Best Films of 2025

8 months into 2026, I am finally ready to publish my Best Films list of 2025. The delay is due to waiting to see as many relevant films from the past year. Now, unlike previous years, many of the big Cannes 2025 films were released in cinemas less than a year after their Cannes premiere. Films such as It Was Just an Accident, The Secret Agent, No Other Choice, Sentimental Value were all released in a cinema in fall of 2025 (in a multiplex no less) while Sirat and Resurrection were released by March-April 2026. This was a huge positive move from previous years due to all these films distribution held by Neon, Mubi and Janus Films. Neon’s incredible race to buy all worthy Cannes films is certainly helping get many Cannes films in Cinema in good time but it also re-emphasizes that struggling distribution market where a few distributors are locked in a fight with each other for the limited few foreign cinema titles, much like the topic of No Other Choice. The limited foreign titles playing in North America cinemas in 2025 also meant that the same few films were in almost every end of the year list.

There are still quite a few 2025 titles I need to see such as What Does That Nature Say to you or Dry Leaf, both of whose North American distribution rights are held by Cinema Guild and none of these films played in a cinema close to me. I might still get a chance to see these films in 2026 or for sure by 2027 at least. In the meantime, it is time to publish this list and move on to trying to see 2026 films!

Best Films of 2025

1. Our Land (Nuestra Tierra, Argentina co-production, Lucrecia Martel)

This remarkable documentary feels like a natural historical progression to Zama. Our Land (formerly called Landscapes) is about a specific instance of land grab and killing in our current world but issues related to land disputes can be drawn back to Spanish colonial times (Zama) which featured racist treatment of locals, their displacement/killing and annexation of land. Centuries haven’t erased these racial and colonist attitudes and they are instead found under different labels: modernization, land rights, progress, jobs. Martel’s film highlights that the onus is on indigenous people to constantly fight for their rights. Similar stories exist all over the world.

2. Blue Heron (Canada/Hungary, Sophy Romvari)

Beautiful and devastating at the same time. The comparisons with Aftersun are appropriate but both films are different in how they highlight the parent-child dynamic. The core sentiment joining both films is that parents and kids struggle in their own way and even though each tries to shelter the other from their personal battles, both must live with the consequences.

3. Cactus Pears (Sabar Bonda, India/UK/Canada, Rohan Kanawade)

It is impressive to see such a film being made in current India where censorship is reaching new lows. The film depicts the struggle to exert one’s identity when surrounded by decades of rituals, cultural and societal expectations.

4. My Father’s Shadow (UK/Nigeria, Ireland, Akinola Davies)

Another beautiful parent-child film in this list. Lovely usage of children’s perspective which doesn’t spell everything out and ensures one can fill in the blanks. 

5.  Sirat (Spain/France, Oliver Laxe)

6.  Materialists (US/Finland/UK, Celine Song)

When the trailer first appeared for this film, it felt this film was going to be like Past Lives with a woman torn between two men. Even though that aspect of the film is true (1 women, 2 men), the film is completely different from Past Lives which is an emotional romantic film. Materialists, befitting its title, breaks down a relationship into a set of transactions that each couple does, consciously or unconsciously. A highly relevant and worthy film!

7.  One Battle After Another (US, Paul Thomas Anderson)

8. The Secret Agent (Brazil co-production, Kleber Mendonça Filho)

9.  It Was Just an Accident (Iran/France/Luxembourg, Jafar Panahi)

10.  Homebound (India, Neeraj Ghaywan)

Based on a real-life incident, the film manages to cover a lot of ground. The film uses the pandemic as a background to shed a light on class differences that still exist in India and how that impacts jobs, careers and has a knock-on effect on urban-rural issues.

Honourable mentions:

Urchin (UK/US, Harris Dickinson)

Any British film depicting struggles of people on fringes of society immediately makes one think of Ken Loach but it becomes clear very soon that Urchin is a different film altogether. The shots of forest and nature recalled Tom Geens’ Couple in a Hole and aspects of early Ben Wheatley.

Kontinental ’25 (Romania co-production, Radu Jude)

Radu Jude has found an incredible rhythm by alternating his releases by having a contemplative film followed by a film that pushes boundaries (such as 2025’s Dracula) or vice-versa. Kontinental ’25 is more compact, coherent and overall far more completive than Dracula and covers plenty of insightful historical-cultural elements of Hungary-Romania plus a commentary on changing face of Europe.

Two Prosecutors (Ukraine co-production, Sergey Loznitsa)

Packs a silent punch. The setting is 1937 but the core story is still relevant in our current times.

Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (Canada, Matt Johnson)

The film answers the question that we didn’t know existed. What if Back to the Future was recreated as a Canadian film? This film is that creative and energetic answer.

Rose of Nevada (UK, Mark Jenkin)

Mark Jenkin offers his own unique creative take on a sci-fi genre. Best seen without reading anything about story.

The Things You Kill (Turkey/France/Poland/Canada, Alireza Khatami)

The film pulls off such an incredible trick that if one suspends their belief, one can appreciate the film. However, if one doesn’t want to go with the slight of hand, then the film will not work. Interestingly, the knock on the door at the end of the film echoes the footsteps at the end of It was Just an Accident.

The Blue Trail (Brazil/Mexico/Netherlands/Chile, Gabriel Mascaro)

Quite different from Gabriel Mascaro’s previous film, The Blue Trail is an imaginative take on a futuristic dystopian genre spliced with a road journey film even though there are no roads traveled in this film but merely rivers.

No Other Choice (South Korea/France, Park Chan-wook)

Only including this film on the list specifically for the ending, which anticipates how our current world will be shaped AI and how that turns an ultra-competitive job market into an even more ruthless effort. The film feels like a natural successor to Parasite in showing how the next stage of capitalism is impacting our society and leaving people at the middle and bottom fighting for tinier scraps in the form of jobs.

Greek Mythology Films

Spotlight on Greek Mythology films:

The Giants of Thessaly (1960, Italy/France, Riccardo Freda)

Jason and the Argonauts (1963, US/UK, Don Chaffey)

Troy (2004, UK/Malta/Bulgaria/US, Wolfgang Petersen)

300 (2006, US/Canada/Bulgaria, Zack Snyder)

Immortals (2011, Canada/US, Tarsem Singh)

The Return (2024, Italy/Greece/UK/France, Uberto Pasolini)

The Odyssey (2026, UK/US/Canada/New Zealand/Iceland, Christopher Nolan)

This is not a comprehensive look at all adaptations of Greek mythology movies but instead focusses on a few films based in Greece with some overlapping material. This criterion meant I opted to not include The Coen brothers’ O Brother, Where Are Thou? (2000) even though it is a very creative adaption of Homer’s The Odyssey but it is set in 1930s America.

Few common elements linking the various films:

1.  Odysseus and his journey

The Return and The Odyssey overlap the most as both follow the same core story although The Return, as indicated by the title, only focuses on Odysseus’ return and doesn’t focus on the journey itself. The final 30 min of Nolan’s film overlaps quite a bit with Pasolini’s movie. The difference comes down to dramatic depictions.

Troy overlaps in content with both The Return and The Odyssey as Odysseus features in the film and his journey is talked about. However, Troy is more about Achilles and Odysseus is a key character on the periphery and shown to be a mentor to Achilles.

2.  The Trojan war

The trojan horse and gruesome slaughter that follows unites both Troy and The Odyssey. The Return doesn’t show the Trojan war but the war is talked about, and its scars leave a deep impact on Odysseus like that shown in The Odyssey.

3.  Golden Fleece

The Giants of Thessaly and Jason and the Argonauts are closely linked as both films are about Jason’s pursuit of the Golden fleece.

4. Peril filled journeys: cyclops, sirens, Hydra, giant statues and the dead

Jason’s peril filed journey in both The Giants of Thessaly, Jason and the Argonauts overlaps with events depicted in The Odyssey as all three films show the main characters going from one adventure to another. The cyclops is featured in both The Giants of Thessaly and The Odyssey while the 1960 film also shows how Sirens convert men into animals but that man-animal transformation is shown vastly different in Nolan’s film. Jason features Hydra, gigantic bronze statue of Talos, skeleton crew while Nolan’s film shows dead soldiers but in a different form than the skeleton crew in Jason.

5. CGI enhanced war

300 and Immortals are about completely different events, The Spartans and the Battle of Thermopylae in the case of 300 and the story of Theseus, Hyperion, Olympians and the Titans in the latter. Yet, both films look the way they do thanks to a heavy dosage of CGI. Each film gets a completely digitally enhanced makeover which makes the visuals stand out. However, the difference in visuals and lighting gives clue to the director involved. 300 is an early Zack Snyder film and the darkly lit visuals in the film have been found in Snyder’s later films as well. Tarsem Singh has made visuals a cornerstone of his films from The Cell (2000) to The Fall (2006), so it isn’t a surprise that the visuals in Immortals look like paintings brought to life. The colour palette in Immortals isn’t eye-popping bright like Tarsem’s other films but the pop of colour stands out when used, such as the shining gold against white, grey or darker shades.

6. The Gods watch

Jason and the Argonauts and Immortals both feature the Gods watching over the humans and trying to not interfere in the humans’ war until certain threshold are crossed. In Jason, the Gods interfere to keep the journey going to amuse themselves (as per Zeus) while in Immortals, the Gods can only interfere once the Titans are released.

Immortals has a very creative way to show the Gods-human transformation and it works in the film’s visual context and is the only film in this Spotlight to feature such a transformation.

Ranking all films in order of preference:

These films highlight how a material changes depending on what character’s perspective is used. In the context of the material, there really aren’t any “good guys” to speak of. All the characters, no matter which kingdom or army they belong to, ruthlessly kill and slaughter their opponents without remorse. Some characters eventually show remorse with the passage of time and a personal tragedy. Even that remorse is a cinematic choice meant to depict a traditional narrative arc of a character’s growth. However, in each film, we are still given heroes to cheer for. That is commercial cinema in a nutshell which is where all these films fall under although The Return keeps its scope tight and isn’t a purely commercial film.

1. The Return (2024, Uberto Pasolini)

This film edges slightly to first place only due to its narrow scope. By focusing only on the actual return of Odysseus, the film feels more humanistic and away from myth territory. The emotions of the characters truly come across and a large part of that is due to the acting brilliance of Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche. It is a treat to see the two actors in a film again and this material is a long way from the days of The English Patient (1996) and Wuthering Heights (1992).

2. The Odyssey (2026, Christopher Nolan)

3. Troy (2004, Wolfgang Petersen)

 This film feels like a traditional Hollywood production, complete with action, romance, drama and plenty of emotion. This is the only film out of these 7 to stand-out due to the romantic element.

4. Immortals (2011, Tarsem Singh)

5. Jason and the Argonauts (1963, Don Chaffey)

This is a highly watchable film and still stands the test of time despite being released almost 6 decades ago (59 years).  The stop-motion animation used in the film by Ray Harryhausen is still a reference point in discussing evolution of visual effects in films.

6. The Giants of Thessaly (1960, Riccardo Freda)

The film freely mixes elements from various Greek myths including The Odyssey and is effective for its 1960 release date. This is also the first film out of these 7 to be released and was released three years before Jason and the Argonauts.

7. 300 (2006, Zack Snyder)

All style and no substance.

John Sayles' Independent Cinema

Spotlight on the films of John Sayles:

Return of the Secaucus Seven (1979)

The Brother from Another Planet (1984)

Matewan (1987)

Eight Men Out (1988)

Lone Star (1996)

Silver City (2004)

Honeydripper (2007)

The idea for this spotlight came after discovering that TIFF was doing a retrospective of John Sayles this past summer. Barry Hertz’s insightful interview highlighted that it has been 13 years since John Sayles last directed feature, Go for Sisters (2013). That is a long gap although Sayles has been busy in the meantime, working on his novels and screenplays. The interview does highlight the difficulty Sayles and his producer partner Maggie Renzi have had in getting funds to make a film. Although, the interview also highlights this isn’t a new problem:

"But though it once took Sayles and Renzi 11 years to watch their baseball drama Eight Men Out go from page to screen, the pair now finds themselves facing an even more patience-testing environment, where wait-and-see is the rule, not the exception."

If the pair had a hard time getting money back in the 1980s, then it shouldn't be a surprise they are struggling to get money now because movie making is a business now and independent cinema isn’t what it used to be. Commercial cinema is packed with sequels and streamers put money up for material driven by algorithms. In such an environment, an independent lone star like John Sayles would easily stick out.

Story driven cinema

John Sayles’ films are story driven works. That is understandable as he started his film career writing screenplays and he has 8 novels to his name along with 2 short story collections. Having a strong story also gives space for actors to shine and that is apparent in the 7 films as part of this spotlight. In fact, many famous actors got their break with John Sayles as David Strathairn made his debut in Sayles’ debut feature Return of the Secaucus Seven, Chris Cooper made his feature film debut in Matewan. Both collaborated with Sayles on subsequent features as well. Matthew McConaughey acted in Lone Star early in his career.

Spotlight on American Society

Watching John Sayles films in 2026 is a refreshing experience as it gives a glimpse into how films used to be made. They don’t make cinema like this anymore and unless something changes, it is hard to imagine such films being made again. Each film has a purpose, a story to tell and the characters feel real. The films showcase a slice of American society in a specific era and highlight cultural, social, political and economic situations that impacted the characters.

Eight Men Out looks at economic situations and attitudes in 1919 which led to eight (really seven) Chicago White Sox members to throw away the World Series.  

Matewan looks at the 1920s at a time with unions were starting to form and battle between coal companies and employees. 

Honeydripper captures the blues era of 1950s Alabama. 

Lone Star is a neo-Western film that is set in 1990s Texas but also sheds light on how things were back in the 1950-60s via flashbacks. Sadly, many of the attitudes and racism that existed decades ago can still be found in our contemporary world. 

Return of the Secaucus Seven looks at how promising dreams and hopes of 1960-70s US leads to more sober reflections in the 1980s. 

The Brother from Another Planet is a playful sci-fi film that gives a snapshot of changing attitudes and cultural trends in 1980s, including omnipresent arcades games. 

Silver City captures the absurd stupidity of post George W. Bush America in early 2000s where being a stupid politician had no impact on one’s chances to get elected (that stupidity seems nostalgic in our current idiotic political times).

Ranking all 7 features in order of preference:

1.  Matewan (1987)

2.  Eight Men Out (1988)

3.  Return of the Secaucus Seven (1979)

4.  The Brother from Another Planet (1984)

5.  Silver City (2004)

6.  Lone Star (1996) 

7.  Honeydripper (2007)

Jean-Marie Téno's Essential Cinema

Spotlight on the films of Jean-Marie Téno:

Africa, I will fleece You (1992)

Clando (1996)

Chief! (1999)

A Trip to the Country (2000)

Alex’s Wedding (2002)

The Colonial Misunderstanding (2004)

Sacred Places (2009)

Leaf in the Wind (2013)

Cameroon didn’t qualify for the 2026 World Cup (Cape Verde knocked them out) but it was their presence at an earlier World Cup that allowed me to view a film by Jean-Marie Téno. For the 2010 Soccer Film World Cup, I selected Jean-Marie Téno’s A Trip to the Country, an insightful look into some of the economic hurdles that Cameroon faced. That single film was such a memorable experience that I wanted to view more films from Téno and that chance duly arrived when I discovered multiple films of his were available on Kanopy resulting in this spotlight.

Documenting Cameroon

Jean-Marie Téno’s films are a revelation and offer an insightful look at Cameroonian society. His documentary films can be classified as essay films or long form journalistic examinations of cultural, economic, social, political problems facing Cameroon. This documentation of Cameroonian society is both at a micro and macro level and explores historical events that have led to the contemporary state of things.

Téno’s style is a contrast to that of Patricio Guzmán who has documented Chilean society but in a different manner. In Guzmán’s case, he first documented events as they unfolded  in a realistic manner (The Battle of Chile) and later in his career, his documentary films took on a contemplative poetic approach (Nostalgia for the Light, The Pearl Button, The Cordillera of Dreams) where Guzmán used real-life footage of locations to ponder on how Chilean society has changed. In contrast, Jean-Marie Téno’s films do not have a vérité style nor are they distant contemplations. Téno does ponder on events but only after interviewing people and one can hear questions directed to people on camera which indicates that Téno is probing his subjects for a specific answer. This style ensures that Téno is part of the filming process and isn’t distanced from events. As Téno digs for answers, the audience are part of that process as well, observing and listening and coming to realizations in a similar manner to that of Téno.

Examination of the Past

Africa, I will fleece You looks at how colonialism and imperialism impacted Cameroon and played a direct part in current economic, cultural, social, political problems. As the film shows, past looting of wealth still impacts the present where many young people are unaware of Cameroon’s history or the cultural power of past societies. The film is specific to Cameroon but it is easy to see how other African countries would have been impacted in a similar manner.

The Colonial Misunderstanding presents a new entry point in examination of how past colonial powers depleted the local society. The film looks at the role of German missionaries in aiding the destruction of local customs, cultures and religious beliefs. There are elements that Téno uncovers which are rarely talked about in Western society even today.

Leaf in the Wind uses a personal lens to examine colonial, post-colonial and revolutionary history of Cameroon. In the film, we meet Ernestine who is the daughter of Ernest Ouandie, a freedom fighter who was executed in 1971 by Cameroonian authorities. Ernestine never met her father, and the film shows the impact of trauma on family members who are left to cope in the absence of a proper family support system. Of all the films in this spotlight, this one packs the heaviest emotional punch given the multiple tragedies documented in the film.

Societal and Cultural ways

Chief! draws a direct line from past colonial rule to current authoritative rulers whose decisions impact the lives of citizens and what freedoms they can enjoy. The film also highlights how systems function and break apart, opening the door for corruption to take hold in society.

As the title indicates, Alex’s Wedding has a specific focus but Jean-Marie Téno is able to turn filming a friend’s wedding into an examination of what cultural norms are allowed in society. The film depicts Alex’s second wedding. Even though Polygamy is not accepted by the church, it is tolerated by Cameroonian law. The film shows how such ceremonies are performed at home and how the wedding and festivities are conducted.

Cinema and film distribution

Sacred places is a remarkable film that sheds a closer look on local cinema and literature. The film depicts local film clubs which screen films for an audience. The films which are screened are either foreign films or sometimes films by local directors, which are pirated because there is no official distribution for those films in Africa. In this regard, the film illustrates the broken state of film distribution in Africa: films made by Africans may be screened at international film festivals but there is no way for them to be screened locally. Lack of local cinemas and no marketing of such local African films means that people aren’t aware of what works their fellow countrymen are making. This problem of film distribution is true of Africa but this can apply to many other nations across Asia, South America and Eastern Europe whose local filmmakers often find more success at foreign film festival screenings. As per the film, there is one difference specific to the African setting which is the cine club or film gathering at a communal social space for people to experience cinema. The cine club doubles more than a cinema and is a combination of distribution, film programming, production, curation at a micro-level. Throughout history of Cinephilia, many film movements started off as cine clubs across Europe and Asia. The cine clubs were gradually replaced by arthouse cinemas in those other nations while that option is not a reality for many African countries.

Agriculture, infrastructure challenges

In A Trip to the Country Jean-Marie Téno travels from the capital Yaoundé to the Cameroonian countryside to highlight some concerns relevant to the local economy such as the decline in agriculture and lack of infrastructure and also examines attitudes related to the desire for westernization and emulation of the west. The film also depicts the infrastructural and organizational problems in African soccer. An example near the end can help one understand why in the past there have been dispute about bonuses with the Cameroonian soccer team before a World Cup. 

A Trip to the Country shows how a local soccer championship game is almost disrupted due to money issues. As narrated in the film, all local teams had to pay increased registration fees to enter a tournament where the winner would get a trophy and prize money. However, moments before the final's kick-off, the finalists are informed there is no trophy nor any prize money. The players are not happy but are told by the officials to play.

A Trip to the Country, courtesy Jean-Marie Téno productions

When the game eventually starts, the players have to play on a terrible pitch with the ball occasionally getting lost in the tall grass.

A Trip to the Country, courtesy Jean-Marie Téno productions

If organizational and infrastructure problems can plague the national team, then it is not surprizing to see these problems taking place at the root level of the game. Although such problems are not confined just to Cameroon but inflict many other African nations as well, thereby making it hard for an African team to mount a serious World cup challenge.

Emigration and problems in a foreign society

Clando is the only fictional film in this spotlight although the events covered in the film ooze with reality. Given that Jean-Marie Téno’s remaining films document societal problems, Clando shows a character who decides to leave all those problems behind for a better life in Europe (Germany in the film’s case). However, as is depicted in countless other films and stories, Clando portrays that a foreign life isn’t easy and comes with its own challenges. The film showcases the constant tug that migrants face in a foreign land and the lure to return home with new ideas to change society for the better. History is packed with many cases where those returning exiles either led to a revolution or their efforts ended in disappointment and frustration.

Conclusion

Jean-Marie Téno is an essential voice in documenting African history and examining the impacts of colonial rule on Africa. These 8 films offer a valuable insight into Cameroonian society but the topics in the film can easily apply to many nations across Africa, Asia and South America who are still feeling the impact of past colonial rules in their everyday lives.

Stanley Kubrick's Cinema

Feature Films of Stanley Kubrick:

Fear and Desire (1952)

Killer’s Kiss (1955)

The Killing (1957)

Paths of Glory (1958)

Spartacus (1960)

Lolita (1962)

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Barry Lyndon (1975)

The Shining (1980)

Full Metal Jacket (1987)

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Stanley Kubrick directed 13 feature films over his career with the 1950s and 1960s being the most prolific decade with 4 films each decade:

1950s: Fear and Desire (1952), Killer’s Kiss (1955), The Killing (1957), Paths of Glory (1958)

1960s: Spartacus (1960), Lolita (1962), Dr. Strangelove (1964), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

The 1970s and 1980s each brought 2 films per decade: A Clockwork Orange (1971), Barry Lyndon (1975), The Shining (1980), Full Metal Jacket (1987).

And then there was the final film, Eyes Wide Shut, released in the summer of 1999, a few months after Kubrick passed away at the age of 70.

1950s: War and Noir

The 1950s are book-ended by two War films and two Noir films in the middle. This pattern makes sense as the end of WWII meant that War films started emerging in 1950s while Noir was still kicking around in the 1950s following their emergence in 1940s. However, neither of the two war films are conventional ones, although budget played a part in one of the film’s decisions.

Kubrick’s debut feature Fear and Desire is a war film set in an unnamed country. The film shows four soldiers navigating a forest after their plane is shot down. It is very clear from the outset that the forest isn’t in Europe or Latin America but it is a park in USA. Clearly, budget played a part in that decision. The location impacts believability of events although not for lack of effort on the part of Kubrick and the film crew. It is clear the film is made by someone who has a keen understanding of cinema techniques from the variety of camera angles (close-ups when needed) and the usage of music to heighten emotions.

Killer’s Kiss, The Killing and Paths of Glory are technically miles ahead of Fear and Desire and depict what a talented director can do with more production budget and better script. Incredibly, all 3 films were released over a 6-year period following Kubrick’s debut feature. Killer’s Kiss and The Killing are solid noir films enhanced with some brilliant technical flourishes. One of the best sequences in Killer’s Kiss is the boxing fight sequence which has some creative camera angles. This sequence has shots that build on Kubrick’s work from his documentary short Day of Fight (1951). The documentary showed the prep that goes before a fight and features a shot that depicts the other boxer via the legs of his opponent. This same shot is incorporated in Killer’s Kiss which also shows realism in the fight sequence. The black and white boxing ring fight scenes are a precursor to those incredible images in Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull (1980). Both noir films also feature voice-over narration by the main character, an aspect that was found in Kubrick’s first two documentary shorts (Day of Fight, Flying Padre).

Paths of Glory highlights Kubrick’s progress as a director and can still be rightly considered as one of the best war films made. Or anti-war movie to be exact. The film shows the egos, rules and regulations, hierarchy of the military and is a perfect illustration of the phrase “power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely”. Paths of Glory depicts events that unfold when an egoistical general puts the lives of his soldiers at risk by sending them on a suicide mission. Not all the soldiers comply, and the loyal Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas) defends his men in a court-martial trial. There are some realistic war trenches scenes, but the power of the film is from sequences which question blind orders.

1960s: New genres explored

The 1960s showed a different side to Kubrick’s craft and this decade resulted in two of his best films ever made. Although, the decade started out with a historical epic film with Spartacus (1960), Kubrick then tackled the hot potato of Lolita (1962), a film which showed the dark comedic hand of Kubrick for the first time. Next, he followed up with the brilliantly savage Dr. Strangelove (1964) which combined elements of war, satire, dark comedy in a remarkable manner. The decade ended with his first sci-fi film, 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), which is still one of the greatest sci-fi films of all time.

1970s-1990s: Sci-fi, Drama, Horror, War, Thriller

The next 3 decades only resulted in just 5 films but all 5 are stellar works and images from these films have become cultural points of reference.

Think of all the memes from A Clockwork Orange (1971), The Shining (1980), Full Metal Jacket (1987) that have permeated many other cinematic, TV and works of popular culture. Barry Lyndon (1975) is often cited as a classic must-see film that pops up in many best films list while Eyes Wide Shut (1999) is a film that finally seems to be getting the appreciation long after its release.

Ranking all Features in order of preference:

1. Dr. Strangelove (1964)

2. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

3. Paths of Glory (1958)

4. The Shining (1980)

5. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

6. A Clockwork Orange (1971)

7. Barry Lyndon (1975)

8. The Killing (1957)

9. Full Metal Jacket (1987)

10. Spartacus (1960)

11. Lolita (1962)

12. Killer’s Kiss (1955)

13. Fear and Desire (1952)

Michel Franco’s Memory and Dreams

A double bill of Michel Franco’s two recent films:

Memory (2023)

Dreams (2025)

This two-film spotlight follows another Franco double bill of New Order and Sundown from few years ago. In terms of theme, Dreams is closer aligned to those two films. New Order and Sundown were set in Mexico and depicted violence and class difference. That aspect of class difference is at the core of Dreams but the film also uses that aspect to further examine power dynamics of a relationship and illustrate a commentary on our world today. Dreams could easily be called “The Existing Order” or “Status Quo” to contrast it against the imagined New Order.

Dream carefully

In Dreams, Jennifer (Jessica Chastain) belongs to a wealthy family, the kind that highlights how they are using their wealth to better society via philanthropy including investments in the arts. As Jennifer’s father and brother spell out, it is ok to invest in the community but it is forbidden to have a relationship with those on the lower rungs of society, especially if someone comes from the other side of the border such as Fernando (Isaac Hernández). The forbidden love has been a staple of films from the earliest days (even Shakespeare depicted it) from Hollywood to Indian cinema. Franco isn’t interested in depicting just that kind of film. There are more thorny issues he wants to explore. One such example is Fernando’s illegal border crossing to visit Jennifer. Fernando is a talented ballet dancer and once he crosses the border, he wants to stay with Jennifer. So he goes about depicting his talents outside a ballet performance catching the eye of someone in charge of the San Francisco ballet company. Fernando gets his shot and he duly performs to earn his place. However, Fernando’s illegal status is a source of contention for some around him in the ballet institute and is also a threat of deportation, which does come into play. Fernando’s case isn’t unique here and Franco is using that example to shed a light on countless others in this situation, especially since he shows that the border crossings are fluid only in one direction while restrictive in the other.

The main item of discussion in Dreams has to do with benefits of class privilege which are on display throughout the film, subtle at first, but loud as the film progresses. Class difference governs the relationship between Jennifer and Fernando which is different behind closed walls and the outside world:  they behave as per societal norms when they are in front of others. When the two are alone, Jennifer is more than happy to relinquish all control to Fernando to do as he pleases with her. However, that control is illusionary. Fernando can be control as long as he follows the external rules. Once he breaks those, then the true face of Jennifer is shown. Dreams highlight that it is perfectly acceptable for those on the fringes of society to have dreams of a better life but they have to respect the unwritten rule of modern capitalist society and ensure their dreams don’t interfere with the plans of the wealthy. If someone meddles with the plans of the rich, like Fernando does, there will be consequences and the rich can just easily pick up and get back to their comfortable lives while leaving others to pick up the pieces. The film’s ending illustrates this aspect of our contemporary world perfectly.

Broken Memories

Memory (2023) was released 2 years before Dreams and also stars Jessica Chastain and examines a relationship. However, the relationship in Memory isn’t defined by wealth. It is instead decided by that other aspect which forms a critical aspect of social standing: mental wellbeing. People can be rich or poor but they are ultimately judged how they behave in society. In Memory, Saul (Peter Sarsgaard) is well off financially (not elite like characters in other Franco films but comfortable middle class) yet that doesn’t matter given his behaviour of sleeping outdoors, getting lost and disappearing from home. All these behaviours are put down to his dementia which causes his family, especially his brother, to be protective about Saul. That is why Saul’s brother is wary of Saul’s interactions with Sylvia (Jessica Chastain) especially how the two meet in the first place.

Late one night, Sylvia is aware of being followed by a man (Saul) after she leaves a high school reunion. She notices the man is outside her apartment late at night. The next morning, she finds him sleeping outside her apartment near the garbage bins. Her reaction to discover Saul the next morning is different from her reaction the night before when he was following her. The previous night she thought of him as a threat but the next morning, she clearly sees that he needs help. This is due to her job as a social worker where she deals with people discarded by society. That is why she doesn’t call the police on Saul but instead finds his ID and then goes about calling social officers to assist with Saul. After she learns about Saul’s dementia from her family, she continues to interact with Saul. At first, her interactions feel out of sympathy but it turns out there is another motive. Sylvia recognizes Saul as someone who sexually assaulted her in high school along with his friend. This memory of Sylvia is proven to be false by Sylvia’s sister who finds out that Saul attended the same high school a year after she left that school. This topic isn’t thrown in randomly but points to a past trauma which is further examined near the film’s end causing us to view Sylvia and her interaction with her family in a different light.

The relationship in Memory is between two broken people carrying their trauma and the film shows how their lives are shaped by their past. There is an element of family control depicted in the film as well, like Dreams. Memory and Dreams compliment each together to show how two people can find comfort in a relationship even though others, including their own families and society in general, don’t think the relationship is healthy.

Thorny items to ponder on

The four recently seen Michel Franco films, New Order, Sundown, Memory, Dreams, highlight that he doesn’t make easily classifiable films. His films aren’t commercial nor are they pure art-house. They straddle the boundary in between these two sides. They explore thorny and uncomfortable topics but do so in a framework we are used to. He highlights complicated issues and he may push the envelope slightly but not too much either. Franco’s films have premiered at major film festivals and he has won awards in the past but his isn’t a name that I recall hearing too much about when the festival was completed. I have seen enough to ensure I will look out for his next film.

Best Canadian Films of all Time

My Top 10 Canadian Films of All time

1. One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk (2019, Zacharias Kunuk)

The film documents a historical encounter in 1961 Baffin Island between a Canadian government agent and the Inuit leader Noah Piugattuk. The agent wants Piugattuk to send kids from the Inuit communities to schools in a city/town. The film shows a conversation with no violence but it is clear that the next encounter will involve force. Given the recent discovery of children’s remains buried around residential schools in Canada, it is clear that the implications of a ‘friendly conversation’ in Kunuk’s film extended beyond the confines of Baffin island and tragically impacted all parts of Canada.

2. The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open (2019, Kathleen Hepburn/Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers)

3. A Married Couple (1969, Allan King)

4. Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (2001, Zacharias Kunuk)

5. Les Orders (1974, Michel Brault)
6. The Barbarian Invasions (2003, Denys Arcand)
7. The Sweet Hereafter (1997, Atom Egoyan)
8. Montreal Main (1972, Frank Vitale)
9. Incendies (2010, Denis Villeneuve)
10. Fire (1996, Deepa Mehta)

Honourable Mentions:

The Red Violin (1998, François Girard)

Vic + Flo Saw a Bear (2013, Denis Côté)

Universal Language (2023, Matthew Rankin)

Videodrome (1983, David Cronenberg)

Mon Oncle Antoine (1971, Claude Jutra)

The Forbidden Room (2015, Guy Maddin)

Bollywood Bound (2002, Nisha Pahuja)

BlackBerry (2023, Matt Johnson)

I Killed My Mother (2009, Xavier Dolan)

My Winnipeg (2007, Guy Maddin)

The World Before Her (2012, Nisha Pahuja)

Waydowntown (2000, Gary Burns)

Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (2025, Matt Johnson)

Cinema of Cape Verde

Cape Verde are making headlines in the 2026 FIFA World Cup after going through their group unbeaten, holding Spain 0-0, Uruguay 2-2 and Saudi Arabia 0-0. The key point here is that Cape Verde were unbeaten against two former World Cup champions. Next, Cape Verde will take on defending World Cup Champion Argentina in the Round of 32. Long before I knew of their soccer team, I came across films from the nation.

Films set in Cape Verde

The first instance of Cape Verde that I came across in cinema was Pedro Costa’s Casa De Lava (1994).

Casa De Lava, courtesy Grasshopper films

Costa’s filming on Cape Verde led to the location of his next few films. While filming on Cape Verde, he was asked by the locals to take their letters to relatives living in Fontainhas, on the outskirts of Lisbon. Costa took those letters to Fontainhas and the rest is cinematic history with Costa’s Fontainhas Trilogy.

The next film that I saw in Cape Verde was a Portuguese production, Djon Africa. It was a film that I adored and programmed for my film festival in 2018.

Djon Africa (2018, Portugal, Filipa Reis/João Miller Guerra)

In Djon Africa, Miguel Moreira’s laid-back Portuguese life takes a turn when someone tells him he looks like his father. Miguel doesn’t know anything about his father or his roots. When his grandmother reveals that his father was banished to Cape Verde, Miguel makes a quick decision to visit Cape Verde and track down his father. With minimal information and money, Miguel’s charm ensures no door in Cape Verde is closed for him. As he goes deeper into the island, fuelled by the national drink grogue, reality and dreams slowly blend resulting in a life-changing journey.

Co-written by Pedro Pinho (The Nothing Factory), Djon Africa is a playful film that highlights the picturesque landscape of Cape Verde and raises relevant questions about identity for those whose lives are caught between two nations.

Djon Africa came out in 2018 but its relevance can apply to many of the players of the current Cape Verde soccer team, many of whom were born elsewhere but are representing Cape Verde in the World Cup.

Appropriately, there is also a soccer film set in Cape Verde.

Dribbling Fate (Fintar O Destino, 1998, Fernando Vendrell)

Dribbling Fate, Courtesy of California Newsreel

Mané (Carlos Germano) has lived his entire life in São Vicente (Cape Verde), yet that life is tinged with regret and disappointment due to a career path not taken. Mané was a soccer player who was invited to play to Benfica in 1959 along with his teammate and friend Américo. Mané was a goalie while Américo was a striker. Mane stayed behind to look after a tavern while Américo went on to get fame at Benfica. Not much happens in São Vicente. The tavern has the same locals, most of whom can’t pay for their drinks including the national drink Grogue, who visit the place to pass away the time while listening to Benfica games on the radio.

Mané trains young kids who play soccer and he is determined to ensure a promising local kid, Kalu, gets the chance to play for Benfica and isn’t stuck on the island. Plus, Mané wants a chance to watch Benfica play in the cup final. So Mané cracks open his life savings to undertake a journey to Lisbon, much to the annoyance of his wife who he leaves behind, to watch the game. Mané also visits his son, Alberto, who he hasn’t seen in years. Alberto has no interest in football but Mané is determined to go see the game on his own yet he is not street smart for life in Lisbon.

Dribbling Fate has a dreamy music background to it, much like many international films of the 1990s, and that gives the feel a hopeful feel even though things don’t go as planned for Mané. The film has a good heart to it and incorporates loving shots of the island.

Cinema of Cape Verde

More than a decade ago, it was tough to find films from Cape Verde. However, that appears to be changing. There is a “Nova Vaga Cabo Verde” (Cape Verdean New Cinema) which has led to more works appearing at film festivals around the world.

The following is a useful link to hunt down more films from Cape Verde: Contemporary Cape Verdean Cinema.

Kimi Takesue's Observational Cinema

Spotlight on the following films of Kimi Takesue:

Where Are You Taking Me? (2010)

Looking for Adventure (2013, short film 43 min)

Onlookers (2023)

Cinema is a constant discovery. The more one sees films, the more one realizes how many more worthy films await. I hadn’t heard or read anything about Kimi Takesue until the recent release of her films via the Criterion Channel.

This turned out to be a worthy discovery as Takesue’s unique perspective allows a new entry point to understand travel and cultures as the three films are set in Uganda (Where Are You Taking Me?), Peru (Looking for Adventure) and Laos (Onlookers) respectively.

Why do you travel?

The Peruvian and Laos set films raise insightful questions about why people travel and the films break down each location into a few essentials such as common tourist attractions and places where people shop or eat. The gaze in Looking for Adventure and Onlookers is one-way only. The camera is mostly fixed in a single spot and we witness people walking on the street or standing still in the distance. Majority of the people aren’t aware of the camera, which is why they go about their activities normally. This applies equally to both local street vendors, selling food, snacks, drinks or local souvenirs, and also to tourists trying to take the same picture as others in their group. 

Looking for Adventure (2013), courtesy of Kimi Takesue website

Onlookers (2023) is more recent while Looking for Adventure (2013) was filmed a few years after smart phones became commonplace.

Onlookers (2023), courtesy Kimi Takesue website

Our world is packed with Instagram and social media pictures of travelers posting the exact same picture as countless others have before them. Everyone wants their selfie or picture of the same locations. This is apparent in both Looking for Adventure and Onlookers. People have different purposes of taking the pictures. For some, it is a documentation of their travel, for others it is more about posting on social media for others to see. There is memory and nostalgia associated with these images. Not everyone in these movies takes images with a camera or smartphone but many do. Given the cost of travel and how some people save money for years to visit a place, one can’t blame their image taking.

Looking for Adventure and Onlookers raises other brilliant contemplative questions about travel. More than the images, why do people travel? And when they do, what do they do in the locations? And what do they buy? Laos and Peru are on separate sides of the world yet in both of these locations, and countless others around the world, the interaction between locals and foreigners comes down to a few similar sale transactions: an artistic artefact (locally made or mass-produced), jewellery, pots, clothing, bags, postcards, photographs, magnets, small toys and dolls. Majority of these artefacts sold could be indigenous or made by local native people (villages or non-urban centers).

The question about why we travel may seem obvious but Kimi Takesue’s films forces us to consider them due to her distanced observational style. There are no talking heads or voice over narration to nudge viewers in one specific direction nor is there apparent dialogue. We observe and can form our own views on events.

Cultural Lens

Where Are You Taking Me? is a different film altogether from Looking for Adventure and Onlookers and those differences are what makes Where Are You Taking Me? not as strong as the other two. Where Are You Taking Me? focuses on events around Kampala, from the streets to sporting events to documenting about civil war survivors. The film showcases Uganda and documents the country for others to see. There aren’t any tourists visiting the location and we don’t get to see the exchange of two cultures. However, the film’s title makes sense later on as the directors tells curious kids watching the camera where the film will be shown (US). That admission by the director ensures this film isn’t a one-way gaze and opens up a two-way mirror into us seeing the locals and on the same hand, the locals being aware of those on the other side of the planet.

Where Are You Taking Me? (2010), courtesy of Kimi Takesue website