Josh’s Favorite Movies of 2025 — Part Two!
Thanks for reading my list of my favorite movies of 2025! Yesterday I kicked things off with part 1, listing #s 20-16.
Let’s continue…!
15. Caught Stealing — Caught Stealing was directed by Darren Aronofsky (The Fountain, The Wrestler, Black Swan) and written by Charlie Huston, adapting his own novel. It’s New York in 1998, and Hank, a baseball-loving, jovial but unreliable, alcoholic bartender has his life turned upside down when his neighbor skips town after leaving him a package that turns him into the target of an assortment of dangerous lowlifes from the city’s various gangs. I was quite taken by the film’s tone — it’s serious and dangerous but also a little silly, with plenty of moments of character-based comedy amongst the violence; it reminded me of the best Coen Brothers movies. The cast is exceptional: Austin Butler, Matt Smith, Zoë Kravitz, Bad Bunny, Regina King, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Carol Kane, and more bring to life all the oddballs who fill out this tale. If it wasn’t for a mid-movie twist that didn’t sit well with me, this film might have been in my top ten. Click here to read my full review. Click here to watch it now on Amazon Prime Video.
14. The Long Walk — The Long Walk adapts the novel by Stephen King (written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman in 1979). Set in a world in which the United States has suffered economic collapse and is ruled by a fascistic military government, the film depicts the annual televised competition called The Long Walk, designed to inspire (and distract) the population. Fifty boys compete to see who can walk the longest. There is no finish line; the boys walk until only one remains and the others have all died. Stephen King’s novel is terrific; horrifying and gripping. The film adaptation, written by JT Mollner and directed by Francis Lawrence (who directed Constantine, I am Legend, and the Hunger Games films), is also terrific. It’s an impressively faithful adaptation of the novel. The film grabs you by the guts and doesn’t let go until the credits role. I was impressed at how quickly I was hooked into the story and fell in love with the characters. The sharp writing and terrific casting does a great job at bringing life to all these boys (who could have easily been bland cannon fodder in lesser hands). This is a disturbing movie and not for everyone (you know that you’re going to watch these kids die as the movie progresses), but it’s stuck in my brain long after I finished watching it. Click here to read my full review. Click here to watch it now on Amazon Prime Video.
13. Marty Supreme — Timothée Chalamet commands the screen in Josh Safdie’s tense yarn about a fast-talking huckster who thinks he’s God’s gift to the world. It’s 1952; Marty Mauser is an incredibly talented table tennis player who dreams of fame and fortune, and he uses his ability to sweet-talk almost anyone into almost anything to try to put together for himself the life he dreams of and feels he deserves. Of course, it’s all a house of cards, and the thrill of the movie is watching Marty try to dance between the raindrops and stay one step ahead of catastrophe. Mr. Chalamet’s performance is magnetic and captivating, and Josh Safdie’s skilled directing and editing (along with co-writer and co-editor Ronald Bronstein) keeps the film as taut as piano-wire. It’s thrilling to watch (though beware: the cringe factor is high as you watch Marty make one bad decision after another). My full review is coming soon. Marty Supreme is playing in theatres now.
12. Companion — Companion opens with a meet-cute between Iris (Sophie Thatcher) and Josh (Jack Quaid) in a supermarket. Some time later the two, now a couple, head to a weekend getaway with two other couples, Jack’s friends, at a remote house in the woods owned by the wealthy Russian Sergey (Rupert Friend). Things go south pretty quickly, and this film is off to the races. I was delighted by this twisty, genre-bending tale that skillfully weaves together aspects of a relationship drama, a horror-film, a dash of sci-fi, and even some comedy. Don’t watch any trailers (they spoil a key reveal) and don’t let anyone tell you anything more about this film’s story. Just watch it and enjoy. Click here to read my full review. Click here to watch it now on HBO MAX, or click here to watch it now on Amazon Prime Video.
11. Blue Moon — Richard Linklater (The Before trilogy, Boyhood, Hit Man) directed this beautiful, melancholy film, from a phenomenal script by Robert Kaplow. Ethan Hawke delivers a magnificent performance as Lorenz Hart, the real-life lyricist who wrote “The Lady is a Tramp,” “My Funny Valentine,” and many other songs, including “Blue Moon”, from which this movie draws its title. Mr. Hart spent years collaborating with Richard Rogers, but by the time of this film the two men have split, and now Rogers is collaborating with Oscar Hammerstein. (Rogers and Hammerstein would go on to become probably the most famous and successful American songwriting duo in history. Blue Moon is set in March, 1943, on the opening night of Rogers & Hammerstein’s new musical Oklahoma!, which would become an enormous success, far more successful than Rogers & Hart’s previous Broadway collaborations. We spend the moon following Mr. Hart during that night, as he watches his former partner reach a level of success and acclaim with his new partner that they never achieved together. I was captivated by the film right from the beginning. It’s a beautiful and heartbreaking story, anchored by a magnificent lead performance by Ethan Hawke, and an incredible supporting cast including Bobby Cannavale, Margaret Qualley, and Andrew Scott. My full review is coming soon. Click here to watch it now on Amazon Prime Video.
Thanks for reading! I hope you’ll come back tomorrow as I begin my TOP TEN…!
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