Below are some films from 2025 I would recommend. Enjoy!
Landmarks (Nuestra tierra)
Lucretia Martel’s Landmarks is an atmospheric political documentary about the aftermath of the murder of Argentinian indigenous leader Javier Chocobar. The film takes every opportunity to trace how everyday injustices are caused by capitalism and colonialism. Her interventions on land rights, police brutality, and systems of justice generally were seamlessly incorporated into the narrative. Her ideas are radical but feel neutral and genuine, as if this is how things really are (and they are). It is one of those incredibly special documentaries where its effect comes equally from its content and style. Definitely the best film I saw at TIFF and possibly all year.
Die My Love
Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love is a feminist psychological thriller (and dark comedy) that follows Grace, a young former writer/now mother (played by Jennifer Lawrence), as she navigates the erratic experience of being postpartum. She moves into a small-town home with her well-meaning and helplessly thoughtless husband (played by Robert Pattinson), and spends her lonely days taking care of her newborn and loathing her stay-at-home existence. This movie is especially dear to me because I finally have a mainstream media object to point to when people ask me what I’m anxious could happen to me if I have a child! On a more serious note, this is also a genuine and helpful exploration of postpartum depression and psychosis, which is a common condition that is often dismissed, given the expectations on new mothers to somehow handle everything. And Jennifer Lawrence’s performance is incredible.
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Mary Bronstein’s If I Had Legs I’d Kick You is a feminist psychological thriller (and dark comedy) about a single mother (played by Rose Byrne) who must support her tween daughter navigate a mysterious illness amidst an onslaught of life’s varying inconveniences. When asked what helped her find calm and joy when things get overwhelming on the TIFF red carpet, Rose Byrne answered “drugs and alcohol” without missing a beat. Like much of the media this year, the film depicts life as one long panic spiral with brief stints for rest (and substances). The daughter is also never shown onscreen and is presented only through her requests and needs, allowing the film to offer a significantly more intimate exploration of the anxieties and obligations of motherhood. This, alongside the film’s generally impressive visual style, incredible acting and ability to depict some of the stressors that are often only obligatory to women, made this one of my absolute favourite films of this year and possibly of all time.
Oh, Hi!
I walked into this on a whim on my way out of the first 20 minutes of Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme. I’ve been unable to get through his latest releases and am unsure if it’s the movies themselves or if I’ve seen so many of his films that his auteurisms have started to feel tedious. Either way, I had the absolute pleasure and fortune of seeing Sophie Brooks’ romantic comedy/ psychological thriller that follows the happily in-love Iris (played by Molly Gordon) as she tries to save her relationship by any means necessary. On the surface, this is a film that entertains through its increasingly absurd and out-of-control developments. At its core, it’s a film about how extremely disturbed the world has made young women feel about the prospect of ending up without a man. It’s an entertaining watch, especially for a girls’ night!
Drop
Christopher Landon’s Drop is a night-long thriller-mystery about Violet (played by Meghann Fahy), a single-mother who left her son at home to go on her first date in ages. As soon as she settles into her restaurant chair, someone starts to blackmail-airdrop her videos of her son at home with a masked black figure. This film is especially interesting in how it expands the happenings on her phone to take up her world, spotlighting the overbearing ability our phones have to recreate and disturb our physical realities. In keeping with the previous films, the film also explores the condition of motherhood as something that can completely derail mundane experiences like going on a date. This film operates on many levels and is an addictive and exciting watch.
Companion
Drew Hancock’s Companion is a feminist sci-fi-comedy about the young and in-love Iris (played by Sophie Thatcher) and her realization that there are truly no limits to the ways in which men objectify women. This is highly entertaining and ideal for watching with a large group of friends, if only for some of its iconic one-liners.
Sorry Baby
Eva Victor’s Sorry Baby is a trauma-comedy just as offbeat and deeply moving as Fleabag. The film focuses on grad student Agnes (played by Eva Victor) as she tries to live her young adult life while also working through trauma. This movie is like a prescription for young womanhood; we need to slow down, love our friends deeply, prioritize our mental health, have patience and remember to eat, always. This is the best feel-good film I’ve seen this year.
Frankenstein
We all knew this would be good. Guillermo del Toro returns with Frankenstein, a two and a half hour-long rumination on mortality with some of the most beautiful sets and costumes I’ve seen all year. I took an undergraduate class years ago where the entire objective was to watch as many Frankenstein adaptations as we could, and while some of them are truly phenomenal (my favourites being Bride of Frankenstein, Young Frankenstein and Lisa Frankenstein), this has somehow taken the status of being my first rank.
Mickey 17
Boon Jong Ho’s Mickey 17 is a sci-fi-comedy about the helpless, debt-ridden Mickey (played by Robert Pattinson), who sells his body to a space-colonization company in exchange for somewhere to live and something to eat. This is like an anticolonial Marvel movie with good intentions and mid execution. Despite its tedious plot, this is a hopeful film that vouches for a community of people to unite and resist against greedy leaders who prioritize the wealth of a few over the well-being of all. And Robert Pattinson gives a killer performance as usual.
Mile End Kicks
Chandler Levack’s latest feminist coming-of-age romcom, Mile End Kicks, is about how the teenage Grace (played by Barbie Ferreira) runs away to Montreal to write a book (and find herself). It’s a rite of passage to hate everything about where you are and distract yourself with the charming instability of an unfamiliar place, and she does just this, flipping off the CN tower on her Via train out of the city. The film presents the lows and highs of the two largest cities in Canada to be in if you’re interested in arts and culture; I find the film to be equally skeptical and appreciative of the merits of each city. Montreal is where you go to make art, despite the increasing difficulty for Anglophones to secure employment and access resources without being fluent in French. Toronto is where you can make art while working your (likely corporate) 9 to 5 that’ll pay you just enough to eat but also stress you out enough that your art will suffer. The film also does a great job of capturing how invalidating and humiliating it can be to navigate the art criticism world as a young woman.
Put Your Hand on Your Soul and Walk
Before I even start on the movie at hand, I want to mention that several movies about Palestinian sovereignty deserve to be on any list of notable films. Annemarie Jacir gave us the absolutely spectacular powerhouse of a historical drama, Palestine 36, set in the 1930s when a Palestinian village revolted against British colonists. There was also Familiar Phantoms, an experimental documentary from Søren Lind and Larissa Sansour about Sansour’s childhood in Bethlehem (presented at this year’s Toronto Palestine Film Festival).
Sepideh Farsi’s Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk is a political documentary dominantly filmed via FaceTime that follows Palestinian photojournalist Fatma Hassona as she navigates life in Gaza during the genocide. Rather than record the screen, Farsi films her phone and the surrounding environment during the calls, including moments where she must walk away to do things like attend to her cat or to get the door. The film highlights how, despite our engagement with videos of the physical and emotional destruction of Gaza’s neighbourhoods and civilians, our understanding is always mediated through our privileged present condition. Free Palestine.
Weapons
Before Weapons, Zach Cregger directed Barbarian which I admire for its ability to be both absurdly hilarious and simultaneously deeply disturbing. In Weapons, he perfects this dynamic, creating a film that is unsettling, horrifying, and yet incredibly fun. Though it lacks depth, this is a truly entertaining watch and is especially well-suited to those that are attracted to horror but usually more affected by it than they’d like. In both these films, he’s able to create villains that are horrific but so ditsy that you feel conflicted between being scared of them and finding them endearing.
Sinners
Yes! The grandeur of the cinematic experience! Ryan Coogler’s Sinners is a horror-drama—musical?— that follows two brothers (both played by Michael B. Jordan) who return to their hometown and then unexpectedly find themselves on the frontlines of a high-stakes supernatural battle. This was the film that was completely sold out theatres for several weeks upon its initial release in early 2025, and among its many merits, it encouraged audiences to return to theatres en masse.
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