The Best Movies of 2025: From Sinners, to Marty Supreme and more!
And so another year ends, and if I do say so myself, it ends on a note of serious uncertainty for Hollywood. Attendance is down, more movies than ever are tanking, and even franchises that have been unbeatable in the past, such as the MCU and the Avatar series, are taking a beating at the box office. With Netflix on the cusp of making its deal for Warner Bros. go through, theatrical exhibition has become an increasingly endangered part of moviegoing. Yet, as bad of a year as this might have been for Hollywood, there were still movies that cut through and made an impact with audiences. Here are 10 of them in our annual Best Movies of the Year list!
10. A House of Dynamite:
The scariest movie of the year wasn’t really a horror movie. Instead, it was director Kathryn Bigelow’s anxiety-inducing look at what would happen were a lone nuclear missile launched at the United States. While many took issue with some of the lapses in logic, and others didn’t care for the real-time, multiple-perspective aspect and the open ending, it’s a nail-biting movie with some powerhouse performances, particularly from Rebecca Ferguson, Jared Harris, Jason Clarke, and a few others. Bigelow’s first movie in eight years wasn’t a disappointment.
9. Friendship:
In a year that saw precious few comedies released into theaters, A24 actually released a gem called Friendship, which comes from I Think You Should Leave star Tim Robinson and co-stars a well-cast Paul Rudd in this cringe-inducing story of adult friendships gone awry. This kind of flew under the radar, but the success of Robinson’s The Chair Company on HBO might raise its profile now that it’s streaming.
8. Weapons:
Zach Cregger’s sophomore movie became a total phenomenon when it came out last summer. Using a Magnolia-esque format and adapting it to the horror genre proved to be a winner, with Josh Brolin and Julia Garner delivering powerhouse performances. However, it was Amy Madigan as the terrifying Aunt Gladys who became our newest horror icon. Although I beg WB—don’t make an Aunt Gladys prequel. We don’t need it. Let Weapons be a one-and-done.
7. Caught Stealing:
It’s ironic that Darren Aronofsky’s most commercial movie ever turned out to be one of his biggest flops, but don’t let that dissuade you from checking out this homage to nineties crime flicks, starring an expertly cast Austin Butler as a former ballplayer turned bartender who winds up in terrible trouble with some dangerous people thanks to his idiotic neighbour, a punk rocker played by Matt Smith. This one is BRUTAL at times, with a shocking twist about a half hour in really dividing audiences.
6. F1:
In terms of a big-screen experience, F1: The Movie can’t be beat. Brad Pitt once again proves why he’s a movie star in Joseph Kosinski’s kick-ass follow-up to Top Gun: Maverick, with it being the most immersive racing movie ever made. My only caveat is that this movie begs to be seen on a big screen, so those of you watching it at home may not get the full effect, as this was dazzling in IMAX.
5. Train Dreams:
Clint Bentley’s quiet, meditative story of a logger living in the early twentieth century turned out to be a real sleeper right off its Sundance debut. It was bought by Netflix, and it’s turned out to be the one movie they’ve put out this year that really seems like it will walk away with some major awards. Joel Edgerton delivers a career-best performance.
4. Sentimental Value:
Joachim Trier’s latest is one of the most powerful films of the year, zeroing in on the frayed relationship between an arthouse director, played by Stellan Skarsgård, and the two daughters he’s neglected. Yet, as serious a movie as this is, it also has some huge laughs, and hopefully Skarsgård and co-star Renate Reinsve land much-deserved Oscar nominations, with Stellan actually having a strong chance of winning.
3. Sinners:
Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, like F1, was one of the few movies to really make the most of its big-screen format and become a must-see in theaters. Coogler made a movie that thrilled audiences and became an instant classic, thanks largely to Michael B. Jordan’s dual leading role, as well as a cast-against-type Hailee Steinfeld, a charmingly evil Jack O’Connell, and more. Heck, even before the vampires showed up in the movie’s second half, I was loving Sinners, with Coogler effortlessly creating a real sense of atmosphere and family. It’s not a perfect movie, as some have claimed (there are some silly parts), but I doubt any other movie this year was as purely entertaining as this one (that said, our Unpopular Opinion writer thought differently).
2. One Battle After Another:
Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another has become one of the year’s big water-cooler movies, with it launching a thousand think pieces over its perceived politics. That aside, the craft behind it is thrilling, with Anderson using the VistaVision 35mm process to dazzle his audience, while Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor, and Chase Infiniti deliver some of the year’s best performances.
1. Marty Supreme:
If anyone out there still doubts that Timothée Chalamet is one of the greatest actors of his era, they need to see this movie. A masterfully propulsive tale of a hustler on the make, Josh Safdie has crafted a period epic unlike anything you’ve ever seen, daringly scoring this fifties-set drama like it was made in the eighties, and filling it with an unconventional—but awesome—supporting cast that includes Abel Ferrara, Penn Jillette, Kevin O’Leary, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, and even Tyler, the Creator. Like many other movies on this list, it begs to be seen on the big screen, although it’s so propulsive you might need to treat yourself to a Valium by the time it’s over.
And that’s our list. What do you think deserves to be in the top 10? Let us know in the comments!
The post The Best Movies of 2025: From Sinners, to Marty Supreme and more! appeared first on JoBlo.