“These aren’t no basic beoch plot twists. You won’t find Shutter Island on this list.” – BGM

ROLL TAPE…

For New Year’s Eve 2025, we’re ordering Chinese for supper, pouring several Pimm’s Cups, and settling in for a full slate of films with significant plot twists.

Here’s our short list of films with brief descriptions, followed by our long list of hot picks for our annual end-of-year film extravaganza.

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SHORT LIST

Angel Dust (Ishii, 1994)
On Mondays, a young woman is murdered in the subway, leading psychiatrist Setsuko Suma to investigate Dr. Rei Aku’s deprogramming of former sect members.

Arrival (Villeneuve, 2016)
Linguist Louise Banks leads a team of investigators when gigantic spaceships touch down around the world. As nations teeter on the verge of global war, Banks and her crew must find a way to communicate with the extraterrestrial visitors.

Fallen (Hoblit, 1998)
Homicide detective John Hobbes witnesses the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese. Soon after the execution, the killings start again, and they are very similar to Reese’s style.

Kind Hearts & Coronets (Hamer, 1949)
A distant poor relative of the Duke D’Ascoyne plots to inherit the title by murdering the eight other heirs who stand ahead of him in the line of succession.

The Lives of Others (Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006)
In 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.

An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge/ La Rivière du Hibou (Enrico, 1962/64), as Introduced by Rod Serling on The Twilight Zone, Season 5, Episode 22
During the American Civil War in 1862, a condemned Confederate prisoner, Peyton Farquhar, is due to be hanged by Union troops. When the execution takes place from the bridge, the rope breaks and he begins his escape toward home.

Phantom Thread (Anderson, 2017)
Set in 1950s London, Reynolds Woodcock is a renowned dressmaker whose fastidious life is disrupted by a young, strong-willed woman, Alma, who becomes his muse and lover.

The Prestige (Nolan, 2006)
Rival 19th-century magicians engage in a bitter battle for trade secrets.

Universal Language (Rankin, 2024)
An absurdist triptych of seemingly unconnected stories finds a mysterious point of intersection in this tale set somewhere between Winnipeg and Tehran.

Long List

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PREVIOUS NYE POSTS

2024: New Year’s Eve Film Fest 2024: Eccentric Families
2023: New Year’s Eve Film Fest 2023: European Hijinks
2022: New Year’s Eve Film Fest 2022: Sleuthapalooza
2021: New Year’s Eve Film Fest 2021: Swashbucklers
2020: 10th Anniversary New Year’s Eve Film Bestival
2019: New Year’s Eve Film Fest 2019: The Best Heist Movies of All Time
2018: New Year’s Eve Film Fest, 2018: Train Movies
2017: New Year’s Eve Movie Marathon, 2017: Movies Set on New Year’s Eve
2016: New Year’s Eve Movie Party : Transformation Movies
2015: A New Year’s Thin Man Movie Marathon
2014: The Lunchbox Season’s Family New Year’s Eve: The Hitchcock Edition
2013: It’s a Lego Doctor Who Year’s Eve: Multi-Serial Marathon and Lego Building Challenges
2012: Lord Peter Wimsey’s Case Crackin’ New Years Eve Party
2011: Last Minute New Year’s Eve: Sherlock Holmes Party and DIY Detective Kits