The January installment of The Cube Cinema Series showcases one of the best and most innovative films of the past few years, Flow (2024).  Please join us on Jan. 9 for a show that is suitable for all ages. Tickets: mca80238.com/mca-calendar/cube-cinema-series-flow.

This month I review films that include two of the best performances of the year, and both are legitimate Oscar contenders for Best Actress. Happy New Year. I’ll see you at The Cube!

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You (2025)

While this film is certainly worthy of a viewing, I include a review because of Rose Byrne’s performance as a woman (Linda) caring for her mysteriously ill daughter, managing her own career as a therapist, and doing all of it on her own while the father is away at work. When an accident creates a giant hole in the ceiling of their apartment, Linda and her daughter move to a dingy hotel room. To say that Linda then has an existential crisis is akin to saying Moby Dick is about a guy and a whale. Byrne’s work is eye-opening, a can’t-turn-away-from-it-performance even though her actions urge us to do just that. You won’t turn away from this intriguing film and Oscar-worthy performance.

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You

The story of the film begins with writer-director Mary Bronstein, who had similar real-life experiences. Bronstein worked in the theater before making the indie film Yeast in 2008, a debut that would eventually develop a small cult following but at the time received mostly negative reviews and reactions. Stung by the experience, Bronstein abandoned filmmaking and ran an underground childcare service in New York City. She eventually wound up in a San Diego motel room with her sick child, subsequently having her own crisis. That set the stage for the screenplay and her return to filmmaking.

Back to Byrne. After a screening of the film in October, most people left the theater visibly shaken, and many were in tears. You may be as well; Byrne’s performance is so real and raw that it is uncomfortable, stinging, and penetrating. Several critics have called the performance “over the top” while labeling the film “too much” or “too chaotic.” It should come as no surprise that those critics were of the same gender. This critic—also from that same gender—found the film, and Byrne’s performance, at times completely relatable, at times frightening, and at times ethereal. And brilliant.

Available now for streaming rental.

Hamnet (2025)

This beautiful Oscar contender is one of the few must-see films of the year and is currently the frontrunner for the big award. An emotional, fictional account of William Shakespeare’s life and his inspiration for writing “Hamlet,” it was adapted for the screen and directed by Chloé Zhao, the Academy Award-winning director of Nomadland in 2021.

Hamnet

The film is one of the best of the year, but I include this review alongside If I had Legs I’d Kick You because of the astonishing performance of Jessie Buckley as Shakespeare’s wife, Agnes (Anne in real life) and the true center of the film. I see the Best Actress category as a two-person race between Buckley and Byrne, and it is one of the more intriguing races of the year. Both would be deserving, and both films are worth viewing for many reasons.

Now in theaters.

Look for more reviews at frontporchne.com and sign up for our weekly newsletter for updates on screenings and more from the film world.

Vincent Piturro, PhD, is a Professor of Film and Media Studies at MSU Denver. Contact him at  vpiturro@msudenver.org or follow him on X. For more reviews, search The Indie Prof at FrontPorchNE.com.