Flasz On Film

The formation of any end-of-year best-of list always comes with the need to make difficult choices, which means that some movies that otherwise would have made it onto the podium need to be left to the side. Additionally, I always find myself in a position where I can gather a small handful of titles that probably didn’t deserve to be highlighted among the top ten, but nonetheless need to be recognized for one reason or another. Therefore, below you will find a short list of eight additional great movies from 2025.

1. M3GAN 2.0

M3GAN 2.0 was honestly one of the most surprising theatrical experiences of the year for me. Although I liked the original a lot, especially as a modern techno-riff on Child’s Play, the follow-up took the story into the neverland of camp satire that was as ridiculous and preposterous as it was engaging. Between Steven Seagal worship, satire morphing into parody and a massive stack of pop-cultural references lampooning some beloved classics, this movie moved the franchise from straight-up horror into action territory and gave me an opportunity to have a grand old time at the movies. (Full review here)

2. Eddington

Directed by Ari Aster, Eddington is a dense satire that uses its pandemic setting to comment on the world of the here and now in ways that are both satisfying and fundamentally upsetting. It is a piece of intellectual comedy wrapped around a handful of great performances from Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal and Emma Stone that ridicules political divisions, embellishes fringe tribal posturing we have since acclimated to (unfortunately so) and leaves us with a piece of poignant commentary as well. It’s a potent microcosm of divided America rendered so busy fighting its cultural skirmishes over masks, race and gender that it fails to notice more powerful forces puppeteering the events and the slowly creeping arrival of all-devouring AI. (Full review here)

3. Bugonia

Hollywood’s designated weirdo, Yorgos Lanthimos, has also added his two cents to the concentrated metaphorical commentary on the times we are currently living through with Bugonia. This exquisite satire on the chasm between the rich and the rest of us, and the perils of following down rabbit holes added to a thoroughly ensnaring and emotionally subversive cinematic experience that, like some of this auteur’s best works, rode the line between acceptable and weird with confidence and panache. Emma Stone, who has joined the Lanthimos frequent flyer program spreads her wings with glee and commits the set-up in its entirety. A wonderful spectacle worth watching and discussing afterwards. (Full review here)

4. Nouvelle Vague

The “two” in Richard Linklater’s 2025 one-two combination punch, Nouvelle Vague is the kind of movie that looks perfectly familiar from the outside but immediately announces to the viewer that its ambition is to do some somersaults while at it. Linklater decided to celebrate the legacy of the French New Wave not only by bringing to light the intricacies and nuances of the production of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless, but he chose to do so in the style of the French New Wave too, which makes the experience of watching the film twice as educational and valuable as any old biopic would have been. In fact, in combination with Blue Moon, Linklater succeeded in reminding us that the filmmaking form is only as fresh as its practitioners. (Full review here)

5. Elio

Pixar’s Elio is definitely a solid candidate for the title of the feelgood experience of the year with the studio’s signature familiarity and four-quadrant appeal. It is also one of those movies that actually needs some love and attention from the movie-watching public, as its creators didn’t place too much faith in it and dumped it unceremoniously with minimal marketing behind it. Therefore, despite the fact it was (1) quite a good coming-of-age movie in its own right and (2) one of the rare examples of a Pixar movie that is not a sequel in a longstanding franchise, Elio was never given a chance to begin with. And I happen to like it. (Full review here)

6. Caught Stealing

Darren Aronofsky decided to come back to the fray after the mostly unsuccessful The Whale with a movie that looks like a complete stylistic departure from the kind of filmmaking we had come to expect from him. Visually more at home with films directed by Guy Ritchie or the Safdies, this kinetic crime story still manages to capture Aronofsky’s fundamental melodies as it inserts the viewer into its sensory inner sanctum and crafts an action spectacle that is fun to look at, entertainingly put together and driven by an authentic and earnest performance from Austin Butler playing the archetypal guy who found himself at the wrong place and time, caught between a rock and a hard place. (Full review here)

7. The Lost Bus

Paul Greengrass returned this year to his comfort zone of tactile and human-centered disaster spectacles with The Lost Bus, which for all intents and purposes ranks as the foremost “dad movie” of the year. While it is for the most part a familiar affair for those who remember movies like Bloody Sunday, United 93 or Captain Phillips, it is nonetheless an effective exercise in localizing a large spectacle, focusing the drama on a handful of protagonists and allowing the characters, as opposed to eye-candy special effects, to lead the way and bring the viewer into their precarious environment. (Full review here)/

8. The Toxic Avenger

Macon Blair’s The Toxic Avenger (or The Toxic Avenger Unrated) laid dormant on the shelf for nearly two years following its original premiere at the 2023 Fantastic Fest and only this year it was released worldwide for everyone to enjoy it. More of a direct parody of the blockbuster landscape of our time than a genuine attempt at the kind of mean-spirited pastiche Troma productions were fond of back in the day, this is the kind of superhero film we honestly need these days. Equal parts brooding, relevant and self-aware, The Toxic Avenger is a fun experiment in splatter comedy that also belongs, thematically speaking, among the more elevated “movies of the moment” we saw this year, as it openly, directly and relentlessly denudes the gap between the haves and the have-nots, mocks the billionaire class and leaves the viewer with something to think about as they clean themselves up from all the guts and goo the movie has poured over their heads. (Full review here)