One of two projects to come out of the Bronstein-Safdie pipeline this year “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” is Mary Bronstein’s second directorial work and her first film in almost two decades. An intense, anxiety-ridden psychological examination of motherhood, the film stars Rose Byrne, who delivers a show-stopping performance in the leading role. Bronstein displays incredible maturity as a storyteller, despite having relatively little experience in the medium. An absolutely incredible, deeply personal piece of filmmaking, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” is one of the most impressive movies to be released this year.

The “Sinners” moment was one of the best of the year: an original, R-rated horror-thriller project with complex themes, from a bold auteur, is always something special, but “Sinners” felt different. Not only was the film brilliantly made, but it was a cultural sensation, breaking into the mainstream and grossing over $350 million at the box office. The film’s storytelling of black culture is phenomenal, but the film is also a sensationally thrilling vampire film featuring fearless gore and frightening sequences. Michael B. Jordan excels in both lead roles (the twin pair of former gangsters, Smoke and Stack), the supporting cast is flawless and Ryan Coogler’s direction continues to improve.

Similar to “Sinners,” “28 Years Later” was another bold spring-summer horror sensation (although to a slightly lesser extent). As a directorial manic genius, Danny Boyle’s career has revolved around countless unsafe decisions. Boyle somehow weaves all of his tonal clashes and thematic elements into one strong narrative. “28 Years Later” is the next in line of his perilous style of filmmaking and is one of his strongest yet: as thrilling as it is heartfelt and as frightening as it is sincere, it’s an incredible cinematic feat.

An ingenious moral thriller, “It Was Just An Accident,” is one of the smartest and bravest movies of the year. Jafar Panahi continues to invent his own line of cinematic excellence, stuffing every film he makes with countless personal stories, anti-establishment ideals and historical impact. Although the film hasn’t quite caught the awards fire it was expected to after its Palme d’Or win at Cannes, it has been (deservedly) critically adored and is competing for the Best International Feature award at March’s Oscars, if not Best Picture.

A deviation from Ari Aster’s horror-filled cinematic past, “Eddington” is a small-scale modern revisionist political western. Set in the not-so-recent past of a COVID-ridden American West, the film stars Joaquin Phoenix as a complex, right-leaning sheriff of a Southwestern town, who finds himself caught up in a sweeping conspiracy involving self-centered protesters, ANTIFA, a mayoral race and a larger American stratagem. Aster continues to establish his domain as a brilliant genre filmmaker and his worthy cult of followers only grows as a result.

The most underseen film on this list, “Cloud,” is the latest masterwork from Japanese thrillmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa and one of his bleakest projects yet. Full of late-stage capitalist dread and technological paranoia, “Cloud” is one of the most dispiriting recent releases we’ve seen. Although the film is discouraging, its climactic finale is thrilling and heart-pounding, with some of the most powerful violence of the year. A bare-bones effective script, intelligent theme and a modest lead performance from Masaki Suda highlight this incredible movie.

Although “Sentimental Value” hasn’t been critically received as positively as it should have, the film is yet another original and sincere project from Norwegian auteur Joachim Trier. Coming off the immense success of “The Worst Person in the World,” director-actor pair Trier and Renate Reinseve delve into a new realm of paternal existentialism and societal expulsion. An excellent veteran performance from Stellan Skarsgaard and an introductory breakout role from Inga Ibsdotter Lileaas successfully complement Trier’s direction and Reinseve’s lead. Other highlights of the film include its top-to-bottom flawless script, impressive production design and a wonderfully sincere tone.

There are few filmmakers as consistently original as Park Chan Wook and his new film continues his excellence in bold genre filmmaking. It’s remarkable how director Park constantly evolves his craft – structurally, tonally and visually – with fresh transitions, tonal clashes, camera placements, impositions and narrative shifts. This time around, Park adds to the impressive canon of late-stage capitalism critiques, but of course, in his own original way. Although the film just got a semi-wide release in early January 2026, it’s worth however much work it takes to find a screening.

“Marty Supreme” ruled the end of 2025 movie culture, with Timothée Chalamet and the film’s signature orange plastered over as many billboards, social media ads and awards campaigns as possible. Although some found this guerrilla marketing style tiring, the film is worthy of this massive scheme and is a step forward for auteur-driven semi-independent projects. There’s little to be said about this film that hasn’t already been said (even by me), but it’s deserving of its box office success and massive critical acclaim. The film will be discussed even more come Oscar season and is hopefully in line to be a serious contender for major awards.

This was the clear and obvious choice for my number one of the year: Paul Thomas Anderson is by far my favorite writer-director working right now and there were few films released this year as exhilarating and smart as “One Battle After Another.” However, I am not the only one with this opinion: the film has been immensely successful in the mid-tier awards so far, and is currently the betting favorite for Best Picture at the Oscars. Leonardo DiCaprio is excellent in the leading role, settling into the late-stage paternal phase of his career. The rest of the cast is equally impressive (Benicio Del Toro, Teyana Taylor, Sean Penn, Chase Infiniti), as well as the photography, sound and screenplay. “One Battle After Another” is not only the best film of the year, but one of the few masterpieces of this quarter-century.