One Battle After Another

I had zero interest in this film after its trailer. After all, I either love Paul Thomas Anderson movies (Phantom Thread, There Will Be Blood, Boogie Nights) or hate them (Inherent Vice, The Master). In fact, Inherent Vice holds the dubious honor of being one of only four films I’ve ever walked out of. Critics at festivals were swooning, but at two hours and fifty minutes, it seemed destined to be filed under my most common dig of the decade: “self-indulgent marathon films from untouchable directors that should have been two hours flat.”

However, his tenth film, One Battle After Another, is one of the best sustained pieces of filmmaking — ever. It felt like one hour and is clearly one of the best films of 2025.

It kicks off with the kind of velocity most action films save for their finale, then never lets up. Without spoiling specifics, it centers on revolutionaries from the last decade, though it feels as if the script were finished last night. At full volume, it’s about defying fascism and racism, but in quiet moments, it's a tender father-daughter story. Somehow it is both a thunderous thriller and intimate drama, switching gears with comic precision. The balance of action, thriller, drama and comedy is a masterwork.

Often cited "greatest actor of our generation," Leonardo DiCaprio to me, has too often been outsized by the film roles from The Aviator and Departed to J.Edgar and Killers of the Flower Moon, but this film and comic role fits him better, much like his turn in The Wolf of Wall Street. Here, DiCaprio gives a carefully modulated turn, often channelling The Big Lebowsi in his backrobe as Bob Ferguson. 

Our other "greatest actor," Sean Penn completely disappears into Col. Lockjaw, the clearest bad guy of the film, creating one of his all-time best roles. Teyana Tarylo, Benicio del Toro and Regina Hall are all expectedly great too.

What makes the film astonishing is that it never panders. It’s bleak, sardonic, tough-minded, yet alive with jolting humanity. It isn’t about good guys or easy redemption, it’s about survival and defiance, and somehow that makes it all the more hopeful.

In a nutshell: the action jolts, the comedy lands and the suspense feels utterly original. This is a Molotov cocktail hurled into the 2025 film season.

Where to see it: Theatrical release, in 70mm, IMAX 70mm, IMAX Digital and VistaVision. IMAX was worth every cent.

Would it be better with Olivia Colman? We’re talking about one of the decade’s best films, but yes, naturally.

Award potential: Expect Oscar nominations in all categories.

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks.

Fall's Future Best Picture Nominees - mark your calendar

Goodbye, super summer blockbusters. The fall movies are coming. Festival buzz is heating up and while some early Oscar contenders (Frankenstein, The Bride, The History of Sound and Julia Robert's instantly controversial After the Hunt) have already fizzled out, a new crop of top-tier films has emerged. These are the ones to circle in your calendar and get your popcorn and excitment ready for.

TOP 3 LOCKS

Hamnet

In a nutshell: Adapted from Maggie O'Farrell's acclaimed novel, this drama centers on Agnes (Jessie Buckley) grieving a family tragedy that inspires her husband William Shakespeare (Paul Mescal) to write Hamlet. Directed by Oscar-winner Chloé Zhao.

Why it's a lock: It's Zhao’s first drama since Nomadland, and it slayed at Telluride. Focus Features might finally have its Best Picture winner.

In theaters: Limited release November 27, 2025, national expansion December 12, 2025.



Sentimental Value

In a nutshell: An actress reunites with her estranged, acclaimed director father, who wants her to star in his autobiographical film.

Why it's a lock: Reuniting The Worst Person in the World dream team of Trier and Reinsve. Oh, and it was the Cannes runner-up for the Palme d’Or. Sentimental? Early word has it as sensational.

In theaters: Limited release November 7, 2025.



Sinners

In a nutshell: A complex, ambitious film that blends vampires, blues music and historical themes. Michael B. Jordan excels in a dual role.

Why it's a lock: Don’t let the vampires fool you, this one has real teeth. One of the only Oscar-quality films to already hit theaters and people are still talking about it.

In theaters: Now streaming online.


TOP 3 CONTENDERS

House of Dynamite

In a nutshell: A U.S. missile is accidentally launched at Chicago, and a high-stakes team led by Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson races to prevent catastrophe.

Why it's a lock: It's directed by Kathryn Bigelow (Hurt Locker), in another James Cameron Avatar year, and it recently blew up the Venice Film Festial.

In theaters: Limited September release and on Netflix October 10, 2025.



Marty Supreme

In a nutshell: Timothée Chalamet is a young ping pong player in the 1950s on a quest for greatness. The ensemble cast including Gwyneth Paltrow, Fran Drescher and Tyler, The Creator.

Why it's a lock: Directed by Josh Safdie (Uncut Gems) and backed by A24, this late-year entry is the weird, wild awards contender that will likely sneak in at the end.

In theaters: Christmas Day.


Jay Kelly

In a nutshell: George Clooney plays a fading actor on a reflective European road trip with his longtime manager, grappling with fame, failure, and legacy.

Why it's a lock: Directed by Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story), with Adam Sandler poised for another serious-actor moment. Netflix is pushing this hard despite some so-so reviews — expect it to go the distance.

In theaters: November 14, 2025.



THE 3 POPULAR, COLON ONES

Avatar: Fire & Ash:  The upcoming third film in the James Cameron Avatar series (each prior film was nominated for Best Picture) will release on December 19, 2025.

Wicked: For Good: The follow-up and conclusion to last year's Best Picture nominee releases November 21, 2025.

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere: The film about Springsteen's personal work on the Nebraska album, and not his life story, had a boss world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, securing likely nominations for both Jeremy actors (Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong) and a shot at Best Picture. Releases October 24, 2025.



THE WILD CARDS

It Was Just An Accident: Directed by Jafar Panahi, this co-production between Iran, France, and Luxembourg explores political repression in Iran. It has garnered global acclaim and was awarded the Palme d'Or at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Releases October 15, 2025.

No Other Choice: A 2025 South Korean dark comedy thriller film co-written, produced and directed by Park Chan-wook, in theaters now.

Begonia: The next satirical absurdist science fiction dark comedy film directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things, The Favorite) with Jesse Plemmons and Emma Stone, opens appropriately on October 31, 2026.

One Battle After Another: Paul Thomas Anderson directs Leonardo DiCaprio as a former revolutionary hunting for his missing daughter. Ehh. Releases September 25, 2025.

Train Dreams: Netflix's contender with actor Joel Edgerton as a logger and railroad worker in the rapidly changing American West in theaters November 7, 2025, followed by a global Netflix release on November 21, 2025.

Testament of Ann Lee: Early indications from the Venice Film Festival suggest a divisive film like The Brutalist. It stars Amanda Seyfried as Ann Lee, the founding leader of the Shakers religious sect in the 18th century. Release date is still TBD.

Is This Thing On? Bradley Coopers' film about British comedian John Bishop is the closing film of the New York Film Festival on October 10, 2025, and it releases on December 19, 2025.

Rental Family: A comedy-drama, starring Brendan Fraser, is set in Tokyo and follows an American actor who finds purpose working for a Japanese "rental family" agency. In theaters starting November 21, 2025.

Weapons: One of two summer horror breakouts. Stylish, chilling and smarter than your average scream fest. It's in theaters now.

The Naked Gun (2025)

"Nothing to see here! Please disperse!" In 1982, Leslie Nielsen first played the hilariously clueless Detective Frank Drebin in Police Squad!, an underappreciated, short-lived TV series that took the breakneck, deadpan absurdity of the movie  Airplane! and applied it to copland Six episodes and one cancellation later, that same character hit the big screen in 1988’s The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, which became an instant classic and spawned two sequels—the final one aptly titled Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult.

Now, 31 years after that final insult, The Naked Gun returns. The style? Still rapid-fire and delightfully ridiculous. The difference? This time, it's coming from the team behind The Lonely Island and Family Guy.

Akiva Schaffer directs, Seth MacFarlane produces and Liam Neeson plays Lt. Frank Drebin Jr., son of the late, great Nielsen’s character. He’s perfect in the role. Plus, Pamela Anderson joins in and holds her own, while the film throws everything at the wall.

It helps that it’s a tight 90-minute comedy, yet the reboot wrestles with the same truth as the original sequels: lightning rarely strikes twice, and never three times in a row. The film is funny, but rarely Airplane! funny. Not enough jokes work for me to suggest you buy a ticket and go out to see this when your TikTok delivers rapid-fire comedy without having to force a contrived plot between the jokes.  

All that to say that Naked Gun is only OK and hard to fully recommend, despite Neeson firing on all cylinders to dramatic deadpan perfection. If you go anyway, you may be disappointed, but you will laugh in a full theater with the community and that's hardly a bad thing.

In a nutshell: They don’t make them like this anymore, but they probably won’t again either.

Where to see it: In theaters, starting August 1.

Would it be better with Olivia Colman? Surely. But don’t call her Shirley.

Award potential: No.

The Ten Buck review: Not worth ten bucks.

Superman (2025)

Look, up in the sky! It’s yet another Superman, his eighth screen incarnation if you’re counting, and yes, we are doing this all over again. Should we be?

Mostly, yes. The new Superman smartly skips past the origin story. No exploding planets, no baby in a space bassinet, no discovering his powers at the Kent farm.  We’re dropped right into a world that already knows the guy in the cape and tights. Clark’s secret identity? She knows. Lois and Clark? Already a thing. Clark and The Daily Planet? Oddly sidelined. And that’s a shame.

What works, and works fast, is the film’s energy. Filmmaker James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) clearly brought his mixtape of comic book optimism. The colors pop, the pace zips and we are thankfully spared another dark, overly grim yawnfest. The film clocks in at a breezy two hours, which feels practically retro in an age of 3-hour superhero bloat. A standing ovation for that alone.

David Corenswet (Twisters, Hollywood) and his do-gooding Superman radiates a golden retriever vibe. He’s super, yes, but vulnerable in ways that make you actually care when he gets knocked around (and he gets knocked around a lot). Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) matches him beat for beat as Lois Lane, the two sharing skyscraper-leaping chemistry that fuels much of the film’s charm. More of that next time, please.

And there’s Krypto. The superdog. He flies. He growls. He steals scenes. You’ll leave wanting the plushie.

The first hour is pure joy. Banter, character beats, clever action. Then comes the large plot hole. I mean, a universal portal time hole thing.

Woof. It piles on cosmic threats and loses much of what made the early going so enjoyable. Superman gets beaten more than any other screen version before him. So much so that Mel Gibson is probably wishing he had this role.

Suddenly, the film feels pressured to go epic big, piling on way too many increasingly vague threats. The Justice Gang (maybe their name, maybe not) enters. They’re here to help, and somehow they get beaten up much less than the Man of Steel. It doesn't add up. Supes fights one threat, then another, then five more. Lois drives a spaceship — what is happening now?

Nicholas Hoult (Nosferatu, The Great, Juror #2) plays Lex Luthor in the most one-note Elon Musk way, and it's a mystery what his beef is with Superman is despite, well, spoiler avoided.

The real crime committed is — not enough Clark Kent. With all the universe-hopping, the grounded, goofy charm of Clark-in-the-city is sidelined.

For all its flaws, Gunn brings a welcome sense of humor, hope, and old-fashioned romance back to the DC Universe. Will it make its money back? Definitely. Will it make people want more Superman? Well, I left wanting more Krypto, Lois and Clark, so I'd say they might be on to something here.

In a nutshell: The first half is a colorful blast. In the second half, I was looking at so many things happening, and yawning. It's a toss-up, but yay, it's a tight two hours and Krypto saves the day.

Bonus Tip: No need to stay for the credits. Throwaways without much charm or intended humor.

Where to watch: In theaters starting this Friday. July 11, 2025.

Would it be better with Olivia Colman? Of course.

Award potential: Visual Effects is the only play here.

The Ten Buck Review: Down Krypto! Worth ten bucks.

The Materialists

Good news: Director Celine Song is back.

Bad news: After making my favorite film of 2023, she’s now made a rom-com. You had me at hell-no! For every Nora Ephron, Nancy Meyers or Richard Curtis meet cute that worked, there are hundreds of forgettable duds.

The director of Past Lives—that quiet gut-punch of a film about time, fate and choices—has followed her debut with a story about swiping right.

The Materialists plants us in a very Insta-friendly New York, where Dakota Johnson plays a high-end matchmaker who’s juggling two very different suitors (Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans).

Here, romance isn’t just roses and Meg Ryan karaoke —it’s ROI. Song explores the transactional side of modern love. There’s real bite in the script like an anxious bride nervously joking, “It’s not like my family needs a cow.” One other unique offering is I loved walking in not knowing which of the lead men would be the jerk in the end; I guessed wrong.

Most of the great rom-coms often ask us to conveniently dismiss our knowledge of life’s realities. Cameron Diaz and Jude Law meet up in an English cottage, c’mon.

Song is caught between her desire to speak honestly about what it means to be an authentic woman working in the dating industry while balancing her own wishes and create a fun, funny film with real consequences dropped in.

The movie’s split personality shows. It wants to be sharp and insightful, but also swoony and fun. Sometimes it’s both and other times it feels like it’s ghosting its own premise.

Is it frustrating? Occasionally. Predictable? Yes. Sweet? Often. Perfect? Nope. But in a summer stuffed with bombastic IPs, The Materialists feels like a great date to swipe right to (and one with great music).

In a nutshell: Not great, but fascinating. It’s no Past Lives nor Bridget Jones, but hey—it’s definitely not Bride Wars.

Where to see it: In theaters starting June 13.

Would it be better with Olivia Colman? Absolutely.

Award potential: None. I suppose the comedy Golden Globes has some potential.

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks. This ones fine either in the theater or on the TV at home.

Sinners

Director Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Black Panther, Creed) reteams with his go-to leading man Michael B. Jordan to take a big, stylish bite out of the well-worn vampire genre. 

But this one’s different. Set in a gorgeously saturated 1932 Mississippi, the film oozes atmosphere, with velvet shadows and cool light. At the heart of it are twin brothers Smoke and Stack, both played with swagger and subtlety by Jordan, on a mission to open the hottest juke joint the Delta’s ever seen.

The film’s centerpiece is the joint’s opening night, where a preacher’s kid turned blues guitarist named Sammie (Miles Caton), takes the stage and belts out the bluesy “I Lied to You.” What follows is a dazzling, time-bending sequence that connects 1930s blues to its roots and stretches it forward through Jimi Hendrix all the way to modern-day rap. It’s an immersive and rare movie moment that genuinely transports you.

There’s even a jaw-dropping shot where the camera tracks a daughter walking from one grocery store to another across the street, her movements echoed by her mother walking the opposite way—as if closing a generational loop.

And yet, under all the groove and glitter, the audience knows something’s off. 

This party’s a setup. And Coogler milks that tension beautifully like an unseen shark in Jaws—until he doesn’t. The last act leans a little too hard into familiar vampire-TV territory that could be any True Blood or Walking Dead show. Still, it’s a thrill to watch something this visually bold and unapologetically original.

But even when its back-end stumbles into the familiar, this is the freshest thing I’ve seen in a long time. I won’t spoil more, except to say: blues, rock ’n’ roll, vampires and vampire flicks—they’re not going anywhere.

In a nutshell: Coogler’s dive into vampire territory is a gorgeous fever dream that starts like a masterpiece and ends like a midnight movie—but it's a great night out at the movies.

Where to watch it: In theaters now. It would be a sin for movie-lovers to not see it on a big screen with a full audience.

Would it be better with Olivia Colman: Yes, I know the perfect part and she'd sing the Irish ditty well.

Award potential: One thing for sure, "I Lied to You." as sung by Miles Canton, will be nominated for Best Song. Actors BJ, Miles and supporting Delroy Lindo and Wunmi Mosaku each have Oscar-clip moments, but the basic, back third of this film makes it a tough sell to remember nine months from now. 

Should Warner Brothers be wise enough to re-release it for Halloween, Coolidge could be in play for director and the picture could follow The Substance's 2025 nomination in a horror spot. Best Casting, a new award, fits perfectly here as do Cinematography, Sound, Score, Costume Design and Production Design. 

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks.

What are next year's Best Picture nominees? The films to get excited for.

This next year looks like a bad one for box office blockbusters (until Avatar arrives) but a good one for quality cinema. It’s a bit too soon to start calling the Oscar nominees, but here are 20 films that might just make the cut—and a list worth getting excited for.

After The Hunt

A college professor is forced to grapple with her own secretive past after one of her colleagues is faced with a serious accusation.

Director: Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name, Challengers)

Actors: Julia Roberts, Andrew Garfield, Ayo Edebiri (The Bear)

Anemone

A screenplay by Daniel Day-Lewis and his son tells the story of intergenerational family bonds, ending Daniel's seven-year retirement.

Director: Ronan Day-Lewis
Actors: Daniel Day-Lewis

Avatar: Fire and Ash

Here we go, again. James Cameron's third film in the series, the Na'vi encounter fire-wielding clans, expanding the rich world of Pandora.

Director: James Cameron (Avatar, Titanic)
Actors: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver

Blue Moon
A biopic of the later days of songwriter Lorenz Hart.

Director: Richard Linklater (Boyhood, Dazed and Confused, the Before trilogy)
Actors: Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley (The Substance) and Andrew Scott (1917, Fleabag, All of Us Strangers)

Deliver Me From Nowhere

A music bio about early eighties Bruce Springsteen, who recorded his album Nebraska on a four-track cassette in his bedroom in New Jersey.

Director: Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart)
Actors: Jeremy Allen White (The Bear) as the Boss, Jeremy Strong (The Apprentice) as Jon Landau

Frankenstein

A modern adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic, shot in Edinburgh.

Director: Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water)

Actors: Christolph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained), Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis, Star Wars) as Dr. Frankenstein, Jacob Elordi (Saltburn) as the Monster, and Mia Goth (Emma)

The Bride
Which will be better? There's also the retelling of the Bride of Frankenstein, also adapted from Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein.

Director Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Lost Daughter)
Actors: Jessie Buckley (Wicked Little Letters), Christian Bale, Penélope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard and Annette Bening

Hamnet

From the popular novel, a historical drama that explores the life of Anne Hathaway and her grief following the death of her son, Hamnet, whose death is believed to have inspired William Shakespeare's play Hamlet.

Director: Chloé Zhao (Nomadland)
Actors: Florence Pugh (Oppenheimer Little Women), Paul Mescal (Normal People, Aftersun, Gladiator II), Tom Burke (Living)

Highest To Lowest

A reimagining of Akira Kurosawa's High and Low, this crime thriller follows a businessman whose son is kidnapped, only for the kidnapper to demand a ransom that isn't what it seems.

Director: Spike Lee (BlacKkKlansman, Do The Right Thing)
Actors: Denzel Washington, Michael B. Jordan

Is This Thing On?

Alex and Tess have reached an amicable end to their marriage, thus beginning the awkward stage of figuring out how to live separately while raising two boys and maintaining their friendships

Director: Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born, Maestro)
Actors: Laura Dern, Bradley Cooper, Will Arnett, Sean Hayes, Andra Day

Jay Kelly

Get ready for the serious-actor Adam Sandler press tour! A coming of age movie written by Noah Baumback (Barbie, Frances Ha) and Emily Mortimer (Paddington in Peru)

Director: Noah Baumback
Actors: George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, Riley Keough (Zola), Billy Crudup (Almost Famous)

Kind of Kindness

The next dark comedy from Yorgos Lanthimos (Poor Things, The Favourite, The Lobster)

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos 
Actors: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Jesse Plemons, Margaret Qualley (The Substance)

The Lost Bus

American drama film directed by Paul Greengrass, who co-wrote the screenplay with Brad Ingelsby, based on the 2021 book Paradise: One Town's Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire — produced by Oscar-rally-queen Jamie Lee Curtis.

Director: Paul Greengrass (The Bourne films)
Actors: Matthew McConaughey, America Ferrera

Marty Supreme

A professional table tennis player navigates the cutthroat world of competitive sports, drawing inspiration from Marty Reisman's life.

Director: Josh Safdie (Uncut Gems)
Actors: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Tyler, The Creator

One Battle After Another

A series of battles, following soldiers who struggle to retain their humanity amidst the chaos of conflict. Anderson's first film to be released in IMAX.


Director: Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood, Phantom Thread, Magnolia, Boogie Nights)
Actors: Leonardo DiCaprio, Regina Hall, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro.

Sentimental Value

A young woman in her late twenties faces the crossroads of life and love, while trying to balance her own ambitions with the weight of her family's history.


Director: Joachim Trier, (The Worst Person in the World)
Actors: Elle Fanning (A Complete Unknown) Stellan Skargargd (Dune, Andor), Renate Reinsve (The Worst Person in the World)

The Ballad of a Small Player

A psychological thriller, where a gambler and a con artist flee Britain for Macau.

Director: Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front)
Actors: Tilda Swinton, Colin Farrell

The History of Sound

Two men travel together in the summer of 1919 to record the folk songs of their countrymen in rural New England. 

Director: Oliver Hermanus (Living, Queer)
Actors: Paul Mescal (Normal People, Aftersun, Gladiator II), Josh O' Connor (Challengers, The Crown)

The Way of the Wind

Premiering at the Cannes Film Festival in May, provided the six-year-in-the-making film is completed, is Terrence Malick's biblical epic. A bomb or a masterpiece? We'll find out soon.

Director: Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life, Badlands)
Top Stars: Ben Kingsley, Mark Rylance, Joseph Fiennes

Wicked: For Good

Sound familiar? Witch, please! Part two of the musical adaptation of the Broadway show, exploring the untold story of the witches of Oz. This time, there will be original songs.

Director: Jon M. Chu, (Wicked, Crazy Rich Asians)
Top Stars: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo