I see a lot of movies in my local theater. This week, I’ve hit my own personal annual goal of seeing at least 100 movies on the big screen each year (for those curious, the 100th movie was “Blue Moon”). Seeing dozens upon dozens of movies in the cinema gives me a pretty good idea of the best and worst new releases of 2025, but it also means I watch many high-quality films at the multiplex that ultimately don’t get the attention they deserve.
Sometimes it’s a case of poor release timing, launching in the shadow of a blockbuster that sucks up all the attention, or maybe it’s just a result of a core premise that’s quite hard to sell to the general audience. For whatever reason, as is the norm, over the past 11 months, plenty of excellent movies have landed in theatres and struggled to generate very much interest.
So, to help shine a spotlight on some of 2025’s hidden gems, here are the best movies I’ve seen on the big screen this year that you (probably) skipped but really should watch right now.
Best movies of 2025 you (probably) missed
‘Black Bag’
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“Black Bag” is a frustrating example of how the cinema landscape has changed over the past decade and a half. 15 years ago, this gripping spy thriller could have been a modest earner and probably a huge hit on DVD, but in today’s landscape, it struggled to break even. Few movies released in 2025 deserved that fate less than “Black Bag.” Steven Soderbergh crafted an excellent little thriller that may be small in scale (there are no blockbuster shootouts or tense infiltration scenes here), but easily holds your attention with a sharp screenplay and great performances from the whole cast.
George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) is a well-regarded officer in the British national security division. Renowned for his ability to read people, he finds himself caught between his marriage and his professional loyalty when his beloved wife (Cate Blanchett) is suspected of being a double agent. With other agents also caught in the crossfire, “Black Bag” invites you to play detective as you attempt to figure out who is lying. It also runs a tight 94 minutes, which helps it to maintain narrative momentum throughout.
Watch “Black Bag” on Prime Video now
‘Caught Stealing’
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Director Darren Aronofsky is on a hot streak that stretches all the way back to 2008 (yes, I’m including 2017’s highly controversial “Mother!” I’m a fan). That run continued this year with the excellent “Caught Stealing,” a crime thriller that feels ripped straight out of the early 2000s, in the best way possible. Balancing its twisting story with dark humor and throwing realism out the window in favor of a good time, it’s a 2025 gem, and certainly deserved more attention than it received upon release in theatres.
Based on the novel by Charlie Huston (Who adapts his own work here), Austin Butler plays Hank Thompson, a former baseball prodigy whose promising career in pro sport was ruined by a drunken car crash. Now an alcoholic bartender in New York, he gets mixed up in the seedy underbelly of the city’s criminal scene when his neighbor (Matt Smith) asks him to pet-sit his cat, and things go south from there. Also starring Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio, “Caught Stealing” quickly puts its foot to the floor and speeds towards a supremely satisfying conclusion.
Watch “Caught Stealing” on Prime Video (with purchase) now
‘Bring Her Back’
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2025 has been a fantastic year for original horror with both “Sinners” and “Weapons” getting their much-deserved flowers (both feature in my top 10 best of 2025). Nevertheless, I was a little disappointed that “Bring Her Back” didn’t enjoy a similar moment in the spotlight because it was worthy of more recognition. The second feature from “Talk to Me” directors Danny and Michael Philippou, this deeply unsettling horror has some of the year’s most visceral and memorable moments, and also the best performance in the horror genre since Toni Collette in “Hereditary,” courtesy of Sally Hawkins.
“Bring Her Back” centers on two step-siblings who are placed in the care of a woman named Laura (Hawkins) after the death of their father. From the moment they arrive at Laura’s home, the older sibling, Andy (Billy Barratt), senses that something isn’t quite right, and trust me, he should have listened to that instinct as things get very disturbing. Stuffed with haunting imagery and respectful enough of its viewers to trust them to figure out the finer details themselves, “Bring Her Back” proves that “Talk to Me” was no fluke.
Watch “Bring Her Back” on HBO Max now
‘Relay’
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I caught “Relay” as part of a double-bill alongside “Bugonia.” I was significantly more interested in Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone’s latest collaboration, but much to my surprise, it’s “Relay” that ultimately ranks higher in my best movies of 2025 list. This criminally underseen thriller stars Riz Ahmed and Lily James, and combines narrative smarts with masterfully executed set pieces. It’s a movie that offers so much more than cheap thrills.
Ahmed plays a fixer who brokers agreements between powerful corporations and whistleblowers. James plays a woman who hires the fixer’s unique services after taking incriminating documents from her employer. The fixer follows a careful set of rules to maintain his own anonymity and ensure he never gets too close to a client, but of course, in his case, he foolishly starts breaking them, and things spiral out of control.
“Relay” thrives on the same sense of meticulous detail that you normally find in the heist genre. And while some criticized the big swing in the third act, I found myself utterly riveted from start to finish.
Watch “Relay” on Prime Video (with purchase) now
‘The Ballad of Wallis Island’
![THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 28 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HTi-e20yVNs/maxresdefault.jpg)
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Most of my picks on this list are pretty dark, full of (fake) blood, criminal deeds and even outright demonic entities, but to prove I do have a softer side as well, I submit “The Ballad of Wallis Island.” This British comedy-drama is the most feel-good flick I’ve seen on the big screen in 2025 to date, and having rewatched it now a couple of times to introduce it to loved ones, I’ve only come to appreciate it more. It’s definitely more bittersweet than a glossy rom-com, but that only makes its emotional heights hit harder. Plus, Brit Tim Key gives probably my favorite comedic performance of the year.
The movie sees a reclusive lottery winner (Key) living alone on the remote Wallis Island use his winning to reunite his favorite musical act, folk duo McGwyer Mortimer, for a one-off special performance. The problem is that Herb McGwyer (Tom Basden) and Nell Mortimer (Carey Mulligan) did not end on good terms, and when they come together in this secluded setting, old tensions surface. Perhaps most impressively, while I’m not a folk music aficionado, I found the original tunes included struck the perfect chord.
Watch “The Ballad of Wallis Island” on Prime Video now
‘Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc’
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It’s perhaps a little odd to include a movie that’s grossed $175M at the global box office in a roundup of films that have been overlooked in 2025. But the reason I felt compelled to feature “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” in this list is simple: I very nearly skipped it. As I was unfamiliar with the anime TV show that the movie follows, I assumed I’d be too lost, but I understood the events of this feature-length “Chainsaw Man” adventure pretty well (though I would recommend binge-watching the first season if you can).
I’m super glad I took the chance on “Chainsaw Man” because what I got in return was probably the most adrenaline-fueled action movie I’ve seen all year. This anime goes completely off the rails in the best way possible, with a third act that is just non-stop carnage. But even better, “Reze Arc” spends its first half making you actually care about its characters and getting invested in the relationship between Denji and Reze, which makes the chaos to come all the more narratively impactful. Consider me a “Chainsaw Man” convert.
Watch “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” in theatres now
‘Anemone’
![ANEMONE - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters October 3 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HVqoyMi98OI/maxresdefault.jpg)
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“Anemone” has taken a beating from critics, scoring just 54% on Rotten Tomatoes, which ranks among the lowest of Daniel Day-Lewis’ career. Perhaps not the reception he was hoping for on his return to acting after an eight-year break. But I’m happy to go against the grain and recommend this absorbing psychological drama. Directed by Ronan Day-Lewis (Daniel’s son), it’s a tender and well-considered movie that says as much during the many lengthy dialogue pauses as it does in its frequent dramatic monologues.
Also starring Sean Bean, it sees a man set out into the wilderness to locate his estranged brother in an effort to convince him to come home and set his wayward son straight. It’s a simple concept, and “Anemone” never really seeks to move beyond the core setup. This isn’t a drama full of shocking reveals; instead, it’s all about the dynamic between two very different brothers, and how past traumas can manifest in a myriad of ways. And look, it stars Daniel Day-Lewis, who can elevate any movie because he’s simply mesmerizing to watch, and that’s reason enough to watch “Anemone.”
Watch “Anemone” on Prime Video (with purchase) now
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