Movie results of 2025. The best of the best and more.

The moment has come to draw a line under the past movie year. Traditionally, we hand out both classic and more colorful nominations to films, actors, and characters that delighted, surprised, scared, or simply stayed on our minds. 2025 was a tough year: cinema oscillated between nostalgia and renewal, between arthouse and blockbusters, between triumphs and resounding failures. Catch our movie results of 2025.​

Scene of the Year — "Sinners"

For the six-minute musical masterpiece in the juke joint that became the main wow effect of 2025.

Drama of the Year — "Sentimental Value"

For strong and believable performances about pain, forgiveness, and rebuilding relationships.

Best Male Role — Stellan Skarsgård ("Sentimental Value")

Alternatives: Adrien Brody ("The Brutalist"), Robert Pattinson ("Mickey 17"), Leonardo DiCaprio ("Battle of the Battles").

For returning to the pinnacle of acting mastery.

Attraction of the Year — "Avatar: Fire and Ash"

For a new round of technological madness from James Cameron and expanding the geography of Pandora.

Gothic of the Year — "Frankenstein"

For reviving the genre and proving that 2025 is the year of vampires, monsters, and fantastic creatures.​

Reinterpretation of the Year — "Frankenstein"

For the philosophy and attempt to make Frankenstein not a horror, but a tragedy about creation and responsibility.

Action Reboot of the Year — "Predator: Planet of Death"

For a fresh take on the iconic franchise in a futuristic setting, suitable for adults and children.

Minimalism of the Year — "Under Fire"

For an action movie that proved sometimes less is more.​

Return to Franchise Roots of the Year — "Final Destination: Bloodlines"

For well-thought-out character death mechanics.

Stephen King of the Year — "The Monkey"

For fidelity to the spirit of the source material.

Nostalgia of the Year — "How to Train Your Dragon"

Alternative: "Lilo & Stitch"

For the chills from recognizable and beloved scenes from childhood.

Most Unexpected Pop Victory of the Year — "K-Pop Demon Hunters"

For the fact that no one expected an animated Netflix film about a K-pop group that fills stadiums by day and hunts demons with songs by night to become the most-watched original title in streaming history.

Atmosphere of the Year — "28 Years Later"

For returning us to the post-apocalyptic world after nearly three decades, where survivors build communes on islands and the infected still thirst for blood.​

Editing of the Year — "28 Years Later"

For impressive scenes shot on iPhone and the brilliant editing by John Harris, which combines modern footage with archival black-and-white World War I material, excerpts from Laurence Olivier's "Henry V," and night infrared shots under the eerie recording of Rudyard Kipling's poem "Boots."

Twist of the Year — "Bugonia"

For how Yorgos Lanthimos's film teases the viewer as long and intricately as possible, gradually building absurdity, paranoia, and satire to complete madness.

Surprise of the Year — "A Simple Accident"

For winning the Cannes Film Festival and for the fact that Jafar Panahi knows from his own experience what repression is and knows how to talk about it.

Action Moment of the Year — "Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning"

For yet another madness underwater and in the air, which became the culmination of Tom Cruise's career in this franchise.

Triumph of the Year — "F1"

For bringing back spectacular cinema with minimal special effects and motivating audiences to go see it in theaters.

Brought Newcomers to the Fandom of the Year — "Formula 1"

For the film with Brad Pitt becoming a powerful catalyst for an influx of new fans to Formula 1, who now call themselves "new experts" in racing.

Chase of the Year — "The Tools"

For the horror attraction and the final scene where children with wild screams burst into houses, break through walls, windows, and fences, sweeping everything in their path, chasing the evil aunt.

Mind-Blowing of the Year — "The Tools"

For forcing us to build theories and assumptions about the plot, its references, and Easter eggs.

Duel of the Year — "Ballerina"

For the insane flamethrower duel and the fact that Ana de Armas performed most of the stunts herself.

Interview of the Year — "Superman"

For the tense dialogue between Lois Lane and Superman/Clark Kent about power, responsibility, morality, and journalistic ethics.

Choice of the Year — "The Materialist"

For the ambiguous ending that sparked the most heated and polarizing discussions about how modern girls choose between "material standards" and true feelings.

Social Statement of the Year — "The Sound of Falling"

For a cinematic puzzle about four eras and four girls on one farm, where destinies are connected and echo from afar.​

When Everything Went Wrong of the Year — "No Other Choice"

For the virtuoso scene where a failed assassination turns into a crazy, darkly comedic attraction.

​"You're in the Dance" of the Year — Lee Byung-hun from "No Other Choice"

For insane charisma in absolute absurdity.

Transformation of the Year — Jacob Elordi ("Frankenstein")

For an unexpected and striking transformation.

Architecture of the Year — "The Brutalist"

For the monumental epic about László Tóth, which brought Adrien Brody his second Oscar 22 years after "The Pianist."​

Comeback of the Year — Adrien Brody

For returning to the Oscar stage two decades after "The Pianist."​

Best Female Role of the Year — Jessie Buckley ("Hamnet")

For the heartbreaking embodiment of Agnes Shakespeare.

Ensemble Cast of the Year — "Battle of the Battles"

For a rare case of perfect casting where no character steals the spotlight, and the organic chemistry between them.

Twins of the Year — "Sinners"

Alternatives: Robert Pattinson ("Mickey 17"), Dylan O'Brien ("Without a Twin"), Elle Fanning ("Predator: Planet of Death"), Theo James ("The Monkey")

For playing two characters with opposite personalities.

Vampires of the Year — "Sinners"

For making vampire horror one of the most talked-about films of the year and proving that classic monsters are here to stay.​

Body Horror of the Year — "One Whole"

For the illustration of codependency never being so straightforward and devastating before.​

Too Little Screen Time of the Year — Jack O'Connell

For effective, bright mini-performances in the films "Sinners" and "28 Years Later."

Villain of the Year — Sean Penn ("Battle of the Battles")

For a frighteningly grounded portrayal of power and cruelty.

Meme Villain of the Year — "The Tools"

Alternative: Lex Luthor ("Superman")

For the memorable absurd image of Aunt Gladys, her frightening wardrobe, and terror over children.

Useless Villain of the Year — "Fantastic Four: First Steps"

For Galactus, despite all his cosmic grandeur, falling into Earthlings' traps too quickly.

Flop of the Year — "Captain America: Brave New World"

For the new captain in the person of Anthony Mackie failing to save his "Titanic" from the iceberg: $415 million on a $180 million budget is dismal for the superhero genre. Not to mention the quality of the spectacle itself.​

Shocking Flop of the Year — "Christy" with Sydney Sweeney

For earning only $1.9 million on a $15 million budget — that's too much even for a flop.​

Soundtrack of the Year — "Golden" (KPop Demon Hunters)

Alternative: "Steve's Lava Chicken" ("Minecraft: The Movie") — for virality on TikTok.

For the global musical success of the soundtrack. It repeatedly topped world charts, including the Billboard Global 200 and Hot 100, and made history as the first track from an animated film to reach such heights.

Musical of the Year (Even Two) — "Wicked"

For the musical winning two Oscars for costumes and production design, and for songs that stayed in our heads all year.​

Franchise of the Year — "Zootopia 2"

For the sequel to the mega-popular animated film that didn't let us down and grossed over a billion dollars at the box office.​

Talking About Adult Things — "Zootopia 2"

For sharp social allusions to modern society, political subtexts, and the fact that the animated film attracts mostly adults rather than children in theaters.

Style Icon of the Year — "Wicked: Forever"

For another collection of shiny dresses in "Oz fashion" style and the flawless pink looks of Ariana Grande as Glinda.

Crush Character of the Year — Nick Wilde ("Zootopia 2")

Alternatives: The Creature ("Frankenstein"), Smoke/Ash ("Sinners"), Clark Kent/Superman ("Superman")

For the return of the most charming fox in animation history.

Crush Female Character of the Year — Varang ("Avatar: Fire and Ash")

Alternatives: Sue Storm ("Fantastic Four: First Steps"), Mary ("Sinners"), Eve ("Ballerina")

For the frightening and attractive image of the leader of the "People of Ash."

Favorite Ship of the Year — Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps ("Zootopia 2")

Alternatives: Quaritch and Varang ("Avatar: Fire and Ash"), The Creature and Elizabeth ("Frankenstein"), Yelena Belova and Bob ("Thunderbolts")

For the strongest friendship on the edge.

Bromance of the Year — "The Long Walk"

Alternatives: Benoit Blanc and Philippe ("Knives Out: Dead Man's Resurrection")

For the poignant support — both physical and moral — that Ray Garraty and Peter McVries give each other until death.

True Partnership of the Year — "The Gorge"

For cool joint scenes, chemistry between Levi and Drasa, and spectacular sniper work separated by an abyss.

Legend of the Year — Yura Borisov at the Oscars

For the triumph of talent over geopolitics. Despite not winning, he conquered the West, signed a contract with UTA, and starred in projects by Guadagnino and A24.

Russian Film of the Year — "Driving You Crazy"

For a high rating on Kinopoisk and for making millions of people believe in a miracle.

Commercial Hit of the Year — "Minecraft: The Movie"

For one of the highest-grossing releases of the year, which, despite critical skepticism, earned a ton of money.

Animation of the Year — "Ne Zha Defeats the Dragon King"

For a box office extravaganza with a colossal two billion in earnings.​

Box Office Actor of the Year — Mason Thames

For an unprecedented breakthrough: starring in three box office hits, he became the youngest actor whose films topped the box office three times in a year — an achievement not seen since Jim Carrey in 1994.

AI Scandal of the Year — "The Brutalist"

For heated debates about the boundaries of AI use in acting.

Netflix of the Year — "Train Dreams"

Alternative: "Knives Out: Dead Man's Resurrection."

For deep, quiet storytelling about the life of an ordinary person.

Debut of the Year — Oliver Lache ("Sirat")

For a religious-philosophical film that pretends to be a road movie about losers but actually tells about the harsh judgment of the Almighty.​

WTF of the Year — "Mickey 17"

For Bong Joon-ho making a film about clones with Robert Pattinson that flopped at the box office but still got people talking.​

Disappointment of the Year — "Snow White"

For the fact that even the "mouse studio" couldn't hit the mark with a new adaptation of the classic.​

Meme of the Year — Clones from "Mickey 17"

For the fact that even those who haven't seen the film discussed the crazy idea of a bioprinter and eighteen versions of one person.​

Event of the Year — The Return of Bi Gan

For "Resurrection" — a sensual extravaganza of six novellas dedicated to various ways of perceiving cinema through smell, touch, sound, and mind.

​Event of the Year 2 — Jim Jarmusch's Victory in Venice

For returning to rule. To hell with Cannes!

Studio Anniversary of the Year — Studio Ghibli (40 years)

For the grand celebration of four decades of magic: limited re-releases of classics, the long-awaited 4K restoration in IMAX format, unique exhibitions in Tokyo, and the studio's largest panels ever at Comic-Con.

Diana Rukosueva

"Even a Beheaded Wolf Bites": Review of the Anime "Princess Mononoke"

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Open material

Advertising Campaign of the Year — "Marty Supreme"

For promotion that feels more like a grand show-performance and cultural phenomenon than standard film advertising. From a "leaked" Zoom call (written and performed by Timothée Chalamet himself) and a bright orange airship actually flying over Los Angeles, New York, and other US cities, to a pop-up with merchandise and much more.

And so ended 2025 — a year of contrasts, surprises, and a reminder that cinema can still amaze. What are your movie results of 2025? Share in the comments in our Telegram channel.

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