The best cinema releases in August 2025

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She Rides Shotgun

Fri 1 Aug

Taron Egerton, Ana Sophia Heger, Rob Yang and John Carroll Lynch star in this tight crime thriller by Nick Rowland (Calm with Horses). After years in prison, Nate (Egerton) has made some dangerous enemies - including the powerful criminal gang he worked for on the inside. Desperate for a fresh start in the outside world, he cuts all ties with the old crew and attempts to rebuild his life. This enrages the gang, who retaliate by putting a hit on his family. So, Nate picks up Polly, the shy eleven-year-old daughter he hardly knows, and goes on the run.  

As they attempt to stay off the radar, it becomes clear that their pursuers are relentless. Nate teaches Polly how to survive and watches her transform from a timid little girl into a force to be reckoned with. He, in turn, learns what it is to love unconditionally as he bonds with his daughter and battles for their shared future.  

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Freakier Friday

Fri 8 Aug

This sequel to the beloved 2003 film brings with it a new multigenerational twist, as Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reprise their iconic roles as Tess and Anna Coleman. We now find Anna has a daughter of her own and a soon-to-be stepdaughter.  

As everyone navigates the myriad challenges that come when two families merge, Tess and Anna discover that lightning might indeed strike twice. Other original cast members returning for this overdue sequel include Mark Harmon (Secret Service special agent Simon Donovan from The West Wing), Chad Michael Murray, Christina Vidal Mitchell, Haley Hudson, Lucille Soong, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Rosalind Chao.

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Together

Fri 15 Aug

Real-life married couple, Dave Franco (Bad Neighbours, Day Shift) and Alison Brie (Mad Men, GLOW), play partners in this supernatural body horror. Years into their relationship, Tim and Millie find themselves at a crossroads as they move to the country. They move to the country, abandoning all that is familiar in their lives, except each other. With tensions already flaring, a nightmarish encounter with a mysterious, unnatural force threatens to corrupt their lives, their love, and their flesh.

Australian writer-director Michael Shanks directorial debut explores anxiety, expectation and co-dependency. Accompanied by plenty of festival excitement and enough grisly imagery to appease most horror fans, this one is asking all the right questions.

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Americana

Fri 15 Aug

Tony Tost (Poker Face) directs Sydney Sweeney, Paul Walter Hauser, Halsey, Simon Rex, with Eric Dane, and Zahn McClarnon in this neatly constructed cross between a modern-day western and an uncompromising crime thriller. It draws together a gallery of dynamic characters who are all competing for the possession of a rare Native American artifact.  

After the prize falls onto the black market, a shy waitress with big dreams (Sweeney) teams up with a lovelorn military veteran (Hauser) to gain possession of it. This puts them in the crosshairs of a ruthless criminal and an eager antiquities dealer. Soon, the leader of an indigenous group and a desperate woman fleeing her mysterious past are joining the bloodiest of battles.  

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Nobody 2

Sat 15 Aug

Hutch Mansell (Bob Odenkirk) is back. He might seem like an ordinary, middle-aged suburban bloke. But, he secretly possesses a very specialised set of skills. Most of them revolve around being double-hard. Now, he finds out that the most dangerous place for a dad is on a family holiday.

Four years after he single-handedly took on the Russian mob, he remains heavily in debt to them. This is slowly being worked off with a series of assignations, but the relentless nature of his work is taking its toll on his relationships. Going on holiday offers no respite, as he soon finds himself at odds with a corrupt theme-park operator, corrupt law enforcement, and a bad-tempered crime boss.

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Hollywood Grit

Fri 22 Aug

Taking us through the neon-lit shadows of Los Angeles, this is a tale embedded in glamour, grit, and secrets waiting to be unearthed. We follow Mitchel “Grit” Thorn, a once-respected private investigator whose life and career have unravelled. When his estranged daughter Ava, a gifted jazz singer, vanishes from a notorious Hollywood club, Grit is forced to confront the city’s dark underbelly—and his own failures.

As he hunts for answers, Grit navigates a treacherous world of mob enforcers, crooked club owners, and faded starlets, each guarding secrets more dangerous than the last. What begins as a missing-persons case becomes a last chance at redemption—a brutal reckoning in a city built on broken dreams.

Hollywood Grit is a love letter to classic noir cinema, embracing smoky jazz clubs, neon-soaked streets, and razor-sharp dialogue. But it doesn’t just pay homage. It expands on those traditions with dynamic storytelling, richly drawn characters, and a visceral emotional core.

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Honey Don’t

Fri 22 Aug

Last year, Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke offered up Drive-Away Dolls - the first installment in their loose “lesbian B-movie trilogy”.  Now it’s star, Margaret Qualley (The Substance), joins the incomparable Aubrey Plaza, and Chris Evans for a second visit to the slightly odd cinematic universe.  

This dark comedy revolves around a small-town private investigator, who has been drawn into a series of strange deaths involving a mysterious church. Bright, smart, and sexy, this stylish crime caper offers something between an old gumshoe noir and a slightly infuriating puzzle box.

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The Roses

Fri 29 Aug

A reimagining of Danny DeVito’s 1989 black-comedy, Jay Roach (Meet The Parents) casts an unwavering eye at a couple fighting to the death. Perhaps the most savage and hilarious portrait of an imploding marriage you’ll see this year, The Roses stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman.

A romantic comedy where both leads appear to hate each other, one is an acclaimed architect whose career is taking off, the other a chef famous only in the trendiest of circles. Life seems easy for this picture-perfect couple. There’s success, great kids, and an enviable sex life. But underneath the façade is a tinderbox of competition. When their success and roles are reversed, resentment and toxicity begin to creep in.