Sure, streaming films from the couch is cosy, but unless you’ve got a decked-out home cinema, you’re not getting the full experience. At Urban List, we believe that the best new movies should be seen on the big screen—IMAX for blockbusters, cineplex recliners for epic features, and indies with feature-length wine pours for an arthouse.
Movies are well and truly back in the cultural conversation in 2025, with a host of new Australian-made flicks and big blockbusters worth getting noisy about. From an utterly disturbing film by Adelaide ratbags Danny and Michael Philippou to a searing social satire about baby boomers hoarding wealth, these new movies explore the joys and horrors of our crazy world.
Read on for the best new movies to watch at the cinema in 2025—for now.
Bring Her Back
Screening In Cinemas Across Australia Right Now
Filmed locally in Adelaide, Bring Her Back is a viscerally unsettling horror from Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou. The duo’s breakthrough film Talk To Me was a massive success, catapulting the directors’ profile from cult following to global stars. Their follow up Bring Her Back follows a brother and sister as they move in with an unhinged foster mother who's grieving the loss of her daughter. The siblings quickly discover their new carer is deep in a crazy, gruesome ritual and is splitting the two to gain control. Expect body horror, heartwrenching breakdowns, a phenomenal performance from Sally Hawkins and an Aussie soundtrack used to chilling effect.
BIRTHRIGHT
Screening Sydney Film Festival From Thursday 12 June
Some films help us escape the doom of the newscycle; some reflect it right back to us—the best ones do both. Directed by Australian filmmaker Zoe Pepper, BIRTHRIGHT is a dark satirical comedy that explores the much-discussed generational divide between boomers and millennials. After losing his job and his home, Cory and his pregnant wife are forced to move back in with his folks. Worried their adult son is leeching off their generational wealth, the baby boomer parents' resentment builds and absolute chaos ensues. The tension-building script is a searing and often hilarious takedown of the generational tension, delivered by a stellar cast. For millennials (myself included), this is a cathartic way to relinquish some of that resentment—for a tight 92 minutes, at least.
Tinā
Screening In Selected Cinemas Across Australia Right Now
Pack your tissues for this one, folks. Directed by Samoan-born Kiwi Miki Magasiva, Tinā follows a grieving mother who lost her daughter in the Christchurch earthquake. Thrust back into work as a temp teacher in a posh private school, she unites the students by starting a choir. Tinā (translating to mother in Samoan) becomes a maternal figure for the kids, sharing beautiful Pasifika music and a little bit of affectionate tough love. This movie is packed with heart and will have you running back home to the arms of your mother. What's most moving is its soundtrack—a series of Samoan ballads sung by the Western Sāmoa Teachers' Training College Choir and St Francis Choir that you need to hear in a cinema.
Sinners
Screening In Cinemas Across Australia Right Now
Sinners is the new utterly ambitious, genre-defying film from Black Panther director Ryan Coogler. It’s impossible to put this fun film into a box—it’s got a bit of Blaxploitation, romance, campy horror and history all packed into its 2 hour and 17-minute runtime. Set in 1930s America, the film follows twin brothers (played by Michael B Jordan) as they return home to tidy up their lives, only to discover there’s evil on their doorstep—if you let it in. There’s so much to love about this movie, from its cracking blues soundtrack and vocally-talented cast to its tension-building pacing and comedic timing. This is hands down one of the best new movies of 2025—and my personal favourite so far.
Final Destination Bloodlines
Screening In Cinemas Across Australia Right Now
Fans of the Final Destination franchise will be familiar with the logs in the truck, the tanning bed and the laser eye surgery (IYKYK). These were the iconic irrational fears realised before our eyes in the lead up to the latest reckoning: Final Destination Bloodlines. True to form, the latest movie brings new and modern fears to life through a series of very unfortunate events brought on by the ominous omen death. Horror movies can be polarising for film-goers, but this one’s holding down a solid 92% on Rotten Tomatoes—a rating we reckon makes it worth seeing on the big screen.
The Phoenician Scheme
Screening In Cinemas Across Australia Right Now
Michael Cera is a stand-out in this picture-perfect espionage comedy from beloved auteur Wes Anderson. The actor's very bad Norwegian accent is expertly slotted into serious scenes to perfect comedic effect. Packed with wry humour, symmetrical pastel-hued shots and cameos from loads of Hollywood stars, The Phoenician Scheme is quintessentially Wes Anderson. While the story isn't our favourite from the director, this is one of his funniest films and a compelling performance from breakout star Mia Threapleton makes this movie a great cinema watch.
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