Going to the theatre is a communal, often transformative, experience. Love and loss, triumph and heartache, it’s all part of the grand ritual of storytelling on the silver screen. Even if you go it solo, you have a hall full of viewers to feel at one with—so you’re never truly alone. The standout experience for me this year has been watching One Battle After Another, in all its divine IMAX glory.
Paul Thomas Anderson, you magnificent visionary, you. His latest is pure, cinematic ecstasy, a masterclass in filmmaking and storytelling. From start to finish, my eyes (alongside my friend’s) were glued to the screen. If the hushed, kneejerk gasps, sighs and chuckles from the rest of the audience were any indicator, we weren’t the only ones on the edge of our seats.
The thunderous soundtrack, assembled by Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood, was the perfect sonic accompaniment to PTA’s magnum opus (no shade to There Will Be Blood, of course). The incisive, immaculately paced script, despite clocking in a runtime of nearly three hours, never felt like it was drawn out. The immersive cinematography and pointed camera work placed you in the driver’s seat with the confident touch only possible from a master of his craft. And the performances—oh, the performances.
Debut star Chase Infiniti, opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, stole the show, showcasing all of the heady thrills of youth and electrifying angst of deeply entrenched family dynamics. Accompanied by a stellar supporting cast including Teyana Taylor, Regina Hall, Sean Penn and Benicio del Toro, this was a truly transcendent experience—only possible in the confines of a darkened theatre hall.
The story speaks to past, present and future with timeless themes of class consciousness and legacy, and it’s all wonderfully framed by sharp, laugh-out-loud humour and gut-wrenching tragedy. This, more than any other movie I saw this year in the theatres, was a reminder that film is here to stay, even if it may have been a sombre year for cinema recently.
We’re all still mourning the loss of Singapore’s beloved indie cinema, The Projector, which closed down earlier this year. It was sharply followed by Cathay Cineplexes’s announcement that they too, would be ceasing operations. And we all know that Frankenstein—Guillermo del Toro’s ingenious gothic picture—should have been one experienced in a dark room.
The latest hit to the system? The production company behind One Battle After Another, Warner Bros Entertainment, will most likely be acquired by streaming giant Netflix for a whopping US$72 billion. The question stands: what happens then to the future of film—and the unrivalled experience of watching it in the cinemas?
But hope remains.
Each and every movie is a colossal undertaking, a spiritual confluence of artistic vision writ large. The director, cast and crew spend months on location, working tirelessly to craft narrative spectacles intended to be experienced on the big screen. And that’s not counting the pre- and post-production stages, which are creative behemoths in their own right.
I’d like to think that as long as there are people to champion this storied medium, there will be like-minded folk who will go out of their way to experience those stories, to laugh, cry and learn from them. In that vein, while this year had plenty of moments to despair over, we’re lucky to have seen some truly phenomenal films get released.
Awards nominations are all abuzz now, but despite a fair amount of unfortunate snubs, plenty of other films are still getting their flowers. All power to them, I say, because when the talent behind these projects win, we all win.
On paper, Sinners comes across like a fever dream. But the film, a positively spellbinding blend of seemingly disparate genres, directed by Ryan Coogler, is far more than the sum of its parts. It is a riveting portrayal of courage and artistry, framed by some of the most gorgeous cinematography I’ve seen in recent memory (also, I’m convinced Ludwig Göransson can do no wrong).
Del Toro’s Frankenstein, too, is another feather in the cap of the auteur. Heady human drama, grounded in the director’s signature edge of fae fantasy, serves a thrilling epic that will most likely go down as one of the best portrayals ever of Mary Shelley’s timeless classic.
We’re mere days out from the theatrical release of Marty Supreme, directed by Josh Safdie and starring the inimitable, irresistible Timothée Chalamet. The movie is already breaking box office records before it’s even hit the big screens, so by all accounts, the table tennis tale looks to be contending for every award it can get its dexterous hands on. Perhaps we can all take a leaf out of Chalamet’s books; his impossibly brilliant press run has certainly been bringing the fun, and inviting folks back into the theatres again.
As for 2026? The final instalment of Denis Villeneuve’s sweeping Dune saga, slated for release at the end of next year, just might be the best of the trilogy to date. Alongside Homer’s infamously unadaptable epic, The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan. Beyond the blockbuster nature of both, one can’t deny the pull of an extremely star-studded cast on both fronts.
The future of the format is not set in stone. There will be peaks and valleys ahead, but that only means we need to continue doing our part to keep the beating heart of movies alive. Film is art, and art is good. Necessary, almost, for the soul. So ditch your living rooms (and your phones) and head to your local theatre. If anything, heed the wise words of Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings: “There’s some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.”
