The 2025 edition of the Sundance Film Festival is a little over a week away and it’s time for us to talk about movies that will be the talk of Sundance, movies that push the envelope of imagination and reality, movies that should not be missed and lastly underrated movies that are a must watch as well. The list below is not comprehensive and the goal is not to rank order any of the movies in this list. From films by critically acclaimed directors like Ira Sachs and Richard Linklater to actors like Benedict Cumberbatch, Diego Luna, Olivia Coleman, Dev Patel, Jennifer Lopez and Rose Bryne, the list also focuses on independent films by new exciting directors and filmmakers to look out for in the future. In no particular order, we are listing 25 feature films that are a must watch if you are planning to check out the festival.
Jimpa

Synopsis: Hannah takes her nonbinary teenager, Frances, to Amsterdam to visit their gay grandfather, Jim — lovingly known as Jimpa. But Frances’ desire to stay abroad with Jimpa for a year means Hannah is forced to reconsider her beliefs about parenting and finally confront old stories about the past.
Directed By: Sophie Hyde
Cast: Olivia Colman, John Lithgow, Aud Mason-Hyde
Brides

Synopsis: Two teenage girls in search of freedom, friendship, and belonging run away from their troubled lives with a misguided plan of traveling to Syria.
Directed By: Nadia Fall
Cast: Ebada Hassan, Safiyya Ingar, Yusra Warsama, Cemre Ebuzziya, Aziz Capkurt
Bubble & Squeak

Synopsis: Accused of smuggling cabbages into a nation where cabbages are banned, Declan and Delores must confront the fragility of their new marriage while on the run for their lives.
Directed By: Evan Twohy
Cast: Himesh Patel, Sarah Goldberg, Steven Yeun, Dave Franco, Matt Berry
All That’s Left of You

Synopsis: After a Palestinian teen confronts Israeli soldiers at a West Bank protest, his mother recounts the series of events that led him to that fateful moment, starting with his grandfather’s forced displacement.
Directed By: Cherien Dabis
Cast: Cherien Dabis, Saleh Bakri, Adam Bakri, Mohammad Bakri, Maria Zreik, Muhammad Abed Elrahman
Twinless

Synopsis: Two young men meet in a twin bereavement support group and form an unlikely bromance.
Directed By: James Sweeney
Cast: Dylan O’Brien, James Sweeney, Lauren Graham, Aisling Franciosi, Tasha Smith, Chris Perfetti
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

Synopsis: With her life crashing down around her, Linda attempts to navigate her child’s mysterious illness, her absent husband, a missing person, and an increasingly hostile relationship with her therapist.
Directed By: Mary Bronstein
Cast: Rose Byrne, A$AP Rocky, Conan O’Brien, Danielle Macdonald, Ivy Wolk, Daniel Zolghadri
Sukkwan Island

Synopsis: On the remote Sukkwan Island, 13-year-old Roy agrees to spend a formative year of adventure with his father deep in the Norwegian fjords. What starts as a chance to reconnect descends into a test of survival as they face the harsh realities of their environment and confront their unresolved turmoil.
Directed By: Vladimir de Fontenay
Cast: Swann Arlaud, Woody Norman, Alma Pöysti, Ruaridh Mollica, Tuppence Middleton
Rabbit Trap

Synopsis: When a musician and her husband move to a remote house in Wales, the music they make disturbs local ancient folk magic, bringing a nameless child to their door who is intent on infiltrating their lives.
Directed By: Bryn Chainey
Cast: Dev Patel, Rosy McEwen, Jade Croot
The Ballad of Wallis Island

Synopsis: Eccentric lottery winner, Charles, dreams of getting his favorite musicians, McGwyer Mortimer, back together. His fantasy turns into reality when the bandmates and former lovers accept his invitation to play a private show at his home on Wallis Island. Old tensions resurface as Charles tries desperately to salvage his dream gig.
Directed By: James Griffiths
Cast: Tom Basden, Tim Key, Sian Clifford, Akemnji Ndifornyen, Carey Mulligan
East of Wall

Synopsis: After the death of her husband, Tabatha — a young, tattooed, rebellious horse trainer — wrestles with financial insecurity and unresolved grief while providing refuge for a group of wayward teenagers on her broken-down ranch in the Badlands.
Directed By: Kate Beecroft
Cast: Tabatha Zimiga, Porshia Zimiga, Scoot McNairy, Jennifer Ehle
Bunnylovr

Synopsis: A drifting Chinese American cam girl struggles to navigate an increasingly toxic relationship with one of her clients while rekindling her relationship with her dying estranged father.
Directed By: Katarina Zhu
Cast: Katarina Zhu, Rachel Sennott, Austin Amelio, Perry Yung, Jack Kilmer
The Thing with Feathers

Synopsis: Struggling to process the sudden and unexpected death of his wife, a young father loses his hold on reality as a seemingly malign presence begins to stalk him from the shadowy recesses of the apartment he shares with his two young sons.
Directed By: Dylan Southern
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Richard Boxall, Henry Boxall, Eric Lampaert, Vinette Robinson, Sam Spruell
Train Dreams

Synopsis: Robert Grainier is a day laborer building America’s railroads at the start of the 20th century as he experiences profound love, shocking defeat, and a world irrevocably transforming before his very eyes.
Directed By: Clint Bentley
Cast: Joel Edgerton, Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon, William H. Macy
Oh, Hi!

Synopsis: Iris and Isaac’s first romantic weekend getaway goes awry.
Directed By: Sophie Brooks
Cast: Molly Gordon, Logan Lerman, Geraldine Viswanathan, John Reynolds
Sunfish (& Other Stories on Green Lake)

Synopsis: Lives intertwine around Green Lake as a girl learns to sail, a boy fights for first chair, two sisters operate a bed-and-breakfast, and a fisherman is after the catch of his life.
Directed By: Sierra Falconer
Cast: Maren Heary, Jim Kaplan, Karsen Liotta, Dominic Bogart, Tenley Kellogg, Emily Hall
Kiss Of The Spider Woman

Synopsis: Valentín, a political prisoner, shares a cell with Molina, a window dresser convicted of public indecency. The two form an unlikely bond as Molina recounts the plot of a Hollywood musical starring his favorite silver screen diva, Ingrid Luna.
Directed By: Bill Condon
Cast: Diego Luna, Tonatiuh, Jennifer Lopez, Bruno Bichir, Josefina Scaglione, Aline Mayagoitia
Together

Synopsis: With a move to the countryside already testing the limits of a couple’s relationship, a supernatural encounter begins an extreme transformation of their love, their lives, and their flesh.
Directed By: Michael Shanks
Cast: Dave Franco, Alison Brie, Damon Herriman
Peter Hujar’s Day

Synopsis: A recently discovered conversation between photographer Peter Hujar and his friend Linda Rosenkrantz in 1974 reveals a glimpse into New York City’s downtown art scene and the personal struggles and epiphanies that define an artist’s life.
Directed By: Ira Sachs
Cast: Ben Whishaw, Rebecca Hall
Opus

Synopsis: A young writer is invited to the remote compound of a legendary pop star who mysteriously disappeared 30 years ago. Surrounded by the star’s cult of sycophants and intoxicated journalists, she finds herself in the middle of his twisted plan.
Directed By: Mark Anthony Green
Cast: Ayo Edebiri, John Malkovich, Juliette Lewis, Murray Bartlett, Amber Midthunder
Last Days

Synopsis: Determined to fulfill his life’s mission, 26-year-old John Allen Chau embarks on a dangerous adventure across the globe to convert the uncontacted tribe of North Sentinel Island to Christianity, while a detective from the Andaman Islands races to stop him before he does harm to himself or the tribe.
Directed By: Justin Lin
Cast: Sky Yang, Radhika Apte, Naveen Andrews, Ken Leung, Toby Wallace, Ciara Bravo
Sabar Bonda

Synopsis: Anand, a 30-something city dweller compelled to spend a 10-day mourning period for his father in the rugged countryside of western India, tenderly bonds with a local farmer struggling to stay unmarried. As the mourning ends, forcing his return, Anand must decide the fate of his relationship born under duress.
Directed By: Rohan Parashuram Kanawade
Cast: Bhushaan Manoj, Suraaj Suman, Jayshri Jagtap
Didn’t Die

Synopsis: A podcast host desperately clings to an ever-shrinking audience in the zombie apocalypse.
Directed By: Meera Menon
Cast: Kiran Deol, George Basil, Samrat Chakrabarti, Katie McCuen, Vishal Vijayakumar
Omaha

Synopsis: After a family tragedy, siblings Ella and Charlie are unexpectedly woken up by their dad and taken on a journey across the country, experiencing a world they’ve never seen before. As their adventure unfolds, Ella begins to understand that things might not be what they seem.
Directed By: Cole Webley
Cast: John Magaro, Molly Belle Wright, Wyatt Solis, Talia Balsam
Love, Brooklyn

Synopsis: Three longtime Brooklynites navigate careers, love, loss, and friendship against the rapidly changing landscape of their beloved city.
Directed By: Rachael Abigail Holder
Cast: André Holland, Nicole Beharie, DeWanda Wise, Roy Wood Jr., Cassandra Freeman, Cadence Reese
The Wedding Banquet

Synopsis: Frustrated with his commitment-phobic boyfriend, Chris, and out of time, Min makes a proposal: a green card marriage with his friend Angela in exchange for expensive in vitro fertilization treatments for her partner, Lee. Plans change when Min’s grandmother surprises them with an elaborate Korean wedding banquet.
Directed By: Andrew Ahn
Cast: Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-chan, Joan Chen, Youn Yuh-jung
For Screening Dates and Times, visit https://festival.sundance.org/program/films/