2025 has been a pretty solid year for movies. 2023 was historic, and 2024 was excellent, but the initial 2025 lineup didn’t seem to have the makings of as good a year as we’ve now experienced. Sleeper hits like Sinners helped propel the year forward, and the end result was pretty great. These 10, however, are the year’s best.
Disclaimer: I have not seen Hamnet, Zootopia 2, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, No Other Choice, or Sentimental Value.
Honorable Mentions: Bugonia, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, Steve, and Frankenstein.
10. Train Dreams
Do not be surprised if Train Dreams makes a serious run at the Oscars. Starring Joel Edgerton giving a brilliantly quiet performance, this is one of the most beautiful movies of the year. It’s simple and has very little plot, but the result is an emotional depiction of how cruel, unforgiving, and ultimately beautiful this life is.
Score: 4.25/5
9. Weapons
Weapons was one of the sleeper hits of the year. No one expected this from Zach Cregger’s sophomore outing. Barbarian was good, but this is brilliant. It’s thematically rich, narratively interesting, and genuinely hilarious. It’s a horror movie, but it uses humor perfectly to balance out the scares and keep audiences engaged. I’d wager that it’s actually the funniest movie of the year.
Score: 4.25/5
8. Superman
Superman is the perfect starting point for the new DCU. All the actors are exceptionally cast, with Nicolas Hoult delivering incredible work as the sniveling Lex Luthor. Where this movie really succeeds is in simply providing hope. Superman is a hopeful character, but previous iterations have seemingly forgotten that crucial character trait. Not James Gunn’s version, though.
Score: 4.25/5
7. The Long Walk
There is probably no bleaker movie from 2025 than The Long Walk, one of several prominent Stephen King adaptations this year. Mixed in with all that emotional distress, though, is a genuine sense of hope. This world, and by proxy, our own, does not provide anything to be hopeful about, and yet, when faced with death, these boys find friendship, love, and more.
Score: 4.5/5
6. 28 Years Later
28 Years Later was another surprise hit. Who expected a legacy sequel to a long-forgotten zombie series to be so good? Having Danny Boyle and Alex Garland back was really helpful, and I found this to be a fascinating examination of life, death, and love. Those aren’t your typical zombie horror genre staples.
Score: 4.5/5
5. Wake Up Dead Man
Wake Up Dead Man wasn’t one of the surprise movies of 2025. Everyone knows by now that Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig have the juice. What was surprising was how much more serious the movie is and how much it has to say. It is shockingly nuanced in its portrayal of religion, with Josh O’Connor delivering a painfully hopeful look at what Christianity and the church should be. I doubt if anyone had that on their Bingo card.
Score: 4.5/5
4. Marty Supreme
Marty Supreme is utterly brilliant. It’s the third anxiety-inducing movie from Josh Safdie that stars an unlikable protagonist doing whatever it takes to reach his goal, but this one also functions as a much clearer picture of how damaging that can be for a normal person (i.e., not a criminal and not an illegal gambler). Plus, it features maybe the best work of Timothee Chalamet’s incredible career.
Score: 4.5/5
3. The Life of Chuck
Far too few people seem to have seen The Life of Chuck, and even fewer seem to fully appreciate it. Adapted from a short story I only somewhat enjoyed, Mike Flanagan turns this story into something so rich and beautiful. It’s incredibly optimistic and provides a really touching outlook on life, sporting a message that is so important and that personally resonated with me strongly.
Score: 4.75/5
2. Sinners
Consider that “2” a “1B”, because that’s really what it is. On any given day, I could convince myself that Sinners is the best movie of the year. It is dripping with style, swagger, and cinematic skill. Ryan Coogler was locked all the way in. Michael B. Jordan delivers career-best work. Ludwig Goransson dropped an outrageously good and layered score. Autumn Durald’s cinematography is exceptional. I only found myself slightly underwhelmed with how the night ended so abruptly on first watch, which is why it’s second right now.
Score: 5/5
1. One Battle After Another
Again, this is more of a “1A” than anything else, but for the moment, I’m leaning towards One Battle After Another as the best movie of 2025. What it lacks (in comparison to Sinners) in score, cinematography, and other technical aspects (and to be clear, it is excellent in all those facets), it makes up for by having the best and most engaging narrative of the year. It’s politically relevant in a way that, unlike movies like Eddington, doesn’t condescend. It also does a wonderful job of highlighting the flaws of the “good” side, too.
Score: 5/5
Conclusion
I watched 67 movies this year, and these 10 were the best. I’m sure some of the ones I missed, such as Hamnet or Zootopia 2, would’ve crept into this list had I watched them. By and large, this would be my list for Best Picture at the Oscars, but I regrettably have nothing to do with the Academy. Regardless, what a year it was for cinema!
