Now that we’re approaching the end of the year with (frankly terrifying) speed, it’s time to explore what our members chose as their favourite films of the 2025 Film Society programme!
We asked you to pick your top three from a list containing all our screened feature films this year, and after crunching the numbers, we have some exciting results. Especially thrilling is the fact that every single film ended up on at least one respondent’s top three picks. This tells us that, while a few films were less appealing, there were no out-and-out disasters in the picks for the 2025 programme.
Thanks for all your kind words and supportive feedback! We’re taking all the feedback on board and using it to shape the ways we describe films in our programme, the way we develop the themes that will run through 2026, and doing everything we can to bring more people to the Embassy for next year!
Here’s the top ten, with a few thoughts on each:
Number 10: The Crossing. While this film was one of the lowest attendances for the year, those who came along found Florence Miailhe’s animated story of refugees enthralling. “By far one of the best films I have ever seen,” one respondent said.
Number 8 (tied): My Life as a Dog. ‘A perfect picture”, as one response said, this gentle story calmed some nerves after our short horror season. Speaking of…
Number 8 (tied): Suspiria. Dario Argento’s hallucinatory and jarring story of the occult was the reason one of our members “finally decided to commit and join the Film Society”. High praise indeed!
Number 6 (tied): It’s a Wonderful Life. “A great way to end the year,” as it was described. Some viewers found this one a bit saccharine, but when else are you going to see it on the big screen?
Number 6 (tied): Polyester. The Odorama cards made this one a memorable event for our members: “Will not soon forget the smell of fart erupting in the theater.” That’s the only time we’ll ever get that review in a positive way.
Number 5: PATU! The introduction by editor Annie Collins helped make this a firm favourite for many attendees. While we were sad to miss How Far is Heaven, we’re certainly not upset that we got to play this masterpiece of Aotearoa documentary in its stead.
Number 4: Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai. Jim Jarmusch’s seminal blend of hip-hop and Bushido, in the words of one respondent, “is something I have never seen before. It could have been so goofy, but the performances sell the story so well.”
And now, the medallists…
Number 3: The Red Shoes. This “visually incomparable” film was a real favourite for one first-time member of the Wellington Film Society, and a cinema treat for a great many others. Twelve respondents voted this as their favourite film of the year.
Number 2: All That Jazz. Unsurprisingly, our opening and closing films were once again big favourites. Twenty-one people picked Bob Fosse’s pseudo-autobiographical fever dream for first place, and one person wrote “I have not stopped thinking about it.” What a film to have seared into your brain for a year!
Number 1: High and Low. A bit of a surprise, being the least-known of our three Kurosawa films, but with a 96% rating on our website, and the firm support of thirty-eight first place votes, High and Low ran away with the title this year. One member listed, among the ‘dishonorable mentions’, “Sod’s Law, for making it so that the only time we decided not to come to the screening all year was for High and Low – the highest-rated film in WFS history…”
Thanks again to all those who shared their thoughts with us. We’re thrilled to provide the best films in the world with the people who love them, and we can’t wait to see you for some special moments at the movies in the New Year!