We are now pleased to share our group’s ten best films of 2025 list. Our group now consisting of 22 members each submitted a ballot of ten films they believed shaped they year with excellent storytelling, impressive acting, spot-on direction and everything else that is required to make something memorable.
Along with these ten films listed, in total 78 different films appeared on ballots (surprisingly one less than last year’s spread). For our honourable mentions the 11-20 films were 28 Years Later, The Life of Chuck, The Shrouds, The Secret Agent, Warfare, Predator: Badlands, Afternoons of Solitude, Rental Family, Frankenstein and Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie. To see the full list of films that received votes check out our Letterboxd list!
Along with our list of best films of the year, you can view our nominees for our 2025 Best Cascadian Film award, with a winner to be announced next week. Speaking of Best Cascadian Film nominees, another stat is four of our five films made at least one ballot for this list too!
Also check out our Nine Best TV Shows of 2025 and our 2025 Best Film Awards.
Huge thank you to all of our members for voting and all the contributions made in this article.
10. Blue Heron – Directed by Sophy Romvari
Sophy Romvari is rooted in a lineage of filmmakers willing to use reenactment—like William Greaves, Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, Robert Green, and Josh Oppenheimer, as well as fellow Canadians Guy Maddin and Nathan Fielder—to excavate the emotional truth of their deeply personal, and therefore often self-obscured, experiences. But Blue Heron, Romvari’s debut feature, feels like more of a culmination of their work than a film in line with what those artists have accomplished. In exploring childhood trauma, but casting actors to play self-reflexive, slightly fictionalized versions of her family, Romvari puts aside clean narratives to her grief for something more prismatic, gathering details from as many perspectives as she can to dig up whatever answers are available. It’s not a spoiler to say that she doesn’t come to any particular revelations; Blue Heron finds freedom in accepting that. – Dom Sinocola
9. Eddington – Directed by Ari Aster
2025 proved to be the year of movies that use the current socio-political framework and spew back complex messages of hope, hate, and hallucinatory hijinks. Eddington, the new western black comedy from auteur Ari Aster, is perhaps the master of this domain. It comes face-to-face with the “too soon” narrative being discussed regarding reliving the COVID-19 pandemic, lets Joaquin Phoenix be a snarky, politically-charged sad-boy, and proves Aster really does understand horror better than any modern filmmaker working right now. Met with a swatch of varying insight upon its release, Eddington stands strong at the end of the year as a piercing observation of the current state of American history, what fuels information wars, and how the future of human opinion will be determined not by individuals, but by those far bigger and more powerful than a singular person ever could be. – Ethan Simmie
8. Black Bag – Directed by Steven Soderbergh
One of two theatrical releases this year from Steven Soderbergh, Black Bag is another of the prolific American director’s recent counterintuitive explorations of surveillance. A spiky workplace comedy dressed up as a lightweight spy thriller, Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender play a monogamous power couple at an intelligence agency teeming with power-hungry, terminally-single narcissists. Upon the detection of a possible security leak, the personal and professional converge as the couple turn their gazes towards their messy coworkers and each other through a series of hazily-lit dinner parties. Bound by sleek bourgeois interiors and the leads’ suave, tightly-controlled tonal register, Soderbergh’s handling of the film’s subterfuge is intriguingly nonchalant, giving his starriest film in years the recognizable minor key of his current period. – Eric Zhu
7. Hamnet – Directed by Chloé Zhao
Chloé Zhao’s fifth feature, Hamnet adapted from Maggie O’Ferrell’s best selling book of the same name, is Zhao’s most compelling film yet. It is a quiet, devastating work of grief. Hamnet is about Agnes Shakespeare and the unimaginable loss that reshapes her world, Jessie Buckley delivers a career-defining performance, one of rare depth and control. Her portrayal is so raw and emotional that it’s impossible to look away. Not many films this year have had a performance like this. Paul Mescal is equally remarkable as William Shakespeare, offering an earth-shattering performance and has more of a subtle nuanced performance that is very hard to capture on film and in character Together, they create something so powerful and raw that you can not stop watching. Zhao’s direction is at her best, for her to get two equally impactful performances out of these actors is quite remarkable. – Jay Smith
6. Weapons – Directed by Zach Cregger
Weapons. Apparently other films came out this year? I’m sure they did, and I’m sure I did my best to fully watch them, but unfortunately director Zach Cregger made them feel insignificant with my favourite horror movie since It Follows. Showing the same deft use of split narratives as in his previous film Barbarian, but with even more complexity and symphony, Weapons hits the ground running (2:17am, arms outstretched) and does not let up. Is it about the vice of faith? Covid-era paranoia? The trauma of loss? Sure, if you want. But to me, a former teacher, it’s about a woman who refuses to let go when an external danger threatens her students. With career-best performances from an outstanding ensemble cast and incredible filmmaking creativity, it’s a film that lingers for a long time after its glorious burst of a final act. A masterpiece, and a thrilling taste of what Cregger might deliver next with Resident Evil. – Simon Best
5. No Other Choice – Directed by Park Chan-wook
My frustrations have never felt more seen than in Park Chan-wook’s latest masterpiece, No Other Choice. The blend a sly, bruising sense of dark humor with a ferocious performance from Lee Byung-hun, all under Park’s maximalistic and distinct direction. It creates a distinct blend that is a fully throttled declaration of war against the machinery of modern capitalism as it tackles the merciless job market. The result is a mean-spirited dark comedy that is delicious, hysterical, and infuriating. One moment I found myself laughing till my side hurt, and the next I found myself simmering with anger that only comes from recognizing pieces of your own life on screen. It is the blisteringly unruly, sharply observed, and easily one of the best films of the year. Park has again delivered another masterpiece. – Elizabeth Mulloy
4. Sentimental Value – Directed by Joachim Trier
Joachim Trier’s follow-up to The Worst Person In The World, one of the best films of 2021, is yet another sensational foray into the human condition and the complexities of broken relationships in Sentimental Value. Tackling inter-familial connections, Trier’s writing is, dare I say, better than ever in crafting realistic and emotionally accessible characters. Combined with sensational performances from Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, and Elle Fanning, it culminates in a rich drama filled with humor, heart, and everything in between. The influence of Ingmar Bergman’s Persona adds another wonderful thematic layer; however, it’s still Trier’s writing and direction that craft these exceptionally human characters rooted in reality you can’t help but attach yourself to—mind, body, and soul. Somehow, someway, Joachim Trier has found a way to outdo himself, which is why Sentimental Value is one of the best films of the year. – Konnor Beaulier
3. Train Dreams – Directed by Clint Bradley
The beauty of Train Dreams cannot be overstated. Visually striking, powerfully performed, and emotionally heartwrenching, this meditative reflection on life, love, and loss through the eyes of a Pacific Northwest logger is nothing short of profound filmmaking and storytelling. The story follows Robert Grainier, a logger near Spokane, WA, whose simple, hard-earned life is upended by tragedy, sending him on a quiet search for meaning in the aftermath. Taking place in the Pacific Northwest already naturally lends itself to being a richly cinematic setting for this story, but incredible cinematography choices elevates the film’s visual splendor with dazzling shots of vibrant sunsets and luscious forests. This movie belongs on a large, immersive cinematic screen. And the cast, featuring Joel Egerton, Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon, and William H. Macy, give quiet, yet remarkably resonant performances. But what makes Train Dreams really stand apart are the feelings it leaves you with by the end. Despite the tragedy, loneliness, and displacement Robert endures throughout the narrative, the film is deft at offering a deeply affecting message of hopefulness and optimism. Finding a way to appreciate life through its ups and downs – that is beauty that cannot be overstated. – Thomas Stoneham-Judge
2. Sinners – Directed by Ryan Coogler
Is Sinners a horror movie? An action-packed period piece? A musical, even? However one may feel about its genre placement, there is one thing that Sinners is inarguably: one of 2025’s best films. Cinematic in every essence, with cinematography by Autumn Durald Arkapaw, that brings Ryan Coogler’s story to life with such a fiery energy. Sinners is a generational masterpiece, every performance is nuanced, every camera movement tells a piece of the whole story, and for a script that only covers a single day and evening of time, I feel as if I’ve known these characters for all their lives. Enthralling from its cold open to its blazing finale, my heart aches for those who missed seeing it on the big screen, but aches even more so for those who haven’t yet sought it out on home media. Sinners has deservingly joined the conversation for one of this year’s finest cinematic offerings. – Wesley King
1. One Battle After Another – Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
One Battle After Another delivers massive entertainment in a package that makes me thrilled to go to the movies. PTA spent 20 years on the script, reminding us that the best artists are keen observers of our culture. PTA and his partner Maya Rudolph have four children, easy to assume he draws on his personal life for inspiration for the characters Perfidia and Willa. Chase Infiniti (Willa) delivers a star-making performance. She moves like an action star, and has the grace and vulnerability to tug at the audience’s heartstrings. She goes toe to toe with acting goliaths: Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, and Regina Hall. PTA does something in the final act that had my jaw on the floor. As the climax unfolded, I was white knuckling it in my seat and shared a quiet “HOLY SHIT” with my wife. This receives my highest recommendation. – Adrian Charlie