My Favorite Movies of 2025

On the eve of the Actor Awards (nee SAG-AFTRA), it’s time to rank the best movies I saw this year. Often my taste differs from the voting boards  Try my choices in order and perhaps you’ll agree with me, but every film on this list, in my opinion, deserves to be seen.

1. Sinners

2. 40 Acres

3. Sentimental Value

4. Phoenician Scheme

5. Companion

6. Twinless

7. Mickey 17

8. Black Bag

9. Nouvelle Vague/Good Fortune

10. Hamnet

11. Ugly Stepsister 

12. Weapons

13. Frankenstein

14. Fantastic 4

15. One Battle After Another 

16. Together

17. Caught Stealing

18. Song Sung Blue

19. Good Boy

20. Relay

21. Deep Cover

22. She Rides Shotgun

23. The Friend

24. Roof Man/Sketch

25. The Surfer

26. Gladiator 2/Nobody 2

27. M.I.: Dead Reckoning 

28. Bugonia

29. Tron: Ares

30. The Secret Agent

32. Rental Family

33. Sovereign/The Long Walk

34. Marty Supreme 

35. Toxic Avenger

36. Thunderbolts 

37. Life of Chuck

38. Predator: Badlands

39. Final Destination: Bloodlines

40. Blue Moon

41. Jay Kelly

42. Train Dreams

43. Peter Hujar’s Day

44. The Materialists

Films I haven’t seen yet: Eddington. Man Finds Tape. No other choice.. It Was Only An Accident. The Mastermind. Testament of Ann Lee.

Summer Indie Music 2025

 Twelve years running and, still, all I care about is keeping it happy and fast. I listen to thousands of indie music tracks and most of them are slow and sad. And people eat what they're force-fed. Not me. Maybe it's my naturally high serotonin level (sorry), but I continue to champion the hopeful underdog, the resilient muscle of the heart, the belief in a potential utopia. Will you accept this journey into the beauty and dissonance of hope?

Spotify and YouTube playlists below.

Summer Indie 2025

1. The Wombats - Can't Say No

2. Sharon Van Etten - Indio (the site of my former fave music festival--now a pop wasteland)

3. Art d'Ecco - Tree of Life

4. Mamalarkey - #1 best of All Time

5. Ty Segall - Shoplifter

6. Deep Sea Diver - What Do I Know?

7. Panda Bear - Praise

8. Hannah Cohen - Summer Sweat

9. Tunde Adebimpe (from TV on the Radio) - Magnetic

10. The Laughing Chimes - A Promise to Keep

11. Clutter - Kraut

12. Rialto - No One Leaves This Discotheque Alive

13. Stereolab - Transmuted Matter

14. OK Go - Love

15. Doves - Cold Dreaming

16. The Convenience - Western Pepsi Cola Town

17. The Waterboys - Andy (A Guy Like You)

18. Sports Team - Condensation

19. Horsegirl - Well I Know You're Shy

20. Mocky - Music Will Explain

21. Ten Tonnes - Heaven Sent

22. Dream Pixel - Moreish Idols

23. Goose - Feel It Now

24. Mandrake Handshake - Hypersonic Super-Asterid

For YouTube, I've tried to avoid videos whenever possible, since their mostly uninspired. Let's try to focus on the good music instead of the reason they killed MTV (and Coachella).

My Favorite Movies of 2024

 This was a banner year for horror films, and I think they deserve as much credence and relevance as "serious" films. It was especially encouraging to see The Substance earn a place at awards ceremonies. Too bad Demi didn't take home the Oscar. I loved Mikey Madison's performance in Anora, but I also think winning gold too early can be a curse for young actors. Still, every nominee for best actress turned in a mesmerizing performance. Also a shout-out to June Squibb, who wasn't nominated for Thelma, but rocked her role as the titular character at age 94. This is my list of non-horror films, please see my previous post for a ranking of those.

I had the amazing fortune to visit Riga, Latvia this past year at exactly the same time the animated film Straume (Flow) was playing in theaters there. I saw it and figured this gorgeous, moving piece of art would never see the light of American day. Lo and behold, it took home the Oscar and Golden Globe, beating Wild Robot, which was incredible in its own right.

 As a rule, my rankings are based upon whether I would watch the film again, and higher for those I'd see multiple times over ensuing years. I found the Brutalist, for instance, bleak and overlong, with joyless awkward sex scenes, clumsily edited, and misleading in its content--since Laszlo Toth never existed, and Brutalism is the architecture of fascism. Therefore, it didn't make my list despite its incredible cinematography and soundtrack.

MY FAVORITE MOVIES of 2024

1. Flow

2. A Complete Unknown

3. Furiosa

4. Anora

5. Love Lies Bleeding

6. Thelma

7. Wild Robot

8. A Real Pain

9. Last Showgirl

10. My Old Ass

11. Iron Claw

12. Conclave

13. Rebel Ridge

14. Sing Sing

15. Emilia Perez

16. Deadpool & Wolverine

Films I haven't seen yet, so list may change: Last Stop Yuma County, The Order, Piece By Piece, Better Man, Kneecap, Saturday Night, Super Man, The Abandon, I'm Still Here

Best Horror Films of 2024

For those of you who don't know, I self-published my first horror novel in both ebook and paperback on Kindle, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. It's a YA cosmic horror novel called Many Arms Unfold Us, and my pseudonym is Diavolo Ray. Please follow me on tiktok, instagram, bluesky, and Goodreads. You can buy my book here: https://www.amazon.com/Many-Arms-Enfold-Diavolo-Ray/dp/B0DDHDMLPK

This was a banner year for quality scary movies. Here's my ranking:

1. Late Night With The Devil

2. The Substance

3. Longlegs

4. The First Omen

5. Alien: Romulus

6. Heretic

7. Arcadian

8. Abigail

9. Blink Twice

10. Cuckoo

11. Nosferatu

12. A Quiet Place: Day One

13. Speak No Evil

14. Strange Darling

15. Immaculate

16. Presence

Summer Indie Music 2024

Tough putting this together. Maybe it'll get you through the winter months. I can't help gravitating toward retro sounds in new music, whether it's psych, new wave, glam, funk, disco, yacht, or classic rock. The most important think is it's happier and more danceable than the weepy crap most indie artists seem obsessed with. It's been a twenty-year navel gaze and so many boxes of tissue. They say the best art comes in times of suffering. Maybe the newly-elected chaos regime will wake artists up from their trauma porn and make them commit to bringing joy back into the world. Like Kamala's campaign. Sometimes you gotta be the only light.

1. Ginger Root - All Night

2. Mannequin Pussy - Nothing Like

3. Yard Act - Dream Job

4. Sheer Mag - All Lined Up

5. Modern English - I Know Your Soul

6. Allie X - John and Jonathan

7. Chromeo - BTS

8. Omni, Izzy Glaudini - Plastic Pyramid

9. Lime Garden - Floor

10. STRFKR - Armatron

11. St. Vincent - Big Time Nothing

12. Corridor - Jump Cut

13. Peel - In the Sedentary

14. Camera Obscura - Pop Goes Pop

15. Dehd - Don't Look Down

16. Psymon Spine - So Far Away

17. Paul Weller - Jumble Queen

18. Kim Deal - Crystal Breath

19. GIFT - Wish Me Away

20. BODEGA - City Is Taken

21. Kasabian - Coming Back To Me Good

My Favorite Movies Of 2023

Damn fine year for movies again. There seemed to be fewer forgettable one word titles. Maybe execs are finally learning that literally nobody will remember what a movie like "Vengeance" from 2022 was about, let alone that it was a great dark comedy. One thing I could do without is how many trailers feature a breathy slowed-down version of a retro hit used for dramatic effect. I hate it every time.

Anyway, I was so enthralled by the pink zeitgeist surrounding Greta Gerwig's amazing film at theaters all summer. It was fun, colorful, moving, profound, and a total Trojan Horse for feminism. I hope it has a ripple effect on our culture for years to come, but I see it's already being snubbed at award shows. Poor Things was also a feast for the eyes, and just as empowering in it's own shocking way. I couldn't decide which I loved more, so I gave a tie for first place, which I've never done before.

My criteria for ranking, and maybe I'm a weirdo, is: would I watch the movie again? Some of the films on this list I've already watched three times.

P.S.: I obviously have a soft spot for horror, fantasy, and sci-fi movies. 

BEST FILMS

1. Barbie/Poor Things (tie)

2. American Fiction

3. Killers of the Flower Moon

4. Dream Scenario

5. Past Lives

6. Anatomy of a Fall

7. No Hard Feelings

8. Wonka

9. Talk To Me

10. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

11. Moonage Daydream

12. Oppenheimer/Zone of Interest (tie)

13. Rustin

14. May December/Eileen

15. The Flash 

16. Godzilla Minus One

17. Jules

18. When Evil Lurks

19. The Holdovers/Dear God, It's Me, Margaret

20. TMNT: Mutant Mayhem

21. How To Blow Up A Pipeline

22. John Wick 4

23. Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning

24. Cocaine Bear

25. Knock At The Cabin

26. No One Will Save You

27. Evil Dead Rise

28. Guardians of the Galaxy 3

29. Saltburn

30. You Hurt My Feelings

Movies I haven't seen yet: Eight Mountains, Little Richard: I Am Everything

And now...Summer Indie Music 2023!

 A little easier making this playlist. I guess some of the kids emerged from the pandemic ready to dance. There's still plenty of weepy insincere shit out there, but who cares? Activate. Motivate. Change the world.

1. Death Valley Girls - Magic Powers

2. Phoenix - Alpha Zulu

3. The Go! Team - Gemini

4. Temples - Afterlife

5. Miss Grit - Follow The Cyborg

6. CVC - Good Morning Vietnam (album version is better the single version)

7. Guerilla Toss, NEU! - Zum Herz

8. Spiral Drive - Space Train

9. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fleez

10. Bass Drum Of Death - Everybody's Gonna Be There

11. Girl Ray - Everybody's Saying That

12. Tame Impala - Wings Of Time (Dungeons & Dragons ST)

13. Panic Shack - It's Good To Be Back (Metronomy cover)

14. Royal Otis - Oysters In My Park

15. Fazerdaze - Thick Of The Honey

16. Foals - 2001 (LCO session)

17. CIA - Impersonator

18. THUS LOVE - In tandem

19. Eggy, Traffik Island - Upon Reflection (remix)

20. JW Francis - Casino

21. Lime Garden - Bitter

22. Fujiya & Miyagi - Olympian Heights

23. Altin Gun - Ask

24. Hifi Sean - Beautiful

Summer Indie Music 2022 -- A Year Late

 Looks like I also forgot to post my annual playlist from last year of the happiest uptempo indie music. If you follow me at David Blanconada Ray on Spotify, you'll get all this shit well ahead of time. I don't blog much anymore, because what's the point? I'll try to do better. Below is the Spotify embed. Cheers.

1. Band Of Horses - Lights

2. Rolling Coastal Blackouts Fever - The Way It Shatters

3. Wet Leg - Chaise Lounge

4. Parquet Courts - Sympathy For Life

5. Spoon - Hardest Cut

6. Johnny Marr - Counter Clock World

7. Pip Blom - Keep It Together

8. Lazy Eyes - Fuzz Jam

9. Nation Of Language - Across That Fine Line

10. CMAT - No More Virgos

11. Andy Bell - Sidewinder

12. Superchunk - This Night

13. St. Paul & Broken Bones - Last dance

14. Arcade Fire - The Lightning II

15. Dehd - Bad Love

16. Johnny Marr - Sensory Street

17. Vinyl Williams - Exopalace

18. Destroyer - It's In Your Heart Now

Favorite Movies Of 2022

You should at least see the top-5 if you haven't already. My taste leans toward fantasy and horror, so apologies in advance. This marks the first year in my memory that I saw a film early in the year, instantly knew it was going to be my favorite film, and the Academy actually remembered and agreed with me.

1. Everything Everywhere All At Once

2. Barbarian

3. Neptune Frost

4. Tar

5. Moonage Daydream

6. Good Luck, Leo Grande

7. Puss In Boots: The Last Wish

8. Vesper

9. Stutz

10. Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent

11. Northman

12. You Won't Be Alone

13. Hatching

14. Nope

15. Knives Out

16. Prey

17. Windfall

18. Thirteen Lives

19. Vengeance

20. Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

21. Avatar: Way of Water

22. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

23. Apollo 10 1/2

24. Black Phone

25. Lost City

26. Adam Project

27. Hustle

28. Emily The Criminal

29. Spirited

30. Innocents

31. Turning Red

32. Pearl

33. X

34. Fire Of Love

35. Banshees Of Inisherin

Ummm...Favorite Movies of 2021? My bad.

I was about to post my fave films of 2022 when I realized I'd never shared the 2021 list. Yikes! There were so many, I had to divide them into two categories:

GROWNUP FILMS

1. No Sudden Move

2. Riders Of Justice

3. Summer Of Soul

4. In The Heights

5. In & Of Itself

6. Moxie/CODA (tie)

7. I'm Your Man

8. King Richard

9. French Dispatch

10. Eyes Of Tammy Faye

11. Sparks Brothers

12. Electric Life Of Louis Wain

13. Bo Burnham Inside

14. Last Night In Soho

15. Nightmare Alley

16. Power Of The Dog

17. Tragedy Of Macbeth

18. Val

19. Licorice Pizza

20. Lost Daughter

POPCORN MOVIES

1. Dune

2. Spider Man Multiverse

3. Cruella

4. Free Guy

5. Shang Chi & Ten Rings

6. Stowaway

7. Cop Shop

8. Boss Level

9. Psycho Goreman

10. Barb & Starr Go To Vista Del Mar

11. Werewolves Within

12. Luca

13. Oxygen

14. Green Knight

15. Nobody

16. Jungle Cruise

17. Quiet Place 2

My Favorite Movies of 2020

With the strange pandemic year, and the accompanying inertia, it was hard to sit still on my couch for a movie meant for the big screen, and also a lot of great cinema probably slipped under the radar. I'm grateful I got to see a few films in the theater, like Tenet, Bill & Ted 3, and Nomadland. Anyway, from what I managed to watch, here are my favorites in order of greatness. Try to see them if you can.

1. The Trial Of The Chicago 7

2. Judas & The Black Messiah

3. Personal History Of David Copperfield

4. Soul

5. Sylvie's Love

6. His House

7. Minari

8. White Tiger

9. Nomadland

10. Mucho Mucho Amor

11. Waiting For The Barbarians

12. Synchronic

13. Tenet

14. Enola Holmes

15. News Of The World

16. Another Round

17. Love & Monsters

18. Palm Springs

19. Archive

20. Bill & Ted Face The Music

21. The Go-Gos

22. Birds Of Prey

23. Saint Maud

24. Spontaneous

25. The Mauritanian

26. I See You

27. Shirley

28. Shadow In The Cloud

Movies from 2020 I haven't seen yet, but want to: First Cow, Kajillionaire, Greyhound, Relic, Antlers, Blood Quantum, Rental, Amulet, Riders Of Justice

2021 Summer Indie Music Playlist

 Sometimes I worry the indie kids don't make dance music anymore, only heartbreak albums. It's why I quit going to Coachella. Anyway, I combed through thousands of new songs to prove myself wrong (mostly I was right, crybabies), and managed to find some pretty fetching jams. Seriously, don't let slow sad music define your life, or you'll never survive an apocalypse with a smile on your face like I will.

Copy these links in your browser to hear the tracks

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7u3pAlB6kEqMJfJkVQuC7r?si=bbfafabef3394ec1

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLc6Qvcv7x3Rpxz4V48Yuv-9MMJnDPBRfp

2021 SUMMER INDIE MUSIC PLAYLIST

1. The Knocks (w/ Foster The People) - All About You (Knocks VIP Mix)

2. Brijean - Wifi Beach

3. Neil Frances - Music Sounds Better With You

4. BENEE - Kool

5. Durand Jones & The Indications - Witchoo

6. Remi Wolf - Photo ID (Free Nationals Remix)

7. Jungle - Talk About It

8. Japanese Breakfast - Be Sweet

9. Gardens & Villa - Disco Kitchen

10. Poolside (w/ DRAMA) - I Feel High

11. Argonaut & Wasp - Signal

12. Brijean - Hey Boy

13. Flamingosis - Cosmic Feeling

14. Remi Wolf - Sauce (Beck Remix)

15. Babe Rainbow - Ready For Tomorrow

16. Lake Street Drive - Hypotheticals (Single Version)

17. Toro Y Moi - Still Sound (there's also an instrumental version that's dope)

18. Molly Burch (w/ Wild Nothing) - Emotion

19. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Yours

20. Nick Waterhouse - Vincentine

21. Du Blonde - Ducky Daffy

22. Fruit Bats - The Balcony

23. Tigers Jaw - Lemon Mouth

24. Benny Sings (w/ KYLE) - Kids

25. Neil Frances - Mr. Blue

Albums That Feel Like Summer

 Figured I'd throw down this list of the LPs that conjure images of the sun, of dancing, of joyous nostalgia, of neon cityscapes -- all the funnest memories of summertime. I may add to this list over time, I may not.

1. The Cars - First Album

2. Billy Squier - Don't Say No

3. Two Door Cinema Club - First Album

4. Jorge Ben - Africa Brasil

5. ZZ Top - Eliminator

6. Beach Boys - All Summer Long

7. Chuck Berry - After School Sessions

8. The Go! Team - Thunder, Lightning, Strike

9. Aerosmith - Rocks

10. Pixies - Dolittle

11. Franz Ferdinand - First Album

12. The Pretenders - First Album

13. Arcade Fire - Reflektor

14. Fang Island - First Album

15. Beck - Odelay

16. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run

17. The Strokes - Is This It

18. Friendly Fires - Pala

19. STRFKR - Reptilians

20. Johnny Foreigner - Waited Up Til It Was Light

Summer Indie Music Playlist 2020

 My hope is one day there will be universal free healthcare, so all the indie kids who are fixated on their heartbreaks will finally get the mood stabilizers they need, and we can start hearing happy uptempo songs again. In the meantime, I'll keep sifting through 2000+ dismal slow funeral dirges to bring you the little nuggets of glory you'll find on this list.

Here's the Spotify link to the playlist. Blogger changed something about how HTML reads, so I can't seem to embed to code anymore. Because the motto of the internet is "If ain't broke, break it".

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2VbQwM6gqs5jm971m0ZIVT?si=0iBWkX90Swu6SZHPBVyC2g

1. Bananagun -- She Now

2. Caroline Rose -- Feel The Way I Want

3. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever -- Falling Thunder

4. Kate Von Schleicher -- Wheel

5. Thundercat -- Funny Thing

6. Kiwi Jr. -- Leslie

7. Phoebe Bridgers -- Kyoto

8. Poolside w/ Ben Browning -- I Feel High

9. Tennis -- Need Your Love

10. Neil Francis -- Better Way

11. Sorry -- Perfect

12. Jackie Lynn -- Diamond Glue

13. Catholic Action -- Witness

14. Wild Nothing -- Sleight Of Hand

15. Hinds -- Burn

16. Cornershop -- No Rock Save In Roll

17. GUM -- Airwalkin'

18. HAIM -- Up From A Dream

19. Nation Of Language -- On Division St.

20. Melkbelly -- Season Of The Goose

21. Tim Burgess -- I Got This

22. Boniface -- Oh My God

23. I Break Horses -- I'll Be The Death Of You

24. Rose City Band -- Morning Light

25. The James Hunter Six -- Nick Of Time

Summer Indie Music Playlist 2019

Did I really forget to post this last year? Chalk it up to the difficulty of finding upbeat, happy music from indie artists. Most of them traffic in navel-gazing heartbreak and slow beats, or post-punk anger.

Oh well, I'm here to cheer you up, if you can turn that sad shit off for an hour.

I'm not doing YouTube playlists anymore. Below is the written playlist, and here's the Spotify link:




 1. Ex Hex -- Cosmic Cave
2. Two Door Cinema Club -- Talk
3. Sunflower Bean -- Come For Me
4. Deerhunter -- Plains
5. Mattiel -- Heck Fire
6. Vacations -- On Your Own
7. Lizzo -- Juice
8. Tame Impala -- Patience
9. Frankie Cosmos -- Windows
10. Wild Nothing -- Blue Wings
11. SOAK -- Knock Me Off My Feet
12. The Black Keys -- Go
13. Billie Eilish -- Bad Guy
14. The Raconteurs -- Sunday Driver
15. Sloan Peterson -- Here
16. Yeasayer - Fluttering In The Floodlights
17. Nilufer Yanya -- In Your Head
18. Vinyl Williams -- None With Other
19. Empath -- Soft Shape
20. Stephen Malkmus -- Rushing The Acid Frat
21. Mattiel -- Je Ne Me Connais Pas
22. Broken Social Scene -- Remember Me Young
23. Jay Som -- Superbike
24. The New Pornographers -- Dreamlike And On The Rush
25. Argonaut & Wasp -- Composure
26. Daniel Norgren -- Let Love Run The Game

My Favorite Movies Of 2019

Don’t know why it took me so long to get to this:

1. JoJo Rabbit
2. Booksmart
3. Parasite
4. 1917
5. Joker
6. Prospect
7. Sisters Brothers
8. Peanut Butter Falcon
9. Dr. Sleep
10. Fighting With My Family
11. Us
12. Always Be My Maybe
13. John Wick 3
14. Crawl
15. Long Shot
16. Ford vs Ferrari
17. The Two Popes
18. Midsommar
19. Dolemite Is My Name
20. I Am Mother
21. Rocketman
22. Hole In The Ground
23. Irishman
24. Cats (if you’re drunk and heckling it)

My Favorite Movies of 2018

Last year I came in third for a national Oscar pool and won $75. This year I got ten wrong and got nothing. Chalk it up to my favorite films being largely composed of overlooked gems. Incidentally, I remember as the credits rolled for Green Book, turning to my date and saying "Well, that was obviously directed by a white guy."

1. Roma

2. The Favourite

3. Sorry To Bother You

4. Annihilation

5. Hereditary

6. Black Panther

7. Isle Of Dogs

8. Blackkklansman

9. Can You Ever Forgive Me?

10. Blockers

11. Upgrade

12. A Quiet Place

13. First Man

14. Ballad Of Buster Scruggs

15. Chappaquiddick

16. Ready Player One

17. Solo

18. A Star Is Born

19. Cargo

20. Deadpool 2/Colette

Movies I haven't seen yet: Unsane, Eighth Grade, Mid-90s, If Beale Street Could Talk, A Simple Favor, Disobedience, Don't Worry He Won't Get Far On Foot, Leave No Trace

Decor and design I love vs. hate

DECOR I LOVE:
Mid-Century
Victorian
Post-Modern
Reclaimed Minimalist
Tiki
Moroccan
Pop Art Solids

DECOR I HATE:
Americana
Shabby Chic
Hillbilly Prairie
Bohemian Antique
New Age Celestial
Athletic
Pastels
Corporate Industrial
Dirtbag Bachelor
Knick-Knack Hoarder

My Favorite Movies of 2017

It occurred to me I never listed my fave cinema from a couple years back, and since I'm about to drop my 2018 list before the Oscars, I figured I should get on it. Nobody really reads this or cares, but it's for my own posterity and failing memory. Movies have gotten so relevant and good lately, it's almost impossible to pick 20, and there's a long list of well-reviewed films I'm still trying to see.

1. Coco
2. Get Out
3. Wind River
4. Call Me By Your Name
5. Colossal
6. Molly's Game
7. American Made
8. Baby Driver
9. Lost City of Z
10. Three Billboards
11. Meyerwitz Stories
12. Detroit
13. Mom and Dad
14. Killing Of A Sacred Deer
15. Shape Of Water
16. Loving Vincent
17. War For The Planet Of The Apes
18. Big Sick
19. It Comes At Night
20. Okja/Good Time

Unlike the rest of the academy, I was underwhelmed by the biggest best pic nominees: La La Land (this year's old Hollywood wank-fest), Moonlight (where the protagonist almost never actually communicates) and Manchester By The Sea (where the protagonist experiences almost zero growth).

Acclaimed movies from 2017 I have yet to see: A Ghost Story, Endless Poetry, Personal Shopper, The Beguiled, A Quiet Passion, The Ornithologist, Nocturama, Brigsby Bear, Una, Sleight.

Winter Indie Music Playlist 2018

Hi, everybody! Cold enough for ya? Let's crank up the heater and go for a drive under bare arching trees, then drink hot tea by some beautiful fireplace in town. Hope this music helps. Below are the YouTube and Spotify links.