ChiFilmFest 2025 WATCHLIST
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The 61st Chicago International Film Festival kicks off this month from October 15-26, 2025 you can find more information about tickets here.
Below is our ChiFilmFest 2025 WATCHLIST
A Poet - Attempting to revive his career, struggling poet Oscar mentors a young writer from a lower-class neighborhood. Directed by Simón Mesa Soto [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
A Useful Ghost - After dying from a respiratory disease, a mother’s spirit possesses a vacuum cleaner to protect her husband when he begins showing the same symptoms. Directed by Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
Bugonia - Two conspiracy-obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth. Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
Father Mother Sister Brother - Estranged siblings reunite after years apart, forced to confront unresolved tensions and reevaluate their strained relationships with their emotionally distant parents. Directed by Jim Jarmusch [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
Hamnet - The powerful story of love and loss that inspired the creation of Shakespeare’s masterpiece, Hamlet. Directed by Chloé Zhao [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Is This Thing On? - As their marriage quietly unravels, Alex faces middle age and an impending divorce, seeking new purpose in the New York comedy scene while Tess confronts the sacrifices she made for their family—forcing them to navigate co-parenting, identity, and whether love can take a new form. Directed by Bradley Cooper [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
It Was Just an Accident - When Vahid thinks he recognizes his former torturer, he sets out to prove the man’s identity even as he’s plagued by doubt in this gripping revenge thriller. Directed by Jafar Panahi [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Jay Kelly - Famous movie actor Jay Kelly embarks on a journey of self discovery confronting both his past and present, accompanied by his devoted manager Ron. Directed by Noah Baumbach [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
Magellan - Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan embarks on a brutal campaign of colonial conquest in Southeast Asia, but madness soon takes hold. Directed by Lav Diaz [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Miroirs No. 3 - After surviving a violent car crash in the countryside, dazed Laura is taken in by a mysterious local woman whose devoted care belies a dark past. Directed by Christian Petzold [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Mother of Flies - When a young woman faces a deadly diagnosis, she seeks dark magic from a witch in the woods… but every cure has costs. Directed by Zelda Adams, John Adams, Toby Poser [HORROR] [TICKETS]
No Other Choice - After being unemployed for several years, a man devises a unique plan to secure a new job: eliminate his competition. Directed by Park Chan-wook [COMEDY] [TICKETS]
Resurrection - In a world where humanity has lost the ability to dream, one creature remains entranced by the fading illusions of the dreamworld. This monster, adrift in reverie, clings to visions no one else can see — until a woman appears. Directed by Bi Gan [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Sentimental Value - Two sisters reunited with their estranged filmmaker father must confront their family’s complex past when he returns to direct a very personal film. Directed by Joachim Trier [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Sirāt - After a young woman goes missing at a rave, her father and brother brave the arid Moroccan landscape searching for her in a world on the brink of collapse. Directed by Oliver Laxe [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The Holy Boy - In Italy's happiest village, a haunted teacher discovers dark secret behind weekly gatherings where locals seek healing from a teenage boy's embrace. His quest to save the youth reveals the sinister nature of a community hiding behind joy. Directed by Paolo Strippoli [HORROR] [TICKETS]
The Love That Remains - Captures a year in the life of a family as the parents navigate their separation. Through both playful and heartfelt moments, the film portrays the bittersweet essence of faded love and shared memories amidst the changing seasons. Directed by Hlynur Pálmason [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The Mastermind - In suburban Massachusetts circa 1970, an unemployed carpenter turned art thief plans his first big heist. When things go haywire, his life unravels. Directed by Kelly Reichardt [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The Plague - A socially awkward tween endures the ruthless hierarchy at a water polo camp, his anxiety spiraling into psychological turmoil over the summer. Directed by Charlie Polinger [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The President’s Cake - Unlucky nine-year-old Lamia is forced to get creative when she’s tasked with baking a cake in celebration of Saddam Hussein’s birthday. Directed by Hasan Hadi [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The Testament of Ann Lee - An epic fable about religious leader Ann Lee, the founding leader of the Shaker Movement, who was proclaimed by her followers as the female Christ and went on to build one of the largest utopian societies in American history. [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
The Voice of Hind Rajab - January 29, 2024. Red Crescent volunteers receive an emergency call. A 6-year old girl is trapped in a car under fire in Gaza, pleading for rescue. While trying to keep her on the line, they do everything they can to get an ambulance to her. Her name was Hind Rajab. Directed by Kaouther Ben Hania [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Train Dreams - Day laborer Robert Grainier is employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss and unique bonds, on a journey that is both distinct and universal. Directed by Clint Bentley [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery - After a sudden and seemingly impossible murder rocks the town, the lack of an obvious suspect prompts local police chief Geraldine Scott to join forces with renowned detective Benoit Blanc to unravel a mystery that defies all logic. Directed by Rian Johnson [MYSTERY] [TICKETS]
What Marielle Knows - Julia and Tobias’ seemingly perfect marriage is threatened when their daughter Marielle develops telepathic powers in this hilarious and offbeat dark comedy. Directed by Frédéric Hambalek [DRAMA] [TICKETS]
