John Bleasdale

Outside of a few box-office smashes, 2024 was a relatively quiet year for movies, full of fascinating breakouts and leftfield successes, but few major events. But 2025 is shaping up a bit differently. While it’s still hard to spot another #Barbenheimer on the horizon, or even a Deadpool and Wolverine, the calendar is loaded with the return of monolithic franchises like Avatar, Mission: Impossible and Jurassic World and a few monolithic auteurs, including Paul Thomas Anderson, Bong Joon-ho, Lynne Ramsay, Spike Lee and Steven Soderbergh. Shoot, we might even get a Terrence Malick movie this year. Of course, the most exciting thing going into every year are the films you never see coming. Will we get another The Substance or Nickel Boys? Who knows? But that’s why we keep watching – and you can follow along with our ever-growing list of the best movies of the year below. RECOMMENDED: 📺 The best TV and streaming shows of 2025 (so far)🔥 The must-see films for 2025 you can't miss🎥 The 101 greatest films ever made

I’m old enough to remember when every trip to the cinema involved not a barrage of adverts for mobile phones but a ten-fifteen minute short, usually a documentary on a subject of almost parodic dullness, like ‘cheese-making in France’. Louise Courvoisier’s debut Holy Cow takes that concept and runs with it, but the result is far from dull. Instead, what we get is a moving and humorous coming-of-age story which is told with brio, avoiding the usual divots of social realism misery. Totone (Clément Faveau) is a teenager, whose summer is full of fêtes, fights and hangovers until a sudden tragedy leaves him alone with his young sister (a phenomenally cute Luna Garret), and all the responsibility as the head of the house. Neighbours offer help but their offers are soon revealed to either be empty or compromised by Totone’s feud with the sons of another cheesemaker. His solution is to try to win a cheese-making competition which will pocket him 30,000 euros, with the help of his stock-car driving chums. There will be missteps and acrimony and an unsentimental romance that smells of dung and sex with Marie-Lise (Maïwenn Barthelemy), a much more capable young woman from a neighbouring farm and from whom he’ll learn self-discipline and cunnilingus. It’s a summer film of late nights and early mornings Holy Cow is set in the agricultural region of Jura, home of the Comté cheese which Totone is trying to make – and you can tell that the director is a local. Despite Elio Balezeaux’s gorge

Not counting Brad Pitt’s breastplate-buster Troy, Homer hasn’t exactly been a go-to inspiration for Hollywood. That’s unlikely to change with Uberto Pasolini’s The Return, a handsome but dour take on the last chapters of The Odyssey. Talking of handsome but dour, Ralph Fiennes’ Odysseus belatedly washes ashore on his homeland of Ithaca. Here, his queen Penelope (Juliette Binoche) is besieged by thuggish suitors who threaten his son, Telemachus (Charlie Plummer) with a grisly end if she keeps them waiting much longer. Most of the plot points are familiar from half-remembered school lessons. Unrecognised by all, except for his dog, the unfortunately named Argos, Odysseus arrives disguised as a broken beggar. This disguise is, in fact, not far from the truth. He is a veteran of bloody battles and suffers from a lingering PTSD, unsure of whether he is worthy to return home without his men. Is he even really the king? Meanwhile, Penelope weaves during the day and unweaves at night – though her suitors are beginning to suspect her delaying tactics, and one of them, Antinous (Marwan Kenzari), is becoming silkily persuasive. After all, what future does she face? A more daring director would have turned this into Ralph Fiennes’ Taken The sun beats down and everyone walks around in those odd Greek togas, which always look like they’re slipping off the shoulder. As one of the finest screen actors alive, Fiennes is fantastic and the film is worth a watch purely for his performance. At th

It is a truth universally acknowledged that clowns are not funny, but Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) is seriously not funny. In Joker, he went on a killing spree and became a figurehead of nihilistic fury. The film won the Golden Lion in Venice, as well as two Oscars, one for Joaquin Phoenix’s painfully, if not dangerously, rake-thin performance. Todd Phillips’s film also made buckets of money for its risk-taking studio, Warner Bros.  The inevitable sequel picks up with Arthur in jail, heavily medicated and jovially bullied by the chief prison guard, played with whistling nonchalance by Brendan Gleeson. A patient in a neighbouring psychiatric ward, Harleen Quinzel (Lady Gaga), is obsessed with Joker. But Arthur’s lawyer (Catherine Keener) argues that Joker is a part of his split personality, basing his defence on this.  The film itself has multiple personalities: it’s a musical, a courtroom drama, a prison movie and even a Looney Tunes style cartoon. The setting, of course, is Gotham. Wayne Tower can be spied in the background and Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) is the prosecuting DA – all names familiar from the comic books and their many cinematic interpretations. But there’s real bleakness as the prisoners of Arkham slop out every morning.  It’s a big swing for all involved, but all the better for it The first film channelled Martin Scorsese and the cinema of the ’70s. Here, Phillips is inspired more by Band Wagon, with numbers performed by Gaga and Phoenix to express their un

Es una verdad universalmente reconocida que los payasos tienen poca gracia, pero Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) tiene MUY poca gracia. En 'Joker', cometió una matanza y se erigió en un símbolo de la furia nihilista. La película ganó el León de Oro en Venecia, así como dos Óscar, uno por la actuación dolorosa –o directamente peligrosa– de Joaquín Phoenix y su constitución física de fideo. El otro, para el director. La película de Todd Phillips también ganó dinero a espuertas para Warner, el estudio que asumió el riesgo. La inevitable secuela comienza con Arthur en prisión, muy medicado y jovialmente asediado por el jefe de la guardia de la cárcel, interpretado con indiferente silbido por Brendan Gleeson. Una paciente de una sala psiquiátrica vecina, Harleen Quinzel (Lady Gaga), está obsesionada con el Joker. Y la abogada de Arthur (Catherine Keener) basa su defensa en que el Joker forma parte de la personalidad dividida de Fleck. Y de hecho, la película también tiene múltiples personalidades: es un musical, un drama judicial, una de presidiarios e incluso un dibujo animado al estilo de Loony Tunes. Foto: Warners Bros.'Joker: Folie à Deux' El escenario, por supuesto, es Gotham. Wayne Tower saca la cabeza de fondo y Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) es el fiscal. Todos son nombres bien conocidos de los cómics y por las muchas versiones cinematográficas. Pero se percibe una sordidez real cuando los prisioneros de Arkham vacían el cubo de la mierda cada mañana. 'Joker 2' es audaz: una

És una veritat universalment reconeguda que els pallassos tenen poca gràcia, però Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) té MOLT poca gràcia. A 'Joker', va cometre una matança i es va erigir en un símbol de la fúria nihilista. La pel·lícula va guanyar el Lleó d'Or a Venècia, així com dos Oscars, un per l'actuació dolorosa –o directament perillosa– de Joaquin Phoenix i la seva constitució física de fideu. L'altre, per al director. La pel·lícula de Todd Phillips també va fer diners a cabassos per a Warner, l'estudi que va assumir el risc.  La inevitable seqüela comença amb Arthur a la presó, molt medicat i jovialment assetjat pel cap de la guàrdia de la presó, interpretat amb xiuladissa indiferència per Brendan Gleeson. Una pacient d'una sala psiquiàtrica veïna, Harleen Quinzel (Lady Gaga), està obsessionada amb el Joker. I l'advocada d'Arthur (Catherine Keener) basa la seva defensa en què el Joker forma part de la personalitat dividida de Fleck. I de fet, la pel·lícula també té múltiples personalitats: és un musical, un drama judicial, una de presidiaris i fins i tot un dibuix animat a l'estil de Loony Tunes. Foto: Warners Bros.'Joker: Folie à Deux' L'escenari, per descomptat, és Gotham. La Wayne Tower treu el cap de fons i Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey) és el fiscal. Tots són noms ben coneguts dels còmics i per les moltes versions cinematogràfiques. Però es percep una sordidesa real quan els presoners d'Arkham buiden el cubell de la merda cada matí.  Joker 2 és audaç: una continuació p