression. This is just pure nothing, and it has become just that: it barely made a half million dollars at the box office in its first weekend, it never premiered on any streaming platforms, and it didn't even make any Worst Of The Year lists. So, congratulations Sneaks! At least I remembered you.
No comments:
Post a Comment