I WAS A STRANGER (2025) review
written by: Brandt Andersen
produced by: Brandt Andersen, Ossama Bawardi, Ryan Busse & Charlie Endean
directed by: Brandt Andersen
rated: PG-13 (for strong violent content/bloody images, thematic material, a racial slur, and smoking)
runtime: 105 min.
U.S. release date: December 31, 2025, and January 9, 2026
It isn’t lost on me that American writer/producer/director Brandt Anderson is called “I Was A Stranger”, considering it’s a film distributed by Angel Studios, Inc. It’s a studio known for its “values-based” films that often have Christian themes, and here is a title that references a Bible verse in Matthew 25:35-36, in which Jesus states that how well we treat others will determine our standing in the eternal world on Judgement Day. It goes hand in hand with “Love your neighbor as yourself, a core edict that is mentioned in the previous chapter. Such a reference may suggest that Anderson’s directorial debut will focus on how we treat each other, and while it does, it also doesn’t go out of its way to hit us over the head with any particular brand of messaging. Read more…
PRIMATE (2O26) review
written by: Johannes Roberts and Ernest Riera
produced by: Walter Hamada, John Hodges, and Bradley Pilz
directed by: Johannes Roberts
rated: R (for strong bloody violent content, gore, language, and some drug use)
runtime: 89 min.
U.S. release date: January 6, 2026
There’s a subgenre of horror films called “natural horror”, in which animals or plants threaten humans. At their best, there’s Hitchcock’s “The Birds” and Spielberg’s “Jaws”. After those two, there are hundreds of movies out there with varying levels of quality – for every “Sharknado” there’s a “The Day of the Triffids”. There’s an audience for everything. After I saw “Primate”, the latest from English writer/director Johannes Roberts (“Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City” and “The Strangers: Prey at Night”, and the “47 Meters Down” movies), the gratuitously gory movie about a face-ripping and head-bashing chimpanzee, I was left horrified. Read more…
DEAD MAN’S WIRE (2025) review
written by: Austin Kolodney
produced by: Cassian Elwes, Joel David Moore, Tom Culliver, Veronica Radaelli, Sam Pressman, Mark Amin, Remi Alfallah, Noor Alfallah, Siena Oberman, Andrea Bucko, Matt Murphie, and Paula Paizes
directed by: Gus Van Sant
rated: R (for language throughout)
runtime: 105 min.
U.S. release date: December 12, 2025 (limited), January 9, 2026 (wide), and January 16, 2026 (wider)
The last time veteran director Gus Van Sant released a film was back in 2018 with “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot”, a dramedy based on the memoir of the late alcoholic quadriplegic cartoonist John Callahan. He was quite a character, and now the director has returned to focus on another real-life character. “Dead Man’s Wire” is a “based on a true story” crime thriller about an event that took place almost 50 years ago in Indianapolis and received national attention. It’s a “I’m mad as hell, and I’m not gonna take it anymore” story that may seem relevant to those who have followed the Luigi Mangione story from December 2024. Read more…
RESURRECTION (2025) review
written by: Bi Gan
produced by: Shan Zuolong, Yang Lele, and Charles Gillibert
directed by: Bi Gan
rated: not rated
runtime: 156 min.
U.S. release date: December 12, 2025
I’ve now seen two of Bi Gan’s films, and each time I wind up feeling perplexed, confused, and impressed. There’s nothing wrong with that. Art can be challenging. The Chinese writer/director’s last film was 2018’s “Long Day’s Journey into Night”, which was not an adaptation of Eugene O’Neill’s play but rather a haunting noir known for its final 59 minutes, which consists of one long take in 3D. It premiered at that year’s Cannes Film Festival, and his latest and third feature, “Resurrection”, an epic science fiction drama, also premiered at last year’s Cannes. Both films are studies in sensory with a focus on visuals over discernible narrative, offering a kind of dream logic. Read more…
WE BURY THE DEAD (2026) review
written by: Zak Hilditch
produced by: Kelvin Munro, Grant Sputore, Ross Dinerstein, Joshua Harris & Mark Fasano
directed by: Zak Hilditch
rated: R (for strong violent content, gore, language, and brief drug use)
runtime: 95 min.
U.S. release date: January 2, 2026
Growing up in the eighties, I vaguely recall learning that if a nuclear war were to occur between the United States and Russia, the best place to go would be Australia. That’s because it would take quite a while for any fallout to reach Down Under. However, what would happen if a catastrophic crisis originated from Australia? Read more…
HAMNET (2025) review
written by: Chloé Zhao and Maggie O’Farrell
produced by: Liza Marshall, Pippa Harris, Nicolas Gonda, Steven Spielberg, and Sam Mendes
directed by: Chloé Zhao
rated: PG-13 (for thematic content, some strong sexuality, and partial nudity)
runtime: 126 min.
U.S. release date: November 26, 2025
A month before everything shut down in 2020, Chinese-born writer/director Chloé Zhao released “Nomadland”, which would become critically praised and quite a breakthrough feature for the filmmaker, earning Oscars the following year for Best Actress (for Frances McDormand), Best Director, and Best Picture. Coincidentally, Northern Irish novelist Maggie O’Farrell published Hamnet, a fictional account of William Shakespeare’s only son with Anne Hathaway, who died at age 11. The book would go on to earn a handful of year-end awards, and this year we have “Hamnet”, a film adaptation of the novel in theaters with a screenplay co-written by O’Farrell and Zhao, who also serves as director. Read more…
ANACONDA (2025) review
written by: Tom Gormican & Kevin Etten; based on “Anaconda” written by Hans Bauer and Jim Cash & Jack Epps Jr.
produced by: Kevin Etten, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Tom Gormican
directed by: Tom Gormican
rated: PG-13 (for violence/action, strong language, some drug use and suggestive references)
runtime: 99 min.
U.S. release date: December 25, 2025
“J-Lo! Ice Cube! Eric Stoltz! Jon Voight… are you back for this one?”
After making the slight, forgettable 2014 flick “That Awkward Moment,” writer/director Tom Gormican seemed to find his muse in Nicolas Cage with his 2022 meta comedy “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.” While that is a film I would say I admire more than I enjoy, I was intrigued by their next project, which was going to see the two team up again for a fresh take on the Anaconda franchise, as it were. Read more…
SONG SUNG BLUE (2025) review
written by: Craig Brewer
produced by: John Davis, John Fox, and Craig Brewer
directed by: Craig Brewer
rated: PG-13 (for thematic material, some strong language, some sexual material, and brief drug use)
runtime: 132 min.
U.S. release date: December 25, 2025
Despite shooting in New Jersey, writer/director Craig Brewer has made the most Midwest movie I’ve seen all year with “Song Sung Blue”. It’s a touching dramatization of a Milwaukee-based married couple who spent much of their time as Lightning and Thunder, “a New Diamond Experience,” in the 1980s and 90s. The movie wears its heart on its satin, sequined sleeves. It is grounded by the resilience, commitment, and hard-scrabble sensibilities of characters who want to entertain others with their music and, hopefully, pay their bills along the way. Some will see this as manipulation, but when such sentiments are delivered with this kind of earnestness, I’m here for it. Read more…
MARTY SUPREME (2025) review
written by: Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein
produced by: Josh Safdie, Ronald Bronstein, Eli Bush, Anthony Katagas, and Timothée Chalamet
directed by: Josh Safdie
rated: R (for language throughout, sexual content, some violent content/bloody images and nudity)
runtime: 150 min.
U.S. release date: December 25, 2025
“Marty Supreme” reaffirms Timothée Chalamet’s bona fide movie star status. It’s a movie with an insane amount of energy and attitude, with an unpredictable original story that’s bolstered by the actor’s exhilarating lead performance. Some may eye roll at Chalamet, feeling he’s overexposed, but there’s no denying that he’s a gifted actor, and his persistent, exuberant drive makes him an arguably welcome presence in the movie-making industry. His partnership with director Josh Safdie (they co-produce) on a feature that follows an ambitious, arrogant table tennis player in the 1950s is a wild ride that delivers comedy, violence, deception, and plenty of ping-pong. Read more…
THE HOUSEMAID (2025) review
written by: Screenplay by Rebecca Sonnenshine, based on the novel by Freida McFadden
produced by: Paul Feig, Laura Allen Fischer, Todd Lieberman
directed by: Paul Feig
rated: R (for strong/bloody violent content, sexual assault, sexual content, nudity and language)
runtime: 131 min.
U.S. release date: December 19, 2025
“Having teeth is a privilege.”
It feels as if the last few years have brought fewer and fewer movies for adults to movie theaters, with most studios holding them back, figuring that blockbusters are getting all the traction at the multiplex and awards contenders are clogging up the arthouse. So, if you don’t want to see the latest adventures of Avatar, SpongeBob, Wicked, Freddy, or Zootopia, and can only handle so many depressing awards season films a week, you’re basically S.O.L. Read more…
