One Battle After Another
Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another,” his first film since 2021’s “Licorice Pizza,” is being hailed by some critics as the best film of 2025, and it seems like one of the likely Oscar front-runners heading into award season. “One Battle After Another,” a nearly three-hour comedy-adventure, stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Bob, a washed-up revolutionary living off the grid who’s forced back into the game when an old enemy, played by Sean Penn, kidnaps his daughter. The supporting cast includes Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor and Chase Infiniti. “One Battle After Another” opens in theaters on September 26. 

Anemone
There’s only one real reason “Anemone” is on this list … and that it has brought Daniel Day-Lewis, the only man to ever win the Oscar for Best Actor three times, out of retirement. What brought him out of retirement? A film director by his son, Ronan Day-Lewis, which the two wrote together. The psychological drama centers on the relationships within a family when a soldier, played by the elder Day-Lewis, returns home and reunites with his brother after decades of living in isolation in the woods of Northern England. Day-Lewis, the director, may be unproven, but with his father in front of the camera, it’s going to be a must-watch. “Anemone” premieres October 3. 

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
I recently watched the trailer for director Mary Bronstein’s psychological comedy-drama “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” and it was quite a lot. This may be one of the most stress-inducing films of the year, but there are two things making me want to see it. One) Rose Byrne is said to give one of the year’s best performances in the lead role as a woman trying to navigate life with a sick daughter, absent husband and a hostile therapist. Two) Conan O’Brien, one of my favorite celebrities who has never really given acting a try, plays the therapist, and I just want to see how he does in a serious performance. “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” premieres October 10. 

Roofman
“Roofman,” directed by Derek Cianfrance, is about the crazy true story of criminal Jeffrey Manchester, a former U.S. Army Reserve officer who robbed nearly 50 McDonald’s by sneaking in through their roof, escaped from prison and evaded police for half a year by living inside a Toys “R” Us store. Channing Tatum stars as Manchester, and he seems built for such a role in a comedy-drama. “Roofman” features an outstanding supporting cast featuring Kirsten Dunst, LaKeith Stanfield, Ben Mendelsohn, Peter Dinklage, Juno Temple and Uzo Aduba. “Roofman” premieres on October 10. 

“Bugonia”
I must admit I haven’t seen either of the previous efforts between director Yorgos Lanthimos and actress Emma Stone, even though the first of those features, “Poor Things,” won the actress her second Oscar. The plotline of their latest work, “Bugonia,” frankly seems a bit more accessible than their other collaborations. In “Bugonia,” Stone portrays a CEO who is kidnapped by two conspiracy-obsessed young men, played by Jesse Plemons and Aidan Delbis, because they believe she’s an alien determined to destroy Earth. “Bugonia” is said to be an absurdist satire, and that feels like something we could use right now. “Bugonia” premieres on October 24. 

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Bruce Springsteen is my all-time favorite musician, so “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere,” a biopic that focuses on the creation of his early ‘80s stripped-down classic album, Nebraska, has been my personal most anticipated film all year. “Deliver Me from Nowhere” is directed by Scott Cooper, who directed one of my all-time favorite music dramas in 2009’s “Crazy Heart.” “Deliver Me From Nowhere” stars multiple-time Emmy Award-winner Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen, and Emmy-winner Jeremy Strong as Springsteen’s manager and record producer Jon Landau. Many have been expecting an Oscar-nominated performance from White from the moment he was announced as the lead. “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere” premieres on October 24. 

Jay Kelly
The thing about director Noah Baumbach’s latest film, “Jay Kelly,” that has piqued my interest the most is that it might earn Adam Sandler an Oscar nomination. Sandler, one of the film's most criticized actors over the years, has shown that he can actually act on occasion throughout his career, but as of yet, he has never been nominated for an Oscar. In “Jay Kelly,” he plays the manager/friend of a movie star, played by George Clooney, as they travel throughout Europe and reflect on life together. “Jay Kelly” will premiere in select theaters on November 14, before premiering globally on Netflix on December 5.  

Hamnet
If you’re looking for a dramatic film that is absolutely going to make you cry, look no further than director Chloe Zhao’s “Hamnet,” which tells the story of how the relationship and lives of playwright William Shakespeare and his wife, Agnes, were impacted by the death of their 11-year-old son Hamnet. Oscar nominees Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley play William and Agnes, respectively, and Buckley is said to be one of the favorites for Best Actress. It’s nice to see Zhao, who won the Oscar for both Best Picture and Best Director for 2020’s “Nomadland,” back doing serious features after a sojourn into comic book superhero land. 

Is This Thing On
Bradley Cooper has been hit or miss for me as a director. I loved his 2008 directorial debut “A Star Is Born,” but was nearly bored to tears with his 2023 biopic of Leonard Bernstein, “Maestro.” With “Is This Thing On,” Cooper is more in line with my personal interests, in telling the story of a couple, played by Will Arnett and Laura Dern, who break up after years or marriage, and Arnett’s Alex Novak embarks on life as a stand-up comedian. Cooper co-wrote the script with Arnett and Mark Chappell, and this will be his first directorial effort in which he isn’t also the lead, though he does have a role in the picture. It’ll also be interesting to see Arnett as the lead in a major film. “Is This Thing On” premieres on December 19. 

Marty Supreme
You know director Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme” is supposed to be one of the big films of award season simply based on its Christmas Day premiere. It’s an interesting topic … the titular Marty, played by Timothee Chalamet, is a professional ping-pong player in the 1950s, determined to popularize the game into a spectator sport. It feels like it should be satire, but the teaser trailer also seems fairly serious. “Marty Supreme” co-stars Gwyneth Paltrow, a name I haven’t seen in a serious film in a long time. 

It’s been more than 20 years since I fell in love with the art form of film, especially classic films. I can chalk it up to a slow summer during high school and Turner Classic Movies being on my television at home. But despite my love of classic films, there have still been some major blind spots in my film-watching resume—and one of the most unbelievable ones is that, after all these years, I had never seen a single Bette Davis movie. Yes, the Bette Davis that the American Film Institute had ranked as the second greatest Hollywood actress ever.

I knew I would be correcting that mistake this year when I set out to watch the 10 highest films on the AFI’s 100 Greatest American Films list, because perhaps Davis’s most famous performance ever as Margo Channing in writer-director Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s “All About Eve” would be on my to-watch list.

“All About Eve” was ranked No. 16 on the AFI’s original list in 1998 and somehow fell a dozen spots to No. 28 on its 2007 list.

I’m not sure if “All About Eve” was the first of the “young ingénue attempts to take the star's spot” story, but it’s likely the greatest there has ever been or ever will be.

What’s unique about “All About Eve,” at least from my perspective as a classic film viewer who has mostly seen classics as led by men, is how great Mankiewicz was at writing female characters as Davis, Anne Baxter, Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter (to a lesser extent in a lesser role the film kind of forgets about) are all incredible, and all were nominated for Academy Awards for their performances.

Baxter plays the young ingénue, Eve Harrington, who makes both Margo and the audience believe that she genuinely loves Margo’s performances so much that she wants to help out in any way possible. Only Ritter’s Birdie, Margo’s maid, sees through this charade. The way Baxter plays the role so sweetly before eventually going full villain was truly fun to watch, as was Davis’s turn when she finally begins to catch on to what Eve is doing – especially her drunken party antics.

Davis and Baxter truly were both leads of the film and rightfully both nominated for Best Actress for the Oscars, which likely split the vote, leading to Judy Holliday winning for “Born Yesterday,” though Gloria Swanson, another nominee for “Sunset Boulevard,” not winning is a head-scratcher to me all these years later.

Another great aspect of “All About Eve,” probably due to Mankiewicz’s smart and snappy dialogue, is that it doesn’t feel as dated as many films of its era. It’s pleasant to watch, and all of the performers are at the top of their game. 

Directors: Maggie Kang & Chris Appelhans
Starring: Arden Cho, May Hong & Ji-young Yoo
Rated: PG (action/violence, scary images, thematic elements, some suggestive material & brief language)
Runtime: 1 hour & 35 minutes

 
My experience with the global phenomenon "KPOP Demon Hunters" began the same way that my experience with "The Greatest Showman" did way back in 2017. It came out and was beloved by many people I loved, who encouraged me to watch it as soon as possible. I had watched the trailers for both, though, and just felt it wasn't going to be a film that I would enjoy. We also live in the day and age when movie trailers almost spell out the whole movie for you, too. You can definitely get a good sense of whether or not you'll enjoy a movie since you're seeing most of it. After about a month and a half of multiple people encouraging me to, I finally watched "KPOP Demon Hunters" and fell completely in love with it, particularly its amazing soundtrack. "The Greatest Showman," likewise, had a stellar soundtrack that still gets in rotation on my Spotify eight years later. Both times, I felt that I should have given in and watched the movie sooner than I did.
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"KPOP Demon Hunters" is an animated film that tells the story of Rumi, Mira, and Zoey, who are members of the K-pop girl group Huntr/x. They are also covert demon hunters who carry on a long tradition of trios that use their voices to create a magical barrier called the Honmoon that seals the demons away from preying on humans. After centuries, they are very close to turning the Honmoon gold, which will seal the demons away from humans permanently. Fearing that the end is coming, the ruler of the demons, Gwi-Ma sends a former human named Jinu to form a K-pop boy band called the Saja Boys with the goal of stealing Huntr/x's fans and weaken the Honmoon. Additionally, Rumi, the leader, is concealing the fact that she is actually the daughter of a hunter and a demon. 

The main thing that "KPOP Demon Hunters" has going for it is the amazing soundtrack. There is not a weak one in the bunch. However, arguably, the most popular song is "Golden." "Golden" has managed to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and is considered a contender for a nomination for Best Original Song at the Oscars. Netflix has also announced that they will be campaigning the film for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. A nomination seems extremely likely, with a win definitely in the realm of possibility.

While the music for the film is remarkable, it also features a great script by Maggie Kang, Danya Jimenez, Hannah McMechan and Chris Appelhans. The film manages to tell a story that, while familiar, still feels original, fresh and new. The animation is visually beautiful and truly makes the film even more of a spectacle.

The film has managed to connect with audiences worldwide and has become Netflix's most-watched film in its history. If you are one of the few who haven't given in, it is time. Do not wait any longer! You will not regret it!