Here’s a look back at the year that was at the movies. From a pro ping pong player to a melancholy musician and some vicious vampires, here’s my list of the best movies of the year.
TOP PICKS:
Marty Supreme: At 2 hours and 29 minutes “Marty Supreme” is an epic, Sammy Glick-style story of a guy who feeds off confidence and daring. A grand tale of aspiration and consequences, à la “Boogie Nights” and “Goodfellas,” it’s one of the year’s best films.
Blue Moon: Anchored by a tour-de-force performance from, Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon is a deceptively simple character study of an artistic genius who was equal parts brilliance and frailty.
ALL THE REST:
Black Bag: Like John le Carré meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Black Bag is a dialogue driven spy drama fueled by star power rather than fire power.
Bring Her Back: Bring Her Back has graphic moments, but it doesn’t rely on jump scares to make its point. It is the psychological horror, the very core of the film’s exploration of grief, that disturbs and devastates.
F1 The Movie: A story of rivals, high speeds and a mentor with something to prove, F1 follows a very identifiable sports movie blueprint, but you’ll likely be too busy taking in the adrenalized spectacle to feel the déjà vu.”
Hamnet: Intimate and raw, Hamnet is an open wound; a profound portrait of heartache that is as uncompromising as it is emotionally involving in its depiction of a mother’s loss of a child.
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You: A study of a relentless panic attack, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You is a vital, intimate, but difficult, watch featuring a career best performance from Rose Byrne who delivers a raw nerve of a performance that impresses and devastates.
The LongWalk: The Long Walk covers a lot of ground. The story of march to the death is a harrowing look at authoritarianism and the extremes that despairing people will go in search of hope.
The Naked Gun: A mix of absurd humor, sight gags, and deadpan delivery The Naked Gun breathes new life into franchise by not playing it safe and delivering big laughs. Surely, the reboot can’t be as fun as the original movies. Yes it is, and don’t call me Shirley.
Nouvelle Vague: A love letter to Jean-Luc Godard and the French New Wave, and to storytelling and imagination. It stylishly captures the style and playfulness of the French New Wave, but more importantly, the spirit of change that fueled the movement that changed cinema.
The Secret Agent: Richly layered with political commentary, absurdist humor and thrills, The Secret Agent is an entertainingly convoluted tale of resistance against Brazil’s authoritarian government circa 1977.
Sentimental Value: With stellar performances and nuanced, grounded storytelling, Sentimental Value hits the heart in its portrayal of family bonds and the spaces that sometimes can bring people closer together.
Sinners: Director Ryan Coogler calls the movie mashup ‘genre fluid,’ and even that clever descriptor doesn’t come close to capturing the width and breadth of the story.
Sorry, Baby: An idiosyncratic comedy, Sorry, Baby is a simultaneously heartwarming and heartbreaking look at a very difficult subject, handled with care by writer, director and star Eva Victor.
Train Dreams: Train Dreams is a lovely, contemplative movie about the attempts to understand the ephemeral aspects of life. There’s no spectacle, no grandstanding, just intimate, poignant grace notes of one man’s existence.
Weapons: Director Zach Cregger navigates the story’s tonal twists and turns like a pro, bending the film’s unusual structure to his will to deliver an exciting, entertaining movie that is as hilarious as it is horrifying.
Sometimes my slogan, “I watch bad movies so you don’t have to,” is more than just a slogan. Here are my least favorite movies of the year.
Ballerina: Ballerina delivers on the franchise’s promise of a high body count but suffers from low stakes and a serious case of off-shoot-itis. it’s a shame that the movie’s storytelling isn’t quite as agile as its main character.
Bride Hard: A cumbersome mix of comedy and action, Bride Hard aims to be a blend of Bridesmaids and The Spy Who Dumped Me, but isn’t funny or action-packed enough to earn a recommendation.
Ella McCay: A mix of family drama and political underdog tale, Ella McCay is a kernel of a good idea with a good cast wrapped up in an over-stuffed melodrama.
HIM: A candidate for the Most Overwrought Sports Movie Ever, HIM is a jarring look at football culture but plays like a muddled mix of “Any Given Sunday” and “Rosemary’s Baby.”
Honey Don’t!: Sleek yet aimless, Honey Don’t displays an obvious love for its pulpy style but doesn’t show the same affection for its story which is essentially ninety minutes of red herrings.
Hurry Up Tomorrow: What do you get when you mix and match state-of-the-art, moody hook-driven pop music with a riff of Kathy Bates in “Misery,” a hint of tortured artist syndrome and trippy, experimental visuals? You get “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” a movie so self-indulgent it plays like a parody of a vanity project.
M3GAN 2.0: In its aping of Terminator 2, M3GAN 2.0 mostly says, “Hasta la vista, baby” to new ideas as it trades the kitschy horror vibe of the original for an action spy-thriller feel.
The Phoenician Scheme: The Phoenician Scheme is a carefully crafted film but it is more concerned with style than substance. As a result, there is an air of artificiality that settles over the movie like a shroud, sucking way much of the emotional depth.
The Pickup: By the time the end credits roll, The Pickup reveals itself to be less than the sum of its parts. All three leads are charismatic, and promise fireworks, but deliver a dud.
Smurfs: Smurf’s scattershot hodgepodge of music, gentle mayhem, intergenerational humour and good messages may leave you feeling blue, just not in the way the filmmakers intended.
The Strangers: Chapter 2: “The Strangers: Chapter 2” ends with a “To Be Continued” title card and scenes from Chapter 3, which, given how bad this movie is, seems like a warning rather than an advertisement.
Swiped: As formulaic as its subject is innovative, Swiped swipes left when it comes to aspiring to being anything other than a Wikipedia page come to life on screen.
On the December 27, 2025 edition of The Richard Crouse Show we meet firector James House and producer Caroline Sciama of “Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar,” a compelling three-part docuseries that reexamines Taylor’s life through a modern lens, highlighting her evolution from child star under MGM’s control to a trailblazing activist, businesswoman, and feminist icon. It features exclusive interviews with Taylor’s son Chris Wilding, granddaughter Naomi Wilding, and stars like Sharon Stone, Joan Collins, and Paris Jackson, alongside rare archival audio and can be seen on Hollywood Suite.
Then, we meet Atom Egoyan and Amanda Seyfried of the new film “Seven Veils.” In this a new psychological thriller, now playing in theatres, Seyfried is Jeanine, a director dealing with repressed trauma as she mounts a production of her mentor’s most famous work, the opera “Salome.” Rich with metaphor and suspense “Seven Veils” is an intellectual thriller about art imitating life.
Finally, we’ll meet Keira Jang, star of “Can I Get A Witness?” a Canadian eco-sci fi/coming-of-age film now on streaming sevices. It’s set in a future where climate change and world poverty have been eradicated. To mitigate these modern-day issues, travel and technology are banned and every citizen must end life at 50. Documenting the process are artists as witnesses, like the character Kiera plays, a teenager on her first day on the job.
Each week on the nationally syndicated Richard Crouse Show, Canada’s most recognized movie critic brings together some of the most interesting and opinionated people from the movies, television and music to put a fresh spin on news from the world of lifestyle and pop-culture. Tune into this show to hear in-depth interviews with actors and directors, to find out what’s going on behind the scenes of your favourite shows and movies and get a new take on current trends. Recent guests include Chris Pratt, Elvis Costello, Baz Luhrmann, Martin Freeman, David Cronenberg, Mayim Bialik, The Kids in the Hall and many more!
All iHeartRadio Canada stations are available across Canada via live stream on iHeartRadio.caand the iHeartRadio Canada app. iHeartRadio Canada stations are also connected through Alexa, Siri, and Google Home smart speakers.
Fast reviews for people busy wrapping and unwrapping gifts! Watch as I put you in the holiday spirit with reviews of the historical drama “The Man Who Invented Christmas,” the gooey and gory “Silent Night, Deadly Night” and the classic “Gremlins.”
SYNOPSIS: The based-on-a-true-story of Thunder & Lightning, a Milwaukee husband and wife Neil Diamond tribute act, “Song Sung Blue” is a story of music, bejeweled tunics, love and following your dreams.
CAST: Hugh Jackman, Kate Hudson, Michael Imperioli, Ella Anderson, King Princess, Mustafa Shakir, Hudson Hensley, Fisher Stevens, and Jim Belushi. Directed by Craig Brewer.
REVIEW: Based on the true story, “Song Sung Blue” is a conventional biopic about unconventional dreamers.
When tribute circuit entertainers Mike and Claire (Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson) meet for the first time, more than musical notes that spark between them. She does a spot on Patsy Cline; he’s an everyman who eeks out a living playing in bands, and shaking his hips as everyone from Elvis to Don Ho.
Together, as a romantic couple they are Mike and Claire, stepparents to daughters Angelina and Rachel (King Princess and Ella Anderson) but at night at the local bar, or, by a strange turn of luck, opening for Pearl Jam, they are Lightning & Thunder, a Neil Diamond tribute band.
What begins as an upbeat Judy and Mickey, “let’s put on a show” soon turns into a story of resilience as tragedy strikes the couple just as their star is beginning to rise.
Based on the 2008 documentary of the same name by Greg Kohs, “Song Sung Blue” is a stranger-than-fiction story buoyed by committed, musical performances from Jackman and Hudson.
Jackman leaves any trace of Wolverine behind to embrace Mike’s passion as a showbiz outsider clamoring for his big break. A Vietnam War veteran and an alcoholic, he turns Diamond’s pop songs into anthems of catharsis, giving voice to Mike’s unspoken trauma. Jackman’s musical numbers, and there are quite a few of them, are joyful reminders of the healing power of music.
Like Jackson, Hudson delivers in harmony and heart, handing in a performance that blends her musical and dramatic chops in a showcase role.
Both leads hand in terrific work, so it’s a shame that they are trapped in a mawkish movie that has difficulty navigating its passage from lighthearted musical romp to its deeper themes of disability and addiction. The whiplash storytelling cranks up the melodrama, blunting the emotional impact of Mike and Claire’s off-stage trials and tribulations.
When it’s a got a good beat, you can dance to “Song Sung Blue,” but when it shifts focus from the music—or “beautiful noise” as Diamond might have called it—it hits sour notes despite Jackman and Hudson’s best efforts.
SYNOPSIS: In “Marty Supreme,” a new drama now playing on theaters, Timothée Chalamet plays an ambitious table tennis player who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of success and a lost dog. “Losing doesn’t even enter my consciousness,” he says.
CAST: Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Odessa A’zion, Kevin O’Leary, Tyler Okonma, Abel Ferrara and Fran Drescher. Directed by Josh Safdie.
REVIEW: I might normally be skeptical about a movie that gives Kevin “Mr. Wonderful” O’Leary billing, just under names like Timothée Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow, but “Marty Supreme” is such a blast of pure energy I’m willing to let it go.
Set in 1952, “Marty Supreme” begins with the title character brash New Yorker Marty Mauser (Chalamet) working as a show salesman to finance a trip to the British Table Tennis Open. He’s a prodigy, a world class ping pong player who believes the sport is the next big thing, and he wants to be part of that wave.
His quest for fame and fortune, however, is more unpredictable than a no-look serve in a ping pong match.
Equipped with only his talent, determination and arrogance, Marty’s rise, fall and redemption put him in contact with actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), her cruel business mogul husband Milton Rockwell (O’Leary), a violent dog owner (legendary filmmaker Abel Ferrara) and the irate husband of his childhood best friend Rachel (Odessa A’zion).
At 2 hours and 29 minutes “Marty Supreme” is an epic, Sammy Glick-style story of a guy who feeds off confidence and daring. Marty’s a fast talker in a propulsive movie that zips along as quickly as the quips that spoil effortlessly from his lips. It’s an exhilarating ride, a pedal to the metal—or paddle to ping pong ball—experience that showcases Chalamet’s career best performance. A bundle of desperation and inner struggle hidden under a veneer of overt confidence, Marty is pushed to extremes by ambition and Chalamet gets every sweaty, eager beat exactly right.
But it’s when things aren’t going Marty’s way that Chalamet shines. A squirmy, humiliating encounter (NO SPOILERS HERE), reveals both defiance and vulnerability, and it is that push and pull, that duality, that illustrates Marty’s determination into high gear. Like all good sports movies, it’s not about the big match at the end, it’s about the journey to the match and with chaotic scenes like this, and many others, “Marty Supreme” is a hell of a ride.
Chalamet is supported by a top-notch cast, including Odessa A’zion, who, in a breakout role, is the warming element that keeps the stratospheric story earth bound.
No story about the American Dream on steroids would be complete without a money-grubbing meanie, a character who values cash and power over Marty’s ambition and talent. Safdie didn’t look much beyond “Shark Tank” when he cast Kevin “Mr. Wonderful” O’Leary, who lends his smarmy reality show energy to the film. He delivers but delivers exactly what you would expect in a movie that defies expectations at every turn.
“Marty Supreme” is exceptionalism both in its story and execution. A grand tale of aspiration and consequences, à la “Boogie Nights” and “Goodfellas,” it’s one of the year’s best films.
SYNOPSIS: In “Anaconda,” a new comedy starring Jack Black, Paul Rudd and Thandiwe Newton now playing in theatres, a group of lifelong friends get more than they bargained for when they act on their childhood dream of making a movie.
CAST: Paul Rudd, Jack Black, Steve Zahn, Thandiwe Newton, Daniela Melchior, and Selton Mello. Directed by Tom Gormican.
REVIEW: Is “Anaconda” a remake of the cheesy 1997 JLo action horror film, or is it an homage, a parody, or a “spiritual sequel” as Jack Black’s character calls the movie-within-the-movie? Truth is, it’s all those things.
Ronald (Paul Rudd) and Doug (Jack Black) were inspired to make movies after watching the 1997 cult film “Anaconda” over thirty times in theatres. Their homemade flick, a Bigfoot inspired monster movie called “Squatch” didn’t lead to bigger things, and now Doug makes wedding videos in his hometown while Ronald struggles to make a go of it as an actor in Los Angeles.
Reunited at Doug’s birthday, Ronald announces that he has the rights to “Anaconda.”
“What are you going to do with them?” asks Doug.
“Not me,” Ronald says. “Us.”
He convinces Doug and pals Kenny (Steve Zahn) and Claire (Thandiwe Newton) to remake the Jlo actioner “indie style” on location in the Amazon.
Once on site their lo-fi shoot spirals out of control as they get involved with Illegal gold miners, an off-kilter snake wrangler and a real anaconda the size of a dinosaur. We came out here to make Anaconda,” says Doug, “and now we’re in it.”
“Anaconda” is a silly but amiable and enjoyable story of following your dreams. Doug and Ronald are lovable losers, in a shared mid-life crisis, whose optimism is infectious, even when they’re being chased by a giant snake.
Most of the humour is character driven, from Black’s high-energy routine and Rudd’s immaculate timing to Zahn’s scene stealing stoner act and Newton’s up-for-anything Claire. They’re a fun ensemble that keeps the laughs coming, even when the movie leans into the horror dynamic in the film’s second half, which is a good thing given that the horror isn’t scary and the action is shot mostly in close-ups which narrows the focus in the big set pieces. But no matter, you’ll likely be laughing too much to mind.
As a comedy based on the unintentionally funny original film, “Anaconda” lovingly pokes fun at the original 1997 movie, while simultaneously celebrating its cheeseball charm.
