This time of year means it’s Awards season, and one of the things I look forward to every year is seeing the Academy’s Best Picture nominee lineup. Some selections are no-brainers, while some are surprising underdogs.
I watched all of this year’s nominees for Best Picture, and I’ve composed my thoughts on all of them, so you can decide which ones sound worth the watch!
- One Battle After Another
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This year’s Best Picture winner—deserved or not?
While Paul Thomas Anderson’s latest movie, One Battle After Another, was undeniably well-made, with great cinematography, acting, and a compelling plot, there were certain aspects I just couldn’t overlook.
It’s a movie that pokes fun at both the right- and left-wing ends of the political spectrum in a way I found in poor taste, given our current political climate. I also found that the movie’s portrayal of its Black female characters leaned far too much into stereotyping and wasn’t developed properly. On top of everything else, it simply felt like a slightly cliché action movie that I’ve already seen before.
All that being said, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Chase Infiniti, Benicio del Toro, and Teyana Taylor were all phenomenal in their roles, so hats off to them.
- Sinners
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Sinners took the 2025 film world by storm—and rightfully so.
A modern and extremely innovative vampire story dealing with themes of race, colonialism, cultural appropriation, spirituality, and music as a source of healing. It’s unlike any other film I’ve ever seen.
This is a movie that beautifully embraces the visual and auditory medium. The music and that one specific scene, where music of the past and the present is brought together as a source of resilience and joy, gave me full-body chills in the theatre!
While it didn’t win, Sinners was my personal pick for Best Picture. But shoutout to lead actor Michael B. Jordan, who took home Best Actor!
- Frankenstein
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A modern take on a beloved classic—and it did not disappoint. As an established fan of director Guillermo del Toro’s other work, like Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), The Shape of Water (2017), and Hellboy (2004), and a massive fan of the 1818 Gothic novel by Mary Shelley, Frankenstein was one of my most anticipated 2025 movie releases. And I’m happy to say that, for me, it lived up to the anticipation and hype. The costume design was magnificent, the acting was great (I was particularly impressed by Jacob Elordi’s performance as The Creature), and the script and dialogue were so beautiful that I was genuinely floored. My only gripe is how male-centred this adaptation is; a lot of it boils down to daddy issues. Considering the original novel was written by a woman (and an 18-year-old at that), I’d love to see a female-written Frankenstein adaptation one day.
- Marty Supreme
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Where do I even start with this one? One word: chaotic.
Undeniably incredibly well-acted (Timmy Tim will win that Oscar one day) and widely entertaining, Marty Supreme’s star-studded cast—Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Tyler, the Creator—will thrill and exhilarate you from start to finish.
However, I had issues with the pacing and the various side plots that never seemed fully resolved. I felt like this movie was going on for too long, but at the same time, like there’s no way this story can end anytime soon.
While it didn’t take home any Oscars, the Academy Award for the most insane title card sequence I’ve ever seen in my life definitely goes to Marty Supreme! (If you know, you know).
- Sentimental Value
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Slow, tender, cerebral, and, yes, sentimental.
An introspective exploration of complex and nuanced family relationships and notions of home, Sentimental Value is one of those quiet, unassuming movies that sneaks up on you emotionally and leaves a soft gut punch.
It’s a poignant dive into the relationships between two sisters and their estranged father. Though I left the film wishing there was more focus on the two sisters rather than such emphasis on the father. Additionally, the film’s decision to centre the house itself and personify it to the point that it almost became a character in and of itself was particularly brilliant.
This is definitely a film to watch if you’re in the mood for something slow and thought-provoking with soft, beautiful cinematography.
- F1
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As someone who doesn’t follow F1 or know anything about it, I had a blast watching F1!
I’m not sure if anyone expected this summer blockbuster to be nominated this year, but I was very pleasantly surprised by my viewing experience.
The cinematography in the race scenes was phenomenal, and the movie does a great job at holding tension. My heart was racing for the last 45 minutes of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
While the film is a bit predictable at times and probably could have been half an hour shorter, it’s the most adrenaline-packed film of the lineup and an overall fun time.
- Bugonia
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Unfortunately, my least favourite film of the 2025 Best Picture lineup.
Bugonia follows two conspiracy-obsessed men who kidnap a high-profile CEO because they believe her to be an alien who is planning on destroying Earth. An interesting premise that held a lot of potential but failed to deliver. While it had some interesting commentary on the exploitation of the environment and modern society, it was an unpleasant viewing experience for me.
What ultimately stained my watching experience was the extreme emphasis placed on depictions of the two men torturing Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone), the presumed alien. I simply couldn’t overlook how a woman’s body is exploited and abused as part of a commentary on how nature is exploited and abused without realizing the unintentional irony of it all. Adding to this, I found the twist at the end extremely unsatisfying and unnecessary, as it felt to me like it undercut so much of what the movie had already set up for the viewer.
I hated Poor Things (2023), too, for similar reasons, so maybe Yorgos Lanthimos’ work simply isn’t for me.
- Hamnet
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This one will make you bawl your eyes out—and you’ll love every second of it.
Hamnet follows the story of William Shakespeare’s family from the perspective of his wife, Agnes. It’s one of the most touching and beautiful explorations of family and love I’ve watched recently. But be warned, it gets heavy.
I am unashamed to say I cried hard in my movie theatre seat. The performances were all so moving, and I was so unbelievably happy to see lead actress Jessie Buckley (Agnes) take home the Best Actress award.
Without a doubt, Hamnet is tied with Sinners for my favourite movie of the lineup, and one of my overall favourite 2025 movie releases.
- Train Dreams
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Probably the most underrated film in the Best Picture lineup, Train Dreams is ultimately the story of a life through all its joys and sorrows—specifically, the story of a man named Robert Grainier in early 20th-century America. I don’t remember the last time I felt so intensely for a cast of characters. I spent the entire film desperately rooting for Robert and his family to get the quiet, peaceful life they wanted so badly, which the era of industrialization and modernity was preventing them from having. This movie will have you grinning so hard your cheeks hurt one moment, then crying your eyes out in another. Train Dreams deserves so much more attention than it was given.
- The Secret Agent
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The Secret Agent is one of those movies that simply demands a rewatch.
One of two international films nominated for Best Picture, this movie takes place amid political turmoil in 1977 Brazil. It follows Marcelo, a man fleeing a mysterious past and seeking help from the underground resistance and his family.
It’s got a Wes Anderson-level of beautiful colour grading and an extremely unique and fascinating score, which I’m always a sucker for. Not to mention the compelling, tense, and occasionally surreal plot, the striking commentary on corruption, and the way capitalism suffocates academia and the earnest pursuit of knowledge.
I was already a fan of international cinema, but The Secret Agent made me realize that I definitely need to consume much more of it.