‘Hope’ is a mesmerizing collision of sound and image, an action blockbuster made all the more exciting by having a filmmaker as assured as Na Hong-jin behind the camera.

JL Burgos’ 'Ganggang' is a striking coming-of-age story that captures what it means to grow up amid political violence, told from the innocent eyes of children who are still trying to make sense of the world around them.

‘The End of Oak Street’ is a classically executed series of intense set-pieces, uncanny tension, and escalating action that it consistently runs on.

One thing is certain: Giancarlo Abrahan and Guelan Varela Luarca’s ‘Mag-iina’ is not your usual Cinemalaya watch, and I hope Cinemalaya brings out more films like this in their future iterations.

David R. Corpuz’s ‘Tayo Lang Ang Nakakaalam’ looks beyond HIV as a diagnosis and examines the conditions that can make seeking help difficult in the first place.

Dustin Celestino’s ‘A.ni.mál’ may fall in line with his previous Cinemalaya entries’ direct tappings into the modern political zeitgeist, but it sets itself apart through its commitment to pure comedy for comedy’s sake, consistently reaching for the lowest-brow jokes and payoffs that work remarkably well throughout its triptych structure.

‘2 Valid IDs’ finds its strength in something far more ordinary in our daily lives: the horror of inequality stems from a policy that not everyone can afford — not just financially, but through time, accessibility, opportunity, and dignity.

‘Status: Rejected’ is an impressive first feature from filmmaker Vahn Pascual that is as much about what makes human connections human as it is about the outside forces and the nature of time that alienate us from each other.

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ is an emotionally charged rebirth for everyone’s favorite web-slinger that offers an exciting depiction of what makes the character so universally relatable in so many ways.

Scrappiness is what ‘I, Object’ coasts upon throughout my numerous misgivings of it and what evens it out into a wondrous small-scale adventure with its heart in the right place for the young ones that have felt othered. 

With all its towering ambitions and technical sheen, ‘The Odyssey’ is essentially one of Nolan's most personal blockbusters, if not one of his very best.

James J. Robinson’s ‘First Light’ enlightens the moral question of battling between God and societal interests for the greater good.

‘The Furious’ is the near-endpoint of a commixture of action’s past and present done with craft and viscera, done through such technical, tangible movement that it hoists itself up to undeniability, hitting you in the head with insane stuntwork and a self-confident sense of style all the while.

You’re not really supposed to have expectations when it comes to comedy films other than to have fun and laugh. What I’m saying is, I just wanted to have fun with the latest ‘Scary Movie,’ and it was not that fun.

Steven Spielberg’s ‘Disclosure Day’ is a mysterious, captivating adventure that asks us to give ourselves over to not knowing and consider what we would do if the unknown reached out to us. A stellar cast and score by John Williams make this a moving journey worth diving into.

‘Obsession’ represents a more modern iteration of its well-worn premise, and not just in the time period it is set in, for it reveals more than a few off-putting facets that are equally disturbing as the big moments it builds towards.

An exploration of sights and bodies through an erotic travelogue, ‘Queer’ challenges the emotional turmoil through longing desires that are unseen by the audience.

‘Masters of the Universe’ is a fun, campy, yet flawed romp through the world of Eternia that wears its heart and love for the source material on its sleeve.

Adapted from his popular YouTube series, Kane Parsons' ‘Backrooms’ is less frightening because of its monsters than because of what it presents about memory. The endless maze becomes a reflection of memory itself, trapping its characters inside imperfect versions of the past that they can revisit but never truly return to. 

‘In the Grey’ is a damn good time at the cinema, a breezy heist pic that goes on with its own schemes with such confidence that you can’t help but be swept along.