Ranking the Movies I Saw in June 2025

With June at an end, it is time to share my thoughts and ranking of all of the June movies that I saw. June was a pretty solid month for movies with all of the movies actually being good. I ended up seeing 6 movies in the theaters and 1 streaming movie. After some slower months, it was nice to have a lot of movies come out again. If the rest of summer continues this trend, it should be a pretty good summer for movies. With all of that said, here are my thoughts and ranking of the 7 new releases that I saw.

7. M3GAN 2.0

M3GAN 2.0 was the worst movie I saw this month, but it was still a very entertaining movie. M3GAN 2.0 takes the franchise in a Terminator 2 direction, where M3GAN turns good and has to help fight a more formidable AI robot. The movie is very entertaining. Everything moves at a brisk pace from one action sequence to the next. I also like that M3GAN gets more of a personality with lots of quippy comments and sarcastic remarks. However, this movie does get pretty dumb. This is what I consider a Junk Food movie; it is easy to watch and is superficially entertaining, but when you get down to the plot details, it gets a little dumb. There are a lot of aspects to the plot that don't make a ton of sense. The main antagonist's plan is a bit stupid. I also thought the character of Gemma was a bit all over the place with her opinions on AI and M3GAN. The biggest issue I had with the film is that it kind of loses the essence of the original film. The first M3GAN was a small-scale Sci-Fi thriller with themes about the dangers of AI and using technology in the place of parenting. This movie becomes a Sci-Fi action film with some Mission: Impossible spy stuff thrown in there. It also doesn't have a clear message like the first film did. Overall, while it has some flaws and flimsy logic, I was still entertained by this film.

Score: 6/10 Grade: C+

6. How to Train Your Dragon

The live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon is one of the better live-action remakes out there. The movie is a very faithful remake of the original film. While a lot of other live-action remakes feel empty, this film still manages to capture the magic and emotion of the original film. You still get all of the same emotions that you get from the original film. Everything about the movie also feels bigger and more epic which is something that only live-action films can really do. I thought the casting here was very well done. All of the main characters feel perfectly cast. All of the younger characters feel like perfect live-action versions of their characters. I also thought that the dragons in this film looked very good. It looks like they are standing next to these characters instead of bad CGI. While it is a very faithful and safe remake, it also feels extremely unnecessary. A lot of the other remakes will flesh out a character more or add something new, whether for better or worse, to the story. This movie is just a shot-for-shot remake of the original film. In this case, I prefer to just watch the original. In the end, while this is a good and faithful movie as far as remakes go, at the end of the day, I'm just going to watch the original film.

Score: 7/10 Grade: B

5. The Phoenician Scheme

The Phoenician Scheme is the newest film from Wes Anderson. Wes Anderson has a unique style in his filmmaking, and this film is no exception. As with all other Wes Anderson films, I appreciate the quirky tone and vibe the movie exudes. There are a lot of outlandish and absurd things that are happening and the characters just play it straight like it is completely normal. The two leads, Benicio Del Toro and Mia Threapleton are both great in the film. Benicio Del Toro's character is the one who plays everything straight and treats all the weirdness like it is normal. Mia Threapleton is a bit more aware of what is going on and comments on her concerns which make the events even funnier. Michael Cera is also great in the movie. He is the type of actor that is perfect for a Wes Anderson movie. The movie also has quite the star-studded cast with Tom Hanks, Scarlet Johansson, Willem Dafoe, Benedict Cumberbatch, Bryan Cranston, Jefferey Wright, and Bill Murray. The movie does feel a bit episodic with very clear sections each with a new "guest star" so in that way it is a bit clunky. At times it feels like scenes are made just to include these famous people instead of for the sake of a good story. Overall, while a bit clunky at times, this was a pretty entertaining movie and the best of the two Wes Anderson movies I have seen.

Score: 7.5/10 Grade: B

4. Materialists

Materialists is a new rom-com from the director of Past Lives and stars Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pedro Pascal. As far as rom-coms go, this one was pretty decent. It isn't your typical love triangle story as the poster and trailer would imply. Instead, the movie focuses more on the Dakota Johnson character as she grows as a person learning to not be so materialistic as well as discovering how she can still deserve love. A big part of the movie is all about self-worth and whether you need a partner to make you feel valued which I thought was an interesting way to go. The movie also makes some interesting points about how even if a certain person checks all of the right boxes for you, it doesn't mean you will connect at that deeper level. I thought all three main actors delivered great performances. It is nice to see Chris Evans actually be in a good movie after Avengers Endgame. As for negatives, I found myself getting a bit bored after Pedro Pascal left the film. The movie just shifts in a different direction tonally and loses a little steam for me. I also wasn't totally satisfied with how the movie ended. In the end, while it was a decent enough rom-com, these aren't my thing but I think other fans of the genre will like it.

Score: 7.5/10 Grade: B

3. Predator: Killer of Killers

This was a secret Predator movie that was quietly released on Hulu. I liked how this film shows the Predators facing off against warriors across Earth's history. It works well with the premise of the franchise and I think is a good direction to go in the future. I liked how the three stories show each warrior defeating the Predator in their own way. While the stories are all separate, the movie does a great job of tying them all together in the end with a big finale. The action in the movie was also a lot of fun. There were a lot of violent moments that can only really work in animation. The animation style was also unique. It reminded me a lot of the animation style of What If.... as it looks more hand drawn instead of computer animated. The main thing keeping this movie from the top is that it is very episodic. It has four very clear 20-minute sections. I feel like the movie would have worked much better as a 4 episode mini-series. That way it would have been able to space the stories out and add intrigue about what is going on. Overall, while this is a solid addition to the Predator franchise, the way it was structured would have worked better as a TV show.

Score: 7.5/10 Grade: B

2. Ballerina

Ballerina was one of my most anticipated movies of the year and the best movie of the month. This movie is a perfect example of how to do a spin-off film. Ballerina does a great job of building out the world of John Wick but instead of just sticking to the parts we already know, the movie adds whole new aspects of this secret society with a new less high-class organization. I thought Ana De Armas was great as the lead. She does all the action sequences well and has a good screen presence. As usual for this franchise, the action is top-notch. It continues to have highly stylized action sequences that keep you invested in the story. I like how Ana De Armas' action is different than John Wick's as he is very polished and precise while she is more grab whatever is close to her and use it type action. I thought the usage of John Wick was well done too. He is in it a decent amount but doesn't distract from what Ana De Armas is doing. The best parts of the movie, he is not even in. That is how you can tell he isn't overshadowing. In the end, Ballerina is a great action film and continues to flesh out the world of John Wick.

Score: 8.5/10 Grade: A-

1. F1: The Movie

F1: The Movie is one of the most enjoyable movies I've watched this year. F1 is just a classic original summer blockbuster. I appreciate that this is an original story, as we just don't get many of those these days. The movie is full of excitement and practical effects. The camera work puts you right in the middle of the action as you feel like you are sitting in the car with the drivers. Every race is just so exciting, but also each feels a little bit different, as every race that goes on has a different outcome than the previous one. This movie reminds me a lot of Ford Vs Ferrari and Gran Turismo, but without the flaws of those films. I also like how the movie plays things safe, but also doesn't totally stick with the typical racing formula. Every time, you think the movie is going to go a certain direction, it takes things in a slightly different direction. I thought Brad Pitt was at the top of this game in this movie. He brings his normal effortless charm that makes everyone not help but like him. Overall, this movie was such a blast as it brings back the classic blockbuster feel. This is my favorite movie of the year so far.

Score: 9/10 Grade: A-