‘The Ugly Stepsister’ is a bold social commentary on how women are not born with a criterion for perfection in mind, but instead are deliberately instilled for ages.

‘Call Me Mother’ demonstrates that motherhood transcends gender and is not defined by birth or blood. It comes in many forms, each leaving a meaningful impact on a child’s life.

‘Unmarry’ by Jeffrey Jeturian explores annulment as a grueling negotiation with law, memory, and selfhood. Anchored by strong performances, the film is restrained, compassionate, and at times, heartbreaking.

At the end of the day, I would have loved for ‘Shake, Rattle & Roll: Evil Origins’ to explore more of colonial horror and how it haunts generations, but it barely gives us anything to work with.

The Gawad CCP Para sa Alternatibong Pelikula at Video, commonly referred to as Gawad Alternatibo, remains a testament to the enduring power of alternative cinema as a space for voices that push, question, and reimagine. Across narrative, experimental, documentary, and animation short films, this year’s lineup brings together works that move away from familiar formulas and instead sit with stories that are often overlooked, uneasy, or hard to pin down. These films are grounded in lived experience, shaped by personal, political, and social realities, and made with an intent to question how stories are usually told. For 37 years, the Gawad Alternatibo continues to champion alternative filmmaking as a form of resistance.

‘Bar Boys: After School’ follows former dreamers who have already crossed the finish line they once chased, only to find themselves facing a different kind of uncertainty. Ten years pass, and the film places licensed lawyers beside struggling students, showing how ambition does not vanish with success but takes a new shape. The film carries familiar lives forward and opens the story into a reflection on fatigue, compromise, and a form of hope that persists within a system that fails to meet people halfway.

‘Manila’s Finest’s’ posturing of a distinct personal experience during a pivotal moment in Philippine history belies a more minutely bleak, complex, and gut-churning deconstructive narrative.

Krystel Go and Earl Jonathan Amaba lead with charm in this romantic film, where two persons with Down Syndrome find love and grow up. ‘I’MPERFECT’ roots for them like we do, but tells their story while holding our hands more than it needs to.

Even the endearing performances of Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, along with their undeniable chemistry, are not enough to rescue ‘The History of Sound’ from being a dull period drama. It is such a pity that it was wasted by a very boring execution.

 ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 marks a brave and bold outing for the DCU — one that emphasizes character development, with the cross-dimensional adventures serving as both a backdrop and a slingshot toward the universe’s future.

With both its sharpest writing and structuring in years, this year's eight-episode run is Sunny at its most character-centric, hilarious, and relatively grounded. Still would've wanted more episodes, though.

‘Adolescence’ exemplifies and extends the problems of misogyny, incel culture, and the nature of social media beyond what we know and usually practice, exploring how each of us has our own roles in protecting young children online.

Beyond the exquisite cooking and dynamic character moments, The Bear season four further draws its strength from portraying deeply flawed human beings, characters who reflect who they are and who they might become, despite their shortcomings.

‘The Four Seasons,’ starring Tina Fey, Colman Domingo, and Steve Carrell, as 3 middle-aged couples going on weekend getaways for each season of the year, is guaranteed to win over most audiences with its wisdom and subtlety.

Where ‘Andor’ truly stands out from other mainstream stories on war, is its fearlessness into showing the murkier and uglier sides to waging revolutions.