Top 10 Live Performances of 2025

Shows Attended in 2025:

4/19 Spiritbox/Loathe/Dying Wish, MGM Music Hall at Fenway, Boston, MA

5/12 Kendrick Lamar/SZA/Mustard (DJ set), Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA

6/10 Queens of the Stone Age/The Kills, MGM Music Hall at Fenway, Boston, MA

6/27 FKA twigs/Koreless, Roadrunner, Brighton, MA

9/15 Between the Buried and Me/Hail the Sun/The World is a Beautiful Place and I'm No Longer Afraid to Die, Royale, Boston, MA

9/20 Turnstile/Mannequin Pussy/Speed/Jane Remover, The Stage at Suffolk Downs, East Boston, MA 

10/5 letlive./Vanna/Hue, Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA

11/23 Dying Wish/Static Dress/Gouge Away/Orthodox/Boltcutter, Royale, Boston, MA

12/20 The Red Chord/The Number Twelve Look Likes You/See You Next Tuesday/Vomit Forth, The Sinclair, Cambridge, MA

Honorable Mentions: Kendrick Lamar, FKA twigs, Gouge Away

10.Mannequin Pussy:

The small amount of Mannequin Pussy I'd heard ahead of seeing them open for Turnstile in September didn't leave much of an impression on me. Their live show was a completely different story. The dynamism of their sound that mixes somber indie and angsty, angry punk together in surprisingly cohesive fashion really shines through in a live setting, and their stage presence is some of the most commanding I've seen in recent memory. 

9.The Red Chord:

Any opportunity to see the long semi-retired Red Chord play is a treat. Getting the chance to see them play their 2005 classic Clients from front to back made this rare occurrence even more special. They're remarkably tight for a band that's only been playing a handful of shows per year for over a decade now and getting to see them play ripper deep cuts like "Upper Decker", "Love on the Concrete" and "He Was Dead When I Got There" live for the first time was surreal.

8.SZA:

While I had my gripes with how frequently she cut songs short and the wonky flow of the set brought on by the choice to have her and Kendrick Lamar rotate performing for the nearly 3 hours they were on stage, SZA sounded amazing and none of the power of her songs got lost in the massive environment of a football stadium.

7.Loathe:

Cue up the "I Get It Now" GIF from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia stat! After nearly 5 full years of being baffled by the hype around Loathe, something finally clicked in the weeks leading up to seeing them for the second time in less than a year and their show itself only further solidified how much of a dunce I was for sleeping on them for so long. They're effectively the millennial British metalcore answer to Deftones in the way that they seamlessly combine harsh and melancholic sounds to make immense, multi-layered songs that can have people in the pit one minute and standing around letting the emotions on display wash over them in the next.  I regret not going to their club headlining tour in November, but hopefully they'll be returning stateside once their new album (hopefully) releases later this year.

6.Queens of the Stone Age:

This was the first show Queens of the Stone Age played in a nearly a year after Josh Homme suffered an undisclosed medical problem in July 2024 that caused them to cancel or postpone all of their remaining dates for the year and safe to say, it was a triumph. Their stoner rock sensibilities really soar when there isn't the buffer of a speaker to soften the edges of their grime-fueled guitars and Homme is one of the most entertaining frontmen in the game right now. Having their set open with the towering "Keep Your Eyes Peeled" and close with unicorn combo of "A Song for the Deaf/A Song for the Dead" close was the cherry on top of this beautiful return to the stage for QOTSA. 

5.Dying Wish (11/23):

Dying Wish and a venue with no barrier or security in front of the stage is a perfect combination. The band kept the energy level high by plowing through a 50-minute headlining set with unrelenting dead-eyed intensity and the crowd rewarded their efforts by stage diving, crowdsurfing and moshing their asses off for the entire set. It's awesome to see one of the best bands of the metalcore revival movement continue to grow in popularity and inspire people to get rowdy as hell on a random Sunday night in November.  

4.letlive.:

I was sincerely conflicted about going to see letlive. on their reunion tour as The Callous Daoboys happened to also being playing in the Boston area on the same night. While I remain very bummed that I wasn't able to see The Callous Daoboys on their headlining tour supporting my favorite album of 2025, seeing letlive for the first time since July 2016 isn't a decision that I regret making. Spending about 8 years away from the stage didn't extinguish any of the passion or madness that defined letlive. during their initial run as their shows continue to possess a level of unrelenting chaos that needs to be experienced to be believed. Whether this reunion is a one-off or a true comeback remains to be seen, but either way, this set was fucking awesome and letlive. will always be legends in my book. 

3.Between the Buried and Me:

Seeing Between the Buried and Me for the first time since July 2018 felt like a reunion with an old friend that couldn't have possibly turned out better. The core members (Tommy Rodgers, Paul Waggoner, Dan Briggs, Blake Richardson) of the group being well into their 40's hasn't impacted their ability to play their incredibly technical music with a level of precision that makes their live performances basically indistinguishable from the studio recordings, they pulled out a couple of old cuts that I never expected them to play in 2025 ("Specular Reflection", "Extremophile Elite") and the material they played ("Absent Thereafter", "God Terror", "Things We Tell Ourselves in the Dark") from their new record The Blue Nowhere immediately joined their stacked roster of songs that sound obscenely good live. I'm going to try really hard to ensure that it won't be another 7 years before I see them again.

2.Spiritbox:

Kicking off my 2025 concertgoing by seeing Spiritbox for the first time was one of the clear highlights of the year for me. Courtney LaPlante sounds unreal live (I'm retroactively mad that I never saw iwrestledabearonce while she was in the band) and the appreciation I have for the quiet intricacy of their instrumentation increased significantly after seeing them rip through 75-80 minutes' worth of material that covers a lot of ground musically. I'd urge anyone that isn't familiar with Spiritbox who is planning on going to see Evanescence this summer to get their early in order to catch their set.    

1.Turnstile:

As Turnstile's popularity continues to significantly increase with each subsequent record they release, many people have attacked them from leaving behind their roots as a DIY hardcore band. Despite their increasingly mainstream output and upward trajectory that has put them in a position where they're only billed a few spots below Sabrina Carpenter at fucking Coachella, they still treat their shows like they're playing for a crowd of 50 punk kids somewhere in the greater Baltimore area. There are bands that are still struggling that don't play with even a fraction of the hunger and urgency that Turnstile brings to the stage on any given night and their ability to get a crowd whipped up into a frenzy is truly special. Simply put, they're an elite live act and it would be a deeply disheartening shock if a day arrived where that stopped being the case.  

2025 NFL All-Pro Team

Quarterback

1st team: Matthew Stafford (Rams)

2nd team: Drake Maye (Patriots)

Running Back

1st team: Bijan Robinson (Falcons)

2nd team: James Cook (Bills)

Wide Receiver

1st team: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seahawks), Puka Nacua (Rams)

2nd team: Amon-Ra St. Brown (Lions), Ja'Marr Chase (Bengals)

Tight End

1st team: Trey McBride (Cardinals)

2nd team: Kyle Pitts (Falcons)

Tackle

1st team: Garett Bolles (Broncos), Penei Sewell (Lions)

2nd team: Tristan Wirfs (Buccaneers), Darnell Wright (Bears)

Guard

1st team: Joe Thuney (Bears), Quinn Meinerz (Broncos)

2nd team: Quenton Nelson (Colts), Chris Lindstrom (Falcons)

Center

1st team: Creed Humphrey (Chiefs)

2nd team: Aaron Brewer (Dolphins)

Edge Rusher

1st team: Myles Garrett (Browns), Will Anderson Jr. (Texans)

2nd team: Micah Parsons (Packers), Aidan Hutchinson (Lions)

Defensive Tackle

1st team: Cameron Heyward (Steelers), Jeffrey Simmons (Titans)

2nd team: Leonard Williams (Seahawks), Travis Jones (Ravens)

Inside Linebacker

1st team: Jack Campbell (Lions), Demario Davis (Saints)

2nd team: Devin Lloyd (Jaguars), Zack Baun (Eagles)

Cornerback

1st team: Devon Witherspoon (Seahawks), Mike Jackson (Panthers)

2nd team: Cooper DeJean (Eagles), Quinyon Mitchell (Eagles)

Safety

1st team: Kyle Hamilton (Ravens), Derwin James (Chargers)

2nd team: Jalen Pitre (Texans), Kevin Byard (Bears)

Kicker

1st team: Will Reichard (Vikings)

2nd team: Brandon Aubrey (Cowboys)

Punter

1st team: Jordan Stout (Ravens)

2nd team: Daniel Whelan (Packers)

Return Specialists:

1st team: Ray Davis (Bills), Marcus Jones (Patriots)

2nd team: Isaiah Williams (Jets), Chimere Dike (Titans)

Special Teamer:

1st team: Devon Key (Broncos)

2nd team: Carson Bruener (Steelers)

Long Snapper:

1st team: Rex Sunahara (Browns)

2nd team: Ross Matiscik (Jaguars)

Movie Review: Primate

2026 may be off to a miserable start, but at least the second weekend of the year provided us with a new January Movie classic in Primate. This animal splatter slasher extravaganza from horror vet Johannes Roberts has a premise that can be completely explained in one sentence (two sisters and three of their friends find themselves suddenly fighting for their lives when their beloved pet chimpanzee contracts rabies after getting bit by a mongoose) and has zero goals beyond delivering visceral horror thrills. The simplicity of its structure and efficiency of its runtime (89 minutes including credits!) provides Roberts with the ideal template to make a banger of a creature feature. Having the chimp primarily be played by an actor (Miguel Torres Umba) in a suit provides a heightened sense of menace to the sequences where the chimp is stalking this group of terrified college age adults in the relatively confined space of a cliffside home in Hawaii since the cast is acting against a threat that is actually in the room with them and the heavy use of practical gore/crunchy sound design allows the kills to pack a brutal punch. Primate is just simply everything that I'd ever want of a killer animal movie, and it rules so hard that it happened to be released during this hallowed 31-day stretch for films that are scuzzy, silly and/or have no ambitions of being viewed as high art.  

Grade: B

NFL Wild Card Predictions

Los Angeles Rams over Carolina Panthers:

This is the textbook definition of a Wild Card weekend honeypot. The Panthers are a team with a losing record that fell completely ass backwards into the playoffs courtesy of being the winner of a goofy 3-way tiebreaker for the NFC South crown that was made possible by the Falcons beating the Saints last Sunday afternoon and the Rams have been one of the best teams in the league for the bulk of the season. The Rams being 10-point favorites of this writing-which is the biggest spread of the weekend by a whopping 4 points-perfectly illustrates the huge discrepancy that exists between these teams on paper. And yet, the Panthers beat the Rams in Charlotte in Week 13 and will have home field once again in this meeting.

Despite all of the flashing signs screaming that the Rams are going to fall into a trap and get bounced by the worst team in the entire NFL playoff field by a mile, I can't in good conscience pick the Panthers to win this game. They may play like a completely different team at home then on the road (5-3 vs 3-6), but their offense is a low wattage travesty (outside of a couple of splash passing plays late in the game, watching them operate against the Bucs in the driving ran in Tampa last week was painful) and I have zero confidence in their ability to keep up with a Sean McVay-coached group that led the league in scoring offense during the regular season. 

Chicago Bears over Green Bay Packers:

The sheer thought of this game is enough to put a King Kong-sized knot in my stomach. This is the Bears first playoff appearance since they squeaked in 2020 thanks to the Cardinals inability to beat the John Wolford-led Rams and the first time they've had a realistic chance to advance since 2018, so of course they have to go against the team that has fucking owned them for the majority of the past 35 years in the Wild Card. The Packers aren't even overly scary on paper now that Micah Parsons is out, I just see can't help but expect things to go poorly when my team lines up against those dairy-loving fuckers with the white, green and yellow G on their helmets.

Despite my fear of the Packers and lack of confidence in the Bears-particularly following their pretty shitty performance in a loss against the Lions last week, I'm still picking the reigning NFC North champs to win this game for some inexplicable reason. The Packers are incredibly banged up right now and I'm cautiously optimistic that the Bears will be able to do enough on offense to take advantage of their Parsons-less defense to hold off whatever damage Jordan Love and co. can do to their beyond exploitable defense. 

Jacksonville Jaguars over Buffalo Bills:

I've been flipping back and forth on this one all week. The Jags are the hottest team in the league right now as they've ripped off 8 straight wins following an embarrassing second half collapse against the Davis Mills-led Texans in Week 10 while the Bills have a significant advantage in playoff experience across their roster and coaching staff. Ultimately, I've decided to go with the upstart Jags. Their top ranked rush defense should be able to slow down the Bills top ranked rushing offense that's headed up by James Cook-which would put a ton of pressure for a hobbled Josh Allen to ignite their middling passing attack and despite the Jags rung game not being strong enough (they finished the regular season ranked 20th) to feel great about their ability to take advantage of the Bills horrendous run D, Liam Coen is a talented enough playcaller to cook up a plan that exploits their weakness up front without needlessly testing their top-ranked pass D downfield. 

Philadelphia Eagles over San Francisco 49ers:

This prediction is based on the assumption that the Eagles cartoonishly erratic offense will be able to have a good day against a 49ers defense that is injury-depleted to the point where it's starting to feel like they're signing guys off the street mid-game to step in for the latest doomed soul whose femur, ACL or spleen exploded. If they can't, which is completely plausible given how this season has played out for the defending Super Bowl champs, the 49ers should be able to get enough going on offense between Brock Purdy, CMC and whatever WR/TE's are healthy enough to play tomorrow afternoon to pull off the road upset. Godspeed to anyone whose brave enough to put money on this game. 

New England Patriots over Los Angeles Chargers:

Part of me feels like a Chargers team with a strong defense and terrific quarterback like Justin Herbert represents a really good test for a Patriots team who has faced very little in the way of challenges over the past 3 months. Then I realized that Herbert-who is already playing hurt-could die on the field at any time behind an offensive line that is as bad as you'll ever see in professional football and the Chargers have a knack for embarrassing themselves this time of the year-especially against a Patriots team that has sent them packing 3 times in the past 20 years. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if this game turns into the biggest bloodbath of the weekend in short order. 

Houston Texans over Pittsburgh Steelers:

The Steelers are a missed field goal away from not being here and I like the odds of the football gods punishing them for their good fortune last week on Monday Night. Even with DK Metcalf returning to the lineup after serving a 2-game suspension for wailing on a Lions fan in Detroit a few weeks back, Aaron Rodgers is probably going to have a hard time getting the deep shots he relies on to make play going against a vicious Texans pass-rush that should have no problem exploiting his complete lack of mobility at his advanced age and despite their well-documented woes this season, the Texans offense should be able to take advantage of the Steelers D's inability to cover wideouts downfield like the Ravens did in the second half last week. 

2025 in Movies: A Year in Review

At the top of the year, there was a lot of optimism surrounding the 2025 film slate-in large part due to the high volume of celebrated filmmakers had new movies on the calendar. That sunny forecast at this time last year proved to be accurate.  While I'm certainly not as high on the crop of films as other cinephiles out there, it would be hard to argue that 2025 was anything less than a dynamic year that produced quite a few titles that people got really excited about. Case in point: Look at how much more heat is surrounding awards season this year compared to last. People liked Anora and The Brutalist well enough, but the enthusiasm for those titles' pale in comparison to the positive chatter surrounding the likes of Sinners, Marty Supreme and the current runaway Best Picture frontrunner One Battle After Another right now. 

Beyond the aforementioned awards contenders, there's plenty of other quality stuff to champion. Big screen comedy made a comeback with a strong class headlined by a pair of summer releases (Friendship, The Naked Gun) that are among the funniest movies to come out in recent memory. Movies like Weapons, Bring Her Back and Together followed in the footsteps of Sinners and solidified 2025 as a banner year for original horror. A24 beat the allegations they've lost their touch post-Everything Everywhere All at Once Best Picture win by trotting out one of the finest slates in their history. The Housemaid proved that perfectly calibrated trash thrillers can still be made in an era where Hollywood has seemingly lost its timeless recipes from the 80's and 90's. Rian Johnson extended the Knives Out franchise's winning streak to three and got liberated from his deal at Netflix, which practically guarantees that the fourth installment will land at another studio and receive the wide theatrical release it deserves. The Now You See Me franchise re-appeared after nearly a decade away and effortlessly slipped right back into its deliriously stupid rhythm. That all of these triumphs and the many other delights that cinema offered up over the past twelve months occurred during a year where basically everything else in the world was so scary, stupid or just plain awful made them that much more special.

Below, you'll find a plethora of fun stuff celebrating the 2025 cinematic year including a complete ranking of every movie I saw from worst to best, awards galore and some silly superlatives. Hope you enjoy.

Still Need to See:

100 Nights of Hero

Adulthood

Alpha

The Alto Knights

American Sweatshop

Anniversary

The Assessment

Atropia

Bad Shabbos

Baby Invasion

Ballad of a Small Player

The Baltimorons

Becoming Led Zeppelin

The Carpenter's Son

The Chronology of Water

Cleaner

Code 3

The Damned

Dead Man's Wire

Dead of Winter

Deathstalker

Demon City

Doin' It

Dust Bunny

East of Wall

Eden

Eephus

Eleanor the Great

Eric LaRue

Fackham Hall

Father Mother Sister Brother

Fixed

G20

Good Boy

Good News

Griffin in Summer

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle

Holland

The Home

I Don't Understand You

I Love You Forever

Ick

In the Lost Lands

Inheritance

It Ends

K.O.

Karate Kid: Legends

King Ivory

The Knife

Last Days

Left-Handed Girl

Locked

London Calling

Long Distance

Love, Brooklyn

The Luckiest Man in America

The Man in My Basement

Neighborhood Watch

Night Always Comes

Nonnas

Nuremberg

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

On Swift Horses

The Perfect Neighbor

The Plague

Plainclothes

Pillion 

Ponyboi

Pools

Queen of the Ring

Queens of the Dead

Riff Raff

Rosemead

Sacramento

Sharp Corner

She Rides Shotgun

Sirat

Sister Midnight

Sisu: Road to Revenge

Song Sung Blue

Sovereign

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere

The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants

Steve

Strange Harvest

Summer of 69

The Testament of Ann Lee

The Thing with Feathers

Trap House

The Ugly Stepsister

Urchin

The Voice of Hind Rajab

War of the Worlds

The Wedding Banquet

Wick is Pain

145.O'Dessa (D)

144.The Electric State (D)

143.Back in Action (D+)

142.Hurry Up Tomorrow (D+)

141.The Old Guard 2 (C-)

140.Shelby Oaks (C-)

139.Ella McCay (C-)

138.A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (C-)

137.You're Cordially Invited (C)

136.Snow White (C)

135.After the Hunt (C)

134.The Parenting (C)

133.Guns Up (C)

132.The Conjuring: Last Rites (C)

131.Borderline (C)

130.The Woman in the Yard (C)

129.Afterburn (C)

128.Kiss of the Spider Woman (C)

127.Shadow Force (C)

126.Maintenance Required (C)

125.Keeper (C)

124.Clown in a Cornfield (C)

123.A Minecraft Movie (C+)

122.The Amateur (C+)

121.Captain America: Brave New World (C+)

120.Final Destination: Bloodlines (C+)

119.Wolf Man (B-)

118.Dog Man (B-)

117.Sketch (B-)

116.Nouvelle Vague (B-)

115.Spinal Tap II: The End Continues (B-)

114.Black Bag (B-)

113.Rebuilding (B-)

112.My Dead Friend Zoe (B-)

111.The Accountant 2 (B-)

110.The Roses (B-)

109.Die My Love (B-)

108.The Strangers: Chapter 2 (B-)

107.The Pickup (B-)

106.M3GAN 2.0 (B-)

105.Relay (B-)

104.Dangerous Animals (B-)

103.Honey Don't! (B-)

102.Another Simple Favor (B-)

101.Regretting You (B-)

100.Hedda (B-)

99.The Smashing Machine (B-)

98.Presence (B-)

97.Hamnet (B-)

96.KPop Demon Hunters (B-)

95.A House of Dynamite (B-)

94.The Toxic Avenger (B-)

93.How to Train Your Dragon (B-)

92.I Know What You Did Last Summer (B-)

91.Death of a Unicorn (B-)

90.Play Dirty (B-)

89.Silent Night, Deadly Night (B-)

88.Eenie Meanie (B-)

87.Eddington (B-)

86.Him (B-)

85.Until Dawn (B-)

84.Opus (B-)

83.Happy Gilmore 2 (B-)

82.Heart Eyes (B)

81.A Working Man (B)

80.Predator: Killer of Killers (B)

79.Havoc (B)

78.Jurassic World Rebirth (B)

77.It Was Just an Accident (B)

76.Blue Moon (B)

75.Americana (B)

74.A Nice Indian Boy (B)

73.Hell of a Summer (B)

72.Christy (B)

71.Diablo (B)

70.The Phoenician Scheme (B)

69.The Ballad of Wallis Island (B)

68.Wicked: For Good (B)

67.Anaconda (B)

66.Last Breath (B)

65.Fight or Flight (B)

64.The Secret Agent (B)

63.The Surfer (B)

62.Elio (B)

61.If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You (B)

60.Bob Trevino Likes It (B)

59.Freaky Tales (B)

58.Ash (B)

57.The Bad Guys 2 (B)

56.Sentimental Value (B)

55.Zootopia 2 (B)

54.The Fantastic Four: First Steps (B)

53.Novocaine (B)

52.Drop (B)

51.Love Hurts (B)

50.Bone Lake (B)

49.Jay Kelly (B)

48.Is This Thing On? (B)

47.Mission-Impossible: The Final Reckoning (B)

46.Rental Family (B)

45.Lurker (B)

44.Oh, Hi! (B)

43.One of Them Days (B)

42.F1 (B)

41.Frankenstein (B)

40.Heads of State (B)

39.Roofman (B)

38.Predator: Badlands (B)

37.40 Acres (B)

36.One Battle After Another (B)

35.Mickey 17 (B)

34.Twinless (B)

33.The Life of Chuck (B+)

32.Eternity (B+)

31.Now You See Me: Now You Don't (B+)

30.Warfare (B+)

29.Caught Stealing (B+)

28.No Other Choice (B+)

27.Train Dreams (B+)

26.Good Fortune (B+)

25.The Threesome (B+)

24.Nobody 2 (B+)

23.Black Phone 2 (B+)

22.Splitsville (B+)

21.The Running Man (B+)

20.The Housemaid (B+)

19.Together (B+)

18.Sorry, Baby (B+)

17.28 Years Later (B+)

16.The Monkey (B+)

15.Ballerina (B+)

14.Thunderbolts* (B+)

13.Materialists (B+)

12.Wake Up Dead Man (B+)

11.Companion (B+)

10.Den of Thieves 2: Pantera (B+)

9.Bugonia (B+)

8.The Long Walk (A-)

7.The Naked Gun (A-)

6.Weapons (A-)

5.Superman (A-)

4.Bring Her Back (A-)

3.Marty Supreme (A)

2.Friendship (A)

1.Sinners (A)

Awards/Superlatives:

Best Picture: Sinners

Best Director: Ryan Coogler, Sinners

Best Actor: Timothee Chalamet, Marty Supreme

Best Actress: Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You

Best Supporting Actor: Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Madigan, Weapons

Best Original Screenplay: Ryan Coogler, Sinners

Best Adapted Screenplay: Will Tracy, Bugonia

Best Animated Feature: Zootopia 2

Best Documentary Feature: Abstain

Best International Feature: No Other Choice

Best Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, Sinners

Best Editing: Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme

Best Score: Ludwig Goransson, Sinners

Best Original Song: "I Lied to You" by Miles Caton, Sinners

Best Visual Effects: How to Train Your Dragon

Best Sound: Warfare

Best Directorial Debut: Andrew DeYoung, Friendship

Best Villain: Remmick (Jack O'Connell), Sinners

Worst Villain: The Evil Queen (Gal Gadot), Snow White

Best Performance in a Bad Movie: Jenna Ortega, Hurry Up Tomorrow

Worst Performance in a Good Movie: Mila Kunis, Wake Up Dead Man

Best Piece of Overacting: Rosamund Pike, Now You See Me, Now You Don't

Worst Piece of Overacting: Gal Gadot, Snow White

The 8th Annual "Carry a Movie on Your Back" Award Presented by Greg Jennings: Jennifer Lawrence, Die My Love

Best Action Sequence: "Flamethrower Fight", Ballerina

Worst Action Sequence: "Boat/Car Chase", The Amateur

Best Blockbuster: Sinners

Worst Blockbuster: The Electric State

Finest Hidden Indie Gem: Splitsville

Most Insufferable Indie Trash: Abstain 

Best Theater Experience (Presentation): Sinners

Worst Theater Experience (Presentation): Wicked: For Good (Standard 3D)

Best Theater Experience (Audience): Friendship (Boston Independent Film Festival screening at the Somerville Theatre) 

Worst Theater Experience (Audience): Bone Lake

Sickest Double Feature That I Did: Together/Weapons

Saddest Double Feature That I Did: After the Hunt/Shelby Oaks

Best Needle Drop: (tie) "When Two Become One" by The Spice Girls in Together/The End Credit Song of The Housemaid

Best Drug Trip Ever Committed to Film: Friendship

Best Decent Horror Movie (aka "The Peak 7/10/B- Horror Movie Award): Until Dawn

Best Looking Meal That Didn't Get Consumed on Screen: Weapons

Best Surprise Cameo from an Oscar-Nominated Character Actor That Almost Made Me Stand Up and Cheer in a Roughly Third Full Theater Full of Old People: Jeffrey Wright in Wake Up Dead Man

The First Horror Movie I've Ever Been to In My Life Where Someone Screamed at Every Single Jump Scare (They Were Also Sitting Right Next to Me): Shelby Oaks

Most Underrated Movies:

1.Den of Thieves 2: Pantera

2.Materialists

3.The Threesome

4,Good Fortune

5.40 Acres

Most Overrated Movies:

1.Hamnet

2.Black Bag

3.Final Destination: Bloodlines

4.The Roses

5.The Accountant 2

Biggest Surprises:

1.The Long Walk

2.The Housemaid

3.Splitsville

4.Oh, Hi!

5.Anaconda

Biggest Letdowns:

1.Wolf Man

2.The Smashing Machine

3.The Old Guard 2

4.After the Hunt

5.A House of Dynamite

Top Performances:

1.Timothee Chalamet, Marty Supreme

2.Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein 

3.Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You

4.Amy Madigan, Weapons

5.Tim Robinson, Friendship

6.Adam Sandler, Jay Kelly

7.Delroy Lindo, Sinners

8.Benicio del Toro, One Battle After Another

9.Jennifer Lawrence, Die My Love

10.Jesse Plemons, Bugonia

Top Breakthrough Performances:

1.Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

2.Miles Caton, Sinners

3.Alfie Williams, 28 Years Later

4.Odessa A'Zion, Marty Supreme

5.Sora Wong, Bring Her Back

6.Kateem O'Connor, 40 Acres

7.Kevin O'Leary, Marty Supreme

8.Cary Christopher, Weapons

9.Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another

10.Billy Bryk, Friendship/Hell of a Summer

Great Under-the-Radar Performance I Didn't List Above:

1.David Jonsson, The Long Walk

2.Amanda Seyfried, The Housemaid

3.Dylan O'Brien, Twinless

4.Edi Gathegi, Superman

5.Keanu Reeves, Good Fortune

6.Molly Gordon, Oh, Hi!

7.Sally Hawkins, Bring Her Back

8.Liam Nesson, The Naked Gun

9.Austin Butler, Caught Stealing

10.Chris Evans, Honey Don't!

Top Acting Ensembles:

1.Sinners

2.The Long Walk

3.Superman

4.Bring Her Back

5.Weapons

6.Marty Supreme

7.Friendship

8.Bugonia

9.One Battle After Another

10.Thunderbolts*

Top Directorial Debuts:

1.Andrew DeYoung, Friendship

2.Drew Hancock, Companion

3.Eva Victor, Sorry, Baby

4.Michael Shanks, Together

5.Aziz Ansari, Good Fortune

6.R.T. Thorne, 40 Acres

7.Lawrence Lamont, One of Them Days

8.Alex Russell, Lurker

9.Jonathan Eusebio, Love Hurts

10.Tracie Laymon, Bob Trevino Likes It

Top Cinematography:

1.Autumn Durald Arkapaw, Sinners

2.Adolpho Veloso, Train Dreams

3.Kira Kelly, Him

4.Anthony Dod Mantle, 28 Years Later

5.Par M. Ekberg, Black Phone 2

6.Richard Bluck, Ash

7.Radek Ladczuk, The Surfer

8.Steve Yedlin, Wake Up Dead Man

9.Evgenia Alexandrova, The Secret Agent

10.Sean Bobbitt, Hedda

Top Scores:

1.Ludwig Goransson, Sinners

2.Atticus Derrickson, Black Phone 2

3.Daniel Lopatin (aka Oneothrix Point Never), Marty Supreme

4.Flying Lotus, Ash

5.Young Fathers, 28 Years Later

6.Michael Giacchino, The Fantastic Four: First Steps

7.Son Lux, Thunderbolts*

8.David Wingo and Dabney Morris, Splitsville 

9.John Murphy and David Fleming, Superman

10.Jerskin Fendrix, Bugonia

Top Movies I Hope to See in 2026:

1.October

2.How to Rob a Bank

3.Onslaught

4.Resident Evil

5.28 Years Later: The Bone Temple

6.Wild Horse Nine

7.Street Fighter

8.Werwulf

9.The Furious

10.Send Help

Top 10 Movies of 2025

Honorable Mentions (in alphabetical order by title):

Ballerina

Companion

Materialists 

Thunderbolts*

Wake Up Dead Man

10.Den of Thieves 2: Pantera:

The legend of "Big Nick" O'Brien (Gerard Butler) expanded a year ago this week when the utterly delightful new January movie classic Den of Thieves 2: Pantera made its way into theaters. Inspired by a shift in setting from Los Angeles to the French Riveria, Den of Thieves 2 trades in the gruffness of the original for breezy buddy movie hijinks and it works like a charm largely due to how effortless the chemistry between Big Nick and his nemesis-turned-pal Donnie (O'Shea Jackson Jr.) proves to be. The chill hangout vibe ultimately transforms into the type of old school heist movie anyone who sat down to watch Den of Thieves 2 expected it to be and writer/director Christian Gudegast once again delivers the goods as the tension of the big score (this time they steal diamonds!) carries over to a huge climatic car chase/shootout through winding tunnels and mountainside roads that wraps things up on one hell of a high note. Den of Thieves 3 can't come soon enough. 

9.Bugonia:

In a year full of films commenting on the current state of the world that ended on hopeful notes that expresses optimism for humanity's future, it was refreshing to watch a movie that had the courage to go swiftly in the other direction by delivering a conclusion so bleak that the whole audience I saw it with promptly exited the theater in stunned silence once the credits begin to roll. Bugonia-which is loosely inspired by the 2003 Korean film Save the Green Planet!-has its fingers on the pulse of what makes this world such a stupid, cruel place and director Yorgos Lanthimos and writer Will Tracy do a brilliant job of laughing, crying and yelling about the things that will ultimately lead to our extinction. The fact that the primary vessels for Bugonia's fierce blend of emotions are the heavyweight duo of Jesse Plemons and Emma Stone only further heightens the brute force it hits with. 

8.The Long Walk:

There has been no shortage of dystopian movies about teenagers living under fascist rule being forced to put their lives on the line to compete in a grueling athletic competition designed to manufacture consent for the immense cruelty the regime inflicts upon the population. Hell, this very film's director Francis Lawrence has helmed quite a few of them himself as the primary architect of the film adaptations of The Hunger Games franchise. What distinguishes The Long Walk from its peers is the unflinching brutality in which depicts the violence the regime carries out against innocent civilians along with the care the script and its cast take in portraying the powerful bonds that build as these men attempt to fight off death together for as long as they possibly can. It's an incredibly powerful look at the resiliency humans are capable of showing when they stand together to fight for their survival and I hope more people will check it out now that it's on Starz. 

7.The Naked Gun:

Rebooting The Naked Gun couldn't have worked out any better than this. Everybody involved with this production knew exactly what brand of slapstick silliness that this iconic franchise was built on, the hit rate of the absurd, rapid-fire jokes is unbelievably high, and director Akiva Schaffer's ability to keep the zany energy level high throughout ensures that its 85-minute runtime flies by. 

6.Weapons:

Buying stock in Zach Cregger after Barbarian was the right call. Cregger's most sprawling, ambitious project to date does a masterful job of juggling a plethora of tones and narrative threads as it slowly establishes a connection between a group of people (Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Benedict Wong, Cary Christopher) in a small town in Pennsylvania that have been impacted by a bizarre event where a group of kids in the same elementary school class all got out of bed, walked out of the front doors of their homes and disappeared into the darkness of night without a trace at the exact same time. The finale where all of the pieces of its hyperlink narrative finally converge is one of the most satisfying in recent memory and it tickles me that Amy Madigan has a legit chance to win an Oscar for playing such a delightfully demented character that I wouldn't dare spoil for the people that have yet to watch this. 

5.Superman:

DC's days as the laughingstock of the comic book movie game may be numbered. Serving as the first entry of the new-look DCU that WB CEO David Zaslav hired him to co-run with his longtime producing partner Peter Safran back in the fall of 2022, James Gunn's Superman lays the groundwork for a potentially bright cinematic future for the previously embattled brand by delivering a take on the Man of the Steel that honors his hopeful spirit without shying away from the pervasive darkness that exists on Earth. Its narrative device that mimics the feeling of jumping right into a standalone comic that was picked up off a shelf is a great solution to the plague of exhaustive recurring plots that has regularly kneecapped Marvel post-Endgame and Gunn once again nails the casting by filling the movie with magnetic, scene-stealing actors who feel like they were born to play their respective roles. 

4.Bring Her Back:

On paper, another horror movie dealing with grief and trauma isn't overly appealing. In practice, Bring Her Back completely revitalizes what has become an overdone staple of modern horror by focusing on somebody who is so tormented by the pain of the loss they endured that they've completely lost sight of the person they were before. While there's plenty of brutality and grim atmospherics to be found here in a story that involves a foster mother (Sally Hawkins-who masterfully weaponizes her reputation as a "nice" lady to give a horrifying yet not entirely unsympathetic villain turn) who will stop at nothing to bring her deceased daughter back to life, the true heart of the film is a beautifully developed (Billy Barratt, Sora Wong) relationship between half siblings who end in Hawkins' character's care after their father passes away in a tragic accident. The presence of this quietly devastating emotional undercurrent is what ultimately puts this above the Danny and Michael Philippou's (also great) last movie Talk to Me for me. 

3.Marty Supreme:

Early on in Marty Supreme, it appears that Josh Safdie is gearing up to tell a pretty routine story of an ambitious NYC kid (Timothee Chalamet) who aspires to be the greatest table tennis player in the world during the early 1950's when the sport was first starting to rise to international prominence. This misdirection doesn't last long and soon; it's off to the races as Safdie once again goes full steam ahead into chaotic dirtbag mode. Chalamet gives the performance of the year, if not the decade as a sleazy hustler whose unrelenting pursuit of ping pong excellence comes at a high price for the poor souls who dare to care about him and Safdie makes one hell of an impression in his first solo directorial effort by making a movie fueled by adrenaline, swagger and unpredictability. A24 electing to invest so much (a reported $65 million, which is the highest budget for any movie they've produced in their 13-year history) in a movie that's largely full of unlikable characters and maintains a level of chaos that's only slightly below Safdie's last project Uncut Gems for the bulk of its runtime is a miracle that's worth celebrating in a day and age where those things don't tend to happen very much. 

2.Friendship:

Friendship marked the first time that modern cult comedy hero Tim Robinson has headlined a movie, and I can say without hesitation that it's the hardest I've laughed at a movie in ages. Writer/director Andrew DeYoung-who Robinson ended up bringing in to collaborate with him on his HBO series The Chair Company that also released in 2025-authored a hysterical, sneaky potent look at the unique difficulties men have with trying to make friends as adults. Robinson does Wilt Chamberlin-type numbers as a solitary office worker living in the suburbs who alienates a new acquittance (Paul Rudd) with his strange behavior at a social gathering then proceeds to go to insane lengths to try and get back in his good graces and the supporting cast-especially Kate Mara as Robinson's wife and Billy Byrk as a cellphone store employee who helps Robinson go on a spiritual journey-do a great job of matching Robinson's consistent commitment to selling the shit out of every ridiculous bit the script throws at him. 

1.Sinners:

During the press tour, Ryan Coogler kept saying he wanted audiences to feel like they had a full meal by the time the credits had rolled on Sinners. Coogler didn't just make a full meal with Sinners; he made a god damn legendary feast that I'll cherish having for the rest of my life. The cornucopia of themes/genres Coogler assembled here comes together with a stunning degree of cohesion thanks to the passion and clarity of his vision along with the talented team of artisans that he tasked with helping him bring his singularly bold vision to life. This movie is just pure fucking magic, and I wouldn't be surprised if I grew to hold it in even higher regard in the future than I do currently. 

2025 in Music: A Year in Review

It's a weird time for music, especially in the mainstream sphere. Labels are afraid to really push their artists and their current marketing strategies seem to be nothing more than just crossing their fingers that something will go on viral on TikTok, which means we're down to about 5-10 new hit songs each year (take a look at the 2025 Billboard year-end charts if you don't believe me). Streaming services and their dogshit royalty pay largely decimating the practice of people buying albums either physically or digitally has caused more artists to struggle than ever before. Several genres-particularly hip hop and pop-are in a sterility crisis as uniformity is being prioritized over uniqueness. 

Despite the bleakness and strangeness of this moment, there's still some great stuff out there. The weirdos, punks and visionaries that exist largely on the periphery of the mainstream have not let this shitty moment distract them from their art and in several cases, they managed to put out some of the best work of their careers. It's a needed reminder that true artistry will always find a way into the world, no matter how dire things are. Below, you'll find a list of every LP and EP I heard in 2025 ranked from worst to best along with some superlatives and my picks for the top 50 songs of the year. Please enjoy and let's hope that 2026 will continue to deliver some quality music in the face of all the hurdles that are making doing so harder by the day. 

EP's:

4.The Crimson Armada-Ceremony

3.Many Eyes-Combust (B)

2.Car Bomb-Tiles Whisper Dreams (B)

1.Soulkeeper-Join Us in Creating Excellence (B+)

LP's:

79.Sleep Token-Even in Arcadia (C-)

78.Machine Head-Unatoned (C)

77.Playboi Carti-Music (C)

76.Olivia Dean-The Art of Loving (C)

75.The Mars Volta-Lucro sucio; los ojos del vacio (C)

74.The Halo Effect-March of the Unheard (C+)

73.Architects-The Sky, the Earth & All Between (C+)

72.Sleep Theory-Afterglow (C+)

71.Rivers of Nihil-Rivers of Nihil (C+)

70.Snooze-I KNOW HOW YOU WILL DIE (C+)

69.Haim-I Quit (C+)

68.Kaonashi-I Want to Go Home (C+)

67.A Day to Remember-Big Ole Album Vol.1 (B-)

66.Bodybox-3 (B-)

65.Sabrina Carpenter-Man's Best Friend (B-)

64.Rico Nasty-Lethal (B-)

63.Born of Osiris-Through Shadows (B-)

62.Thornhill-Bodies (B-)

61.Boltcutter-Still Broke (B-)

60.Arm's Length-There's a Whole World Out There (B-)

59.Geese-Getting Killed (B-)

58.Fleshwater-2000: In Search of the Endless Sky (B-)

57.Tame Impala-Deadbeat (B-)

56.Florence+the Machine-Everybody Scream (B-)

55.Viagra Boys-vigar aboys (B-)

54.Banks-Off with Her Head (B-)

53.Bad Bunny-Debi tirar mas fotos (B-)

52.Behemoth-The Shit Ov God (B-)

51.Tate McRae-So Close to What (B-)

50.King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard-Phantom Island (B-)

49.Rosalia-Lux (B-)

48.Clipse-Let God Sort Em Out (B-)

47.Paleface Swiss-Cursed (B)

46.Obscura-A Sonication (B)

45.Cabal-Everything Rots (B)

44.Killswitch Engage-This Consequence (B)

43.Tyler, the Creator-Don't Tap the Glass (B)

42.PeelingFlesh-PF Radio 2 (B)

41.Stray from the Path-Clockworked (B)

40.Volbeat-God of Angels Trust (B)

39.PSYCHO-FRAME-Salvation Laughs in the Face of a Grieving Mother (B)

38.Mac Miller-Ballonerism (B)

37.Kali Uchis-Sincerely, (B)

36.Addison Rae-Addison (B)

35.Sudan Archives-The BPM (B)

34.Danny Brown-Stardust (B)

33.FKA twigs-EUSEXUA Afterglow (B)

32.Sanguisugabogg-Hideous Aftermath (B)

31.Lorde-Virgin (B)

30.Testament-Para bellum (B)

29.Greyhaven-Keep It Quiet (B)

28.Drain-Is Your Friend... (B)

27.Coheed and Cambria-Vaxis: Act III: The Father of Make Believe (B)

26.Miley Cyrus-Something Beautiful (B)

25.Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist-Alfredo 2 (B)

24.Doja Cat-Vie (B)

23.Lady Gaga-Mayhem (B)

22.Despised Icon-Shadow Work (B+)

21.Your Spirit Dies-My Gnawing Pains Will Never Rest (B+)

20.Pinkpantherss-Fancy That (B+)

19.Allegaeon-The Ossuary Lens (B+)

18.Revocation-New Gods, New Masters (B+)

17.Lorna Shore-I Feel the Everblack Festering Within Me (B+)

16.Dying Wish-Flesh Stays Together (B+)

15.Deftones-Private Music (B+)

14.The Acacia Strain-You Are Safe from God Here (B+)

13.FKA twigs-EUSEXUA (B+)

12.Shadow of Intent-Imperium Delirium (B+)

11.Fallujah-Xenotaph (B+)

10.Spite-New World Killer (B+)

9.Turnstile-NEVER ENOUGH (B+)

8.Whitechapel-Hymns in Dissonance (B+)

7.Between the Buried and Me-The Blue Nowhere (B+)

6.Orthodox-A Door Left Open (B+)

5.Tallah-Primeval: Obsession/Detachment (A-)

4.The Weeknd-Hurry Up Tomorrow (A-)

3.Jane Remover-Revengeseekerz (A-)

2.Spiritbox-Tsunami Sea (A-)

1.The Callous Daoboys-I Don't Want to See You in Heaven (A)

Superlatives:

Biggest Surprises:

1.Lady Gaga-Mayhem

2.The Acacia Strain-You Are Safe from God Here

3.Despised Icon-Shadow Work

4.Sanguisugabogg-Hideous Aftermath

5.Addison Rae-Addison

Biggest Letdowns:

1.Playboi Carti-Music

2.King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard-Phantom Island

3.Rivers of Nihil-Rivers of Nihil

4.Born of Osiris-Through Shadows

5.Behemoth-The Shit Ov God

Most Underrated:

1.Orthodox-A Door Left Open

2.Spite-New World Killer

3.Allegaeon-The Ossuary Lens

4.Your Sprit Dies-My Gnawing Pain Will Never Rest

5.Drain-Is Your Friend...

Most Overrated:

1.Geese-Getting Killed

2.Olivia Dean-The Art of Loving

3.Snooze-I KNOW HOW YOU WILL DIE

4.Arm's Length-There's a Whole World Out There

5.Thornhill-Bodies

Top Discoveries:

1.Jane Remover

2.Orthodox

3.Your Spirit Dies

4.PSYCHO-FRAME

Top Artists I Hope Drop an Album in 2026: (Excluding Those with Already Confirmed Release Dates):

1.Loathe

2.Better Lovers

3.Danny Brown and JPEGMAFIA

4.Yves Tumor

5.Year of the Knife

Top 50 Songs (in alphabetical order by artist name):

The Acacia Strain-A Call Beyond

Addison Rae-Fame is a Gun

Bad Bunny-NUEVAYol

Bad Omens-Specter

Between the Buried and Me-Absent Thereafter

Between the Buried and Me-Psychomanteum

The Callous Daoboys-Idiot Temptation Force

The Callous Daoboys-Schizophrenia Legacy

The Callous Daoboys-Tears on Lambo Leather (feat. Adam Easterling)

The Callous Daoboys-The Demon of Unreality Limping Like a Dog

Coheed and Cambria-Play the Poet

Danny Brown-Stardust

Deftones-cut hands

Doja Cat-Jealous Type

Drain-Living in a Memory

Dying Wish-I Brought You My Soul (Your World Brought Me Despair)

Fallujah-Step Through the Portal and Breathe

FKA twigs-Girl Feels Good

FKA twigs-Hard

Jane Remover-Dreamflasher

Jane Remover-Experimental Skin

Jane Remover-Professional Vengeance

Jane Remover-Star People

Lady Gaga-Garden of Eden

Lady Gaga-Shadow of a Man

Loathe-Gifted Every Strength

Lorna Shore-Prison of Flesh

Miley Cyrus-Something Beautiful

Orthodox-Searching for a Pulse

Orthodox-Step Inside

Paleface Swiss-Youth Decay

Pinkpantherss-Stateside

PinkPantherss-Tonight

Revocation-Sacrophagi of the Soul

Shadow of Intent-Infinity of Chaos

Spiritbox-Fata Morgana

Spiritbox-No Loss, No Love

Spiritbox-Ride the Wave

Spite-Gavel

Spite-Hand of the Reaper

Tallah-A Primeval Detachment

Tallah-as fate undoes

Thundercat-Children of the Baked Potato (feat. Remi Wolf)

Turnstile-DREAMING

Turnstile-SOLE

The Weeknd-Cry for Me

The Weeknd-Nigara Falls

The Weeknd-Open Hearts

The Weeknd-Wake Me Up (feat. Justice)