Welcome to a very special year-end edition of Trust Me, I Watch Everything! My name is Brett Arnold, and I’m a film critic and host of Roger & Me, a weekly Siskel & Ebert-style movie review show. This week, I’m counting down the very best films of 2025.
I watched more than 500 new movies this year. Not all were winners — cough, Wicked: For Good — but here are 25 that I expect to be revisiting for years to come.
25) Warfare (Ray Mendoza, Alex Garland)
I can’t think of another war movie that puts you in the soldiers’ shoes as well as Warfare does; it’s really that intense and authentic. The movie is based entirely on the memories of the soldiers involved in a surveillance mission gone wrong in insurgent territory. It’s extremely loud, intense and harrowing stuff, focusing on the disorientation of having to continue doing the job as people are dying and things are exploding around them. The immediacy here — and all that tense waiting — really make it stand out, as does the limited perspective and lack of other establishing details. It stars a cast of fresh-faced young heartthrobs, which really helps sell the idea that these men are really just boys.
How to watch: Warfare is now streaming on HBO Max.
24) Presence (Steven Soderbergh)
Presence is not the horror movie it was marketed as, but it’s haunting and chilling in a different way. Here, the camera is the ghost that’s haunting a house, and the entire movie takes place from that perspective. The viewers are along for the ride, limited to what the ghost knows and doesn’t know, as the lost soul tries to solve the case of its own death and figure out why it’s haunting this family. It cleverly ends up being a movie about parenting, among other themes. Director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter David Koepp are more interested in the dynamics between the family inhabiting the house than delivering cheap thrills, and it pays off with a gut-punch of an ending.
How to watch: Presence is now streaming on Hulu.
23) The Phoenician Scheme (Wes Anderson)
The silliest movie Wes Anderson has made in years is, somehow, as sincere and emotional as anything he’s ever directed. That’s really saying something considering Asteroid City was his last film. The joys here, and some of the film’s biggest laughs, come from not only the eccentric characters and beautiful compositions we’ve come to expect from Anderson, but also from the surprising things you don’t expect to see in a movie like this. I didn’t know I needed to see a man violently (and bloodily!) explode in Wes Anderson’s signature style, but I absolutely did, and I likely didn’t laugh harder at anything this year.
How to watch: The Phoenician Scheme is now streaming on Peacock.
22) The Testament of Ann Lee (Mona Fastvold)
Amanda Seyfried is a revelation in The Testament of Ann Lee, a one-of-a-kind musical about the true story of Ann Lee, the founder of the devotional sect known as the Shakers. The movie quite brilliantly works the hymns into rapturous musical numbers — some of which are earworm-y enough to get stuck in your head — and really makes you understand how Lee’s religious rise was based in trauma and sexual repression. Worth noting: Director Mona Fastvold’s husband, Brady Corbet, directed The Brutalist last year. Both films are notable for looking like they cost tens of millions more than they actually did, which is also an impressive feat in and of itself.
How to watch: The Testament of Ann Lee is now playing in theaters nationwide.
21) The Life of Chuck (Mike Flanagan)
It was a strong year for Stephen King adaptations, and this is my favorite one. The gimmick of the story is that it follows an ordinary man’s life but in reverse order, from Act Three to Act One. In the process, we learn about his existence, as well as the life he didn’t live but might have enjoyed more. It may sound corny, but by the time Act Two hits, I was fully in the palm of the movie’s hand and openly weeping, both in a sad way and in a revelatory, beautiful, life-affirming way. Saying any more would be a disservice to this very special and quietly powerful film, which is equally inspiring as it is deeply sad and depressing.
How to watch: The Life of Chuck is now streaming on Hulu.
20) No Other Choice (Park Chan Wook)
There’s simply no other director using the camera and doing editing tricks quite like Park Chan Wook, whose latest film feels incredibly of the moment despite being based on a book from the ‘90s. It’s about a man who gets abruptly laid off after 25 years at the same company and the extreme and violent lengths he goes to eliminate the competition for the job he wants. It’s an extremely dark satire that manages to make you laugh and cry, sometimes within the same sequence! It’s an incredible tonal balancing act, and there are casually astonishing transitions and camera movements throughout.
How to watch: No Other Choice is now playing in a limited number of theaters before expanding wide next month.
19) The Voice of Hind Rajab (Kaouther Ben Hania)
The Voice of Hind Rajab is the most unpleasant movie to watch of the year, but that’s exactly why it feels so important to recommend. It’s a dramatized film depicting volunteers at the Palestine Red Crescent Society staying on the phone with a 6-year-old girl who gets trapped in a car with her dead family in war-torn Gaza. It features actors and actresses, but the phone calls being depicted are real, and the girl we hear on the phone is the real caller. The filmmakers quite brilliantly take the viewer out of the “film” throughout and remind us that this is all real. It’s a documentary-fiction film hybrid that begs to be seen.
How to watch: The Voice of Hind Rajab is now playing in a limited number of theaters.
18) Splitsville (Michael Angelo Covino)
This indie screwball comedy manages uproarious big laughs alongside insightful and acidic satire about the thoroughly modern world of open marriages. The movie sports a centerpiece fight scene that is a real barnburner, but it’s the rawness and honesty of it all that sneaks up on you, getting at the jealousy, contempt and insecurity lurking under all these new-age ideas of being “open” to your partner sleeping with other people. By the time it leans into absurdism, I was fully on board and howling along with every gag. Somehow, it pulls off the sincerity as well as the comedy. Splitsville is actually the biting and sexy relationship movie starring Dakota Johnson that Materialists promised to be.
How to watch: Splitsville is now available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Prime Video and other VOD platforms.
17) The Secret Agent (Kleber Mendonça Filho)
This sneakily profound movie throws you without explaining itself, and by the end, you’ll appreciate that approach. There’s a late reveal that totally recontextualizes what came before it in such a clever way that I gasped. The twisty nature of the narrative serves to tell a deeply affecting story from the past that still resonates today.
How to watch: The Secret Agent is now playing in a limited number of theaters.
16) Jay Kelly (Noah Baumbach)
Noah Baumbach’s latest film is less a celebration of movie stars and the art of moviemaking than it appears, and more an acidic, introspective and far more interesting character study of a George Clooney-esque movie star who aims to show how hollow life at the top can be. It’s a deeply sad treatise on the art form that is cinema and the people who make films happen. It’s less a love letter and more an examination of, “Was it worth it, and what was it all for?” for the stars at the center of them. It’s a movie seeking answers on what’s truly important in life, and recognizing the transactional nature of what’s not. By the time the final sequence and perfect last line hit, I was a mess.
How to watch: Jay Kelly is now streaming on Netflix.
15) Henry Johnson (David Mamet)
David Mamet’s first film since 2008 is absolutely captivating and darkly hilarious. It’s simply four scenes, all dialogue exchanges between the titular Henry Johnson (played by Mamet’s son-in-law, Evan Jonigkeit) and some other characters. The opening sequence is among the most exhilarating I’ve seen this year, and it’s just two men talking. It’s an examination of power and masculinity and coercion, and explores just why it is some people are so damned gullible. Giving away any specifics would be a crime. Seek it out!
How to watch: Henry Johnson is now available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Prime Video and other VOD platforms.
14) Train Dreams (Clint Bentley)
The deeply moving Train Dreams is a seemingly small film that’s actually as grandiose as it gets. It traces the life of a single ordinary man and, in the process, becomes a treatise on life writ large and what it all means, and how we can’t ever really possibly begin to understand until we’re at the very end of it. It’s also about the beauty and interconnectedness of the earth, and how we’re just as much a part of its fabric as the trees and the dirt, and those who came before us. It’s hard to describe but transfixing to watch unfold, with scenes flickering in and out like memories. It’s a film about finding meaning in life, and that quiet profundity absolutely knocked the wind out of me.
How to watch: Train Dreams is now streaming on Netflix.
13) Resurrection (Bi Gan)
This film from Chinese filmmaker Bi Gan is completely astonishing in both its ambition and execution. Watching it, you feel like you’re experiencing cinema from its inception through now. The film is an anthology of sorts, with each section representing a different film movement and style, from the silent era onward. It’s nearly impossible to describe, but fans of the history of the form will appreciate the experience. It gets at the connection between films and dreams, and how films are the closest we can get to making dreams a reality.
How to watch: Resurrection is now playing in a limited number of theaters.
12) Hedda (Nia DaCosta)
Writer-director Nia DeCosta’s thoroughly modern update on Henrik Ibsen’s legendary 19th-century play is a sumptuous treat that’s absolutely thrilling to behold. The setting has been updated to an English countryside at some point during the 1950s. The plot, quite cleverly, unfolds over one crazy night, a perfect fit for the character and her whims. Tessa Thompson is simply sensational as Hedda, a woman who can’t help but wrap everyone she encounters around her finger, simply because she can. Rarely does a contemporary take on a classic text prove itself to be this entertaining.
How to watch: Hedda is now streaming on Prime Video.
11) The Baltimorons (Jay Duplass)
This warm and gentle and sad and wonderful indie holiday gem really sneaks up on you. The star, who also wrote the film, is newcomer Michael Strassner. He gives an incredibly endearing performance in what is clearly a very personal story, alongside Liz Larsen, a veteran actress who’s never had a lead role like this in a film before. It’s a fantastic showcase for them both that’s unexpectedly affecting and even life-affirming, making you laugh all the while. It’s a reminder of the power of cinema and that you don’t need millions to make something special. Hopefully, it’ll become a new perennial Christmas classic, like the recent Oscar-nominated The Holdovers.
How to watch: The Baltimorons is now streaming on AMC+.
10) Bugonia (Yorgos Lanthimos)
Yorgos Lanthimos returns with yet another collaboration with Emma Stone, and it may be their finest work yet, though it may not leave you in the best headspace. The film balances tone impressively, making you laugh uproariously one minute and inducing absolute dread the next. It’s a film about our post-truth world, or a look at a society whose inhabitants can’t even agree on basic realities. It builds to a third act that feels inevitable and then takes it a step further with a stunningly audacious ending montage that left a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. It poses the question, is humankind worth saving? You may not like the answer. It’s the feel-bad movie of the year!
How to watch: Bugonia is now streaming on Peacock.
9) Eephus (Carson Lund)
Eephus is a movie about baseball that functions as a pure love letter to the sport, and also as a metaphor for life and the bitter end of the things that we love. It’s both celebrating and mourning the end of an era, as these men are set to lose what binds them together. It’s a hangout movie that’s not concerned with plot, yet still quietly profound and powerful. If you weren’t romantic about baseball before, you might just be afterward.
How to watch: Eephus is now streaming on Mubi.
8) Sinners (Ryan Coogler)
Sinners would be one of the best movies of the year even before it introduces the horror element that winds up taking over the second half and turning it into another type of spectacle entirely. It’s as audacious as it is purely entertaining. Before it becomes a vampire movie halfway through — From Dusk Till Dawn vibes! — it’s an impressive period piece gangster movie that patiently sets up the stakes of its story. In the end, the movie works entirely as entertainment on its own terms but also on an entirely different level: as a metaphor about its director’s feelings on making art as a Black man in an industry that’s eager to exploit his perspective. It’s a big swing, and it connects, especially after you see the mid-credits scene that you’ll want to stick around for.
How to watch: Sinners is now streaming on HBO Max.
7) Weapons (Zach Cregger)
Zach Cregger’s smash-hit Weapons is the unlikeliest Oscar movie of the year, as the buzz around Amy Madigan as “Aunt Gladys” has reached such a fever pitch that a nomination is virtually guaranteed. Cregger himself could find himself nominated for his killer screenplay, too, which is a completely original work that is best described as something like a fairy tale as written by Stephen King. It’s got jump scares as well as more unsettling implications, like a horror movie rendering of what it looks like to be a child in a household with absent or abusive parents.
How to watch: Weapons is now streaming on HBO Max.
6) Blue Moon (Richard Linklater)
Richard Linklater has two new movies you can stream right this second — this, and Nouvelle Vague on Netflix — and while both are worth watching, Blue Moon is the better of the two. It’s vintage Linklater at his best: stripped down, dialogue-centric and starring Ethan Hawke … as a messy queen who lives for drama! You’ve never seen him like this before, and it’s one of the best performances of the year. It’s a lovely and deeply melancholic little movie about art, professional jealousy, realizing your moment in the sun may be up and so much more.
How to watch: Blue Moon is now available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Prime Video and other VOD platforms.
5) The Mastermind (Kelly Reichardt)
Kelly Reichardt is one of the finest filmmakers working today, and her unique skill lies in genre deconstruction. The Mastermind is Reichardt’s take on a heist movie — if you’re looking for the excitement associated with something like Ocean’s Eleven, look elsewhere — and is about a man who pulls off an art heist at a local museum because, well, it seems easy enough. And it is, actually, but the film is about the aftermath of the crime, and how he never really had a plan at all, and all we see are his pathetic attempts to exist after making such a bold choice. It’s set in the 1970s amid disillusionment over the Vietnam War, and Josh O’Connor’s character’s pointed lack of a perspective on anything other than himself is ultimately his undoing. Some will find the anti-thriller elements to be akin to watching paint dry, but patient viewers will be richly rewarded with a fantastic punchline of an ending.
How to watch: The Mastermind is now streaming on Mubi.
4) Eddington (Ari Aster)
With talk of AI data centers dominating political discourse more and more as the year goes on, it’s clear that Ari Aster had his finger on the pulse with Eddington, an incredibly bleak COVID-era satire that makes fun of all sides equally but has a larger point about the nefarious powers that be that work tirelessly to keep us all engaged on our smartphones with algorithms that rile us up and make us believe made-up nonsense. Eddington clocks the pandemic as the moment when we as a society lost all sense of community, as we’re all siloed off in our own personalized little bubble worlds, stuck in echo chambers of our own choosing. Happy scrolling! Read my full review here.
How to watch: Eddington is now streaming on HBO Max.
3) The Shrouds (David Cronenberg)
Never one to appeal to the mainstream, David Cronenberg’s The Shrouds isn’t going to change the minds of any skeptics. It’s a decidedly Cronenbergian film, and an extremely rich text for fans of the auteur’s work. It’s also his most personal yet by far, as the legendary Canadian filmmaker grapples with the real-life death of his wife of nearly 40 years through this deeply moving, haunting and dryly hilarious meditation on death. All the usual themes of his work, such as the destruction of the human body, are on display but distilled through a distinctly modern lens, addressing new concerns from beyond the grave. Its central conspiracy, meant to elicit laughter rather than earnest engagement, is laugh-out-loud silly, yet also a meaningful depiction of how difficult it can be to accept the harsh realities in life and how we all yearn for explanations for the unexplainable.
How to watch: The Shrouds is now streaming on the Criterion Channel.
Watch on the Criterion Channel
2) Marty Supreme (Josh Safdie)
Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme has what many consider to be an unlikable and irredeemable protagonist, a person so self-serving that everybody they encounter ends up worse off after their interaction in some capacity. This very specific archetype is Safdie’s bread and butter, and fans of Good Time and Uncut Gems are in for a treat, as this iteration on the character is the most refined and fully formed yet. The film’s post-war setting in 1950s New York allows it to go deeper on several themes present in Safdie’s work, from Judaism and assimilation and identity to the very real trauma that fuels his drive, as well as the sacrifices and goalpost-shifting required to feel satisfied. On a craft level, the film is astounding, with incredible period production design and the typical kinetic camerawork and editing of a Safdie film. The cast is full of many surprising faces, all delivering terrific performances. The score and soundtrack are also among the very best of the year. Read my full review here.
How to watch: Marty Supreme is now playing in theaters nationwide.
1) One Battle After Another (Paul Thomas Anderson)
Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, a loose adaptation of Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel Vineland, is remarkably difficult to categorize. It’s a rousing spectacle that entertains, first and foremost, but also functions as biting satire that takes on our current political climate and dares to laugh in its face — “hail Saint Nick!” — and also a deeply personal film for its writer-director about how to be a father in such a world. It’s as laugh-out-loud funny throughout as it is deeply menacing, though it ultimately conveys a moving and hopeful “the kids are all right” message about the next generation’s ability to keep fighting for a better world. Anderson’s ability to pull off all these contradictions, not to mention the terrific performances from all involved, makes One Battle After Another the movie of the year. Read my full review here.
How to watch: One Battle After Another is now streaming on HBO Max.
Looking for more recs? Find your next watch on the Yahoo 100, our daily updating list of the most popular movies of the year.