It’s July and that means we’re closer to 2026 than we are the start of 2025. Even better, it means that many of the films that released in the first half of 2025 are likely more available than you realize. As such, here’s a short list of the 28 films that I think make up the best that’s hit theaters, VOD, and streamers so far this year. If you’d like to see how this list might shift and change through the rest of the year, be sure to follow this official Letterboxd list for 2025.
Listed film order is from #1 (best of the best) to #28 (last of the best).
If you don’t see a film here that you’d expect to, either I haven’t seen it yet (ex. Sinners) or it just didn’t work for me the way it did for you.
The Life of Chuck
Where To Watch: In theaters as of June 13th, 2025.
Official Summary:
From the hearts and minds of Stephen King and Mike Flanagan comes The Life Of Chuck, the extraordinary story of an ordinary man. This unforgettable, genre-bending tale celebrates the life of Charles ‘Chuck’ Krantz as he experiences the wonder of love, the heartbreak of loss, and the multitudes contained in all of us.
Reason This Is On The List:
This is the only film on the list without a formal review from me. Should you be looking for one, though, both EoM Contributors Justin Waldman and Andrew Eisenman provide their takes. I, however, have this at the top of my list, the only 5 out of 5 for the year, because Flanagan’s film positively wrecked me. Yes, it’s twee and, yes, it calls its shots, but it does so not in an effort to be ham-fisted or to bludgeon its audience with affirmations, but to remind us all that, whatever moment we find ourselves in, it’s merely one of many, that we are comprised as much from the energy of a star having reached supernova as we are the people we meet throughout our lives, both extraordinarily important and sometimes totally incidental. It is not soft to be reminded that our lives, no matter how they start or end, possess meaning; nor does it make us hard to acknowledge that even when things don’t turn out as we expect, we are exactly where we’re supposed to be. Young love, a dream occupation, the warm embrace of a loved one — each of them possesses a power to shape us regardless of whether they go the distance. When all the world seems to have forgotten that life is ephemeral and that you can’t take your precious gold with you when you go, Flanagan’s The Life of Chuck inspires one to contemplate what it is that we leave behind and why it matters most.
Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League
Where To Watch: 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and digital now.
Official Summary:
In this sequel to Batman Ninja, the Batman family has returned to the present to discover that Japan has disappeared, and a giant island – Hinomoto – is now in the sky over Gotham City. At the top sit the Yakuza, a group of superpowered individuals who reign without honor or humanity and look suspiciously like the Justice League. Now, it’s up to Batman and his allies to save Gotham!
With the upcoming cinematic kick-off of the new DC Studios universe with 2025’s James Gunn-directed Superman, it would be easy to discount something like Yakuza League. I encourage you, if you have any love for DC Animation, to seek this one out, not just because it’s a fantastic follow-up to Batman Ninja, but also because it’s a solid outing all on its own, replete with numerous jokes for DC Comics fans anchored in Japanese references. The best part is that it doesn’t try to replicate elements of the first film which dazzled, like the tokusatsu robot fights. Instead, it leans into the characters themselves to generate intelligent interactions, narratively propulsive action scenes, and jokes that enhance moments without detracting from the seriousness of the situation. If we’re truly lucky, we’ll get another outstanding adventure in another seven years, and I hope they keep these coming. The Batman Ninja films are among the best Warner Bros. Animation has offered out of their DC Animated line in some time, not just for their innovative animation, but for the way they demonstrate a deep knowledge and love of the characters.
Third Act
Where To Watch: World premiere during Sundance 2025. Currently on the festival circuit.
Official Summary:
Generations of artists call Robert A. Nakamura “The Godfather of Asian American film,” but his son, Tad, calls him Dad. As the filmmaking son of a filmmaking legend, Tad uses the lessons his dad taught him to decipher the legacy of an aging man who was a child survivor of the WWII incarceration of Japanese Americans, a successful photographer who gave it up to tell his own story, an activist at the dawn of a social movement—and a father whose struggles have won his son freedoms that eluded Japanese Americans of his generation. As Parkinson’s Disease clouds his memory, Tad sets out to retrieve his story—and in the process discovers his own. The two have made films together, with Robert always by Tad’s side. Third Act is most likely the last.
If you want to learn about the significant moments in Robert A. Nakamura’s life, you can go the official film website for a timeline, go to one of several sites extoling his works, or his Wikipedia page. You’ll get a sense of what he’s done, but very little of who he is. To some degree, Tadashi may have intended to do something like that, chatting with his father about his process, his tools, and his ideas, in order to glean some sense of the figure with a large shadow while also locking it down on celluloid (or digital in this case), but what Third Act unlocks is not only far more personal and expansive for the Nakamura family in terms of what their respective legacy is, it also speaks to a country-wide trauma that’s never been truly healed. A country cannot just turn its back on its citizens and expect anyone within its borders to remain with some wound — physical, emotional, metaphysical, or spiritual. Thankfully, the beautiful way that Tadashi interweaves the past and the present, a vision of a better future takes shape. With luck and a great deal of resistance, perhaps it will be able to solidify.
L-R: Tadashi Nakamura, Robert A. Nakamura, and Prince in the documentary THIRD ACT. Photo courtesy of Generation Films/Sundance Film Festival.
New Jack Fury
Where To Watch: World premiere during SXSW 2025. Currently on the festival circuit.
Official Summary:
New Jack Fury is an action/comedy set in the glorious 1980s about a former cop, Dylan Gamble, who desperately tries to track down his girlfriend, Tanisha, who was kidnapped by the ruthless kingpin, Silk Styles.
New Jack Fury is as much an exercise in cinematic minimalism as it is maximalism. The film’s shot using green screen to create the world of New Jack, making it clear that when the actors aren’t on sets, they’re just moving through space decorated to look real. Simultaneously, this world is chock full of details so that every inch, even in its ridiculousness, contains something that makes the world feel authentic to the rules Wal sets within the film. This correlates to performances that are heightened to match the digital aesthetic of New Jack Fury, creating characters that are caricatures more than people, not just including Leslie’s lethal Michael Jackson impersonator. These big personalities need a world just as large to exist within which is what makes locations like clubs Sweaty Nipple or 8-Bit Tit both fit within the realm of Wal’s creation while also leaning into the type of comedy and details that drive New Jack Fury. In order to achieve this, sometimes it means that the characters are functioning within the “real” world and others a more digital space, but Wal seamlessly threads these together so that the rules of his tale are never broken or weakened in the transition. But this is merely the dressing for Wal’s intention, the way to get you buy tickets to the show and be open to what he’s really doing: laying forth a gauntlet regarding Black culture in America.
40 Acres
Where To Watch: In select theaters July 2nd, 2025.
Official Summary:
After a series of plagues and wars leaves society in ruins, the Freemans are surviving — even thriving — on a farm in the middle of nowhere… so long as they repel the occasional raiding party. Former soldier Hailey (Danielle Deadwyler) and her partner Galen (Michael Greyeyes) fled the collapse along with their children, training them to fight (and, yes, kill). But now Hailey’s eldest Emanuel (Kataem O’Connor) is a young man, and when he meets a young woman (Milcania Diaz-Rojas) in the forest beyond the fence, his need for human contact could place the whole family in jeopardy.
If audiences so desire, they can experience 40 Acres as a simple family-centric horror thriller. It can absolutely be taken in that way and enjoyed. However, those who are open to what Thorne, Taylor, Campbell, and the cast/crew have created will find themselves going down a rabbit hole of ideas in which nearly everything we see and hear possesses intention. With intention comes a great deal of power and meaning, all of which can serve as a warning for what appears to be happening once more: supply chains are failing due to animal-based viruses, greed and pride are leading the way in political arenas in which the call for isolation at home and war elsewhere is a path made of distrust and vanity, and those who just want to exist are left with anxiety which breeds fear. There are elements of 40 Acres that are decidedly science fiction, but they are more akin to science non-fiction the more we roll the narrative, its themes, and its execution around in our minds: society is stronger together; fear drives us apart.
The Accountant2
Where To Watch: Prime Video.
Official Summary:
Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) has a talent for solving complex problems. When an old acquaintance is murdered, leaving behind a cryptic message to “find the accountant,” Wolff is compelled to solve the case. Realizing more extreme measures are necessary, Wolff recruits his estranged and highly lethal brother, Brax (Jon Bernthal), to help. In partnership with U.S. Treasury Deputy Director Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), they uncover a deadly conspiracy, becoming targets of a ruthless network of killers who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets buried.
There are certainly choices within The Accountant2 that make the film come off as more of a beach read in the way that the mystery ties together and it gets resolved. Things are a little too neat, a little too connected, and a little too uplifting re the autistic community. This is where some the weaknesses start to show and they are certainly things that individuals can read as detriments to the disability community. However, with so many things that are right (via my anecdotal experience going in and out of therapy offices for the last five years), I can observe too many things that are right and treated with appropriate care; things that feel authentic and real, even in this secret world/power fantasy that exists within the thrilling world of The Accountant. In this view, when one puts the potential good against the potential bad, our balance sheet lands in the black.
Freaky Tales
Where To Watch: Limited edition 4K UHD Blu-ray Combo and digital now.
Summary:
Set in 1987 Oakland, Freaky Tales is a multi-track mixtape of colorful characters — an NBA star, a corrupt cop, a female rap duo, teen punks, neo-Nazis, and a debt collector — on a collision course in a fever dream of showdowns and battles. Executive produced by hip-hop pioneer Too $hort, and featuring an all-star ensemble including Pedro Pascal, Ben Mendelsohn, Jay Ellis, Normani, Dominique Thorne, Jack Champion, Ji-young Yoo, Angus Cloud, and Tom Hanks, this pulpy blend of explosive action, edgy humor, gory kills, and sly twists and turns makes for one wild ride.
Minus some quibbles related to one cinematography choice that is a gimmick to nowhere in the first story, one cannot deny the infectious energy of Freaky Tales. The songs keep the audience hyped, the cast is made of Boden/Fleck regulars and newbies, all game to get in on the action, and each of the pieces presented not only satisfy individually, they get you pumped for the next segment. The film incorporates the relationship between martial arts and the Black community, the significance of raw hip-hop and its ability to win over any crowd, that second chances can come anytime, and that minorities almost always have the right idea about how to handle a Nazi. At a time when morale needs any bit of lift it can get to maintain a necessary resistance against a machine determined to destroy law and order, Freaky Tales serves as a strong reminder that, through community, through friendship, we can hold the line and maybe teach some lessons in the process.
Metallica Saved My Life
Where To Watch: World premiere during Tribeca 2025. A version of the film is following the band during their M72 World Tour.
Official Summary:
From Award-winning director Jonas Åkerlund, Metallica Saved My Life explores the world of Metallica through the lives of their fans—including the bandmembers themselves—who have supported each other through highs, lows, trials, and triumphs for over four decades.
At the start of the documentary, its concept of “Metallica” is defined as a state of being. It’s kept nebulous, but the inference is one of warm-welcoming and inclusion and it’s supported by all the stories shared from the band and the fans. So much so that one comes to realize that the title of the doc doesn’t just apply to the fans — some stating it plainly, others metaphorically — but to the band itself. James, specifically, speaks of the darkness within him and Åkerlund utilizes footage (more from recent concerts) of the singer/guitarist to present some of the affirmations that James has shared on stage to encourage the audience to find the support they need in trying times. In this way, Åkerlund crafts a notion that it’s the fans who also save the band, for, without them, there would be no band and, perhaps, no outlet for the negative thoughts and ideations within them which serve as the creative nexus from which the music is born. “Metallica saved my life” applies to all and Åkerlund successfully captures that sensation throughout the film. Again, if you’re looking for stories about the shifting band lineup, the change of their iconic early look in the ‘90s, the Napster period, or anything else, you’re not going to find it here because, in those stories, the fans aren’t what matter. In this way, and especially with the manner Åkerlund shifts the cinematography in the final moments of the film, Metallica Saved My Life is a declarative “thank you” to the band from all the fans (within the band and out) for the impact they’ve made.
She’s The He
Where To Watch: World premiere during SXSW 2025. Currently on the festival circuit.
Official Summary:
On the last week of high school, Ethan and Alex pretend to be trans women in order to stop rumors that they are gay and get Alex closer to his crush, Sasha. After putting on a dress, Ethan realizes she really is trans and comes out to Alex at the Girl’s slumber party. Later, Alex accidentally admits he was lying and the Girls turn against Ethan and Alex. When Ethan returns home her mom, Mary, struggles to accept her identity. The next day, the Boys, inspired by Alex & Ethan, pose as trans women to get into the girls’ locker room. Alex, Ethan, and the Girls successfully fight them off. Ethan is still hurt. Alex convinces Mary to support Ethan at graduation, and restores their friendship.
Before wrapping, it’s worth noting that She’s the He doesn’t just proclaim its allyship by telling a LGBTQIA+ story, its cast is a collection of members of the community, which certainly helps quell any concerns one might have about who the target audience is. The audience is anyone who wants to laugh and who may just be wondering a little bit about why they may feel uncomfortable in their skin. Movies like Bottoms, Booksmart, and 2024’s I Saw the TV Glow each speak to the ways in which our adolescence is fraught with uncertainty as we cross the threshold into adulthood and that so many films are approaching the universal feeling from an LGBTQIA+ POV, often with members of said community, speaks to how important such a perspective is. In her feature-length debut, McCarthy may have created a generationally-viewed masterpiece that will be looked at as transformative for Gen Alpha (2010-present) and beyond. Why? For no other reason than it reminds, with one of the best jokes in the entire film, that the first Pride was a motherfucking riot. So, let’s lead with love, let’s open our hearts, and shut the panic down.
Redux Redux
Where To Watch: World premiere during SXSW 2025. Releasing into theaters via Saban Films TBA 2025.
Official Summary:
In an attempt to avenge her daughter’s death, Irene Kelly travels through parallel universes, killing her daughter’s murderer over and over again. She grows addicted to the revenge streak, putting her own humanity in jeopardy.
What’s most fascinating about Redux Redux is the way it weaponizes Irene’s grief against herself. We presume that Irene is doing this out of a personal mission seeing as she has the technology to travel through the multiverse. But what is grief if not a prison we make for ourselves? We don’t know the circumstances that lead up to the choice to travel, only that Irene does. She’s perpetually on the move, perpetually finding new ways to murder the man. One would think we’d be rooting for her the entire way and, yet, there’s a cruelty to her actions that grows until a worrisome thought arises: what if it’s not him who she’s punishing? In this regard, if grief is a deep sorrow, an anguish over a loss, and the grief toward a child by a parent being the kind of pain virtually all pray to avoid, then what if it’s the grief that’s feeding this mission? What if Irene sees herself as the reason her daughter has died, some failure on her part that she can’t make right, and, thus, deserves to torture herself by living and reliving the failure over across the multiverse? The official synopsis uses the word “addiction” to describe what Irene’s doing, killing him over and over again, a compulsion that she can’t control. But what if it’s because doing the work to confront the grief is viewed as too hard, too complex, and too fearsome to confront? What would you rather face: your own perceived culpability or the person who did the deed? This is the true horror of Redux Redux, not the violent murders of the man or the man’s desire to murder, but the failure to protect one’s own and the self-punishment we’ll inflict because we think we deserve it.
Black Bag
Where To Watch: 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD, digital, and Peacock now.
Official Summary:
From director Steven Soderbergh, this is a gripping spy drama about legendary intelligence agents George Woodhouse and his beloved wife Kathryn. When she is suspected of betraying the nation, George faces the ultimate test—loyalty to his marriage or his country.
Powered by a hypnotic Fassbender (Haywire; Kung Fury: The Movie) performance supported by Blanchett (Ocean’s 8; Nightmare Alley), Burke (Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga), Harris, Brosnan, Marisa Abela (Barbie), and Regé-Jean Page (Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves), Black Bag is the kind of spy thriller audiences have been looking for. Considering how quickly it entered and exited theaters, it’s fair that many may not have checked this out or felt it was too cerebral for general audiences. Truth is, this film gets grimy in a good way, wrapping its plot around highly-trained professionals who are just as human as anyone, making them prone to mistakes. Yes, there may be international stakes baked in, but that’s not why you’ll want to watch (and rewatch) Black Bag. You’ll want to watch for the way each of the actors just lets go and leaves it all out there, restrained performances at times or not.
Good Boy
Where To Watch: World premiere during SXSW 2025. Currently on the festival circuit and set for distribution by Shudder.
Official Summary:
Good Boy started with a simple high concept: a haunted house film, where the main character is the family dog–and the only one who can see the forces that haunt us. Our canine hero, Indy, finds himself on a new adventure with his human—and best friend—Todd, leaving city life for a long-vacant family home in the country. After moving in, Indy is immediately vexed by empty corners, tracks an invisible presence, perceives phantasmagoric warnings from a long-dead dog, and is haunted by visions of the previous occupant’s grim death. When Todd begins succumbing to the dark forces swirling around the house, Indy must battle a malevolence intent on dragging his beloved Todd into the afterlife!
Across the world, there are a few dog names you can mention that will generate a near-instant response in certain circles: Lassie and Seymour. For the former, it’ll be Boomers, Gen X, and Elder Millennials who identify the name as the finder of lost Timmys in wells; which, with the latter, it’ll be Gen Xers and all Millennials reaching for tissues as they mourn the most devout companion to one of fiction’s more beloved idiots. For this reviewer, the pup who exemplifies all the qualities is Kaylee, specifically Kaylee Pearl Rattazzi Davidson, a mutt adopted in 2010 not even three months into her life. This sweet girl would be my steadfast companion through job hunting, moving into a home, growing deathly sick, becoming a parent, and more in between and after. She was the bestest girl with her sweet disposition, love of popcorn, and desire for cuddles from friends and strangers. Saying goodbye to her in December 2021 was one of the hardest things I’ve done and Good Boy brought a lot of those emotions back, not because of anything nefarious on the part of Leonberg, but because canines are too good for humanity, too pure, too full of love for what we offer them in exchange. This film won’t surprise anyone in the sense that Indy is exactly what one expects, the bestest boy, but it will, perhaps, cause you to reconsider your perspective of a canine’s world.
L-R: Indy and Shane Jensen as Todd in GOOD BOY. Photo courtesy of What’s Wrong With Your Dog? LLC.
Heads of State
Where To Watch: Available on Prime Video July 2nd.
Official Summary:
Two heads are better than one.
The UK Prime Minister (Idris Elba) and US President (John Cena) have a public rivalry that risks their countries’ alliance. But when they become targets of a powerful enemy, they’re forced to rely on each other as they go on a wild, multinational run. Allied with Noel, a brilliant MI6 agent (Priyanka Chopra Jonas), they must find a way to thwart a conspiracy that threatens the free world.
It’s an absolute shame that Heads of State isn’t getting a theatrical release. The action on display is top-notch with several satisfying set pieces; the narrative is more than well-structured, it takes into account what audiences already know of action films and plays with those expectations; and the cast is more than game for the silliness their respective characters experience. Additionally, there’s more going on under the hood which makes for a compelling experience, including aspects that observant audiences may figure out early but won’t predict how it will all conclude. Heads of State is the kind of action comedy thriller hybrid that you can enjoy as background, sure, but you’ll be better served by removing distractions and giving yourself over to it. Another reason that one laments the lack of theater opportunity: big bangs, big laughs, and big surprises go well with the biggest screen you’re got.
Creede U.S.A.
Where To Watch: World Premiere during SXSW 2025. Currently on the festival circuit.
Official Summary:
Creede is a tiny, remote, mining town where residents hold tightly to their heritage. When the townspeople brought in a theater company in 1966 to bolster the dwindling economy, they opened its doors to all manner of folk and progressive ideas. This is not quite what they had intended. Almost 60 years later, with these two worlds living side by side, Creede is a taut microcosm of current national divisions. Guns in classrooms? Pronouns, what now? Weaving intimate storylines of its nuanced residents, tense debates at town meetings and forays into its rich history, Creede U.S.A. offers a hopeful, humanistic and urgent glimpse at a community that must continually negotiate its common ground.
In the late 1800s, when silver was found by Nicholas C. Creede in the mountains of Southwest Colorado, the rush of people led to the boomtown known as “Creede Camp,” which was the start of the journey to become the modern day Creede, Colorado. In its present form, Creede boasts a population of 300 (an “or so” added by filmmaker Kahane Corn Cooperman in the opening description) with its being less of a mining town and more of a theatrical one thanks to the influx of performers that come each summer to put on various shows at the Creede Repertory Theatre (CRT). As such, the small town is a motley crew, made up of generations of miners and artists who come and go with the seasons, translating to differences in faith and politics, yet, ultimately, remaining fairly steadfast as a community. In documentarian Cooperman’s latest project, Creede U.S.A., she offers a look at the past and present of the small mountain town nestled at the base of the West Willow Creek cliffs to present a very human story about the thing absent at such a critical moment in U.S. history: empathy.
Longtime town resident rides his horse down Main Street by Creede Repertory Theatre in CREEDE U.S.A.. Photo Credit: Graham Willoughby. Photo courtesy of SXSW.
One Spoon of Chocolate
Where To Watch: World premiere during Tribeca 2025. No additional release dates announced.
Official Summary:
One Spoon of Chocolate isn’t your average revenge thriller—it’s a bloody, unapologetic gut punch packed with purpose. Shameik Moore leads as Unique, a military vet who returns home after being falsely accused and imprisoned for assault. He heads to Ohio, hoping to find some peace and reconnect with his last surviving relative, Ramsey (RJ Cyler). But this town is hiding some dark, twisted secrets.
There are going to be things that audiences find objectionable within One Spoon of Chocolate and, chances are, they’d be justified. If not for incorporating grindhouse elements, things that appear to exploit the pain and suffering of others, then the aspects of the narrative that come off as observing a lynching and the unflinching way that RZA captures them would shatter an audience rather than prime them for what comes next. Some audiences may find the depiction of the white characters as conniving, violent, morally corrupt, deplorable, and problematic, except, in a story centering violence perpetrated against the Black community, there’s typically one race responsible for that. And if we’re talking a Blacksploitation film, yeah, the white folks are going to be the bad guys. But the item that’s most going to bother audiences is the ending and, as someone aware of RZA’s affinity for martial arts cinema, this ending is as loaded as that of Fist of Fury (1972). A spoiler-filled review would make a meal of what it means, but, for now, just know that if how it ends it bothers you, consider why and what it means in the scope of RZA’s narrative. Consider that subtilty isn’t the point or the desire. Consider that violence just begets more violence. Consider that affecting change only requires one person to make a choice and the ripple from that choice can either uplift or devastate, but it will create change all the same.
Mickey 17
Where To Watch: 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD, digital, and HBO Max now.
Official Summary:
What’s it feel like to die?
From the Academy Award-winning writer/director of Parasite, Bong Joon Ho, comes his next groundbreaking cinematic experience, Mickey 17. The unlikely hero, Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) has found himself in the extraordinary circumstance of working for an employer who demands the ultimate commitment to the job… to die, for a living.
At one point in the special features, someone comments that Mickey 17 is a hard film to describe, and that’s true if you’ve got nothing to refer to. If one has seen films such as Moon (2009) and Snowpiercer (2013), then Mickey 17 is a solid combination of the two, though that is a comparison that only gets you so far. The satirical elements exploring class and faith are more specific and humorous than Snowpiercer and Mickey 17 lacks the emotional punch in its conclusion that the other films achieve, but don’t take that to mean that the film shorts the landing. In part due to the powerhouse performance(s) from Pattinson and a striking supportive one from Ackie (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker; Blink Twice) whose narrative presentation by Bong will lift you up before shattering you to pieces and in part due to Bong’s insistence on avoiding subtlety to hammer home the notion that, regardless of our station, we’re all due respect and love. Being subtle isn’t what makes Mickey 17 worth the exploration, the ideas within it and the way that Bong moves his characters around within the narrative spaces to navigate them are. If you missed your chance in theaters, don’t miss it now.
Predator: Killer of Killers
Where To Watch: Streaming on Hulu.
Official Summary:
The anthology story follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge, a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession, and a WWII pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause. But while all these warriors are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent – the ultimate killer of killers.
While there’s a general feeling that anything released on streaming likely wouldn’t work with a theatrical release (the recent Apple TV+ adventure Fountain of Youth is getting slagged horribly for its seeming second-screen feel), there’s nothing about Killer of Killers that doesn’t exude *big screen*. Like Prey before it, the feature film is unconventional and that tends to make some studios and distributors balk when they should hold firm. Something tells me that those who attend the lone Killer of Killers screening at Tribeca will feel appropriately smug as everyone else is relegated to whatever home system they have to enjoy this via Hulu. Perhaps, one day, a repository screening of Prey will occur and they’ll be able to bring Killer of Killers along with it because, as much as Midthunder’s adventure deserves a big screen viewing, so would this animated anthology positively rip in certain sequences. Until then, if Killer of Killers continues to be viewed as an experiment, may Trachtenberg be able to make several more until it all comes together in a cornucopia of violence. Praise Sif!
Tim Travers and the Time Traveler’s Paradox
Where To Watch: On VOD now.
Official Summary:
What happens if you travel back in time and eliminate your younger self? Terminally bored mad genius Tim Travers seeks to find the answer and unravel the time traveler’s paradox. The result? A crazy comedic adventure beyond comprehension.
When it comes to cinematic entertainment, it’s easy to overlook smaller productions and proclaim “there’s nothing to see.” In truth, there’re countless original stories waiting for discovery. Snead’s Tim Travers and the Time Traveler’s Paradox is exactly what folks have been looking for and it has been waiting for you to come along. The questions it asks and the ones it answers are surprisingly profound and Snead manages to thread the needle well between keeping the laughs flowing while maintaining dramatic tension. The greatest compliment that one can give is the desire to share a film as soon as it’s been watched and, dear readers, this title fits that bill. It is funny and sweet, unapologetically explores sex and love, acknowledges that it maybe goes too far and then keeps going, and, just perhaps, makes itself a bit of a paradox in the process.
We Are Pat
Where To Watch: World premiere during Tribeca 2025. No additional release dates announced.
Official Summary:
Pat, the evasive, androgynous SNL character played by Julia Sweeney, was a ubiquitous presence in the pop culture ether of the 1990s. As a kid, filmmaker Ro Haber grappled with a strange obsession with Pat — a character whose popularity hinged on them making others wildly uncomfortable with their refusal to adhere to strict gender lines. Both time and their identity moved forward and yet, even as an adult, Haber’s preoccupation remained.
December 1st, 1990, Julia Sweeney debuted Pat, an androgynous figure whom would perplex their fellow scene partners as endless jokes tried to nail down whether Pat was a man or a woman. Inspired partially by a former coworker Sweeney found weird, Pat would be the center of every sketch they appeared in, everyone always making Pat’s gender their business while Pat would, for the most part, go about their life oblivious to everyone’s rising frustrations. As We Are Pat points out, the internal uncertainty struck one character (portrayed by guest host Christopher Walken) so hard that they committed suicide in order to be relieved of their all-consuming terror of unknowing. One interpretation of things is that Pat is so possessed of self-confidence that they are unaware of on-lookers’ insecurities and mounting obsession with what’s between their legs, therefore, we laugh at everyone elses’ anxieties. Another, though, is that Pat themselves is the butt of the jokes, poked, prodded, and placed into repeated situations in which their gender is all that people care about and want to know about, despite the fact that Pat’s gender should only matter to themselves and their prospective partners. As a self-professed fan of Pat, Haber seeks to interrogate the thing they love, bringing in several trans and non-binary individuals to inspect, explore, and debate the merits of the character, the sketches, the 1994 feature-length film, and the character’s legacy. What Haber offers the audience is a story of self-love that acknowledges multiple truths can co-exist, even if they seem at odds with one another.
A still from WE ARE PAT. Photo courtesy of Museum & Crane/Tribeca Film Festival 2025.
Touch Me
Where To Watch: World premiere during Sundance 2025. Releasing into theaters via Yellow Veil Pictures TBA 2025.
Official Summary:
Two codependent best friends become addicted to the heroin-like touch of an alien narcissist who may or may not be trying to take over the world.
Like all who suffer some kind of trauma, Touch Me overflows with humor. It’s in the brilliantly timed vocal delivery from Dudley and Gavaris (Curse of Chucky) as the besties their characters are, the bizarre music video editing that accompanies one particularly mediation, and a poignant final moment at the end. If we cannot laugh at the parts of ourselves torched by life’s cruelties, then those things threatened to consume us whole and take them for themselves. The utilization might strike some as discordant against the whole, but, given the tender subjects Heimann explores, a dash of humor invites the necessary light required to combat darkness. And combat darkness Touch Me does, from uncomfortable start to declarative finish.
Olivia Taylor Dudley as Joey in Addison Heimann’s TOUCH ME. Photo courtesy of Rustic Films/Sundance Film Festival.
The Devil and the Daylong Brothers
Where To Watch: Available on VOD, digital, and Tubi now.
Official Summary:
The Daylong Brothers are on a quest to reclaim their souls, sold to the Devil by their father. When the Devil’s broker, offers them a deal in exchange for their father’s whereabouts they hunt the wicked across the South.
There’s a repeated line, one that’s a defining characteristic of the Brothers, that shifts from declaration to important question: “We’re not murderers, we’re killers.” In their line of work, a delineation is formed to separate out those who kill for pleasure and those who do so out of need; it’s a demarcation that the three never seek to cross as they bring in those with blood debts come due. Amid song and blood, McCormick slowly brings this line forward, turning it into a question that not only involves the Brothers and their mission, but evokes the culpability of the audience themselves. Not only that, it brings us back to the initial question: what is your soul worth when it’s showered in blood, innocent or otherwise? Though McCormick ends Daylong Brothers on an upward note, there’s no denying the necessity of the question or its weight in the larger scheme of what the three faced in the narrative and what we face in the real world. For this world may be fiction, but it’s built on the back of real horrors which are being erased from record (unless there’s righteous pushback). But just because the history books or the schools willfully forget, doesn’t mean that the land does or that the people do. The fun of The Devil and the Daylong Brothers may end with the wrap of the credits or the close of a song via streamer, but the ideas within it play on.
Clown in the Cornfield
Where To Watch: Available on VOD and digital now. Streaming on Shudder August 8th, 2025. Coming to physical formats TBA.
Official Summary:
A fading midwestern town is terrorized by Frendo the clown, a symbol of bygone success.
Clown in a Cornfield can be enjoyed either as a straight-forward slasher or as something deeper, which is a credit to both parts of the creation team (Cesare as originator and Craig/Blanchard as adaptors) and the cast. Everyone knows what kind of movie this is and they make it work. If there’s a complaint, it’s that the brisk 96-minute runtime is only felt in the final scenes of the film which feel rushed in a way that makes one think that there was more to be included but is left to inference. This, combined with some fairly rote elements that are standard for this sort of horror experience, reduce the whole, but not so much as for it to be unenjoyable or worth a revisit, though that’s largely due to the fun twists this film makes as it leans into audience expectations before giving us something else. That’s what makes Clown fun as a ride; Craig plays with our expectations, often teasing us one way before going another. One thing is certain, though: don’t fuck with Frendo.
Companion
Where To Watch: 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD, digital, and HBO Max now.
Official Summary:
New Line Cinema—the studio that brought you “The Notebook”—and the unhinged creators of “Barbarian” cordially invite you to experience a new kind of love story…
At some point in nearly everyone’s life, there comes a moment where they realize that they love someone differently than they themselves are loved. Some find satisfaction in merely loving the other person, regardless of balance; some can’t find peace and leave. What is clear, what is definable, what is paramount, is that respect must be equal, even if love is not. That’s what makes Companion surprisingly devastating, even with the information about Iris’s true self — Quaid’s Jack is a dickbag whether or not Iris is human, and this is a certainty. (This reveal is, itself, not the devastating part, but a truth that gives way to the devastation regarding humanity and the damage done when toxic masculinity is coddled instead of addressed.) While not what one would immediately turn to on Valentine’s Day, there’s no doubt that Companion deserves a place in the conversation about female empowering films in terms of what women deserve and how men can and should be better. Love only goes so far, but respect clears the difference.
Brother Versus Brother
Where To Watch: World premiere during SXSW 2025; currently on the festival circuit.
Official Summary:
Codependent twins set out to book a gig in the streets of San Francisco, but when their dying father goes missing, their hunt – captured in a single unbroken shot – becomes a quest for redemption.
Art done well is like looking into a mirror mixed with a Rorschach test in the sense that what audiences see reflected back to them is based on what they bring to it. At first, Brother Verses Brother appears as this quirky pseudo-documentary with its false oner cinematic approach, the seams quite visible (shadows in frame of the team; general public waving at the cast and crew) giving the experience a wholesome charm in the sense that it acknowledges the risk being taken of embracing one’s art so fully. Noticing the seams enables the audience to be reminded that what we’re seeing is as much a facsimile of the truth as it is the truth itself given that all the people on screen are playing some version of themselves. But what it also does is slowly build a foundation wherein the truth and fiction no longer matter when it comes to the ideas that the film explores of family, responsibility, and the deep human desire for love and connection (familial or amorous). In this way, Brothers Verses Brothers is itself a poem whose zenith brings forth incredible joy and terrible pain, the longing that each brother feels coming to the surface, enveloping the audience in their final song and all that it represents. What it means to the audience may be very different than what it means for the Brothers Gold, but it is, nonetheless, poignant and powerful as it speaks of the briefness of human life and the importance of the connections made along the way. For this reviewer, it got me thinking about my relationship to my own parents and whether I’m paving the same roads for my children to walk as I did or new smoother ones. It got me thinking about my relationship with my wife and how important she is as both a person and connective tissue within our familial unit. It got me thinking about the importance of making sure that each are heard and that I listen when they say they need my attention. It got me thinking about the competition parents accidentally create within their children and the hope that mine realize that it’s of their own creation. It got me thinking just how lucky we are for the brief period we are together. The entertainment within Brother Verses Brother will not save me, but the art created by the Brothers Gold just might inspire its audience to try to save each other.
L-R: Ari Gold and Ethan Gold in BROTHER VERSES BROTHER. Photo Credit: Stefan Ciupek. Photo courtesy of Grack Films/SXSW.
Fountain of Youth
Where To Watch: Streaming on Apple TV+ now.
Official Summary:
The best secrets are the hardest to find.
Fountain of Youth follows two estranged siblings (John Krasinski and Academy Award winner Natalie Portman) who partner on a global heist to find the mythological Fountain of Youth. They must use their knowledge of history to follow clues on an epic adventure that will change their lives … and possibly lead to immortality.
Between the general premise and the marketing, a lot of folks have been getting National Treasure (2004) vibes from Fountain of Youth and that’s fairly accurate. However, and this is entirely complementary, the film is more analogous to a modern day The Mummy (1999) as it features two bickering siblings, a sexy secret protector (this time by The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’s Eiza González), and a dangerous secret that threatens humankind. From the bends in reality that Vanderbilt welds into the script to the stunt work, Fountain has serial action/adventure energy emanating throughout and it leads to an extraordinarily good time. Part of this is in the way one discovery leads to a new puzzle that the team Luke leads has to be clever enough to figure out and how each new edition to the team results in a new perspective that only said new person can bring. Rather than feeling contrived or obvious, it’s playful due to its use of serial tropes and tools. This leaves the audience feeling energized by the creativity rather than bored by repetition of puzzle, clue, discovery, new location, evade, repeat. It also helps that the cast is totally game and capable.
Cleaner
Where To Watch: Available on VOD and digital now.
Official Summary:
Set in present-day London, a group of radical activists take over an energy company’s annual gala, seizing 300 hostages in order to expose the corruption of the hosts. Their just cause is hijacked by an extremist within their ranks, who is ready to murder everyone in the building to send his anarchic message to the world. It falls to an ex-soldier turned window cleaner, played by Ridley, suspended 50 storeys up on the outside of the building, to save those trapped inside, including her younger brother.
Cleaner should be a straight-forward action thriller and, yet, through the proper application of narrative intelligence, it manages to keep one guessing until the end. To this end, it completely satisfies in what it seeks to do: entertain audiences while giving them a little something to think about. Is it a little bit of happenstance that Joey is former military? Is it luck that Joey loves heights and hanging? Is it coincidental that on the very day of the incident her brother came to work with her and she had to stay late? Oh, certainly — but there’s no drama in an action thriller like this without a little bit of the usual narrative contrivance. It’s what happens after all of that which matters and, to that end, Cleaner delivers.
Night of the Zoopocalypse
Where To Watch: Available on VOD and digital now.
Official Summary:
Welcome to… THE ZOOPOCALYPSE!
When a meteor crashes into Colepepper Zoo, it unleashes a virus that transforms the zoo animals into zombies. Gracie (Gabbi Kosmidis), a young quirky wolf, teams up with a gruff mountain lion named Dan (David Harbour). Together they lead a team of survivors – including Xavier, the movie-obsessed lemur, Frida the fiery capybara, and Poot the baby pygmy hippo – on a perilous mission to escape the virus and rescue their zoo, on one spooky NIGHT OF THE ZOOPOCALYPSE!
What makes Zoopocalypse the aforementioned solid first steps into horror are how it embraces and meta-explores the very tropes that newbies won’t be aware of thanks to a smart construction of narrative and characters. Consider a young adult/teen who sees Scream (1996) before having watched Psycho (1960), Halloween (1978) or any other horror films referenced throughout the narrative or by Jamie Kennedy’s film savvy Randy. If they enjoy the twisted hilarity of Scream, they may be more likely to test out those other stories because now they have a sense of how they work, thereby undercutting the tension just enough to put more than their toe in the unlit dark waters of the horror genre. Through Xavier, a lemur who loves watching movies in the zoo infirmary, the characters are given information that will aid them in their quest, but also require them to keep checking in on “second act surprises” or “third act twists.” Through Xavier, the audience is even told what kind of genre story they’re in, even as it may change. It’s a safety net for young viewers who may not be as wise to horror landscape and, by keeping the characters animals, adds an extra layer of protection from the type of dangerous activities that go on in the film. This speaks to the intentionality of Perez-Castro and Curtis as directors, creating a world that is like ours, but different enough to feel safety despite the continually rising threats. The downside, of course, is that the film does follow a fairly standard arc of introduction, fragile teamwork, disintegration, and reclamation. Luckily, and consider this a spoiler if you like, it has a happier ending than Night of the Living Dead, so it’s certainly far more family-appropriate in that regard.
O’Dessa
Where To Watch: Available on Hulu now.
Official Summary:
Set in a post-apocalyptic future, O’Dessa is an original rock opera about a farm girl on an epic quest to recover a cherished family heirloom. Her journey leads her to a strange and dangerous city where she meets her one true love – but in order to save his soul, she must put the power of destiny and song to the ultimate test.
Jasper’s O’Dessa is as familiar as it is unique. It opens with language that feels borrowed from The Dark Crystal (1982); it speaks of a dystopia in which the environment’s totaled but no one cares because they have a Dear Leader distracting them with entertainments of others’ pain (a la They Live (1988)). The art of music is presented as a revolution both personal and societal — all of which it packages in a tale that plays with gender tropes and expectations in such a way as to keep the audience engaged. With all of this going on, O’Dessa is, rightfully, a bit of a curio. Its depiction of the liquid which caused the ruination of soil and water, thereby polluting food sources, is referred to as “plasma” and is given a kaleidoscopic design — something which would be beautiful and mesmerizing if not for its deadliness, but that’s the point. Like the production and costume design which play with a futuristic, other feel of neon colors while grounding itself in naturalism, the colorful plasma is a substitution for present day refined oil while the battle for survival seems post-apocalyptic when it’s more neo-western within a past/future presentation, as if the Old West merged with modern technology. Put simply, O’Dessa bears qualities of a The Fifth Element (1997) techno world (advancing/mashing gender tropes and fashion in the process) mixed with the idiosyncratic nature of Six-String Samurai (1998) that exists within a simple prophecy narrative. As a result, there’s enough within the narrative to be predictable as various character motivations, however, it’s the execution that matters and it carries weight, weight that draws out an emotional reaction in part due to the original songs that course through the film.
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Categories: Films To Watch, Recommendation
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