Here are Cinephile Corner’s 10 recommendations for movies like The Baltimorons:
The Holdovers
The Holdovers is a gem that sits among the best films of 2023. The movie‘s engaging narrative, stellar performances, and melancholic tone makes it a standout addition to the holiday film canon. Three central performances by Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa, and Da’Vine Joy Randolph pull the film together.
Sacramento
Sacramento is a good-not-great entry into the buddy road trip genre. It won’t blow you away, but if you’re a fan of its cast—Michael Cera, Michael Angarano, and Kristen Stewart included—there’s enough charm here to make it worth the ride.
Goodrich
Goodrich is the kind of mid-budget adult drama that feels increasingly rare in today’s film landscape. Once a staple of the box office, movies like this now struggle to find an audience, often landing as overlooked streaming releases rather than getting a fair shot in theaters. It’s a shame because, while Goodrich isn’t a revelation, it’s a solid, well-acted film that relies on the strength of its cast—especially Michael Keaton—to elevate its familiar premise.
Friendship
Friendship is one of the more unique comedies of 2025—a weird, squirm-inducing, unexpectedly affecting film that feels true to its title in all the worst (and best) ways. It’s another feather in A24’s cap for championing daring, off-kilter voices in comedy. If you’re in tune with Tim Robinson’s specific wavelength, it’s a must-watch.
About Schmidt
About Schmidt is a good film, one that sits comfortably in Alexander Payne’s filmography but doesn’t quite reach the heights of his later classics. For fans of Payne’s more nuanced works, it’s an important piece, but it doesn’t carry the same emotional punch or cultural impact as his more well-known projects.
Materialists
Materialists feels like a transitional work. It shows Celine Song experimenting with scale, ensemble dynamics, and new narrative textures—but it lacks the intimacy and precision that defined her first film. It’s a movie with moments that flirt with those same highs in small doses, but one that ultimately falls short. Still, it leaves me hopeful: the emotional territory Song wants to chart is rare in contemporary cinema, and while Materialists stumbles, it’s a sign that she’s aiming high. Her best films are likely still ahead.
You’re Cordially Invited
Nicholas Stoller’s career has had its highs and lows, and You’re Cordially Invited is another entry that feels stuck in the middle. The writer-director behind Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Neighbors once had a knack for sharp, self-aware comedy, but his recent films, including Neighbors 2 and Bros, have felt like diminishing returns. His latest, a straight-to-Prime Video release starring Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon, had the potential to reignite his creative spark. Unfortunately, while there are glimmers of his old magic, the film ultimately feels too safe and forgettable to leave much of an impact.
Babes
Babes is the sort of down-the-line comedy that feels like a relic of the past. Nowadays, studio comedies are often hampered by another genre – superheroes, horror, action, etc. – so the occasional one that feels comfortable in its own skin and actually makes you laugh feels like a breath of fresh air. And this time, that breath comes from Ilana Glazer and Michelle Buteau‘s Babes, a comedy about motherhood and friendships as you grow older. It’s uncomplicatedly funny, with a surprisingly earnest and dramatic side to match.
Will & Harper
Will & Harper feels wholesome and welcoming about a topic that usually becomes all too political and nasty in our current climate. Transgender people often get objectified as a way to rile up an ideology one way or another, and we rarely get to see such an insightful look at the way we process change, especially change that is as big as transitioning from one gender or another.
Between the Temples
Between the Temples is yet another addition to the sustained heater that its lead actor Jason Schwartzman is on. What’s even more impressive is that Schwartzman’s recent run of success, from being top billed in Wes Anderson‘s dollhouse Western Asteroid City, to starring as the crazed Games announcer in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, to voicing the adequately titled villain Spot in Across the Spider-Verse, to now playing a grief-stricken Jewish cantor in the grainy, lo-fi comedy Between the Temples, is that his range is unmatched by nearly anyone in Hollywood.
